Page 131 of Hidden Empire
“You’re okay?” he asks, rubbing my jaw with his thumbs. “Not hurt?”
“I’m okay,” I breathe, basking in the comfort he offers.
“The babies?” he checks, eyes darting to my flat stomach.
I nod. “They’re okay, too.”
Our lips meet in a bruising kiss, washing away the pain of the day.
He releases a heavy breath and turns to his younger brother.
“What happened?”
Ivan meets his brother’s eyes, and sinisterly, his lips rise. “There’s an instructor we need to teach a lesson.”
Chapter 34
Jade
When I get back to my room, my hopes of crawling under the covers and sleeping until I can’t sleep anymore are crushed in an instant. Even if I didn’t have to skip Deception class to sleep, I couldn’t do it now. I’m not alone here.
Matteo is sitting on my bed, arms folded across his chest. “What on earth are you wearing?”
“Umm, funny story,” I awkwardly say, trying not to cringe.
“Oh, I’d love to hear this,” he drawls, looking me up and down. “How exactly does my little sister end up in a man’s uniform with a funny story, hm?”
“Well,” I clear my throat. “It started when I fell in a pool.”
“What?” he blurts, less suspicious and more worried. “You fell? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, I’m fine,” I insist. “Not a scratch on me, I promise. I just fell in and my uniform got all wet.”
He nods, calming down. “So whose clothes are you in?”
“My friend Ivan was there and gave me his spares?—”
“Ivan?” he asks, confused. “You have a friend? That's a man?”
“Well, yes?—”
His nostrils flare as he sucks in a surprised breath. “What? Who is this guy? Why don’t I know about him? It’s Ivan Morozov, isn’t it? Is that why you asked about him? You’ve been sneaking around being friends with him? Did he beat up that guy for you?”
“I asked about him before I even met him,” I say firmly. “I literally asked you the first night, if you remember. And I was just curious?—”
“Curious because you think he’s cute or something? Why are you friends?”
Oh lord, somebody help me.
“Matteo, you really need to slow down with the third degree. I can’t keep up.”
“Yeah? Well, I can’t believe my baby sister has been hanging out with some guy! How have we missed this? Are we not watching you closely enough?”
“If you watch me any closer, you’ll never leave my side,” I retort crisply.
“Sounds perfect,” he snaps back. “Since apparently alone time is when you sneak around campus to meet up with strangers!”
“He’s not a stranger, he’s my friend! You said I could make friends.”