I took one last look in the mirror before heading out. Not bad. Six days at the academy had already started reshaping my body. My jaw was sharper, shoulders broader, chest filling out my t-shirt in ways that suggested actual muscle underneath.
Still a long way from looking like a hunter, but I wasn’t the sa shapeless blob who’d awakened here last week. That guy wouldn’t have survived the crawler attack. Hell, that guy wouldn’t have had the balls to bet his future against Blair fucking Davenport.
But that guy was gone now. I was sothing else—sothing better.
I grabbed my jacket and headed out. Naomi was waiting.
The weather had turned perfect after our morning training session—sunny with a cool breeze coming off the ocean. California showing off, basically. Students filled the main quad, enjoying the Sunday afternoon. So studied on the grass, others played frisbee, and a few just basked in the sun like lizards soaking up heat.
I spotted Naomi imdiately. Hard to miss pink hair.
She sat under a maple tree, a red checkered blanket spread beneath her. She wore a simple white sundress that made her look like she’d stepped out of a sumr catalog. Her hair was down for once, flowing past her shoulders in waves that caught the light. A picnic basket sat beside her.
When she saw , her face lit up with a smile that hit right in the chest.
I wasn’t used to soone being genuinely happy to see .
"You’re early," she said as I dropped down next to her.
"Figured I owed you punctuality after this morning’s no-show."
Her smile faltered for just a second. "It’s okay. I know you have... arrangents."
Ah. There it was. The reminder of our complicated situation.
"Hey." I touched her hand gently. "Today is about us. No talk of arrangents or buffs or any of that, okay?"
Her eyes t mine, searching for sincerity. Whatever she found seed to satisfy her, because her smile returned, brighter than before.
"Okay." She opened the picnic basket. "I hope you’re hungry."
Inside was a feast: sandwiches wrapped in wax paper, fresh fruit, pasta salad, and cookies that slled homade.
"You made all this?" I asked, genuinely impressed.
"I used to cook for my brothers all the ti." She handed a sandwich. "Turkey and avocado. I noticed you always pick that in the dining hall."
The fact that she’d paid attention to sothing so small made my chest tighten in a way I wasn’t prepared for.
"Thank you," I said, aning it.
We ate in comfortable silence for a while, watching other students enjoy the day. The sandwich was perfect—the bread fresh, the avocado perfectly ripe.
"So," Naomi said eventually, "tell sothing I don’t know about you."
I laughed. "That’s a dangerous question. I’m full of secrets."
"Nothing about... you know." She waved her hand vaguely. "Just normal stuff. Like where you grew up, what your family is like."
Ah. The Jace Monroe backstory questions. I’d been expecting these eventually.
"I grew up in Boston," I said, pulling from the fragnts of knowledge I had about the original Jace. "My dad left when I was young. Mom worked two jobs. We got by, but it wasn’t easy."
Naomi nodded, her eyes soft with understanding. "My dad’s a fisherman. He leaves at four every morning and cos back slling like the sea." Her smile turned nostalgic. "My brothers and I used to wait on the dock for him."
I could picture it perfectly—little Naomi with pink hair, sitting on weathered planks, scanning the horizon for her father’s boat.
"Do you miss them?" I asked.
"Every day." She popped a grape into her mouth. "But I’d miss them more if I wasn’t here, trying to give them a better life."
I reached over and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "They’re lucky to have you."
"Even when I’m dating the campus milk vampire?" Her eyes widened as she realized what she’d said. "I an—"
I burst out laughing. "Campus milk vampire? Is that what you call behind my back?"
Her face turned as pink as her hair. "Belle started it."
"Of course she did." I shook my head, still chuckling. "Well, there are worse nicknas."
"Like what?"
"The Titty Whisperer?"
Naomi choked on her water. "Jace!"
"The Breast Bender?"
"Stop it!" She was laughing now, covering her face with her hands.
"Sir Sucks-a-lot?"
She slapped my arm playfully. "You’re terrible."
"But I made you laugh." I grinned, catching her hand and holding it. "I like when you laugh."
Her smile softened, and sothing warm passed between us. She leaned closer, her eyes dropping to my lips.
I closed the distance, kissing her softly. She tasted like strawberries and sunshine. When I pulled back, her eyes remained closed for a mont, as if savoring the sensation.
"What was that for?" she whispered.
"Do I need a reason?"
She opened her eyes, searching mine again. "No. But with you, I’m learning there’s usually a reason for everything."
Smart girl. She wasn’t wrong.
"Maybe I just wanted to kiss you," I said, which wasn’t a lie. "Maybe I like the way you make feel."
She tilted her head. "And how do I make you feel?"
"Like I’m more than just my ability." I surprised myself with the honesty. "Like I might actually belong here."
Naomi’s expression softened into sothing so tender it almost hurt to look at.
"You do belong here," she said firmly. "Ability or no ability."
If only she knew. If only any of them knew just how much of an imposter I really was. Not just a lottery kid. Not just a milk vampire. A complete stranger wearing Jace Monroe’s face.
But in monts like this, with Naomi looking at like I hung the moon, I could almost believe her.
Almost.
"Now who’s being terrible?" I teased, deflecting from the sudden weight of emotion. "Getting all sappy on our first official date."
"Is that what this is?" Her smile turned playful again. "A date?"
"Well, we have food, a blanket, and I just kissed you. So unless this is so weird hunter academy ritual I don’t know about, yeah, I’d say it’s a date."
User Comments
0 comments from readers