Page 26 of The Broken Aztec Princesses

“Right. Sorry. I’ll be right back.”

Bells dashed off while Adam started telling me about his day in school. He was a friendly little boy who took to people quickly. Bells told me he lost both parents when the rogues attacked, and his friendly disposition made me wish I could be like him. As I listened to Adam about what one of his friends did that got him in trouble, Bells came back with a big serving platter with four plates on it.

“Alright. Sit down, Chris. No one is going to hurt my sister while I’m here,” she instructed, putting a plate on the empty seat next to me.

“Yes, Luna,” Christopher answered.

I always called him Christopher. Did he prefer Chris or Christopher? I should probably ask him later. Bells set another plate in front of me, so I sat Adam next to me and we ate dinner as we listened to him talk to us and ask everyone questions.

“Are you staying here forever?” Adam asked.

“No. I’m just helping out Bells. I’ll be going home in a few weeks.”

“Oh.” He looked visibly disappointed.

“But, we can have fun while I’m here. How about you and I have a date in my room on Saturday when all the other people show up? We’ll watch a movie and have popcorn, candy, and pizza for dinner?”

“Can we have chocolate fudge?”

“If Bells says it’s okay,” I chuckled.

“If we behave until then, I’ll buy some ice cream instead,” she half grumbled, with a smile on her face.

“Are you jealous that you weren’t invited, Bells?” I teased.

“Maybe. I’m more jealous of having a movie day. I haven’t had one in a long time, but I’ll appreciate this little chocolate thief being somewhere with you so he can’t run around like a wild monkey.”

After dinner, Christopher escorted me up to the alpha floor. I followed behind him, lost in thought once we were alone in the hall, when I bumped into his hard back.

“Oof! Sorry,” I said, steadying myself by grabbing his arms. I took a step back and then, when I noticed where he stopped, I asked, “Why did we stop here? My room’s at the end.”

“Luna Bells switched our rooms while you worked,” he explained, pushing open the door. All of my things were in Cory’s old guest room, and I was relieved to see the internal lock already set up in this one. “It has a connecting bathroom—” Christopher motioned to the aforementioned door. “—She moved my things to the room on the other side, in case you need me. You can keep your door locked when you need privacy, otherwise, if you’re feeling unsafe, just open both connections if it makes you feel better but don’t want me near.”

“Oh,” I didn’t know how to feel about that. “Thank you.”

Christopher turned around, and I thought he was going to leave, but instead, he pushed closed my door and engaged the internal lock. He then rattled the door, trying to open it. He was testing it, I realized, and it appeared to pass his scrutiny because he simply grunted and unlocked the door.

“If you don’t need anything, I’ll go unpack.”

“I'm alright. Thank you.” Christopher grunted again and started to leave, but stopped when I remembered my question and called out to him. “Wait! Do you prefer being called Christopher or Chris?”

An actual smile crossed his face for a second and he shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. I respond to both.”

“Yes, but what do you prefer? We’re going to spend a lot of time together, I should call you something you’re comfortable with.”

“Chris will work just fine,” he finally conceded.

“Thank you,” I called after him before I shut and locked my door. I grabbed my suitcase and started unpacking everything again. I showered and ensured I unlocked the door to his room after I was done. I felt more comfortable knowing he had an easy way to get to me if someone burst through my door.

The day when Cade’s pack was due to arrive came very quickly, and I found myself pacing back and forth in my room before breakfast. When Chris knocked on my door to take me down to breakfast, I began to hyperventilate.

“Violet?” Chris called out when I didn’t open the door for him after a few moments.

My voice wasn’t working. Instead, I grabbed the bedpost, trying to control my breathing.

“Violet. Are you awake?”

I opened my mouth to answer, but the only thing that came out was a whimper. For the first time in a year, though, Nenetl stood and whimpered with me, trying to give me strength that I knew she didn’t have. Still, feeling her care about what was happening to me was enough to help the black spots in my vision to disappear. I was desperately trying to get a deep breath in when I felt a pair of hands lifting me from where I was trying to remain standing. Even in my panicked state, I recognized the chest in front of me.

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