The Unwanted Wife and Her Secret Twins (Mia and Kyle) novel Chapter 440

Mia's POV

Hugo's voice shifts. Gets that particular storytelling quality that makes even adults lean in.

"The knight had three loyal companions," he begins. His hands gesture like he's painting the scene in the air. "A falcon who could fly faster than the wind. A hound who never tired. And a small dragon who—"

"DRAGONS!" Alexander nearly falls out of his chair. "I KNEW there would be dragons!"

"How big is the dragon?" Madison asks breathlessly.

"About this big." Hugo holds his hands maybe three feet apart. "Young. Still learning to fly properly."

"That's not very big for a dragon," Ethan observes. "Most dragons in literature are depicted as enormous. Large enough to—"

"This is a special dragon," Hugo interrupts gently. "A rare breed. They stay small but they're very strong."

Across the table, Scarlett reaches for the prosecco bottle again. Her aim is slightly off. The bottle wobbles.

Morton catches it before it tips. "Scarlett—"

"I'm fine." She over-enunciates each word. "Perfectly. Fine."

"You're pronouncing your Fs too hard."

"You're pronouncing your whole face too hard."

Sophie snorts into her wine glass.

"So the knight was cursed," Hugo continues, recapturing the children's attention. "And the curse was making him weaker. The castle healers tried everything. Potions made from moonflowers. Enchanted river stones. Even the tears of a mermaid."

"Do mermaids cry?" Alexander asks.

"Everyone cries," Ethan says. "Even aquatic humanoids would have tear ducts."

"But would the tears be salty if they're already in salt water?"

"That's actually a good question—" Hugo smiles. "The healers told the knight there was one more possibility. The three companions—the falcon, the hound, and the small dragon—they each had something the knight needed. The falcon had a feather that grew back every full moon. The hound had special healing saliva that renewed itself. And the dragon had—"

"Fire breath!" Alexander guesses.

"A scale," Hugo says. "A single scale from above the heart. When it fell off, a new one would grow in its place within one moon cycle."

"That's very specific," Ethan says. "Why above the heart specifically?"

"Because magic is often specific, mon petit," Sophie interjects. She's refilling Thomas's glass. Her hand brushes his. "It follows rules we don't understand but must respect anyway."

Thomas is watching the wine pour. Not looking at Sophie. But not moving his hand away either.

Scarlett sees it. Her eyes narrow.

"So did they give him the stuff?" Alexander asks. "The feather and the spit and the scale?"

"They wanted to," Hugo says. "Very much. The falcon said, 'Take my feather. I have many. They grow back fast.' The hound said, 'Take my healing gift. I make more every day.' And the small dragon said—"

"'Take my scale!'" Madison finishes. "'I have lots! See?'" She spreads her arms like she's showing off dragon scales.

"Exactly. But the knight refused."

"Why?" Alexander's face scrunches up. "That's dumb. They're offering. You should take it when people offer."

"The knight said he couldn't take from those who depended on him. Even to save himself."

Kyle's chair scrapes back. Loud. Sharp.

"See?" She waves her glass in the air. Prosecco sloshes dangerously close to the rim. "See? This is what I'm talking about! This is—" She stops. Squints at her glass. "How much have I had?"

"Six glasses," Morton says quietly.

"That's not—" She counts on her fingers. Loses track. Starts over. "Okay maybe six. But I'm celebrating! Madison got adopted! We're celebrating!"

"You are," Morton says. "Very enthusiastically."

"Don't." She points at him. Her finger wobbles. "Don't do that thing where you're all calm and I'm all messy. I hate that thing."

"I'm not doing anything."

"You're doing the THING. The Morton thing. Where you're so—" She gestures vaguely at his whole person. "—so Morton about everything."

"I don't know what that means."

"Exactly! That's the Morton thing!"

Sophie is openly grinning now. She's leaning toward Thomas. Whispering something.

He shakes his head. Whispers back.

They're sitting very close. Their shoulders touching.

Scarlett sees it. Her face does something sharp and hurt.

"DON'T," she announces to the table. To the room. To the universe.

Everyone stares.

"Don't what?" Sophie asks innocently.