Page 87 of Serpent & Saviors

I gasped and put my hands over Declan’s ears. Too late. Andrew cleared his throat and cocked his head to the side at Ivan. Declan shook my hands away and giggled.

“Sorry, little man. I’ll mind my language better. Or at least I can promise to try.” He picked up two pancakes from the platter and dropped them onto his plate with a pointed look at Nik. “And while I do that, you can stop telling lies. She loves me more than any of you,” he declared smugly before turning to me with a grin. “It’s good to see you again, buttercup.”

I blinked, feeling like I’d slipped straight down the rabbit hole into some bizarre alternate universe.

“Lie to yourself all you want, baby brother. It’s all good. I know the truth.” Nik leaned back in his chair, smiling like the damned Cheshire cat.

It was official—I had entered another world.

“You share her?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

Nik sighed dramatically, resting an elbow on the table as he gave me a knowing look.

“Only because I have to,” he said with a wink.

Declan huffed impatiently, clearly unimpressed with all the chatter he didn’t understand. He raised his voice a little, making me grin.

“The big guy eating pancakes is Uncle Ivan,” he announced, pointing toward him. “He said he brought us home last night, so you know him already, too. But let me introduce you to Uncle Bash.”

I turned, and immediately, heat rushed to my face as Bash openly appraised me. I remembered him from last night—there was something effortlessly carefree about him, like nothing in the world got him down.

But the way he was looking at me now differed from yesterday. It wasn’t a leer, not even close. It was simply appreciation. Bold. Unapologetic. He lifted his glass of juice in a lazy toast toward Andrew.

“Well done, Counselor,” he drawled. “She is stunning. Way out of your league, but congrats nonetheless. Welcome home—” Then he paused, his gaze flicking to Ivan. A slow grin spread across his face, and wouldn’t you know it—he had dimples. Two of them. Deeply seated in perfect harmony with his already beautiful, symmetrical face.

“Buttercup,” he finished, using the nickname Ivan had given me.

Before I could stop myself, I blurted out, “Are you a model?”

Sebastian chuckled, rich and amused. “No, but I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“An actor?” My eyes darted over his infuriatingly perfect features. “You have dimples. Two of them. And your jaw…”

Realization smacked me upside the head. Mortified, I turned and buried my face in Andrew’s chest, groaning.

Behind me, Sebastian let out a full, delighted laugh. “And that, gentlemen, is why all the ladies love me…” he paused for effect, “including tiny tot.” He puffed out his chest like a damn peacock.

“Knock it off,” Andrew said softly before turning to me. “Why don’t we sit?”

I hesitated, my gaze flickering to the remaining empty seats. Four in total. I didn’t want to take the girls’ places. I shifted. Andrew, sensing my nerves, smiled patiently and guided me to one side of the table where two chairs sat. He pulled out a chair and gestured for me to sit. Relief washed over me as I sank into it, my muscles unclenching slightly.

Nik smirked as I settled in. “So, he did tell you about our girls. This is good.”

Across the table, Sebastian leaned in, playful and cocky. “I’m curious what he said.”

He stared at me, waiting. Expectantly. The weight of his gaze was unnerving, and before I could stop myself, I blurted, “Just that they caused some ruckus while Pasha and he were away. But he didn’t really say where they went.”

At that, Alek made an indistinct sound of irritation and glared at Nik. “That’s because the Crow sent her away.”

Away.

The word slammed into me like a physical blow. My stomach clenched, and suddenly, I wasn’t here anymore. Not in this grand dining room, not surrounded by warmth and conversation. I was back there. In the basement. The cold floor was beneath me. The locked door. The silence that stretched for days. Declan was talking to Andrew.

“Away?” I whispered, my throat tight.

Alek’s lip curled, his icy blue eyes frozen with something unreadable. “Yeah, and she’s ovulating.”

I blinked, certain I’d misheard. “Excuse me?”