Page 26 of Lovely Deceit

He grins into the line of my jaw. “No, I’m worked up because I haven’t been able to be close to you in—”

“Half an hour?”

“Has it been that long?” He lets out a sigh. “I should take you against this column here in the shadows.”

My core heats with his words. Part of me wishes he would actually do it, but that would be stupid considering we’re surrounded by depraved sex addicts. “If you’re a good little prince, I’ll—”

A throat clears next to us, and Oliver and I break away. My propensity to laugh in stressful situations is stolen right out of my chest when Sir Jarvis stares down at me. When I look at him, all I can see is Anne-Marie riding his cock like her life depended on it, and I want to spew chunks all over his expensive shoes. “Miss Astor. Prince Oliver.”

“Sir Jarvis.” I swallow, attempting to act normal. Whatever happened to my sister, he knows about it. He’s at the top. Knowing that, it’s hard not to call him a senile, puke-inducing maggot that I wished would die a hundred deaths. But calling him names would never make up for what he’s done. I’m sure I’ve only skimmed the top of what Jarvis has his hands in.

A palm settles on my shoulder. “Grandfather.”

My jaw clenches on instinct. I don’t want Leo anywhere near me, but the two Jarvises right next to each other is an interaction I’m dying to see.

“I’m glad the Elders saw what I saw in the final Trial: someone who can withstand the evils of life.”

I narrow my gaze at him. The contrast between the two men is striking, apparent even here in the shadows of the chamber. Leo is taller than his elder relative, but not by much. The main difference comes in how big Leo is—he’s built like a house. Age may have stolen Franklin Jarvis’ muscle mass, but he makes up for it in the darkness of his pointed stare that’s currently settled upon his grandson. “Fear will always be man’s friend. Overcoming it is what makes us stronger.”

“Do you feel strong, Eden?” Leo asks me.

I purse my lips. I don’t know what he’s getting at, but it doesn’t matter. “I do,” I tell him honestly. Being tied up and hung over the river only made me more determined. So, yes, I’m much stronger.

Sir Jarvis’ stare falls to the boot I’m wearing. “I am sorry to see that you were hurt.”

I’d briefly thought about winging it tonight without the boot so I wouldn’t be seen as weak, but Oliver talked me out of it. “Just a sprain.” His eyes work their way up, taking their fill, and my body stills at the memory of how all Knights have always looked at me and my sister. Sick bastards. “I actually have a question,” I tell him, hoping to stop his perusal.

“Ask away,” he says, meeting my gaze with his sinister one.

“Are the groupings still instated during the Fledgling process?”

Jarvis briefly moves his attention toward his grandson, then back to me. “Of course, though you will be more independent as time moves on. The groups of four were meant to support the female Pledges as they moved through the process, and that hasn’t changed.”

Something in the back of my mind tells me that what I’m about to do is a bad idea, but then I remember that Alaric was on the dock the whole time and never even bothered to show his face. At least Leo stood there in full view, making himself known while also not helping one fucking bit. But Alaric hid from me. Just like he’s continued to do since I got back. “So what do I do if someone hasn’t been performing his duties as you requested?”

“I do notrequest,” Franklin grinds out. “I demand.” He stares at Leo, and the hand on my shoulder squeezes in what can only be a warning.

Just you wait, Leo. This isn’t about you. Not yet anyway.

I pause, enjoying the glare Sir Jarvis is giving his grandson. He looks as if he could maim him. Eventually, I say, “It’s Alaric Barclay.”

The older man’s glare whips back to me. Eventually, he turns to peer at Leo, and I can tell he totally did not see that one coming and is looking to his grandson for confirmation. “Barclay?”

“He hasn’t been around since the last Trial.” Of course, I leave out the part where I left the state. “He’s completely moved out of Jarvis Hall.”

His eyes widen. “Is this true?” he asks Leo as if a woman couldn’t possibly be telling the real story. He needs a man to tell him what is actually going on.

Leo attempts to shrug it off. “He may have thought that the groupings weren’t needed anymore.”

“I didn’t tell you to think,” he seethes.

Leo’s jaw twitches. I can tell the relationship between the two is strained, and there’s an obvious reason. But I also think that Leo respects his grandfather’s power. And it kills him to do it.

“Are you putting in an official complaint?”

I don’t even know what that means, but it sounds like that’s what I want to do. Leo said he was ridiculed when he got kicked out of the Knights. I hope putting in a complaint is something similar. I hope it demoralizes Alaric. Scares him to death. Paralyzes him with the unknown. Then, when I sit back and watch, I might feel a little better. “Can I do that?” I ask hesitantly. “I only just made it to Fledgling.”

“You are one of us now, Astor. A Pledge is still an outsider. You have proven yourself worthy. You still have more tests, but you are counted as one of us.”

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