Page 3 of Faerie Gift

“I know. Maybe my body got used to staying up all night to study and now it doesn’t want to sleep anymore.” Nora shrugged delicate shoulders. Short and slender, she reminded me of my best friend Melia. They both had slight builds, although in Melia’s case she had muscle and an attitude of no hesitation to use it when necessary. Nora looked like she would be a better fit behind a desk in a library. Which was where I’d found her the first time.

Melia Haversham had been assigned as my fourth-year mentor during my first semester, a relationship that quickly shifted to the most important friendship I’d ever had. I missed her terribly.

She’ll be back soon.

I smiled at Nora. “Have you thought about trying a spell on yourself? Something to help you relax enough to actuallygetsome sleep?”

Nora shook her head and said with a sigh, “No, I don’t trust myself to perform any kind of high-level magic. I might accidentally kill myself. My mentor advised against it as well.”

“You make a good point there. Maybe you should try to talk to Nurse Julie about a solution. She might have some options for you.”

“I already have. We’ve tried herbal supplements, essential oils, meditation, you name it. Don’t worry about me, Tavi. I’ll make it through and we will rock this next semester. Together.”

“You bet.” I held my hand up for a high five, cringing before she could slap it home. “You have a little bit of garlic there.”

She grimaced and wiped her hand on her napkin. “Sorry. It’s everywhere.”

“You enjoy while I try to force this sandwich down.” I took another large bite, the bread dry and crumbling in my hands.

Still better than garlic, I tried to tell myself. Or salads and fruit every day. I’d eaten like a cow to survive my first semester, until Julie helped me get things straight. It was really nice to have someone to share my secret with. Someone like me—a half shifter trying to hide from a difficult situation—in my corner.

The Fae hated shifters with a fiery passion. Yet here we were, seeking refuge among them.

My phone dinged in my pocket and I dug for it as Nora was telling me about a book she’d been reading. As I stared down at the screen, a familiar name popped up and filled my heart with immediate joy. And there, his message for me:I’m back!!

It was Mike. Better known as Michael Thornwood, the Crown Prince of Faerie and my very own knight in shining armor.

I was falling for him fast. Even though I knew I shouldn’t be because it was a disaster waiting to happen.

2

Isaid my goodbyes to Nora in a hurry, stuffing the rest of my almost inedible sandwich in my bag and racing toward the front yard of the school fast enough for the breath to leave my lungs. Heart racing. Throat dry.

Clingy much?

It doesn’t matter, I thought. I pulled a light sweater from my bag on the way outside to fight against the cold.

Mike was back.

Mike was back!

My brain repeated the statement until my heart began to spin cartwheels faster than a second-grader at recess.

I’d missed him; three weeks was way too long since the last time we’d seen each other. He’d been at home in Faerie with his parents for the holidays. At thepalace. I tried hard not to get stuck on those kinds of thoughts and the world of differences between Mike and me. The royal Michael Thornwood who was so far above my league I had to be crazy for continuing this.

He was a good guy and a good friend. He’d been there to help me when I couldn’t help myself, finding me on the side of the road in a broken-down piece of junk car and offering me a ride to the school our first day with no questions asked.

Was it any wonder I was more than halfway in love with him?

Yeah, I’d thought him a murderer. Little did I know how my feelings would change drastically.

Pushing aside the large wooden front doors of the castle, I bolted down the steps and over the crunchy grass. My breath exploded from my mouth in a puff of white. January already and we’d yet to have a heavy snow.

The only lights shining were those of the stars with their crystal radiance. Rays of light spilled down from those stars to illuminate the hillside; my lungs breathed in the scents of wood smoke and frost. A new moon and mostly cloudy; I was safe outside for now.

Behind me the castle loomed straight out of a fairy tale, multiple stories of stone and brick with English ivy crawling up the sides, with enough wards and enchantments to make it invisible, keeping it safe from the public eye. An army trying to force their way through our front gates would find very quickly they had other places to be. The security was one thing I appreciated about the place. You couldn’t be too careful when there were this many students who called the place home.

The Fae Academy for Halflings.

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