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Jumping, I went down along Vyper’s wing like it was a slide at the park, and saw the others chuckle at my unconventional ways. As I approached, the bronze baby settled on my shoulder, so I could focus on the large section of earth where the green coffee seeds spread, resembling a thick carpet.
Asher and the others joined us then, walking to the grove.
A slow smirk made its way to my lips when I saw Evie arriving with her guardian, and strange nerves twisted my gut when she smiled at me, but I just nodded to her in greeting. My smile swiftly vanished when Kingston’s scowl sent a silent threat towards me. Sighing, I faced the others.
“Thank you, everyone. Now, I need all of you to please give us some room,” I called, motioning to Vyper to come to my side while the others stepped back—creating a wide perimeter. Lifting my finger, I gave him a pointed look. “Remember, slow and steady does it. Just like we practiced. This isn’t a competition between you and Tharion to see who can burn shit the fastest. Because we all know he can. They don’t call himFire Furyfor nothing.”
Huffing, and making sure to give me the evil eye, Vyper stepped forwards, lowering his head while inhaling a big breath. The next moment, a stream of red fire erupted from his mouth. That was definitely not the way humans roasted coffee, but it couldn’t hurt to take a few shortcuts.
Steady and with caution, he guided the flowing flame over the seeds, engulfing the entire carpet, and immediately ceased. With a renewed breath, Vyper blew fresh air onto them, cooling them once more, until only a few wisps of heat lifted from them. I didn’t need to touch them to see the seeds had gone from green to a beautiful brown, but I walked closer, taking a handful of them to inspect.
An eerie silence fell over everyone present while they waited for the verdict.
After carefully turning the beans in my palm, I lifted them to my face. The familiar semi-sweet but strong aroma of coffee immediately hit my nose and my mouth watered. Jackpot. The scent brought with it memories from my mornings at the Subway, and my chest constricted with the thoughts, but they didn’t diminish the happiness I felt. I supposed that I was still figuring out a way to reconcile the two sides of who I was.
“We did it!” I yelled, lifting my hand to show everyone the result, and shouts of elation rose around me.
Some people cheered, clapped, or even jumped, hugging each other with huge smiles. Their excitement coursed through me with the sight, and I appreciated the moment to the highest. They hadn’t even seen the full result of what they had achieved, but they were still so happy that their hard work had paid off, and eager for what came next. It was so refreshing to see.
“Okay, everyone, time to reap the fruit of your labor,” I announced, smiling when rows and rows of people began to walk to the carpet, eagerly stuffing the burlap sacks each of them had made with the coffee beans.
Two of the cooks began to fill their barrels to be taken into the castle.
Turning around, I glanced up at Vyper to find him glaring at me, expectantly. “Great job, buddy. That was perfect. High five!” I lifted my arm in the air, smacking my own hand so he would see what I meant.
Frowning, Vyper inspected my hand for a second, but feeling the happiness inside me, he lifted his too, slamming it against mine. He did it lightly, but I still staggered back, ending up on my ass. Chuckles escaped me while the guard, Evie, and even Kingston laughed.
“Well done. But next time with a little less force, please.”
Vyper snorted, clearly pleased he had put me on my ass, but I could tell he was proud he had done a good job. When he offered me his finger, I held onto it and let him pull me off the floor.
“You know, Tharion would have never been able to pull off such a precise and careful job with his fire breath.”
That caused a full-blown smirk to tilt Vyper’s mouth, and I reached for his jaw, stroking it just as Evie made her way towards me. Her approach captured my full attention, and I was suddenly hypnotized by her. My eyes fell to her exposed waist, admiring the way her hips seemed to dance in the sapphire silk top and low-rise skirt she wore.
Is it getting hot in here?
I swallowed as my pulse instantly began to race.
