Her Royal Highness (Royals #2) - Rachel Hawkins Page 0,25

little, teeth practically flashing as he slides his hand in his back pocket. “So it is,” he says, lifting one shoulder. “But it’s just a trip down to the pub. I wouldn’t keep you out late, Roomie Quint.”

Flora’s eyes narrow slightly and my cheeks go hot. Suddenly Sakshi’s crush on Seb makes a lot of sense to me, but I’m still not about to go gallivanting off . . . wherever with the two of them.

I’m a rule follower by nature. I’ve never broken curfew, never skipped school, and never been to a bar.

And Jude’s message is still there on my screen, waiting.

So now I just lift my book from my bed and wiggle it slightly. “Homework,” I say. “But you two have fun.”

“Told you,” Flora says in a low voice to Seb, and I’m guessing that means she’s already filled him in on what a bore I am. Fine by me.

Then she steps a little closer to her brother. “Are they all here?”

Seb shakes his head, which has the effect of loosing the perfect amount of hair to flop over his forehead. “Not all. Spiffy, Dons, and Gilly were free, but Sherbet’s busy with school, and Monters is, of course, dead.”

I blink at that, but Flora just rolls her eyes. “He’s not dead, and Caroline said he’s actually back in Scotland now.”

“No, he’s extremely dead, and it’s all very tragic, but I’m moving past it. In any case, Monters wouldn’t have been any help here.”

Flora thinks that over, tilting her head to one side, before nodding with a “True,” and flipping her hair back over her shoulders. “Oh well. Two is better than none, I suppose. Shall we?”

I pretend to read as I watch Flora grab a gray leather jacket off the back of her desk chair, throwing it on over the sweater and jeans she’d changed into earlier. Then she slips her arm through Seb’s, and off they go, the door closing behind them.

I heave a sigh of relief and toss the book to the side, turning my attention back to my laptop. Maybe I’ll just reply with a “hi,” too. Or I could message Lee and ask what he thinks. That’s what I’ll do.

I open a separate message to text Lee, but there’s something niggling in the back of my mind, and, after a sec, I realize it’s a Friendship Alarm.

Saks.

She might not even know Seb is here, and if I tell her that not only was he here, but he came to my room and invited me on a night out, she might never forgive me. Plus I owe her after she came to my rescue today.

Ugh.

I only hesitate for a second before closing the laptop.

Rolling my eyes at myself, I groan and step out into the hallway. “Hey!” I call out, and Flora and Seb turn, almost at the exact same time. I wonder if they’ve practiced that, stunning people with the gorgeousness of their faces.

“I, uh. I think I’ll come after all,” I say, and then shooting for the ultimate in casual, I prop one hand on my hip. “Is it okay if I invite Sakshi?”

“Saks Worthington?” Seb asks, his face splitting with a lazy grin. “Absolutely.”

Flora raises her eyebrows. “Wait, you and Sakshi are actually friends? I just assumed she’d adopted you as one of her charity cases.”

Lovely. “Believe it or not, real friends,” I reply, not even rising to that bait. “So can I bring her?”

Flora glances at her brother. “Seb—” she starts, but he grabs her shoulders, shaking her slightly.

“The more the merrier, sister of mine!”

Flora’s upper lip curls a little, but she glances over at me and, with a shrug, finally mutters, “Whatever.”

That’s all the permission I need, and I scoot past the royal siblings to jog down to the second floor.

Sakshi opens the door on my second knock, her hair scraped back from her face, a sheet mask on. “Millie!” she exclaims. “What—”

“Sebishereandwantstogoout,” I say in a rush, but, thank god, after just a week of friendship, Saks can interpret Nervous Millie.

Holding one finger out in my face, she says, “Twenty. Seconds.”

The door slams, and I stand there on the other side, gaping at the wood because there is no way—

The door flies open again, and there stands Saks, wearing a perfect pair of jeans, a T-shirt just short enough to expose her toned stomach, and no sheet mask in sight. In fact, she appears to be—

“How did you get a full face of makeup on that fast?” I