Page 121 of Fly's Path

That wasn’t a no. But she’s safe now. We’ll worry about the rest later. When both of us have slept in the last twenty-four hours. “I think it’s time for that nap.”

She turns around with a hint of a smile. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re a determined man?”

“Occasionally.” I lift the blanket with one hand and open my arm, hoping she’ll slide over.

“I can be pretty determined myself.” Sheri twists all the way around until she’s facing me. “What if someone finds us napping?”

“Would you care if your friends found out? Because I have to tell you, I don’t care. But if that’s an issue, we can go find a private spot somewhere inside the castle.”

She tips her head to the side, staring at me for a long moment. “No. I don’t care if they know. Most of them helped with our first date, so we aren’t exactly running around in secret.”

“Do you wish we were?” That question is probably pushing too much.

“No. At first, I wanted to keep it secret. Mainly because it was my first kiss, and I didn’t want all of them asking questions or pitying me for never having been kissed before.”

Hearing her say the words is vastly different than guessing that was her first kiss.

“Why are you grinning like that?”

“Like what?” My face feels like it might split in half, but I’m pretty sure she doesn’t want to hear why.

“Spill, my prince.” She pokes me in the side.

The sharp pain is so unexpected that I groan.

“What’s wrong? Why did that hurt? That shouldn’t have hurt. I didn’t poke you that hard. At least I didn’t think I did, but I must have. I’m so sorry. See what I mean? I never meant to hurt you, but I did.”

“You didn’t hurt me.”

“Yes, I did. I heard that groan. They probably heard it back in the castle.” Tears fill her eyes.

“Sheri, you didn’t hurt me. I was already hurt.”

“What?” Her eyes get big as they move to my chest.

“I have a few bruises from last night.” That's a bit of an understatement, but she doesn’t need to know.

“Show me.”

What? “They’re nothing.”

“Show me.”

“Sheridan—”

“Show me.”

“They’re not as bad as they look.”

She shakes her head. “I can handle it. Show me. I need to understand how much this means to you.”

I unbutton the top button and stop. “This isn’t a normal thing. I haven’t had a bruise in a couple of years.”

“So this was different. Enough that you got hurt and are trying to pretend it’s nothing. Show me.”

“Are you sure this isn’t because you want to see my muscular chest?” I slowly undo another button.

“I can’t say I won’t enjoy the view. But no, that’s not what this is about. It’s about understanding who you are.”