even if we lose, we're still going to win. So long as Michael can't tear us apart, we can't really lose."
28
Sienna
At some point, Ron and I managed to get ourselves up and into the bed properly, but Bel never joined us. He did stop to give both of us a sweet kiss before pointing out that the bed simply wasn't big enough for all of us - and he was right. We still would've made it work, but he promised he was fine. I didn't argue much - only because I was too tired to keep my eyes open.
But the next morning, I woke up early, and I felt a little guilty. I'd barely even talked to the others when we got here last night. Everyone had been a little shaken up by our chat with God. Well, Tiamat was what she called herself, but in my head, I couldn't stop thinking of her as God. Ron and Bel had seemed to take it the hardest, but I shouldn't have ignored Nick, Luke, and Sam like I had.
So I kissed Ron and told him to sleep in, then claimed a massive maroon shirt from the floor and tiptoed down the hall. Sam's room was in the middle, halfway between Ron's and the stairs on the far end. His door was cracked open just enough to let me peek inside. But that wasn't Sam in his bed. It was Bel, and the big guy was sprawled across the entire mattress.
So I kept going. All of my clothes were in Nick's room. The problem was that I didn't want to wake him. So I crept in as quietly as I could, only to find that Nick hadn't spent the night alone either. Luke was curled against his chest, one arm draped across Nick's body and hooked against his ribs. The pair of them were beautiful like that. Light against dark, and nothing but miles of elegant muscles.
Carefully, I opened the drawers to claim a set of underwear, a pair of yoga pants, and a long-sleeve tee. It was January, and while that wasn't too cold here in the South, it wasn't exactly warm either. With an armload of clean stuff to put on, I turned to sneak my way back out, only to find Nick's eyes open and watching me.
With a smile, he lifted a finger to his lips, making it clear he didn't want to wake Luke. I nodded, smiling back at him, and that seemed to say enough. Nick looked down at Luke with a gentle smile, let out a breath, and then nodded at me.
"Go back to sleep," I whispered, my words as quiet as I could make them.
He curled the arm Luke was laying on around the man's back to lightly stroke his shoulder. "Tell one of the guys to take you for coffee." Like me, his words were almost inaudible.
"Shower first," I said, but nodded to show I agreed. "You two look good together."
Nick just pointed at the door, playfully kicking me out rather than admitting I was right, but I knew he liked hearing it. I also went - right out and to the gold room next door. That wasn't a bedroom. It was where the guys had their stone table for any necessary aether projects, which meant no one would be in need of the bathroom when they woke up. So, I claimed it as my own and enjoyed a long, hot shower.
When I was clean, awake, and dressed, I made my way downstairs. The house was still quiet, but I could hear someone moving around in the kitchen. Heading that way, I glanced at the clock on the wall, groaning when I realized that it was just after nine in the morning. Normal people should be asleep at this time of day, but it seemed that jumping between worlds and time zones had made me an accidental morning person.
Then I stepped into the kitchen to find Sam pulling apart the coffee pot. His jeans hung low on his hips, and his shirt had been tossed onto the counter instead of his body. His magenta hair was wet and in disarray, flopped carelessly against his cheek. But he paused when he heard me, glancing back with a smile.
"Morning."
I moved closer to help. "Morning. I saw Bel in your bed."
His smile turned a little wistful. "Yeah. He wanted to cuddle."
"And?" I asked.
Sam glanced away. "It may have led places. You're still ok with that, right?"
I stepped