CHARLOTTEMadeline wasn’t home… again.My fingers flew over the screen of my phone idly. The sun was barely out, the scent of coffee brewing hung in the air, and the house was silent. These were moments of the day I usually enjoyed, but lately, with Madeline’s new schedule of sneaking out in the ear
He took a seat across from me, and we ate in silence.“Thank you,” I whispered when I finished. The sound of pounding coming from outside probably drowned out my words, but Reigh tilted his head in response and continued eating.I took a sip of my coffee, feeling Reigh’s eyes on me. His gaze turned
CHARLOTTEI laid on my back and stared at the ceiling.My thoughts and emotions were a mess, a jumbled-up mix of feelings I didn’t want to get into. I let one of my hands fall to my neck until my fingers brushed over my mark, over the smooth plane of healed skin, only disturbed slightly by its prese
CHARLOTTE“What if we crash?” I whispered to Madeline, my fingers clutching the wheel of the very expensive car almost fearfully.Madeline laughed and whipped out her phone to take a picture of my nervous but excited face. I frowned at her, but at least she wasn’t grumbling about how inane it was to
Disgusting.I hid any reaction I might have at that, but even when he left I couldn’t stop the creeping feeling that slid down my spine at his stare.Men were weird.I busied myself with sorting through tomorrow’s reservation until I was interrupted by a woman’s voice calling out to me. My manager g
CHARLOTTE I stepped closer and eyed the books. They were all textbooks, textbooks and materials that fit into the course I was taking. What the…? My hands trailed over the spines. A few of them were books I couldn’t even find in the library. But here they were, sitting pretty on the shelf, brand
I returned to my room and continued my assessment of the shelf and the books on it. From the larger textbooks to the smaller ones, everything was carefully ordered and stacked. The intentionality behind this struck me hard. I looked away. My gaze shifted around my room, landing on the table where C
CHARLOTTEThe scent of coffee lured me into the kitchen.I smiled when I saw the pot of coffee being brewed as it always was. It was a little thing, but it was something that I’d started looking forward to every morning since the first time I had it. I walked off to the fridge first to get myself s
CHARLOTTE I sat on the bed, trying to calm my breathing. My chest felt tight, and my hands trembled in my lap. I couldn’t stop replaying what had just happened. King Aurichad been here, in this room, and now he was gone. But the memory of his cold, cutting gaze lingered, wrapping around me like
CHARLOTTE Caeson shot to his feet as soon as the words left my mouth, startling me. He turned toward the entryway, his eyes narrowing as he stared at the empty space. After a moment, he turned back to me, a deep furrow forming between his brows. Without saying a word, he spun on his heel and strod
CHARLOTTE I watched as Taide stepped away from Sean, smoothly sidestepping him without another glance. Sean looked after him for a moment, but Taide didn’t seem to care. I caught Madeline’s eyes, and she grinned before doing a subtle little happy dance. Her excitement was almost contagious. Taid
CHARLOTTE The seamstress stepped back, letting out a satisfied hum. I stood in front of the mirror, smoothing my hands over the soft fabric of the dress I was wearing. It fit perfectly, hugging my body in all the right places. The sweetheart neckline and shoulder-less design gave it an elegance
The hell?I blinked, trying to understand. Then it hit.He was talking about yesterday, when I’d abruptly questioned him and then walked away without waiting for an answer.“You wouldn’t have participated anyway,” I said, using his analogy as I crossed my arms.“You don’t know that,” he replied.I
CHARLOTTEThe morning light streamed through the tall windows of the dining room, illuminating the grand breakfast spread that covered the long table.I could hardly believe how much food there was—it seemed like enough to feed ten people, if not more. The table was piled high with plates of fresh f
CHARLOTTEThe palace was something out of a dream.No, more than that—something out of a world I didn’t belong to.The long driveway was lined with perfectly manicured gardens, each bush and flowerbed so precise it looked as though someone had sculpted them by hand. Towering trees stood around, thei
CHARLOTTE We had our things packed and ready for the trip. Madeline’s birthday ball was this Sunday and now it was Friday already, the day of our departure. By the time we returned home it would be about a week before our junior year finals. And then, graduation. Which meant that we would be
I gave her my thanks and followed her instructions, up the stairs and down the calm, clean hallways of the care home. And like every time I came here, I couldn’t help but be struck by the difference between this care house and her old one. I was just about to walk in through the open threshold but