Encircle (Colosseum University: Thorwald Crest Book 3) Read online

  “No way.”

  “Why not? Five gets me a Saturday morning off!”

  “To sit on your ass and watch cartoons. That’s not the same as planning a vacation. This is a point system that supports working, making money. Not spending it.”

  “So higher points because of the travel and lodging costs.” He rubbed his chin and then smiled brightly. “Fine, but if it’s research for locations or if I do one of those signings you and everyone pushes me to do—”

  “You’ll do a book signing? As in show up in front of people, take pictures, shake hands, and kiss babies?”

  “I won’t kiss babies—that’s gross, but I’ll do the rest, sure, yeah.” He paled at the idea but tried to hide his reaction.

  “If you do a signing, you can automatically have that weekend it’s on for fun. How’s that?”

  “Can we set signings somewhere interesting? But I still want rewards of weekend and week vacations for us.”

  “I’ll see what I can do on interesting locations, but who’s us?” I hadn’t caught that the first time, and I sort of bristled at it. “Are you looking for like hookup weekends? Who do you plan on taking?” He stared at me as if I was the dumbest person in the world. “What?”

  “Us as in you and me, idiot. Since when do I ever leave you behind? I want trips for us instead of always at my parents’ estate or here. We could go back to Rio!”

  I didn’t hide how baffled I was. “Why do I factor in with your reward? Shouldn’t you take a trip for you?”

  He shrugged and took the notebook away from me. “I like travel. I don’t really care where, but I want to get out more and us have adventures. It’s good fuel for my mind. How many points?”

  I thought about it a moment, my mind racing from what he’d said. “Fifty for a weekend, two-fifty for a week.”

  “Hey, that’s five times as many, and it wouldn’t be ten days, just a week.”

  “There’s a lot of hassle in planning a trip, making sure everything’s covered before we go, time from school, and on, and on, and on.” I narrowed my eyes at him. “I thought two-fifty was nice. Five hundred sounds—”

  “Two-fifty,” he muttered, jotting it down in the notebook. “You said two-fifty. Don’t inflate it because I whined. We’re not playing yet.” He moved over to the printer, scanned the page, and made a copy, pinning it up on the corkboard above his desk. “Okay, so if we come up with something more later, we’ll add it. We can start now.”

  “Yeah, cool.” I took the notebook back from him and about fainted when he opened his laptop. “Everything you’re behind on doesn’t count since it’s late. After you’re caught up we’ll start.”

  He shot me a challenging look over his shoulder but then sighed. “That’s fair I guess. Do I still get like the week points if I behave this week and work hard?”

  “Yeah, you can still have the week’s points,” I chuckled but then caught the clock. “You’re done for the day with classes and it’s Monday, so we’ll start fresh.”

  He winked at me before getting settled at his desk. “You better hoof it to class or you’ll be late.”

  I did just that, racing to finish dressing and booking it to my afternoon classes. I’d never admit that I lost focus during them if anyone asked, but I did, thinking about trips we might take, how the trips would go in my fantasy… Well, I knew that wasn’t how they’d truly be.

  Yeah, I seriously doubted there would be a private island where Joost and I would make love all day as if we were on a honeymoon. Delusion, table for one.

  Still, as I headed back to our room, mentally listing everything I needed to get done before and after dinner, I felt lighter simply having the fantasy close to my heart. Either way, he wanted to travel with me. That had to count for something, right?

  Yes, you take care of the travel plans and keep him out of trouble. You’re an attendant not his boyfriend.

  I wanted to grab the demon in my subconscious that came up with that thought.

  As I reached our dorm building, I saw two delivery guys heading to the entrance. There were companies that were approved to be on campus—and definitely never allowed inside the school. I hurried over, all of us knowing that no matter the delivery or outsider that showed up, anyone and everyone should always intercede and send them on their way as fast as possible.

  Luckily, one was the courier our crest used, so he was easy. The other guy seemed way too curious, barely focused on me and looking at the entrance longingly.

  “Sorry, no one’s allowed inside, privacy issues given we have some celebs here.”

  “Yeah, of course, sorry.” His cheeks flushed bright, bright red, but he glanced at the door again. “I’m a really big fan of Doyle McCready. I was hoping to get a glance of him.” His eyes bugged out, and he did a great impression of a fish. “I wouldn’t be rude and take pictures or make a scene. I’m not like that. I know he’s private. I don’t even know what dorm he’s in, and I’m not a stalker.”

  “I get it. He’s handsome,” I chuckled, hurrying to sign both clipboards. “Well, since you’re not a stalker, I will say he’s much nicer than he even seems when he’s in interviews. Doyle’s a great guy.”

  “So cool that you know him,” the guy whispered. Oh, he was too cute.

  I sooo planned on giving Doyle’s boyfriend, Kisten, shit about the lovesick delivery guy.

  Once I had everything and they were on their way, I glanced at the tags so I could drop the items off to the right person.

  Carli. Carlitos.

  One tag with either name. I about dropped the massive flower arrangement. They were for me? How? Why are they addressed differently?

  I hurried up to the room and knocked with my foot, hoping Joost would let me in. He did but didn’t even give me a glance, rushing back to his laptop.

  “Sorry, hands are full.” He grunted his acknowledgement, lost in work. I couldn’t complain since he was really behind. It also left me to preen over my gifts without prying eyes. After getting my fill of sniffing and checking out my flowers, totally blushing probably, I opened the card.

  Carli,

  Thank you for getting me back on track, patiently waiting and helping me while my overloaded brain recharged. You once again pulled me out of a tough spot with your ingenious—and loving—idea. You’re the best and the best thing for me.

  Joost

  My heart skipped a few beats, and I tucked the card away in my nightstand. He’d never sent me flowers before. Even thank you presents were always on the side of funny or useful because he knew how uncomfortable I felt receiving presents.

  When I looked up, Joost was smiling at his screen. I saw the look he darted at me from the corner of his eye and knew he’d watched my reaction. That was fine. I could have soft moments. I lifted the box and set it on my lap, picking up the card.

  “Wait, I only sent flowers,” Joost declared as he plopped onto my bed next to me. How had he gone from his desk to here that quickly without a sound? Damn sneaky man.

  “Then who is this from?” I muttered, opening the envelope.

  Carlitos,

  You are the best! I can’t believe you got Joost to focus again with the slump he’s been in. (Well, I can because you’re awesome). This is to show my appreciation at making my life and job so much easier.

  All my best,

  Micah

  P.S. Do you want to get dinner some time? I could find a reason to be out in your neck of the woods if you wanted me to.

  “Umm, random,” I chuckled nervously, knowing Joost had read it over my shoulder. I opened the box, and my jaw fell open. Inside was a watch—like a totally expensive, wow kind of watch. I didn’t know the maker, but if it wasn’t Fossil, it was out of my price range. I slowly took it out and turned it one way then another. “I can’t accept this. What is he thinking?”

  “No, you should.” Joost’s tone was dark, eerie, and it made me do a double take, but he was already on his feet and heading back to his desk. I could see
the tension in his shoulders, and I knew I should say something, but his reaction startled me. “You should wear it on the date with your new boyfriend. I’m sure it’s just your style since you’re so close with Micah. Just give me a heads up if you want to use the room that night and I’ll clear out.”

  “What?” I gasped, thinking that was taking things a bit far. “I’m not—”

  I didn’t get to finish my thought, Joost stopping my words dead when he picked up his laptop and heaved it at the wall. I watched it smash into several pieces, horrified at what he might have lost of his work by doing that. When I turned to ask Joost what the hell he was thinking, he was gone, our door open.

  What the fuck just happened? Why on earth would he smash his computer and leave because someone sent me a watch? I blinked at the door, and my heart sank. Does Joost like Micah?

  Wow, that would really complicate things.

  Several more questions, and Foster sat in front of me in nothing but the sorry excuse for underwear and his gown draped over his foot so it wasn’t technically removed before the ritual deemed it appropriate. I wasn’t sure what I would do next to back out of the situation… Mostly because the blood currently resided south of my belt.

  “Sunset,” Foster breathed, his voice shaky. I followed his gaze and saw the sun had in fact dipped into the horizon.

  I cleared my throat and focused on his camera. “Oh, good, you should fix yourself and we can head in for your party.” I hit the power button, disassembled the tripod after removing the camera, and had just found the trigger to take off the lens when Foster’s small hands slid under mine. I glanced up, disappointed when he was dressed, and handed it over.

  “I want to do something, but you have to swear you won’t lose your head,” he muttered as he expertly tucked everything away in his bag. When he finished, he glanced at me, and I bobbed my head. Then he slowly leaned in, balancing himself by placing his hands on my knees, and kissed me. A gentle, soft kiss, but still enough for a zing to shoot through my body. “Thank you for distracting me and giving me something else to focus on other than my shame.”

  “The shame is not yours, Foster. It’s mine,” I breathed against his lips, wanting another kiss. Did taking one qualify as losing my head? “I’m sorry for it and all I’ve done to hurt you. All I want is to love you and make you happy.”

  He blinked at me and quickly stood. “Sorry, I guess I didn’t realize you wanted that even now. I mean, you said you wanted me, and then wanted to make up for what happened, but I didn’t get you wanted us to be together still. No, I guess I did. Maybe? I mean, you haven’t just said ‘will you go out with me’ ever, even though you keep giving me these huge confessions and—” He snapped his mouth shut and shook his head. “I’m sorry, my head’s all jumbled, I’m freezing, and it’s screwing with me that I want to skip the party and kiss you all night.”

  I about fell over at his admission. “First, we have to get you warm and get that horrible gown off of you.” I raced to zip up the bag, grab my sweater, put one on the other and the strap over my shoulder, before swooping Foster up in my arms. “It’s a long walk back, and it’s going to get dark fast. As much as I think those slippers are sexy on your perfect feet, they are not meant for out here.”

  “I thought the same thing when we headed here,” he chuckled and then moaned. “Gods, I forgot how warm you are. Oh, my personal heater. Do you remember when the radiator in our room kept going out and you had to crawl into my bunk so I didn’t freeze to death?”

  I nodded, debating for a few steps before deciding something. No more hiding things or lying about how I felt. We had both suffered too much because of that. Laying things out worked better so far now that we’d found each other again.

  “Truth is, I kept breaking it so you would ask me to sleep with you,” I muttered, unsure of how he would react.

  He didn’t say anything a moment and then burst out laughing. “Someone in class suggested that, but I blew them off, having seen your variety of porn all containing girls with huge boobs.”

  I almost tripped. I never knew he’d seen those. “That explains how you didn’t know my feelings. They weren’t mine. Well, they were, but I didn’t buy them. My brother was at the college when we were in high school. Every time I saw him, he had more crap for me after he was done with them. He was such a perv. I couldn’t open them with others around, so I would in our room and wait for the chance to dump them.”

  “Why not just toss the box or whatever?”

  “Because sometimes there would be stuff from my family, like he’d add a few things from the joint care packages Mom sent for us to him. Basically stuff he didn’t like and I did, but otherwise, he kept most of it. So I couldn’t toss it without checking and risk Mom’s wrath because I didn’t thank her for something.”

  “Yeah, your mom is scary,” Foster sighed. “When she threatened me, I thought I was done for and—”

  “Wait, she what?” I paused for a moment, blinking down at him. He blushed and turned his head towards my chest. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  “When she came that weekend we changed rooms to move in together, she threatened me.” I didn’t say anything, waiting for him to continue, and when he did, I started walking again. “She thought we were sleeping together, and she told me if I was a fag who liked it up the ass, I could use you for the time being since it was better than you knocking some girl up accidentally, but not to get any ideas I could ever be really with you because if that ever happened, she’d kill me.”

  “What did you say to that? Did you tell her off?”

  “Your mother? Gods no. I only asked if she’d believe me if I said we were only friends. She told me no, and I replied something like I wouldn’t continue a conversation with someone who jumped to conclusions without any facts and started trouble where there wasn’t any. Then I walked away. The rest of her visit she could have killed me with the looks she gave me, but she didn’t try to corner me again.”

  “Shit, I had no idea. She made some comment about hopefully my brother was helping me because I seemed a bit needy that visit. I didn’t get it, and I assumed she meant sweets because that was what she normally sent me in the care packages.”

  “Apparently she meant she wanted him to give you porn because in her mind, you were so lust driven you would stoop to fucking me.” Foster snorted. “As if you were a dog in heat and anyone would do. What kind of mother would—”

  “Well, not a dog in heat, but I feel the heat,” I corrected, wondering if he never knew this about demons. Sure enough, he blinked up at me again, his eyes holding all kinds of questions. “So, okay, umm, you know how vampires get a weird reaction to blood, since they drink it and it’s sexual to do that? Well, demons have odd reactions to their elements. Jean, for instance, can tell when someone has extra liquid, either sweat or—um, you know, and he reacts to it. If a girl’s wet around him for whatever reason, he—”

  “I get it. There’s a kinky side effect to your guys’s powers.”

  “Do you? Do you understand now?” I waited a bit but got nothing. I almost asked again, but Foster shook his head. “I control and respond to heat. It’s not so much a kinky side effect as learning to control powers and abilities. Never having been around sexual anything, I—well, I say I lost my head, but while I did that too as a stupid teenager, that wasn’t the half of it.”

  Again, he didn’t reply, and I thought that might be the end of it, especially when we reached campus and then his dorm I was also staying at.

  “Are you saying that me getting wound up when you confessed and kissed me affected you kinda like how Diego looks at us as if we might be on the menu later when he’s been without blood for too long?”

  “Um, no,” I chuckled, wondering why his—and soon to be my—crest leader didn’t keep up with his regular intake of necessary blood. “That’s a survival instinct, where he could lose his mind and go for someone’s throat.” I tried to think of a way to phrase it
better. “No, it’s more like earlier when you were really cold and you curled closer to me because I’m hot. You didn’t think you should do that, you naturally were drawn to the heat because it’s enticing.”

  “Okay, but that’s normal and I could stop if it was inappropriate. I mean, all people are drawn with desire and lust.”

  “Yeah, right, I’m not explaining this right,” I sighed, shaking my head.

  “Because you’re explaining it in a way we understand, but non demons won’t,” Bronx offered, stepping into the light outside the dorm’s entrance. He had a cigarette in hand and lifted it to his mouth, inhaling slowly before letting it back out. “I’m assuming you gave permission for him to touch you and we’re not going to have some problems in the crest we’re joining and my team?”

  “Um, yeah, I was cold and the stupid slippers that go with the outfit are thinner than wool socks.” I could hear the embarrassment in Foster’s voice, but it still made me feel good that he immediately jumped in to clarify I wasn’t being a jerk.

  “The draw isn’t lust or warmth but for whatever type we are,” Bronx explained, staring at Foster, waiting for him to look at my team leader and take the conversation seriously as opposed to simply talking about it while snuggling me. Foster figured that out too, because he turned his head and met Bronx’s gaze.

  “Then what is it?”

  “You ever been exhausted, like really exhausted? Two days without sleep cramming for finals and the stress drains your energy to a whole new low you didn’t think possible?” He paused, waiting for Foster to seriously answer. I watched as the man in my arms slowly nodded, his eyes filling with that curiosity that was infectious. “And you hit that point or get that break where you know you can’t keep your eyes open anymore. Even if you do, you’re not going to be of any use.”

  “Yeah, been there lots of times,” Foster admitted, not sounding happy about it, and it made me worried why he’d been in that state. From his attitude, I guessed it had something to do with what happened after I switched schools and decided not to push him for more information. He would tell me if he wanted to talk.