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It makes my skin itch and my nerves fray. “What I wouldn’t give to be back in London, so far away from all this,” I mutter more to myself than anyone else.
“I’m going to let Merritt know you don’t want to see her.” Even though I know he's teasing, I wince at his words. At the end of last quarter, I thought she was lying to me and I treated her horribly because of it. I’ve wanted to call her every day and apologize, but I think it’s a better conversation to have in person. I hope she’ll forgive me.
But that actually reminds me. “Did one of you put a spell on Merritt so she couldn’t tell me the truth?”
Next to me, Gideon winces, and I turn to look at him. I must look angry because he holds up his hand. “We didn’t. I swear, Ro. But being in a coven requires certain things.”
“So,” I drawl. “It’s not that you guys did it, but the coven did.”
Ezra nods. “Technically, we shouldn’t have been able to tell you, either. But a lot of the same rules don’t apply to us.”
“Because you’re more powerful than the elders of your houses.”
Fielder moves closer to me, his arm brushing mine. “I have a silence spell around us now so no one can hear us, but you can never say that out loud again.”
I nod, pretending that I don’t hear the threat in his voice. “Okay.” It makes sense. They don’t want word getting back to their elders. I have no idea what that would mean for them, but I also don’t want to find out, seeing as they’ve tried to kill me recently.
We approach Putnam and the flow of students increases. But even though there are more of them, they don’t approach us. I’m not sure if the guys around me are putting out some intensestay awayvibes or what, but we pass by unhindered.
I keep my gaze down, but sense the eyes of the other students on me. Curious, probing, wondering what in the world I’m doing with the four boys who made my life hell for the last six months.
I have to say I’m wondering the same thing.
As we get closer to the doors, the boys shift positions around me, Fielder slides in front, Hardin on my left, Ezra on my right and Gideon moves to stand behind me, a diamond of protection, a wall of solid muscle to keep everyone from getting too close to me.
In the halls, people call out greetings to them, ask how their vacation went. No one says anything to me. I can’t say that I mind. Not in the slightest. I don’t want their attention, but something tells me I’m going to get it, anyway.
The Consequences won’t be able to be with me all the time.
Ezra’s hand curls around mine and squeezes gently, drawing my attention from the back of Fielder’s shoes to him. He tugs me closer and leans down to whisper in my ear. “I’m going to pick up our class schedules. Stay with them. They’ll keep you out of trouble.”
My lips quirk into a smile. He leans down and kisses me. The hallway around us explodes into frenzied whispers which only grow more intense when Hardin loops his arms around me, pulling me back to his chest. “Don’t worry, Carmichael, we’ll keep our girl safe.”
Oh, for fuck’s sake. They are going to make this as public as possible, aren’t they? Ezra darts away from us. I would say he winds his way around the people, but really they just part for him, in the same way that they part for us as we continue through the building, out into the quad and then into the cathedral. More eyes. More stares. More glares. I’ve never felt so conspicuous in all my life.
We settle into the front row of seats, Fielder on my right, Gideon on my left. I slide down in my chair, trying to become as small as possible, and Gideon glances down at me. “Stop hiding, Ro. You’re one of us now. And we don’t hide.”
Fielder leans over. “You need to show your power. As soon as you do, they’ll stop.”
Tipping my chin into my chest, I shake my head. “I don’t want to have this kind of power. I was very happy just being another face in the crowd, you know?”
“Love, you were never just another face in the crowd. Not to us. And not to them,” Hardin says from the other side of Gideon, who nods his agreement.
“You’ve always had a way about you, Sweeney. I told you we never stood a chance.” He sounds almost smug about that.
Their words are sweet, actually. It’s just… weird. And I have such negative experiences attached to any type of attention at this school. Even when I thought I was getting nice attention from Gabe, it ended so horribly.
Gideon’s hands curl under my armpits and haul me up until I’m sitting upright. “Sit up straight.”
“Don’t give me comportment instructions, Brightwater,” I grumble, but I refrain from sliding down in my seat again.
“Look who I found,” Ezra says, appearing all too suddenly in front of me. I glance up and let out a little sound of surprise. Merritt’s next to him, looking uncertain and unsure, her lip between her teeth. It only takes me half a second to recognize that she’s as worried about this meeting as I am.
I lunge up, wrapping my arms around her, squeezing her tight. “I’m sorry, Mer. So fucking sorry.” She’s stiff for a moment before melting into me and returning my hug. “I should have believed you. I shouldn’t have doubted you.”
She lets out a little laugh and pulls back to look at me with her gorgeous gold eyes. “I can’t say that I blame you. It’s crazy. No one would have believed me.”
“Well, the boys explained it to me. Theyshowedit to me. So I understand now.”
