Page 7 of Silent Secrets

Once again, all I can do is nod as I take the paper from her, frowning at the schedule written out for me. It looks like I won’t have much free time. How much do they expect me to learn in just two weeks?

Lessons Schedule (Monday-Saturday)

8:00-10:00 Fae Queen Studies in Grace’s office (Grace)

10:00-12:00 History of Sorlphi & the Fae in the Lower Level Library (Summer Representative)

12:00-1:00 Lunch break

1:00-3:00 Politics and the Fae Courts in the War Room (Spring Representative)

3:00-5:00 The Fae Realms in the East Drawing Room (Autumn Representative)

5:00-7:00 Magic Studies in the Queen’s Gardens (Winter Representative)

“Good night, Hadley,” Grace calls just before swinging the door shut behind her. I hadn’t even heard her move.

Yup, I’m definitely overwhelmed.

I toss the schedule back onto the desk, deciding that I will worry about it in the morning. If Grace expects me to be ready to go at 8:00, I need to head to bed. Looking around, I find an old-fashioned clock above the fireplace and see that it’s just after 4:00 in the morning. I guess time runs the same in Sorlphi as it does in the mortal realm.

I throw open one door and find an enormous bathroom with a walk-in shower that could easily hold a dozen people, showerheads lining the wall and ceiling. A sunken tub that could double for a swimming pool sits beside it, a counter with five sinks opposite them, and a single toilet off in the corner tucked behind a wall.

I’m so tired that when I glimpse myself in the mirror, I think I must be hallucinating once more. I almost don’t recognize myself, because this isn’t the face that I’ve stared at for almost twenty-one years. Well, it is, and it isn’t.

My hands lift, fingers running over the pointed tips of my ears to make sure that they’re real—and they are. Though that makes no sense to me, seeing as I’ve never had pointed ears before. My chestnut brown waves seem to move on their own as Grace’s did, floating in a non-existent breeze. My ivory skin has never been so clear and luminous. My emerald green eyes have never been as bright.

I’m fucking gorgeous.

Now, I’m not someone who has ever suffered from a lack of self-esteem. I know I’m attractive, with high cheekbones and curves on a body that requires no exercise to remain slim. I’ve never had a problem picking up someone to sleep with—man or woman. But even with makeup on, I’ve never been this beautiful, and I just don’t understand it.

I’m too tired. I don’t have it in me to deal with this tonight. This is a tomorrow Hadley problem.

I take care of business quickly before swinging open the other door. I don’t know why I’m still shocked by the extravagance that I find around every corner.

The closet is barely smaller than the sitting room and filled with so many clothes, shoes, and bags that I don’t think I could wear all of them in the next ten years. Shaking my head, I push forward into the bedroom, eyes landing on the largest bed I’ve ever seen in my life.

My eyes are already drooping, so I don’t bother looking around the rest of the room as I crash onto the bed. I’m so tired, I think nothing of the fact that I’m still wearing my clothes and shoes. My eyes are closed before my head has even hit the pillow and I’m grateful once more for my ability to sleep anywhere. At least that’s one thing I don’t have to worry about.

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