Sweet Peril (The Sweet Trilogy #2)(29)

“What?” I asked.

It started with small giggles, Marna trying to hide hers behind her hand. When the two of them made eye contact, the dam broke and their laughter burst forth in a torrent. They howled, egged on by each other, stomping their pretty feet and smacking their legs. I looked at Kope, whose expression was as somber as ever while he watched them. He would not look at me. Marna shook her head, trying to explain through a bout of mirth.

“I’m sorry, luv, it’s just that Kai has the filthiest mouth of any bloke I’ve ever met!”

Another round of sisterly cackling. I felt my skin heating.

“But he never . . .” I let the sentence die in the midst of their laughter, shrinking inside. I didn’t like the feeling that crept over me. Envy? How pitiful to be jealous that Kai hadn’t cursed much in front of me, as if he could be himself with them and not me. Marna took a gasping breath and reached for my hand, working hard to control herself.

“Don’t be upset, please. It’s just the very idea . . .”

I wanted to believe Kai’s reasons were sweet and respectful, but the twins made me wonder if he’d been catering to my personality. We’d had such precious little time together, and I didn’t want to think that any of it had been fake.

I stared at the tea set. It’d been fifteen months since Kaidan and I drove cross-country together. Why was I letting this get to me now? And I wished the twins would stop sniggering already.

“It just feels wrong swearing in front of you,” Marna said, “like a sweet little granny is in the room.” She said it with utter innocence, but my eyes bugged.

“A granny?”

Ginger didn’t try to hide her amusement.

“Oh, come off it,” Marna told her sister. “Even you hold back when Anna is around.”

Ginger frowned and shrugged noncommittally.

“Anna,” Kope said, forcing me to look at him. “Are you ready to tell them?”

God love him. The boy knew exactly what to say to kill the current conversation and pull me out of this rut. I breathed in. Time to focus. I nodded at Kope, and hoped he could see the gratitude in my eyes. I let out the breath, working to tuck away all thoughts of Kai.

The twins had finally stopped laughing and wore expectant looks on their faces.

“Remember the nun I told you about who passed away during my trip to California?”

They both nodded.

“Well, her spirit came to me this summer . . .”

I don’t think either of them blinked or moved as I told them about the angelic Nephilim spirit and the prophecy. After I finished, several minutes of complete silence passed.

When Marna finally spoke, her voice was so small and childlike that it nearly shattered my heart. “Will they really be gone? We won’t have to work anymore?”

Her voice cracked and Ginger gathered her into her arms just as Marna broke down, shoulders shaking with the force of her tears. I blinked the sting away from my own eyes.

“They’ll really be gone,” I promised her. “And you’ll both be free.”

“What do you need us to do?” Ginger asked in an uncanny moment of teamwork. Marna dabbed at her eyes with an ivory cloth napkin from the table.

“There’s no long-term plan, yet,” I explained. “We just need to be ready, at any time, to band together and fight. I have no idea how it’s going to play out. But when I leave, you can’t talk about this at all. You can’t tell the guys. My dad’s sending me places when he knows it’s safe.”

I told them about the trip to Syria. They were good listeners, enthralled and full of questions. The things we were doing and planning right under the Dukes’ noses were extraordinary and unprecedented. Neph had never banded together against them, and the possibilities were enough to give us head rushes.

“We’re still trying to find other Neph to be allies. I need to see Blake and Kai. I know they’ll be in, but they need to hear about the prophecy.”

A thoughtful minute of quiet passed. My nerves felt like they were being wrung out at the thought of seeing Kai again. Ginger eyed me.

“You realize he’ll never let you love him, right?”

She could verbally punch like no other.

“I know that, yes.”

She crossed her arms, one shoulder cocked up, and glared at me as if I’d never truly understand Kaidan the way she did. And maybe she was right. Because even though my mind knew he wouldn’t let me love him, my heart continued to hope.

Kope caught my eye from across the table and we both looked away.

“Let’s do something fun together while arsey-Astaroth is gone!” Marna grabbed my arm, redirecting my attention. “Let’s get our nails done!”

I could never tell Veronica. She’d combust if she knew I’d cheated on her with Marna.

“You ladies should enjoy this time.” Kopano sounded weary. “I will go to the hotel.”

“Ah, Kope, I’m sorry!” Marna laughed. “Men get their nails buffed, too, you know.”

He stood. “I could use an early night to bed.”

“Are you sure?” I asked. “We could do something else.” I knew how he felt—jet lag was setting in—but I was too excited to sleep yet.

“I am certain.” He headed for the door, bowing his head at us.