“Sorry.” I roll my eyes. “I didn’t want to stand there and watch you two flirt with those two random girls.”
Brody laughs. “We can’t help it if all the chicks like us.”
“Who are you?” Kolton asks.
I look up and see Kolton is talking to Henry.
“I’m the defense teacher. This is my classroom,” Henry explains, an amused expression on his face.
“Henry, these are my brothers, Kolton and Brody.” I point at them as I introduce them.
Henry furrows his brow. “Wait, are you Cayson’s daughter?”
I nod, wondering if he knows my dad.
Of course he knows him. Everybody knows my dad. But I wonder if he knows him personally. If he does, that would be super awkward, especially considering what I’ve been thinking about him. It would almost be as awkward as my feelings for Asa.
“It was very nice to meet you, Brody and Kolton.” He turns to me. “Everleigh, I will see you in class.”
Henry then turns and walks briskly out of the classroom. I wasn’t really expecting him to leave so suddenly like that, but maybe what I was feeling was one sided. It’s for the best. I mean, I’m his student. And he’s not my mate. I shouldn’t be lusting over him. It’s not right.
Jude is my mate. He is the only one who should be occupying my thoughts.
Still, I think of Henry’s warm green eyes and I know I’m a goner.
10:07 pm
What boys?
As we head toward our room, we run into Asa.
I knew I would be seeing him around, but I was hoping I wouldn’t see him until I was in his class. I need time to mentally prepare.
Part of me was hoping my feelings for him would magically go away, now that I’ve found my mate. But deep down, I knew they wouldn’t just ‘go away.’ They’re too strong and… real. They’re so real. What I feel for Asa isn’t just a crush, but what am I supposed to do about it? Even if Jude wasn’t my mate, Asa despises me.
“Asa, what up?” Brody says, as we approach him.
“Hey, Brody. Kolton.” He looks at me and pauses before greeting me. “Everleigh.” His voice is tight when he says my name.
Does he hate me so much that he doesn’t even like saying my name?
My heart shatters.
“How are you enjoying college life so far?” Asa looks at Brody and Kolton as he asks, not bothering to even glance at me.
“It’s good. Lots of hot girls.” Kolton smirks. “But keeping the boys away from Everleigh is a full time job.”
“Boys. What boys?” Asa darts a gaze between me, Brody, and Kolton. I notice his hand is trembling, and I’m wondering what that is about. I can’t even begin to understand Asa. One minute, he won’t even look at me, the next he’s freaking out, thinking I’m going to be hooking up with some guy.
Well, I guess it kind of makes sense. My dad is his best friend. He’s just looking out for me because of my dad.
Brody smirks. “See you later, Asa.”
Brody and Kolton walk off, leaving me to deal with the fallout of what Kolton said.
I realize that, for the first time ever, I am alone with Asa.
“What boys are they talking about?” Asa asks, now looking at me.
He’s never made prolonged eye contact with me before, and it makes me nervous. “Nobody. I mean, I guess some guys hit on me earlier, but nobody I’m interested in.”
Nope, I’m too busy pining away over a guy I can’t have despite the fact that I’ve now met my mate. I wonder if I should tell Asa about Jude, but I can’t bring myself to say the words. There is definitely something wrong with me.
“You shouldn’t date boys. Especially not college boys.” Asa’s face is pale.
I laugh. I don’t know why I find what he said so funny, but it is. “I’m an adult now, you know. I’m allowed to do adult things.”
My face grows warm as I realize what I’ve just insinuated, but I’m not going to take it back now.
Asa purses his lips. “Everleigh, you’re not doing adult things with anybody, right? I mean, you should wait for your mate.”
I raise an eyebrow. “Tell me something, Asa. Are you waiting for your mate?”
“I… uh…” He clears his throat. “Well, when I was younger, I did some things I’m not proud of. But it’s been years.”
“Is that why you’re so uptight? Because you need to get laid?” I ask, deciding to be brave. I can regret it later.
Asa’s mouth falls open, but he doesn’t say anything. Not one word.
“Don’t worry, Asa. I’ve still got my v-card, but if that changes anytime soon, I’ll be sure to let you know.” I turn to walk away, wondering why the heck I just said that to Asa of all people. He’s my dad’s best friend. What if he tells my dad what I said? How can I ever face him again?
“Everleigh,” Asa says from behind me.
I stop walking and take a deep breath before turning around. “Yeah?”
“You’re really all grown up now, aren’t you?”
I nod. “Yeah, I am. Maybe you’d know that if you ever paid attention to me.”
I turn around again, not bothering to watch for his reaction, and I leave him behind.
I try to tell myself that I should get over him. I even try to pretend that I don’t still have feelings for him. But that’s not true.
Will it always be like this between Asa and me?
10:53 pm
Everything.
After leaving Asa, I decide to try and find Jude. I don’t know where his dorm is, and I definitely don’t have his number. He’s my mate. I need his phone number. So, I go in search of him, realizing I probably won’t have another opportunity to be alone like this.
I continue toward the dorms, hoping I don’t run into Kolton or Brody along the way. I stop a few people, asking if they know where Jude Cooper’s room is, but nobody knows who Jude is, which is frustrating. I’m about to give up when I see a group of guys who look about my age walking down the hall. Maybe they know Jude.
“Hey, do you guys know where Jude Cooper’s dorm is?” I ask, feeling hopeful.
“No,” a few of them say.
But one guy does. “Yeah, he’s next door to me. I think it’s room 327.”
“Thank you!” I don’t wait for a response as I run off down the hall, toward room 327. I’m already on the third floor, so I’m pretty close.
When I see number 327 I stop just outside the door, my heart racing. I lift up my hand and knock on the door, hoping that this is Jude’s room. I need to see him right now. The whole my brothers keeping me from my mate thing is getting kind of annoying.
The door opens up and I see Jude on the other side. He’s got on a t-shirt that says, “1.77245385091.”
“The square root of pi.” I point at his shirt.
His face turns red. “I like math.”
I grin, liking that I know something a little more about my mate now. “Can I come in?”
Jude steps back, opening the door wider. “I went looking for you earlier, but nobody knows where your dorm is.”
I grin, liking the idea that he was looking for me. “I was with my brothers anyway. We went to check out where our classrooms are and we met some of our teachers.”
What I don’t tell Jude is how I am attracted to two of those teachers. Really, he doesn’t need to know. But I also realize, once we complete our mate bond, he will be able to read my thoughts. So I need to get my feelings sorted out soon.
Jude’s room is a lot smaller than mine. Instead of having a big, king sized bed, he just has a full bed. There is barely enough room for his dresser and nightstand. The desk is shoved into the corner.
“It’s… uh… it’s a small room.” He looks at me, his hands folded behind his back like he’s anxious.
I shrug. “After we’re mated I suppose you’ll come stay with me anyway.”
His face turns red.
I love that he’s so innocent. Toeing off my shoes, I climb onto his
bed and prop my back up with some pillows. When I look up, Jude is watching me with his brows furrowed, like he’s trying to figure out what I’m doing.
“This cool?” I ask.
He nods. “Make yourself comfortable.”
I pat the spot beside me. “Come sit by me.”
Jude’s eyes widen, but he does walk over and sit down. He’s a bit tense, but I think it’s cute.
“I was thinking, we should exchange phone numbers,” I suggest. “That way if you ever want to find me, you can just call or text.”
“That’s a good idea.” He grabs his phone from the nightstand and passes it to me so I can put my number in. I can’t help but think it takes a lot of trust to just pass somebody your phone, so my heart warms at the thought. I just put my number in and text myself from his phone so I have his number too.
“Thanks.” I pass his phone back.
He puts his phone back on the nightstand and looks at me. “I’m really glad that you came to find me. I don’t know if I told you that or not, but I am.” He scoots a little closer to me until our thighs are touching. He’s got on jeans though, so we still haven’t made skin to skin contact yet.
“I’m sorry that it took me so long to ditch my brothers.” I bite my lip, peering at him through my lashes. I have been brave today, but I’m not brave enough to make the first move to kiss him.
Jude reaches a hand over, and I think this is it. He’s going to touch me. I stay very still, trying not to scare him away. Slowly, he places his hand on my cheek and he strokes it. The second his skin touches mine, I know that he is mine. I already knew it, but I can literally feel it in my soul now. I think he must feel the same by the way he looks at me.
“That’s…” He pauses, as if searching for the right word, “intense.”
He’s right. These feelings are intense. But more than intense, it’s beautiful and it’s just everything I’ve ever dreamed of. No wonder my dad always looks at my mom like she hung the stars.
All I know is that I want more of this, and I need more than just a simple touch. I lean into him, and he meets me halfway. His lips gently brush against mine. If I thought touching him was intense, it’s nothing compared to this kiss.
It’s my first. And even though I have no clue what I’m doing, I feel like it comes so naturally. I’m glad that I saved my first kiss for my mate.
I scoot closer to him, putting my hands in his hair, never breaking the kiss.
I know I said I wanted to wait to complete our mate bond, but I get now why nobody waits. I don’t want to. I just want to make Jude mine. But before this kiss can go any further, I hear the door open. I pull back from Jude to see what’s going on and I watch as Brody and Kolton come through the door. Brody grabs me around the waist, picking me up, and Kolton swings at Jude, punching him.
I scream. “Kolton, stop!”
I swat at Brody’s hands, trying to get him to let me go. Brothers or not, they’re not allowed to treat my mate like that.
“Brody, let me go.” I use all my strength to fight against him, but he doesn’t even budge an inch.
Jude is knocked out cold from the punch that Kolton delivered. I know that he’s okay, and he will be okay. Vampires heal fast. But I’m pissed that Kolton did that to my mate. And I’m pissed that Brody let him do it.
“Let go of me,” I say one last time.
Whatever Brody hears in my voice must make him decide to loosen his grip on me. He eventually lets me down.
“Don’t even think about walking over to that boy right now.” Kolton crosses his arms and stands between Jude and me.
“Kolton, don’t make me choose.” Something thick and warm streams down from my eyes. I know that it’s blood, and I’m pissed at my brothers for making me cry. Crying as a vampire is the worst. “Jude is my mate.”
Kolton doesn’t budge though.
Not wanting to be around my brothers, I turn and run from Jude’s room. I hear Brody calling my name, but I don’t stop. I just want to be alone.
Someday, those two are going to understand what the mate bond feels like. It won’t be until then that they will realize how horrible what they did was. I can’t explain this feeling to them. There are not enough words in the English language to articulate it.
Jude… he’s everything to me. The sooner my brothers realize it, the better.
12:01 am
Strangest day.
Tears fall from my face, hitting the front of my dress. I know from experience that there is no washing blood out of clothes, so this dress is ruined. Even though it’s my favorite dress, I can’t even be bothered to care. I’m hurting because of what my brothers did.
Will Jude hate me now? I wouldn’t even blame him if he did. I mean, what my brothers did was completely inexcusable. It was awful.
When I hear footsteps, I think it’s Brody or Kolton looking for me, and they are the last people I want to see or talk to right now. But then I hear my name being called, and I know it’s not them.
“Everleigh.”
I look up and see Henry, one of my teachers that I met on my tour of the school. He comes to stand in front of me, a frown on his face.
I’m sure I’m a sight to behold. I’ve been crying for a little bit now. My face has blood smeared on it.
“Are you okay?” he asks.
I nod my head, then shake it. I actually don’t think I am okay. Everything is all messed up right now. This isn’t how meeting my mate is supposed to go. And even though I’ve touched Jude, and I’ve kissed him, I still can’t help the butterflies that appear now that Henry is near. There is something wrong with me. I’m broken or something. I shouldn’t feel this way about a guy who isn’t my mate.
I know exactly what it means to meet your mate. I learned about it in high school. My teacher told us about how she met her mate. She was dating this guy for over one hundred years when she met her mate. And when they met, she said every feeling she had for the other guy vanished and her mate became her life. So how is it she got over her boyfriend instantly, but I can’t even get over a crush?
Well, crushes, I suppose. Because I still have feelings for Asa too. It’s a huge mess.
“Everleigh.” I hear another voice, and I look around Henry to see Asa standing there.
Both of my crushes in one place.
Excellent.
My heart races fast as I look between the two.
I can’t even bring myself to consider the fact that I am betraying Jude by being attracted to these two men. But I will hide my feelings and keep them to myself. This is my burden alone to bear.
I tuck a piece of hair behind my ear, realizing just how horrible I look right now, but also not caring. “Asa, hey.”
“You know Asa?” Henry tilts his head to the side and looks at me, then Asa.
“This is Everleigh,” Asa says.
Henry’s mouth falls open. “Wait. Everleigh Ingram is your Everleigh?”
His Everleigh?
Why do I get the feeling that Asa has talked to Henry about me? And why does knowing that make my heart race faster?
I look back and forth between Henry and Asa, trying to figure out what is going on.
Asa turns to me. “Why are you crying? Did somebody hurt you?”
I bite my lip, shaking my head. “Just Brody and Kolton being overbearing assholes.” I leave out the part of Jude still, even though I shouldn’t. I should tell Asa and Henry both that I have a mate. Maybe if I did, my feelings for them would go away. But I can’t bring myself to do it.
“What did they do?” Asa folds his arms across his chest.
Yikes. I don’t want to answer that question.
My face grows warm. “They, uh… punched this guy.”
“What guy?” Asa and Henry both ask the question at the same time.
“Everleigh.” I hear Jude’s voice, so I turn and see him run into the room. The second I see him, I see his black eye, and my heart breaks. My brother did this to him. And, yeah, it’ll b
e healed before the night is even over, but it probably hurts a lot right now.
I walk toward him and he meets me halfway.
“Are you okay?” he asks, rubbing at the now dried blood on my cheeks.
My mouth falls open. “Shouldn’t I be asking you that?”
“Who is this?”
Right.
Asa and Henry are definitely still in the room.
This is quite awkward.
“This is Jude.” I turn to face the two of them. “He’s my mate.”
“Your… mate?” Henry rubs the back of his neck, looking completely perplexed by the idea.
Asa cocks his head, shaking it back and forth. “Impossible.”
I shrug, not knowing what to say to them.
“Everleigh, go to your room. I need to talk to Jude,” Asa says, but he’s not looking at me as he says it.
I raise an eyebrow, curious what he could possibly have to talk to Jude about. I turn to Jude, and he nods at me, letting me know it’s okay.
This is strange.
I turn and go to my room. Alone.
Today is the strangest day.
1:57 am
Don’t punch him again.
When I get to my room, I wash all the blood off my face and just lie in bed, staring at my ceiling. I can’t stop thinking about Jude, Henry, and Asa.
How can I feel so strongly about three different guys? It just doesn’t make sense. The more I think about it, the less I understand.
Is it possible to have more than one mate? I mean, I know it is for other supernatural creatures. Dragon shifters frequently share one female, but that’s because there are so few female dragons born. And I know the wolf alpha’s son shares a mate with three other guys, but his mate is a fairy. So that’s extreme circumstances. I also heard about a tiger who has three mates. But never a vampire. It doesn’t seem logical for that to be the answer. There are a very equal amount of girl and guy vampires.
Still, my heart is being pulled in so many directions. My feelings are a complete mess, but I can’t help how I feel. I know that I need to come clean to Jude. He is my mate. He deserves to know that I have strong feelings for two other guys. I would want to know if he felt this way about another girl.
Vampire School (Elite Academy Book 1) Page 3
