CHAPTER NINE

I wake up to a dark room. I sit up quickly, trying to assess my barely visible surroundings. My navy top and gray skirt lay on the floor, illuminated by a sliver of moonlight.

Details from the night before slowly filter back into my consciousness. As my brain begins to awaken, I’m seized by a desperate thirst. I turn to see the barely visible outline of a small table next to the bed. Carefully, I reach out and trace my fingers along the surface, hoping to encounter a light.

I freeze when I hear the sound of rustling sheets behind me, followed by a quiet click that bathes the room in warm light.

I whip my head around. The motion exacerbates the pounding headache I’m suddenly keenly aware of. Jace’s disgruntled, sleepy face stares back at me as he sits up on the other side of the bed. White sheets pool around his waist. I look at him, simultaneously marveling over the uninterrupted view of the carved ridges of his abdomen and wincing as more of my memories from the night before begin to return.

“What,” Jace asks, “are you doing?”

“Looking for water,” I croak out. My throat feels rough and dry.

Jace nods to the table I’d been fumbling with, and I look back to see a half-empty water bottle in the center of the table. I grab it and gulp the remaining liquid gratefully.

“How much of last night do you remember?”

“Parts,” I reply, my voice still hoarse.

“Your stepbrother hates me,” Jace says, his voice pleased.

“What?” my still-sleepy brain tries to catch up. “You mean Philip? Why?”

“He tried to get you to leave with him, but you wouldn’t let go of me,” Jace explains, sounding amused.

I cringe at the revelation, and the memories it unearths. “He’s protective,” I respond, attempting to sound nonchalant. “My stepfather trusts him to look out for me, and would be really mad if he found out he didn’t.” I half-grin at the understatement. Thomas would likely kill Philip if he found out he’d been negligent in his duties regarding me.

“Protective is right,” Jace agrees. “But he’s also jealous. He looked ready to punch me out when you started snuggling me.”

I flush at his characterization of my behavior. “He’s not jealous, he just thinks all the ‘football gods’ at this school are breaking hearts and beds left and right. I’ll make sure to let him know he has nothing to worry about, since I offered you sex and you turned me down cold.”

Jace stares at me, obviously surprised I’ve brought my disastrous attempt at seducing him up. “I don’t think I’m the one who should be worried about breaking hearts,” is all he says in response.

I roll my eyes. The motion draws my attention back to my pounding head. “Can you turn the light out?” I request. “I’ve had too much alcohol and too little sleep to have a conversation with you.”