Lissa Kasey - Dominion 3 - Conviction Read Free

sweats and yanked the bedclothes into a presentable form.
    “Blueberry pancakes.” Sei didn’t even look back my way while he flipped another in the pan. “Turkey sausage on the side or eggs?”
    “Sausage. The eggs will be too much for me.”
“’Kay.” He dished up a plate of four large cakes and two links and passed it over to me. All natural butter sat beside him on the small workbench and several types of jam. No syrup. The smell made him nauseous. I'd learned of Sei's super sense of smell before we'd even become roommates. Even some soap smells set him off into a sneezing fit. So I picked up the marmalade and applied it liberally before settling in to eat my food.
Jamie swabbed at his plate with the last bit of pancake, spearing the last few bits of egg and swallowing the final piece just before Sei dropped another two on his plate. The silence of the room made me feel like my heart beat too loudly. A month ago the tension wouldn’t have existed. But I didn’t know how to fix something that I hadn’t broken.
After finishing my last few bites of food, I headed to the bathroom to clean up a bit before getting ready for the skiing we’d be doing. The clock read after ten, so I’d slept late. Sei looked rested at least, though still a little on the thin side. He ate a single pancake and a half a sausage link before declaring himself done. Pushing him never helped, so I just pulled on clean clothes and started digging out all my snow gear. Jamie glanced up once or twice, but any time our eyes met, he looked away.
An hour later, I watched Seiran balance precariously on one foot while Jamie helped strap ski boots to his feet. The expression on Sei’s face was almost laughworthy. I remembered his horrified expression when I’d first asked if he wanted to go cross-country skiing. At the time he’d been going through so much he’d shrugged off the trip. But over the past few weeks the suspicion and fear in his eyes had begun to fade.
“Ready, Kelly?” Jamie inquired, putting his hand on my shoulder, his natural smile lighting up the day.
“Oh, yeah, sorry. Sort of daydreaming.”
Sei barely moved, his eyes wide like he were about to take his first steps.
Jamie stomped into his own skis, grabbed his poles, and motioned us toward the path. The trees lined the path like skeletons caked in snow. But the day was brisk and not overly cold. The perfect day for an outing like this. “Use the poles to push yourself, Seiran. Once you get moving it will be easier,” he instructed. “I’ve mapped out the route. It’s safe and pretty easy.”
“Like this,” I whispered to Sei, sliding up beside him and using my poles to push his skis in the right direction. I shoved one foot forward, then the next, demonstrating how to do it.
“I don’t think I’m meant for skiing,” Seiran mumbled through all his layers.
“You’ll be fine,” I assured him.
“Maybe if I have some more tea.”
“Not till later,” Jamie told him, his voice taking on the big brother instructional tone. “I have everything, don’t worry. I’ve got lunch, your pills, tea, a cell phone, and your book reader if you need a break. We’ll be fine. We’re not going that far.” He pushed himself ahead of us and skied down the trail.
Seiran experimentally slid one ski forward, and it moved, making him quickly correct it by shifting his other foot to keep his balance. He floundered with the poles but remained upright and moving, slowly, but moving. I set my pace to his. At this rate we’d get a block or two in an hour, and that didn’t bother me at all.
“Have you ever been sledding?” I asked. Every parent took their kid sledding once, right?
“I’m not an outdoorsy kind of guy,” he answered. Which would be a no.
Jamie slid back to our side, easing his pace with little effort. “Except when he turns into a lynx. I bet he’s used those big paws of his to slide down a hill or two. He goes all nature man and even eats bugs.”
“I do