Dash tilted his head, a chunk of his black hair falling over his face and hiding his scar, but then he broke into a grin. “Winning at all costs isn’t cheating. Didn’t you tell me that?”
Gage let out a deep chuckle. “I did.”
Dash tapped his sword to his weapons storage mark on his rib cage and it suctioned to him, turning into a lined tattoo. He offered Gage a hand up, and Gage got to his feet and patted Dash on the back good-naturedly.
“Next time I won’t go easy on you,” Gage said.
Dash barked out a laugh as he bent over to swipe a sleeveless hoodie from the ground and slip it over his head. “Next time I’ll fight you with my dominant hand.”
I shook my head.Guys. I’d probably never truly understand them, but I was glad Gage and Dash seemed to be getting along so well. Gage needed to know there were people who had his back now.
“That was impressive,” said a voice to my left, and I jerked my gaze to see Aurelia walk through the doorway on the far wall and toward the pair.
How long had she been watching?
Gage immediately tensed. A spark of panic flashed in his eyes before he wiped his face clear of emotions.
“Hey, Aurelia,” Dash said as Gage walked to a gym bag and pulled out a towel. He wiped the sweat off his face and then grabbed the bag and jogged over to me. His chest still glistened when he reached me. I wouldn’t lie and say it wasn’t difficult to keep my eyes on his face.
His wounds were all nearly healed now, and I reminded myself to run a thank you gift to the Lumen healers. They were miracle workers.
“Hey, beautiful,” Gage said as he leaned over and brushed his lips over my forehead.
Beautiful?Dang, I couldn’t ignore that the term of endearment made me go a little melty inside.
I cleared my throat, catching Aurelia and Dash speaking in hushed tones behind Gage, but then refocused on him.
“So, are you going to get dressed, or just walk around Lumen Academy half naked?” I asked, using that as an excuse to sneak another peek at his muscled pecs.
“You want me to cover all this up?” Gage indicated his naked torso with a sweep of his hand.
No. Definitely not.
“Yes,” I said with a straight face.
“Liar,” he chuckled, but then ran a towel over his chest and threw on a black t-shirt, leaving me a little disappointed.
Aurelia finished her conversation with Dash and then turned toward us. “The healers have been looking for you, Gage. They said they didn’t clear you for training yet, but that you disappeared from the healing center earlier today.” Tilting her head, she quirked an eyebrow and waited for Gage’s response.
Busted.
“Gage!” I smacked his arm.
Gage folded his arms over his chest and shrugged. “I cleared myself. I feel great, and as you saw, I’m perfectly fit to train.”
Aurelia nodded slowly. “Yes, I can see that, but they wanted to run a few more tests on you. Apparently some of your labs came back abnormal.”
My stomach dropped.Abnormal how?
“Probably because of something they did to me up in Avalon when they patched me up,” Gage retorted. “You can discuss that with the archangels if you’d like, because I’m not interested in being a lab rat.”
I blinked at Gage in surprise. I got that Aurelia unknowingly hit a nerve, but that was a little defensive. What was going on with him? Maybe he wasn’t used to people caring about his welfare and so he was suspicious of Aurelia’s intentions?
Dash cleared his throat loudly and I looked back and forth between Aurelia and Gage, trying to figure out how to help defuse the sudden tension in the air. I didn’t want Gage running off again, but I also didn’t want him skipping out on anything that would keep him healthy.
Surprisingly, it was Dash who stepped in. “I’ll keep an eye on him,” he said to Aurelia. “If he acts sickly in any way, I’ll rush him right to the healers.”
Aurelia shifted her gaze between Dash and Gage, and then heaved a sigh. Weariness shone from her eyes. “Gage, we just want to protect you. You’re in a more vulnerable position right now than you’re used to. We’re not your enemies. You know that, right?”
