T W O .

T W O .

Dahlia.

“Oh, leave her be. She must have been up all night using her phone.” I hear Mom sigh.

Gee, thanks for the save Mom. And what does that have to do with my face being red? I swear, elders nowadays think cell phones are the culprit for everything.

The question is, do I have a better excuse? Unfortunately, no. No, I don’t.

“Yup, that’s it.” I nod and stretch my arms out with a yawn, to make it more believable. I closed my eyes, thankful I got to block out the two from my view.

When I opened them, I didn’t expect what happened next. They all gave me weird looks. My brows furrowed, confused as to what they were looking at.

My eyes moved to where Hades and Valerian stood, and their faces were the same. Their mouths slightly parted, and their gazes fell on…

My jaw dropped and a gasp tore through me in an instant.

“What the f—”

“Dahlia!” Mom’s sharp voice cut me off before I could finish. I roll my eyes. I swear to the goddess, the woman could hear a pin drop from miles away.

“Dahlia,” My heart stopped. I turn to look at my brother, his eyes darkening. “Fix it up. Now.” He’s referring to my blouse. Apparently, I forgot to button it all the way up, exposing a lot of cleavage. The tone of his voice was sharp and commanding. It sounded like a warning. I knew better than to disobey Atlas. He gets… overprotective sometimes.

Besides, I couldn’t stand having my cleavage exposed to those guys back there. Especially with the way they were looking at it…

I shake my head, trying not to think about it.

But those eyes…

“Get it together, Dahlia,” I whisper, staring at the mirror.

Holy shit, Atlas was right. My face was red. Is it just me or is it getting rather hot in here? But I just showered, and it feels like my cheeks are on fire. I’d probably melt ice if I put some on them.

I took off my jacket, tossing it in an open seat. Since I’ll be getting a ride with the hottest, most wanted alphas in Jackson High, I won’t need it.

From what happened earlier, I am a hundred and ninety-nine percent sure that the weather wouldn’t affect me one bit. I’d be more worried about the condition happening inside my body. Like right now.

The sound of a car revving outside our house had me sprinting to the door as fast as I could. My stomach growled, but I didn’t have the time, or the right, to sit my ass down on that kitchen stool anymore. Mom didn’t miss the chance to throw me a glare. I passed by her pretending she wasn’t there.

I better hurry before Atlas drags me into— Oh. My. God.

My mouth falls open. I nearly choked on my spit as I took in the enormous vehicle before my eyes.

“THIS is your car?” I can’t help but emphasize just how ridiculously huge it is.

I know a little about cars. This one, I’m pretty sure, is a brand-new fucking Hummer H1. The latest model, I think. It’s my dream car. So pardon me if I can’t help but gawk at the sleek nightshade black vehicle in awe.

“What’s the matter, Dahlia?” My brother looks at me like I’m the crazy one.

How could they even afford this?

“You like it?” Valerian suddenly appears beside me, making me jump. The guy gives me instant goosebumps and mini-heart attacks whenever he’s close to me. I felt my face heat, again, but I refused to make it obvious this time.

“Yeah.” I shrug, holding my breath while pretending I wasn’t in the middle of a mini freakout.

“You like riding it?” That’s a weird question to ask.

I swallow, “Well, I guess…” I did not know what to say. And the crazy thing is, his question made me feel awkward. Not the cringe-awkward but the hot type of awkward, if you know what I mean.

“I have something else you can ride.” Hades smirks, sending me a wink. I was beyond stunned. Is he flirting with me?