Page 40 of Dark Awakening: Hidden Currents

Well, except for becoming an assassin on their behalf, but he had no intention of assuming that role.

"That sounds like incredibly challenging work," he said when Edgar finished his explanation.

Edgar nodded with a hint of pride in his expression. "It's not an easy job, but I love it. There's nothing quite like the feeling of being in control of such a powerful machine."

Jasmine, who had been listening quietly, suddenly stood up. "I'm going to make coffee. Would you like some, Edgar?"

"That would be great, thanks," Edgar replied.

"Ell-rom?"

He nodded. "Thank you."

As Jasmine disappeared into the kitchen, a moment of awkward silence fell between them. Ell-rom searched for something to say, feeling the pressure to make conversation.

"How long have you been a pilot?" he asked.

Edgar leaned back against the couch cushions. "Oh, let's see. I'm a young immortal, so I'm much less experienced than the other clan pilots, well, with the exception of Eric, the latest addition to our fleet, who has a comparable number of flight hours to mine." Seeing Ell-rom's confused expression, he added, "It's been about eight years now."

"That doesn't sound like long." Ell-rom rubbed a hand over the back of his head. "Thank you for assisting Jasmine and the gods in their search for us. I owe you a debt of gratitude."

Edgar's expression softened. "You are welcome. I'm glad we found you in time."

"Are you?" Ell-rom lifted a brow. "You said that if not for me, Jasmine wouldn't have ended things between you two."

Edgar shrugged. "Even though it hurt like hell when she did that, it was for the best. She did the right thing."

29

JASMINE

Jasmine regretted not telling Ell-rom about her fling with Edgar sooner, so this awkwardness could have been avoided.

It wasn't that she had deliberately hidden it.

Somehow, it had just never seemed like a good time to bring it up.

Well, that wasn't entirely true. She could have told Ell-rom about her relationship with Edgar when she first mentioned the pilot, but she had chosen not to because she didn't want to put any emotional strain on Ell-rom, who was struggling with enough as it was, or on their relationship, which was still in its budding stage and fragile.

Thankfully, Ell-rom's initial jealousy was gradually melting away, and the longer he talked with Edgar, the more the accusation in his eyes faded. He seemed to no longer feel threatened by the guy, probably because Edgar had found Angelica.

It was also a relief that he had lost interest in Morelle.

Jasmine could only imagine how Ell-rom would have reacted to that particular complication.

"So, Edgar," Ell-rom was saying, "do you have much family in the clan?"

Edgar shook his head. "It's just my mother and me, but the entire clan is my extended family."

"I'm excited about joining the clan," Ell-rom admitted. "I only have my sister, and I don't remember much about my life on Anumati. I have a couple of vague memories of our mother, but that's all. I don't think we interacted with anyone outside the head priestess and occasionally the temple guards and acolytes."

The hint of sadness in Ell-rom's voice sent a pang of sorrow through Jasmine's chest. She reached out, placing her hand over his. "I only have vague memories of my mother, and my father was not the warmest of guys, but at least I had friends in school. You and Morelle didn't even have that."

"Not that I remember," Ell-rom said. "How did your mother die, if I may ask?"

"I don't know. I was a little girl when it happened, and my father refused to tell me how she died. She was only twenty-seven when she passed."

In the back of her mind, Jasmine had always harbored the morbid thought that she wouldn't live longer than her mother and would die at twenty-seven, but now that she was facing the possibility of becoming immortal, it no longer made sense to cling to that belief.