“That’s not going to stop him,” Titus muttered, a ball of fire ready in his palm.
“What’s his fucking problem?” Exos demanded.
“He values his beauty rest,” Titus drawled.
Cyrus snorted. “Don’t we all?”
Kalt created a door and stepped through the water without getting a drop on him, while Lance sprinted through the tidal wave and directly into Exos.
Who proceeded to drop hi
s mirror.
It shattered all over the ground, destroying his object and eliciting gasps from the group.
Exos stared at it for a moment, shock evident in his expression, then he narrowed his gaze at the cause of the issue. Titus immediately stepped in between his little brother and my Spirit Fae mate. “Apologize,” he demanded, his focus on Lance. “Now.”
“An apology isn’t going to fix my mirror,” Exos muttered, his fury and sadness swirling through our bond. He’d lost the trial and he knew it, which meant he was now disqualified from the results.
All because Titus’s brother had lost his temper over Fae knew what.
Shit.
“I… I’m sorry,” Lance said, sounding more contrite than I’d ever heard him. Likely because he’d just pissed off the Spirit Fae King—a male known for his warrior abilities and no-nonsense attitude. “I just wanted… to fuck with… Titus.”
My fire mate snorted. “Yeah, well, good job.”
“I’m sorry,” Lance repeated. “I didn’t get a lot of sleep, and it seemed like a good way to burn off my mood. I had no idea it would… that I would… that this would…”
“It’s fine,” Exos said, his tone surprisingly soft. “The goal of the exercise was to protect and nurture our items. It’s my failure, not yours. And it’s not going to stop us from finishing this. Let’s go inside. We have meals to prepare.” His sapphire gaze met mine as he turned around, his sorrow echoed in the depths of his eyes. I caught through our bond that it wasn’t so much disappointment of his loss as it was sadness over failing me and his object.
You’re going to be an amazing father, I whispered into his mind. And you just proved that by not losing your temper with Lance.
He didn’t mean to run into me, Exos replied. There’s no sense in being angry with him. It would just make him feel worse and doesn’t solve the problem. The damage is already done.
I know, I agreed, pressing my palm to his cheek and kissing him on the mouth. But that reaction is what will make you a good dad. It shows patience, something your trials didn’t factor in at all.
“Exos still earns points for the nurturing trial,” I decided out loud, making sure everyone knew my stance.
“Yes, accidents happen. It’s how we react that matters,” Cyrus echoed.
The others all murmured their agreement, my mates coming through for each other despite the competitive atmosphere.
I glanced at my mom, her eyes beaming with pride. Our relationship had been a bit rocky at first, but we’d grown closer over the years. She offered maternal guidance that was missing for most of my life. Not that my grandparents weren’t great to me as a child, but they only prepared me for the human world, not the fae realms.
My mom came up to me as my mates headed inside, her hand grasping my shoulder. “You’re definitely ready,” she whispered, agreeing with my statement from earlier. “All of you are.”
I smiled. “They’re really great, aren’t they?”
“They are,” she agreed, heading in after them.
Kalt, Mortus, and River all followed in silence, but Lance stood just outside, his cheeks pink with chagrin. “I’m sorry, Claire.”
“Water under the bridge,” I replied.
He frowned. “Is that…? Are you telling me my punishment?”
I blinked at him. “No. It’s a saying.”