Page 25 of A Taste of Torment
But going to school here is like living in L.A. When you’re surrounded by models, singers, and actresses, it’s hard to feel beautiful.
Still, that wouldn’t bother me if dating the hottest guy in school wouldn’t put a microscope on me. Half the whispers will be jealous complaints of how Jarron couldn’t possibly be into me when there are dozens of incredibly gorgeous options not only ready but eager to jump his bones.
“So, you were friends before,” Lola prompts. “Like how close? Tell us about it.”
“Like childhood best friends. We explored the island together and caught lightning sprites by the fae portals. He led me through a pretty deep cave one time, and we found this super cool underground waterfall. It was… it was really amazing.”
“That sounds romantic,” Janet says, wiggling her brows. Lola’s body shimmers purple.
“It wasn’t. Not really. I was thirteen, and we didn’t—well,Ididn’t think of it that way.”
“Maybe he was trying to woo you even then.”
I laugh. “Yeah, I don’t think so. I don’t know when—” I shake my head. It doesn’t matter because it’s not real. None of it is real.
And to be perfectly honest, there is a very real possibility that Jarron wants to pretend to date me so he can kill me the way he killed my sister.
You really do think I’m a monster, don’t you?
I want to believe in Jarron. I really do want to believe that he could remain good. That he could still be the boy I cared about. That I shared my secrets with.
The sad look in his eyes from today will haunt me for a while.
I just can’t let those hopes and that guilt overrule my better judgement. There’s a chance—a small one—that he could be the sweet boy I knew, and there’s also a chance—a good one—that he really is a monster.
12
If a Demon Must Publicly Claim You, Flowers aren’t the Worst Option
A gentle knockon my door drags me from a restless sleep.
My limbs are stiff and heavy as I twist in the small, lumpy bed. I groan and turn over, hiding from the early morning light streaming through the window, despite the curtains being drawn tight. Leave it to Minor Hall to get paper-thin curtains. It’s not like any vampires would be in this hall.
“What was that?” Corrine, my roommate, asks, her voice much more chipper than anyone should be at first light.
I groan. “Don’t know. Don’t care.” The clock says it’s 7:15 a.m. I do not intend to get my sorry butt out of this bed until precisely 8:15 a.m. Fifteen minutes before my first class.
The knock is louder the second time. “Delivery!” a voice calls.
“Delivery?” Corrine squeals. She hops up to open the door and squeals again at the sight of a massive bouquet of calla lilies so dark they look black at first glance but are really shades of purple and red. “Ohmegod!” She lifts the flowers by the vase. The petals loom over her head, getting stuck in strings of her hair.
A few students crowd our doorway from the hall. Apparently, the delivery, even this early in the morning, caught some people’s attention.
“Who the hell would send you flowers?” I grumble, wiping the sleep from my eyes. I don’t think I’ll be getting any more sleep this morning. A fact I am not remotely happy about.
“Not me,” Corrine says. “You.”
After a pause, where my brain shuts down and reboots, I throw my hands over my face.Dammit. The events of yesterday come crashing back down on me.I’m fake-dating the demon prince. Right.
“Candice,” she reads the card, slow and sultry. “I feel like the luckiest person alive that I get a second chance at getting to know you. I’ll be saving you a seat at lunch. Love, Jarron.”
More squeals. This time, Corrine is not alone; several of the students in the hall are swooning with her. People I don’t even know.
God, why did he have to make a spectacle?
I groan. I know why. Because in the supernatural world, you show your intentions openly. Everyone knows who you belong to. He’s claiming me as his in the most human way he can manage. The other options are morebarbaric.
He must know they’d go over very badly with me if he tried. There will be no marks left on my body, permanent or not.
