Ryder lifted a brow and smiled. “I asked him to give her a little jolt—and no, Synthia, he only kissed you like that because he wanted a taste. His nose healed nicely considering how hard I hit it for overstepping. Hence why his lips haven’t touched you since,” Ryder said with a knowing grin in his eyes.
“How exactly did he manage to feed her?”
“His touch; when he holds her. He’s been helping to keep her alive long enough to get her to the Tree,” he said.
“It was the least I could do after what I’d done to bring her into this world,” Ristan said softly from the door, but his eyes weren’t on me or my child; they were on Danu with something dangerous in them. “I just came to see how she was doing. I’ll come back when it’s less crowded.”
I handed Zander to Danu and walked over to Ristan. I didn’t know what was going on between him and my mother, and I seriously doubted that I wanted to know. I wrapped my arms around him and held him, but I felt his body tense uncomfortably, and I wondered at it. Either he didn’t want to be touched, or something else was going on with him.
“Thank you, Demon,” I whispered and lifted on my tiptoes to kiss his cheek. “You’re her protector, and I’m glad it’s you. Cailean said you’d been staying in the room more lately, and I’d wondered if it was because you needed her, or she needed you. But, it seems it’s both. Carry my daughter to the Tree, please.”
“Flower,” he started to argue but I shut it down.
“No, she needs it. She’ll need all the help she can get right now and if you feeding her can make her stronger, do it. Please,” I whispered as I watched the indecision play in his eyes.
“Fine, it would be my honor,” he said softly as he kissed my cheek back. “It’s hard to resist her anyway; she’s as beautiful as her mother. She’s also as smart as her mother, and is already showing some sass.”
“Is she now?” I asked, but my eyes were on Danu, who was watching Ristan uneasily.
Okay, something was not right here, and I needed to know it. Problem with knowing it was I couldn’t un-know it afterwards if it was what I thought it was. I fought a battle, inside my head on whether I should ask, or just stay out of their damn business. I lost. But, on the bright side, I didn’t need to know it all, just one thing.
One simple thing.
“I don’t want details, but I need to know if whatever the hell is going on with you two, is going to cause a problem,” I held up my hand and shook my head. “Don’t tell me it’s nothing. I’m not a blooming idiot!” I shouted as I eyed them both seriously. “All I want from you both is an honest answer about whatever it is that you two have going on—will it affect you today, since Danu, you kinda need to be on point and you can’t mess this up. My daughter’s life depends on it. And, Ristan, I need you. So, is whatever the hell’s going on here going to end up at the Tree, or can you both forget it until we save the Tree, and the lives of my children?”
I waited and watched as Ristan murderously glared at Danu, who smiled seductively back at him.
“I’m here for you and the children, Synthia. I’ve fed, and made sure I was in fighting form,” Ristan said as he tore his eyes from hers to mine.
“I am also here for my daughter, and hers,” Danu said softly. “I need to do something first, so I’ll meet you at the Tree. Call for me when it’s been thawed out. Good luck,” she said before she left, and the women started talking again.