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The air dragon released me and rushed to the other side of the bed. “You said you were a healer. Help her.”
I blinked. Jay hadn’t asked for me. The prince of air called me instead of one of his fellow air dragons. When had I told him I was a healer?
“I don’t know how long Doctor Raba had her before I found him.” Prince Lux cupped Jay’s cheek. “She can’t move, though it’s getting better. She can open and close her eyes now and wiggle her fingers.” He swallowed, the tension draining out of his muscles as his horns receded into his head. “When I kiss her, I get shocked, painfully. All the way down to my balls.”
He brushed his lips across her forehead and jerked back with a yelp before turning to me, blinking his thick dark eyelashes as if I had all the answers.
A light bulb went on in my head. “Earm, Sister Abby?”
Lux clenched his metal fist. “Not anymore. It was a misguided pipe dream anyway.” He looked at me again. “Help her.”
Although I had so many questions, I bit my lips and focused on Jay. My mate’s gaze lit up when she saw me, and I couldn’t help but lean down and lightly brush my lips against hers.
Lux growled, but he didn’t push me away.
A familiar but more powerful zing of magic ran from my lips to my balls. I sat back and rocked to ease the pain, grateful all I’d done was brush our lips. More and I’d be unconscious.
“She’s my mate. Why did you kiss her? Why did I let you?” Lux asked, his brows furrowed. “And why did it hurt?”
An awkward laugh barked out of my chest. “She’s all our mate. The shock is our marks defending her from each other. Asfor why you let me, you’ll have to do some soul-searching on that one.”
Lux groaned. “Right. Rehan even said she was his mate.” He rubbed his cheeks. “I didn’t look for marks. It didn’t occur to me to look.”
I gestured to the little scars, one shaped like a flame, the other a wave on either side of her neck. I didn’t mention mine, it would be more fun if he found it on his own.
“Four mate marks.” Lux pushed his hair out of his eyes. “And that’s why when I marked her, the pain literally knocked me out.”
“It’s unexplored territory, but your logic is sound,” I said evenly.
Lux rocked back, and a small smile touched his lips. He didn’t seem upset. If anything, he seemed pleased. After Tyson’s violent unhappiness and Rehan’s silent acceptance, it was more than I could hope for.
I put one hand over Jay’s stomach and traced a set of runes tattooed between my ribcage and my heart. My magic worked through her body. She had a foreign substance slowly oozing through her system, windburn, and a few bruises but no lasting injuries. The tension released out of my shoulders. Doctor Raba injected her with a paralytic made of magic and human chemicals. It wasn’t permanent, just very potent.
“She’ll be okay.” I looked up to find Lux studying me.
“I don’t hate you.” He cocked his head to the side.
I smiled at him. “I would think that is a good thing as we’re mated to the same woman.”
What little color was in his face drained, and he gathered his long hair. “I was rutting. I don’t regret it, but how can she have four mate marks?”
I bit my bottom lip. My rut had lasted three days, given ruts were rare and individual, but I’d seen Lux a little over twenty-four hours ago.
“How long ago was your rut?” I asked.
“Hours.” Lux tapped his temple. “When I came to, I was back in control, but I can still feel it building inside me.” He looked at Jay. “What’s going on?”
I raised an eyebrow. It really was a fair question. “Jay thinks someone has cursed her and trapped her on this island, and the only way to break the curse is to mate and consummate all four of us at the same time. Or that’s the theory, anyway. Whoever cursed her would know how impossible a task that would be.”
Lux frowned. “So, what I’m feeling isn’t real?”
“Jay thinks it isn’t real.” I looked down at Jay, who blinked very deliberately once. I shook my head. “I disagree and believe my feelings are genuine.”
Lux’s gaze snapped to me. “Are they?”
I scrubbed my eyes, suddenly feeling much older than I was. Lux looked to be a good four or five years younger than me, but it wasn’t the gap making me feel decrepit. It was the vulnerability in the air dragon’s gaze.
“I think it’s much more complicated.” I flattened my lips into a line. “And I want to know exactly how my mate came to be here with your mark on her before I say more.”
