by Kat Adams
“Really?” He lit up like I’d just given him a pony. I’d humor him and answer one question, so long as it wasn’t—
“What’s a corpsenado?”
That one.
“Um…”
“Is it a tornado made of dead bodies?” He lit up again.
“Pretty much.”
“Cool!”
Yeah, real cool unless you created it to defend yourself from the dark elemental who trapped you in a freakin’ cadaver lab. “Class is about to start, so how about you find your seat.” God, that made me sound so instructor-y.
“Where are you sitting?”
Good question. Where did the TA sit? I caught sight of a chair off in the corner Professor Layden used when students refused to listen, like last year, when a fire elemental had kept setting his neighbor’s shirt on fire just to watch it burn. I really hoped the professor didn’t hold back the pyromaniac.
“Montana?”
I whipped around and grinned as Clay walked into the room, looking every bit as delicious as always. The yellow blazer hung beautifully on his lean shoulders and brightened his expression. He’d trimmed his beard, but not too much, knowing how much I loved his soft whiskers. He did the Bieber flip to send the hair out of his green gaze. He pulled me into his arms and stared at my mouth. “I love those lips.” He sucked my bottom lip between his teeth and playfully bit down.
I took his kiss and licked him from my lips. “What brings you by 3C?”
“We just got back from an extraction in Montana. I brought you a present.” He revealed a rock from behind his back and handed it to me.
“A rock?” I stared at it before swinging my confused gaze to him.
“It’s a piece of the motherland.”
I held it up. “It’s a rock.”
“Exactly. It’s not the rock that makes it home.” He winked, making my insides twist and dance. His comment made me smile. He made me smile. Always. “We can glue some eyes on it and give it a name. How about Rocky?”
“How about you go to class?”
“Yes, dear.” He bowed, winked again, and popped out.
I laughed and shook my head at his crazy antics. When I turned, I stilled at how Trevor stared at me with wide, sad eyes. He looked like I just took his pony away.
“Who was that?” he asked in a small voice.
The kid broke my heart with that heartbroken expression. “A friend.”
“Do you kiss all your friends like that?”
Four friends, in particular. It was none of his business how I greeted any of my friends. “Has anyone ever told you that you ask a lot of questions?”
He nodded. “All the time.”
Students began to trickle in, saving me from another interrogation from this wide-eyed first year. Professor Layden entered the room, the black robes flowing from the brisk pace, and started right in. “Take your seats, everyone. We have a lot to cover in the next two hours.”
I sat off to the side for the first hour, listening to Layden lecture, watching the room’s response. Half dozed off. The other half looked like they struggled to stay awake. I knew moving 3C to the first two hours of the day was a bad idea. If we didn’t do something to liven it up, we’d lose them all.
I stood and raised my hand. “Professor Layden?”
She stopped lecturing and frowned in disapproval over my interruption. “Yes, Katy?”
“Since today is Monday, how about I give them a demonstration on air?”
Her frown deepened. “A demonstration?”
“Sure.” I approached, placing my back to the class and lowering my voice for her ears only. “Trust me on this one. I’ll fill you in after class.”
She stepped to the side, giving me the stage. I faced the students and drew in a deep breath. I only had one shot at this. If I didn’t do something to impress the first years—aside from the whole saving-their-world thing—they’d never see me as the prophecy.
Starting with something small, I called air and created a soft cyclone around me. Some of the students seemed impressed. Most, however, didn’t, so I increased the power in my call. The cyclone grew in size and intensity, lifting my skirt. I killed my call and pulled the skirt down before I showed the entire class the color of my underwear. They all laughed, so I laughed too.
“Oops.” I smiled sheepishly and called air once again, this time keeping the twister above my shoulders. It danced around my head, lifting my hair straight up. The class laughed again as I whipped my head back and forth. “What? Is there something in my hair?”
My element warmed. It enjoyed this as much as I did. “How about we give them something to talk about at lunch?” I asked my element. It responded by breaking into several mini-tornados, dancing from student to student, messing up hair, blowing papers around, and earning some claps when it returned to me. I closed my hands into fists, and the call died.
The class erupted into applause and laughter. Even Professor Layden clapped and nodded her approval. Maybe being a TA wasn’t going to suck after all.
After 3C let out, I hung behind. I didn’t have another class until right before lunch and wanted to ask the professor about the tribunal.
“Great idea on the demonstration.” She used air to tidy up the room, resetting chair desks and sweeping up a few loose sheets of paper. Air was quickly becoming my favorite element due to its versatility and usefulness, especially in many ways outside of a battle. I’d only really used my powers in lessons and to defend myself during attacks. I needed to expand my horizons.
“I’d done demonstrations before,” she went on. “But it can be a challenge to control an element and control a classroom at the same time.”
“That’s why you have me.” We fell silent as I watched her finish cleaning the room, impressed with her control.
When she finished, she turned to me. “Was there anything else?”
“I, uh…” How could I ask her about the tribunal without sounding like I was accusing her of making a mistake? “You see, it’s just…” I sighed, dropping it. God, I was such a coward.
“Are you worried about your training with Spencer?”
That, I had no problem talking about and eagerly changed the subject. “Why does the Council want me training him anyway?”
She frowned. “Katy, he’s not here to learn from you. He’s here to train you. I thought I made that clear. He’s not just your partner. He’s your handler.”
Fuck. My. Life.
5
Since Professor Layden got me out of Elemental History, I had an hour to kill before my Ancient Divination class, a whole hour to dwell on the realization Spencer Dalton had come to Clearwater to continue my training. I didn’t want to go through another year of grueling lessons, of backbreaking mock battles that left me light-headed and cranky. If I wanted to feel like I’d just taken a ride on a roller coaster on crack, I’d hit up Disneyland.
The weather was beautiful—after all, it was still August—so I walked around, taking in the warmth of the sun and admiring how well-groomed they kept the grounds. Not a blade out of place, the lines between the grass and cement paths crisp and clean. The trees had all been trimmed up, their branches high and proud.
As I walked along the path, I dwelled on the fact I had a new handler. Me. The prophecy. The one who took on Alec von Leer and lived to tell the tale. Why’d the Council feel the need to switch handlers on me? I had the four strongest elementals on campus training me. We’d defeated the dark side, for Christ’s sake. Give us a little credit.
But no. Instead, the Council imported a handler. A far-too-gorgeous-for-his-own-good guy with a buttery-rich accent that tickled my ears whenever he talked, which annoyed me. Nothing on me should tickle, tingle, or melt at the sight of the blue-eyed devil.
“Katy!” Bryan and Rob both waved as they approached. Talk about too gorgeous for his own good. Their own good. They looked like Christmas, Bryan in his green blazer, Rob in red, both presents I wanted to unwrap. I smiled, thr
illed to see them since I hadn’t seen them much now that school had started. Bryan gave me a gentle yet deep kiss in greeting, one that curled my toes and left me longing for more.
Rob took me into his arms, spun me around, and kissed me hard, scratching me with his five o’clock scruff and transferring his fire to me through our connection. My skin hummed and heated, and my core liquified.
“Wow,” I said when he finally let me up for air. “That was some greeting, guys.”
“We missed you, Reed.” When Rob grinned, his dark gaze broke into a wicked glimmer. He shrugged out of his blazer and slung it over his shoulder. I loved the way the uniform looked on him, the white shirt a stark contrast to his golden skin. And now parts of me really tingled.
Bryan took my hand. Those hazel eyes danced as they always did when he looked at me. He kept his blazer on despite the heat and looked incredible the way it formed to his large frame. This was an assault on my senses. “How was your first day as a TA?”
“I didn’t die and didn’t have to kill anyone, and no students went dark and tried to trap me in the ruins, so I call that a win.”
“That’s not funny, Katy.” He still hadn’t gotten over how close we all came to dying last year.
“Too soon?”
“Yeah.”
“Clay would have laughed.”
“That’s because Clay thinks everything is a joke.” He said it like it was a bad thing.
“Only when something is really, really funny. Like your face.” Clay literally popped in a foot in front of me and took advantage of my surprise by pulling me to him and slanting his lips over mine, dipping me to really kiss me. His hair fell forward, brushing my forehead, while his beard tickled my face. He straightened us and waggled his eyebrows. “Hi.”
“Hi.” I swept my hair behind my ear and nodded at his disheveled clothes. His shirt was partially untucked and sporting a coffee stain that wasn’t there this morning when he’d brought me a rock, his yellow blazer sporting a grass stain, and the knees of his gray slacks dark with dirt. “What happened to you?”
“One of the new air elementals got himself stuck in a tree. I had to help him out.”
“Why didn’t you use your element?”
“He was freaking out, so I climbed the tree.” He examined the stain on the elbow of his blazer. “Took me a couple tries. Climbing trees isn’t as easy as it looks. Also, the ground is really, really hard when you hit it.”
“So noted.” I glanced around. My guys traveled in twos. “Where’s Leo?”
“He’ll be along. We’ve got to get him over his aversion to teleporting. It takes him forever to get anywhere.”
“What’s so wrong with walking instead of teleporting?” Bryan asked.
Clay shrugged. “Nothing, if you don’t mind spending half your life just getting from point A to point B. I’d rather jump from A to B and still have time for C and D.”
“It’s the journey,” Bryan argued. “Not the destination.”
“Thank you, Yoda.” He removed the blazer and draped it over his arm. “What are we all doing outside instead of in class? Are we skipping?” He brought up his hand when Bryan took a breath to answer. “Never mind. Bry wouldn’t be caught dead skipping a class.”
“Blow me.”
“Okay.” Clay blasted him with air. We all laughed, even Bryan. “Gotta choose your words better, dude. Now, what are you all really doing out here?”
“I don’t have another class until primary.” Rob switched his blazer to the other shoulder. “How about you?”
“Me? I’m totally skipping.” He flashed a brilliant grin that lit up my world.
“It’s the first day,” Bryan pointed out, of course lecturing on breaking a rule.
“Yep.” He popped his lips, overemphasizing the word. “I like to set the right expectation since I don’t plan to be in class that much.”
“Which class is it?” I asked.
“Elemental History, which, if I recall when I read your schedule, you were also supposed to be in, Montana.”
“Professor Layden got me out of it if I agreed to partner with Spencer. Not that I had the choice. She would have pulled the Council card if I refused.”
Rob stiffened and looked ready to set something on fire. His eyes darkened along with his expression as he worked his jaw. “That’s what we wanted to talk to you about.” He nodded at Bryan. He then regarded Clay. “I’m guessing you didn’t say anything.”
“About you losing your shit when you heard our girl had to partner with the British heartthrob? I hadn’t gotten around to it.”
Rob glared, which Clay blew off. As always.
“Trust me,” I said and reached for Rob. “I’m not exactly thrilled about it.”
“I don’t understand why they brought him here. We’re your partners.”
“Yeah, we are.” Clay waggled his eyebrows, something he did whenever he hinted at anything sexual in nature. Which, with him, was just about every conversation. “In every sense of the word.”
“What’d I miss?” Leo asked as he joined the group. Like Bryan, Leo wore his full uniform, the blue blazer that matched his brilliant gaze loose on his trim shoulders. His blond curls went wild as he combed his fingers through them to pull them off his face.
“Clay making another sex reference,” Rob grumbled.
“Sorry I missed that.” He kissed me softly, gently caressing my mouth with his. “Hey, babe.”
“Hey.”
We all took a seat under a tree to stay out of the direct sun. It was already getting warm enough to cause sweat stains. I didn’t need to speed up the process. Wanting to relax, I debated which guy to lean up against. Rob would make me too hot. Clay wouldn’t let me relax as he teased. Leo would want to touch me, which in turn would make me want to touch him right back.
I removed my sweater and tossed it to the ground, creating a barrier between my white shirt and the grass, scooted to Bryan, and straightened on the grass, resting my head on his thigh. He stroked my hair, sending chills across my scalp. I tucked my skirt under me as best I could. There wasn’t much material to tuck. “I don’t need a new partner. I’ve got you guys.”
“Yeah, you do.” Clay’s tone was heated, thick with intent. No hidden meaning there.
“Enough,” Rob barked, taking charge of the conversation. My fire elemental was all about control, which I loved about him. “Reed, how exactly did the Council want you partnering with this guy?”
I rolled my head to look at him, focusing in on the uncertainty in his ever-darkening gaze. Something about me partnering with the new guy had Rob upset. He wasn’t alone. That same suspicion brewed in each of the guys’ gazes. I knew the feeling. “He’s here to continue my training. Spencer Dalton is my new handler. Surprise.”
“Hell no,” Rob growled.
Bryan said at the same time, “No way.”
“You don’t need him,” Leo protested.
“I don’t think it’s all that bad,” Clay said, shocking us all and earning glares from the rest of the guys. “Think about it. The five of us are the strongest callers at the school and barely made it out of those ruins alive.” He darted a quick look Rob’s way. “Some of us were closer to death than others.”
Rob nodded and said nothing. No words were needed. We all knew how lucky we were to be alive, especially Rob, who had a little help from Cressida.
“Montana is a freakin’ quint and nearly died fulfilling the prophecy. What if we’re not so lucky next time? Having another powerful elemental—a quad—on our side isn’t a bad thing. I say we give the guy a chance. Maybe he’ll teach her something we couldn’t.”
Bryan made a face. “All that teleporting scrambled your brain.”
“I don’t like Reed working with any other handlers,” Rob added. “I’m going to talk to Dean Carter.”
“Maybe we should ask our girl what she wants.” Clay picked at the grass and tossed it into the air, using his element to keep it dancing.
“I don’t even want to have coffee with this guy,” I fired back. “But Clay’s right. You guys taught me how to control my powers and counterattacks. Maybe Spencer can teach me more.”
Speaking of the shaggy-haired, blue-eyed devil, Spencer walked out of Ventus in our house colors, spotted me sitting with the guys, and seemed to deflate before changing direction.
Time to turn off my bitch switch.
As much as I didn’t want to play nice with him and still didn’t know why, I swallowed my pride and called out, “Hey, Spencer!”
He stopped and turned, tilting his head at my beckoning, which was totally understandable. We didn’t exactly part on the best of terms at breakfast. I waved him over and refused to watch him approach, not trusting my reaction. If the guys caught on to so much as a hint that I liked anything about him, there’d be hell to pay.
And, for the record, I didn’t like anything about him. Just to be clear.
“Good morning?” It came out as a question, and a cautious one at that. He kept a careful distance as he glanced around the group.
I stood, brushing the grass from my backside. The guys did the same. “Spencer, I want you to meet the quad squad.”
Rob stepped forward first, his hand extended, his shoulders squared, his chest clearly puffed. “Rob Emmett, fire. I’m the squad leader.” They shook hands. Hard. Rob narrowed his eyes into a glare as he continued to grip Spencer’s hand.
The corners of his mouth tipped up. “Pleasure.”
“Clay Williams, air.” When they shook, it was friendly. At first. But then Clay dropped his smile and eyed Spencer, slowly removing his hand and stepping back, his focus never leaving the new guy.
What was that all about?
“Leo Jackson, water.” He stepped forward and shook Spencer’s hand. No battle for dominance. No weird glare. At least one of my guys had some manners.
“Bryan Gunderson, earth.” Bryan shook his hand. When Spencer tried to take his back, Bryan kept it, drawing Spencer’s gaze. He set his square jaw and kept his spine ramrod straight. With his barrel chest and broad shoulders, he dwarfed Spencer’s lean frame. “We’re her boyfriends.”
