Page 183 of Caelum

In her yoga pants and one of Nestor’s shirts, she shouldn’t have looked as cute as she did, but fuck, my cock reacted as though she were wearing hooker heels and a mini skirt.

Most of the girls at the party would be wearing prime scoring material, but not Eve, and hell, not us. We were all in shorts and sweats, comfortable shit, because I knew tonight wasn’t about the party, but a kind of farewell.

This could be our last bonfire.

Our last night out here on Cruckshanks, and though none of us were major surfers like Reed was, the beach was a second home for most of Caelum’s student body. It was where we could chill, hangout, and act our age without having to deal with the responsibilities of our future.

By the time we made it to the sand, Nestor was looking pale. I was glad the bonfire was nearby and knew he’d be staggering by the time we made it. He was leaning harder on Eve now that we were on flat land, and I pitied him the climb up tonight—or tomorrow if we slept here.

Dre carried two coolers as well as Nestor’s guitar under his arm, meaning that only Eve and Nestor weren’t loaded down like mules. He didn’t even know it yet, but Dre was as whipped as the rest of us.

The bonfire was built, probably by Genny, one of mymany exes, who took it on herself to be the party organizer. She and her cluster of friends took this shit far too seriously, but who was I to argue when I reaped the benefits of her need to throw parties?

We settled away from the bonfire, knowing it would get hot, but also because that was where the heavy-duty dancing and fucking would go down. It might interest Eve, or it might frighten the shit out of her, and I didn’t feel like talking her down from a scare. I really just wanted to let my hair down, and I wanted all of us to relax and chill. A night of ‘calm before the storm’ kind of thing.

As we crossed over the sand, I saw the looks shot our way, sensed some nasty glances that were aimed at Eve. Ever since the crap with Lewis had gone down, Eve had been persona non grata among our year, and to be honest, I wasn’t upset about that. I didn’t need her to be Miss Popularity. If anything, their ignoring her came to our aid. The more she was around them, the more they tried to antagonize her, the more likely it was that her souls would respond and her control would rupture.

That was a fate no one needed to tempt.

When I dumped the sleeping bags on the sand, Eve grabbed one and unrolled it then helped Nestor down. He was shaky as shit at this point, and I wasn’t surprised when Eve rushed over to Dre to grab a soda from the cooler.

Technically, we weren’t supposed to drink that shit, but contraband always tasted that much sweeter, didn’t it?

The sugar brought some color back into his cheeks, and Eve carried on fussing around him as we set up our station for the night.

Was I stunned that Nestor let her flit around him?

Not really.

He was like the rest of us. Abandoned by his parents, by choice or by life’s shitty hand. None of us were used to this kind of affection, and though I thought Dre would be the least appreciative, I had a feeling even he’d soak it up like a sponge.

“Mind if we set up close?”

Frazer’s question had me blinking before I turned and looked over my shoulder at him. “Sure,” I replied, cutting a glance at the rest of the crowd.

I hadn’t imagined his Pack would be anywhere other than near Eve, and it was a testament to how much things had changed in such a short space of time that I wasn’t even bristling.

Over three dozen in our year had gathered at the bonfire now, and I knew they were flicking surprised glances our way. Usually, we’d be on one side of the fire and Frazer and his guys would be on the other.To be so close? Normally it spoke of a fight, and though I knew it would be wise to perpetuate the notion that we were still hating on one another, it would be a bittersweet way to spend the night.

An hour later, we were all digging into the sandwiches Eren and Eve had made us, drinking beer, or water for Eve, and the scent of the sea was swirling around with the sweet smell of toasted nuts that wafted from the baklava Eren had made as Eve’s birthday gift.

Darkness had fallen, the music was on high, people were dancing, and me? Even though I’d usually be in the thick of it, Dre too, we were just chilling.

All of us.

Reed was giving Eve shit about not being able to swim, Nestor was bitching at Eren for not telling us sooner that it was Eve’s birthday, and Frazer, Samuel, and I were arguing about the Red Sox’s chances this year.

It was normal.

It was… fuck. Pack.

In a few weeks’ time, on Dre’s birthday, he was supposed to officially declare the four of us Pack, but man, I didn’t know if we were going to be here by then. I hoped so, but the revelations kept on coming. Eve had marks to hide now, and I had no idea if we could maintain this level of secrecy from a faculty that would have given George Orwell nightmares.

Privacy was impossible in Caelum, and that we’d managed to hide our connection to Eve thus far was a testament to the fact that Nicholas and the rest of the faculty were focused on the shit show in Aboh. Now that the battle was done? I didn’t know how long we’d have here even if something had happened that required Merinda and Damon, two top recruiters, to head out at the same time on a mission.

Was I sad about leaving? Sure. But mostly, I was wary. Concerned about Eve and the randomness of her behavior. I hated shit I couldn’t control, and controlling what Eve could do wasn’t anything I had a handle on. How could I? She was a total anomaly. A nightmare for a man like me.

“Fuck, this tastes good,” Samuel mumbled, jolting me from my thoughts.

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