I throw my bag onto the bed and turn to find her glaring at me with her hands tight on her hips. The evidence of what happened last night covers her neck. The faint, barely there bruises are the perfect shape of Declan’s fingers. Worry plummets to the pit of my stomach.
“Your neck.” I brush my fingers over them. She winces and retreats from my touch.
“I know.” She covers the fragile skin with her hand. “I’m so stupid. I should’ve listened to you.”
“Neither of us could’ve known, Laney.” I sit down on the edge of my bed. “Are you okay, though?”
“I’d really like to put last night behind me, if that’s okay.” Her head lowers like she has something to be ashamed of.
“You know you didn’t do anything wrong, right? You’re not to blame for that asshole’s actions.”
“I know, but there’s something I don’t understand.” She sits down next to me. “Why did they come to my rescue, and better yet, why would you let me stay in the room with Breaker all by myself? Haven’t you heard the rumors about him?”
“I’ve heard the rumors about all of them, yes.” I fall back to the mattress, practically feeling Marek’s warm breath on my neck. “What’s your point?”
“Last time I checked, we hate them.”
“You have no reason to hate them.” I chuckle.
“But you do. And even though you’ve never told me those reasons, I’m smart enough to understand those reasons are enough for me to hate them with you. So, explain to me how last night went down.”
I relive the night, exactly how it played out, minus the little run-in with Byron and Marek in the bedroom. Those memories are only meant for me.
“So, without any questions, they came to my rescue?” She squints, doubting everything from the night before. “Boys like them don’t care about anyone except themselves.”
“I guess they saw how worried I was when I couldn’t find you, and they realized maybe you were in danger.” I walk over and flip on my coffee pot. My brain needs the caffeine. I should have never declined Byron. At least I would have been a couple cups in by now.
“There’s a common denominator in all of this, you know.” Delaney grins at me. “You. They came to my rescue because of you.”
“Whatever it was, I’m glad they did, or else who knows what could’ve happened to you in that room.”
She gazes into thin air, like she’s reliving the night, then shakes her head and shrugs.
“You all good?”
“It’s weird.” She scrunches her nose. “Breaker made me feel safe, like nothing could get past him to get to me. I don’t think we’ve exchanged a single word since third grade.”
“They’re sort of an anomaly, aren’t they?” I say, pinching my bottom lip in memory.
“Oh, hell no!” She smacks my leg as I pass to grab my schoolbooks. “You have a total crush on one of them, but which one?” She taps her chin, curious.
“No, I don’t.” I turn my back to avoid her stare. “I’m just intrigued is all.”
“Just be careful. Those boys like to toy around, and my guess is they’d destroy you in fifteen minutes.” She stands and heads for the door. “I mean it, Palmer. You’re too vanilla for them. They’re more into girls like your . . .”
“Like my sister.” I finish the thought for her.
“Yes, like Reed.” Her face shifts into a sympathetic smile I’m far too familiar with.
After what happened to Reed, I’ve grown far too accustomed to people tiptoeing around me.
“She loved them. Not in a perverse kind of way, but to her, they were these undeniable creatures. The world could turn their back on them, and she’d be there. I never quite understood what had her so indebted to them.” I pour myself a cup of coffee and hold the warm mug in my hands.
“And now you do?”
“No, but I’d love to see what she saw.”
“Like I said”—Delaney opens the door, then lifts her hands— “just be careful.” She smiles, but it’s clouded by the doubt in her voice.
Once she leaves, I spend the rest of my day in my room studying and prepping for the week. Glass Heart Academy isn’t easy. Everything about our schooling is meant to push us, to prepare each of us for university. We are elite, ranked highest in the country for academics for a reason. We work our asses off, simply because we have no choice.