Page 24 of Feral
“Fair enough,” said Mr. Bryant. Axel was surprised when he actually returned the handshake. He turned and left with an apathetic wave. “Meet me in the morning before class. There’s no time to waste.”
“Isn’t that when you tutor Ella?” Axel asked.
The teacher stopped walking, but he didn’t turn around. “Don’t be late. I detest tardiness.”
That was all he’d say, and Axel muttered an irritated curse under his breath. “Weirdo.”
Axel didn’t believe for one second that the man’s motives were as pure as he claimed, but he didn’t have many options. Whatever had happened between Ella and Bishop the night before, it was a chance he couldn’t afford to waste.
Chapter 12
Ella
It had been a few days since Ella’s return from the club, but she still couldn’t get it out of her head. Sterling’s words kept rattling around in her skull, causing a terrible echo that filled her with the same inadequacy and despair she’d thought she had left behind when she came to the Academy.
She told herself it didn’t matter. He was far from the only one who thought her unworthy. Her position, her title, her sudden shift in fortune, Bishop’s attention. It didn’t matter. It seemed that the one thing everyone in the colony could agree on was that she didn’t deserve any of it, but what else was new? She’d been an outcast all her life, so why should this one man’s opinion cut so deeply while she had grown immune to all the others?
When she realized getting over it was a hopeless cause, she decided to suppress it, and it had been working. To a degree. She’d been able to get through her classes, and surprisingly enough, the other students were leaving her alone for the most part.
It felt like the target that had been on her back from the moment she was moonmarked was finally beginning to fade, little by little.
There was one more thing she couldn’t get out of her head. Bishop had texted her the morning after the party to ask if she was feeling better, but while he’d made an attempt to see her again, she kept finding excuses.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to see him. His presence was comforting, and she needed it now more than ever, but Sterling’s words had made her doubt more than her own sense of belonging.
It was obvious there was more than just enmity between the two. They absolutely despised each other, but why?
She would have loved to dismiss Sterling’s opinion of Bishop, since it would make her feel better about the way he saw her, but she couldn’t. He was a man of character and class, and she felt that surely his low opinion of her reinforced that rather than contradicting it.
If he hated Bishop, there must be a reason. She just couldn’t figure out what that reason was.
Ella felt guilty for not coming out and asking him about it. He at least deserved the chance to speak for himself before she judged him on another man’s account, but the strange encounter had shaken her confidence in sleeping with him, if nothing else.
Until she knew what was really going on between them, she wasn’t going to be able to make any other decision in peace.
When Ella had finally made up her mind to ask him to meet her somewhere to talk, she started typing out a text only for his name to pop up on her screen. She was nearly in her dorm room, so she ducked in before answering and leaned against the door.
“Hello?”
“It’s good to hear your voice,” Bishop said in a silken tone that reminded her of his caresses and made her shiver in need. “I was worried you were avoiding me.”
“No,” she said with a soft sigh. “Not at all. Actually, I was going to ask if you wanted to meet up somewhere.”
“Tonight?” He sounded conflicted and she regretted assuming he’d be free.
“If you’re busy, don’t worry about it.”
“No, it’s just… If it was anything else, I’d bail, but it’s a family thing and I can’t get out of it. It’s kind of hard to explain.”
“It’s fine,” she insisted. She knew he must have plenty of obligations as the current Empress’ son on top of his schoolwork and the soccer team. The fact that he made any time for her at all was flattering in itself. “Another time.”
“That’s actually what I was calling you about. I wanted to ask you in person, but since it’s tomorrow, I guess this is the only option,” he said with a laugh.
Ella froze, her heart pounding away in her chest like a drum. Was this it? Was he going to suggest they sleep together? The thought was as nerve-wracking as it was enticing, and she knew she had to speak with him more than ever.
“There’s a ball tomorrow night. I was hoping you’d make me the most envied man in the room.”
Her cheeks grew warm and she turned away from the phone, as if he could somehow see her. “Is this one of your secret society parties?” she asked wryly. “Am I going to need a masquerade mask and lingerie?”
