He knew who this female was to him. And, with that realization, a spark deep within his chest flared.
He knew exactly who she was…even if he didn’t want to admit it.
Chapter Fourteen
Lucy was so worked up, her breath began to fog the inside of her helmet.
Blood pressure elevated.
The words flashed quickly on the inside of her visor before blinking away. If it wasn’t for the roaring in her ears, she would have thought it was her imagination, but yeah…she felt a little worked up.
Okay, a lot worked up.
The only way she could describe it was chaos. Her heart was racing as if she’d downed a cart full of Red Bulls, leaving her almost breathless yet fizzling with energy. Lucy glared at Tabitha so hard she was amazed the woman’s bleached-to-the-max hair didn’t catch on fire. Her mind raced as she thought of all the things she wanted to say to Tabitha, even though the last thing she wanted to do was talk. Earlier, Tabitha had merely annoyed Lucy to the point of wanting to tell her off. Now she wanted to physically assault the woman, something that was completely out of character for her. Rue? Sure. But not Lucy. Not until now.
What the hell was happening to her?
Inhaling through her nose and exhaling out of her mouth, Lucy tried to breathe through the fury that burned in her chest.
“Tabitha?” Rue interrupted the staring contest the two women were having. “I’m going to give you a friendly little warning because I know how much you treasure that dry ass mop of over-processed hair you have on your head.” She shrugged when Tabitha ignored her. “Hey, I’m just trying to save you from having to buy a wig but if don’t want to listen and walk away, that’s your business. I haven’t seen her this angry since the time she caught Willy Dickerson tormenting a puppy when we were fifteen.”
“And?” Tabitha snapped, breaking eye contact with Lucy to wrinkle her nose at Rue.
“And he was a three-hundred-pound upperclassman that I had absolutely no problem dropping to the ground,” Lucy growled. Her voice sounded strange, even to her own ears.
“Yeah,” Rue laughed nervously, her eyes wide at the demonic voice that had come from Lucy’s mouth. “That.”
Tabitha’s Botox frozen face quivered for a moment before she rolled her eyes. “Whatever. I’ll go wait with the others for you.” With one last pat on Sparx’s chest, she shuffled away.
She either didn’t hear, or chose to completely ignore, the snort coming from Sparx, but Lucy heard it and it made her smile.
Her heart still felt like it was about to thump right out of her chest and around the room, but he made her smile.
“What. The. Fuck,” Rue said, giving her the accompanying look. “Girl, I thought you were about ready to jump her. In fact, I’m pretty sure that for a minute there I went from holding you up to holding you back! What the hell is going on with you?”
“Not now,” she murmured, not arguing against the truth but also not wanting to talk about her homicidal tendencies in front of Sparx either.
“Are you” –he licked his lips as his eyes seemed to take her in— “well?”
Lucy’s stomach flipped at the sound of Sparx’s voice. The rumble eased something in her.
“Now I am,” she answered with a nod. “I mean, my ankle is still out for the count, but other than that…”
Both were silent as they stared at each other.
“What’s going on right now?” Rue interrupted, her brows furrowed as she looked back and forth between Sparx and Lucy. “And don’t be giving me none of that ‘nothing’ bullshit either. Are you a pod person or something now? Do I need to start asking questions only the real Goose would know?”
Lucy snorted, the sound echoing inside her suit.
“Goose?” Sparx asked, looking confused himself.
“Never mind.” Lucy waved him away before she’d have to explain the embarrassing origin of her nickname. “Can we take these off yet? I’m getting a little warm.”
“Warm?” he echoed, his face now concerned. “The suits are supposed to regulate your temperature. You should feel comfortable, not warm.”
“Sorry, but I feel warm.” She shrugged, the bulky suit lifting with the action. “Maybe something got messed up when I fell earlier?”
“You fell? Are you all right?” Sparx asked, moving forward to grip the shoulders of her suit.
“Whoa, big guy. Take it easy there.” The protest came from Rue where she was still situated under Lucy’s pit. “She hurt her ankle. Remember?”
“Oh, of course.” Sparx stiffly dropped his hands, curling them into fists.
“Will you carry me again?” Lucy blurted out before she could stop herself. Her face blushed red at the forwardness, unable to hold back. “I mean—”
“Of course, I will.” Without another word, he stepped forward and lifted her into his arms. “I will need to set you down for a moment to open the doors for Colby, but then I will hold you again.”
“Thank you.” Lucy beamed up at him, feeling more than comfortable in his arms.
“What the fuck?” Rue asked under her breath as she shook her head at the pair. Raising one arm, she pointed at Sparx. “You’re in charge, right? Are we stuck in these suits for the rest of our lives or what?”
“Of course not.” Sparx moved away from the cave wall where he’d been stationed and back to the group where he’d originally set her down. “Inside these crates are the furs that you will need to put on once you’re out of the Phaeton garb. The boots may seem large at first, but the hide will mold around your feet once they begin to warm up.”
“Hmmm.” Rue held up a pair of booties that look similar to what Lucy could remember from the Native American museum. “Rad.”
“Once they
