Fire Breather

54.

SLEEPING in on Saturdays was a beautiful privilege I absolutely loved and could do for the rest of my life. Especially when a muscular body slipped into bed beside me, strong arms wrapping around my waist before pulling me into that rippling chest.

"Good morning, sweetheart," Garrick whispered, pressing a kiss against the back of my head before nestling his head into the crook of my neck.

I smiled, keeping my eyes closed as I placed my hand on the side of his face. "I thought I smelled you walking into my room."

His deep chuckle vibrated against my skin, opening my eyes. "Do I smell that bad?"

"Yes." I laughed, rolling onto my back as he moved his head away, smiling down at me. "But you're here and I don't plan for you to leave anytime soon." My eyes moved from his, landing on his swords and pack beside my door. "What time is it?"

"Nearly noon," he answered, softly pushing my curls away from my eyes. "I had to leave Samara a little later than Xade, but I made it here. Pretty sure Chradh was flying faster than normal."

"Oh, I have no doubt," I mused, looking down at his shirtless chest. "Were you hoping I wouldn't smell your twelve-hour flight if you had your shirt off?"

He arched a brow, his smile turning sheepish. "Well, I was hoping we could have a quick—"

The door to my room was opened and I quickly sat up, snatching the dagger out from under my pillow. But I groaned, dropping it in my lap at the sight of my brother pulling Violet inside before closing the door behind them.

"Ever heard of knocking, Xade?" I muttered, pressing my blanket against my chest which was only covered in a black bra. "What if I was naked?"

Xaden sent me a knowing look, glancing at Garrick once. "Then I would've throttled my best friend."

"I should've locked the damn door behind me," Garrick complained, grabbing Liam's sweater from my bedside table before handing it to me.

I quickly pulled it over my head, pushing my curls over my shoulders. "Why are you two even in here?" I asked, eyeing my brother and then Violet's nervous smile. "Saturdays are the only days I have with—"

"Violence has been doing research"—My brother sent her a sharp look before facing back to me—"because Brennan told her about the wardstone we have in Aretia."

Slowly, my lips parted in surprise, and I turned my gaze to Violet. "That's the research you've been hiding from me?"

"You knew she was hiding something?" Garrick asked, sitting up on his elbows.

"Yes, but I didn't bother asking her more about it considering we all have our secrets," I countered.

"That's what you think," he muttered, getting out of my bed and grabbing his shirt off my desk while I glared at the back of his head in annoyance. "So, what's your plan, Sorrengail?" he asked her, slipping his shirt on. "You want to raise the wards around Aretia?"

Violet sent him a surprised look for a second before nodding, straightening her shoulders. "Aretia needs to defend itself—to protect people we're prepared to take in when venin inevitably reach Tyrrendor. I'll keep researching until I figure out how the First Six put these wards in place so we can duplicate the process in Aretia."

I shoved the dagger back under my pillow, climbing out of bed. "But no one knows how it was originally done, only how to maintain them," I stated, noticing the agreeing look my brother sent her. "It's a lost magic, Vi."

"Someone knows," she countered, watching me slip into my leather sparring pants. "There's no chance that someone didn't leave a record somewhere in case they fail. We aren't going to destroy the only thing that could save us. We would hide it, but we wouldn't destroy it."