Page 7 of Entangled (Guardian Academy 2)

But why can’t I talk about Dash? What on earth is he? And why doesn’t Jax want people to know?

Chapter 5

I’m having the best nightmare-free dream for the first time since I got my mark when I’m startled awake by an annoyingly loud ringing.

My eyelids lift, and sunlight instantly blinds me as a faint, woodsy, wolfish scent engulfs my nostrils. At first, I’m like, who the heck am I all cuddled up with? Then I remember last night and how Jax never left my bed before I fell sleep.

Rubbing the sleepiness from my eyes, I start to sit up to answer the phone that won’t shut up, but then I freeze, realizing the position Jax and I are in. Not only did we sleep together in the same bed, but my head is resting on the crook of his lean arm, my hand is on his rock solid waist, and my leg is hitched over his.

Is this why I slept so well last night?

I shake the ridiculous thought from my head. Stop, Alana, just stop.

I carefully lift my hand off his abs, slide my leg away from his, and slowly sit up. My gaze drops to Jax, and I breathe in relief. He’s still fast asleep. Thank God. If he would’ve woken up, I’d never have heard the end of it.

The phone continues to ring as I study him. He’s resting on his back with his lips slightly parted, and his hair a crazy mess, but in a sexy way that makes me want to run my fingers through the strands to see how soft they are. I keep my insanity in check, though, and resist the crazy compulsion.

God, what would he think if he knew what I was thinking?

“Sleep well last night?” Jax murmurs with his eyes closed and a faint smile tickling his lips.

Dammit! How long has he been awake?

“No, not really,” I lie through a yawn. “I actually had a ton of nightmares of some stalker sneaking into bed with me.”

His eyelids open, and a grin breaks across his face. “You do realize you let me sleep in your bed, right?”

I narrow my eyes at him. “Just because I fell asleep before you did, it doesn’t mean I wouldn’t have kicked you out.”

“You’re such a liar.” He tucks his arms behind his head with a ghost of a smirk on his lips. “You felt too safe to kick me out.”

“I’m not a damsel in distress; I can take care of myself.”

“You may not be a damsel in distress, but you definitely need a babysitter. You’re a handful.”

“Hey, I totally took care of myself before you came into my life.” I pause, deciding if I want to go where my thoughts are headed. “But I’m very grateful that you stayed with me last night and didn’t let anyone try to kill me in my sleep.”

“Wow. Did I just get a thank you …?” He trails off as the phone rings again.

Sitting up, he digs his phone out of his pocket and hammers his finger against the talk button. “This is Jax.” He remains quiet, listening, and then his gaze slides to me. “Okay, but I have to bring my trainee.” He pauses. “Because she’s under strict orders not to be left alone.” Another pause. “Well, she can make up her class work on the weekend.” Irritation flickers in his eyes. “Fine, I’ll let her know.” He hangs up, drops his phone onto his lap, and runs his hand across his face. “We got called into a case.”

“We?” I question. “Since when do I go on cases?”

He lowers his hand from his face and throws me a “really” look. “Since you decided to go digging around into stuff you shouldn’t.” He tosses off the blankets, rises to his feet, and stretches his arms above his head.

“I think we already established that I don’t need a babysitter,” I say, doing my best not to gawk at his lean ab muscles peeking out from the hem of his black T-shirt.

An arrogant smile tugs at his lips. “Enjoying the view?”

“Nope, not at all.” I feel stupid for getting busted, though not enough to blush. “And how am I supposed to go on a case with you when I have detention? Don’t get me wrong; I’d way rather spend a day looking at dead bodies than hanging out in her office, doing stacks of homework, and then cleaning the bathrooms with the janitor, but I don’t think she’s going to be all for it.”

“She made you clean the bathrooms?”

I nod, kicking the rest of the blankets off me and sitting up. “And it sucked balls. I mean, Henry’s a cool dude and everything, but the guys’ bathroom reeks almost as bad as an outhouse.”

Shaking his head, he scoops up his shirt from off the floor. “She shouldn’t make you do that. It’s against the rules.”

I scoot to the edge of the bed and lower my feet to the cold linoleum floor. “I don’t think she really cares about rules.”

He slips his arms through the sleeves of his shirt. “She may think she doesn’t, but she will after I report both incidents.”

I comb my fingers through my long, brown, tangled hair. “I thought you couldn’t report her because she’s the person you’re supposed to report stuff, too. That’s what Dash said last night.”

“I’ll go to the Guardian committee.” He does up a button on his shirt. “They should be able to take care of it.”

“The Guardian committee?” I crinkle my nose. “Aren’t they supposed to be very strict and by the books kind of people?”

He finishes buttoning up his shirt then reaches for his belt on the floor. “They are, but that’s a good thing. They’ll be more hard on her.”

“I guess I see your point.” I rub the dreariness from my eyes, push to my feet, and wander to my dresser to get some clean clothes. “So, why didn’t Dash mention the committee last night?”

He loops the belt through his jeans. “Probably because our father’s on it, and they don’t really get along.”

I pull open the top dresser drawer. “Yeah, I kind of picked up on that last night.”

He freezes in the middle of doing up the belt buckle, and his questioning gaze elevates to me. “Dash talked to you about our father?”

“He just mentioned him a couple of times, and I could sense there was some tension.” I take out a black tank top, jeans, and a plaid shirt and then bump the dresser drawer shut. “He also said something when I first met him about you being brainwashed by your father.”

“Yeah, I forgot he said that.” He flattens his hand over his head, smoothing his hair with a deep frown etched into his face.

“Everything okay?” I ask cautiously.

He nods, blinking up at me. “Yeah, everything’s fine. I just need to go check up on a few things.” He hurriedly slips on his boots then backs toward the door without tying the laces. “Meet me out front in ten minutes. Make sure to keep your phone on you at all times. And do not go anywhere else. I mean it, Alana. Nowhere else.”

“Yes, sir,” I say with a salute. “But when you say nowhere else, does that include the bathroom? Because I really have to pee.”

He stares at me, unimpressed. “Yes, you’re allowed to go to the bathroom.” His tolerant expression goes poof as a haughty grin curls at his lips. “But, now that you’ve called me sir, I really think you should keep—”

“No, thank you,” I quickly

say, shooing him toward the door. “Now get out. I need to get dressed.”

Chuckling, he turns for the door and reaches for the doorknob …

Wait a second …

I gape at the intact door. “When did the door get fixed?”

“I had someone take care of it last night,” he answers, opening the door and revealing that the tile floor is now mark-free.

My lips part in shock. “And the—”

“Would you relax?” He presses me with a shush look, sticking his hand into his front pocket. “Everything’s taken care of, so stop worrying.”

I nod and keep my lips sealed.

When he removes his hand from his pocket, his fingers are curled around my phone. He gives it back to me and heads for the door again. “Be careful with what you say,” he mouths then walks out and shuts the door.

I rush up and twist the lock, hoping that will be enough to keep me safe for the next ten minutes.

Chapter 6

Ten minutes later, I’m standing in front of the school with a gentle morning breeze kissing my skin and the pale pink glow of the sunrise shining down on me. I keep walking up and down the short flight of steps to get my blood pumping and wake myself up more. While I’m not a necessarily exhausted, I’ve never been a morning person and usually don’t fully wake up until I drink a cup of coffee or two. Unfortunately, the cafeteria’s coffee tastes like ass.

I stifle a yawn as I jog back up to the top of the stairs and glance down the driveway, searching for Jax’s car. Where is he? He’s only a few minutes late, but he doesn’t seem like a guy who has ever been tardy to anything. It’s not like I miss him or anything—okay, maybe a little—but with it being so early, hardly anyone’s around, and the aloneness vibe makes me feel squirrely.

I can’t stop tossing nervous glances at the trees, plagued by the sense that someone or something is watching me. I consider calling or texting my dad and letting him know about Vivianne’s secret meeting with the Empress of the Water Fey, not only to update him on what’s going on, but to distract myself from the queasy feeling knotting in the pit of my stomach. But Jax warned me to be careful with what I said over the phone, and I’m guessing that subject falls into the off-limits category.

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