Page 150 of Elemental Becoming

My friend’s face suddenly drains of color. The transformation from fearless menace to panicked disaster is almost impressive.

I suppress a grin.

“Is that right now?” Lyra asks, her voice a few octaves higher.

Garrick laces his fingers through hers. “Yes. Jarek and Rian are already over there.”

“Wow, brother. That’s a bold move,” Thane says, grinning outright now. “I don’t think you’ve ever introduced a woman to your parents before.”

“What can I say? Never met one before that had me by the balls,” he responds, without missing a beat.

I snort out a laugh. Lyra remains completely mute, pale as a sheet.

With her free hand, Lyra grabs my wrist and hisses, “You’re coming with me.”

Her nails dig into my skin. “Ouch! Lyra—”

“You’re coming,” she reiterates with finality.

“I will, but just loosen the death grip.”

I turn to Thane.

“Go,” Thane says, clearly amused. “Lyra needs your moral support.” He leans in and presses a gentle kiss to my lips. “But don’t stay away too long.”

All I can do is shake my head, suddenly unable to remember what I was about to say, before Lyra is dragging me behind her.

We move through the guests, our hands linked together as Garrick guides us toward a table tucked near the corner of the ballroom. As we weave through the crowd, Garrick shakes hands, endures several claps on the back, and nods greetings without ever slowing his pace.

The color still hasn’t returned to Lyra’s face. She looks moments away from fainting.

I lean toward her ear. “Lyra, don’t you want to meet his parents? I thought you cared for him.”

Lyra just keeps staring ahead like a woman marching toward execution.

I flick her ear, finally snapping her out of it.

“I do!” she hisses.

“Then why are you panicking?”

And just like that, the floodgates open.

“I’ve never met anyone’s parents. This is happening fast. Right? This is fast. I mean, we only just started spending time together. And he’s never introduced anyone to his parents before. What is that even about? I can’t be the first woman he’s been serious about. What does that say about him? This is definitely fast.”

She doesn’t take a breath.

I flick her ear again.

“Ouch!”

“Breathe, friend.”

Before she can say another word, we arrive at a table tucked near the edge of the ballroom. Two people rise in unison the moment they see us, and gods—it’s immediately obvious who they belong to.

They look so much like Garrick and Jarek it’s almost startling.

The man is broad-shouldered and powerfully built, with the same sandy-blond hair streaked lightly with silver at the temples and the same warm hazel eyes Garrick wears when he’s genuinely happy. He’s dressed in formal Fire Clan attire: a deep crimson tunic trimmed in black and gold embroidery, the fabric fitted neatly beneath a dark military-style coat draped across his shoulders. A bronze clasp shaped like curling flames fastens the cloak at his throat, marking both status and clan allegiance.