Foretold (Daughters of Saraqael Book Three) Read Online Free Page A

such as the Gloresti and Waresti commanders Hitoshi and Harold, waited in the middle of the courtyard to participate in the training. Most, however, were merely there to observe.
    “They’re curious,” he finally responded.
    He looked down again and studied her. She had raised her finely arched eyebrows in response to his observation as her gaze moved along the courtyard. Like her sisters, she had markings along the outer edges of each eye, indicating that she possessed powers beyond those of average Estilorians. Her eye markings consisted of three small, light blue swirls matching the mark on her right shoulder blade. Because Amber was avowed to Gabriel, her eye markings were gold and blue-gray, the symbol on her shoulder matching the one on Gabriel’s right bicep. Olivia and James, also now avowed and married, shared light green and dark blue markings.
    “Sure are a lot of guys,” she said after a moment before moving fluidly into another stretch.
    He watched her lay flat on her back in the grass, placing her arms palms-down on either side of her body. In her fitted, swirled orange and yellow tank with matching leggings and filmy overskirt, she looked like a splash of sunshine against the green backdrop. She lifted both of her long legs up and over until the toes of her orange slippers touched the ground behind her head. It was a move neither of her less-flexible sisters was capable of, but she made it look effortless.
    Considering her words, he once again looked around the courtyard. She was absolutely right. Nearly every observer was male. And focused very closely on her at the moment.
    Scowling, he moved to block her as much as possible from view. He wouldn’t have thought there would be anything that interesting about watching someone stretch. But there was no denying the interest he saw from some of the observers. A couple of them had even bent at the waist to try and see her from another angle. His jaw clenched as he fought the urge to growl at the more blatant offenders. Crossing his arms over his chest, he stared at them until they noticed the frost in his gaze and wisely feigned interest elsewhere.
    “Let’s move into weights,” Gabriel announced. He and Amber were a few feet to the right.
    Inexplicably relieved, Caleb reached down and helped Skye to her feet. She took a moment to tuck a tendril of her hair that had escaped its knot behind her ear, the movement delicate and entirely female. The top of her head didn’t even reach his shoulders, something that always surprised him when he noted it. Her bright, energetic personality somehow made her seem twice her actual size.
    He leaned down the slightest bit and inhaled again. This time, perhaps because he wasn’t focused so much on it, his brain registered her scent.
    “Mango,” he murmured triumphantly.
    She glanced up at him with a puzzled expression. Just then, Amber walked up to join them as Gabriel readied the weights, saving him from an embarrassing explanation.
    Because the sisters were triplets, they were all identical in appearance outside of their eye colors and, of course, their markings. But where Skye favored bright colors and feminine clothing like skirts and slippers, Amber usually wore darker or more neutral colors and pants or shorts with combat boots. Olivia was generally somewhere in between, favoring pastels and tanks with capris or flowing sundresses when they weren’t training.
    The differences didn’t end there, of course. Amber was highly skilled in all forms of combat. Her muscle tone was beautifully cut, her movements against an opponent inhumanly precise, intuitive and focused. She could best nearly anyone in hand-to-hand combat as well as with her sword, a gift that had been blessed by the elders and presented to her upon her transition to the Estilorian plane. In almost direct opposition to these abilities, she could also heal with just her touch and a thought. He personally respected her ability to lead as well as to cut