Raiden (Sons of the Fallen, #6)

by Jaclyn Osborn

Phoenix might’ve been sort of a bad guy, but he was loyal to a select few: us. And he loved Bellamy, the kind of unconditional, sometimes messy, insanely strong love that said he’d burn everything down to keep that love safe and kill anyone who stood in his way. So, yeah. A villain. But a not-so-awful one? Jury was still out on that.

I had almost died that day. Raiden was the reason I didn’t. He had spent hours searching the battlefield, knee-deep in blood, guts, and dead bodies. All so he could find me.

You can’t have pizza without cheese. Not unless you like eating sadness and disappointment.”

How could someone be so ridiculously hot, adorably innocent, a total badass during fights, and sort of ditsy at the same time? A dangerous combination. That danger being to my damn self-control.

He was my uneaten slice of pizza. And damn did I want to devour him.

“A rare plant?” I asked. “Is it edible?” “It’s called rare for a reason, Ray,” Castor said with a laugh. “And you want to eat it. For fuck’s sake. Please never change.”

“I just like to focus on the good in life and not dwell on what I can’t change, ya know? I can’t stop the sun from setting, but I can greet the stars and embrace the night as I wait for the warmth again.”

I’d never been good at denying myself things that made me happy: pizza and desserts. Overindulging. Right then, I wanted to indulge in Titan. His scent. His lips. His warmth as he held me on the beach.

“Poor fish,” he muttered. “What?” “They’re gonna be swimmin’ along, doing their thing, and then bam.” Raiden breathed out a laugh. “They’re gonna swim right into our cum cloud.” “Cum cloud?” “Yep.” A slow, relaxed smile bloomed across his face. “Gives another meaning to ocean spray.” “Fuck, Raiden.” I laughed. “You’re… something else.”

“Need,” Gluttony whispered. “Yeah, those zucchinis look good, huh?” My sin sighed. He gave me attitude sometimes. But why was he doing it right then? I had no clue.

After a lifetime of never having enough, of always wanting more, I held Titan close and knew I needed nothing more than him by my side.

“Ray,” Gray’s voice projected into my head. “This is your conscience speaking. And your conscience wants you to make waffles for your adorable little brother.”

“I love you more than pizza.”