Page 10 of The Claiming

She raises her eyes in disbelief.

“Wow, Frankie. That internship with Lucifer is really paying off.”

He shrugs. “Lucky guess.”

To be honest, I’m glad of the distraction the coffee brings because up close, Frankie Majerio is astonishing. I can’t breathe. It’s as if he is withholding the air from my lungs for a cheap thrill and casting his wicked gaze in my direction as a test.

I summon every ounce of disinterest I have and settle back in my seat and regard him with a cool gaze of my own and hate the sudden smirk that falls on his lips.

Siri sighs beside me and taps her manicured nails on the table.

“Let’s get this over with, then. Say your piece and then I’ll do my best to avoid you for the rest of the year.”

He nods and appears happy with that and I wonder about their relationship. Family she says. I wonder.

SIX

FRANKIE

The girl from the pool. This is interesting.

As soon as I saw Siri making her way inside, my gaze deflected to the woman walking beside her. She may have clothes on now, but the memory of her impressive body is still fresh in my mind and rather than study my cousin, I take my fill of her instead.

She is certainly beautiful and a step up from most of the girls who attend Rockwell. Even now I realize that. It’s in the way she conducts herself. The aloof barrier she holds in front of her and the disinterest she appears to have for just about anything. Coffee aside.

I noted the way her cheeks flushed with pleasure as she took her first sip. The sparkle in her eyes and the way the foam clung to her lips before her tongue swiped it away. I studied the way her hands gripped the cup with tense knuckles, revealing she was more affected than she wants to portray and her erratic breathing that showed she was affected by me against her better judgment. She doesn’t want to be affected by me. She is angry about that and playing it cool. Will she be the challenge I seek? I fucking hope she doesn’t let me down, which leads me on to the reason I summoned Siri.

“It’s time to dish out the crap.”

Siri chuckles as I throw her words back at her and my heart swells with affection for my spirited family member. Of all my cousins, Siri is my favorite. I think of her as a sister and she may as well be one. She is friends with Summer, my younger sister, who is due to come here next year. Siri has been in my life since I can recall memories and despite the fact we argue incessantly, I would kill for her and she knows that.

“You came here for your freedom – think again.”

I’m direct and Siri groans, placing her head in her hands.

“Fuck, Frankie. Can’t you just loosen the chain a little?”

“Firstly, don’t swear. It’s not a good look.”

She opens her mouth to object and I hold up my hand.

“Secondly, the chains are there for your protection and if you think I want to face your father and explain why some stupid jock robbed his daughter’s virginity, you have obviously forgotten where we come from.”

Siri groans, her face disguised by her hands, her foot tapping angrily on the floor in an obvious tantrum.

I take a moment to enjoy the spectacle because Siri can’t disguise her emotions, no matter how hard she tries.

Her friend remains impassive, but I detect a calculating gleam in her eye as she sips the coffee, an innocent bystander in a world of male domination.

I lean forward. “There is a way of loosening the chains a little.”

Siri’s fingers part and she peers through them, causing a small chuckle to spill from my lips.

She is so cute—a child, really. Brimming with impudence and sass and yet full of loyalty and adventure.

“I’m listening.”

She lowers her hands and I detect the interest in her eyes as she sips her coffee, waiting for me to speak.

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