Page 33 of His To Claim

Ace brings his hand up to his cheek, but says nothing, I take off running back toward the house, up the stairs, not stopping until I make it to the front door of my quarter.

My heart and mind are racing as I fight to catch my breath. As quietly as I can manage, I enter the quarter and rush into my room, locking my door and throwing myself onto the bed.I can’t believe that just happened.

I lick my swollen lips and can still feel him on them, taste him on them. They feel tender and are throbbing from the intensity of his kiss.

Suddenly, my phone buzzes in my pocket startling me and I open it to find a text from him.

9146662114: Never hang up on me again Red.

I don’t bother adding his number to my contacts, instead throwmy head back and toss the phone on the bed beside me. Fuck. There is no way I’m getting any sleep tonight.

I was right.I didn’t sleep a damn wink. Every little noise would startle me, and couldn’t stop replaying the kiss repeatedly in my mind.

I get out of bed early the next morning and walk straight into the shower, needing to wash away the constant thoughts of Ace’s lips against mine. The memories of the way his hands roamed up my back and around my waist gripping me for dear life. I turn the cold water on full blast hoping it will snap me out of my lust-filled thoughts.

I need to get him out of my head.

Twenty minutes later and with my thoughts still intact, I step out of the shower in nothing but a towel wrapped around my waist and head over to the coffee machine in the kitchen, adding an extra five scoops more than I normally would.

I don’t physically feel tired from my lack of sleep, but I know I’ll be feeling it later today. As the coffee brews I head back to my room to change into my uniform taking longer than usual to apply my everyday makeup. Brushing my hair out, I pull it up into a loose ponytail letting a few strands loose around my face.

My bedroom door opens, Jade and Stella appearing still dressed in pajamas, each with a mug of coffee in their hands.

“You’re up early,” Jade says surprised, as she walks over sitting on the edge of my bed. She takes a sip of her coffee, nearly spitting it out right after. “Damn, Scar,” she says in between coughs. “How much coffee did you put in here?”

Taking the mug from her hands, I bring it to my lips, inhaling the sweet aroma before taking a sip. “I couldn’t sleep. I needed it to be strong,” I say, shrugging my shoulders and enjoying the bold taste of the espresso.

“That would explain why you’re up, ready and dressed before 7 a.m.”

Ignoring her sarcasm, I grab my bag and slip my MacBook, tablet, and phone inside before walking over to the door. “I’m going to head down to the dining hall and get something to eat. I’ll see you guys later.” Before I walk out, I hear Jade whisper to Stella.

“She means she’s gonna go have a Dragon for breakfast, if you get what I mean.” I can hear them both chuckle as I close the door behind me.

I’ll admit as I walk up the steps of the Astor House, the senior boys’ house, Jade was right. That’s exactly what I’m going to do. Walking through the front door and up the stairs to the third floor where the guys’ quarter is, I roll my eyes and ignore the catcalls and snickers coming from the few guys already out and about.

They’re nothing but a bunch of assholes who apparently have never seen a girl rock a school uniform and find the need to make stupidly crude remarks about their school girl fetishes. Finding the door to the guy’s quarter, I reach my hand up about to knock but the door is suddenly swung open, a shirtless Jaxon standing on the other side.

“Oh, shit!” Jax shouts, jumping back. “Scar, babe, what are you doing here this early?” He walks toward me wrapping his arm around my shoulder and drags me into their quarter. Inside the space looks similar to ours with gray walls, two large couches by a wide-screen tv, and a small table with four chairs to the far right. The only difference is the empty box of pizza and crushed cans of beer on the floor and the thick scent of cigarettes floating in the room.

“Well, you guys made yourself right at home,” I say, picking up a pair of boxers on the floor in front of me.

“Sorry, those are mine,” a cute brown-haired guy says as he jolts from the couch over to me, plucking the boxers straight from my hand with a shy smile. His cheeks instantly redden while his eyes lock with mine.

“And you are?” I ask, raising a brow at him, a sincere smile on my face. He’s cute, in a nerdy way. Brown hair covers his ears and part of his face, and light hazel eyes hide behind round frames.

“This is Jake Easton, he’s our Stella Silver. Jake, this is Scarlett Steele, she’s Drake’s leading lady,” Jax says, throwing his arm around a flustered Jake.

“Nice to meet you, Jake,” I say, extending my arm out to him.

He reluctantly takes it, letting go quickly when he hears Drake approaching from the hallway. He’s shirtless of course, his gray sweats hanging low on his hips outlining the perfect V shape of abs. Black ink covers almost every muscular inch of his torso, arms, and neck.

A sharp pang of need rushes to my core as my eyes roam over his sexy physique.

“I gotta go,” Jake says, retreating to what I assume is his room in the opposite direction of where Drake just came out.

“This is a lovely surprise,” Drake says as he reaches out to me, wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling me into him. He takes my lips in his and kisses me softly and I melt in his grasp. Drake has always been an excellent kisser. He may have been my first lover, but I kissed a few frogs before I found my dragon. And at this moment, I need his lips to consume me and erase the feel of Ace’s from last night.

My gut clenches at the memory of what happened last night. There is no way I can mention it to Drake. He’d completely lose it and honestly, I’m afraid he'll retaliate and end up getting expelled.

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