The Hidden Princess At All-Boys Alpha Academy Chapter 84

“Of course sprinkles,” I murmur, sighing as I take one last look of him, “too many. Like, way more than seems practical.” I take a deep breath, savoring his scent and the press of his muscled torso against me for one last second. I hesitate, but then I lift my hands, and let my palms press against his sides, feeling the lines of his obliques as I slowly slide my hands down towards his hips.

And as I do, just for a moment, I let myself imagine what his bare skin would feel like under my fingertips.

A hard shudder passes through Luca’s body.

“God damn it, Ari,” he growls, leaning in –

But I turn my head, and press my eyes shut, and will the dream to end.

My eyes fly open in my bed and I clench my teeth with a groan, turning and burying my face into a pillow to stifle the sound of it.

I spend too long with my face buried in my pillow, feeling sorry for myself, cursing myself vehemently for having a sense of ethics and the willpower to stop Luca from doing something he’d probably regret.

Because god damn it, god damn it I wanted to kiss him.

And now, who the hell knows when I’ll have the chance – because Luca, he just wanted to kiss the figment of his imagination that looks like me so he can figure out how he’s feeling. As soon as he realizes that that figment is the real Ari Clark?

He’s going to run screaming from the room.

I mean, at least I think he will. I sigh, curling up in my pillows and wrapping myself up in my soft white duvet, considering it. Because Luca – he still thinks I’m a boy, and as much as he’s willing to subconsciously consider experimenting with kissing a guy…

I think that he is straight, and that I’m just unfairly confusing him because I’m his mate underneath this boy façade.

I sigh, worrying about all of the complications of this, because Ben revealed today how tenuous my secret already is. And as much as I’m fine with Ben knowing…Luca? My mate? It’s a different story – an unpredictable level of exposure that I’m just not ready for yet.

I’m still hiding my gender at this school, because failing to do so means getting kicked out. And I’ve just, just gotten hold of the thing I never knew I always wanted: a chance at the Espionage Track at Alpha Academy.

And I am not at all ready to give that up – not even for the chance to make out with Luca Grant.

So I sigh, turning over again in my blankets, and I close my eyes and force myself to try and go back to sleep – a state which feels very, very far away right now.

Jesse and Rafe wake up early, some kind of Alpha alarm clock that I was not born with making them rise before sun.

“Up and at ‘em, little cousin!” Jesse shouts, throwing a pillow into the open curtain of my nook. I jump and shriek when it hits me right in the head.

“We spies get an extra hour of sleep,” I growl, pulling the blankets over myself and nestling back down.

“Not if they want breakfast, they don’t,” Rafe says, laughing and yanking my duvet away, making me shriek again.

“Doesn’t it just come up in the dumbwaiter?” I ask, sitting up finally when I realize they’re not going to leave me in any peace.

“Nope,” Jesse says around his toothbrush as he walks out of the bathroom, brushing as he strides around the room in his underwear, getting ready for the day. “Breakfast all together with cadets.”

“Oh,” I say, yawning and looking around for my boots. Rafe tosses one in my direction as he takes Jesse’s place in the bathroom. I sigh and grab it, yawning so wide my jaw cracks. As I pull my boot on I hope that there’s coffee with breakfast – because while dream states do happen while you’re dreaming, I’m not sure that I’d say they let you wake up relaxed and rested.