Page 21 of Lovely Deceit

“Please pass this along, then,” Sir Wright states before turning his back to the stairs and facing the rest of us. “The final Trials of all the Pledges have concluded. Meeting tomorrow, 7 p.m.”

My brain is buzzing with questions, but Oliver grabs my hand, distracting me.

“You’re expected to arrive in your Pledge groups. Don’t be late,” he ends, eyeing the three of us before seeing himself out.

When the door shuts behind him, the three of us stand still for the longest time. Oliver breaks the silence. “Did anyone else find that extremely odd? Why not send one of those notes or invitations like before?”

Leo’s lips purse. “They don’t do anything without a reason. Maybe they realized you tried to escape with Eden and wanted to make sure all of us were back.”

“We weren’t escaping,” I counter, though one of us clearly was. “If we want to talk about escaping, let’s talk about Alaric.”

Leo snorts. “He’s a pussy. What’s there to talk about?”

“The fact that we don’t know where he is,” Oliver explains. “We have to arrive as the four of us, and he’s completely skipped out.”

“He’s probably balls deep in another student.” Leo’s eyes flash as he glares at me. I knew he was jealous when he walked in on the tail end of what Alaric and I did in his classroom.

I will the embarrassment not to creep onto my face. Oliver turns to me. “Did you fuck our professor?”

“No, I just sucked his dick.”

“Oh, okay. Well, that’s better,” he says, rolling his eyes. “And Leo’s obviously jealous because—”

“Because I haven’t sucked his. Keep up, Number Five.”

“Oh, right. It probably stung when he barged in on you suckingmeoff then.”

“Probably.”

A cruel smirk pulls at Leo’s lips. “You thought I was jealous? I could have you on your knees for me in seconds. Again.”

In another time, he could have. I enjoyed his games—the push and pull between us. Now, I don’t want to go near him unless it’s in my favor. I turn to Ollie. “You know, you could just get a piercing.”

He turns his head as if he’s actually thinking about it. He never would, he’s terrified of needles, but it’s fun to play, anyway. “Maybe a few.”

I bite my lip. “Now that could be fun.”

The longer we talk about the kind and number of piercings Oliver should get, the angrier Leo becomes. Eventually, Oliver throws his arm around me. “Don’t worry, Jarvis. I got this.”

“And we’ll figure out where Alaric is, too,” I add as Oliver helps me limp toward the stairs. “You just go back to brooding in your room.”

I think we’re going to get out of there free and clear until a hand snatches me right out of Oliver’s grip. Leo’s huge body pins me against the closest wall. “Don’t try to play a player, Little Miss Astor. You’re in over your head.”

I stretch my chin into the air. “You haven’t seen anything yet.”

11

Alaric

Arriving at the building that houses my classroom after lunch doesn’t bring the same feelings it once did. My gut tightens with anticipation. I’m caught between wanting to see Eden and dreading it at the same time. I’ve made myself scarce most of the day, as if I’m a young boy again, tiptoeing around the house, trying to make myself invisible.

Guilt swarms me the nearer the minute hand gets. I don’t know if she’ll be at my class at all, really, but I suspect she will.

I’m not used to feeling guilty for the way I’ve acted. I didn’t feel an ounce of apprehension when I kicked all of my students out of the room so I could enjoy Eden sucking my cock and then taste her for myself. I never regret the business decisions I make on behalf of the Barclay corporations.

But this, this one little thing has gotten to me. I didn’t move because of the presence of the Knights. Because of my standing within them. I fooled myself into believing I could rise above my father’s clutches, but all it took was his hand on my arm to fall in line again.

Speaking up would’ve meant choosing Eden Astor over the Knights.

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