by Leia Stone
I was a really sore loser, so I tried to make a habit of not losing. Especially not to him. Not today.
I took off after him, hair and face dripping wet, legs pumping in the sand. When I caught up, I decided it was time to play dirty. I swiped my leg out, tripping him and sending him to the ground.
The crowd exploded into cheers.
Lincoln hit the sand hard but immediately recovered, and rolled onto his back, the apple still in his mouth. Before he could try to sit up, I leapt forward, swung one leg over him and plopped down, pinning him to the ground with my hips. I had him straddled. His eyes widened, as were mine. The only thing between our bodies, were two very thin pieces of fabric, and I felt him. Every second I sat there, I felt him more and more.
Oh, sweet Jesus. Desire flared to life between my legs, but I pushed all that out of my mind. I was there to win, not grind on some guy who didn’t like me.
Leaning forward and sticking my ass into the air, I pressed my chest on his bare pecs. I had no hands to hold myself up with, so my tiny boobs were acting as my stabilizer. Opening my mouth, I leaned over and bit into the apple.
He grinned—the motherfricker grinned—letting me take it.
Whatever.
The crowd went insane.
I launched into a standing position as the crowd roared my name, then tore across the finish line.
Noah was beaming, bullhorn in hand. “Is it hot out here, or is it just these two?”
Lincoln was sitting up in the sand, glaring at Noah.
“Holy shit, girl, that was awesome.” Shea told me as she worked to cut the zip tie.
I smiled. “Yeah.” Except it did nothing but confuse me where Lincoln was concerned.
The rest of the day passed in a blur, but I couldn’t get out of my head and enjoy it. We’d won second place, partied till two in the morning, and I still wasn’t any closer to figuring out the Lincoln issue.
In the end, I decided to just focus on my studies. The gauntlet was months away, but I needed to put my nose to the grindstone if I wanted to pass.
Chapter Sixteen
“Aw, you look so beautiful!” Shea squealed.
I smiled, giving my friend a once-over. She was wearing a blue princess ball gown and looked amazing. “So do you.”
Shea was going to the winter ball with Luke. Just as friends, of course.
“Red looks amazing on you,” she told me.
I’d spent a shitload of money on that dress, hoping it would improve my recent morose mood. Fred was awesome, but to be honest, I only felt friendly toward him. He made me laugh and smile, but that heat, and that passion, just wasn’t there.
“I’ll see you at the dance?” I kissed her cheek.
She nodded. “Have fun with Fred. He’s sweet.”
He was sweet, the exact opposite of Lincoln. Ever since the beach games, Lincoln had doubled down on his professional demeanor.
I did the same with my schooling. I was acing all my classes, except studies of light. No matter what I did, I couldn’t get my hands to shoot out white light, and after two times of having black smoke come out of them, Mr. Rincor told me to stop trying. I felt like a failure.
Raphael and Mr. Rincor had a meeting with me, and told me they thought what I’d done to Tiffany was just a demon-gifted power, which a lot of students had, and they weren’t going to encourage developing it. So I basically just listened to the lectures, and when it came to practical application, I watched Fred light up the room. It was depressing, but Fred was cool about it, and hadn’t told anyone. I still heard the archdemon whispers a few times a week though.
I walked out of my dorm room to find Fred waiting in the lobby. He looked handsome, wearing a black suit and blue button-up shirt with a tie, but it was my security detail that held my gaze. Noah, Blake, Darren and Lincoln stood just behind Fred, all dressed in suits and looking incredibly handsome.
Lincoln’s gaze ran down my dress and I blushed. My heart throbbed at the sight of him, his dark hair slicked back, cleanly shaven, and dressed in a black suit.
“You look beautiful,” Fred stated, pulling my attention from the man who held my devotion to the man who should.
I smiled. “Thanks. You look nice too.”
He gave me a hug and I tried to feel something romantic, but the friend vibes were strong.
Friendzone Fred. Poor guy.
“Shea and Luke will meet us there,” I told him.
He nodded, sticking out his arm for me to link with it. “I borrowed my dad’s Porsche.” He waggled his eyebrows.
I grinned. “Does he ever let you drive it?”
Fred shook his head vigorously. “No way. I had to convince him I was taking the prettiest girl in school out.”
Aw. He was a total sweetie. “My dad loved cars. Before the fall, my mom said he’d spend hours in the garage fixing up old beaters.”
Fred gave me an easy smile as we reached the parking lot. Sure enough, there was a white Porsche waiting. “Your chariot, my lady.”
Lincoln stepped forward. “Please go straight to the venue, and use valet.”
Fred gave him a sharp look but didn’t respond, just opened my door.
Awkward.
I slipped in and Fred closed the door, then walked around the car to slide in next to me. My eyes flicked to the rearview mirror to see the boys piling into an SUV with the school’s logo on the side.
“So, is there something I should know about you and Lincoln?” Fred mused as the SUV followed us out of the parking lot.
Oh God.
“Not really,” I hedged.
He looked sideways at me. “So you don’t like him?”
Dammit, I couldn’t lie. “I want to not like him, but….” I played with the hem of my dress.
He nodded, shifting gears. “But you do.”
I couldn’t bear to look at his face as a frown pulled at my lips. “Yeah. It’s complicated.”
“That’s cool. I can do friends. I mean, I wanted more, but…”
My heart pinched. This was not the way to start a date. “I’m so sorry. You’re such a nice guy.”
“Ouch. Nice guy.” He feigned a painful look.
I laughed. “Hey, nothing wrong with being the nice guy.”
He chuckled. “But the dark broody asshole always gets the girl.”
Yeah, I guess that’s true in this case. “We’re still going to have an awesome night,” I declared.
He gave me an easygoing smile, looking sideways at me. “Yes we are, because I’m an amazing dancer.”
I held my hands out. “Whoa. That’s a bold statement. I’m going to need some proof.”
He nodded. “You just wait. They don’t call me Footloose Fred for nothing.”
I laughed again. Fred was funny and always lighthearted; there wasn’t a serious cloud over every conversation like there was with Lincoln. Why couldn’t I like him? Maybe in time I could… My mom always said the best relationships came from friendships.
Before I knew it, we were pulling up to the Beverly Hills hotel. He rolled up to the valet and then whipped his phone out. “Selfie for my dad? Proof there was a hot girl in his car with me?” He held it up, the camera facing us.
With a grin, I leaned in and kissed his cheek. He’d already declared we were friends, so I figured it was harmless.
After snapping the pic, he smiled. “Thanks. He’ll get a kick out of that.”
My door opened suddenly, and Lincoln was there, glaring down at me. “Let’s get inside. This area isn’t secure.”
“My date can get my door, Lincoln,” I snapped.
“Your date’s too busy ogling at you,” he just short of growled.
Lincoln Grey is jealous.
“You don’t get to do that. You don’t get to play hot and cold. Nope.” I gave him a death glare.
Mofo better not mess with me like that.
Fred cleared his throat near the big double doors, and I blasted past my ‘security detail,’ leaving Lincoln wit
h his jaw tight and fire in his eyes.
Shea, Luke, Angela, Chloe and everyone else arrived shortly after us. The winter ball was like an amazing catered wedding, except with no ceremony. It was a fundraiser for helping underprivileged families transfer from outside the war zones to inside the safety of Angel City. I guessed the tickets were pricey—Fred had paid for both of us.
They were also having a silent auction. Shea and I bid on bestie pedicures. I doubted we’d get it, since our highest bid was twenty-five dollars and the retail amount was sixty, but a girl had to dream.
Lincoln was watching me like a hawk all night. Anywhere I went, his eyes moved. It was unnerving, to say the least. Darren, Blake and Noah were a little more relaxed. Noah took breaks to dance with Shea, as Darren pigged out at the chocolate fountain. A man after my own heart. Blake, whom I’d dubbed the sweet one, was standing near Lincoln, and doing whatever he said. The sides of the large ballroom were sprinkled with Fallen Army guards.
Shea took a sip of her water, and then pointed to a fellow student—Ryce, a super-hot Centaur. It was weird to call him hot since he was half animal, but his upper half had it going on.
“If I slept with him, would that be considered bestiality?” she asked the table.
“Eww, Shea! Is this the shit you think about on a daily basis?” I asked her, shivering from the mental images.
She nodded seriously.
Fred chuckled. “The Centaurs stick together when mating, for obvious reasons.”
Shea seemed sad about that, sitting back in her chair.
“Let’s dance!” I declared, and grabbed Fred’s hand. I wasn’t going to sit there and talk about Shea’s weird thoughts anymore. Plus, I looked three months pregnant after eating so much amazing food. It would be good to burn some of that off.
Fred laughed, and followed me to the dance floor. We danced for an hour, and he was indeed good. He popped, locked, moonwalked and all of that, and not in the cheesy way. Michael Jackson was totally his spirit animal.
“Damn, boy. You’ve got moves!” I gushed.
He grinned. “My mom always wanted a daughter but got three sons instead. So she put me in hip-hop lessons when I was three.”
I nodded, impressed. “You should do that professionally or something,” I shouted over the music.
“Maybe in another life.” He added with a shrug.
Yeah, pursuing our artistic passions wasn’t really at the top of the agenda for any of us right now.
“I gotta pee. Be right back,” I told him.
Fred nodded, doing circles around Shea, who was pulling off a very impressive Beyoncé number. For as long as I’d known Shea, we had loved dancing. It was our thing, our stress reliever, and we danced without a care of who was watching.
“Where are you going?” Lincoln’s deep voice called behind me. I stopped in my quest for the restroom and threw a death glare over my shoulder. I’d forgotten he was there.
“I’m going to the bathroom. Is that okay?” I crossed my arms over my chest.
He nodded, placing one hand on his sword. “Lead the way.”
I rolled my eyes. “You’re not coming. I’ll be fine.”
Lincoln simply stared at me and stood there, waiting for me to start walking again.
‘He has no idea what we’re capable of,’ Sera said from inside my boot. She sounded as offended as I felt.
‘I know. He thinks I’m a baby.’
When I didn’t budge, Lincoln sighed, gripped my arm lightly, and pulled me to the edge of the room. I could now clearly see a sign that said ‘Bathroom’ hung overhead, and at the end of the long hallway were two doors.
“Listen, I know you think I’m being overly cautious, but trust me. I have it on very good intel that there could be an attack at this party. That’s why I’m so jumpy,” he murmured.
My whole body went rigid. “An attack? Why didn’t you say something earlier? Call off the event.” Now, it made sense that there were so many Fallen Army stationed at the doors.
He sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Raphael doesn’t trust my intel, said it wasn’t enough for him to call off an event that brings in thousands for charity, so we compromised by beefing up security.”
I rubbed my arms, itching to pull out my dagger. I had to pee really bad, but I wanted to know more. “Why would they attack a charity event?” I realized the second it left my mouth that it was a naïve and stupid question.
“They’ll always try to take out Fallen Academy students. Less people to serve in the army that destroys them,” he explained.
I rubbed my arms again, doing the pee dance. “Sometimes I forget we’re at war.”
Lincoln looked haunted. “I’ll never forget.” I squirmed again. “Go pee, woman!” he shouted, pointing down the hall.
“Now I’m scared,” I told him, eyeing the dark hallway. He’d just told me there was probably going to be an attack. A bathroom stall, or a dark hallway was the best place to jump someone.
He chuckled, his blue eyes twinkling. “I’ll watch your back. Go.”
Why is he so gorgeous? Why does he kiss so good? Why am I staring at his lips?
Not wanting Lincoln to think I was a total wuss, I took off down the hall, my eyes darting all over the place as I sniffed for sulfur, vinegar, or any weird demon smell. Coming up with nothing, I opened the bathroom door, and peeked my head inside.
“Hello?” No response. “Demon-friendly girl coming in,” I said nervously.
I bent down and checked under the stalls, a sigh of relief escaping when I saw I was alone. I peed quickly and then washed my hands, but when I was reaching for a paper towel, I heard a muffled scream.
My eyes widened, and I reached for Sera. Maybe I was just in a jumpy mood and the scream was a shout of joy, but now that I was focused, it sounded like the music had stopped.
More screams.
I peeked out the door and stared down the dark hallway.
Oh shit.
I had to squint to see, but it looked like Lincoln was fighting someone. His sword arm was outstretched, and I could see people beyond him running and screaming.
Shea.
I took off down the hall, holding Sera ready. When I reached Lincoln, I came face-to-face with that same damn Abrus demon. Lincoln thrust out his left hand and shot a bolt of white light into the demon’s face. He shrank back but recovered quickly, standing to glare at me.
“Why are you after me?” I screamed. I couldn’t take it anymore, not knowing. “What am I?”
Lincoln backed into the hallway, blocking me with his body.
“You’re one of us. You belong with me. I can train you to control your dark magic,” he said in a smooth, beckoning voice.
Dark magic. He knew about my dark magic. Maybe I wasn’t a Celestial, or I wasn’t just that, at least. Maybe my wings were black because I was half Brimstone demon. Those black batwings mixed with white angel wings could make mine. Maybe.
“Never!” Lincoln roared, then burst forward while the Abrus demon was distracted, slipping his sword into the demon’s rib cage.
The Abrus demon’s eyes bugged out, and then his entire face turned sinister.
With a roar, his mouth opened and bees flew out. Honest-to-God bees flew from his mouth and attacked Lincoln. He started batting at the air and moved left to right in his spot, but didn’t get out of the way, not allowing there to be a space between the demon and me. While Lincoln was busy with the bees, I saw the demon pull out a sleek black sword.
“No!” I shouted, then rammed my shoulder into Lincoln, pushing him into the wall and out of harm’s way. I thrust my hand forward with all the anger I could muster, the black magic I’d tried so hard to keep hidden flying from my palm and wrapping around the Abrus demon’s neck.
Surprise filled his face, and then he grinned. He had a sword in his stomach, was being choked out by black magic, and was grinning.
Freaking psycho.
‘I can take care of those bees,’ Sera
said.
Shit, I’d forgotten about Lincoln. He was on the ground now, getting stung from the looks of it.
While the Abrus demon was wrestling with his new necktie, I held Sera against Lincoln’s back, the flat of the blade touching his shirt. A burst of white light shot out, and I jerked my head to the side, closing my eyes against the brightness. The blade heated up but didn’t burn me, and then the light died down. Opening my eyes, I saw every bee had been turned to ash.
‘You’re seriously badass,’ I told my partner in crime.
‘Thanks, love. Now run before he gets that off!’
Oh yeah. The Abrus demon was still wrestling with my dark magic choker.
Hooking my arm under Lincoln’s armpit, I hauled him up to a standing position. His skin was covered in red welts, but I could see his hands were glowing orange and he was already working on healing them. He pulled his sword out of the demon, and tucked the other arm around me. The winter ball was in utter mayhem, people running around like crazy.
“Shea!” I shouted.
“Over here!” my best friend replied somewhere to the right.
My head snapped in her direction, and I saw she was holding the back door open for people. Noah and Blake were with her, ushering everyone outside.
Lincoln and I took off running just as the Abrus demon lunged for us. Lincoln threw his hand out behind him, and another brilliant white light shot from his palms, smacking the demon in the face.
Whoa. He definitely aced his studies of light class.
Once we’d made it safely across the ballroom, Darren popped up in front of us. “We’ve got an Abrus demon, two Brimstones and a handful of Castor demons,” he reported to Lincoln.
Lincoln nodded to Darren, then grabbed the back of my neck gently, turning me to face him. He ran his thumb along my jawline softly, looking my body up and down, seemingly admiring my dress. “You clean up nice. I’m sorry your date got ruined.” He said ‘date’ like it was the plague.
He totally liked me. The bastard.
I grinned. “Thanks. It’s all the yoga I do.”
He chuckled, but then a scream tore his gaze from me and he looked strained. “Go back to school with Blake and Noah, and text me the second you’re safe. Sit in Raphael’s office and wait for me.”