“Hey, they can still breed, y’know,” Saffron pointed out.
Cutting off their conversation before it devolved into obscenity, I asked, “What are you two doing here?”
“Snooping,” Aurum admitted. “Jade said we’re not allowed to be on set during filming. Because of the ‘sanctity of the Games,’” he added with heavy air quotes and a roll of his eyes. He thrust a thumb at Jade. “But he is, for some reason?”
Jade smiled primly. “I’m different. Also, I don’t wear disguises and leak information to contestants, like I recall a certain pair of dragons doing last season.”
Aurum stuck his tongue out at Jade. Meanwhile, his twin was busy making googly eyes at us.
“I can’t believe you guys disrupted the Games and caused such a big scene.” Saffron said it like it was a good thing. He sighed, clasping his hands together. “It was so romantic.”
Muzo grinned, nodding along with him. “It really was, wasn’t it?”
Aurum made a silent gagging gesture.
“It was reckless,” Jade corrected mildly. “But it all worked out in the end.”
“Sorry for the trouble,” I said.
Jade smirked. “It’s all right. You’re paying for your crime. Literally.”
He looked way too pleased with himself for that dig.
“But if this is going to be an ongoing trend, perhaps I need to do some thinking about the next season,” Jade murmured, shooting a strange look at Aurum.
My golden-haired brother didn’t notice. He was too busy prying Saffron away from Muzo.
“Cut it out, bro,” Aurum said. “The guy almost drowned once already, he doesn’t need yougushingover him.”
“I’m okay with gushing,” Muzo said with a nod. He gasped suddenly. “I just realized something. If me and Cobalt are fated mates, does that mean we’re all family now?”
“Dude!” Saffron said excitedly.
Muzo grabbed his hands. “Dude.”
Aurum groaned loudly, turning to Gaius. “Give me your pink shirt. I need something to hurl into.”
As usual, Gaius was completely unfazed. “You’ll never snag yourself an omega with an attitude like that, young man,” he said chipperly, patting Aurum on the back.
Aurum slunk out of his reach. “Welp, I’m going home before I die from cringe. You coming, bro?”
There were technically three brothers present he could’ve been referring to, but we all knew he meant his twin.
“In a sec,” Saffron said. “I wanna talk to Muzo.”
The mix of annoyance and heartbreak on Aurum’s face was almost painful to look at. Without another word, he shifted aggressively and flew off. What was worse was that Saffron didn’t even seem to notice.
I frowned, worried about my younger brothers’ ongoing tiff, but Muzo’s tug on my arm caught my attention.
“Hey, I know we spent all last night and this morning together, but...” He grinned shyly. “Is it okay if we go back to your room again tonight?”
Warmth bloomed in my chest. I loved knowing he wanted to spend as much time with me as I did with him.
I smiled, pulling him into my grasp. “You don’t even have to ask.”
Nineteen
Muzo
