Chapter 220

“Luca,” I say, lifting my head to stare at him dubiously. “You’re an international boxing champion. You have some platform for arrogance.”

He grins at me, his dimples flaring in that way that I love. “An international boxing champion who shouts at the woman he loves and barely passes his finals, trusting that his royal connections will get him through.”

I twist my lips to the side, tacitly admitting that there…is room for improvement there.

“I want to be a man who deserves to be mated to you, Ariel,” Luca says softly, sitting up straight and nodding. “I think…maybe that’s why the Goddess had me meet you when she did. So that I could start working on myself before it’s too late.”

“You know I like you just as you are, right?” I say softly, looking up at him, meaning it. “I mean…I could do without the shouting – but everything else? You deserve me, Luca – there’s nothing else you have to do.”

“I want to be a better man,” he says softly, leaning forward to nudge me with his nose. “Let me do it for you. Okay?”

I hesitate, not liking something about that. “Do it for you, Luca,” I say quietly, pressing a hand warm against his chest, his heart. “You don’t have to do anything for me – but if you want to be a better version of yourself then I’ll support you all the way.”

“Good,” he says, giving a quick nod and then stealing a kiss so fast that it makes me laugh.

I kiss him back though, just for a moment, before beaming at him. “Does this mean you’re going to really study now!?”

“Yes…” he says, narrowing his eyes, suspicious, “but…why do you look so happy about that?”

“Because!” I say, bouncing away from him and across the bed, reaching for my desk. “I can help! I got all of these new study supplies for Midwinter – mom gave them to me – I’ll teach you my color coding system! We can –“

But Luca groans, laughing, and collapses on my bed, already exhausted by it. “I said I was going to study, Ariel, not become a complete nerd –“

“They are one in the same, Luca Grant,” I say, high and mighty, grabbing my collection of highlighters and colored pens and clasping them to my chest.

Luca laughs at me and I begin to lay out the pens next to him, explaining my system. He listens dutifully, either actually interested or doing a damn good job pretending to be, when another set of footsteps come into the room. I peek out from my nook and beam when I see that it’s Jackson.

“Hi!” I call, waving to him as he comes into the room.

Jackson nods around to everyone and gives Ben a warm hug before coming over to me. My heart flutters a little with anxiety because, of course, Luca Grant is sitting with me on my bed and I don’t know how Jackson is going to take that. But Jackson, to my surprise, has little to no reaction – he simply nods a greeting to Luca and moves his eyes back to me.

“Showing him the pens?” he asks, because of course he already got this tutorial on Midwinter morning when I opened my new pen set.

“Yes, he’s not as excited as me.” My mouth twists with chagrin.

“No one is, Ariel,” Jackson says, dead serious. Then he moves his eyes back to Luca, even though he still speaks to me. “Do you mind? If the two of us take a minute to chat?”

My eyes go wide because…I mean, this is entirely unprecedented.

“Are you gonna…beat each other up?” I ask, looking between the two of them.

Luca scoffs and Jackson just shakes his head, looking back at me like he thinks I’m funny. I grin, loving that, because I’ve never been the funny one – not with Jesse around my whole life.

“Where to?” Luca says with a sigh, sitting up.

“Here is fine,” Jackson says, taking a seat on the bed. Then he tilts his head towards the room, clearly implying that I should go.

I gasp, appalled. “Are you kicking me out of my own nook!?”

“We’ll give it back,” Jackson says, giving a little shrug, unable to help his grin.

“Don’t mess it up,” I say, pointing a finger at each of them in turn before standing and putting the pens back in their spot on the desk and stepping towards the moon.

“No promises,” Luca murmurs, smiling at me as Jackson – to my shock – reaches out and unhooks the curtain, letting it slip closed so that they have more privacy.

I step back to the couch and sink down next to Ben, but I don’t say anything. Instead I just stare, slack-jawed, at the curtain, kind of desperate to know what the hell they’re saying.

“What’s going on in there,” Ben whispers to me as Rafe and Jesse continue to chat, sending not-too-secret glances towards the nook as they, too, clearly wonder what the hell is going on and if a fight is about to start.

“I have no idea,” I whisper back, shaking my head.

“Do you think they’re making out?” he whispers to me, leaning closer. “Please tell me they’re making out.”

I burst into a grin and elbow him in the ribs. “Your fantasy, Ben, is not mine.”

“What, you never thought about it?” he asks, grinning at me a little wickedly. “They’re both your mates, you never thought about –“

“Benny!” I gasp, giving him a harder shove that makes him roar with laughter. “That’s gross! That’s –“

But he laughs too hard for me to get anything else out and I lose it soon after, laughing along with him.

“Are you scandalizing my sister, Ben?” Rafe asks, peering at us as we continue to giggle, slumped against each other on the couch.

“It’s just so easy,” Ben says, slipping a casual arm around my shoulders. “She’s a lil innocent vanilla baby with absolutely no kinks.”

“Precisely as she shall stay,” Rafe murmurs, giving a satisfied nod and glancing again towards the nook, which remains enclosed.

“Nah, I think baby trouble has some spice to her,” Jesse says, winking at me from his spot draped across his chair, one leg over the arm. “She just needs some time to access it.”

“Well, it’s not like that’s going to happen anytime soon with the new sex ban,” I say, pouting and leaning against the arm of the couch.

“Wait, what’s this?” Ben asks, delighted and scandalized at once, sitting up straight to look at me. “A new development?”

I groan, tucking my face into my hands, wondering how the hell he doesn’t know about this already – he was there that day, after all – did no one tell him? Jesse quickly fills Ben in as I blush scarlet, but the boys generously give me my space until I again collect my equanimity. This lasts quite well until the curtain to the nook finally opens and Luca and Jackson come out, each looking a little tired but certainly unscathed.

Ben leans close to me, about to make a crack, but I whip a finger up and point it right into his face. “Be careful about your jokes, Benny,” I whisper, “because someone has a new development as well, and if you push me too far I might spill it to Jesse, which will result in life-long torture.”

Ben freezes and then it’s his turn to blush as he laughs. “Peace, then,” he says, lifting his hands into the air. “Peace – stalemate – whatever you want to call it.”

“Accepted,” I say, offering my hand, which he shakes as Luca sits down on Ben’s other side and Jackson takes a spot on the floor next to me. “But don’t think we’re done talking about it.”

Ben gives me a little nod and a smirk and I can tell that he’s desperate to talk about his newfound mated-to-the-Atalaxian situation too – and probably glad to have someone to talk to about it. My heart twists as I realize how much this must have been weighing on him.

“Talking about what?” Jackson asks, looking up at me.

“Nothing, Jackson,” I say, giving him a warm smile.

Jackson flicks his eyes to Ben and then narrows them at me, clearly wanting to know. But when I laugh and just shake my head, he shrugs and gives in.

“So, we’re all good here?” Rafe says, looking between Luca and Jackson, his voice surprised. “No…shifting into our wolves? No brawls?”

“Nah, we’re good,” Luca says, turning his head to beam at me. I smile back, genuinely pleased.

“Boooo,” Jesse says with a groan, tilting his head back dramatically. “You three were the only entertaining thing we had going on. What the hell are we going to do for drama anymore?”

“Hi!” a voice calls from the door, and we all turn and let out a collective shout of greeting when we see that it’s Daphne standing there, a basket full of baked goods in her hands.

I get up and dash to my friend, wrapping her in a warm hug that she returns, both of us effusively expressing how much we missed each other in the past two days. We both laugh as I wrap my arm around her waist and escort her into the room, where both Rafe and Jesse stand side-by-side, waiting to greet her.

And as she moves forward, hugging each in turn…

I grin, suddenly having my answer about where we’re getting our drama this semester.

“It’s going to be so good,” Ben whispers when I sit back down next to him, giving me a cheeky grin, clearly coming to the same conclusion as me.

“I know,” I whisper back with a little squeak.

“What’s going to be good?” Jackson asks, frowning up at us again.

“Nothing!” I say again, giving him a happy grin.

“You two and your secrets,” he sighs, throwing his hands up. “I’m done with it.”

“He’s lying,” Ben mouths to me and I burst into laughter – because he’s totally right.