School of Magical Arts - New York City Campus Box Set

by Chandelle LaVaun

  I grinned and bumped my shoulder into him as we walked. “So, you know where we’re going? Like which place?”

  He shrugged. “Not specifically the one you looked up. But I see these tree stands every year, and I know which one is closest to home.”

  My phone rang from my jacket pocket. When I pulled it out, I found Heather’s name on my screen and my heart skipped. My stomach did flips. I clicked answer. “Hello, Heather.”

  “Hi, Emersyn. I can’t get Deacon on the phone and I see that Amelia left hers here—"

  “AUNT HEATHER WE’RE GETTING A REAL TREE!”

  Oh shit. Was I supposed to ask her permission first?

  There was a beat of silence and then Heather said, “Did I hear that right?”

  I bit my lip. Deacon held his hand out to takeover, but I shook him off. She called me, she’d speak to me. We had to get used to talking to each other, to making friends. I cleared my throat. “Yes, you did. I hope that’s all right. I apologize for not checking with you. But Amelia here told us that she’s never had a real tree—”

  “What?” Heather took a deep breath. “Damn it, Samuel.”

  I frowned. “Who?”

  She sighed in my ear. “My brother-in-law, Amelia’s father. He was never the same after her mother passed, but to never get your child a real Christmas tree? Even I did that.” She chuckled sadly.

  I had so many questions about Amelia’s parents, and why she was living with her aunt and uncle, but I knew this wasn’t the time. “Well, we wanted to remedy that for her this year.”

  “That’s a wonderful idea…tell me, have you already picked it out?”

  “No, we’re walking there — why don’t you and Sebastien meet us? We’d love the help.”

  “We’re coming!” Sebastien yelled in the background. “Stedman get the car!”

  “No, we’ll take a cab,” Heather said – which I had a hard time believing I heard correctly. “Stedman, instead can you pull out all of our old decorations?”

  “The ones from Eden, ma’am?” Stedman’s voice was soft in the background.

  “Yes, thank you. Then rest until we get back so you can help us decorate.”

  “Oh. Y-yes, very well, ma’am.”

  “Heather, tell them to go to the one over by Ricky’s – never mind, I’ll text Deacon.”

  I pulled on Deacon’s sleeve to stop him. “Change of plans. D, check your texts.”

  He frowned and dug around in his pockets.

  “All right, Emersyn, we’ll see you there in a few minutes!”

  I grinned and hung up the phone. “Your parents are joining us. Your father is very excited, and he apparently texted you the address of where he wants to go?”

  Deacon chuckled and shook his head. He held his phone up. “Got it. Actually, this one is much closer to home. Guess my dad has been secretly wanting one.” He stepped off the sidewalk and threw his hand up in the air while he whistled.

  A cab pulled over immediately, and I couldn’t help but wonder if D used his magic to make that happen.

  Deacon threw the door open. “Ready?”

  Amelia jumped inside, so I slid in after her.

  “I can’t believe this is happening,” Amelia whispered. She pushed her hair back and looked dreamily out the cab window. “Finally.”

  My heart hurt for her. “You’ve decorated a tree, right?”

  She nodded, but her face fell. “Yeah, but they’re not like the decorations you see in movies. They’re all silver and gold and made of glass, so we have to be very careful.”

  I frowned. “Heather asked Stedman to pull out the old decorations—”

  Deacon gasped. “From Eden?”

  “Yeah, that’s what she said.”

  He let out a deep breath and pushed his hair back – and looked entirely like Amelia when he did it. “I…” he shook his head. His eyes turned glassy.

  I squeezed his hand. Deacon had told me about his childhood and how close he used to be with his parents before they left Eden. That was the main reason he’d rebelled so hard here in New York – he wanted their attention. I knew it had upset him a great deal, but he carried it so well. Yet looking at him now, as he fought to keep his emotions in check, I realized just how much these little changes in his parents meant to him.

  It really was never too late to make things right.

  The cab turned a corner, then pulled over on the side of the street. Deacon swiped his credit card on the little machine in front of him. While he paid, Amelia and I hopped out. Heather and Sebastien stood on the corner. They smiled and waved.

  Heather was in Ugg boots. Uggs. Not Louboutins. Not even heels at all. I was so caught up in this shocking moment that I didn’t realize they’d walked over to us until Heather stopped right in front of me.

  She chuckled. “I’m not sure what it says about me if you’re this shocked about my shoe choice right now.”

  I covered my mouth with my hand and tried not to laugh. And failed.

  Amelia bounced in between us and tugged on our sleeves. “Guys! Where are the trees?”

  Heather, still laughing, pointed to the street corner behind her. “Over there, sweetheart.”

  Sebastien ruffled her hair. It was the same way Deacon always did. “So kiddo, you know which kind you want?”

  Amelia’s face paled. “There’s different types?”

  “Well, of course!”

  Amelia groaned and tugged on her hair. “I don’t know! How am I supposed to pick? What kind do you guys normally get?”

  “Noble Fir,” Heather and I said at the exact same time.

  We both jumped – startled. We looked at each other…then burst out laughing.

  “Yeah, that was weird.” Deacon shook his head. “Let’s go get a Christmas tree.”

  Heather winked at me, then turned and led the way back around the corner to the main road. It was weird to be laughing and winking with the woman who made my life hell when I first met her. But it was even weirder that Heather and I seemed to have quite a bit in common. After all, I hadn’t been much better to Deacon than she’d been to me.

  We turned the corner and Amelia squealed. She clapped her hands and sprinted across the sidewalk. “Oh my God! This is happening!”

  I tugged on Deacon’s hand, drawing his gaze down to me. “So…did y’all have any family traditions back in Eden for decorating your tree?”

  He smiled. “Well, we’d go to the tree farm and pick one – Royce always came with us. He insisted on making sure we got a good tree—”

  “That kid has always been a lovable pain in the ass. Since day one.” Sebastien chuckled. He glanced over his shoulder at us. “He hasn’t changed, has he?”

  “Not at all,” Deacon said with a laugh.

  Sebastien nodded. “Good.”

  “Anyway, we’d get our tree and take it home. Royce was very helpful in getting it in the stand correctly and getting it watered.”

  “Poison Roycy for the win,” I whispered.

  Deacon chuckled. “Yep. Anyway, Royce had this potion that we’d pour in with the water and it would make the branches shake out and fall out so we could decorate it right away – no waiting days for it to happen naturally. We’d put on Christmas music and light the fireplace while we decorated. Every year mom and I would pick out a pair of fuzzy socks that we’d all wear while we decorated – and it was the one night a year that she let me eat cookies before dinner. By the time I had my socks on and the decorations out, those cookies would be coming out the oven.”

  “That sounds really nice.”

  “Yeah, it was.” Deacon smiled and stared at nothing. “But after was my favorite part.”

  “Why?”

  He shrugged. “Mom would cook us that macaroni where the cheese came in a pouch but was like…powder or something?”

  Heather’s sapphire eyes were definitely glassy. “You had to have it. From those commercials.”

  “I remember those commercials.”

  �
��We only had it for special occasions, which I now find absolutely hilarious.” Deacon ruffled his mother’s hair. “Then we’d sit down with our big bowls of Heaven and put on a Christmas movie and just sit in front of the tree all night…until I fell asleep, anyway.”

  “Until both of you fell asleep, actually.” Heather arched an eyebrow at her husband.

  We all stopped in front of a row of trees leaning against wooden planks. None of us spoke. When I’d asked the question, I’d just been curious what his childhood Christmases had looked like…but I hadn’t realized just how special they’d been. It was still hard to see his parents as those people – as normal people. With every detail like this I heard, the more I understood Deacon’s troublemaker years. It all made sense. I couldn’t even blame him for his behavior.

  “Goddess, I miss that macaroni,” Sebastien said softly, shaking his head.

  Deacon and Heather nodded.

  Amelia frowned then her face lit up. “Aunt Heather? Can we do that? All of what Deacon just said. The cookies and music, and macaroni – all of it. Can we?” She put her hands together and bounced on her toes. “Please?”

  Heather looked up to her son and I saw the regret clear as day in her eyes. “What do you say, Deacon?” But really, she was asking a whole lot more than that, more than the tree traditions. She was asking for forgiveness and a second chance.

  Deacon nodded. “I’d like that a lot.”

  “YES!” Amelia cheered. She spun to face the trees. “Now let’s pick ours!”

  Sebastien’s phone rang and it made us all jump. He held it to his ear. “Hey, Marshall… What’s that? Oh, thanks but we’re going to pass. We’re out on Lexington getting our first real Christmas tree in years. Spending the evening at home… Yeah. Yeah, thanks. See ya tomorrow.”

  Amelia grabbed Deacon’s arm and dragged him into the rows of trees. He glanced over his shoulder at me and the happiness in his eyes took my breath away. It was amazing how such a little thing could make such a huge impact.

  Something stung my arm and I swatted at it, but there was nothing there. I pulled my sleeve up to see if I’d been bitten – my eyes widened. It wasn’t a bug, it was our soulmate glyph. It’d grown. Finally. It felt like months since it last grew back at that awful Gala here in the city. Now the dark, swirly lines stretched into my forearm.

  My heart fluttered. I pulled my sleeve back down and smiled to myself. This really was shaping up to be a great evening.

  Chapter Seven

  Emersyn

  For the first time in a long time, I was excited as I walked into school Monday morning. Granted, I wasn’t a student here but the person running the school, so it was a little different…but still. As I climbed the front steps of SOMA, I felt light and rejuvenated after a nice relaxing weekend.

  With Deacon’s parents.

  I still couldn’t believe it.

  Deacon had been so beside himself with happiness that he got up before sunrise, saying he just couldn’t lay still any longer. I’d thrown my pillow at him and threatened to set him on fire if he called me before nine. I’d been kidding, mostly. Luckily, he’d listened. He’d sent me one text at precisely five minutes after nine but nothing since. I’d told him I was on my way over, but a quick check of my phone confirmed that he still hadn’t responded. Not that I was worried…I was just…paranoid.

  As I hurried through the empty front lobby a million horrible scenarios played through my mind – with more than half of them starring one of those damn spider demons. It was entirely irrational. The school wasn’t under attack, everything was quiet and calm. Even our new school mascots were still piled in a big lump in front of the fireplace. Deacon was fine. I just wasn’t sure I’d ever shake what happened in Salem.

  Stop that, Emersyn. He’s FINE. He’s fought dozens of demons before and after that one. That was a fluke. And he’s alive. It’s okay. You’re going to see. Just find him.

  I kept reassuring myself that he was fine as I ran up the grand staircase and into the main part of the school. Typical for student services, there were a handful or two of students lingering about. I pulled my phone back out, but there still wasn’t a text from Deacon.

  “Oh, Emersyn!” Caroline yelled from…somewhere.

  I froze in place and glanced around, looking for her. But I didn’t see her anywhere. Did I just make that up? Am I hearing things? From Caroline?

  “I’m in here – hold on.”

  I held. Wherever in here was, I was clueless.

  A moment later, Caroline emerged from behind the school secretary’s desk. She opened the door and jumped out into the hall next to me with Noah hot on her heels. Her long red hair was braided to the side and her face was fairly clear of makeup – a rather refreshing change. She grinned and gave me a quick hug. “Hi! Good morning!”

  “Lady of the Flame, what’s good?” Noah grinned and gave me a high-five.

  I chuckled. “Lady of the Flame? Ya know, I like that.”

  “Good, ‘cause I may have accidentally taught it to some of the students already.” He shrugged. “And by some, I mean most.”

  I shook my head, but my cheeks burned from how hard I was smiling. “I’m not even upset.”

  “And aren’t you lucky for it.” Caroline narrowed her eyes at him. Then she turned back to me. “So, did you really get Heather and Sebastien to buy a real Christmas tree on Saturday?”

  “Oh my God, YES!” I pulled my phone out and opened my photos, then held it for them to see. “Look.”

  Noah’s eyes widened. “Girl, you’ve got skills.”

  Caroline grinned. “Can I text this to myself? Because I want a real one, and if they got one, my parents will totally let me get one.”

  I chuckled. “By all means, send all of them. Though I recommend letting the place deliver it for you…you don’t wanna know how pathetic the five of us looked trying to carry our twenty-foot tree all the way from Lexington—”

  “Stop it.” Caroline gasped and handed my phone back to me. “You did not.”

  I nodded. “We did. It was utterly ridiculous. Pretty sure there are tons of videos online by now from strangers laughing at us. But we had a good time, surprisingly.”

  “I need to see this. If it’s online, I will find it.” Noah started typing away on his phone.

  “Let me know if you do.” I stepped out of the way for a group of kids. “So, how was your weekend?”

  “Oh.” Caroline’s eyes sparkled. She held up a stack of papers that I hadn’t realized she was holding. “We were busy making plans for our mascot so that we’d be ready as soon as a design was picked.”

  “That’s awesome. How’s that contest going, by the way? Need any help getting it started?”

  “Started? Girl, we’re done.” Caroline held the stack of papers up. “Luckily our school appears to be full of eavesdroppers, so everyone heard our conversation at lunch Friday. SOO, Noah and I had no problem setting up the contest. We gave everyone the weekend to draw up our logo of our blue fluffy cats —”

  “Hey, where are yours?”

  “Eating snacks.” Caroline shook her head and pointed to the secretary’s office. “Someone likes to spoil them with treats.”

  “Oh, nice. Anyway, so wait – you said you gave them until today?”

  She nodded. “Yep. They technically have until the end of the school day to submit, but I was too excited to wait, so I collected the submissions so far – already at about fifty. Want to see?”

  I opened my mouth, then shut it. “Yes, but no. I don’t want my opinion to sway anyone. This is y’alls school, so it’s your mascot.”

  “Well, you should still vote in the final.” She tucked the stack of papers into her Chanel bag. “We’re going to post all the submissions online and let the school vote.”

  My eyes widened. “Wow, that’s a great plan. I knew you’d make a great school Major.”

  Her cheeks flushed. She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “Thanks, Emersyn. Well
, we won’t hold up any more of your time – I just wanted to update you.”

  “I’m glad you did! When they go up for voting, send me the link? I definitely will vote anonymously.” I smiled and started to walk away, then stopped. “Hey, have y’all seen Deacon this morning? I can’t find him.”

  “Oh yea, he’s helping in one of the classes.” Noah pointed to the ceiling. “Third floor, second room on the left.”

  I sighed with relief. “Thank you. See y’all later!”

  They waved then turned and headed back into the secretary’s office. I smiled and skipped down to the elevators. I had no idea which class Deacon was helping in, but it definitely explained why he hadn’t returned my text message. See Emersyn, no big deal. Way to panic. I laughed at my own craziness as the elevator opened onto the third floor.

  “Okay, second room on the left,” I mumbled to myself as I walked down the hall, my cowgirl boots clacking against the hardwood floors.

  I stopped outside the second room and peeked through the window in the door.

  The room was full of students in padded gear and helmets, with a variety of weapons in hand. They were all older, like my age, and sweaty. One of them was leaning against the wall panting and I related so hard to it that it hurt.

  And then I spotted Deacon and my breath left me in a rush.

  He was wearing some kind of sweatpants I’d never seen on him and they clung to his ass in ways that couldn’t possibly be appropriate in a school setting. He spun and a little mortifying gasp escaped my lips. Heat and butterflies bloomed in my stomach. I bit my lip and leaned closer. He wore a white tank top that was soaking wet and clinging to his body. Even with the shirt, I could see each ripple of his abs. The muscles in his arms flexed as he moved. Sweat dripped down the side of his neck and I licked my lips. My breath hit the window and it fogged up the glass — my phone vibrated in my hand and scared the crap out of me.

  I cursed and pushed my hair back. Damn it, woman. Losing your marbles over a sweaty tank top. Get a grip. I groaned and looked down at my phone – and my heart stopped.