Savage Royals: A Reverse Harem High School Bully Romance(23)

My fingers curled, my nails digging into the bark of the tree I hid behind.

I should do something, right? Stop this somehow.

But I didn’t move. All I could do was stare at Cole as he worked like a machine, blocking the wild punches the other kid threw at him before moving in to deliver his own.

He looked… primal. Wild. Unhinged.

My heart slammed in my chest, my breath coming in sharp gasps as I watched them move around the makeshift ring.

“What the fuck are you doing here, Idaho?”

The low voice from behind me made me jump, pushing my pulse into overdrive as I stifled a scream.

Fuck. Fucking fucking fuck.

I knew who it was before I even turned around. I recognized all their voices easily by now—heard them in my dreams, my nightmares. Elijah’s voice was smooth as silk, deep and almost melodic. It was the kind of voice you wanted to murmur sweet things to you, which made it all the worse when he called me names or mocked me in our biology class.

I shrank back against the tree trunk, but he grabbed my arm before I could say a word and dragged me back through the woods. When we were a good distance from the light and noise of the crowd, he turned to face me, staring at me through the darkness. I bit my lip, gazing up into his eyes as he gripped both my arms. He looked half angry and half… I wasn’t sure what.

Squeezing my arms tighter, he repeated his question. “What the fuck are you doing here?”

“I was just…” I shook my head. He knew what I was doing here, didn’t he? Did he think I always took midnight strolls through the woods off campus? “I saw people going into the trees. I just wanted to see what was going on.”

He sighed, releasing his grip on me so suddenly I almost fell over. He ran a hand through his bronze hair before wrapping it around the back of his neck. His usually calm demeanor had cracked, and he looked agitated. Finally, he leaned toward me, putting his face close to mine. The warm smell of oak and sage filled my nostrils, and I sucked in a breath through my mouth, trying to keep his scent from invading my body.

“This isn’t a place for you, Idaho,” he murmured softly. “Royals only. Don’t let me catch you where your nose doesn’t belong again. Got it?”

I nodded. “Got it. Sorry.”

Elijah looked me over again, his lips pressing together as his gaze ran up and down my body. Then he gave a small nod and walked away, disappearing back into the crowd. My legs wobbled, and reached out for a nearby tree to steady myself.

At least he didn’t tell the others I was here.

Then I paused, my spine stiffening.

Why hadn’t he told them? It would’ve been so easy. I was right there, ready to be tortured and humiliated, a sacrificial lamb delivered like a prize to this rich boy fight club.

And Elijah had kept quiet.

Why?





Chapter 9





The second I made it back to my dorm, I kicked off my shoes and sank onto the couch, pulling my knees up to my chest. My damn hoodie still smelled like Elijah, even though he’d only touched me for a minute, so I yanked it off and wrapped a blanket around myself instead.

It was close to 1 a.m., but my body was so strung out and wired I knew I wouldn’t be able to sleep, so I sat in the dark and gazed out the window until I saw figures slowly emerge from the woods a couple hours later, heading back toward the dorms across campus.

There must’ve been a few fights, by the look of it. I saw at least two guys holding a hand to their faces, and one of them leaned slightly on his buddy, as if walking was painful. I wondered if he was the kid Cole had fought.

The four Princes emerged last, like four territorial wolves stalking out of the woods. Cole had a tank top on, but the tattoos on his arms still stood out starkly against his skin in the moonlight. Mason clapped him on the back, and Finn and Elijah were deep in conversation. None of them looked up at me, but I shrank back into the couch cushions anyway.

When there were finally out of sight, I hauled myself off the couch, brushed my teeth, and fell face-first into bed.

I slept until almost noon the next day, and as I lay in bed with an arm draped over my face, I decided Elijah was right.

Whatever the hell kind of fucked up shit was going on at this school, whatever the Princes did in the middle of the night, it was none of my fucking business, and I resolved to keep my nose out of anything that didn’t concern me.

Especially if it involved the four of them.





It’s amazing what you can get used to. How adaptable humans can be to shitty situations.

It’s also amazing how even when you think you’ve got a handle on things, even after weeks of keeping it together, the tiniest nudge can push you right back over the edge.

I pulled on my locker door so hard the entire bank of lockers rattled, and Sable, one of Adena’s best friends, turned to glare at me from a few yards down the hall.

“Hey, watch it, white trash! Some of us are trying to get our shit here.”

I clenched my jaw, ignoring her as I gave the locker door another vicious tug. Someone, somehow, had managed to wedge the fucking thing closed, and all my notes for the English Lit test on Monday were inside.

At least, I hoped they were.

If someone had fucked with my locker again, who the hell knew whether my notes would still even be there, or whether they’d be intact even if they were?