Page 122 of To Ashes and Dust
“Scandalous,” Barrett added, and I searched for anything I could throw at him. Thalia snickered, leaning into his shoulder, and I narrowed my eyes on Barrett.
“You’re lucky Thalia’s there, or I’d throw something at you.”
“Oh, I’ll move if you want to hit him,” Thalia offered, and I couldn’t fight the laughter that broke from my throat.
Damien stepped back from the stove, interrupting the conversation. “Okay,mea luna. Let me show you just how good I am at flipping pancakes.”
My brows rose as I turned to face him, and he glanced to make sure I was watching.
“Twenty bucks says he drops the pancake,” Barrett muttered to Vincent.
“I’ll take that bet.” Vincent settled his elbows on the table.
Damien bit his lip as he lifted the pan once, twice, then jerked it up in a swift, calculated motion. The pancake flipped into the air before he shifted to catch it smoothly in the pan. Ethel and I clapped our hands, a grin spreading across my face as he returned the pan to the stove, giving me a quick wink before he got back to work cooking. The others chuckled as Barrett muttered under his breath.
“Hey Barrett,” Damien said.
Barrett lifted his face to look to Damien. “Yeah?”
“I believe you owe Vincent twenty bucks.”
I tugged down my hood as we stepped into the lower hall of The Complex later that night, warmth greeting us with open arms.
“Man, I don’t know about you, but I’d fight a badger over a fuckin’ cardboard box for one of Semele’s drinks right now,” Barrett groaned from behind me as we headed for the stairway to the third-floor lounge.
“That seems random even for you, Barrett,” I said, chuckling as I glanced back his way.
“His existence is random,” Vincent said.
“Agreed,” Zephyr added, and I giggled.
“Just admit it, you guys love me.” I rolled my eyes as Barrett stretched, nearly brushing the ceiling with his hands as he groaned. “Just two more hours and I’ll be enjoying that drink. Thalia’s meeting me at Stokers. You guys wanna join us?”
“If Cas isn’t too tired, we can join you,” Damien said. “I don’t have any plans. You want to go?”
“I’ll never turn down a trip to Stokers. I love visiting Eiko and Semele,” I said. “Speaking of random.” Barrett perked up beside me. “I—uh, was searching through Lucia’s memories the other day.”
He cocked a brow, tilting his head down to look down at me.
“It was a memory from The Fall of Kingdoms. I ran into you on the killing field...” The memory still hung in the back of my mind, the horror of it all, the sadness that had remained after the battle was won.
His curiosity doused, his eyes drifting to the floor in front of him.
“How long have you called me spitfire?” I asked, and his brows rose. He seemed genuinely surprised that was what I’d brought it all up for.
“A long time. I was a mess when I joined The Order.” His eyes darkened briefly, as if the memory haunted him. It faded away just as quickly, light returning to those steel eyes as he looked back down at me. “You used to scold me when I’d get into trouble, and I always joked about how your words were enough to burn even me. The name spitfire kind of just stuck.”
“I called you hothead.” It wasn’t necessarily a statement but more reminiscence, and a smile tugged at my lips.
A crooked grin curved one side of his mouth as he lingered on the thought. “I deserved that. I wasn’t always the cool, collected, calculated fighter I am today.”
“That’s a bullshit statement. You’ve never been any of that,” Vincent chimed in.
“No one asked you,” Barrett bit back, swiping at Vincent, who ducked out of the way. I giggled as we made it up the stairs—Damien, Zephyr, and Vincent taking the lead as Barrett and I trailed behind.
“I had a feeling when we first met,” he started, and I lifted my eyes to him, one brow lifted. “I didn’t wanna believe it. Zephyr and I had given up hope you’d return, but I felt it when we first met you. I was…” He pursed his lips, running his hand over the back of his neck. “I was in denial when Damien started talking to you. There was no way I could see you returning as a human. I tried to scare you off, thinking you just resembled her. I feared how deeply betrayed you’d feel if you returned to find your mate with another female.”
I couldn’t think of how I might respond to that.
