Descendants Academy: Young Adult Urban Fantasy, Belle Malory [motivational novels for students .txt] 📗

those gallant things Xander had done for me weren’t actually for me. Even him coming here, was out of obligation. All part of that stupid oath.

Reaching for my sandals, I stood, trying not to turn into living breathing ammo. But before I left, there was one thing I needed to say. “You want to know the worst thing about you? You pretend to be this good guy, but really, you’re only thinking about yourself.”

His jaw ticked, and the muscles in his arms tightened. “Good. You’re finally catching on.”

I spun away, marching across the sand back toward the cottage. My entire body shook, and I had to fight to keep that part of me contained. Balance and inner clarity, I reminded myself.

I couldn’t sleep. Tossing and turning, I burned myself as sparks of heat made their way into my fingertips. This was my fault. I kept feeling things for Xander I shouldn’t be feeling. Kept forgetting he was not a prince charming, coming to the rescue. More like an obedient servant, doing someone’s bidding.

Ugh.

It would help if I wasn’t so attracted to the guy. Maybe he was a distraction. I just got out of a relationship, or at least, what I thought had been a relationship anyway. It only made sense that the next guy that came along would be someone I would want to lose myself with, to make myself forget everything that happened before.

Just a distraction.

Pfft. Yeah, keep telling yourself that.

Then it hit me. There were two parts to that oath Xander made. He swore to protect me and that he wouldn’t fall in love with me. If that was the case, I shouldn’t take it so personally. He was simply carrying out my mother’s orders, even if that meant pushing me away.

I sighed, closing my eyes. The best thing I could do was go to sleep. Forget what happened. The trouble was, because I’d slept for so long earlier, I wasn’t tired. With no TV available to kill time, there was nothing to do.

I stared at the ceiling, counting invisible sheep, bored out of my mind. Minutes, maybe hours, passed like that.

Then the floorboard creaked. Swifter than a cat, Xander’s arms came around me, pressing into the mattress, his face hovering above mine. “Wake up,” he whispered, his blue eyes glowing in the dark.

“I’m already awake,” I whispered back, wondering at his strange behavior.

“Good. Get up.”

“Why?” I said, my tone full of suspicion.

“We’re going out.”

First, he pushes me away. Now he tells me we’re going out? He had to be the most frustrating, confusing guy I’d ever met.

I stared back at him like he’d lost his mind. “You wanted a break from all this, remember? Let’s go have some fun.”

Hmm…exploring Twilight Island at night? I’d never get another chance, not anytime soon anyway.

I narrowed my eyes. “What made you change your mind?”

He shrugged. “You were right. We need to pause all the heavy stuff.”

“Oh ho. I’m right about something?”

He snorted. “There’s a first time for everything.”

Ten minutes later, I was on the back of Xander’s moped, speeding toward the center of Folly Promenade. “Where are we going?” I shouted against the briny wind.

“You’ll see.”

A very cryptic answer, but okay. I’d deal with all the suspense just to see what he had in store.

Folly at night was even more enchanting than during the day. Overhead were dozens of twinkle lights, canopying the street. The crowds were thick with mages and other magical beings. We parked next to a bluish street lamp, then Xander helped me down. He took my hand and led me through the crowds.

We sidestepped sequined dancers, fortune-tellers, one monkey wearing a turban, and a firebreather who created images out of flames. A heart, a pair of eyes, and even a dragon. I stared at the firebreather, fascinated, but Xander continued pulling me into the heart of the promenade.

“Where are we going?” I said again, once we found a lull in the crowd. I walked beside him, trying to glimpse his face. “To see a voodoo priestess? A medicine man? Oh, I get it now. You’re hauling me off to my death so you can finally be free from the Silver Oath, aren’t you?”

I was teasing, but he only frowned at my joke. “Stop trying to spoil the surprise.”

“Fine,” I huffed dramatically.

We rounded a corner. Up ahead, there was a building where everyone seemed to be going, taller than any others nearby.

I glanced at Xander, wondering what was going on with him. I was glad he took my advice, but the hot and cold shift in his personality was confusing as hell. I stopped walking, forcing him to do the same.

He turned to face me. “What?”

“Look, I appreciate the spontaneity, but what happened to the whole we can’t be friends thing?”

I needed some sort of explanation.

Xander rubbed the back of his neck, appearing nervous for a change. “Sheridan…I…” He couldn’t seem to finish his sentence.

“You what? Did you mean it or not?”

“I was angry.” He sighed. “I shouldn’t have said it like that.”

“Then what did you mean?”

“When we go back to school, we still have our own agendas. Nothing changes.”

I pursed my lips to the side, slitting my eyes. “It’s still like that, huh?”

Xander squeezed my hand. “Yours is finding your place in Aphrodite, and I want you to do that. I want to see you succeed, and not just because I made a promise to your mother.”

“Mm-hmm…” I wasn’t sure I could trust him on that.

“Don’t you want that too?” His eyes searched mine, those blue orbs glowing softly against the dark.

There was something in that question, a genuine curiosity that made me think he would be willing to do whatever I wanted. It made me think he would be willing to end the secrecy he believed was so important.

Was it important?

What if people knew we were friends—or more than friends? In my near-impossible fight to fit in, I had finally found some progress with Peter and the other Aphrodite descendants. And Xander was