Page 40 of The Sin Binders Ascent

“How long do you think we have?”

Silas is already twisting the nozzle off one of the cans. “Till Elias smells betrayal or Caspian gets bored enough to snoop. Either way, we have...minutes.”

“Great.”

He starts spraying with manic glee. Thick white foam coats the surface, and the jets do the rest, bubbling the chaos to life. He tosses the empty can, grabs the next. “Operation Bubble Doom is underway.”

I shouldn’t be smiling. I should be yelling at him. But something about the way he kneels there, tongue between his teeth in wild concentration, glitter clinging to his jaw like stars that refused to fall, it makes my chest hurt in the best way.

“You know,” I say, watching the foam creep up like a monster waking from sleep, “you’re a terrible influence.”

Silas grins without looking back.

“Sweetheart, I’m thebestkind of terrible.”

Steam curls like fingers over the edge of the hot tub, hissing and swirling through the moonlight. Silas cackles low under his breath as the foam climbs higher, spilling over like whipped chaos. He tosses a final empty can into the grass, flexing his hands like he just delivered a masterpiece to the gods.

“This is art,” he whispers. “This is legacy. I want to be buried in this tub.”

“Careful,” I murmur. “You’re one emotionally-charged brother away from being drowned in it.”

He winks at me, kneeling back to admire our vandalism. “Worth it.”

I open my mouth to tell him he’s deranged, because he is, when a throat clears behind us. Not casual. Not polite. Sharp, deliberate, and dripping in amusement.

My spine stiffens. Silas freezes. We both turn.

Theo stands five feet away, arms crossed over his broad chest, an eyebrow raised like he’s been watching the whole damn time and is somehow impressed and disgusted simultaneously. He’s barefoot, shirtless, and holding a half-eaten peach in one hand like this is the most entertaining thing he’s seen since being unsealed from myth.

Ofcourse,he eats peaches. Smugly.

“Wow,” he says, glancing at the hot tub, then back at us. “Caught in the act. I gotta say... I didn’t havebubble bath sabotageon my Luna Bingo card tonight.”

Silas recovers first. Slowly rises. Brushes nonexistent dust from his pants like a man preparing for war. Or court. Or both. “Desire,” he says with theatrical solemnity, “you wouldn’tgetit.”

Theo’s gaze slides to me. “Oh, Igetit. This is what rebellion looks like when you’re not allowed to kill your ex-brothers in the kitchen.”

“You’re not funny,” I snap.

“No,” he agrees, biting into the peach again. “But I am observant.”

Silas steps forward, placing himself directly in front of me. It’s subtle, but it’s protection all the same. He flashes a grin that doesn’t reach his eyes. “You see anything worth reporting,Desire?”

Theo looks him over, slow and arrogant, then flicks a bit of juice from his fingers. “Just two lovers in arms, committing war crimes with shaving cream. Tell me, did she help you fill it, or were you hoping to seduce her with your foam distribution?”

Silas bristles. “Say one more thing like that and I swear to every realm that I’ll,”

“What?” Theo interrupts mildly. “Challenge me to a duel with glitter bombs? You forget, chaos, I was born before the concept of fun. You’re just a cheap remix of my original programming.”

I shove between them before Silas can launch himself over the hot tub.

“You done?”

Theo grins at me, teeth white in the dark, and says nothing.

I don’t know what it is, his silence, his gaze, the way hesmirks like he’s still under my skin even when I want him buried six feet beneath it, but I step forward, only a breath away from him now. His grin falters for a fraction of a second, but not because he’s afraid. No. Because he’senjoyingthis.

“If you so much as breathe wrong in my direction again, I’ll drown you in Silas’s foam.”

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