Page 27 of Royal
Not interested in food this morning, as I’m first-day-of-class nervous, I decide to take a seat at the far end of the kitchen island so I’m out of everyone’s way. Samantha sits down beside me with a glass of juice while other girls take their breakfast to the dining room or elsewhere. I watch all the action, trying to steady myself. From across the counter, Freya gets my attention. “What do you have first?”
“Calculus. And I’m no math whiz, so that should be fun.”
“That’ll be in Harrington Hall. Did you get Clem or Graves?”
Grabbing my phone, I pull up my schedule for the tenth time today. “Clem.”
“He’s pretty good. You’ll be okay. And hey, you have a whole sisterhood behind you, so if you need help, odds are good someone will be able to give you some pointers.”
While she’s talking, I’ve become distracted. From behind me, there’s some giggling, whispers, and someone being shushed. Then more laughter.
Frowning, I sip at my coffee as calmly as I can while trying to discern what’s being said. Freya clearly hasn’t realized what’s going on because she starts talking about the calc professor I have and something weird about his grading system.
Listening to both proves impossible as a sinking sensation blooms in my stomach.Oh, boy.I should have known I wouldn’t get away without someone saying something to me about last night. I was honestly hoping that no one except Freya would have a clue what went down, but that’s not the case. And if I expected the mean girls to keep quiet about it, I was sorely mistaken.
“Echo?” Freya pats the counter between us, grabbing my attention. “Are you okay?”
The group moves into the cozy den, out of sight. Anxiety prickles up my back because apparently, these girls assume if they can’t be seen, they can’t be heard either. How very toddler of them. My eyes shift to the side, following the sound of their laughter. Freya’s brows pinch together, leaving a crease down the middle of her forehead. I can tell she’s about to march in there to put a stop to it, but I really want to hear what they say. I shake my head, holding up a hand to make sure she stays put.
“I heard he practically fucked her up against the cage.” An indelicate snort follows those words, and now I know exactly who it is. Savannah.
I roll my eyes at her comment. It’s not true. Not really. My jaw sets. And it wasn’t like I invited him to go beast mode on me.
“Stop. There’s no way that’s true.” I think that might be Allie, but I could be wrong. The pretty brunette seems like she could be trouble if in the wrong company.
“No, it is. I heard about it, too.”
My eyes slam shut. I have no idea who that was, but news travels fast, I guess.
Ireland’s nasty voice hits next, barreling right into my chest. “Even better, he stormed off after he lost with her wrapped around him like a clinger monkey. I wonder if she made wild jungle noises while he fucked her or if he made her gag on his dick.”
“You’re just jealous,” Savannah snorts out.
The response from Ireland is immediate and boisterous. “You bet your sweet ass I am!” Her words are met by gales of laughter.
I meet Freya’s eyes, and she hesitantly asks, “You okay?”
“Yeah. It’s whatever.” I shrug.
She pouts a bit, like she’s upset for me. “I’ll tell them to shut it down right now.”
“It’s all good. I’m fine. They’re just mad it wasn’t them. It’ll blow over when the next girl gets selected, right?”
Freya slowly nods. With her lip trapped between her teeth, she considers me for a moment, then as if she can’t resist, she blurts out in a quiet voice, “But really. What’s the deal with the two of you? I keep thinking about it because I’m the one who saw it with my own two eyes, and I couldn’t believe the… the…” Her cheeks flush pink, and she whispers, “The raw animal energy. It was crazy. I think the entire room felt it. For it to be like that with someone you just met—wow.”
I shrug again because I’m not so sure I need anyone to know yet that Royal and I have a past. “I guess I reacted to what he was putting out there.”
“You can say that again. Did you…?” Her brows wriggle.
I dampen my lips as our gazes connect again. If I deny it, she probably won’t believe me, anyway. I take a few more seconds to think as I walk over to put my coffee mug in the sink. I end up pouring half of it down the drain. It’s not settling in my stomach after all this. I draw in a breath and straighten my back, then, with a glance back over my shoulder, I shoot my big sister a wink. “A lady never tells.”
She claps her hands. “I knew it! You know, we’ve got a big party coming up this weekend. The SIN guys will probably be there. Maybe you’ll get a chance to talk to him again.”
“Maybe. Though there wasn’t a lot of talking last night, if you know what I mean.” There wasn’t, that’s the truth, but it wasn’t because we were getting down and dirty. She can take myif you know what I meanhowever she wants. While we’re now called sisters, I don’t know if I can trust her yet. I hardly know her. Checking my phone for the time, I suck in a breath, realizing I need to get moving. “I’d better head out. See you later?”
“Absolutely. Have a great first day. Text me if you need anything.”
I nod and give her a wave as I hurry toward the door.
