Page 27 of Whispering Waves

“Drake, why doesn’t your sister like pink?”

Drake snorted. “Because that is all that Mom would buy her. Pink from head to toe. Her little beta princess. They were so concerned that they had her genetically tested and then were certain that I was a beta, so they never tested me. Dad should have known that betas and alphas can come from the same household. But, yeah. She was pinked out from birth until she started putting her foot down at eleven or so. It was still all Mom bought her, but Nina learned to dye her own stuff. Pink disappeared. Four years later, Mom caught on.”

Nina shook her head. “No, I got a part-time job and got my own clothes.”

“Ah. I did wonder.” Drake paused. “Wait. Did you buy all my sports gear?”

Nina turned bright pink. “Of course not.”

“You are a terrible liar.”

She shrugged. “You needed stuff, and they were being jerks. It was a good use of my allowance.”

Drake sighed. “I really want to hug you right now. All those sports saved my sanity.”

Nina squirmed to the edge of Kimo’s legs and hopped off. “I am not shackled there. He’s just super warm and comfy.”

Drake got up and hugged her.

Tono said, “Anyone else feel like we are at family therapy?”

Drake released one of his arms, reached for the veggie tray, and Tono shouted as cut veggies from Reg, Drake, and Kimo pelted him.

She chuckled, and her brother ruffled her hair. “You are welcome.” She grinned at him. “Looks like Tono likes vegetables.”

The smart-ass in question said, “At least I can take a cucumber better than you can.”

“Aw. I am sure I will get the hang of it.”

He startled and blushed. “Oh, right.”

“Now, celery. Celery is hard to deal with, and I have no idea which direction those peppers are going in. They seem kind of advanced.”

Kimo pulled her away from Drake and tucked her back onto his lap. “Mine.”

She snorted and yawned when she settled against the wall of heat that was holding her. Nina let herself relax.

Drake spoke softly. “When she crashes, she crashes. So, how did she do today?”

“She knew the basics but hadn’t applied the practicalities. We were having a nice time until we went swimming in a freshwater pond, and then she had a panic attack. She came out of it, but I really want to kill that guy.”

Drake agreed. “Me, too. I can’t believe she kept it from me.”

Reg spoke softly, saying, “The timing lined up with your finals. My guess is that she didn’t want to distract you. She’s an excellent mother for a sister.”

She mumbled, “But I am a terrible horse. And definitely not a barn, English.”

Drake laughed, and he explained the jokes while she mumbled, “Wake me for dinner.”

Kimo held her close. “Of course, Nerina. I’ve got you.”

Chapter Five

Nina yawned through dinner and kept apologizing. Kimo rubbed her back and said, “After travel and a rough night with Tono snoring a few doors down, plus today’s fun and games, you have a right to be sleepy.”

“I thought it was Drake snoring out of tune.” She nodded her head and then jerked upright.

Kimo sighed and pulled her onto his lap again. He pressed her head to his chest and woke her up for dessert. A chocolate éclair was held to her mouth, and she forced herself awake. “Can I get coffee?”

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