Page 141 of Scars Like Wings

“It’s a good thing I’m a strong water baby, then.” Quinn smiled.

As I reached down to take off my sandals, Quinn took my calf and sat my foot on her ankle. Since Quinn saw me upstairs, she hadn’t been able to keep her hands off of me, either holding my hand or touching my lower back. Her strong hand against my bare skin now and holding me so gently definitely did things for me, especially as her rough hand came ever so close to a patch of scales on my calf. She started unbuckling my sandal.

“You spoil me, starlight. I’m a big girl who can take my own shoes off, you know?”

“Oh, I know. But I will always take any opportunity I can to touch you, especially when you are looking like this in that swimsuit.” Quinn winked. My face heated under the smolder that hadn’t left since she saw me upstairs. She finished taking off my sandals and sat them beside the chair.

“Are you girls ever going to get into the water?” Cody called out.

“Gods forbid we relax, huh?” Maisie snarked, downing her cocktail and grabbing another one from Dorian with a smile his way.

“You already know I am. I just need my third cocktail-wind before I dive in,” Nat said, sipping her drink. “I would have thought that the Mermaid Princess would have dived in with the Waterboys, though.”

“When you live most of your life in water, you become not so eager to dive back into it.” Simone shrugged.

“Well, it’s not like your dive is as good as ours, anyway, princess!” Cody said, doing a backstroke.

“Excuse me?” Simone raised her eyebrows, sitting up on the lounge chair to look at Cody over her sunglasses. “Be so for real right now, Cody Collier, are you challenging amermaidto a dive contest?”

“You said yourself you don’t dive. Part fish or not, I bet I could smoke you in a dive contest.”

“I said I’m noteagerto dive in, not that I don’t, but now I have to prove a point,” Simone said, taking off her sandals.

“Oh, you are in for it now, you silly fool,” Cole laughed, splashing him.

“It’s hilarious because he’s talking the most shit as the worst diver here,” Nat said.

Disses and jokes were traded back and forth until a straight-up diving competition was started with Maisie, Cooper, and I as judges sitting on the pool’s edge. The others lined up behind the diving board to take turns doing their best stylized dive.

The first few times everyone did their dives, it was a serious contest. Simone showed off her finest flips and turns in the air as she dived. It was as if the air was just an extension of the water for her. She was so graceful and majestic up there. It was art in motion. Cole was good, but without the finesse and beauty of Simone. I tried to be as unbiased as possible, but my Queenie was a freaking daredevil on the board, doing backflips and handstands and spinning cannonballs. I cheered loudly when she would land a move, and she would surface to see me applauding her. Her face was full of such pride and elation I thought my heart would melt from the cuteness. Even Natassa had some decent moves, despite having to hold her nose when she dived. Hilariously, Cody didn’t even come close to the grace of Simone and the hardcore badassery of Quinn. His moves were closer to belly flops than anything, but he won the award for making me laugh the hardest, at least.

As Cole climbed the ladder for another dive, with Simone rooting for him, Cooper leaned toward me from where he sat next to me. His voice was deep, cutting, yet low enough that only I could hear through the laughter, jokes, and splashes of the others.“You know, I have never noticed those on you before.”

“I’m sorry what?” I asked, turning to face him as Cole attempted a backflip.

Cooper’s eyes were sharp knives of blue on me. I felt like a cornered animal or one about to be dissected. He motioned to a set of scales on my knee. “Those. Have you always had them?”

“Oh,” I swallowed. “They are… new.”

“Like, a new makeup trend you are trying or something? I see they are all over you, and they look waterproof. Are they a new growth on you?”

I shifted in my seat. There was something in his tone and his use of words that I didn’t like, but I couldn’t put my finger on what exactly. Regardless, talking to Cooper was always uncomfortable. The guy was just intense for what felt like no reason, and of all the cousins, I had spent the least amount of time with him one-on-one. “I mean, they are new. They appeared a week or so ago. Why are you asking?”

“I just find it interesting. Your friend is obviously a mermaid, so that explains her scales, but you? You are obviously something else.”

What the fuck?

“These scales and what happened to you at Universal, too? Very few people encounter an energy vampire like that and live to tell about it. Even fewer have blood and energy that would attract one to that degree and send them into a frenzy. Oh, and you didn’t seem like you were incredibly affected by its venom.”

What in the absolute fuck?

“What are you getting at exactly, Cooper?” I asked harshly, despite the large pit of anxiety in my stomach. Something inme growled, making my black nails sharpen and claw at the pavement. He was asking the same questions I was, but there was something about him asking them, something about my instincts telling me not to get too comfortable around him, that made me hate that he was trying to connect dots like me. It wasn’t any of his fucking business.

“I’m simply curious about you?—”

“Sweetness? Are you okay?” Quinn’s voice immediately calmed my bristling as I turned to see her quickly swim over to me. Her hazel eyes never left me, and as she came up between my legs, I could see the worry dripping from her eyes like the water droplets from her eyelashes. I instinctively wrapped my legs around her torso, sending enough jolts of electricity through me that I was surprised that the water wasn’t a conduit of power. It was reassuring and grounding.

Before I could respond, Cooper cut in. “We were just talking, Quinn. No reason for you to come over and try to mark your territory.”

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