Page 133 of Wicked Heirs

Tal bounced onto the bed right beside us. “We have something to show you before you run off to classes.”

“I wasn’t going to run off. I wanted to hurry so we could all hit the cafeteria and have breakfast together before the day got started and we had to be apart for too much of it.”

“Aww, missing us already, Alena?” Orpheus asked.

“Yes,” she admitted openly.

The three of us exchanged an elated look.Perfect.

She was ours through and through.

He kissed her forehead, then pushed off her and settled beside her, between me and Tal. “Do the honors, brother,” he told me.

Alena sat up and looked on eagerly as I called my magic and with a brief burst of my vibrant-blue fire, a necklace hung from my open palm.

She choked as she took in the crystal necklace with multicolored magically-generated gems made by Ore and me combining our magic and Talon assisting with fashioning the crystal aspect.

“Wow,” she breathed. “This is incredible.”

“Made by all three of us,” Tal told her.

“It’s infused with mine and Ore’s magic and Talon’s phoenix fire helped to forge the crystal.”

I handed it to her and she took it reverently. “This is the most amazing thing anyone has ever given me. Thank you. You guys are… you’re another level.”

We all chuckled at her reaction.

“Actually, it’s theonlything I’ve ever gotten from a guy.” She winked. “Or,guys.”

“Seriously?” Tal asked as he eased it from her, then draped it around her neck and clasped it for her.

“Thanks,” she said, kissing his cheek.

“You’re welcome, my firecracker.”

“You’ve never been given a present from a man before?” I queried.

“It doesn’t surprise me,” Orpheus spoke.

Off mine and Talon’s fierce looks, he held up his hand, then told Alena, “Imeantbecause until recently, you just took things, accepted them as they were. And you hid your true self, your ferocity, your passion. You didn’t express your wants and needs. To some extent, not even to yourself. Now you are, you’re demanding respect, you’re fierce in what you want and what you don’t.” He smiled. “You’re the formidable and impressive woman you were always destined to be.”

“That was… beautiful,” I uttered, extremely impressed that he’d put that out there so earnestly and… vulnerably.

“Orpheus, I—” Alena started, beaming out at him.

But she was pulled up short by his glowing purple and silver IC Watch suddenly sparking and buzzing, the sign that an interdimensional communication was coming in.

He swept his palm over it, activating his response with his magic.

And then a hologram of Saryan Hart pacing up and down his throne room came into being.

“Orpheus, it’s imperative that you return to the Kingdom. We must have words.”

It dissipated in the next moment.

“He bypassed the conversational option and went straight to leaving a message,” Orpheus murmured to himself, worry all over him.

“Means he didn’t want to give you the chance to say no,” Tal said.

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