Reckless Souls (Saints Academy, #1)(52)

attention seeking and dominating the conversation when his friends are here like you would expect.

His words seem earnest and true, but my entire relationship history leaves me hesitant.

Do I risk getting to know them only to be dropped and hurt, again? I’ve felt enough of that already

in my life. But it doesn’t really have to be more than simply hanging out, and that thought alone seems

to settle the pull inside of me.

I can do that, easily. I think.

“What would that entail exactly?” I ask, rubbing my lips together just as my pizza appears in front

of me. Xander groans, reaching for a slice, but I slap his hand away at the last minute, offering him a

glare, only to find puppy dog eyes pleading back at me.

The huge, gruff, asshole, looks like a wounded puppy, desperate to get what he wants, and just

like that, I’m rolling my eyes and offering him a slice. He is going to be trouble.

“Thank you,” he whispers softly, leaning forward and kissing my cheek before taking it from my

hand and biting half of it down in one go.

The touch leaves me shaken, goosebumps rising in his wake as I stare at him.

Completely blindsided, it’s too little too late for me to do anything about it when I realize the

others have all stolen a slice too.

Motherfuckers can’t keep their hands to themselves.

I sit gaping at them, and it’s Zen who meets my eyes first, flicking his gaze between Xander and

me with a slight smile and a shrug. “Don’t mind him, his beast makes him all touchy,” he states so

matter of factly that I think I might fall off my seat.

His beast?

The fuck?

My round eyes trail back to the guy in question, who smiles around the pizza in his mouth, not

offering any further information. I search his features looking for a hint at what beast Zen is referring

to but find nothing out of the norm.

What is this alternate universe I seem to have fallen into?

“Let’s have a makeshift Christmas Eve party,” Adonis suggests, gliding his fingers through his hair

as he nods in agreement with himself like it’s the best idea he’s ever had.

“Good idea,” Zen murmurs as Khaos shrugs.

“Whatever you want.” His words sound casual, but the way he looks at me through his jet black

hair is not so gentle. If anything, I feel like he’s tearing my body apart to find my soul. Which is both

arousing and intriguing at the same time.

“I’ll pass.” I offer a tight smile as I glance down at my single slice of pizza, avoiding all of their

stares. Being this close to them, for this long, feels suffocating, and the only way I’ll catch another

breath is if I steal it from one of them.

It’s a slippery slope of desire, need, and I can’t explain the strength of the feelings that are running

through my body right now. Not a single ounce.

“It wasn’t an option,” Khaos retorts, glaring at me as I whip my eyes to his.

I remember that harsh tongue, the tip of his nose as he dragged it over my throat, and a whimper

begs to pass my lips. My body and my brain aren’t on the same page right now, like, at all, which is

another huge sign that I need to grab what's left of my pizza, which isn’t much, and run from the four of

them, hiding away in my sanctuary aka my room.

Before I can even take a breath to give Khaos a piece of my mind, Zen waves his hand in front of

us, trying to break the rising tension.

“Have you ever seen snow?” His words catch me off guard, pulling my attention from the asshole

beside him, and my wide eyes must be answer enough as Zen chuckles under his breath. “Would you

like to?”

I nibble on my bottom lip, my fingers twisting in my lap. Agreeing would mean spending more

time with them, and I just told myself how much of a bad idea that was, but I still find myself nodding

against my better judgment. I don’t know which I should be pissed at more, my mind or my body.

I just have to see the snow and get the hell out of there, then at least one of my dreams can come

true. My others involve orgasms and a lot of sweat, and I can’t give into those.

There has to be a reason why they’re suddenly acting like this, and I can’t deny that I’m intrigued

to find out.

“Lead the way, oh calm one.”





Chapter 16

Zen

I t’s hard to keep the pleased smirk off my face as Rhea walks beside me. We’ve waited patiently,

biding our time until the right moment when she wasn’t so overwhelmed by the Academy as a

whole, so we could make our move.

The Halloween party, and what ensued after that, feels like a lifetime ago at this point, but it will

be worth it, I just know it. I still can’t explain what it is that has us all pulling toward her like a

magnetic field, but I’m more than happy to be dragged the distance to her.

We had stepped into the dining hall with a plan, but it seems we took one step through the

doorway and forgot it completely. I could see in her eyes she was getting skittish, ready to pounce to

her feet and run, and I couldn’t let that happen.