King Hall (Forever Evermore, #1)(70)

I crossed my arms in agitation. “If that won’t work, what do you two propose we do?”

Ezra leaned over the back of the seat, and then flopped back down, throwing on my lap a spare sweatshirt I had stored in here. “Cover those up. They’re what got us in trouble in the first place.”

Pearl and Jack hooted.

I glanced down to where Ezra was glaring. Crossing my arms had opened my shirt again and pushed my boobs up to full view. Bra, cleavage, and all. I sighed and ripped my shirt the rest of the way off since it was a goner anyway, and Ezra tossed it into the back with vigor. Once my sweatshirt was on, I asked again, “What should we do?”

Pearl and Jack were calming themselves, and Jack shrugged, panting a little, saying, “Just give it time. You don’t want them coming back to the truth, so let them think what they want, and once they figure out on their own it’s not true, hopefully they’ll have forgotten your reasons for being in the Hummer in the first place.”

Pearl nodded.

Sluggishly, Ezra and I agreed.

Jack added hesitantly, “This situation reminds me that I need to speak with you guys about something.” He rubbed his chin. “I think we need to discuss how much we touch each other in public.” We stared, and he simplified, “Nikki’s still new at school. They talk around her more, not realizing who they’re next to. She hears things.”

Forehead wrinkling, Pearl asked, “What things?”

Jack sucked in a breath. “Most of the students think it’s odd how much we touch each other. A few words Nikki overhears regularly are weird, twisted, and unnatural.”

We sat in silence, letting that sink in.

“It’s not any of those things,” Pearl whispered, clearing her throat. “We aren’t like everyone else. We’re,” her hand flittered as she thought, “on a different level. We need each other because we understand what the other’s going through.”

Ezra nodded slowly. “Yes, but our subjects believe they own us. Which they do. They wouldn’t understand our reasoning since they’ve never lived a day in our lives.”

“Mysticals stay separated,” I murmured. “That’s how it’s always been. And, possibly, for good reason.” I chewed on my lip. “This isn’t good.”

Jack nodded. “Some are already saying we’re going to be terrible Rulers since we’re ignoring Mys ways.”

“Jesus,” Ezra grumbled, sliding down on the seat, his arms crossing.

Pearl tapped a fingernail on the headrest, staring out the back window. “I don’t think we should stop being seen together. That would give our subjects too much power over us.” She paused, a frown lining her perfect face. “But, maybe, we should stop touching each other. It may actually be our easiness with one another that’s truly bothering them. We don’t want them attacking our friendship. Give them this, and hope it’s enough to calm the masses.”

Slowly, we nodded in agreement, all of us wearing scowls or frowns because it was awful that we were owned this severely by our people. But we were. We were going to be their protectors, leaders, and punishers in a few years’ time. Sadly, as King Venclaire had said, we couldn’t have them undermining us. If we began our ruling with subjects who had no faith in us, that wasn’t acceptable. The weight was always heavy on our shoulders but, sitting here now, seeing one more freedom slip away, it made that barrier between us and our subjects that much wider. And they wondered why we were so close.

Jack murmured, “The Kings won’t be fighting with each other so much, anymore.”

We nodded again. The Kings had been at each other’s throats a few weeks ago with another argument, which they hadn’t even bothered to hide from us.

“Thank God that argument hadn’t happened today,” I said quietly. “King Kincaid would have probably agreed with King Nelson and King Fergus.” King Venclaire had never attempted to separate us, so I didn’t worry about him so much.

We sat in depressed and stressful silence.

Quietly, Jack asked, “What kind of touching is acceptable? I need clarification. It just comes so naturally now. I don’t even realize I’m doing it.”

My shoulders slumped, and my voice was weak, Shifters needing touch. “No nose pinching.”

“No holding hands at any time,” Pearl gritted between her teeth.

“No hugging,” Ezra stated gruffly. “Or kissing.” We did that a lot when we greeted or left each other. Simple kisses on the cheek or forehead, but now, it seemed like a biggie.

“No sleeping on each other,” Pearl added, rubbing her forehead. “Or massages.”

“No drinking,” Ezra grunted.

“This is all in public, right?” Jack asked, his forehead lined in worry. “We are still free to be ourselves behind closed doors?”

All at once, Pearl, Ezra, and I said, “Yes.”

Jack breathed a sigh of relief.

“We only touch when it’s publicly acceptable,” I said slowly. “Like if one of us is hurt,” a thought, and I grinned, “or dancing.”

They stilled, and slow smiles crept over their faces.

We nodded.


It was the party of the year. It was always planned for right before the students had to start cramming for year-end finals, when there was only a month left of school. For the four of us, though, since we had already finished our finals, it was more of a celebration of the hard school year gone by, with our last month of classes to be spent purposely with the Kings teaching us to use our powers together. I had passed my finals — all three years’ worth — and so had my best friends. We were dressed in our finest and ready to party.