Page 227 of Halfblood Deceived

He nodded. “Just making sure.”

Evan aimed his phone at Zeydan again. “Hold still. I gotta take another one—” The phone left the blond’s hands, pulled by an invisible force.

Zeydan’s telekinesis, Aella realized.

“Oi!” Evan protested.

Zeydan caught the phone midair and flicked a glance at Evan. “You can have it back when you learn to behave.”

Mari scoffed. “Never then.”

Andreas tut-tutted. “Such a blatant lack of manners.”

“That’s rich coming from you,” Evan quipped.

“Yes, but Andreas is actually behaving tonight,” Sebastian pointed out.

Lex huffed. “That won’t last. Just you wait.”

“Oh, it’ll last if he knows what’s good for him,” Mari said, voice ominous. “Or else.”

Andreas leaned closer to her, so close a lock of Mari’s wild green-yellow hair brushed his cheek. “Or else what, Marigold?”

Mari narrowed her eyes at him. “Or else I’ll turn you into a pig.”

Andreas scoffed. “You won’t. You’ve been saying the same for years, and you haven’t dared. Nor will you dare.”

Aylana hummed. “That sounded like a challenge to me.”

“Are you going to let him talk to you like that, Mari?” Sebastian asked in a falsely outraged tone.

Mari narrowed her eyes at Andreas. “Perhaps I haven’t done it because it would be an upgrade.”

“Ooh, snap!” Evan exclaimed.

Andreas smiled, flashing his canines at Mari. “You don’t really mean that. In fact, I’m willing to bet you’d miss me if I were gone.”

“You overestimate yourself,” Mari quipped.

“No, I don’t think I do,” Andreas drawled.

Mari’s gaze darted to Andreas’s lips for a second.

Aella’s eyes went wide. She fired a questioning glance at Zeydan, who heaved a small sigh and gave her a long-suffering, affirmative look.

Evan coughed. “Foreplay.”

Mari launched her chocolate-sticky fork at Evan with astounding speed.

He dodged it with a squeak. It clanked against the marble floor. “You could have taken my eye out, you lunatic!”

“I would appreciate it if you didn’t poke Uncle Evan’s eyes out, Auntie Mari,” Luce said in that too-adult tone of hers. “Or turned my dad into a farm animal.”

Mari exhaled sharply. “They started it, Luce.”

Luce took a sip of her grape juice and nodded. “That’s true, but we mustn’t fall to their level.” Her tone was incredibly priggish but endearing.

Aella smiled, knowing at once she’d protect Luce with her very life if need be.

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