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She nodded as her eyebrows dipped into a determined vee. I faded into the greenhouse on the edge of the grounds, the furthest point from the dining room.
“Diana, what’s your favorite food?” I said aloud in a normal volume. When I faded back into the dining room, her smile told me everything I needed to know.
“You asked me what my favorite food was, and in case you were curious, tacos. I’m an insatiabletac-hoe.” She giggled to herself, and everyone but Mal cracked a smile.
“I’m sure you could clean out an entire taco truck if you opened your mouth wide enough,” Mal spat. “Excuse me, while I find something better to do.” He got up to storm out of the room before Bash or Ares could crack his skull open for insulting Diana. She just laughed, completely unbothered.
“Fuck yeah, I could! I’ll eat every last taco, burrito, and empanada until y’all have to roll me home,” she triumphantly sassed after him. “Meet me outside on Taco Tuesday, Malcontent, how about that?”
She glanced at Bash, double-taking as her entire face went red. A furious blush spread over her cheeks. Her hysterical laughter rang out through the room. Ares was trying his hardest not to cackle, but losing the battle.
“What the fuck!” Bash shouted. A halved avocado sat on his plate. It was perfectly ripe with the pit intact. “Ares!”
“Do you need me to take it out of the shell and smush it in your face, or do you want me to feed it to you?” Ares' smooth voice was an octave lower than usual, his gaze liquid fire. Diana gasped, her mouth parting ever so slightly as her heartrate picked up.
“Enough nonsense,” I commanded, my voice unwavering.The last thing I need is a threesome breaking out at breakfast.Everyone focused on me. “Diana, it seems you have superhuman hearing. Add that to the way you froze everyone at the club, your unusual speed outside, and the earthquake Ares told me you caused at your house on the day we took you, I’m wondering if there’s a piece of the puzzle we’re missing. Are you experiencing anything abnormal? Any strange occurrences or side effects of your magic coming in?”
Diana froze, glancing away from me before sighing and shrugging her shoulders. “Um, this entire experience is unusual for me, isn’t it? I wouldn’t know what’s considered weird, but I’ll keep you up to date on what’s happening with my powers.” Something about her lack of eye contact and vague answer seemed unlike her.
Keep an eye on her, I mindlinked Bash. He nodded slightly at me from across the table.
“Good. When you’re all done eating, meet me in the yard. We can test Diana, see what she can do and base lessons off that.” I left to set up the trials, thanking Lucifer the looseness of my gray joggers masked the semi I was sporting. Watching Diana slay Mal at his own game was hot, but I had to control myself. Educating her, training her, and getting out from under Red’s thumb were my top priorities.
* * *
Diana, Sebastian, and Ares met me near the greenhouse. Our estate sat deep in the Adirondack Mountains, far from prying eyes in the middle of the woods. Our greenhouse was in a clearing that gave us an extra semblance of privacy. Her wide eyes took in her surroundings. There were trees as far as the eye could see whose boughs were so tall, they kissed the sky. I guessed she’d never spent a ton of time in nature growing up in Brooklyn. She took a deep breath of fresh air, savoring the feeling of it in her lungs before exhaling slowly.
“It’s beautiful out here,” she murmured to herself.
“Agreed, and I can’t wait to chase you through these trees again and listen to the frantic thumping of your heart against your chest,” Ares stage-whispered in her ear. He had no volume control at all.
Bash rolled his eyes, but I didn't miss the glimmer of arousal in them too. He could kid himself all he wanted, but I didn’t think he hated the idea of sharing her as much as he did previously. I couldn't blame either of them for wanting to hunt her in the woods. The thought of chasing Diana through the foliage, especially as the sun was setting and threatening to leave us all in the uncertainty of darkness, had the blood rushing so far south that I could have gotten light headed if I didn't come to my senses. The demon within always wanted to play in the dark, especially with such tempting prey.
“Okay, we need to measure your magical abilities. For witches, magical abilities often run in families, but not always. What powers do your nonna and aunt have?”
Her brow furrowed in thought as she sighed. “I know Angie can create fire like Ares does, and Nonna can recall memories. But I didn’t exactly get a chance to ask them all about it, seeing as I was kidnapped andburnt alivein a fire the day I found out.” Her sarcasm was laced with a hint of sadness. Bash grabbed her hand, squeezing it.
“That makes sense, seeing as your family is Italian-American,” Ares explained. “Certain abilities, like creating fire, come from certain geographical regions. Witches from the Mediterranean are more likely to have fire power and the ability to levitate.”
Clearing my throat, I continued with the lesson. "When casting magic, a common misconception in books and movies is that you must use words or spells. Someone with your power signature merely needs to imagine it in their mind."
"Exactly. Your magic is an extension of you. You can will what you want into existence,” Bash added.
“Try casting fire. I want you to do the same thing you did before with hearing. Hold your palm out, and imagine the fire coming to life in your palm. Keep your eyes open while you cast.”
She held her palm out, staring at it. For a few seconds, nothing happened. When she dipped her brows in concentration, a little blue flame sprang to life, dancing on her skin. She turned from us, extending her arm straight. As if doused in gasoline, the flames grew, whipping around like a lasso. She looked over her shoulder at us, a grin curving from ear to ear.
“Holy guac and chips, it’s not going to burn me right?!” she exclaimed.
“Atta girl!”Bash exclaimed. Diana blushed, absorbing the praise with ease. “You’re fine, it won’t burn you. Hey, try that boomerang thing Ares can do!”
Ares moved behind her, wrapping one arm around her waist while he hunkered over to rest his head on top of hers. “Fire magic is stronger and fiercer than regular fire, which makes it the perfect weapon. The angrier you are when you cast it, the hotter it is. Imagine creating a boomerang of fire, then throw it. Control where it goes by thinking of its path as it moves.”
She created a lopsided boomerang, and threw it. It managed to curve in a small semi circle and land fifty or so feet to the left of them. Ares created one in his free hand, throwing it around the green house and catching it again.
“Don’t worry Little Goddess, you’ll learn in time,” Ares whispered into her ear before he kissed her cheek.
A soft, unmistakable glow lit up her entire face, spreading to her entire body the way Ares had described it earlier. Maybe it was the result of being in close proximity with him? Bash scowled at them, his eyes laced with heat. Who knew what he was thinking, although I’d bet money it was something only a perverted stalker could come up with. Her glow died down a few seconds later.
