by Kailin Gow
the dancer was from I could not make out. “You know, for
the tourists.” It sounded like he was scoffing. “The
hospitality trade and all that.”
I took a step back, hurt. If this dancer was going to
make me dance with him, the least he could do, I reasoned,
was be a bit politer about those of us dragged into the circle.
“But it must be fun,” I tried again.
I heard a snort from behind the mask. “If you're an
outsider, I guess it's all bright and shiny to you.”
I pulled away, stung. “Well, I am an outsider,” I said
hotly, anger rising in my face. “And I do find it fun! And if
you don't, I don't see why you bothered asking me to dance.”
“It's not like I had a choice,” said the dancer roughly.
“Well, nobody's making you now!” I crossed my
arms, bringing the swaying to a screeching halt. “You can go
home if you want. If you're too good for dancing.”
“Not if Antonio Cutter has his way.” The boy gave a
bitter laugh.
“What are you talking about?”
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KAILIN GOW
“Nothing,” he said harshly. “Let's dance. Come on –
you're too stiff. You're trying too hard.”
“Me? I'm...”
“You need to go with it. Close your eyes. Stay calm
– relaxed.”
“I'm trying. It'd be easier if I weren't being insulted.”
“Go with it!” His voice grew louder as he grabbed
hold of me once again. His scent was intoxicating; as he
pulled me to his chest, my anger turned fast to lust. I was
dancing with him again, as much as I didn't want to, unable
to resist the heat and pull of his strength, his passion, the raw
delicious smell of him. He was as aroused as I was. His eyes
locked into mine – his blue eyes boring into my green ones
– and I could hear his heartbeat in his steps.
The music came at last to an end with a final flourish
of drums, and we were standing face to face, so close that
our lips were almost touching, and as he exhaled I felt his
hot breath on my neck, making me shudder. I wanted his lips
on my skin. I wanted his hands to caress me. He reached out
an involuntary hand – it came so close to stroking my hair,
my face, my cheeks – but then let it fall limply at his side.
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The bonfire seemed to have vanished now; the music
was over. Around us there was nothing but the applause of
the hotel guests and the other dancers.
The boy pulled roughly away. “See you around,” he
muttered reluctantly, and again the blush rose to my cheeks.
“Wait!” I cried.
“Yeah?”
“What's your name.”
The boy shrugged. “Cutter,” he said.
“Chance Cutter?” I began, but it was too late. He had
already vanished into the crowd, leaving me alone by the
remnants of the bonfire, the torch lamps still hanging high
above us.
I returned to my mother's side, my blush brighter
than ever, my body still burning with heat from being so
close to him…the mysterious boy. Had she seen me dance
with the mysterious Cutter – had she seen the way my blood
rose within my skin, the way I responded to the flames, to
his touch? I knew my mother – she was far less likely to be
scandalized than she was to give me a profoundly over-
sharing lecture on how precisely to use condoms. That was
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KAILIN GOW
what I was worried about.
But she let me off the hook relatively easily. “That
was some dance,” was all my mother said, although her wry
smile told me that she could have said a great deal more on
the subject if she wanted to.
I decided to steer the topic of conversation away
from the nature of my lust for the mysterious boy. “I can't
believe we were so close to the fire,” I said, laughing. “Is
that a Health and Safety risk or what? If we were back on
Angel Island we'd have to fill out so much paperwork to even
have a bonfire – what an insurance risk! But they seem so
laid back here.”
“Fire?” my mother turned to me with a vague smile.
“I don't remember seeing any fire.”
“Don't be silly,” I said. “The bonfire – the great big
one...” I could feel its intoxicating heat once more on my
face, feel the lure of its flames.
My mother laughed. “Don't be silly. I could get sued
if I had a big bonfire on the premises. It was only a trick of
the light – we had nothing but torch lamps!”
My heart sank. Confusion flooded over me. It had
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been real – I knew it: that heat, that desire.
“But what about where I was dancing with Cutter,” I
said.
“Cutter?” My mother's smile vanished. “Chance
Cutter? Or was it Varun?”
“Was it who? ” I looked up, confused. “I thought
Antonio said he only had one son.”
“He only has one son, although from what I hear,
people who know him doubt his true son is his biological
one. His nephew, Varun – his late sister's kid. While Chance
has been at Eton, Varun chose to stay at Aeros and learn the
trade that way. He and his uncle have always been close. You
danced with him, I imagine...”
“Why do you say that?”
My mother avoided my gaze, darting around the
question. “Well, Antonio's a self-made man, you know. He
doesn't like the idea that his sons would forget where they
came from. And he insists that Varun participate in the local
rituals and meet the guests – to ensure that they feel like part
of the Cutter family.”
“And Chance? Wouldn't he want Chance to
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participate too?”
“Well...” my mother hesitated. “I'm sure he would –
only...”
“Only what?”
“Now Mac,” my mother began, in an
uncharacteristically parental tone, “I don't want you
spreading this around. It's only gossip, you see – and it's not
something I should even necessarily be telling you. But I
don't want to be dishonest with you. It's something I heard
tonight from the other members of staff. The reason Chance
was really expelled from Eton.”
“Antonio told me,” I said. “Girls.”
“Not just girls,” my mother looked grave.
“What was it, then?” I asked. “Did he get somebody
pregnant? Cheat on a test? Play a prank on a teacher.”
My mother sighed heavily. “No,” she said. “Nothing
like that.”
“Then what?”
“There was an accident at Eton,” she said. “During a
dance with a girls' school. There was a fire and...a girl died.”
“And?”
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“And...” my mother said. “It was never proven, you
understand. Never made public. But he wa
s asked to leave
nonetheless. You see, apparently they thought Chance
caused it...”
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KAILIN GOW
Chapter 3
The Aeros Academy was one of the most beautiful
building I had ever seen. Unlike the schools in California,
which had been built in the high-tech Post-Erosion style so
common among the American Islands, this school had a
distinctly historical charm. The building was whitewashed
stone with a terracotta roof. But its main beauty was its
location. At the foot of a collection of ripe, verdant
mountains, the Aeros Academy site looked out over the sea,
which appeared bluer than ever in the early morning light.
The foam sprayed softly on the shore, and as my mother
drove me up to the steps I could spy a few students –
evidently on a free period – sitting and sunning themselves
on the rocks, their toes dragging in the bright surf.
For a moment, I almost had hope. But as I bid
farewell to my mother and entered the hallowed halls of
Aeros, it became almost instantly clear to me that I was
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absolutely out of my element. The students here weren't like
the simple, middle-class kids I had known at Angel High; my
bright orange sundress, although the height of fashion on the
Island, was here in sharp contrast with the meticulously
plotted outfits on the lithe, tanned bodies of the students
here. The sort of outfits that looked as if they had been
chosen, just like the perfectly-highlighted color of the girls'
hair, by their personal family stylist. I shuddered as I looked
down at my simple dress. Would they mistake me for the
maid? It was clear that my background wasn't anything like
theirs – I couldn't even recognize half the designer labels
sticking out so prominently from every perfectly tailored
object of clothing, but I knew enough to know that they were
expensive.
How had my mother managed to send me here?
I shuffled my feet to the receptionist's office, where I
reluctantly handed her my forms. She waved me into the
principal's office without so much as a word.
“Dr. Newton, my forms...”
The principal peered at me over her red polka-dotted
glasses. “Miss Mackenzy Evers,” she said, nodding as she
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KAILIN GOW
looked me up and down. “Congratulations,” she said.
“For what?” My heart started beating faster. The last
thing I wanted to do in this new school was stick out – for
better or for worse.
“Why, the Cutter Scholarship, of course!”
“The Cutter Scholarship?” I repeated in a dull voice.
My mother had announced to me that the money to send me
here came from a lucky inheritance. She certainly hadn't told
me anything about a scholarship.
“It's not every girl that Antonio Cutter picks out to
send here,” said the woman. “I can only remember the award
being given out once or twice in my lifetime. And I've been
here a long while, my girl.”
Antonio Cutter was paying for my education? I
shivered, cold all of a sudden. Why would my mother's boss
pay for me to go to some expensive private school? And –
more worrying still – why wouldn't my mother tell me about
it if he had? My mind flashed back to Antonio's suddenly
solemn face when talking to me about Chance. What was I
doing here – really? And what did it have to do with Chance
Cutter?
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Princes of Paradise (M.A.G.E. #1 )
“Hey there, new girl!”
I whirled around to see a bronzed, ruggedly
handsome boy lounging on the chair behind me. I almost
gasped at the sight of him. He had long almost white blonde
hair that curled ever so slightly at the base of his neck, hair
streaked by the sun with natural shimmers of white and gold.
His skin was beach-darkened, and his hair and clothes were
sopping wet. Evidently he too had partaken in the Aeros
morning ritual of a pre-class swim. His shirt clung tightly to
his body, and through the damp spots I could see his tight,
firm muscles.
He was, I thought, reaching out a hand to steady
myself on the edge of the principal's desk, one of the most
handsome men I had ever seen. Powerful and beautiful, like
a god.
“I guess I'm taking you around for orientation this
morning.”
“Don't get so excited, Cutter,” drawled the principal
in a dry voice. “There's another one coming.”
“Cutter?” I took a step forward towards the boy,
noting for the first time his impossibly blue eyes – the color,
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KAILIN GOW
I thought, of the ocean whose sparkle I could still see shining
in his hair.
“Varun Cutter, at your service.” He leaped up and
crossed the room, shaking my hand and lingering only a
second too long at the greeting. “I don't mind if it's only
you.”
“I'm sure you don't,” Dr. Newton muttered under her
breath.
“It's nice to meet you,” I said. “Are you related to
Antonio Cutter? My mom works at the hotel. We've just
moved here.”
He grinned – a broad, friendly smile that made him
even more beautiful. “Yeah, I'm his nephew. I live with him
– and he makes me work for him after school. He wants me
to help pay my tuition here – the old-fashioned way. Hard
work and sweat and all that.”
“Were you at the luau last night?” I looked more
closely, eager to read in him any signs of recognition. “You
look awfully familiar.”
“Yeah...” He thought for a moment. “Yeah – so do
you, as a matter of a fact. I remember seeing you with your
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mom – Rose Evers, right? The new Event Director?”
“That's right.”
“She did a great job last night. I was going to go over
and thank her – the food hasn't been that good at a luau in
years. But then the dancing started, and I knew Antonio
would be anything but pleased if I missed that. It's my special
skill.”
My heart leaped. So it had been Varun I had danced
with last night! But his bearing was so different now. The
man I had danced with last night had been harsh, even
boorish, rough and almost cruel. But Varun was so kind and
sweet, with such a frank, straightforward manner. And while
the Cutter I had spoken to last night had been decidedly
foreign, Varun spoke with a distinctive all-American twang.
But if it wasn't Varun I'd danced with, that only left...
An all-too-familiar voice filled the air – slightly sour
and yet brilliantly aloof, with that same hint of an English
accent. “I hope I haven't arrived too late. Didn't hold you up,
did I, cousin?”
I whirled around to catch a glimpse of Chance Cutter
himself. Now that
I saw him, I knew immediately that he was
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KAILIN GOW
the man with whom I had danced. His lithe, strong body was
narrower and taller than Varun's; his hair was not long and
blonde but slick and jet-black. The same powerful force
seemed to control him; his hips swayed ever so slightly from
side to side as he filled the room with his presence: dynamic,
cocksure. If I had thought Varun was the most gorgeous guy
I had ever seen, Chance was evidently giving him a run for
his money. The Cutters Cousins were the hottest men I’ve
ever seen.
“You're just in time,” said Dr. Newton. “The other
student has already arrived.”
Chance caught sight of me, and instantly his eyes
widened. Clearly he recognized me, too. But then he caught
sight of Varun, and it was evident that he was not pleased.
“So you're giving the tour, are you, cuz?” He scoffed.
“Had I known that, I wouldn't have bothered turning up.”
“Happy to see you too, Chance,” Varun rolled his
eyes. “Listen – just let me do my job, will you?” He handed
us each a map of the school grounds.
I looked up at Chance. So, this was the mysterious
dancer from last night, after all. I felt my heart pounding at
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the memory of his touch, at the heat of the flames – flames
that I was so sure were real. I remembered feeling their heat,
as powerful a warmth as the sparks I felt when he touched
me. Had it all been an illusion, as my mother had said? No,
it couldn't have been – it felt so real...
And then I remembered once again what she had said
about him. The girl who had been burned. The accident.