Page 260 of Infernal Secrets

Keeping his gaze locked on mine, he unbuttoned his dress shirt, tugging it free of his pants, and shrugged it off.

I’d seen him shirtless before, but both times I’d been delirious or panicked after he transformed and killed my ex-boss. Looking at him now, I realized his tailored shirts and slacks hid the body of a fighter.

His abs were cut and pecs firm, with a lean waist and hips. Though not as bulky and warrior-like as Ash, Ezra had the lean, defined physique of a swimmer.

While Ash probably relied on brute strength in battle, I suspected Ezra used agility and strength. Cyn’s body reminded me of a dancer, so I figured he also favored agility over brute force. I hadn’t seen Zeke shirtless, but he looked leaner than the others, so I doubted he relied on sheer strength.

Cyn’s impatient voice snapped me out of staring at Ezra’s body. “You wanna stop eye-fucking her so we can figure this out?”

My gaze landed on Ezra’s face. He hadn’t moved, but his focus was now on Cyn. “He’s not—”

“He is. You can’t tell?”

I’d been too busy checking Ezra out to notice, but I wasn’t about to tell Cyn that.

Ezra chuckled low before a dark look crossed his face. “Trust me, if I were fucking her, she’d know it.”

My skin heated, and I tried not to think about what he said—or the sound he made. He’d never laughed, much less chuckled, around me. The sensual edge to it wasn’t good for my health.

“No one said anything about literal fucking,” Cyn groused.

“Semantics.”

Ash groaned. “Can we not talk about fucking and figure this out? Ezra, turn around.”

Ezra turned to face the counter, and Ash cursed.

On his shoulder blades, he bore the same wing scars as the others, but between them, I saw his mark.

I crossed my arms. “What’s different?”

“The dots,” Zeke said.

Between Ezra’s shoulder blades, on his spine, he had the same triangular mark as the others. Lines branched in three directions into smaller circles and sharp points. A small filled circle marked the triangle’s upper right, and another sat centered below the base.

Zeke pointed to the filled circles. “These two weren’t there before. We all have them now.”

“The book had them,” Cyn said, pulling on his boot again. “It had five. One on the left at the top, and two on each side of the one at the bottom.”

Ezra turned, buckling his belt after tucking in his shirt. “The five of us.”

“So, what? Our marks will change as we bond?” Ash rubbed his hand over his beard. “Nyriths don’t have marks, Ezra. What the hell does this mean? Why is it on the book?”

“I don’t know,” Ezra said, dark brows drawing in. I knew he didn’t like not having answers. “But the book brought us to her, and we all share the mark. It means something.”

Zeke frowned. “More than our Nyrith connection?”

“Ash said it,” Cyn said, standing. “Nyriths don’t have marks.” His intense gaze settled on me, and a shiver went down my spine.

He didn’t have to say a word for me to know this new revelation fed his suspicions. We’d never overcome our issues until he believed I wasn’t manipulating the situation.

The doorbell rang, saving me from his scrutiny for now. But I knew I’d have to face it sooner or later.

It took all day, but after the movers finished, we made a quick trip to the pharmacy, then took the bus into town to meet Maya and Trudy at a Chinese buffet.

Maya wanted to do one last bar crawl with me, but Trudy wasn’t old enough to drink yet, and I didn’t want to teleport to Elyrdin with alcohol in my system. I’d probably vomit everywhere. Besides, I had no idea what awaited me on the other side. I needed my wits about me.

When I said the guys hadn’t left town yet, Maya insisted I bring them along.