Colin didn’t move; he stayed seated at the edge of the bed, staring at their offerings.
The twins shared a look.
“We broke him,” Dane said.
Colin huffed. “You didn’t. It’s just…suspiciously thoughtful.”
“We’re always thoughtful,” Fox told him, slipping the comics back into his bag. “You’re just too snarky to notice most of the time.”
Colindidnotice, actually. He just tried not to point it out too often; they were too cocky by half already.
He flipped them the finger for good measure and finally climbed off the soft, comfortable bed. He grabbed for the icedcoffee as soon as he was standing, and Dane threw an arm over his shoulders as they left the room.
They went down the elevator together, Fox pressed into Colin’s other side like there was no room for space when there was, in fact, plenty.
They were at one of Tucson’s fancy resort hotels in the desert. (Not the one they’d met Serena at, of course; there was no need to relivethosememories.)
The twins had talked Colin into it. Actually, they’d tried to talk him into some sort of all-inclusive beach resort on an island somewhere, and he’d looked so horrified at the suggestion that they’d compromised with a staycation with a pool instead.
Colin thought maybe they were trying to slowly get him used to the idea, but Colin didn’tdothe beach. He’d make an exception for den activities—on occasion, when Jay got pouty about it—but not for his own enjoyment. Sand in every crevice? Sneaky waves trying to pull him out into the depths? Spoiled children running around flinging crabs at each other or whatever?
No. Just no.
The pool—one of several at the hotel—was mostly empty when they arrived. Which made sense—it was June in Tucson, and the days were hot as balls already. Most likely the hotel patrons were waiting for the late afternoon or evening to venture out, even with the water to cool them down.
The twins led Colin to a shaded cabana.
“Are we allowed to use this?” Colin asked skeptically. It seemed like the kind of thing the hotel would charge extra for.
Fox pushed him toward a cushioned lounger. “We reserved it.”
“Mm.” Colin sat down gingerly, and Fox set the bag of goodies down next to him. “There are only two loungers though.”
“Oh no,” Dane deadpanned. “We’ll have to share. The horror.”
But they didn’t—not right away—because Fox and Dane immediately left Colin with his coffee and comics and dove into the pool, frolicking in the water like two overgrown children.
Colin lay in the shade of the cabana, sipping his beverage and flipping through pages. Maybe this wasn’t so bad. The heat wasn’t oppressive with his vampire temp regulation, and there were no children hurling sandorcrabs—only his two vampire mates hurling each other in and over the water.
By the time Colin finished his iced coffee, a familiar figure was looming over him.
“You’re dripping on my foot,” Colin pointed out mildly, too chilled out by caffeine and talented illustrations to be properly snarky.
A wet hand gripped his ankle. “Come on, slayer.”
“Come where?”
Fox pointed over to the right. “See that? That’s a lazy river. We’re going in. All you have to do is sit in an inner tube and float in circles.”
That didn’t sound…completely terrible.
Dane arrived, holding out what looked to be a blended cocktail of some sort in a plastic cup. “And you can bring this in with you.”
Colin tried to summon a glare; it was surprisingly difficult. “I feel like a dog being lured with treats.”
But it was starting to sound kind of nice—treats included—so Colin stood, accepting the cocktail graciously. Fox set a floppy-brimmed hat on his head, and a few minutes later, Colin was floating in an inner tube, sipping his new drink.
Fox and Dane kept hold of him from their own tubes, and anytime Colin got stuck against a wall, they rescued himexpeditiously. He didn’t have to swim or paddle or even kick his legs. It was kind of perfect, actually.
