Page 163 of A Warrior's Fate

Davina, still dazed with her eyes turning glossy, took a step back to allow them inside, and Isla followed Kai’s suit, taking down her hood. He kicked the door closed behind them.

Ameera was obviously fighting to keep too wide a grin off her face. “And what did we do to deserve this honor, Your Majesty?”

At the address, Kai scoffed but before he could answer, there was a strangled sound. He barely had time to react before Davina, on the brink of tears, launched herself at him.

Isla recalled this morning, which felt eons ago now—a time when she wasn’t mated, wasn’t on the cusp of becoming luna—and remembered how devastated Davina had been with the news of the challenge.

The challenge—something else that couldn’t be negated from the list of shit.

Davina hadn’t seen Kai since the announcement, not like Rhydian and Ameera and she had. Jonah hadn’t seen him either, but he remained in his spot beside Ameera. Watching. Observing as Jonah seemed to do.

Kai chuckled, wrapping his arms around the smallest of the bunch. “Hey, Davi.”

He scrunched his nose, getting a full whiff of her, and lifted his eyes, directing an inquisitive stare at the rest of the group.

“Lightweight,” Ameera whispered, gesturing towards the empty bottle of red wine. On her other side, Rhydian was shaking his head.

Davina nearly fell over with how fast she pulled away from Kai and whipped around. A lazy scowl crossed her face. “I may not be some super shifting wolf—” She jutted her finger in Ameera’s direction. “But I have ears!”

The female general waved her off, and Isla couldn’t hold back a laugh. She’d never pictured what a drunk Davina would be like.

Her sound had drawn the redhead’s attention her way, and even if unwarranted, Davina jumped at her too. The difference in their heights had the smaller woman’s head right at her shoulder. Isla greeted her as Kai had with her laughter persisting.

“Wait,” Davina suddenly muttered against Isla’s shirt. She took in a deep, exaggerated inhale before stepping back. Isla was at arm’s length as she leaned back in to take in her scent again. Then she teetered back over to Kai. Another sniff.

“You smell like each other,” she said suspiciously.

Isla pursed her lips, feigning innocence, and glanced up at Kai. “Do we tell them?”

Her mate smirked in return.

“No way.” They spun forward to find Rhydian with his arms up, his smile wide and bright. “No fucking way!”

Kai’s smile nearly rivaled his brother’s as he shifted the neckline of his shirt to the side, revealing his mark. He attempted a dejected sigh. “She got me.”

More sounds came from various directions—gasps, a holler, laughs, and some clapping. Rhydian scaled the room to them quickly, and Davina screamed, jumping at Isla again. As they hugged, laughing, Kai and Rhydian exchanged their own embrace.

And before she knew it, Isla was being lifted off the ground in the guard’s arms.

“Welcome to the family,” Rhydian said, the words so pleasant, also felt like a punch in the stomach. Especially when she realized a buzzed Rhydian reminded her a lot of Sebastian—when he was sober. “I hope you know Magnus is going to shit himself when you show up to training as his luna.”

A cruel grin crossed her mouth. That did sound fun, but could she even attend training anymore?

Over Rhydian’s shoulder, Isla caught Ameera and Jonah making their way over.

“And so, the dynasty begins,” the general presented overdramatically. “I thought you two had the look.”

Kai, who was enduring another hug from Davina, rose a brow. “What look?”

“The ‘finally fucked’ look,” Jonah said, lifting his glass to them, still standing a few feet away from the whirlwinds that were his brother and sister-in-law. “My rule still stands, you know.”

“We have to celebrate!” Davina bellowed. Isla didn’t have time to settle after Rhydian had set her down because his mate was already grabbing both her and Kai to pull them to the table of drinks.

Celebrate?

With her bag feeling heavier on her shoulder, Isla caught Kai’s eye. She wished she didn’t have to be the one to ruin the fun. “Is there time to celebrate?”

Kai’s throat bobbed, and he shook his head.

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