time and there’s so much to do.”
I’m about to turn on my heel and run screaming back to the campus on foot, but Gabe plants a hand on my back and gives me a gentle shove in the direction of the house staff, propelling me into this entire farce of a night.
I’m led through the maze of a house into a bedroom somewhere on the second floor and immediately there are women ‘working’ on me, stripping me and working to turn me into the pretty, obedient, and voiceless Bond North wants for the evening.
I realize that it’s not the woman tugging me into a stunning Dior gown’s fault, or the timid girl clucking over the lavender tones of my hair either, so I seal my mouth shut and let them do their work. I can murder North’s assuming, pretentious ass when he crawls out from whichever rock he’s hiding under.
The staff are far too good at knowing how to out-maneuver me, so instead of leading me downstairs to wherever the fuck North is, they take me straight down to the garage in an elevator I didn’t know existed and deposit me straight into one of the Rolls Royces, locking the doors so I can’t escape.
I have to use a variety of meditation techniques I’ve learned over the years to calm myself back down because I’m about to stab someone. It doesn’t help that I’m due for my period and all of the extra hormones have me so insanely bloodthirsty that my gift is begging me to let it out to play.
I’m safely encased in an ice-cold demeanor by the time North finally arrives, sliding into the seat next to me without so much as a greeting or an apology, and I ignore him entirely.
I’m going to ruin him during this dinner.
The trip into the city is silent and as uncomfortable as hell.
I do my best not to fuss with my dress, but I've never worn something so fancy in my life. There’s a part of me that’s worried that I look like an idiot, like a child playing dress-up in her mother’s closet, and North's complete dismissal of me doesn't help a single bit. He doesn’t even have his phone in his hand as an excuse, he just scowls out the window like we’re some old married couple who enjoy nothing more than stilted silence.
It’s not until we’re stopped at a red light in front of the restaurant that he finally speaks to me. “This dinner is about more than your attitude. If you really care about the Gifted community as much as you say you do, then you’ll be on your best behavior, whatever that looks like.”
I hate him.
I hate him and all of his manipulations. Every part of this experience has come from him watching me and learning about me without my notice, only for it all to be used against me to get exactly what he wants.
I loathe him.
The driver stops in the valet drop-off area and North waits for him to open the door for us both, adjusting the Rolex on his wrist and rolling his shoulders back like he’s preparing to go to war.
I get a hold of myself and prepare to do what’s right, I can wait until the night is over before I scratch his eyeballs out for being the single worst human I’ve ever met, and I’m including the scumbag he calls a brother in that assessment.
North helps me out of the car and then directs me into the restaurant and over to the table with a firm hand on my back. The skin underneath his palm feels warm and tingly and I have to tell my bond to settle the fuck down because we hate him. He doesn't care about me, he hasn't brought me here as his beloved Bond, I'm just a pawn in his chess game.
The other council members all stand from their seats when they see us approach. My knees begin to shake because this is a lot of goddamn pressure to have thrown at me without any warning or coaching. He’s just expecting me to know what the fuck to do here and honestly, I’m probably going to fuck it up without meaning to.
There are at least twenty people attending and all of them know my name, greeting me as they greet North, and I feel like an idiot standing there with him in the gown, makeup on, heels, and lavender freaking hair!
They all look me up