Year One

13

Is he being serious? “Well, let’s see. I was forced to go with you guys to come here, a bear charged me, and I blacked out. Oh … and the headmaster just threatened me. I’d say it’s been a pretty shitty day.”

“See,” Cole said, grinning at Rage and pointing at me, “we’re totally going to be best friends.”

A low growl emanated from Rage’s chest. “I sure hope not.”

“You better stop.” Cole arched an eyebrow, and the humor fell from his face. “She’s going to need a friend and someone on her side.”

“And it can’t be me?” Rage’s voice turned low and raspy. If I hadn’t been so upset, I’d probably be a drooling mess at this very moment.

“You know why.” Cole’s face was a mask of indifference.

“Guys, I’m really tired.” I couldn’t handle this, not now. I needed a bed and none of their bickering.

One of the guys' phones rang, but neither moved to answer it.

“That’s the fourth time it’s rung in the last ten minutes.” Cole crossed his arms and tilted his head down. “Aren’t you going to answer it?”

Rage took a deep breath and stared straight into Cole’s eyes. “No.”

“The longer it takes you, the worse it’s going to be.” Cole marched toward me and smiled. “Come on, let’s get you to your room.”

“I have a room?” Something weird was going on between them, and I didn’t have the energy to even want to figure it out.

“Of course you do.” Cole glanced at Rage. “You need to go deal with that situation before things get any worse.”

“Fine.” Rage’s dark eyes glanced once more at me. “Sleep well.”

“You’re lucky.” Cole gently grabbed my arm, pulling me from the room. “You only have one roommate, which is rare.”

For some reason, I hadn’t even contemplated that I’d have a roommate. “Oh, is she nice?”

“She’s been at the university for a year now, so she’ll be able to help you learn the ins and outs.” Cole’s warm smile returned to his face.

“Oh, so you guys won’t be around any longer?” Why did that bother me? I’d assumed that we would hang out still. Obviously proving how much of a freshman I really was. Wait … What would I be? They didn’t have freshmen here. Maybe fresh meat?

“I’ve already decided we’re going to be friends, so there is no getting rid of me.” He pulled me down a long hallway. The ceilings were high, and the walls were dark brown.

I glanced behind us, looking for Rage, but almost slipped on the smooth pale floor.

“Hey now, I thought shifters had good balance.” Cole slipped his arm around my waist.

“Yeah, I normally do, but I feel off tonight, and I …” I cut myself off. He didn’t have to know I was looking for Rage.

A loud voice echoed from behind us. “Ragey, where the hell have you been?”

Several feet away stood a girl with dark red hair and a figure to die for. She placed her hands on her hips as she glanced down the hallway in front of her.

“Ashley, I told you I had to go with Cole to recruit someone.” Rage sighed, and his voice sounded tired.

“Come on, let’s go.” Cole tugged on me, but for some reason, I had to stay. I couldn’t remove my eyes from this Ashley.

“He’s never asked you to go on a recruit with him before, so why now?” She pouted, emphasizing her already plump lips. “I’ve missed you.”

“He needed a wolf shifter for back up.” Rage appeared but didn’t seem to notice both Cole and me standing there.

She eliminated the distance between her and Rage and wrapped her arms around his waist. “Well, you’re back now, and that’s all that matters.” She raised up on her tiptoes and placed her lips upon his.

Not able to watch their kiss, I turned and began moving once more with Cole. Surprisingly, he kept his mouth shut until we made our way through one of the back doors.

The fresh air filled my lungs, and I focused on breathing. I was upset over Rage and that girl even though I had no right to be. So what if his lips were on another girl. I had a boyfriend at home, waiting for me. Somehow reminding myself of that made it worse and not better.

A

fter a few moments, Cole asked, “Hey, are you okay?” He led me toward the building on the left.

Tonight, the humidity was high, and it wasn’t even officially summer yet. The moon was full, which tugged on my wolf inside. There was no way I was going to attempt shifting after what happened earlier. “Yeah, just taking it all in.” I didn’t want Cole to know how upset I was over Rage and his girlfriend.

His eyes narrowed as he examined me but then sighed. “It’s a lot. That back there …”

Oh, hell no. We weren’t going to talk about Rage, so I cut him off. “What’s my roommate like?”

A small smile spread across his face. “Well, she’s no me.”

“At least that one prayer was answered.” Each step I took made me more nervous than the last. The headmaster already wasn’t impressed with me, and now I had to meet some kind of supernatural that would be my roommate. I wasn’t even sure what to expect at this point.

“Lookie there.” Cole reached over and tapped me on the nose. “Even when you’ve had one hell of a day, you still have some bite. Be glad. You’ll need it.”

“If you were going for comfort, let me tell ya; you failed.” If these were his pep talks, I’d have hated to see what the opposite would be.

We reached the building, which was much more modern than the main one. It appeared to be a steel type building with large portions of glass. Many had curtains that were closed so no one could see inside.

“Wait.” I needed a minute to collect myself. In one day, my whole world had been ripped apart, and I was off-balance. I needed a chance to center myself before another new obstacle was presented to me.

“Of course.” Cole paused and took a step back, giving me space.

Despite what he tries to put off, Cole seemed like a good person. Maybe we’d be friends after all. I didn’t have many true friends back home. I always had to be cautious and tried to blend in. Still, look how far that had gotten me.