Playboy Princes: Royals of Arbon Academy

by Eve, Jaymin

  To give her credit, Mattie managed to keep her expression neutral for most of it, but she lost it at the end, launching to her feet and stomping around the room.

  “What in the actual fuck?” she snarled, jerking her hand out and smashing it into the lamp on the side of her table. “I knew I hated that bitch for a reason. I’m so glad you guys”—her voice lowered to an angry whisper—“killed her. Should have made her suffer for a little longer before striking the final blow.”

  I blinked, and then blinked some more. “You’re not… freaked out by who I am? By the violent streak that lives below my surface and occasionally gets away from me?”

  Mattie snorted, looking like a princess, but not sounding like one at all. “Girl, are you fucking kidding me? I’m proud of you. You’ve fought for survival, and you’re here, stronger than ever, able to take on Brandon and those fucks who want to threaten your existence. If anything”—she paused, shaking her head—“I’m jealous. I want to be as tough and capable as you are. I mean, I’m not part of the Society like Rafe and Jordan, and Nolan, apparently, who is going to get his ass kicked, when I get my hands on him, for keeping this a secret from me. But the truth is, I have no problem with what they’re doing. We haven’t loved the monarchy for a long time. We wish to be more like you, Vi. Exceptional.”

  My stupid lips started to tremble as my eyes burned. “You’d better not make me cry, bitch,” I said, sniffling and trying to get my shit under control. “Also, I love you, and you’re as badass as they come. You do it in a different way than me, and most of the time, I’m sure it’s more effective.”

  She looked a little misty around the eyes too, so we both shook that shit off, got out of her room, and headed toward the soccer stadium. Lots of students were in the hall with us, most of them dressed in the maroon and white colors of our team, and I felt safe enough to not be looking over my shoulder for five minutes, especially with a very obvious increase in guards and security scattered about.

  “How come the guys never travel away for games?” I asked. “I mean, it’s weird, right? Because all the other teams travel here.”

  Mattie lifted an eyebrow at me in quite the impressive show of facial muscles. “Girl, you think our boys would be forced to go to another school?” She laughed. “Nope, everyone comes to them so as not to disrupt their study and school schedule. I think they have about three away games a year, and that’s for the massive carnivals that are held in a completely neutral place not connected to any of the schools. We should be due for one soon, actually.”

  Hmmm, a carnival sounded kind of fun. I mean, I was imagining cotton candy and rides and popcorn, but something told me that a soccer carnival was not quite as bright and candy-filled.

  When we’d reached the stadium and made it past the bag check and scanner, I blinked at how full it was. Not that they ever had a bad turnout, but this was super packed. Maybe even more than against Princeton.

  “Who are they playing?” I asked.

  Mattie shrugged. “Uhhh, I think…” Her eyes suddenly went huge, gaze focused over my shoulder. Turning, I found myself staring at the scoreboard. Arbon Royals was on the top, and right below: Australasian Eagles.

  “Fuck,” I muttered. “So, could that mean…?”

  Sure enough, right there in the top box that usually the dean used to watch the games were two familiar royals.

  “Alex’s parents are here,” I said in a rushed whisper. Mattie knew everything that’d happened that day now, so my panic was no surprise to her. But she also knew exactly what to do.

  Reaching out, she grabbed my hand, squeezing it tightly. “Smile,” she muttered between bared teeth. “Don’t let them know you’re worried.”

  Right. Right. Easier said than done, but she was already leading me toward the seats saved for royals, near the field.

  By the time we sat, I had gotten my shit together, wearing a blank face and fake smile. Mattie had her palm reader out and was typing something rapidly. “Warned Rafe, Noles, and Jordy,” she whispered. “Alex’s family are renowned for their cruelty. All of us need to be on high alert, and you are never to be alone again. Not until they leave.”

  “How long will that be?” I muttered while somehow keeping my smile plastered across my face.

  Mattie took a second to answer, and that could not mean anything good. “With the ball next weekend and the day of travel each way between Australasia and the Switzerlands, I’m guessing they’re here until at least next weekend.”

  “Fuck,” I groaned.

  The Spring Ball. In the chaos of getting kidnapped and almost killing the creepy nurse, it had kind of slipped my mind that we’d soon have a ton of senior royals in our midst.

  Staying out of the way of Alex’s parents for an entire week was going to be fucking impossible. Not to mention they had a lot of power, even outside of their own country. I could do my best to avoid them, but if I was called to meet with them, I’d be going or I could risk severe punishment.

  “Breathe,” Mattie advised. “Let’s not panic yet. Take it one day at a time. Hopefully they have lots of meetings set up on this side of the world and they spend the next week flying their private plane around, returning only for Saturday.”

  “With my luck, there’s no way that will be the case,” I muttered, but a part of me hoped that she was right. I mean, surely they were too busy to worry about me. Of course, they’d probably start investigating the nur—

  I bolted upright in my chair. “I need to talk to Rafe and Jordan,” I said quickly. Nurse Psychotic had gotten her orders from the Australasian royals, and then the next day they showed up? That couldn’t be a coincidence. Somehow I didn’t think they traveled for every away game.

  Mattie grabbed my forearm. “It’s too late. You’ll have to wait until after the game.”

  Sure enough, the teams were streaming onto the field, and for once, Rafe and Jordan were front and fucking center. Both of them stormed out and stole every ounce of my focus.

  Their gazes slammed into me—it was clear they’d both been looking for me—and relief hit all of us at the same time. We were okay. We were alive.

  We’d worry about the other shit after this game.

  Retaking my seat, I didn’t remove my eyes from them. Jordan took off for our goal, but Rafe remained where he was, keeping me in sight for a few minutes longer. If he kept that up, it was going to be really fucking obvious soon, but at the same time, I’d never felt safer knowing they were close again.

  And then Alex ruined it, clapping Rafe on the shoulder and saying something to him that made the Swiss prince all ragey and tense. Alex laughed, shooting a deliberate look in my direction and blowing me a kiss.

  Fuck’s sake.

  Rafe stalked away from the Australasian prince, anger radiating from every step, and Alex just waved up at his parents like the golden boy he pretended to be.

  "Somehow," I muttered to Mattie with a pained groan, "I doubt I'll survive the week without meeting King and Queen Cruel and Unusual." I kept my voice quiet because the last thing I needed was to be arrested for treason, but damn, I was in a shitty mood now.

  Mattie gave me a sympathetic look and squeezed my hand in hers. "Would nachos and wine help?"

  "Fuck yes," I replied with an enthusiastic nod. "Let's go now before they get busy at the concession stand."

  Mattie stood with me, and we made our way out of the seating. If we were quick enough, we'd probably still make it back before the game really started.

  There was only a short queue at the food counter, and I waited for the nachos while Mattie went to collect us each a glass of deep red wine. Only the best for the children of kings, I guessed.

  I felt the movement behind me a moment before someone struck out. After the nurse though, I was on high alert. No one was getting the drop on me again. Sidestepping enough so that their hands only grazed me, I spun fully to see who was attacking me.

  Claudette.

  Fuck this bitch. "What did you do
to Brandon, you little slut?" she hissed. She dove forward, claws extended in a move designed to rip my face apart. I shifted again, so fast she didn’t have a shot at reaching me, and my cheek grazed the side of the concession stand because I had nowhere else to go. But that was a small price to pay to get into a position where I could reach her. I latched onto her wrist, securing it in a deadlock.

  "Let me go!" she screeched, flailing her free hand around until I increased the pressure on the one I held captive. Her thumb was pinned by my grip, almost touching her own wrist, and it'd only take a small adjustment to break it. Fuck, that was tempting. "You can't do this! I'm a princess! I could have you arrested!"

  She was raving, but the academy staff member running the concession stand looked concerned. I needed to wrap it up quickly before he decided to call for assistance.

  "Listen here, you diseased whore," I said in her ear, keeping my voice low but deadly threatening. "Stay the fuck away from me and stay the fuck away from Rafe. Unless you want to find out firsthand what happened to Brandon?" I let out a cold, bloodthirsty chuckle. Brandon hadn't been seen around the academy since the fight night, presumably because his face was too bruised to be easily explained. He was still on my list, though. He'd get his.

  "Rafe?" Claudette whimpered. "Don't you mean Alex?"

  I scoffed. "No. He's all yours. You two were fucking made for each other."

  I was about to release her, but then... fuck it. I snapped her thumb and left her in a howling pile on the floor while I collected my steaming nachos.

  "Girl," Mattie exclaimed, standing there with a glass of wine in each hand and a wide-eyed look of awe on her face. "Firstly, that was so badass I think I just came a little bit. Secondly, the guys are going to freaking kill me when they see your face. Dammit, Vi!"

  I touched a hand to my cheek, feeling the ache of a bruise forming. "Oops."

  Mattie groaned but didn't look back at Claudette’s crying and wailing even once as we walked away. Good girl.

  Chapter 28

  I’d never thought much about the monarchy of Australasia. For one, it was on the other side of the freaking world, and as a poor orphan, I wasn’t getting there any time soon. And two, well, mainly just the number one reason. It was too far away to ever really register on my radar, and it wasn't until I’d met Alex that I’d even crossed paths with anyone born there.

  After my first introduction, I’d expected them all to be evil assholes. I mean, look at their king and queen and heir. So I was surprised to find their team played a super clean game, no cheating, fighting, or catcalling.

  “This is the most professional game I think I’ve seen,” I said to Mattie at halftime. She grimaced.

  “Oh yeah, Australasians are super disciplined in general. They look like hot surfers, but they’re soldiers at heart.”

  “Lots of beaches, right?” I said, trying to recall the few things I knew about them. “And weird animals.”

  Mattie laughed. “If by weird you mean able to kill with a single bite, then yep, that’s about right.”

  Kill with a single bite. Well, that explained their monarchy. They were just as lethal.

  My palm reader buzzed, and I lifted it to find a message from Alex.

  Dinner with my parents after the game. Not a request.

  My heart beat like a fucking jackhammer in my chest as I quickly showed Mattie. “I can’t get out of it,” I said softly. “What freaking excuse would be good enough to bail?”

  Her eyes were wide, but she didn’t immediately panic. I could see she was running it over in her head, no doubt trying to find a protocol I wasn’t aware of.

  “Don’t answer him yet,” she murmured. “We need to check with Rafe. He might be the only one with the power to supersede their request. I’m just not sure how it can be worded so as not to raise suspicion.”

  Jesus. This was not my week. Month. Year. If it kept going this way, I’d just call it “not my decade” and be fucking done with it.

  “Should I tell the guys now, give them a chance to work it out?” I asked, putting my head right next to Mattie’s.

  She pursed her lips. “It’s a close game. Maybe just wait until they’re finished, and that way we won’t distract them during the second half.”

  “Yep,” I nodded, “good plan. These moody bastards hate to lose, and I’d rather not be the reason they were distracted.”

  Her laughter was a welcomed relief after the tension.

  Of course, my palm reader felt like it weighed a freaking ton with Alex’s message just sitting there. I wanted so badly to tell him to go fuck himself, but that wouldn’t help. I had no power. Curse words wouldn’t do anything but make my punishment greater.

  So I would wait.

  The second half passed in a blur. I spent most of it tapping my leg and thinking murderous thoughts. The blatant manipulation of my life had gone on long enough, and I was done playing Alex’s pawn. Could the Society… the resistance, whatever the fuck they called themselves… could they help me escape the fate of a ballot winner?

  Or would that just be a trap of a different making? Exchanging one cage for another wasn’t ideal, but Alex was never gonna happen. That much I knew for a fact.

  Mattie jumped to her feet screaming, and I blinked, focusing on the game again.

  Only it was over and we’d won, three points to two.

  “Rafe scored,” she said, shooting me a smug grin. “And you totally missed it. He’s not gonna be happy.”

  I snorted. “I’ll pretend I saw it. Did anything unusual happen that I should comment on?”

  Mattie threw her head back and laughed. “How about the fact that when he scored, the first place he looked was at you?”

  Well, shit. No point in lying then.

  My palm reader buzzed.

  Alex: First warning, Violet.

  I hit ignore again, quickly moving through the names to my group message with Rafe, Nolan, and Jordan.

  Alex wants me to have dinner with him and his parents tonight. Mattie said one of you might have a legitimate excuse I can use not to go. Something that won’t cause wars or get me executed. And… go…

  As soon as I hit send, Mattie and I started down the stands, following the cheering crowd. It had been an exciting game, and I was surprised to see Alex exchanging friendly handshakes with a lot of the Australasian team. He clearly knew them from somewhere. Maybe school in his younger years?

  I mean, how was it that he could have friends like that, be so personable at times, and then have this straight up asshole streak deep inside.

  Growing up with those parents, though, an airhead of a mother, who no doubt was there to chirp about and look pretty, and an evil, arrogant tyrant of a father.

  Alex had probably turned out okay, considering the circumstances.

  When we were near the exit, my palm reader buzzed.

  Angel: Do not fucking leave this stadium.

  Jordan’s came a second later.

  We got you, sweetheart. Wait for us just inside the main entrance.

  Yin and yang at its finest.

  Mattie and I waited, crowds pushing past us, already planning how they would celebrate tonight. There was the usual afterparty at Drake’s place and a few other smaller events that would be scattered around to avoid detection. No one showed the sort of tension that was swirling inside of me; instead they looked young and carefree and happy.

  I felt like I was a hundred years older than most of them.

  “Are you gonna tell them about Claudette?” Mattie asked as we waited, leaning back against the closest wall.

  My hand rubbed at the mark on my face, happy to note it barely even hurt now. Nothing more than a surface graze. Sensei had taught me many times that it was sometimes necessary to inflict a small wound on oneself to ensure that you were in the position of control. Of power.

  Claudette had learned that lesson today.

  “Yeah, might as well. If she decides to go to the dean, I’m gonna need their bac
kup.”

  “Can’t go to the dean if she’s dead,” Mattie muttered, straightening as her twin came into sight.

  Nolan wrapped his arms around both of us. He was still damp and smelled of his musky aftershave, having clearly jumped in and out of the shower in record time. He wasn’t the only one; Jordan and Rafe arrived seconds later.

  Nolan released me so that Jordan could yank me into his arms, his alpha side coming out to play and turning my legs a little weak. Thank fuck the Australasian royals were gone so they didn’t witness a bunch of guys getting huggy with me.

  “You okay?” he asked, pulling me back and looking me over.

  I nodded. “Yeah, totally fine. I haven’t even seen Alex in person, just got the messages.”

  Rafe was a little back, bag slung over his shoulder, eyes like blue glaciers. “What happened to your face?” he asked slowly.

  I narrowed my eyes at the observant fucker. Only Rafe would have noticed that tiny mark. “Claudette attacked her from behind,” Mattie said in a rush. She shot me an apologetic look, and I just shook my head.

  “Yeah, I was busy at the concession stand. I heard her before she got a hit on me, but I grazed my face getting into a better position to break her thumb.”

  Rafe moved then, finally, edging Jordan out of the way. “Should’ve been her neck,” he muttered, lips close to my face. Then he shocked me by pressing them to the graze, just the briefest of kisses, before pulling away.

  I swallowed hard when our eyes met. “Might be worth it for that,” I murmured, unsure about the strong rush of emotions I was feeling.

  “What should she tell Alex?” Mattie demanded, bringing the focus back to that. “I mean, obviously she can’t go and have dinner with the insane would-be in-laws that tried to have the nurse forcibly rip her vagina apart.”

  Nolan screwed his nose up. “Sis, please. The word vagina is so fucking fifth grade, can’t we refer to it as a puss—”

  She punched him, and it was actually nicely done. Maybe Mattie had more skills than I’d been giving her credit for.