Sinful Things

36

“You don’t plan to cheer for Marcus?” Callan asks, making it sound like an insult.

“Of course we do,” I snap back at him.

“We want to check out the fae,” Araceli says. “Me, mostly. I’m so curious about them, with my heritage and all.”

Bastien narrows his eyes at me. “And no doubt Olivia is interested because of Jonah.”

“Fine, but we’re going with you,” Callan says, his voice leaving no room for argument. For anyone but me, anyway.

I shoot him a glare. “No one’s inviting you along.”

He stares me down. “Too bad. It’s not safe for you over there.”

“Since when do you care?”

“Since your father put me in charge of your protection.”

“What?” I can’t keep the horror off my face. “You?”

He raises his chin and gives me a cocky smirk. “Looks that way. So wherever you go, I’ll be there, making sure no one tries anything.”

I want to wipe that arrogant look off his face so bad. “That’s really not necessary. I’m not the one in danger here.”

“You’re obviously worried about the fae being kidn*pped by the Order,” Bastien says in a matter-of-fact tone. “We can help you.”

“We don’t know if we can trust you,” Araceli says, and I’m proud of her for standing up to them. Last year, they scared the crap out of her.

“I swear on the light of truth that I have no intention of harming the fae,” Bastien says, and a white glow surrounds him. He makes Callan do the same, and even though he repeats the words with an eyeroll, the light surrounds him too. “There. Now you know we speak the truth.”

I glance at Araceli, since I’m not familiar with this, and she nods. “Fine,” I say. “Come with us. We’re going to patrol the area during the game and look for anything suspicious.”

We take a quick walk through the angel side of the bleachers as the game begins. Marcus and the rest of the team run out onto the field to massive cheers. I notice that asshole Jeremy is also on the team, along with Cyrus’s boyfriend Isaiah, but don’t know the rest of the players.

The fae team runs out next, moving with otherworldly grace across the field. The fae side claps enthusiastically, but don’t cheer or yell, like the angels did. Nope, they’re way too refined for that. I study them closely, taking my first look at full-blooded fae. Most of the players are men, but there are a few women too. They’re all tall and willowy, with pointed ears, sharp, beautiful features, and hair that looks dyed, ranging from sunflower yellow to lime green to snow white.

“How do we know they’re not using glamour?” I ask. We learned a little about glamour in the last Fae Studies class, and how the fae can use it to create illusions, change their appearance, or trick people. Only Ofanim like Bastien are completely immune.

“Look up,” Bastien says, pointing at hundreds of tiny hovering balls of light scattered above us, which cast a bright glow over the field and the bleachers. “Uriel and I spent hours filling the sky with those. The light of truth prevents fae glamour, along with Ishim invisibility and imp illusions. If anyone plans to make a move today, they will do it without any of those powers.”

We stop and grab some hot dogs and beer, while the game continues. I take a minute to watch Marcus run across the field in his sexy little shorts, showing off his sculpted calves, and then cheer with everyone else when he scores. The game is tied so far, which is better than anyone thought we would do, and the crowd is buzzing with excitement.

Then we make our way along the outside of the field to the other side, where the fae are sitting. As we approach, we see two guards at the entrance to the bleachers, who seriously look like extras in the Lord of the Rings. They both hold spears and wear elaborate, shining armor, although the one on the left has bronze leaves on his chest, while the one on the right has copper flowers. They must be from the Autumn and Spring Courts, respectively.

“Halt,” the spring fae says, blocking our path with her spear. “What is your business here?”

I hesitate, trying to come up with a quick lie, but Bastien steps forward and offers them the truth, of all things. “I am Bastien, son of Archangel Uriel, and his personal assistant. We come to ensure your people’s safety, and to offer our assistance.”

The autumn fae looks offended by this very suggestion. “As you can see, we have security well under control.”

“Is there anything we can get you?” Araceli asks.

Both fae study her intently for a long pause, before the female guard says, “That won’t be necessary.”

Their spears continue to block our path, so we turn around and head back. Not much else to do. We’re obviously not wanted there, and even though we could fly over them, that seems especially rude, and likely to cause problems between the two schools.

“Whatever happened to fae hospitality?” I mumble, as we make it back to the angel side.

“They’re our guests,” Bastien says. “If they’d invited us, things would be different.”

Araceli asks, “Is there nothing we can do?”

“Not without sneaking over there,” Callan says.

“My necklace!” I say, grabbing it. “It should let me go invisible, even with your little light of truth bubbles floating around us. I can fly over the fae side for the rest of the game, just to make sure nothing bad happens to them.”

“That could work,” Bastien says.

Callan grabs my arm. “I’m coming with you.”

I shake him off and step back. “No way.”

“I made a promise to your father. Trust me, I don’t like this any more than you do, but I must keep you safe. And I know you can make me invisible too.”