Page 19 of Dark Princess Emerging

Jasmine nodded.

As soon as Ell-rom made room for her, Bridget stepped forward. "How's your vision? Any blurriness or light sensitivity?"

"A little blurry," Jasmine admitted and licked her lips. "Can I have a sip of water?"

"Of course." Bridget moved over to the sink, filled a paper cup with water, added a straw, and brought it over to Jasmine's lips. "Not too much. Just a little sip."

As Bridget continued her examination, Ell-rom kept eye contact with Jasmine, unwilling to take his eyes off her even for a moment.

He'd known she would wake today and had felt it in his bones, but the reality of having her conscious and alert again was overwhelming.

Bridget adjusted the bed so Jasmine was slightly more upright, allowed her another sip, and then handed Ell-rom the cup.

"Morelle?" Jasmine asked.

"Awake and doing well," he assured her quickly. "And she's even discovered her special paranormal talent. She can nullify others' abilities."

Interest sparked in Jasmine's eyes. "That's unusual."

"So I've been told." He smiled, amazed at how quickly her mind was working despite just waking.

"You should be with her," Jasmine said as her eyelids slid shut. "Stay?" she murmured despite her previous statement.

"Of course." He leaned over her and pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead. "I'm not going anywhere. Annani is taking care of Morelle, and so is Brandon."

Jasmine probably hadn't heard that because she was already asleep, and the only reason Ell-rom wasn't panicking was that Bridget didn't seem concerned.

Unbothered by her patient dozing off, the physician finished noting her vital signs. "Everything looks good," she said quietly. "She'll probably sleep for a few more hours but don't worry. This sleep will be natural, not transitional unconsciousness."

Ell-rom nodded, not taking his eyes off Jasmine's peaceful face. He should probably text Annani and tell her that his prediction had been correct, but for now he just wanted to savor this moment, watching his mate sleep and knowing that when she woke again, she would be stronger and stay awake longer.

12

MORELLE

The Odus were just clearing away the dinner dishes when Annani's phone rang.

Her sister's face lit up as she checked the screen. "Ell-rom," she said, tapping the speaker button and placing the phone on the table. "I have Morelle and Brandon with me, and I activated the speaker function so they can hear you clearly. How are things over in the clinic?"

"Jasmine is awake!" Ell-rom's voice carried both joy and exhaustion. "Well, she was, and she is asleep once again, but Bridget says that it's a normal sleep, not a transitional unconsciousness. Jasmine was conscious and perfectly coherent, just very weak."

Morelle's heart leaped. Annani had told her about Ell-rom's choice to remain by Jasmine's side because he'd had a feeling she would wake up today. "Congratulations, Ell-rom," she said with as much cheer as her tone could carry. "That is wonderful news. I'm starting to think that you have a precognition talent. You had a feeling it would happen today, and it did."

Annani smiled smugly. "It runs in the family. I also get gut feelings, and they are never wrong."

Morelle cast her sister a smile. "I can't claim to have experienced the same, so it must be just you and Ell-rom."

She wondered what talent their other half-sister had. Annani had revealed during dinner that their father had sired another daughter with a goddess before he had met Annani's mother. The revelation was startling enough but not as shocking as the fact that Areana was mated to the clan's archenemy. Contact with her was limited to clandestine phone calls that her mate didn't know about, and that put her at great risk.

Ell-rom didn't know about that yet, and Morelle couldn't wait to tell him.

"Can I come over and see Jasmine?" Morelle asked. "I'll gladly sit with you until the next time she wakes up."

"Of course," Ell-rom said. "She asked about you, and I told her about your nullification ability. I can't wait to hear how the testing went."

"I'll tell you all about it when I get there."

"I'll arrange for a golf cart." Brandon turned to Annani. "Would you like to join us?"