Page 25 of Right on Time

“I sleep with my wings draped over my body. There will be enough space for me to fit on the bench.”

“Mhmm… How about I take the bench, and you sleep in your bed?”

“Now you are being ridiculous, Lady Loe.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “You know what, my lord?”

That made him look her way, finally. “What?”

“The one being ridiculous is Commander Twirly Horn. Why the heck won’t he just meet me and get this farce over with? He clearly wants nothing to do with me, so why not send me home instead of wondering where to stash me?”

“It’s Commander Siriniel of the Swirling Horn Clan.” Elbow keeping his upper towel in place, Nitiel scratched at the base of one horn nub as he added, “He wants everything to do with you. Just… not right now.”

“Yeah, yeah. He has his mysterious reasons. Well, I don’t care about those. I’m getting a good night's rest – on the bench – and then I’m going to pay him a visit.”

Nitiel narrowed his eyes at her. “No, Lady Loe.”

Her eyebrows crept up. “No? Take the bed, and I might give the Commander a little more time before I barge in his cabin.”

“Loe. I am taking the bench.”

She shrugged. “And I’m going to the Commander uninvited first thing in the morning. Or whatever time it is when I wake up.”

“You don’t know where his cabin is.”

“Trixie will gladly take me.”

“She can’t take you if you have no means to contact her first.”

Chloe smiled sweetly. “She promised to have a communication badge delivered here along with my dress. They should be arriving pretty soon.”

A rumble came from Nitiel.

Chloe’s smile grew.

“Fine,” he grumbled.

“Fine?”

“I’ll take you to your niel once you wake up. Just sleep in the bed, please.”

Chloe sighed. Well, she’d tried. “Okay, enjoy the bench. It’s your back’s funeral.”

“It’s perfectly comfortable, Loe–Lady Loe. I’ll show you.”

Oh, that was going to be good. She leaned back onto the jelly, propped on her palms, and resumed swinging her legs. “Go ahead, my lord.”

The expression on his face was one of raw determination. He turned to face the bench, tapped on it to make it rise to a comfortable height, and then sat down, small towels clutched to his large body and wings as tucked as possible. He gave Chloe a triumphant look.

She rolled her eyes. “Let’s see you lie down, shall we?”

“We shall.”

And lie down he did. Somehow, his body fit on the narrow bench. Barely, but it fit when his wings were closed around him rather than spread on either side of him. As long as he didn’t turn in his sleep, he would make it through the night.

“Hm.”

“What was that, my lady?” A smile spread across Nitiel’s rugged face as he pushed up into a sitting position.

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