Page 34

Frustration spread through me.

Damn it. Why did he do that? Why did Julian disappear without telling me?

I couldn't blame him. All of this had obviously become too much for him. Now that both his parents were dead, all he had left was his sister, and on top of that, he had learned that none of the three people had ever been his biological family. But he had grown up with Mia...

I caught the girl with the long, thick, dark blonde hair staring at me. A soft red crept into her cheeks before she looked back down at her still full plate. Her reddened eyes reminded me of my mother's. And her swollen lips...

I needed to talk to her.

“As long as the head of their clan doesn’t make any further attempts or sends a clear message, I won’t recklessly try out things that are suggested to me. Not even if the advice comes from my respected guests,” Nickolas said, addressing Tania more than the rest of us. “Excuse me now.”

He also rose, his jaw working and his face contorted.

His gaze lingered on me for a moment, and I didn't dare move an inch. Then he turned away and cursed quietly.

“We should concentrate on the games and not on these ridiculous...”

His words faded away in the hallway. Then he was gone too.

Less than ten silent seconds later, Mia got up and disappeared into the hallway without a word.

Those remaining at the table were Alarik, Tania, Nash, a boy Mia's age next to him, glued to his smartphone, and me.

“Put that thing away and eat something,” Nash sighed, taking the phone out of the hands of the teenage boy who resembled him slightly.

“Hey!” the boy snapped, snatching it back. “Hands off, got it?” His eyes began to glow yellow. Then he jumped up and left the dining room, snorting.

“Who's next?” Alarik laughed casually, a hint of desperation in his voice.

He helped himself to another scoop of potatoes, and I caught Tania staring at him intently.

“Actually, I have to do something for my pushy English professor. Write some useless essay,” Nash joked, and my jaw dropped.

“Such a generous professor. Did he give you an extra week?”

My jaw dropped even further when Alarik simply started eating, and Nash, obviously embarrassed, glanced at the English professor in question.

“He got extra time?” I said with mock incredulity, and a smirk played on Alarik's lips.

“That boy is the laziest student I've ever come across.” Alarik didn't even look at Nash when he said that. “And yet he sometimes has such witty thoughts and expert knowledge that I wonder where on earth he gets it from.”

With a raised eyebrow, he glanced at Nash, who just rolled his eyes and refilled his plate as well.

Had Nash Copeland just blushed?

A grin slipped across my lips, and he looked at me, before he shook his head and began to eat.

“Nash works really hard. Not everyone has the privilege of choosing their own major.”

All of us – including Nash, who seemed a little thrown off balance – stared at Tania, who took a quick sip before obviously forcing a smile and looking at me.

“What are your hobbies, Bayla?”

I blinked at Tania, who looked at me expectantly.

“I... read and write a lot,” I said hesitantly and poured myself some water so I wouldn't seem quite so lost.

“She's one of my most reflective students.” I felt myself turning into a tomato, but Alarik was not done yet. “You should take a leaf out of her book, Nash.”