“I know,” he replied, glancing at Cyrus. “How do you know about Norden?”
“I know a lot of things,” my mate drawled. “I know about Lark, too.”
Kalt made a noise. “It’s not true. I’m not in their triad.”
Cyrus lifted a shoulder. “Hey, I’m not one to judge.”
“I’m a Water Fae, not a Winter Fae.” Kalt uttered the words through his teeth, his pretty eyes blazing with icy power.
“What’s a triad?” I asked, glancing between them.
“Similar to a mating circle,” Exos replied. “The Winter Fae culture is a little different from ours. They form male packs that take a single female mate.”
“So they’re like Fortune Fae?” I guessed, thinking of Gina and her mate-circle.
Exos considered that for a moment before saying, “Hmm. Sort of. It’s a comparable concept in how the males bond with each other just as much as they do with the female. However, the Winter Fae don’t have the same Alpha, Beta, Omega structure.”
Kalt snorted. “Tell that to Lark. The royal elf sure as fuck thinks he’s an Alpha.”
“That’s because you keep fighting fate,” Cyrus replied.
“I am not a Winter Fae,” he retorted, his white hair frosting at the ends. “And why are we even talking about this? I just came to deliver the declaration.”
“From Lark,” Cyrus added.
“Yes. From Prince Lark,” he admitted, his jaw clenched. “They’ve agreed to support the academy and the necessary magic. Now I’m taking a few days off while the Winter Fae go play and spread Christmas cheer throughout the Human Realm.”
“You should come back with us to Elemental Fae Academy,” Cyrus suggested. “You can help us with the trials.”
“Trials?” he repeated, his expression morphing from confusion to exasperation. “Ah, fuck, what did Lance do now?”
I almost laughed. Lance was Titus’s little brother and Kalt’s best friend. And yeah, the little firecracker was a troublemaker. But he’d mostly cooperated with his probationary sentence, where he served as my assistant at the Academy. I rather liked the hotheaded fae. He reminded me of his brother, just younger and a little more wild.
“He’s talking about their competition,” I clarified. “For who gets to be the father of our first baby. Nothing to do with Lance.”
Kalt blinked at me. Then he looked at his cousin and arched a white brow. “Why the hell would I help with that?”
“We need judges,” Cyrus explained. “And last I recall, you still owed me a favor.”
The Water Fae narrowed his gaze. “So this is the favor you require? Judging sex games on my days off?”
“Uh…” I cleared my throat. “I don’t… I, uh…” I couldn’t remember what the other trials were, as my mind had concentrated solely on the orgasm competition. “I agree with Kalt on this one.” Because those trials were probably sex related.
Exos chuckled. “The other trials are all about nurturing, nonsexual endurance, and meal preparation. We need the judge specifically for the last part.”
“Meal preparation?” Kalt arched his brow again. “So you need someone to judge food?”
“Essentially, yes.” Exos lifted a shoulder. “All three trials blend together but end with cooking dinner. We’ll be relying on others to tell us who prepares the best meal.”
“Free food,” Kalt said. “Okay, sure. I can handle that.”
Cyrus smirked. “Not enjoying the Winter Fae cuisine?”
“It’s a little sweet for my liking,” he admitted. “They eat cupcakes for breakfast.”
“I see nothing wrong with this,” I replied as I retrieved my untouched hot chocolate from the end table. “Let’s go to the North Pole.”
“But I made bacon.” Vox waved at the plates. “And real eggs.”