“I know,” I whine once again.
“Geez. Do I need to remind you of the things you used to get up to when you were thirteen?” Daniel asks, forcing Rylan’s gaze to focus in on him, curiosity written all over him. “Besides, it’s not like she’s the only Moore sister with a secret boyfriend.”
“Shut it, D-Bag,” I scold. “And no, a recap of my Junior years will not be necessary,” I say in warning.
“Come on,” Rylan says. “You can stalk this kid in the morning. You two need to get back to your dorms before a teacher who’ll actually get you in trouble catches you.”
I stand up on my tippy toes to give him a swift kiss good night. He reaches out and tucks a strand of hair behind my ear before sending me on my way.
“Oh, Daniel,” Rylan calls. “Get Trey out of the girls’ room.”
“Will do,” he responds with a cheesy salute.
Rylan sends me a mischievous wink that has the butterflies returning in my stomach before he turns away and disappears into the darkness.
----------
I wake up early on Sunday morning and head out for a quick run around the oval, making sure I don’t overdo it, due to my new ‘no working out on weekends’ rule. I head back up to my dorm and rush through the quickest shower known to man. I throw my hair up into a bun, put a little lip gloss on, and shoot back out the door.
Moments later, I arrive at Millie’s door. I give a quick knock and wait the agonizingly long seconds before the door is pulled open. Millie’s dorm mate, Lucy, who happens to be Nora’s younger sister, stands before me mid-yawn, hair a mess and pajamas tangled around her body. She groans when she realizes that her visitor is not there for her.
Lucy steps away from the door, leaving it wide open and climbs back into bed. I walk through the room and plonk down on Millie’s bed. “Get up, brat. You’re having breakfast with me.”
Millie groans and pulls the blankets higher up to cover her face. “Go away,” she groans.
“No can do. We have a lot to discuss,” I say, yanking the blanket right off the bed. The cold air rushes her and she pulls her legs up into the fetal position to try and salvage some warmth.
“Fine,” she snaps and gets up, throwing on some clothes, and running a brush through her hair.
I give her a chirpy smile. “I’m so glad you wanted to join me this morning,” I say, looping my arms through hers, guiding her out of the room and down towards the junior cafeteria.
We each grab a tray and fill them right up. I get stuck into my breakfast after my morning run worked up my appetite. Millie nibbles at hers between yawns. “What’s up with you? You’re usually a bigger pig than I am,” I question.
“Oh, well excuse me that I only woke up two minutes ago. I usually need at least an hour before I start eating,” she grumbles into her food.
“Why are you so tired? Did you have a late night?” I ask, feigning interest in my breakfast.
“As a matter of fact, I did,” she states.
“Oh, what did you get up to?”
She pushes the food around her tray, not looking up at me. “Nothing much, just a movie night at a friend’s dorm.”
“Awesome, we had a movie night too. Actually, funny story. The boys came over, so we had a big night planned, you know popcorn, and all. But then Jacinta and Trey got a bit…you know, so Daniel and I left and went for a walk instead.”
“Um…cool,” she says, clearly having no idea why I’m telling her this story.
“Actually, the cool part was we walked all the way down here, to the junior campus and then the funniest thing happened. We saw this girl, you may know her, brown hair, green eyes, she looks a lot like you. Anyway, she was totally sneaking out the window of a boy’s dorm. Crazy.”
Millie’s cheeks turn pink as she stares very intently at her hot chocolate. “Millie,” I say, fixing her with my serious big sister tone, channeling my inner Rylan. “I’m going to give you one chance to come clean.”
She swivels in her chair and faces me with the guiltiest look on her face. “I’m sorry,” she cringes. “I swear, I was going to tell you, but it just kind of happened.”
“What’s his name?”
“Robbie,” she says with a faint smile on her lips.
Dread fills me. “Robbie who?” I ask.
“Robbie Doyle.”
“Robbie Doyle?” I screech. “As in Alex’s little brother? Are you nuts? How long have you been seeing him?” I place my hands on the table in front of me, spreading my fingers out wide. I focus on breathing in and out to avoid the sudden panic attack that’s seconds from being unleashed upon the world.
Millie gives me yet another guilty look. “Three weeks,” she sighs. “I’m sorry, it’s just that I know you wouldn’t approve of Robbie.”
Breathe in. Breathe out. “You don’t know that.”
“I do know that. But, he’s really nice. I promise, he’s nothing like Alex. He’s sweet and caring, and please don’t be mad at me,” she pleads.
“Fine,” I say, reluctantly. “But I need weekly progress updates. And certainly no more dates in his room or making out while you climb out the window. Oh, and I need to meet him,” I say, listing my requirements.
“Okay, okay, anything,” she says, suddenly a lot chirpier as she digs deep into her breakfast.
God save me. “Is that all I need to know? Or do you have more secrets for me to unveil?” I ask, taking a sip of coffee.
“Nope. That’s it. I promise. I’ll never keep a secret from you again. Please forgive me,” she begs.
“Of course, you're forgiven. I just need to know that I can trust you not to keep things from me, otherwise, I’ll start to worry,” I explain, leaning forward and wrapping my arms around her. “But just so you know, you’ve got some explaining to do with Daniel. The poor guy witnessed your little show last night.”
Her face flushes and her eyes widen in embarrassment. “Oh no.”
“Don’t stress, you’ll have bigger problems when he finds out who the guy is and then you’ll have to come clean to Jacinta and Trey. Oh, and not to mention, mom,” I smile.
“Oh, man,” she groans.
“Come on,” I say, getting up and clearing away our breakfast. “It’s about time I let you in on a secret of my own.”
Chapter 14
I push through the door to the shooting range as Millie trails behind me. “What’s this big secret? And what’s it got to do with the shooting range?”
“You’ll see,” I groan as I push through the second door. Hoping I’m doing the right thing.
Millie’s eyes light up as she takes in the room around her. “Woah, do I get to shoot?” she asks.
“Pfft, no,” I scoff. “You’re here to judge a competition.”
“Huh?” she asks, confused.
We walk deeper into the shooting range with Millie’s eyes jumping all over the place as she takes in the room and weapons. We get to the end of the hall and enter into the large clearing space where we find Rylan leaning up against the back wall. If he’s surprised to see Millie with me, he doesn’t show it.
“Hey,” I say, stopping a few feet in front of him with Millie close to my side, looking extremely confused about why I’ve brought her here and why my hunky instructor is here waiting.
He gives me a warm smile then turns his eyes on my sister. “Millie,” he greets a little suspiciously.
“Rylan,” she responds, using the same questioning tone Rylan had used on her.
They each turn to me as apparently; I’m running this show. I turn my eyes on Millie, taking a deep breath, hoping that Rylan is okay with me spilling the beans, though, I know he’s going to support me with whatever decision I make. You know, as long as it’s a smart one. “So, this morning, I kind of bombarded you,” I start when Millie cuts me off with a scoff, clearly thinking ‘bombarded’ was not a strong enough word to describe her morning. I ignore her and continue on with my speech. “I knew you were hiding something and I needed
you to be honest with me, especially when it comes to you starting to date. You promised me that you’d never keep anything from me again and it’s only fair that I do the same for you,” I say.
“Out with it already. The suspense is killing me,” she groans, her eyes flicking between me and Rylan, trying to put the puzzle together.
Butterflies begin to stir in my stomach and I let out a nervous breath. Rylan pushes off the wall and comes to stand behind me, placing his hands on my shoulders for support. I sink into him as his thumbs begin rubbing small circles on my back. “Um, well…” I start, looking at Millie who’s currently studying Rylan’s hands on my shoulders.
A grin spreads over her face and I realize she’s figured it out. “I knew it,” she squeals. “I freaking knew it. God, I’m good,” she laughs, throwing her arms around us.
“Hold on,” I say, grabbing her by the shoulders and pushing her back so I can look her in the eye. “What do you mean you knew it?”
“Well, I didn’t know who,” she grins. “But when Daniel practically threw himself at you a few months ago and you rejected him, I knew it had to be because you liked someone else. It was just a matter of figuring out who that person was,” she lets out a laugh and launches back into my arms. After what seems like forever, she lets me go and studies both of us. “So, really? You’re like a thing?”
“Yes,” Rylan says with a smile in his voice. “For some insane reason, I’ve fallen in love with your sister and I just happen to be lucky enough that she loves me too.”
She scoffs under her breath. “Geez, I think she’s the lucky one.”
Yep. No questions asked, she’s definitely my sister.
Once she’s done gushing about how romantic he is, I remind them of the reason we’re here. “So, are you ready to shoot? Or do you need another few years to practice?” I smirk.
“Woah…retract the claws, kitty,” he laughs.
I grin at him as we make our way down the shooting range and set up beside each other. Rylan shows Millie how to control the targets and we get started on our little competition. Rylan shoots first, and of course, it’s as impressive as ever. Millie hits the button to retrieve the sheet for us to study. Getting a 99% accuracy rate, he turns on me with a smug expression on his handsome face. “Think you can beat that?” he asks.
I look down at the target, then back to him, knowing I’m going to need a high level of concentration to beat that mark, let alone get the same. I turn back to the target and raise my gun.
Rylan comes to stand behind me, watching the target the same way he does during our training sessions. “Nope,” I say, turning on him. “I need to concentrate. Go stand over there,” I say, shooing him away and pointing over to where Millie stands.
He raises both hands in defeat and starts to back up. “Okay, princess. Whatever you need,” he mocks.
“That’s more like it,” I laugh. I turn back on the target and concentrate with everything I have. I raise the gun and stare down the target like it’s the last thing I’ll ever do. I pull the trigger and enjoy the familiar feel of the bullet exploding out from the gun. I watch as if in slow motion as the bullet lodges itself into the center of the target.
I turn on Rylan knowing it’s going to be close. Millie hits the magical button and Rylan walks over to unclip the paper. He brings it over and lays it down next to his. God, this is going to be close.
“Close, but not close enough. 98%,” he confirms. “Looks like this princess needs a little more practice,” he says smugly.
“Damn it,” I groan. “It seems you’re still the best.”
His dark, gold speckled eyes sparkle at me in pleasure as a beautifully wicked grin takes over his handsome face, giving me all sorts of feels. “I’d give you a rematch, but I’d win that too.”
“I’ll beat you one day,” I promise him.
“I look forward to it,” he says, stepping into my personal space and pressing a kiss to my lips.
“Ewwww…I don’t want to see that,” Millie groans from behind us.
We break into laughter as he laces his finger through mine and begins dragging me out of the shooting range. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” he promises, giving me another kiss.
We step out into the fresh air as Rylan pulls the door closed behind us, tapping in the code to set the alarm. He takes off in the direction of the staff housing, leaving me with Millie who’s busting with questions.
Millie and I head off down to the oval where we can talk in private and she asks every question under the sun before demanding a day by day rundown of how we got together.
An hour later, I drop her off, making sure she understands the importance of keeping our relationship on the down-low. I promise Millie that we’ll spend next weekend together if she promises to come clean to Daniel, Trey, and Jacinta about her new relationship, which she reluctantly agrees to.
I take myself back to my dorm, thankful to find it empty, needing some me time after the emotional roller coaster this weekend has taken me on.
I pull out our overflowing beauty kit and get to work pampering myself. I hop in the shower, deciding to start with a body scrub. I wash and condition my hair and make sure my legs are shaved. Hoping out, I wrap my towel around myself and begin rubbing lotion into my exhausted skin.
Moving on with my pampering afternoon, I give myself a facial and follow that up with a Mani/Pedi.
By late afternoon, I’m wrapped in nothing but my silk robe. I feel absolutely amazing, my long purple locks are soft and blown out to perfection, my eyebrows plucked and beautifully arched, and my skin is practically radiant. All I need now is a glass of champagne and a movie.
A knock at the door draws my attention. Most likely the dorm matron doing her weekly inspection. I glance around the room and decide it’s clean enough for a pass before opening the door.
I’m shocked when I find Rylan standing before me with his eyes roaming over my robe, which seems to be gaping in the front, giving him a nice view of my cleavage.
“Wow, I didn’t realize you actually knew where my door was,” I laugh.
He glances up and down the hallway, then steps into my room. “Come on, I’m making you dinner,” he says.
“Really? You cook?” I ask, dumbfounded.
“Yep,” he grins. “Now, let’s go.”
“K, let me get something nice on,” I say stepping towards my closet.
He grabs my hand, stopping me and tugs me back into him as he runs his fingers down the side of my face. “You don’t need to put something special on, I’m sure whatever you’ve got on under your robe is fine.”
“You sure?” I say feigning innocence.
He nods down at me and gives me the briefest of nods. “Okay,” I say, slowly grabbing the tie that holds my robe together and give it a light tug. I keep my eyes trained on his as my robe falls to the ground, pooling at my feet.
His eyes widen at the sight of my naked body before him. He looks down at me with hooded eyes, running his tongue along his bottom lip, making me want to bite it. I step up to him and press my body against his. His arms wrap around me and begin exploring the feel of my naked skin. “You’re going to be the death of me, Bianca Moore,” he warns.
“I tried to tell you that I wanted to put something on,” I say. “But if this is what you want…I mean, we might get a few stares and people would start asking questions.”
He takes a deep breath. “Go put some clothes on before I lose control,” he says, sounding almost like a plea.
“Okay,” I say sweetly and sashay over to my closet, bending down to reach deep in my drawers. I giggle as he groans then quickly get myself dressed, throwing on a summer dress so I don’t ruin our night before it’s begun. “I’m ready,” I say a few minutes later.
He wraps me in his arms once again. “You are the most beautiful woman I have ever met,” he says, pressing a kiss to my lips. “Now, let’s go.”
“How can we just go? There’s got to be millions of teachers a
nd students out there.”
“Usually, yes, but it's Miss. Layton’s birthday and there’s a huge party. Nearly all the faculty are there and apparently, the seniors are having some party on the back oval. Which means, sneaking you into my place is not going to be a problem.”
How on earth does he know about our parties before I do?
“I think you’ve got yourself a date,” I smile.
True to his word, Rylan takes me right across campus with not a soul in sight. He takes me straight through the double doors of the staff housing and right up to his front door. He pulls out a key, unlocks the door and ushers me in with absolutely no sneaking required.
I walk into the little apartment, taking in all the sights. I walk through a modern living room, with the softest looking couch I’ve ever seen and make a note to check that out later. He grabs my hand and tugs me through the room and into the kitchen.
Rylan pulls out a stool from under the counter and demands me to sit. I do as I’m told as I take in the state of the kitchen that surrounds me. “What are you making?” I ask as he begins rifling through his cupboards.
“You’ll see,” he grins, I roll my eyes and send him a playful glare.
“Who taught you how to cook?” I ask curiously.
“Mom,” he responds. I want him to expand, but apparently, that isn’t going to happen.
“Do you see her much?” I ask, hoping this isn’t a touchy topic.
He seems to go somewhere far away when he answers. “Not really. I used to see her more when I was a kid, but when Kaylee left, she kind of did the disappearing act too. She didn’t want much to do with The Guard after that,” he says as he fills up a pot and puts it on the stove.
“Okay,” I say thoughtfully as my heart breaks for him. “What about your dad?”
He gives me a sad smile. “I don’t really know my dad. He left after I was born.”
“Oh,” I say, a little shocked I didn’t know this stuff about him. “I’m sure he’d want to claw his way back in if he knew how amazing you turned out.”
Heart and Revenge: Slayer Academy (Book 2) Page 13
