Page 40 of Exiled Prince

“Yeah, and her cakes are the best,” Salem adds, making me smile.

Bane starts eating the food, his eyes widening when he takes his first bite. “Wait a minute, who made this?”

“Saylor did,” Silver replies, confusion etched on his brow. “Hasn’t she cooked for you?”

“I thought she couldn’t cook,” he replies, and I then remember I told Axe that.

Sage turns back to me and laughs, his broad shoulders shaking. “Fuck, you told him you couldn’t cook? That’s cold, baby sis.”

“I didn’t tell him that.” I sigh, rolling my eyes. “I told Axe that when he asked because he was being nosey. And you know what I always say, ‘Don’t let a man know you can cook.’ ”

“Or he will hire you for free,” all my brothers say in a chorus together.

Instead of being angry, Bane laughs, his eyes lighting up as they stay on me. “This is delicious, Sunshine.”

“You call her Sunshine? I would have chosen something more appropriate like angry lightning bolt,” Sage unhelpfully adds.

“Ice-cold rain,” Silver adds, laughing to himself.

“Humid air that makes you uncomfortable,” Salem suggests with a serious face.

These assholes!

I throw bread rolls at all of them.

Sage’s gets him right on the forehead.

“We tried to raise her better, we really did,” Silver murmurs, shaking his head.

But the grin on his face gives him away.

“She’s perfect,” Bane replies, his smile and voice gentle. But then he turns to my brothers, and his voice turns to steel. “But any of you call her any of those names again, and I’m going to make sure a raincloud sits above your houses for the next month. She’s sunshine. That’s all she fucking is.”

And now I’m the one grinning.

Later, I realize I didn’t even get to say what my favorite thing was, with my brothers not letting me get a damn word in.

But I know what I was going to say.

Bane.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Bane

Saylor stays for the next few nights, even doing sword training with me in the mornings. It’s easy to see her brothers have made sure she is well trained. I know they give her a lot of shit, but even I can tell how much they love her. She has them wrapped around her finger, and they are obviously a close-knit family. I’m glad she had that growing up.

I’ve found out that Saylor is pretty damn good with swords and daggers, and she’s not bad in hand-to-hand either. But she primarily relies on her magic.

“Shit,” I hear her mutter, wiping her forehead with the back of her hand as she puts her sword against the tree. She’s wearing leather pants and a top that shows off her toned stomach, and I can’t look away.

Which is probably how I miss the fact that August is storming up to us. He’s been away, searching for Milana, so this is the first time we’ve both seen him since Saylor let Milana go free.

Moving to stand in front of her, August’s brown eyes narrow when he picks up on the protective move. “I’m not going to hurt her, Bane.”

He looks tired. His brown hair is a mess, and his tunic is all wrinkled.

“I know you won’t,” I reply, the threat clear in my tone.

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