Cameron waves him off. “Oh, come on. It would be hot, and you can’t tell me otherwise. So many abs.”
“Don’t let Ronan hear you say that,” Reyes teases. “It’s been a while since we’ve had a drama queen tantrum. We’re probably due.”
“Probably,” Cameron agrees with a manic grin, then shakes his head. “Anyway, I was also maybe doing a lot of shit-talking, and now they’re full of adrenaline and raring to go.”
Sprocket rushes by in a blur.
“I am so here for this,” she shouts over her shoulder as she pushes past Cameron.
“Yeah, not to be dramatic, but I’m with her,” Cameron says, then runs off as well.
Reyes shakes his head and flashes us a smile before he goes inside to find Nyx, and Bash takes my hand as we walk down the pathway towards the roar of voices.
Lillith, Matuk, and Elas chatter excitedly together, and Ronan and Daiwyn are deep in conversation. Ronan’s hands move as if he’s showing her maneuvers, and she’s fully engaged as she listens to whatever advice he’s passing along.
Closer to the treeline, Aryn sits against a trunk with a book in his lap, with his wavy onyx hair falling over his shoulders. Cato hovers nearby like he can’t decide whether to stay or bolt, but Aryn doesn’t even seem to notice his presence.
It’spainfullyawkward, and I’m giddy as I stare.
“Are you fighting?” Cato asks. His hands are shoved deep in his pockets, and his shoulders are stiff in a way that’s nothing like his usual cocky sprawl.
Aryn glances up at him, then stares over toward the makeshift arena for a beat before focusing on Cato again in quiet curiosity.
“Why would I?” he asks in his usual calm tone, obviously puzzled by the question.
The response seems to irritate Cato, and he takes a step back, arms crossing over his chest.
“It was just a question,” he snaps. “Thought you might want to do something other than read for once.”
Aryn hesitates, his brows arching in a subtle V as he glances at his book, then meets Cato’s eyes with a slow, quizzical blink, head tilting slightly like he’s waiting for the rest of the sentence.
“I like to read,” Aryn says after a pause, stretching the words.
I’ve known him long enough to recognize he’s just confused about why he needs to explain, but the statement comes out condescending. To a stranger, it sounds like he’s concerned Cato might not understand that books are more than just pretty covers.
From the way Cato’s jaw tightens and his nostrils flare, that’s exactly how he’s taken it.
“Never mind,” Cato grits, turning on his heel and marching toward us, face flushed as red as Aryn’s skin.
“I thought you said he was nice,” he barks at Bash.
I bristle at the way he’s speaking to my mate, ready to step in, but Bash beats me to it. He raises a hand, calm as always.
“He is,” Bash says, visibly confused as he glances at where Aryn stares at the back of Cato’s head with a frown. “I’ve known him for years, and he’s incredibly polite.”
“Could’ve fooled me. He never pulls his nose out of his own ass long enough to bother speaking.”
“Maybe he just doesn’t want to talk to you,” I say sweetly, then grunt as Bash elbows me in the gut. “Okay, sorry, let me rephrase that. Maybe he thinks you’re an asshole.”
“Xen,” Bash hisses. “You aren’t helping.”
I throw my hands out in exasperation toward Cato. “Now you’ve gone and made Bash mad at me!”
Bash buries his face in his palms.
Cato glares at me, but Lillith lets out a war cry and charges into the makeshift ring, and our attention follows. Matuk follows her reluctantly, glancing over his shoulder at where Audra and Samuel cheer him on.
Their fight is ferocious, and Bash is frozen beside me as he watches them brawl. Dirt forms a cloud as they move around each other, landing punches and kicks so hard they would break a human’s bones.
