Page 31 of Scarred Crown

“You all right?” Alex asks from the doorway.

I release a deep breath. “Fine, yes. Just another lecture from the Momster.”

“Momster?”

I flush. The nickname is one Nick and I use on text exchanges, and I forgot for a second Alex isn’t in on the joke, might even tell someone else. “Never mind.” I hoist myself out of the armchair, but Alex has shut the library door.

“Where are you off to?” Alex asks as I approach the door.

“Find Nick.”

“He’s in his Mandarin class still.” He frowns. “Were you supposed to meet him?”

“Yeah, but…” I trail off as I reach the door, and Alex still hasn’t moved from the small space. “I’ll have to wait until he’s done, I guess. I’ll find something to keep me occupied.”

“Mom just got some more silkie chicks down at the chicken coop, if you’re interested. I could walk you down there.”

I eye him with suspicion. Alex has never willingly offered to go anywhere with me. Normally, he’s the one moaning to Nick about me hovering like a pest. “You’re offering to hang out with me while Nick’s busy?”

He peers around him with exaggerated curiosity. “You’ve got some better offers, have you?”

Nick mocks Alex for picking up a hint of a British accent this last year while he’s been at school. In truth, the whole family has a slightly different accent than the rest of the island. If I were to defend Alex, Nick would get his knickers in a knot, so it’s best to keep those opinions to myself.

Time alone with Alex. My stomach flips. No problem. I can handle this. Alex must be exceedingly bored to want to hang out with me and stare at baby chickens. One visit to the chicken coop is nothing.

“Yeah,” I agree with a shrug. “I guess I could do that.” Meanwhile, my stupid heart is beating triple time. Dark, mysterious, everyone is in love with him Alex wants to spend time with me. On the way there, I text Nick to let him know where to find me. He won’t be happy I’m with Alex, but that’ll be easy enough to shrug off as long as I leave with Nick right away.

“So, I know Nick has a girlfriend, but what about you? Any boyfriend lurking around pretending he doesn’t mind how much time you spend with my brother?”

I laugh and shake my head, my cheeks burning. “No boyfriend.” I should probably tell him Nick isn’t with Vicky anymore, either, but Nick prefers me to keep his secrets. He wasn’t happy I mentioned Vicky to Alex in the first place.

“Really? I find that surprising.” Alex walks backward down the gravel path so he can make eye contact.

“It’s sort of like what you said, most guys aren’t that understanding of my friendship with Nick.” The few boyfriends I’ve had have been short-lived and intimidated by Nick. He’s royalty, and I put him first before everyone else, always.

“Does it bother you that you always have to put Nick first?” Alex asks. “Does he put you first?”

I narrow my gaze. Typical asshole question from Alex, and I can suddenly see why Nick isn’t so keen on his brother. “We’re best friends. We always put each other first.”

“Hmm.” Alex turns around without saying anything else. The rest of the walk to the chicken coop is quiet.

The chickens are Helen’s pride and joy. She gets the best breeding stock and treats them all like children. Whenever she’s not busy, she’s down at the coop feeding the chickens in overalls. One of her most beloved used to be allowed to wander the palace rooms. For a while, as a child, Nick even had one that followed him like a puppy. Now that we’re older, we don’t spend as much time down here, so none of us but Helen get quite so attached.

The coop is behind one of the barns, so it’s sheltered from the wind, and impossible to see from any room in the main house.

Alex lets us into the yard and leads the way to the smaller coop where the chicks are kept until they don’t need a constant heater. We peer in the largest window, huddled together. His arm brushes mine, and I glance at him.

“You’re not the Jules I remember from last summer.” His voice is hushed, husky.

“I’m not?” I match his tone, my stomach a flurry of nervous wings. He’s looking at me like he wants to kiss me. Am I reading this right?

“Definitely not.” Then his hand digs into my hair and he’s kissing me.

For a stunned moment, I don’t kiss him back, and his lips are too hard, too firm on mine. Then I return the kiss, but it’s still weird. There’s no rhythm, and his lips aren’t soft and pliable, but instead like he’s trying to direct me somehow, someway.

When we break apart, I’m half-expecting him to laugh at me, to say he can’t believe he wanted to kiss me in the first place.

Instead, he stares into my eyes and says, “Again?”