Page 79 of Elemental Becoming

I blink. “You’ve been with a man?”

“Mar!” Lyra snaps, eyes wide.

Heat rushes to my face.

“I just thought . . . ” I trail off, gesturing vaguely toward Sera.

Sera lowers her glass, amusement flickering in her eyes. “Nowthis,” she murmurs, “is worth hearing.”

She glances at me, her smile soft but knowing. “Amara, dear, it’s quite all right. Rowena and I both had to try men before realizing they weren’t to our taste.”

This time, Lyra does choke on her wine. I thump her on the back as she coughs, laughing through it.

Sera rises and circles the table, placing a steadying hand on her shoulder.

“Easy,” she says softly.

“Try not to die again,” Rowena adds.

I turn to her, horrified.

“Row!” Sera chides.

Rowena winces. “Too soon?”

“Yes,” Sera says firmly, then returns to her seat beside her wife.

Lyra, still coughing, manages a weak laugh.

Rowena lifts a shoulder. “Thane and Garrick filled me in.”

“Clearly,” I mutter.

Rowena is unfazed. “Look, Lyra’s fine. And you wanted something personal!”

Lyra straightens, wiping her mouth, her grin already back.“Oh, absolutely. Details. Now.”

Rowena swirls her wine lazily, feigning nonchalance. “It was years ago, long before all of this. A boy I trained with. We’d been sneaking around for months—nothing serious, just fun.” She shrugs. “One night, we stayed late after sparring. One thing led to another.”

Lyra looks delighted. “So you’re telling me that while Thane and Kastiel were off doing very serious warrior things, their sister was defiling the sacred training hall?”

Rowena rolls her eyes. “It’s not that scandalous.”

Lyra snorts. “It’s absolutely that scandalous. Gods, I wish I had been there to witness their faces if they ever found out.”

Rowena raises a brow. “Who says they didn’t?”

Sera straightens slightly. “Wait—they knew?”

Rowena grins. “Kastiel found out first. He wasn’t thrilled. Thane, though . . . ” She pauses, laughing quietly. “Let’s just say he handled it the way you’d expect. Lots of brooding. Silent judgment. And glaring at the poor boy until he nearly pissed himself.”

I shake my head, suppressing a smile. “I don’t know what’s more shocking—that your first time was in the training hall or that your older brother didn’t murder the boy on sight.”

Rowena laughs. “I think he wanted to, but I convinced him not to make a big deal out of it.”

She tilts her glass, watching the wine swirl before adding, “Not that it mattered in the long run. That’s also when I realized I prefer women.”

Lyra grins, raising her glass. “Ah, so that’s the real revelation. Well then, here’s to self-discovery in seriously inappropriate locations.”