Chapter 59

SEVEN.

The tension in the room rises to levels I never experienced before as soon as Professor Venetia lets go of those words.

He offers his hand to Nancy, but she just looks at him full of reproach and doesn’t say anything. There’s a long tense pause, with Professor Venetia just letting his hand hang in the air waiting for her to take it and Nancy just ignoring it.

It would have been comedic under different circumstances. I probably would have laughed, but my parents are here, and I know for a fact that Professor Venetia suspected my dad probably up to this point where someone is arrested by the man he also considers his friend, Detective Harris.

When Nancy doesn’t move, Professor Venetia lets his hand drop and clears his throat. He turns his attention to everyone now, and when he sees that we’re all watching him, he forces a smile and says, “Good evening, everyone. I didn’t expect to see you here, Miss Hayes. Should I call your aunt and uncle for you?”

“That wouldn’t be necessary,” Dad suddenly says. “We’ll be taking care of June.”

Professor Venetia looks at him. For the first time, properly, since he got here. He looks like he wants to disappear. I can basically see the gears turning in his head. I know that he’s thinking of all the accusations he’s sent flying around when this whole thing started to pick up its pace.

Meanwhile, Dad’s face is devoid of emotion. He’s just staring at the Headmaster, waiting for him to protest.

But instead, Professor Venetia turns to June. “Would that be alright with you?”

“It’s my choice,” June says. “I believe Nancy should make a choice too.”

Silence rings inside the room. This time, I almost do smile because of June’s boldness. She voiced out the very thing that we couldn’t say. Detective Harris looks like he wants to run, while Professor Venetia is just smiling softly like he’s holding back a scream. My parents are as calm as a cucumber. Nancy is the only one who seems to be panicking. I can’t say I blame her either.

“Well,” Professor Venetia begins at last. “Legally, I’m the guardian of Miss Carney here. My wife and I have taken her as our ward when the school year began. Her parents perished in a fire a year ago, and before that, she was taken care of by her grandparents. They needed to be put in an institution, and my wife is her closest relative. So, I’m sorry, Miss Hayes. As much as I want her to be out of the house for a while so she could live her life as a normal teenager, I need to keep her in check. Especially after what happened tonight.”

“I’m so sorry for that,” June says, looking at Nancy, who just reaches out and holds her hand.

“I’m sorry too,” Mom says. “But you’re still welcome in our home.”

“Thank you,” she just whispers, looking down at her shoes.

“I hope that settles it,” Professor Venetia says, but his tone definitely softened. He looks at my parents, and he nods at them. “I appreciate your efforts to keep the kids protected. I owe a lot to you for being here, and for….”

He trails off. I know what he’s thinking. I know Dad does too. He looks at Mom and an understanding seems to pass between them.

“It’s all good,” Dad says, giving him a cautious smile. “It’s good to see you at last, my old friend.”

Professor Venetia’s whole demeanor changes. He smiles, offering to shake hands with my dad but dad is a hugger, so he pulls him in. The headmaster looks relieved. He sighs when they break apart, whispering, “Look, Ferdinand, I just want to say sorry for—”

“It’s all in the past,” Dad interjects, but he’s looking at the Humans around us warily. It seems that Professor Venetia forgot that they were here for a second. “No need to worry about anything now.”

“Right.” He lets out an awkward little laugh. “You’re right.”

I look at June and smile. She’s watching the whole thing go down with a touched expression. She rests her head against my shoulder, and at that moment, everything was right.

It feels like the end of a long chapter, and everything bad will now be put to rest.

* * *

The journey home was silent and sleepy. June and I are in the backseat, holding hands and resting on each other as the exhaustion of the night fills us up. Nancy went home with the professor, sending us both some thank you messages before she went to bed.

My parents didn’t say much, but they were both in good moods as we get to the manor. The smell and feel of home washes over me, but it feels so different now that June is with me. She keeps looking around, but she doesn’t ask any questions.

“We didn’t prepare the guest bedroom,” Mom suddenly hisses at Dad when we’re coming up the stairs.

“Is everything okay?” I ask.

She tries to smile but fails. “I’m sorry, June, honey… I forgot to tell our helpers to get the guest bedroom ready. It would take at least an hour to get everything right. I don’t think anyone slept there in years. The dust must be unbearable—”

“I can stay with Seven,” she says.

We all freeze. I frown, but my heart is already beating fast with anticipation. “Are you sure?”

She nods. “Yes. I mean, you can sleep on the floor.”

“I can do that,” I say, looking at my parents who are also looking at each other.

“That would be okay,” Mom says at last, after a long pause. “As long as you—just don’t—I don’t want you to—”

“Sleep well and have good dreams,” Dad interjects, grabbing her by the arm and leading her away.

June and I look at each other, bursting into laughs as we head into my bedroom. I’m pretty happy that I decided to fix everything last weekend. My sheets are new and every dirty clothes has been put away. The only thing that’s a mess are my shelves and my table, but June doesn’t seem to mind.

“I need a shower,” she says. “Can I borrow some of your clothes? A shirt will do. Your room is warm.”

“Of course,” I say, rummaging through my closet and giving her the first shirt I see. “I’ll take care of your laundry. Just hand them over to me when you go to the bathroom.”

Okay, suddenly things are tense. She heads to the bathroom and I wait by the door, hearing her take off her clothes. Suddenly, strange thoughts are invading my mind. Thoughts that are normal for boys my age, but something that I never directed at a real person before. Especially not someone I happen to feel so much affection for.

The door opens and she lays out her clothes. I take them, trying not to look at the underwear and stuffing them into the washer. The water turns on in the shower as I turn on the washer, and I do my best to quell those thoughts as I finish and get her clothes to dry. I change into different pajamas too.

The water turns off too. Suddenly the door opens and she comes out in my shirt, looking way too big for her. It falls right over her thighs. Her hair is wet, but she’s wrapping it in a towel. I can see the curves of her body, the swell of her breasts, her nipples peeking out from under the shirt….

No. I will control myself. I shouldn’t stare.

“Your clothes are drying,” I tell her. “You can wear them now if you want.”

“I’ll stick to this,” she says, lying down on my bed and pulling the covers over her body. “It’s only for a night.”

I nod, looking through my closet for extra blankets and pillows. She’s watching me, and before I can pull one out, she says, “I know I said you should sleep on the floor, but we can share the bed.”

I pause. I want to tell her that I don’t want to, not because I don’t want to be close to her, but because I don’t know what I will do when I get that close. But she’s holding up the blankets to let me get in, pushing herself to the corner.

I can feel her warmth even before I get in, but it envelopes me as soon as I stay close to her. I close my eyes, feeling my blood rushing to that one area as soon as her scent wraps around me. I keep my back turned to her, knowing that something else will take over once I face her.

But June wraps her arm around my torso, her hand finding my face. She makes me turn around and I do, submitting to her completely. I meet her eyes and it’s over for me.

I knew right then and there that I’m all hers, and I would do anything she asks. Even if it’s straight to my death.

“Thank you for being there tonight,” she whispers, her voice so soft that a blow of the wind can break it. “I don’t know what could have happened if you weren’t there. You saved us.”

“I’m thankful I found you,” I say, and I don’t know if I’m still talking about tonight. “I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t find you.”

Silence settles over us. She traces my face with her thumb, padding slowly over my lips. My heart stops.

“June?”

“Yeah?”

“I love you.”

June smiles. “I love you too.”

It’s over for me right then and there. I wrap my arm around her delicate body, pulling her close to me and kissing her feverishly. She drapes her leg over me, and I immediately know what I want to do.

I want to mate and mark her.