Page 158 of Fourth Wing

My head turns so fast that it swims, and my mouth drops open as I stare at the side of Xaden’s face. That was his voice…in my fuckinghead.

He turns, the golden flecks in his eyes catching the light, and I swear I hear him laughing in my mind, though his lips are closed, tilted in that pulse-quickening smirk of his.

“You’re staring. It’s going to get awkward in about thirty seconds if you don’t stop.”

“How?” I hiss.

“The same way you talk to Sgaeyl. We’re all gloriously, annoyingly linked. This is just one of the perks. Though I’m starting to wish I’d tried it sooner. The look on your face is priceless.”He winks and turns back to the table.

He. Fucking.Winked.And is that a hint of a smile?

“You’re. The. Wingleader.” Every word Dain speaks comes out through clenched teeth.

“I’m not even supposed to be here.” Xaden shrugs. “But if it makes you feel better, for the purpose of War Games, you’d be getting your orders from your section leader, Garrick Tavis, which he’d get from me. You’ll be carrying out your maneuvers as a squad for the good of the wing. Just pretend I’m another member of your squad and use me as you wish, Aetos.” Xaden folds his arms across his chest.

I glance at Mira, who’s watching the play-by-play with raised brows.

“Why are you even here?” Dain challenges. “No offense,sir, but we weren’t exactly expecting senior leadership on this trip.”

“You’re more than aware that Sgaeyl and Tairn are mated.”

“Three days?” Dain fires back, leaning in. “You couldn’t make it three days?”

“It has nothing to do with him,” I interrupt, setting my dragon down with a little more force than necessary. “That’s up to Tairn and Sgaeyl.”

“You never considered that it was you I couldn’t stay away from?”

I crook my right arm and jab it into Xaden’s biceps. He doesn’t mean that. Not when he’s still adamant that kissing me was a mistake. And if he does… I’m not going there.

“Now, now, you’ll give our little communication secret away if you can’t keep from being so…violent.”He barely restrains a smile, obviously loving that he gets the last word.

I need to figure out how the hell he’s doing it so I can mentally argue back.

“Of course you rush to defend him.” Dain hurls a hurt glare at me. “Though how you can forget that this guy wanted to kill you six months ago is beyond me.”

I blink up at him. “I cannot believe you went there.”

“Good job remaining professional, Aetos.” Xaden scratches the relic on his neck I’m all but certain doesn’t actually itch. “Really shows those leadership qualities to their best advantage.”

One of the riders down the table whistles low. “Do you boys just want to whip it out and measure? It would be faster.”

Liam smothers a laugh, but his shoulders shake.

“Enough!” Mira slams her hands on the table.

“Oh, come on, Sorrengail,” the rider down the table whines with a wide smile.

Both Mira and I look his way.

“I mean…the older Sorrengail. This is the best entertainment we’ve had in ages.”

I shake my head and look around the table. “Mira has the ability to extend the shield if the wards are down, so the first thing I would do is send her to scout the area with Teine. We need to know if we’re dealing with infantry or gryphon riders.”

“Good.” Mira moves her dragon closer to the castle. “Now let’s assume there are gryphons.”

“You want to do your job?” I ask Dain, smiling sweetly. “I mean, how you can forget you’re the squad leader is beyond me.”

His hand clenches around his own dragon as he rips his gaze from mine. “Quinn, can you astral project from the back of your dragon?”

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