Chapter 60

Chapter 60

Time at the Academy presents neat little patterns for us, and Rafe, Jesse, and I fall gratefully into them.

Because life? It is busy. Every morning Jesse gets me up early, making me go for a run with him even

before we go to breakfast. I’d enjoy these moments with my favorite cousin more if I wasn’t so damn

tired every day.

“Can we get a coffee maker in the suite,” I pant, my breath puffing in little clouds in the damp and foggy

air. “I can’t go for these runs without the aid of caffeine.”

“Come on, Scrimpy!” Jesse laughs, putting on a burst of speed and swatting me on the shoulder as he

pulls ahead, obliging me to keep up. “Let your zest for life wake you in the morning! Not caffeine!”

“Life would be much more zesty with a little espresso,” I growl, sighing and speeding up to keep pace.

“With a side of biscotti!”

After our run, we hastily get dressed and go to breakfast with our group. Luca, to my chagrin and

agony, continues to ice me out. He sits with me at every meal, and at dinner he jokes with me and the

rest of our group like nothing’s changed. But not once does he try to pull me aside, to make a moment

to talk about what happened between us in the birch forest.

What he maybe, probably now knows the incredible secret he’s carrying, that I’m trusting

him with.

Breakfast, of course, wouldn’t be the best time to talk about anything, gathered as we are around our

little round table, but still I’m dying to talk about what happened, to learn what he figured out about my

secret, and he just…won’t let me.

–

“Luca,” I growl the next morning when Rafe and Jesse get up to go speak to some other warrior

candidates about a group project they’re working on and Ben obligingly tucks his nose into a book.

“What are –”

“No here, Shrimp,” Luca replies, his voice low. “This is a way bigger conversation that we’re not having

in the Hall.”

“Well then why won’t you meet me in the…” I hesitate, glancing Ben’s way, because I almost

said dream. Ben just turns his page, looking for all the world like he’s completely lost in his textbook.

“Forest,” I conclude, the word pressed between my teeth.

Luca narrows his eyes at me. “Oh, you want to meet in the forest?” he says, his lips turning up with the

irony of it. “The one you can just make disappear whenever you’re done talking? Come on, Shrimp.

You haven’t played fair for weeks, and you’re still not. I need… more than that.”

My mouth falls at his stubbornness and I realize, quite suddenly, that Luca – whatever he has figured

out – is not at all freaked out.

He’s mad at me.

And my heart sinks as he sips his coffee, turning his eyes back to his textbook – we all pretty much

read at breakfast today, trying to cram everything in while we can – because… Luca is right. I have not

been fair, and while I’m not sure that I’d have made any different

choices…

I’ve really made my mate take the brunt of it, haven’t I?

“I’m sorry,” I whisper, looking down at my plate, feeling forlorn.

“We’re good,” Luca says, his voice still soft so only he and I can hear. I snap my head up, looking at

him with wide eyes. “Don’t worry about it,” he says, glancing over at me. “Just… not here. Not at dinner,

either. We need a space where it’s just us, and a long time to chat.”

“So when…”

“I don’t know, Ari,” he says, a little exasperated, lifting his eyes to meet mine. “Considering how your

cousins never let you out of their sight, that’s going to be a little difficult, isn’t it?”

I blush at the way that he emphasizes the word cousins, wondering if that means…

But before I can consider anything, Rafe and Jesse return to the table. “Ready?” Rafe asks, looking

towards Luca as he lifts his coffee to his lips and swigs it down in one go.

“Yup!” Luca says, cheerfulness immediately returning to his expression as he gets to his feet.

“You’ll get Ari to Chemistry?” Rafe asks Ben as Luca and Jesse collect their things.

Ben shoots a thumbs–up over his shoulder, still concentrating on his book, as the Warrior- track boys

start to head towards their early class. As he leaves, Luca brushes his arm against mine casual enough

that it could be accidental.

But lingering enough that, when I look up at him, and see him looking down at me, his eyes warm?

God damn it, but it makes me want to jump right back into his arms, my legs wrapped around his waist.

I sigh, returning to my own textbook, forcing my mind onto Chemistry, because I know that Neumann is

going to quiz us hard today to see who has been able to keep up with the insane amount of homework

he has assigned.

“Don’t worry too much about it,” Ben murmurs from his spot a seat away from me, his voice so soft that

he could be talking to himself.

“Huh?” I say, looking up at him.

He keeps his eyes down, but I see the way his lips turn up. “He’s obsessed with you too, all right?” My

jaw drops open a little bit. “Whatever little lover’s quarrel you’re going through here it’s going to get

sorted out. Trust him – he’ll come around when he decides to.”

–

Ben flicks his eyes to me now, and I turn my head to the side, still shocked but also incredibly

interested. “What do you mean?”

“I mean that Luca’s the definition of an Alpha – he’s used to getting his way. He’s a great guy, but he

wants the upper hand.” Ben shrugs. “But think about who you are, Ari. If you owe him an apology, give

it, but don’t crawl after him begging him to accept it. You,” he says, looking at me significantly, “bow to

no one.”

I sit up very straight in my chair for a second, staring at my very perceptive friend with an open mouth,

before my face bursts into a smile. “When did you get so wise, Ben?”

He shrugs, smirking down at his textbook as I change seats, moving closer and bringing my book and

coffee along. “Like I told you, four sisters. Luca’s no puppy dog that’s going to follow you around

begging for treats, but trust me – he likes you. Big time. So…just let him

work it out. And get back to work,” he says, nodding to my homework. “You’ve got bigger things to

worry about.”

“I love you,” I murmur, bumping my shoulder against his.

“Right back at ya,” he sighs happily. And then we study, my mind successfully turned to the more

pressing matter right now: not failing out of school.

Mates can wait, I think to myself, concentrating. My wolf huffs in discontentment, but she doesn’t stop

me.

Unfortunately, my own life proves me wrong again, because obviously I see my second mate that

afternoon in magic class. He doesn’t greet me as I slip into the seat next to him, settling my chemistry

books on the text in front of me. Instead, Jackson just glances my way before turning his attention back

to the board, where Alvez is drawing out some complicated diagrams.

I laugh to myself, shaking my head at Jackson’s perpetual lack of greetings, allowing myself to get

distracted by Rafe’s conversation with Jesse about how combat went that morning. They’ve moved on

from hand–to–hand to working with swords, apparently, which Jesse thinks is incredibly cool but which

Rafe argues is impractical.

I’m half lost in their argument when Jackson’s deep voice makes me jump. “How’d that go?” he asks.

I turn to him, surprised, and just stare into his face. “What?”

He smirks and then nods down at my chemistry book, a little burned mark still on the cover where I

pried the melted marble away. Dr. Neumann had raised an eyebrow at the condition of my text, but

hadn’t asked any questions.

“How did class go, Clark?” Jackson says, his words snapping a little more than necessary. But I just

smirk at my mate, wrinkling my nose, because I know him enough now to know that he’s not being

nasty – he just doesn’t have a lot of social graces.

–

“It went great, actually,” I say, sitting up straight, excited that he asked. Rafe had been distracted on our

walk here I haven’t had a chance to brag yet. “We had a pop quiz and I am fairly certain that I did not

disgrace myself. I really like the material too – I didn’t realize how much biology I’d have to learn

alongside the chemistry. I mean, not only do we

have to think about how the poison itself is made, but we have to understand what it does in the body

as well. I never thought about…”

Jackson lets me prattle on for awhile while Alvez finishes up his writing on the board, and while his

expressionless face doesn’t really give me a lot to go on, I think he’s at least a little bit interested. He

doesn’t interrupt, at least. Instead, he props his chin on his palm and just listens, looking at me, until

Alvez clasps his hands at the front of the room, drawing our attention to him.

“So,” Alvez says, smiling his dark smile as he looks slowly around at us. “Any…results? From your

experimentations?”

Anxiety floods me

–

because I’m suddenly torn between wanting to explore my magic and keep my promise to Jackson that

I won’t tell what I know about his.

But still, I’m dying to know both what his gift is, and why for some reason he’s not telling

anyone.

Not even the professor who stares at him so, so eagerly from the front of the room.