Bart yelped and they started play fighting, though after what Professor Pops had said about their training, I noticed it wasn’t quite so much play as I first thought.
“Have you finished your tea?” Heathcliff asked.
I gulped down the last of it and nodded. “Yep,” I answered. “Who’s training me today?” I hoped Professor Pops had talked to them and they knew what I meant.
“Me,” Dorian said, rewarding me with a piercing stare.
My mouth went dry. “Good.” I’d have to train with these hickeys on my neck. What would Dorian say? Why hadn’t Gabe volunteered? Sneaking a glance at him, my heart sank. There was something bothering him. He wasn’t teasing. Had he already grown tired of me? Not that I could blame him. Even though he didn’t know it, I certainly hadn’t acted like he and I might be a couple, especially last night when I made out with Chace. “Great,” I added, suppressing a sad sigh.
“We gotta go,” Heathcliff said, grabbing Dorian by the arm. “See ya later, Snow.” Bart followed them out.
I waved, giving Gabe a questioning look. “Did you get stuck taking me again?” I turned the pages of the book, but my eyes kept finding Gabe’s.
“I volunteered,” he answered, picking my hefty backpack off the table and lobbing it onto his shoulder. “Come on.”
Following him out, I locked the door and shoved the house keys in my pocket.
“I think we should talk,” Gabe said once we were buckled in his silver CRX.
“Sure,” I said, eyeing him, comprehending the seriousness on his face. My stomach clenched. Did he somehow know about my escapade with Christopher? Or Dorian?
“You and I,” he paused, turning on the car. “You know I like you, right, Snow?”
I gulped. He hadn’t called me Snowflake. “I hope so, Gabe. We’ve been friends a long time. If you’re pretending, then you deserve an Oscar.” I hoped my teasing would lighten his mood.
He smirked. “You know what I mean.”
I forced back a sigh. “I do.” This conversation wasn’t going to end well. He pulled out of my driveway, heading toward school.
“Since your… bite, and what occurred in your dream, and the note… well, you have a lot going on.” He glanced over.
I nodded, waiting for him to finish, my hands clenching into fists in my lap.
He let out a giant breath. “I think we should put whatever might be happening between us on hold.” His hands gripped the steering wheel until they turned white.
Tears dampened my lashes. Casually, I tried to wipe them away. He was right. I needed to focus on training. Also, I had a… situation with Christopher. But wow, hearing Gabe say the words hurt.
I deliberated whether he somehow knew what I’d been doing last night, if he could tell a hunter vampire kissed me thoroughly, drank from me multiple times, and that I’d liked it. Actually, I more than liked it, I delighted in it. Ugh!
Pushing my back into the black leather seat, I cleared my throat. “I agree. We’ll still be friends, right?” The words sounded strained, not like me.
Gabe didn’t seem to notice. “Right.”
We rode in silence until we got to school. As soon as he put the car in park, I bolted without saying good-bye. I needed some fresh air and some space.
Chapter 23
My body teetered between conflicting emotions: excitement and sadness. Excitement because I’d see Christopher in a few minutes, though I had to call him Chace in school. And sadness because I still had feelings for Gabe. He’d promised he wouldn’t leave. Memories of the night he’d stayed with me surfaced, weighing down my heart. I missed that Gabe. He hadn’t exactly left, but he didn’t want me anymore either.
Sighing, I pulled open the front door to Salem Academy, home to more than sixteen hundred students, and realized I held my breath so I wouldn’t smell blood. Slowly I exhaled and snuck a timid breath. A delicious blood-tinged aroma swirled with sweat and perfume. A symphony of hearts beat all around me, but I didn’t have the slightest twinge of a craving. Something had changed. Was it the double dose of bloodlust tea, or drinking Christopher’s blood? I’d have to ask him when we had a moment alone. If I could look him in the eyes without turning red.
I made my way through the overflowing commons and to my burgundy locker. After dialing in the combination, I opened it and switched books from my backpack to my locker and ran to chemistry, barely acknowledging the posters announcing the football game coming up or the Halloween dance taking place soon.
Cindy and Chace were already in their seats, chatting like BFFs. Seeing Cindy being so flirty and Chace responding—well, it annoyed me. I dropped my backpack and my pencil on the table in a huff.
Cindy gave me the eye, one of her perfectly plucked eyebrows rising in irritation. “Hey, Snow. In a mood?” She smacked her bare knee against my thigh.
“No,” I grumbled, stealing a look at Chace. He’d rolled his chair toward me.
“Hi.” He had a tone, one that told me he was thinking about what we had done last night.
My cheeks burned hot.
“What’s going on?” Cindy asked, tugging on my scarf.
That girl was way too intuitive. She could read people from a hundred feet away, through concrete and twenty feet of dirt.
Sheesh! “Nothing,” I said from behind my hands, jerking my scarf. I realized we hadn’t had a chance to really talk since she’d gone to the Cape. She said she needed to tell me something, but still hadn’t.
“Hmmm-mmmm,” Cindy responded, and I knew we’d be having a prickly conversation later. I debated what I should tell her. It wasn’t like I could say, “Yeah, so last night Chace took me to another realm where we made out and drank each other’s blood for a few hours. It was awesome and so sexy.”
Chace made a noise that sounded a lot like a groan, which caused my cheeks to burn hotter than a firework on the Fourth of July.
Before Cindy or Chace said or did anything else, Mr. Wallace came in and saved the day. I’d never been happier to see a teacher.
That gladness was short-lived.
“During today’s lab we’ll be determining the relative reactions of copper, magnesium, zinc, and hydrogen. You’ll work with a partner, as usual.” Mr. Wallace glanced in our direction. “Mr. Charming, since you are without a partner, and,” he searched the room, let out a grunt, and continued, “since Sheila is absent today, why don’t you work with Misssssss,” he drew it out, like a snake debating which prey to devour. Cindy sat up straighter in her seat, and I knew she wanted him to pick her. Finally, he continued, “White. Mr. Dooley, you and Miss Croswell will partner up. Everyone else, you have your partners, so get busy.”
Cindy deflated and scowled. “I don’t want to partner with Eddie. He smells like onion rings.”
“Maybe that’s because he works at Onion Ring Heaven,” I whispered, stifling a nervous giggle. I stood as Eddie looked over, his braces-filled smile taking up most of his freckled face. “Be nice,” I said in her ear.
Cindy harrumphed. “Merde! This isn’t fair. And you owe me an explanation about what’s going on between you and Charming. Lunchtime!”
“For sure,” I said, wiggling my eyebrows and moving over to Chace.
Cindy laughed, and I felt better about leaving her with Onion Ring Eddie.
I picked up my chair and placed it next to Chace. He already had the droppers and was in the process of organizing the test tubes. “You’ve done this before, haven’t you?”
He grunted. “Once or twice. Lovely scarf, by the way.”
I fiddled with it, making sure it still covered my neck, and sat on the stool, watching him. He looked seventeen or eighteen, but I was curious about his real age. I didn’t know much about vampires, but I did know they weren’t supposed to age. At least that was part of the myth. Would I age as a revenant? I wanted to ask Chace, but chemistry class wasn’t the place. I supposed I could ask Professor Pops. “Well, you’d better let me do something.”
“I can think
of several somethings I’d like you to do.” His voice had gone low and was filled with sensual implication.
I colored. “Knock it off. Cindy already smells a story. The girl is like a Bassett Hound on the trail of her favorite bone. She’s probably already figured out we kissed and is planning our wedding, including the cake and my wedding dress.” I moved one of the beakers, put a droplet of iodine in it, and scrawled the results in my notebook.
He sat on the stool next to me, fixing me with an amused gaze. “Wow, she’s impressive.”
I tried to scowl. He didn’t know her the way I did. That was how her mind worked. “We haven’t even been on a date,” I whispered.
“I suppose we can’t consider what we did last night a date?” He wore his signature smirk.
My insides quivered. “No!”
“Are you embarrassed by me, Snowflake?”
“Don’t call me that,” I growled, smacking him on the arm. Only Gabe was allowed to call me that. Besides, what did he think was going on? Were we an item?
“Whatever you command, my queen,” he inclined his head slightly.
Self-conscious, I searched the room and caught hold of Cindy’s perceptive glare. “What the hell?” she mouthed.
I shrugged and turned back to Chace. His words, “my queen,” made me think of another question. I, technically, wouldn’t be his queen; my body would, but it’d still be her… what? Spirit, inside my body. I filed the question in the thickening folder labeled Seriously Wacky Stuff. “You need to stop.”
He laughed. “Fine. I will. For now.” Then he winked. “Can I call you Frosty?”
I lifted my brow. “You can call me Frosty when Hell freezes over, m-kay?” I gave him a sinister look but laughed too. The whole conversation was silly.
“Snow,” he spoke my name like we were lovers. “Want to hang out after school today? We can see what sort of skills you’ve developed.” He gave me a conspiratorial look. “The way we’ve been trading blood I’ve no doubt you’ll be as strong as I am in no time.”
“Will I?” I nudged his shoulder with mine.
“You’ll be amazing.”
I really did want to hang out with him, but I had track practice, revenant training, and then homework. “Hey, didn’t you make the track team? I’ll see you at practice.”
“I’ll come only if you promise to run. I want to see if you can manage once around the track without tripping.” He laughed.
“Harsh,” I murmured. But I wanted to see if it were possible, too. “I have…” I paused. Would he know what hemophilia was? Not that my blood issue would matter once I became a vampire.
“What?”
“Well, after track, I have to…” I couldn’t say the words “supernatural training”. Professor Pops wanted me to go over to his house after practice. I’d be learning how to kill different supernatural creatures, including hunter vampires like him. Did I want to tell Christopher? Something told me I shouldn’t, especially since he worked for the vampire queen. And that’s when the lightbulb went on. Holy apple butter on toast! Christopher worked for the vampire queen! Why hadn’t that occurred to me before now? I hadn’t asked Professor Pops what would happen if I drank the blood of a hunter.
Chace glanced over, his gaze unreadable. “You’re training with Adam Henry after practice.”
“Yes,” I nodded, unable to say any more. How did he know? So many questions.
“Don’t you want to see me again tonight?” His words sounded hollow, sad.
“Of course,” I said, touching his arm and regretting the maneuver immediately. Professor Pops mentioned Christopher possessed the ability to put me under a spell. Did he have me under one? If he did, did I care? I really wanted to see him alone again—to kiss him and taste him.
Gabe was out of the romantic picture. He said we should just be friends. No reason to feel guilty.
“Lips red as rubies, hair dark as night. Drink your true love’s blood; become the Vampire, Snow White.” It was as though I’d spoken the words inside my own head. But I hadn’t. I shuddered. My true love? It wasn’t Christopher. At least I didn’t think so. But lust? Yes. Yes. Yes. I cleared my throat. “Want to come over to my house after training, around nine thirty?” My heart beat faster in anticipation. “In this realm,” I added in a soft voice. We could talk. Watch a movie. Hang out. It’d be fun.
He smiled and the movement reached his eyes, filling my stomach with a giddy joy. “Great idea,” he said.
“Charming is a name that suits you. Did the queen give you the name?”
He chuckled. “No, it’s the one I was born with.”
I searched his face, checking to see if he was joking. It didn’t look like it.
“Hmmmm,” I said, dropping iodine in another beaker.
Chapter 24
Lunchtime finally rolled around, and I briefly considered evasive maneuvers, like hiding in the girls’ bathroom. I hadn’t decided what to say to Cindy about Christopher—Chace—and me. Deny. Deny. Deny. I searched the Commons area for her, but she hadn’t arrived. Shrugging, I grabbed a greyish lunch tray, placed a salad on it along with a juice, paid the cashier, and headed over to our usual table near the windows. The sun shone through them, bright and cheery and I squinted, happy vampires and even revenants weren’t affected by the sun.
“Hey, Frosty.”
I jumped and spun around. My gorgeous blond-haired hunter towered over me, a playful grin lighting his features.
“Rude,” I squealed very girlishly and much more loudly than I anticipated.
Several heads swung in our direction. They were probably stunned that klutzy, boyish Snow White could act girly, or that the handsome Chace Charming would choose to grace me with his presence. At those thoughts, my whole body heated. They had no idea what I’d done with the incredibly hot hunter.
Chace’s eyes narrowed. “Let’s sit,” he said, walking over to my table.
I obeyed, letting my hair fall into my face. Once we were sitting, I scanned the room for Cindy. A part of me hoped she wouldn’t show. Another part of me worried. If Cindy was one thing, she was a creature of habit. If she had a change of plans, she would’ve told me.
Salvatore and Sebastian walked in, both sporting sour expressions. I waved enthusiastically. They returned my welcome, but it wasn’t with any excitement.
“They’re upset that I’m sitting here,” Christopher said, his voice filled with humor.
“Oh, well, they shouldn’t care.” I signaled them to come over, casually tightening my scarf. They nodded. A thought struck me, and I started to panic. “They don’t know who you are, do they?” I hissed, keeping my eyes glued on the guys’ movements.
“No. At least I don’t think so.” He shrugged. “But then they are Adam Henry’s sons, so anything’s possible.” I heard what sounded like a note of awe in his words and wondered why.
The guys picked up their food and headed over. I searched their faces, trying to discern whether they knew. I didn’t think so. If they had, they probably would’ve been a lot more hostile.
“Hi, guys,” I said, feeling suddenly nervous.
“Hey, Snow,” Salvatore said.
“Heyah,” Sebastian added, taking a huge bite of pizza. “Aren’t you going to eat?”
I glanced at the unappetizing salad sitting in front of me. “Not hungry,” I responded, keeping my eyes fixed on a wilted carrot. I was, in fact, hungry, but it wasn’t for the tasteless salad. I wanted Christopher’s blood. I gave him a sideways glance and he smiled meaningfully.
“You should eat. You need your strength for—” Salvatore paused and glanced over at Chace. “Later,” he finished.
I opened the juice and took a drink to appease him.
“How do you two know each other?” Salvatore asked between bites of food, indicating Chace and me with a pointer finger.
“Oh,” I said unsure about how to respond.
Chace saved me. “We’re in chemistry together. Plus the track team.”
Salvatore and Sebastian swapped comical looks.
“Have you seen Snow run?” Salvatore asked.
“Not yet. Maybe today.” Chace grinned slightly; a secret smile I knew was meant for me.
The guys busted out laughing.
Dorian and Bart joined us at the table. “What’s so funny?” Bart asked.
Dorian wore an angry frown. I watched his eyes linger on my lips, move to my neck, and then glance at Christopher. Did he know? “Charming,” he nodded. “What brings you to our table today? I believe there are ten or fifteen girls desperate for your attention. No sense hanging with us guys.”
Christopher smiled. “There’s one girl at this table. The only girl I’m interested in.” He glanced at me, and I was sure my face turned the color of ripened cherries.
Salvatore sputtered out his milk.
“You’re in dangerous territory here,” Dorian growled.
I watched the way each guy tensed with animosity and decided an intervention was necessary. “Has anyone seen Cindy?”
“I haven’t seen her since math class,” Dorian said, shifting his gaze from Chace to me.
“Not since chemistry,” Chace added.
The other brothers agreed they hadn’t seen her since morning.
“Great. Why don’t I have a cell phone?” I grumbled, picking up my juice and taking a sip.
Almost as one, all the guys whipped out their phones. “May I?” I took Dorian’s as a way to appease him, giving him a look.
“Fine,” he hissed in mock sarcasm, and I smiled.
Unlocking his phone, I dialed Cindy’s number. It went straight to voice mail. I left a message after the beep. “Hey, Cin. Just wondering if you’re okay. Call me. Oh, I’m on Dorian’s phone because, as you know, my dad and stepmother won’t give me one. So call him, ’kay?” After I hung up, I texted a similar message to her number and handed Dorian back his phone.
“Thanks, Dorian.”
“I’m sure she’s fine. Probably just got hung up talking to some guy.”
Blood and Snow: Snow White Reimagined with Vampires and Magic (Seven Magics Academy Book 1) Page 10
