Page 56 of Drama Queen

My forehead stings from the slap of my palm. Wow, Em, really fucking smart. I’d been so damn worried about how to send a text and doing it right that I hadn’t even thought about how he would know who was sending the message.

Yeah, sorry. That information might have been helpful, I guess.

“You’re really not good at this,” Pixie laughs from her jar.

“Yeah, it’s hilarious, I’m sure, but just remember until I find my mates?—”

“Yeah, yeah, I know I’m stuck,” she says, cutting me off. “I don’t know. It’s not that bad, honestly. You feed me, I’m safe, and I have entertainment for days.” I glare at her over the phoneI still have clutched in my hands, unsure what to say, but that only makes her laugh harder.

“Why are you even trying so hard with this one? Almost every other time you’ve touched them and moved on, you're putting too much effort into him. At this rate, it will take you a mortal year to get through half the school.” Her words annoy me, but I don’t say anything.

What can I say? She’s right.

“I felt something,” I tell her, tossing the phone onto the cushion beside me in frustration. “It was strange, Pix. He’s my mate, but it wasn’t like with Zephyr,” I tell her, admitting it aloud for the first time.

“What?!” she screeches, slamming into the glass so hard that the jar almost tips over. “What do you mean, he’s your mate? Why are you just now telling me this?” she demands, pressing her face to the side of the jar.

She looks ridiculous as she fogs up the glass, and I can’t help but laugh. I hate to admit it, but I’ll miss her when I return to my realm. I’d taken her out of necessity, but I’ve come to enjoy her company and her witty ass mouth; it’s refreshing.

My phone dings, and the sound rings out around the room, pulling my attention back to it.

I can probably make it today. My brother has practice, so I’ll have some time after class if you want to meet and finish the project.

“Emory! Don’t you ignore me! Explain right now!” I ignore her momentarily to answer Silas before I turn my attention back to her and find her pouting.

“Calm down, Pix. I didn’t say anything because I have no idea what’s happening. With Zephyr, the bond snapped into place the second we touched, but it wasn’t like that this time. I can still feel the pull to him, but when I touched him, nothing snapped into place.” I bury my face in my hands with a groan. “It’s justconfusing. I don’t know what the fuck is going on right now, and he has brothers, Pix!”

I drop off the side of the couch onto the floor on my knees so that my face is level with the glass. “Are his brothers my mates too? One of them is my damn professor, and I have no idea who the other one is…” I trail off, slumping back against the couch.

“Why is everything so damn complicated all the damn time?”

“Boohoo, you're going to be the damn queen of the Unseelie Court. Nothing is going to be easy, so get used to it. I won’t pretend to understand how this mate thing works because until you came here waving your jar around, I’d thought it wasn’t possible for mortals anymore. But I will tell you, I’d put my money on the brothers. It just makes sense if you have more mates. Besides, that would make things easier, right? At least they’re all here. Figure out the actual bond later. For now, just find your mates so you can handle your wicked stepmother and sister.”

Her words shouldn’t be comforting, but they are. I might have over-shared with her the last few days; hence her knowing about Ivy and my stepmother, but she’s right. I can worry about everything else once I’ve found my mates, and the best place to start looking is Silas’ brothers.

CARVER

Damn it, Silas. The last thing I want to do after practice is walk the whole fucking campus to find him in whatever little hole he’s hiding in.

I don’t give a shit what Aldric says. If Silas’ car isn’t fixed by next week, he’ll be picking him up. That or he can fucking walk.

I didn’t volunteer to be his taxi or his fucking babysitter.

My phone pings, and I dig it out of my pocket as I head down the hall. People call my name and try to get my attention, but I ignore them. I don’t feel like being social right now.

‘The library, dumbass.’

I read Aldric’s message and groan in annoyance at both of them. He’s always got to be an ass about fucking everything. But more than that, I’m annoyed I didn’t think to look there.

Of course, Silas would be in the library. Where else would he be? It's not as if he has a social life.

“Carvey!” Jamie’s voice is like nails on a chalkboard as she calls me by the fucking nickname she knows I can’t stand. Stuffing my phone back in my pocket, I continue down the hall as if I hadn’t heard her. I’m not far from the library. If I can make it there and grab Silas, maybe I can escape dealing with her today.

I weave through the people faster, without looking back.

I’d love to blame Aldric for my having to deal with her, but I can’t manage it. Aldric isn’t that much older than us, so I wouldn’t blame him if someone caught his eye, even if the school forbids it. But fuck, it can’t be her.

Just the thought makes my skin crawl.

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