by Bailey, G.
Shade frowns. “What’s there to say?”
I shrug. “I don’t know. Nothing, I guess. It just kind of felt like the others were walking on eggshells with me today, you know?” I turn to look at him. “Is that why you brought me up here? To take my mind off what he said about my parents?”
The wolf shifter clears his throat. “I guess I thought it might cheer you up, yeah.”
“Thank you.”
His grey eyes meet mine. “Good, old-fashioned violence always makes things better. For me, at least.”
I raise an eyebrow at him: the school criminal, ignored by everyone but seeing everything. “Should I be worried?”
He snorts. “Nah. I wouldn’t hurt you, Boots.”
“Glad to hear it,” I reply.
There’s another long moment of silence, and as I stare out at the cityscape, I can feel his eyes on me. That same nervous energy fills me up, sparks flitting up through my stomach and my heart beginning to beat faster. I feel like a deer in the headlights, and it feels good. A shiver goes up my back, and he seems to notice; there’s a subtle shift in his posture, like he’s on the verge of moving closer, and I would be lying if I said I didn’t want him to.
“You know,” Shade says slowly, breaking the silence, “I can think of a couple other ways to make things better.” There’s a sly half-smile on his face, and it’s nearly enough to make me sway.
My better judgement is warning me not to be stupid, not to make this any more complicated, but a baser part of me is winning out as I stare up into the blond boy’s face. “Is that so?” I ask, almost not believing the words coming out of my mouth. He nods, and I scoot closer to him, tilting my head to the side. “And what would those be, exactly?”
“I would have to show you,” he replies, his smirk growing.
More adrenaline floods through me. The rest of the world is momentarily forgotten. “Then show me,” I tell him, my voice barely above a whisper.
Now his smirk has grown into a full-on grin, and when he reaches up to tuck a stray strand of hair behind my ear, his hand feels like it’s setting my skin on fire. His lips are like fire, too, and his kiss is as fierce as he is, scorching me in the best way possible as his hand comes up to tangle in my hair and my arms wrap around him.
Keeping me warm in the moonlight.
Chapter 40
If we thought we were going to get a breather from the constant politics and rumours today, we were sorely mistaken; Sunday is another day at the convention center, and although I now know what to expect, I’m still dreading it… and not only for the obvious reasons.
The others were all in bed already by the time Shade and I came down from the roof last night, and for that, I’m thankful; the last thing I would have wanted was to have to explain why I was out so long past curfew, or why my clothes and hair were rumpled when I got back. Shade gave me another long kiss before disappearing into his room, leaving me swaying on my feet as I went to bed, still basking in the afterglow of the love we had made. I slept like a baby, a dreamless sleep for which I’m especially grateful for now; now that the adrenaline and endorphins have worn off, I’m left to face the truth of what happened last night, and the overwhelming sense of guilt and confusion that accompanies it.
Once again, I hooked up with one of the guys I met at the Academy. Once again, I was overcome with emotion and desire in the moment, and now I’m having to deal with the aftermath. I was reeling from what Lyle told me about my parents, that much is clear, and the conference has been taking a toll on me, yes. But that’s a cheap excuse, and I know it; the conference has been taking a toll on everyone, especially in the aftermath of what the school did to Silas. Pretending it was a moment of weakness diminishes what it really was - what all these moments between me and the guys have been: some part of both of us, feeding on the thing that connects us, that string of fate that’s had us tethered together in some way since we were babies. Would they understand if I told them it all felt almost preconceived, like the feelings I’m developing for them are just a natural result of our relationship, the next logical step in a long line of fateful events?
It’s all too much, and at the end of the day, none of that even matters; a conversation needs to happen between Silas and me, and I’m not sure if I’m ready for it. I know we’ve never officially put labels on our relationship, but that doesn’t make me any more nervous as we file out to the metro station for another day at the conference; I don’t want to jeopardize my relationship with any of these guys, especially not now, and no matter what they all have in common, they’re still people with their own emotions… and their own hearts capable of being broken.
I look up from my seat on the train so see Shade sitting across from me; his gray eyes meet mine for a second, and his mouth twitches in a knowing smile. We haven’t said much since last night, and I can appreciate that. He’s always been a bit of a wild card, and I’m not under any illusions that what happened last night was some kind of a commitment, but I would be lying if I said I wasn’t glad it happened.
Realising I’m staring at him, I feel myself blush, and the wolf shifter just winks at me as if it’s the most normal thing in the world. Charmer.
“You all right, Millie?” Hazel asks from the seat next to me. I watch as her eyes dart from me to Shade, and she raises an eyebrow; I just give my head a nearly imperceptible shake to warn her off.
“Later,” I murmur, my voice muffled by the sound of the other students talking. “After we get to our stop.”
“Got it,” she says, giving me a knowing nod as we lapse back into silence.
“Where the hell is Hunter?” asks Landon, breaking the tension a little as he picks his way up to the front of the car where we’re sitting. “I thought we were supposed to stick together, here.”
“He said something about his dad,” Hazel replies, glancing up at her fellow siren shifter. “It sounds like the school board is having their own meeting today, and he wanted to see if he could get in on it. Not a bad idea, if you ask me.”
Landon raises his eyebrows. “You think?”
“I mean, yeah.” Hazel crosses her arms. “Don’t you? The faculty will probably have a better nose for what’s going on here than we do. If they’re planning some kind of major policy shift, better to hear it from the horse’s mouth. And Hunter is the son of the horse.”
Landon laughs. “I never thought about it that way. You know, he’s pretty sharp, now that I think about it. If he can learn to take advantage of his dad, that could help all of us.”
“Strategising, exactly.” She nods. “Don’t count the guy out just yet, Landon.”
“I never did,” Landon replies, before turning back to me. “So has Amelia given you any more trouble, Boots?”
I shake my head. “None, believe it or not. I mean, I haven’t talked to her since yesterday, but…” I shrug. “No dirty looks, no snarky comments, nothing. I’m honestly a little surprised.”
“We’ll see how long that lasts,” Shade mutters.
“I’ll take as long as I can get,” I reply, and the wolf shifter grins at me. A shiver runs down my back as I remember the feeling of his hands on my body last night, the intensity with which he kissed me. The spark between us continues to grow until I break it off, turning away and shooting a guilty glance at Silas, who’s leaning against a railing by the doors, looking thoughtful. This clearly isn’t lost on Hazel, who follows close behind me as we get off the train, falling into step next to me as we climb the stairs and step out into the bright Boston sunshine.
“Okay,” she says, putting her hands in her pockets, “spill.”
I laugh. “You’re making it sound like I killed a man, or something!”
“More like kissed one,” Hazel retorts, giving me a sly grin. “Which one was it? Wait, don’t tell me - Shade. You guys have been making eyes at each other all morning.”
“Jeez, not so loud,” I protest, laughing. “The whole school’s going to hear us!”
“Oh my god, I was right!” She squeals, clapping her hands. “Millie Brix kissed the school bad boy! So how was he? Tell me everything!”
I feel my cheeks heating up again as we continue to walk. “It was… good,” I reply. “Really good, actually.”
“Okay,” she says, “so then… What's the problem? You’re walking around looking like your grandma just died.”
I sigh. There’s no getting away from it; Hazel is perceptive as hell, and I knew the conversation was going to go this way before I even started it. “It’s Silas,” I reply reluctantly.
“Ah.” The siren shifter nods knowingly. “The classic love triangle.”
“It’s not a love triangle,” I protest. “At least, I don’t think it is.” I let out a frustrated groan. “That’s the problem, Hazel. I don’t know what it is - I don’t know what any of it is. I mean, I like these guys, there’s no denying that. But as far as how they feel about me, or how they’ll feel finding out that I feel that way about them all…” I shake my head, rubbing the back of my neck. “God, I don’t think I’ve ever been this confused in my life.”
“See, this is what happens when communication falls apart,” she says, frowning. “All these assumptions and no straight facts. I think your problem is that you’re expecting this to turn into a full-blown drama, Millie.”
“Won’t it?” I turn to her as we stop at an intersection, a sea of blue and gold, black and white.
“I don’t know,” she replies honestly. “You’re the one in the middle of it, not me. But if you ask me…” She gives me a gentle nudge with her elbow. “The surest way to find out is to just talk to them.”
I sigh. “I was afraid you were going to say that.”
“Well, it’s true,” she protests, throwing up her hands. “You should just tell Silas. Let him decide for himself, and then you won’t have to worry anymore.”
“Tell me what?”
My heart drops at the sound of an all-too-familiar voice behind me, and I whirl around to see the dragon shifter approaching the two of us, the sun gleaming on his brown hair. “Uh…”
“I think I’ll leave you guys to talk about this one,” Hazel says, shooting me a glance before falling in with the rest of the group. “I’m going to go find Xander and Ruby—I’ll meet you guys at the entrance!”
Traitor. Slowly I turn to Silas, who’s watching me with a curious look on his face; I should have known this would happen sooner or later. At the end of the day, Hazel is right: things are getting too complicated for me to keep ignoring them. I need to clear the air once and for all, and the time to do it is now. “I… was hoping I could talk to you,” I tell him, walking slowly alongside him as we trail behind the rest of the group.
“Well,” he says, holding out his arms, “here I am.” He turns to look at me, a concerned expression on his face. “Are you okay, Boots?”
“I’m fine,” I hasten to assure him. “It’s not me, exactly… I mean, it has to do with me, but it’s not…” I sigh, pinching the bridge of my nose. Why is this so damn difficult? “The thing is,” I say slowly, starting over, “something happened that I think you deserve to know about… but you might not like hearing about it.”
Silas gives me a small smile. “Well, how am I supposed to know if you don’t tell me?”
“I…” I’m struggling to spit it out, and at the moment I feel like I’d rather be anywhere on earth but here.
“Millie.” He stops, turning to face me. “You know you can tell me anything. I thought that was clear.”
“But this…” I swallow hard. The trust in his dark eyes is both heartwarming and heartbreaking. Biting the inside of my lip, I look down at the ground, struggling to make my mouth form words. “I kissed Shade,” I say, my voice barely above a whisper. “Last night. I… I’m sorry. I wanted to tell you, but I didn’t know if… I mean, you and I…”
I’m babbling, and it takes Silas putting a gentle hand on my cheek to make me finally look up at him. “It’s okay,” he says simply.
I stare at him blankly, almost sure I misheard. “Huh?”
He laughs at the look of sheer confusion on my face. “Millie, come on,” he says, his hand moving to my shoulder as he stoops to look me in the eyes. “You think I didn’t know that?”
I blink. “I…”
Silas just grins at me, and relief washes over me when I see that it’s in good humour. “Come on, this isn’t grade school,” he says. “We’re all adults here. If you want to spend time with the others, you have every right to.”
“Oh.” My shoulders slump with relief. “I, um… Wow. I wasn’t expecting that, Silas.”
“I mean, it makes sense.” He holds his hand out to me and I take it gratefully as we begin to walk again. “There’s something special connecting all of us,” he continues. “I mean, we share an origin, for god’s sake. And what happened between you and me, well…” He shrugs. “Frankly, I would be a little surprised if it didn’t end up happening with them, too.”
“That’s… very progressive.”
Silas bursts out laughing. “Are you surprised?”
“I don’t know,” I reply, blushing. “I’ve never been in this situation before.”
“Me neither.” He glances down at me. “But for whatever it’s worth, what matters to me most is that you’re happy, Boots. Whether that’s with me, with Shade… with any of us. That said, though,” he adds, pulling me against him, “I’d be disappointed if I couldn’t still do this.” And he plants a soft kiss on top of my head.
I laugh, letting him draw me into a full-on embrace. “Thank you, Silas,” I murmur into his shoulder. “I mean it.”
“So do I,” the dragon shifter replies, and I can feel him smiling against my ear. “But we’d better go catch up with the rest of them now. People are starting to give us weird looks.”
Chapter 41
I don’t think I’ve ever felt relief as palpable as the relief I’m feeling now, with the exception of when we found Silas alive after he’d been taken by the Academy. I feel like there’s a renewed spring in my step in the aftermath of our talk, and even though the sun is beating down on us and I can already feel sweat forming under my uniform, I have a feeling things are going to work out. It’s amazing what a little romance can do for a person’s mental state.
Silas lets go of my hand when we arrive at the convention center, smiling at me as we break off from the main group and head over to the place near the entrance that we’ve been using as a meeting point. It takes several minutes for the others to arrive, coming in groups of two and three. It’s only after everyone is here, talking excitedly and looking around at the guests for the day that I realise Hunter still isn’t here, and I immediately feel a pang of worry in my stomach. My mind is already going to worst-case scenarios, visions of the vampire shifter strapped to a table in a laboratory somewhere while the humans suck the life out of him, just like they tried to do to Silas. I’m on the verge of full-on panic when Hunter’s familiar voice sounds over my shoulder, and I turn around to see him jogging up to us, a look of concern on his face. “Sorry, sorry,” he says, running a hand through his red hair as he comes to a stop between Hazel and Landon.
“Where did you go?” I ask. “We were starting to get worried.”
“You should be,” Hunter replies grimly. Seeing the looks of confusion on our faces, he sighs. “Look, it’s about my dad,” he elaborates, crossing his arms. “He told me the school board is having a meeting with a bunch of the other Academy representatives from around the world. I’m usually able to get more out of him on stuff like this, but he wouldn’t tell me anything—just that they’ll be discussing ‘measures’ to be taken in the aftermath of the riots.”
“‘Measures’?” asks Shade. “What kind of ‘measures’?”
“Like I said, I don’t know,” Hunter replies. “I even asked Amelia. She said he wouldn’t tell her a word about it, and he tells her everything. I…” He swallows. “I have a bad feeling about all this, yo
u guys.”
“You’re not the only one,” Landon adds grimly. “We’re talking about Academy-wide decisions, here. The last time they did that, we were on lockdown for weeks.”
“And they weren’t talking about the future of the whole shifter community back then,” Silas adds, crossing his arms. “I don’t like the sound of this.”
“Do you know where this meeting is being held?” Xander asks.
“It should be in the auditorium,” Hunter replies. “This afternoon, if I remember right.”
The twins exchange a look, and Ruby’s mouth drops open. “You’re not seriously thinking…?”
“I seriously am,” Xander replies. “If they’re making decisions about our future, I want to know what they decide.”
“Well, how are we even supposed to get in?” Ruby demands, throwing her arms up. “We’re talking about sneaking into a board meeting, here. That’s not exactly an easy task.”
“Wait, we’re talking about sneaking into a board meeting?” asks Landon.
“He’s the one who’s talking about it,” Ruby responds, nodding at her brother. “I think it’s impossible.”
“It might not be,” Hunter speaks up then, and the rest of us go quiet as we turn to look at him. He sighs, looking suddenly put on the spot. “Look, I can’t promise anything,” he says, holding up his hands. “Ruby’s right; anything administration-related won’t be open to the public. They’ll probably have bouncers, and a group of students trying to muscle in through the front door will stick out like a sore thumb.”
“So then what are you suggesting?” Silas asks.
“We won’t be able to get in,” Hunter replies, looking at him, “but I might be able to.”
“Because you’re the son of a board member?” asks Landon.
Hunter gives him a grim nod. “Again, no promises. They might tell me to fuck off the second they see me. But maybe if I can tell them I’m there for my dad… If I could come up with some kind of excuse…”