“Not that well acquainted,” Raven corrected, meeting Orson’s eyes—a blue so dark it was almost black—with a level gaze. She’d once been captivated by those alluring eyes. A silly girl reduced to giggles and blushing. She knew better now.
“Lovely Raven,” Orson said, his hand rising to briefly caress her cheek. Raven considered ripping that hand right off his arm, but remembered her instructions to Daisy about not making a scene. “If you don’t feel we know each other well enough,” he purred, “we’ll have to change that.”
Raven looked to see how her mother would react to that one, but Zalea seemed charmed. Seriously? Hadn’t she noticed what a slimy character Orson had turned out to be?
“Still playing with pretty dresses, I see,” Orson said. His eyes lingered on Raven’s form, and for some reason her mind flashed back to that moment when Flint had looked at her earlier. It struck her how entirely different that moment had been from this one. Orson’s suggestive gaze made her skin crawl, while Flint’s quickly averted eyes and stumbling, awkward compliment of her dress had left her smiling.
“Yes, and she’s become quite good at dress casting,” Zalea answered for her with a tinkling, high-pitched laugh that grated at Raven’s nerves. “We expect her to win the internship at the House of Cascata. I’m sure fine fae all over the world will be wearing Raven creations one day.”
“I’m sure they will,” Orson said, and as her mother turned away to greet someone else, he added in a low tone, “and tearing them off one another in the heat of passion.”
With a sweet smile, Raven said, “You’re disgusting.”
Still watching her with those hypnotizing eyes, he chuckled. “You know you love it.”
“I’d love nothing more right now than to get away from you.”
“Well, I’ll let you go soon enough. But first, who’s the pup who followed you in here?” k'12
“You’ll need to be more specific if you’d like me to have even the vaguest idea what you’re talking about.”
“Is he the secret bodyguard all your Delph classmates have been whispering about since the explosion that almost blew your pretty head off? If so, he isn’t doing a very good job at blending in.”
Raven followed Orson’s gaze to where Flint was standing near a sculpture, hands clasped behind his back, looking awkward. He met Raven’s eyes briefly before looking away. “He’s a friend,” Raven said. “I don’t need a bodyguard, Orson. I can take care of myself.” And how she wished that were true right now.
“For a friend, he isn’t being particularly friendly. And what is he wearing? An antique suit?”
“You wouldn’t know classic fashion if it wrapped itself around your neck and started strangling you.”
Orson laughed. “Classic. That’s one way of putting it.”
“That’s the professionals’ way of putting it,” Raven snapped, noticing a few unintentional sparks of angry magic escaping her tongue. “It isn’t his fault you can’t tell the difference between a well-made suit and the piece of garbage you’re wearing. Probably put together by a bunch of gob—”
“Opaline! Woody! Where have you two been hiding?” Orson waved across the crowd at two of his friends. “You’ll have to excuse me, Raven darling,” Orson said to her. “I have better company to attend to. Oh, and there’s Daisy.” He gave Raven a wicked grin. “She and I certainly have some catching up to do, preferably in a private room upstairs if all our previous interactions are anything to go by.”
Raven’s hand clenched around her glass. She considered throwing its contents in Orson’s face, but he was already moving swiftly away. Forcing herself to take a deep breath and remember that Orson only said these kinds of things to get her worked up, she looked around for a distraction—and saw Daisy. Daisy stood on the far side of the room with her older sister and a few other friends, but her eyes were on Raven. She looked away quickly, her frown vanishing as she forced a not-so-natural smile onto her face.
Stupid Orson, Raven thought. Messing with her friendship with Daisy all over again. She set her drink down on a passing tray and began moving through the crowd toward her friend, but Daisy looped her arm through her sister’s and headed into the next room where more auction items lined the walls.
Raven slowed to a halt. The desire to abandon this party and hide herself amongst a mound of fabric and idea-filled notebooks overwhelmed her. But she couldn’t leave. It would upset her mother, and that might end with Raven locked inside her own house after all. Her gaze landed on Flint, still looking far too awkward. He caught her eye and smiled. Spirits lifting, Raven pushed through the crowd toward him. “Do you know how to dance?” she asked when she reached his side.
His eyebrows jumped the tiniest bit. “Dance? I think the last time I danced—this kind of dancing—was at my graduation ball. But I can probably remember most of the steps.”
“Do you want to dance with me?”
“Oh.” His surprise was followed by a wide grin. “I do actually, but I think ‘don’t dance with anyone’ was on the long list of instructions your father gave me in the carriage.”
“True, but one of the other instructions was to remain inconspicuous. And I’m sorry—” she stepped a little closer, trying to keep the teasing tone from her voice “—but you haven’t exactly succeeded at that so far.”
“I was told not to be distracted by speaking to anyone, so I can’t help but look a little bit like an idiot just standing here.”
“Oh, I didn’t say you were conspicuous because you look like an idiot. Quite the opposite. It’s conspicuous for a man who looks so dashing to be standing all on his own. I’m surprised half the ladies in this room haven’t come flocking to introduce themselves to you.” Goodness, was she flirting? She almost giggled as she realized she was. “Anyway,” she hurried on as her skin heated, “I’m glad they didn’t because that would have made your job more difficult. But since I’m the one you’re supposed to be watching, it should be fine for you to dance with me.”
Flint looked down, his smile fading just a little. “I’d rather not embarrass you or your parents.”
“Oh.” Raven nodded, annoyed that she felt so disappointed.
“But,” he added quickly, “you could explain to me what all this food is. I don’t recognize half of it, and I’m not sure I should be eating things I can’t name.”
Raven laughed. “To be honest, I can’t name half these food items either. I’ve probably tasted everything at some point or another, because clearly I don’t have the same concerns you have about eating food I don’t recognize, but that doesn’t mean I know what any of it is.”
“Well, if you’ve survived it all, it can’t be that bad.”
“Oh, no, some of it’s horrible. Those little balls over there with the tiny black spikes are disgusting.” She pointed to a dish on the table behind Flint, then leaned closer and whispered, “They look like they would poke the inside of your mouth, but they’re actually slimy and squishy and taste like feet.”
Flint whispered back, “Should I ask how you know what feet taste like?”
She laughed. “Probably not.”
They passed the remainder of the evening this way, discussing the food, the people, the outfits, and the artworks. Zalea caught Raven’s eye at one point, gave a brief but unhappy shake of her head and a pointed glare in Flint’s direction. Her message was clear, but Raven chose to ignore it. If her parents insisted on this bodyguard idea, then she would spend as much time with that bodyguard as she wanted.
Chapter Eight
“Have you seen the new entrance?” Poe asked Raven the following morning as he leaned against her desk. Apparently he didn’t have much of his own work to get on with. “And the two guardians stationed out there?”
“Yes. How do you think I got inside the building this morning?”
“Well I don’t know,” he said defensively. “Maybe you used the back entrance.”
Raven sighed. “Sorry. I’m know I’m being snappish
. I just have so much to get done in the next few days.” She’d almost finished fashioning the metal snake for the back of her dress. That was the easy part, though. The spells she’d need to apply to it would take more time. She paged through her notes, looking for the enchantments she’d planned to add to the snake eyes.
“Hey, is Cecilia taking us today?” Poe asked. “That wasn’t on the class schedule.”
Raven looked up as Cecilia hurried in and headed straight for her desk, looking slightly flustered. “Hey there, guys,” she said to them.
“Cecilia, you’re the best.” Poe gave her a sideways hug. “Have you come to rescue us from Mundy? He isn’t nearly as good as you are at all this stuff.”
“Shh, don’t say things like that,” Cecilia chided while clearly trying to keep her smile hidden. “Mundy is a very capable teacher. And perhaps you’d be better at this ‘stuff,’ Poe, if you were working on it at your own desk instead of lounging around distracting Raven.”
Raven laughed, while Poe pretended to be deeply wounded. “Fine,” he grumbled as he walked away. “You’re probably right.”
“Sorry I can’t stay long,” Cecilia said to Raven. “I just wanted to tell you something quickly. I was thinking that perhaps you should bring the sprite-wing dress back to college. I know you can’t use it for the final show, but if we fix it up and make sure it’s working properly, I have a few events in mind that it might be perfect for.”
“Really?” Raven sat forward. “That would be wonderful.”
“Great. I’ll tell you more about it another day when I’m in less of a rush.”
“Thanks, Cecilia,” Raven called after her as she hastened from the room. Bella, sitting at her desk near the front, looked over her shoulder and caught Raven’s eye. Her dirty look told Raven exactly what she was thinking: the favored Raven Rosewood. Raven ignored Bella and turned back to her work, trying not to let the other girl’s reaction bother her.
After the final tinkling of the bell at the end of the day, Raven bundled up all the pieces of her dress into her bag and left the classroom quickly. She strode along the hallways to the other side of the college where the design students spent most of their time. Daisy hadn’t spoken to her since they’d spotted Orson at the fundraiser last night. She’d left with her sister after the auction winners were announced and hadn’t replied to the messages Raven sent her this morning.
“Hey, Daisy, wait,” Raven shouted as she spotted her friend coming out of one of the studios.
Daisy looked back with a startled expression. Raven half expected her to bolt, but she stayed where she was, giving Raven a small wave and a smile.
“Are you upset with me?” Raven asked when she reached her friend.
“What? No, of course not.”
“You didn’t look very happy last night after I was forced into conversation with Orson.”
“I wasn’t upset with you. Seeing him upset me.” She folded her arms over her chest. “It shouldn’t, because I’m not supposed to care about him at all, but he just makes me so angry.”
“Yeah. Me too.” Raven played with the strap of her bag. “So why did you avoid me all of last night and ignore my messages this morning if he’s the one you’re upset with?”
Daisy opened her mouth, probably to deny she’d been ignoring anything, then sighed. Her shoulders slumped. “Look, it’s just weird. It’s the first time we’ve seen him since, you know … everything blew up with us.”
“But I thought you and I were past all that. He was the one at fault.”
“I know. I’m … I’m sorry.” Abruptly, Daisy wrapped her arms around Raven. “Let’s not be awkward, okay?”
Raven hugged her back. “Agreed. Let’s not be awkward.”
They walked together to the brand new college entrance. Raven could sense a kind of prickle upon her skin as she passed through the doorway, a hint of the additional magic that had been added to the college in the past few days. She wasn’t sure exactly what it was supposed to prevent or detect, or how it worked, but she sincerely hoped it would prevent scenarios like the one she’d witnessed on Friday night.
She and Daisy walked onto the steps—and there was Orson Willowstack, lounging against one of the pillars and writing on his amber. He looked up, a smug grin appearing on his face at the sight of them. He slipped the amber and his stylus into an inner pocket of his jacket.
“What are you doing here?” Raven asked as Daisy tensed beside her.
“Waiting for someone else, actually, but it’s always a lovely surprise to see two of my favorite ladies together.”
“Hah.” Raven let out a very unladylike snort. “You are so full of—”
“Which unlucky girl has caught your attention this time?” Daisy asked.
Orson’s expression grew downcast. “Daisy, I find that very hurtful. I thought we had something special.”
The sound that escaped Daisy’s throat was almost a growl. “I’ll give you something to hurt about.” She lunged forward, her hands rising to his neck, but Raven caught her and pulled her back.
Orson chuckled. “Thank you, Raven, for looking out for—”
“Shut up,” Raven snapped.
“Raven?”
Relief cooled the heat coursing through her body at the sound of Flint’s voice. Looking down, she found him at the bottom of the steps. She would have smiled if not for the expression of concern on his face.
“Ah, look at that,” Orson said. “It’s your babysitter, Raven. Here to pick you up after school.”
Raven’s anger returned in an instant, rippling across her body in waves of hot and cold and escaping her right hand in an uncontrolled sizzle of magic. Her attention snapped back to Orson. But of the many insults flying through her mind, not one managed to make its way to her tongue before Flint reached her side.
“Everything okay here?” he asked. Raven was pleased to note how much smaller and weedier Orson looked next to her muscular, Guild-trained ‘babysitter.’
“Of course,” Orson said as he pulled himself up to his full and unimpressive height. “We’re having a marvelous time. Well,” he added with a roll of his eyes, “we were until Raven’s chaperone showed up.” He leaned closer and said in a mock whisper, “You do know you’re ruining all her fun, right? She hates that you’re following her everywhere. Why don’t you do us all a favor and get lost? I’m sure Raven won’t tell her parents.”
Raven was so appalled at Orson’s blatant lies that nothing but a strangled stutter managed to make its way out of her mouth. Flint, on the other hand, remained composed. He folded his arms across his chest and said, “Sounds like a good idea. I’m not quite sure how to get lost, though. Perhaps you’d like to show me.” His fists clenched tighter against his chest.
“Perhaps I would,” Orson said. He rolled his shoulders. “How about you get us started, though.”
Flint remained utterly still. “I would, but then I’d have to finish. And I don’t think you want me to finish you, Mr. … what’s your name again?”
“I’m not listening to this anymore,” Daisy muttered, turning to stomp down the stairs.
“Ooh, your words are terrifying,” Orson said to Flint. He laughed and ran his hands up and down his arms as he pretended to shiver.
Without a word, Raven pulled Flint away. His arms fell to his sides as the two of them descended the stairs, neither of them responding to Orson’s taunting words: “And there you go, letting the lady boss you around. That’s no way for a man to live.”
Raven marched right out of the college gates and stopped at the nearest tree. Her hand shook as she scribbled across its bark and watched a dark space open up in front of her. She picked one destination from among many in her mind and focused fully on it as she tugged Flint forward into the darkness.
On the other side of the faerie paths, they walked onto the roof of a tall building. It was night, but the winking lights that brightened the sky came from the surrounding skyscrapers, not the stars, and there w
as a distinct lack of magic in the air. Raven dropped her bag and began pacing, blinking away tears of fury. “You know that wasn’t true, right?”
“Yes, don’t worry about it.”
“I mean, of course I don’t mind you following me. And it’s not as though you’re actually following me. You’re usually next to me whenever we go anywhere.”
“Raven—”
“And I’d far rather hang out with you than with someone like him. You don’t ruin my fun. I actually have fun when I’m with—”
“Raven, stop.” Flint caught her shoulders and brought her to a halt. “You don’t have to explain anything. I didn’t believe a word he said.”
She heaved out a deep breath. “Okay. Good.”
Flint lowered his hands and stepped back. “He’s the one you were speaking to last night at the fundraiser.”
“Yes.”
“The one your mother believes is a good match for you.”
Raven sighed and looked past Flint to the buildings beyond. “She doesn’t know what he’s really like.”
After a pause, Flint asked, “What happened between you two?”
Raven walked to the railing at the edge of the roof and leaned against it. “The better question would probably be, ‘What happened between Orson and every other girl he ever met?’”
“Ah. I see.” Flint joined her at the railing.
“He can be very charming when he wants to be, and I fell for that. He was quite the eligible young bachelor—still is, I guess—and everyone had been talking about the girl he had his eye on. Some French heiress. But then he began paying attention to me, and … I liked it.” Raven looked down and traced patterns across the metal railing with her forefinger. “I couldn’t believe I was lucky enough to have caught his attention. I was dreaming about our happily ever after before he even kissed me. I was so thrilled when that kiss eventually came, but then he wanted it to remain a secret. He didn’t want anyone to know about us, for reasons he would never properly explain, and he wanted me to meet him in hotel rooms, which I wasn’t all that comfortable with. So after a couple of weeks of discovering that reality wasn’t matching up to my dreams, I told Daisy what was going on. And guess what?” Raven smacked her hand down on the railing. “Turned out Daisy and Orson had been seeing each other in secret too—for months.”
Raven (A Creepy Hollow Story Book 2) Page 6
