Page 28 of The Never List
Jax flashes me a predator’s look. “Their names?”
Bastard. I can give them fake names, but that would only put me more at risk of getting caught. “Ivy Parcell and Layce Willis,” I answer with a smile on my face.
“You’re close?” Kal asks from my right.
“We’ve known each other since we were children.”
“Same as us,” Axl offers.
“Yes, I would say we’re as close, though I suppose I don’t know any of you all that well.”
“Yet,” Kal says. “You will soon enough.”
“And whatdoyou know of us, Rylee?” Jax cuts in, and I have to fight not to glare at him.He’sthe one who chose me, not the other way around. It’s not my fault he’s got a lie trigger I can’t help but trip. Maybe I can convince him mylies are little, feminine secrets that are no matter to him. One step at a time.
“I know what anyone else in Lumathyst knows,” I answer.
He rolls his eyes and returns his attention to his blade.
“Not all the rumors are true,” Kal says.
“Some of them,” Axl counters with a laugh.
“I’d wager sixty/forty,” Pierce says. “Depending on the content.”
I laugh again, unable to help it. They’re a contrast that has my head spinning, but they truly live up to their nicknames.
The night wears close to dawn as they pepper me with more questions—easy ones like what type of music I prefer, if I enjoy the theater, my favorite foods, et cetera. I pluck most of the answers straight from my experiences with Ivy and Layce, since the only time I’m around such luxuries is when I’ve snuck over the borders to dine and dance with them.
And when exhaustion settles in my bones, my feet aching in my high-heeled boots and the brim of my nose irritated from the mask I still don, I’m finally ready to ask the one question I’ve been avoiding all night.
“I could stay up talking to you the rest of the night,” I say, indicating mainly Kal and Axl, since Pierce has been calculatingly quiet for the most part and Jax has done his best to ignore me entirely. I’m curious despite myself. Ignoring the axe hanging over my head, they are remarkable to speak with. There is an unshakable bond between them that I admire.
I want more. I want to peel back the layers of who theytruly are and piece out if the interest and kindness they’ve shown me is merely an act.
“But if I don’t sleep soon,” I continue, “I’ll wind up passing out at this table.” I swallow hard. “Whatarethe sleeping arrangements?” I ask, trying to keep my voice light.
This is it. This is what we’ve been leading to this whole time. I’m not sure I have the energy to entertain all of them, especially if I want to make it unforgettable so I’ll be irresistible to them, but I do my best to muster it.
“Of course,” Kal says. “It’s already nearing dawn. We have a room prepared for you.”
My eyes widen. “Just for me? Not for…all of us?”
Axl laughs. “If that’s what you want,” he says, “we can arrange it.”
My stomach drops.
“But if you don’t,” he continues, “you get to choose.”
“I get to choose?” I ask.
Axl nods. “You’ll spend a month with each of us in our home cities,” he explains. “You can decide who you want to stay with first.”
My lips part, but I have no idea what to say. That isn’t a decision I’d been preparing to make.
“Did you truly believe Jax’s jest? You thought we’d just have our way with you here? Get it over with?” Axl cracks that infectious grin. “Where’s the fun in that?”
I feel my cheeks warm a little, but I file that information away. So, Axl likes the tease, the anticipation. Good to know.
