Page 140 of Mistaken Magic

"Shh..." he breathed, dropping down to a knee beside me. "Rain, you have as much right to be here as anyone else."

"They'refae or faelings,"Ipointed out. "Thefew humans here are all related to the fae.Step-kids, right?Adopted?"

Brackenjust ducked his head and huffed out a small laugh. "Whatdo you think you are?"

Iwasn't following him. "Liam'smy caseworker.Iknow he said he's my uncle, but that's very much a technicality, and it'snot exactly a secret.Imean, isn't he the caseworker for like half the school?"

"Listento me," he said gently. "Youare a foster child.Yourfoster father isLiam'sbrother.IamLiam's... we'll go with boyfriend.Iam fae.Iam pure fae, andIconsider you family.Thatmeans you are related to fae as much as any adopted child.You'vebeen exposed to our world now, and you have become an important part."

"Yeah?"Iasked.

Henodded. "Ipromise.Besides, it's not likeLiamandIcan have kids of our own.Thebest we can do is spoil someone else's, and that's you, so relax.Youdon't have to prove your worth,Rain.You'rehere to learn, not be judged."Hetilted his head to look me over. "Whattests do you still have?"

"Yours,"Iadmitted. "Self-Defensetomorrow andOffenseonFriday."

"Andthat's it?" he asked.

Inodded. "I'mjust waiting for grades on the rest of them."

"Thosewill comeFriday," he told me. "Usually, they'll all hit just after the end of your last class."Thenhe lifted his head and waved someone over. "Ialso think you should declare a partner for both this exam andOffense."

Keirjogged over. "Yeah?"

"Wouldyou pair withRainfor her next two exams?"Brackenasked.

Keirbobbed his head once. "Ofcourse.Iwasn't sure you'd allow that sinceI'min the advanced section, though."

"Thistime,Keir,I'llbe judging you on your ability to teach her, and hers on how to learn."Brackenrubbed my shoulder in encouragement. "Andno stage fright.Youknow what you're doing,Rain.Youjust have to do it."

Afterthat, he left us to practice.Iwanted to drill everything, butKeirdid a good job of focusing me.Inthe end, the wholething was a letdown.Onthe day of our exam,Brackendidn't call anyone forward and make them put on a show.Hesimply meandered through the groups sparring and made a few faces.

Offensewas even more subtle.Keirhad me interrupting his casting while trying to drop him to the ground.Iwas laughing about him working so hard to actually conjure a spell whenBrackenleaned in and whispered, "Pass," to me.

Thatwas it!Nostress.Nodisplay.Nojudgment.Itwas just like he'd said, and the best part was he didn't grade me any differently than he did anyone else.Allof us were simply observed,Brackennoticed both our mistakes and our corrections, then he graded us on the entire sparring effort, not just one quick match.

Butwhen we left the building at the end of the day, my tablet began going crazy.Keir'svibrated a moment later.Excitedly, he pulled it out and swiped at the screen, his feet pausing.Iwatched as his eyes scanned the screen, and then he let out a sigh of relief.

"Idid it," he breathed. "AsandBs.MeansI'mstill eligible to be aTA.Whatabout you?"

Ilifted my tablet almost nervously and squinted my eyes hard asIopened the app.Then, sucking in a deep breath to brace,Iopened first one eye, then the other.There, covering my tablet, was an entire page of my grades.Areport card of sorts.Eachclass listed all of my homework and quiz scores in a row, but it was the number at the end that mattered most.

Themidterm exam was the next to last, and the bold one in a box of its own was my semester average.Startingat the top with first period,Ilet my eyes run down them.B,C,B,A,A,B,A.Exceptfor math,I'dnot only passed, butI'dmadegoodgrades.

Thewhoop came out loudly, andIturned to throw my arms aroundKeir'sneck, the tablet still in my hand. "ImadeAsandBsin everything but math.Igot aCin that!"

Hisarms wrapped around my back and he lifted, hugging me hard. "That'smy girl!"

Thenwe both paused.Fora moment,Iwasn't even sureIbreathed.Keirwas tall.Hewas hard, solid, and beautiful, and he was holding me so tightly.Myfeet were barely even touching the ground, and his face was right there.Thoseviolet eyes met mine, and then he gently eased me back down.

"Sorry," he breathed.

"Areyou sureAspenwon't be hurt?"Iasked.

Hisbrow furrowed for a moment. "AmIsure?No, but she's given me no reason to think otherwise.Why?"

"BecauseIalmost kissed you,"Isaid, the words barely coming out. "Iwanted to,Keir, butIdon't want to cheat on her, and - "

JustasIstarted to pull away, he caught me around the back, bent, and his mouth found mine.Irelaxed into him, my lips parting, and he was right there.Hiskiss was hard, but not aggressive - amazingly masculine after kissingAspenso much.Histongue explored my mouth, taking control, andIlet him have it.

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