Page 50 of Waves (Tangled Crowns #6)

AVIA

" K eep your eyes closed," Mateo coached as he helped me out of the carriage, and I clung to his arm.

His swimming had vastly improved over time, and we kept a steady pace as he led me through the water to somewhere unknown.

The temperature of the water gave me the only clue as to our surroundings.

It was warmer than Palati, so we were in more shallow water.

"I almost wish you'd blindfolded me," I murmured as the light flickered behind my eyelids and temptation threatened.

"Don't worry, that's just Mr. Whelk swimming overhead," my husband comforted me.

"So, Keelan is in on this surprise?" I questioned as we seemed to angle down toward the sea bed.

"We all are," Felipe's smooth tone reverberated from somewhere to my left, along with the clank of the lamp he’s hung from his belt—the good luck charm that also made it easy to identify him whenever he approached.

I found myself turning toward him automatically, my hand going to my stomach, which was only slightly bulging now that I was three months along.

"Some of us have helped more than others," Stavros grumbled from farther away, making a grunting noise—almost as if he was carrying something heavy.

A sliver of irritation rolled through me that was quickly replaced by a thrumming sort of pride and excitement, both emotions his. It was easier for me to parse out his sentiments and separate them from my own now, but it never ceased to amaze me that I sensed them at all.

An effervescent, absolutely gleaming feeling seeped into my chest.

What are these husbands of mine up to?

My curiosity piqued, the urge to peek felt like an itch. "How much farther?" I asked.

"Just a little more." Mateo was soothing, as if he knew what I was feeling.

Or perhaps, Stavros told him. They'd been doing that a lot since I'd become pregnant.

..conferencing. Consulting with one another.

In some ways it annoyed me because it reminded me of all the council meetings planning for natural disasters, as if I was a disaster.

But I knew that was projection on my part and in other ways, I appreciated how they'd begun to coordinate with each other—even compromise.

Once our feet touched soft sand, Mateo patted my hands, which clutched his bicep tight. "Alright. Open."

My eyes opened and it took me a minute to adjust to the jewel-bright turquoise water. But once I did, a familiar tower came into view. A gorgeous, pristine tower made of mother-of-pearl.

"Surprise!" my men all called out, not quite in perfect unison.

I simply blinked and gaped, gazing around at the space, which was almost unrecognizable.

The mounds of trash, which had extended as far as the eye could see, were gone.

Instead, there were sparkling golden sands, scuttling crabs, and beautiful outcroppings of coral.

A large stone table with six barrels for seats sat outside the castle—the perfect spot for picnicking.

Grooves in the sand hinted at the fact that Stavros had likely just rolled the barrels into place.

"First off, this is amazing. Gorgeous! But... last I recall, this castle looked haunted," I sent an inquiring look in Keelan's direction.

My light-hearted siren threw his head back and laughed, pointing a thumb at Stavros. "You can thank him for that."

"Wish magic from another life," my djinn-turned-siren husband explained as Felipe came up on the opposite side of Mateo, sandwiching me between them.

"We thought you might like it for the baby. It's a quiet getaway from the palace," my former guard murmured as his hand came to my belly. "We decorated the inside too, including cradles and bassinets and whatnot."

"Mateo, tell her how I cleared all this myself," Stavros called out, gesturing to the land around us.

"You did not," the other three immediately countered his lie. The loophole he’d found in the wish magic about telling me only truths was to address his lies to one of my other husbands. It was both irritating and amusing. Today, I bit down on a grin and raised my brows.

"Fine. I negotiated with a couple of traders in Navagio who thought they'd stumbled on a goldmine," he corrected. "But still, I was the reason it all got cleaned up."

Escorted through every room of the castle, I oohed and awwed and heaped praise on my husbands for every thoughtful detail they'd incorporated.

My absolute favorite was the nursery, which had murals on the walls from each of my husband's hometowns.

And there were all sorts of toys on the shelves lining the walls, some from every kingdom in Kenmare.

"Our children are going to be very spoiled," I noted as I picked up a porcelain doll with orange braids and carried her to the window.

Staring out across the tranquil landscape, a beam of sunlight filtered through the water and warmed my shoulders.

And that shaft of light seemed to sink into my skin.

Into my very soul. Because when I'd started my journey to become queen of Okeanos, I'd been but a scared, hollow doll myself.

But now, I felt anything but hollow.

There might not have been a heart in my chest, but there was hope.

And hope was the most beautiful feeling of them all.