Page 77 of Savage Elites

I stared up into the widened pupils of his verdant, green eyes and gulped. “Is that what we are? Friends?”

“A lot more.” He brushed his knuckles down the side of my face, sending a mirroring tingle down my spine. “I want things to be back the way they were before any of this madness started.”

My gaze lingered on his full, kissable lips. If I continued staring at his face, I would melt and never get any answers. Instead, I focussed on the green, striped tie of his uniform.

“Willow, you’ve come to mean so much to me,” he murmured. “I really like the girl behind the pretty face and hourglass figure. You’ve suffered so much, but it’s made you stronger and not twisted you like it might have done to other girls.”

Heat rose to my cheeks. There were so many compliments in that statement, I didn’t know how to react. “You really think so?”

Sebastian nodded. “I also want to kiss and make up.”

I raised my brows and tilted my head up to meet his hopeful gaze. “Just kiss and make up?”

“More, if you’ll let me.” His lips spread into a grin that made a stray butterfly flutter between my legs.

My gaze flickered to my narrow bed, which made him chuckle. “Not here.” He stepped closer and wrapped his arms around my waist. “Back at the hideout.”

* * *

After donning a winter coat, I took his hand, and we walked through the academy and through to the dark, snowy courtyard. Iron lamplights illuminated our way, making the academy grounds look like something out of a Christmas card.

A contented sigh escaped my lips. With Miss Claymore gone and Sebastian about to reconcile with me, my only outstanding issue was Bianca and her father. As soon as I returned from the hideout, I would hand her back her envelope and tell her I would never cover for her father.

I sank into the jeep’s leather seat. “Coming to the hideout with you is no guarantee of anything.”

He started the engine and reversed around the other cars. “I know, but hiding the truth from you has been torture.”

“Why didn’t you just tell me when Leopold suggested?”

“Mostly because I was ashamed of what I’d done. Miss Claymore always directed her anger at me, and I could handle that. It wasn’t until Leo told me you’d been poisoned that I truly believed she was behind the attacks.”

The jeep rolled down the driveway leading to the academy gates. Its headlamps lit up the woodland on both sides of the path.

I stared out of the window, wondering if Miss Claymore was lurking somewhere in the trees, waiting for her chance to snatch Sebastian. The thought sent a shiver down the back of my spine, and I made a mental note to complain to Mrs. Benazir about Bianca being able to get into my room.

“Stop blaming yourself about Miss Claymore,” I said. “She should have seen what you were doing and stopped you.”

Sebastian shook his head. “I was eager for someone else to feel the gut-wrenching pain of losing everything. It was the sickest thing I’ve ever done, and that includes driving Father’s Porsche off the side of a mountain.”

“I thought that had been an accident.”

He gave me an exasperated look. I rolled my eyes. What else was I supposed to think when he referred to the accident in the same breath as the pull-a-pig game?

“Why did you set out to break her heart?” I stared at his profile.

Sebastian had lost a little weight since we’d first met. I wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad thing because his features were now more chiseled, showcasing his high cheekbones and strong jaw.

He slowed down to take a sharp turn, and his face twisted into an expression of distaste. “I told the grief counselor about a girl at school I liked, and he guided me through the courtship.”

“Why?”

“Grandfather paid the man to come in three times a week, and he wouldn’t leave me alone,” Sebastian growled. “I was tired of talking to him about my feelings. It wasn’t bringing anyone back and just made me even more upset.”

“Okay.” I bit down on my lip. Maybe it was a guy thing, but talking through my feelings helped me get past them.

Sebastian let out a frustrated breath and said, “I wanted to feel in control. I wanted to distract the counselor from conversations about dead people. I wanted to see what would happen if I tried to seduce Miss Claymore.”

“Oh, my goodness.” I clapped my hand over my mouth. The words had slipped out of my mouth, and I wasn’t sure why. I’d already heard his account of how he had seduced her. His reasons for doing so really shouldn’t have been a surprise.