Once as a child, I’d had a string of dreams that I’d been abducted and probed by an alien creature from a faraway realm. Mother had slapped me when I’d told her.
There were two types of people in the world: those who were probed, and those who judged those who were probed. The latter were all secretly jealous that no one had abducted them.
My eyes struggled to adjust to the morning light.
I groaned and rolled out of bed.
Since I had no other plans for the days （other than annoy Malum）， I might as well get some flying practice in.
There were wings in my shoulders and angel blood in my veins, and I was going to get airborne if it was the last thing I did. If not for myself, then I would do it to spite Mother.
It was time to succeed.
“I’m going to practice flying behind the barracks. I want to do this alone.” I announced to the room.
Malum paused his one-handed push-ups. “Don’t go too far. I don’t want to see you hurt.” His voice was extra gravelly in the morning, and I shivered at its deepness. Silver skulls twinkled in his ears, and he didn’t have socks on, so my name was on full display.
He’d 100 percent done it on purpose.
I flipped him off with both hands, just for fun.
He winked. “Don’t tempt me.”
I put my hands down as I realized what he meant.
Ugh, he was infuriating.
John and Luka groaned loudly as they woke up, and I smiled because they were not morning people. I was also not a morning person—or a night person, or a day person.
“Wait,” Scorpius said as he emerged from the bathroom in a cloud of steam, a white towel hanging dangerously low on his hips. Orion followed behind him, similarly unclothed, toweling his blond hair.
They’d been showering together.
There wasn’t enough oxygen in the room, and I didn’t know where to look.
Scorpius smirked, and my eyes trailed downward.
He looked like he was carved from white marble. His Adonis belt glistened with water, and his dark hair was wet and messy around his face.
The two of them sauntered past me. Cherry blossoms fluttered down Orion’s golden biceps, and Scorpius’s neck tattoo opened, pupil expanding as it stared directly at me.
Their tattoos were much more brightly colored than I’d ever remembered.
I’d always though Orion’s flowers were a pale shade, closer to white. Now they were such a rich pink that they practically glowed against his golden skin.
He was mesmerizing to look at.
They both were.
I forgot what I was doing.
What was my name?
How old was I?
The pain streaking down my back turned into fireworks.
“Distracted, Aran?” John asked in a teasing tone, and his voice brought me back to reality.
My face warmed as I realized I’d been gaping at the half-naked kings like an idiot.
I wasn’t mad about objectifying them because I was a staunch supporter of bullying men. Everyone knew this. It was just a little embarrassing that my entire legion had just witnessed me ogle my enemies.
At least the twins were also checking them out.
“We got these for you,” Scorpius said as he dug into one of the mall bags beside his bed. His towel dipped dangerously low, and my blood pressure soared.
He stood up and handed me fuzzy black mittens.
“Wear them if you’re going outside,” Scorpius said, his tone somewhere between an order and a plea.
I stared at the gloves, dumbfounded.
“Here.” Orion gently tugged them onto my hands. My fingers were engulfed in warmth as my stomach filled with butterflies.
I turned my hands over.
“Ara” was written in tiny gold script across the wrist.
My throat was dry, and I forgot how to swallow as I looked at it with confusion.
“Why Ara?” I asked. “Did the embroiderer make a mistake?”
“No,” Orion whispered, the words like honey on his tongue. “It wasn’t a mistake.”
Malum looked up from the floor with confusion. “Wait, it wasn’t an error?” Scorpius narrowed his eyes.
I stared at Orion and waited for an explanation.
None came.
“You’ll figure it out,” he whispered as he took a step closer.
Bergamot and chocolate filled my nose, and pain streaked down my spine.
Orion’s golden abdominal muscles rippled as he stretched his hands above his head, and Scorpius’s chiseled chest expanded as he breathed deeply.
What were we talking about?
I wet my lips twice and croaked out, “Uh, okay.”
Scorpius took a step closer. “You’re welcome for the gloves, Arabella.” His voice had a cruel tilt to it, like was really saying “get on your knees.”