by G. K. DeRosa
The look of horror on Cinder’s face made me want to crawl into a hole and hide. She snapped her mouth shut and trained her expression back to normal as she pretended to adjust one of her stirrups.
“Well, say something!” I barked. “It’s weird, right? Des told me vampires do it all the time. It’s like part of their foreplay, but I’m a witch or half-warlock or whatever. I shouldn’t be into that, right?”
“I don’t know…”
“Maybe it’s my demon part. Maybe that’s why I like it.” Man, how the heck did we end up on this topic? “Forget I ever said anything. Anyway, I’m ending it with him. He’s a nice guy, and I don’t want to lead him on.”
“Who are you leading on now, human?” Apollo trotted up alongside us, and Drake’s lips curved into a smile. I’d been so caught up in the conversation, I hadn’t even heard them coming.
“No one,” I hissed. “And didn’t anyone ever tell you that eavesdropping is rude?”
“You know so little about the Fae royal court it’s quite remarkable.”
I rolled my eyes at him and urged Zeus forward.
“You better get your head in the game, human. I’m looking forward to this rematch.”
“Don’t worry about me, ice prince. I’ve been waiting for this for months,” I called over my shoulder as Zeus unfolded his wings, and we took off.
Cinder and I headed toward the starting line as the rest of our classmates filled the arena. The unipegs pranced around, showing off their magnificent rainbow-colored wings. Raine and Aeria entertained the audience with a choreographed unipeg dance they must have been practicing for months. The Fae cheered and applauded for the girls. There was nothing the royals liked more than a spectacle. I recognized King Elrian in the front row, flanked by a small army of Fae soldiers in pale blue uniforms.
He waved when I passed, and a light blush flushed my cheeks as I smiled back. A few rows behind him sat Kimmie-Jayne and Fenix. My brother-in-law stood up and waved his big hands, cheering, as Cinder and I flew by. I hadn’t expected to see them again so soon, but I couldn’t deny the surge of happiness that filled my chest.
Behind them sat Cillian and Ryder, both dressed in fancy dark suits. The headmaster leaned forward and whispered something to Kimmie-Jayne bringing a big smile to her face. Ryder’s expression was unreadable as his gaze flickered between the two. When his eyes lifted to mine, I swiveled my head in the opposite direction. I’d been so good lately. The last thing I needed was for him to catch me ogling.
“You better beat Drake today,” said Cinder, pulling my attention back to the race. “Those stuck up Fae need to be taken down a notch.”
I laughed, never seeing this cutthroat side of my friend before. “I’ll do my best.” I patted Zeus’s neck and whispered. “It’s up to you, buddy. What do you say we show Apollo and Drake what we’re made of?”
He tossed his head from side to side, and his ears perked up.
I took that as a yes.
The neon-red timer appeared over the starting line, and we all took our places. Ninety seconds. Mrs. Thornberry appeared on the other side of the red line, a toothy smile covering her face and black avian wings extending from her back. “Everyone ready? Three laps around the arena and the winner gets bragging rights until next semester.”
A series of whoops rang out, and I was surprised to hear it coming from my lips as well.
Drake and Apollo sidled in beside us, and Zeus’s ears pinned straight back.
The prince leaned over and whispered, “Good luck, human. I hope all that practicing will pay off.”
“I’m sure it will.” I pivoted to face the wide-open raceway as the final seconds ticked down. Ten, nine, eight… Zeus’s hooves pawed at the air, his eyes fixed straight ahead.
The blast of the starting bell sent my heart leaping up my throat. Luckily, Zeus took charge of the situation, not even waiting for my command. His magnificent wings unfolded and with a powerful thrust, we were off.
We sprinted forward, leaving Cinder and Bella behind within a few strides. I hunkered down, staying low on Zeus’s neck to reduce the wind sheer. It was an absolutely perfect day. The sun streamed down on my shoulders and the typical frosty air was nowhere to be found. The faeries must have used their magic to manipulate the weather, and I was beyond thankful.
We raced around the track, passing unipeg after unipeg. I whizzed by Raine, then Aeria, and even Zephyr. Our newest squad member excelled at pretty much everything. And from the little that I’d interacted with him so far, he seemed like a decent guy. He just wasn’t Ash, and I wasn’t ready to replace him yet.
Only Drake and Apollo’s dapple-gray haunches loomed a few lengths in front of us now. I urged Zeus on with my heels and then with magic. “Velocem!”
As we rounded the second lap, my unipeg surged forward, momentarily passing Drake. I waved over my shoulder as Apollo was left behind in Zeus’s winged-tracks. The ice prince’s lips moved, but I was too far ahead of him to make out his words.
Blonde hair whipped across my face as we soared through the air, Zeus’s powerful wings propelling us faster than ever before. From the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse at the stands as we headed into the last lap. Nearly the entire audience was on their feet, and some were actually cheering for me.
The shouts almost drowned out the thunderous flapping of Apollo’s approaching wings. I swung my head around as Drake’s unipeg sprinted forward, his head nearly in line with Zeus’s. Crap!
“You didn’t think it was going to be that easy, did you?” Drake shouted over the mad flutter of massive wings.
I threw him a narrowed glare before focusing ahead. There was no way I was getting distracted this time.
The floating finish line loomed only a few lengths away, the colorful banner representing the seven houses flapping in the wind. I needed to have a talk with Cillian about adding in human representation. As soon as I won this race. “Velocem,” I hissed at Zeus, plunging my heels into his sides.
The two unipegs soared over the last few yards nose-to-nose as the roar of the crowd pounded across my eardrums. “Come on! Come on!” I pleaded. Zeus lunged forward at the last second, but Apollo was right there too. We zipped over the finish line and the final buzzer vibrated the air, nearly drowning out the mad cheers from the audience.
Who won? It had been so close I couldn’t tell.
Zeus slowed, the frenetic flapping of his wings decelerating as he panted, his black nostrils flaring. The hovering field appeared at the end of the arena, and I slowed him to a trot. Drake was up ahead walking Apollo in a big circle.
“Luna, oh my gods, you won!” Cinder raced up on Bella, a huge smile lighting up her face.
“I did?”
“Look!” She pointed to the sky where a gigantic screen had materialized. Zeus’s onyx nose was the highlight of the clip, crossing the finish line about an inch before Apollo’s.
“Holy unipegs, I did!” I slid off Zeus at the same time as Cinder dismounted, and she wrapped me in a huge hug. A second later, the crowd was spilling from the stands and some were headed right for me.
Dozens of my classmates surrounded us, congratulating me, slapping me high fives and doing all the other things I never in a million years thought could happen to me.
A few of the Fae high lords and ladies eyed me suspiciously as they sauntered by. No doubt in search of their prince. Drake. A tiny part of me felt bad for him. Keeping up the Fae winning streak had to be a lot of pressure, especially when practically all of Winter Court had shown up for the event.
As if my thoughts had summoned him, a swell of icy breath tingled the back of my neck. Spinning around, I found myself only inches away from pulsating lilac irises. “Drake, I’m—”
His frosty lips cut me off as they smothered my words and all my senses. For a second, I froze, so completely caught off guard by the kiss. By the time my brain synapses started firing again, he’d released his hold over my mouth. I blinked, partly convinced I’d ima
gined the whole thing, but the sting of my lips confirmed my hallucination.
“Congratulations, Luna,” he said, wrapping his arm around my shoulders and grinning at the circle of Fae who’d formed around us. “I’m so proud of you, darling.”
Darling? “What the hell are you doing?” I hissed through clenched teeth.
The high lords and ladies began whispering, knowing smiles splitting their heavily made up faces.
I tried to wriggle out of Drake’s embrace, but his hold only tightened. “Let go of me.”
“Keep still, will you?” he whispered in my ear.
“Not until you tell me what the hell you think you’re doing.”
Fenix and Kimmie-Jayne emerged from the crowd, and my half-sister’s embrace forced Drake to finally release me. As she congratulated me over and over again, I glared at the ice prince over her shoulder. What game was he playing at now?
Cinder appeared by my side, her bright eyes wide as her gaze bounced between Drake and me. She lifted an arched brow, and I shrugged. I was as confused, if not more so, than she was.
A dark shadow parted the crowd, and I didn’t need to look up to know who was approaching. Every nerve ending stood at attention at his proximity. Before Ryder even looked at me, he speared Drake with a look so deadly ice crystallized through my veins.
Drake didn’t even flinch. He kept his gaze fixed on the ring of adoring Fae fans. He was going on about how he’d been mentoring me for weeks now and how proud he was of me. What the heck was he doing?
“Ryder, aren’t you going to congratulate Luna?” K.J. elbowed my instructor, and he finally tore his death glare away from the prince.
A streak of yellow flickered across his pupils as he faced me and cleared his throat. “Congrats, mini minx. I knew you could do it.” His smile didn’t even reach his eyes, and the venom lacing his tone sent a chill up my spine.
Was he really that pissed Drake kissed me?
Kimmie-Jayne took my hand and spun me away from the intense awkwardness. “What was that?” she whispered-yelled as soon as we were away from prying eyes.
“I have no idea!”
She arched a skeptical brow, her eyes sparkling mischievously. “So you and the prince aren’t a thing?”
“No!”
“It sure didn’t look that way to me. Or to the thousands of bystanders.” She motioned toward the boatload of spectators perched on the bleachers.
I groaned. This was so not good. Planting my hands on my hips, I glanced back at the crowd around Drake. “There’s nothing going on between us. He’s been tutoring me in magic for a while now, but that’s it. I have no idea what he was thinking kissing me like that in front of all those people.”
The moment the words were out, the massive floating screen appeared overhead, highlighting the infamous kiss. It played over and over again and then in slow motion.
Kill. Me. Now. I grumbled as a huge smile split K.J.’s pink lips.
“Well, that certainly doesn’t look like nothing to me.”
To put the final nail in my coffin, Raine and Aeria sauntered by, drilling me with their hate-filled glares. I was fairly certain if my half-sister hadn’t been there, I would’ve been murdered by now.
Chapter 18
“I don’t know how you pulled this off so quickly, Cinder.” I glanced around the fifth floor common area – the dragon level – with my mouth gaping. We walked under a huge banner with the words “Congratulations, Luna” in glittery gold lettering draped over the entrance archway. Streamers of every color of the rainbow hung from the ceiling, and brilliant lights were strung up across the rafters, bathing the room in a flickering glow.
My roommate’s smile was almost as big as mine. “It’s the first time anyone besides the Fae have won the title in years. There’s no way I was letting that go uncelebrated. Plus, you’re our honorary dragon.” She pulled me into a side hug and squeezed.
Students spilled out from every corner of the space, from dragons to witches to shifters and vampires. It had to be the most mixed crowd ever put together for a dorm party. I was surprised to even see a few of the Fae. I thought they’d all be sulking with their prince.
I scanned the room, searching for his bright platinum hair, but luckily he was MIA. I needed to have words with that one.
“You were incredible out there, Luna.” A mermaid from my Demons and Fiends class handed me a drink and clinked her glass against mine. I didn’t even know her name, but she offered me a bright smile so I gave her one in return.
“Thanks.” I sniffed the amber-colored beverage before taking a sip. Malta—the supe beer made in Draeko. That should be safe enough.
Tons of classmates I didn’t know well came by to congratulate me. I felt like I was standing at the end of a receiving line at a wedding or something. It was kind of insane. I didn’t even think that many people knew who I was.
“Enjoy the spotlight while you can,” said Raine, as she and Aeria emerged from the dense crowd. Her lips were twisted into a pout, her mossy green eyes on fire.
“Raine, about what happened…”
She held her hand up, cutting me off. “I’m not delusional, Luna. I know Drake’s hooking up with other people. I just didn’t expect it from you.”
I whipped my head back and forth. “We’re not hooking up.”
“Whatever.” She and Aeria spun away before I could stop them and disappeared into the crowd.
“Great… just when I was starting to make progress with those two.”
“Give her a day to chill,” said Cinder. “You can explain everything to her tomorrow. After you’ve talked to Drake and gotten your own explanation.”
The more I thought about it, the more I’d come to the conclusion that he’d kissed me to save his own ass. If I knew that conniving prince, he couldn’t handle the idea of losing. Kissing me in front of everyone like that was his way of declaring I was his—or something. I hadn’t quite figured it out yet, but it was the only thing that made sense.
Sure, Drake and I had been getting closer, but he’d never given me even the slightest hint of having any romantic interest in me. Half of the time I was pretty sure I annoyed the crap out of him.
Cinder nudged me in the side and ticked her head toward the entrance. Drake sauntered in with Raf, Triston and Zephyr at his side. Every female head in the room spun toward the hot males.
“Don’t look now, they’re coming this way,” she said. A silly grin stretched across her lips as Raf waved and headed over.
I grabbed her hand and squeezed. “Don’t leave me alone with them to go make out with your boyfriend.”
She rolled her eyes. “Okay, okay. I won’t go till you give me the word. But I really think you should talk to Drake.”
“Congrats, Luna!” Raf pulled me into a hug before planting a big kiss on Cinder’s smiling lips.
“Thanks.”
Zephyr and Triston moved in next, each offering their congratulations. They’d come in third and fourth respectively. “It was practically a supe squad sweep,” said Triston with a smirk.
“And that’s exactly why we’re on the team,” said Drake, his icy gaze running over me. “And they’re not.” He scanned the rest of the room with a sneer.
A handful of Fae girls encircled us, all giggling as they eyed the prince. Drake snaked his arm around my waist and tugged me into him.
“What are you doing?” I hissed.
“My girl’s a little shy,” he said to the gawking Fae. “No public displays of affection.” He winked, and my mouth dropped. Who was this guy?
I’d had about enough of this act. “Excuse me, everyone. I need to have a word with my guy here.” I wrapped my hand around his bicep and tugged him to the far corner of the room. Every nook and cranny was filled with students so I threw a cloaking spell up as soon as I pinned him to the wall. “What the hell are you doing, Drake?”
His lips curved into a grin as he swept a lock of hair behind my ear. “What? I can’t like you?�
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Heat flushed my cheeks as his intense gaze raked over me. I clenched my jaw, willing the redness away. “That’s not what this is.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because I know you, Drake. We’ve been alone together about a million times, and you’ve had every opportunity to kiss me if you’d wanted to. Why now? In front of the entire school and Fae court? You’ve been hooking up with Raine for months and never kissed her in public.”
He shrugged, casually leaning against the wall. “Maybe I got caught up in the moment.”
“In the moment of losing?”
Anger flashed across his lilac pupils, deep lavender specks flaring to life. “What do you want me to say, Luna?”
“I want you to tell me the truth! Why did you kiss me like that? And why are you pretending like we’re together in front of your loyal Fae subjects?”
He ground his teeth together, the tendons twitching in his jaw.
“Answer me, Drake.”
“I lost to a human! Do you know how embarrassing that is?” His hands curled into tight fists as deep purple swirled across his irises. “I figured if they thought we were together, they’d think I let you win. I told everyone I’d been training you to prove how good I was. If I could turn a human half-blood into a winner, it only confirmed how strong I was.”
All the air rushed out of my lungs, and my shoulders slumped. A tiny pang of disappointment pricked my heart. “You’re such an ass, Drake.” I spun away, letting the cloak burst around us.
“Luna, wait—”
Weaving between the dense crowd, I darted away from the ice prince, my drink sloshing over the sides of my glass. I cursed him as I ran, but mostly I was annoyed at myself. Why was I disappointed? I knew Drake didn’t really like me, and I didn’t care about him. It was completely idiotic.
Turning the corner to the corridor that led to the dorms, I smacked into a hard body. Ryder’s familiar sandalwood scent enveloped me, and my traitorous body leaned into him.
“You okay?” Dark eyes peered down at me, and all I wanted was to get lost in their bottomless onyx depths.
