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Turning her head to look at Riley, Charlotte asked, “Why are there so many students without Korrena mates? If you’re supposed to find your pair by your late teens, how come so many college students are without one?”

Blaire and Riley shared a look.

“The magic that keeps the cycle of Korrena pairings going is dying,” Blaire said, a serious expression crossing her face. “It’s part of the prophecy. If I don’t do what I’m supposed to, the entire thing falls apart.”

“Over the years, the number of our kind who discover their Korrena at the ‘right age’ has taken a nosedive.” Riley shifted from foot to foot. “Mama didn’t get hers until eighty-one. I don’t know why they haven’t updated the books. It’d feel less damning if they officially raised the average age, but no one knows anymore what’s normal.” She looked up at the stained glass windows on the front of the main building. “Besides, if everything fixes itself when Blaire does her thing, it’ll go back to what they teach us, so I guess that’s why they don’t change it. But who knows.”

“Do your siblings have theirs?”

“You know about Heather’s husband, right?”

“Yeah.” Charlotte remembered Riley’s older sister had a husband and kids, but wasn’t sure if they were paired.

“Yeah. Greg is her Korrena. Our other brother hasn’t found his, though. It’s why he’s so focused on his restaurants.”

Blaire put down the napkin she used to clean her fingers. “I hate that everyone is suffering because of me.” Both Charlotte and Riley turned to look at her at the same time. “What? Like you said, if I do my ‘thing’—if I were a Vasirian—the magic would be strong enough to make others find their pairs.”

“Maybe,” Riley conceded. “But none of us really know that. The Oracle said you were the only human who could be a Korrena, and well…” She held her hands out to Charlotte as if presenting her as a prize on a game show. “Exhibit A of how wrong that is.”

Something didn’t seem right. If everything in the prophecy she learned from the others came to pass so far, then why, when she and Aiden connected, did it all go topsy-turvy?

32

VULNERABLE

Abreeze blew through the courtyard as Aiden led Charlotte from the main building after dinner. The sounds of the bubbling fountain and low conversations from other students returning to their dorms filled the air around them.

He didn’t know how to address the topic he wanted to with her. Of all his friends, he always had the right words, and gave advice to everyone, but with Charlotte, he felt on unstable ground.

“It smells so good out here,” she said, stopping to look at the perennial flowerbeds lining the front of the main building.

He tucked his hands in his jeans. “Depending on the time of year, the smells change. Dogwood trees bloom, the apricot blossom trees in the grove over on the other side of the drive, the cascading jasmine on the other side along the hedge maze… There’s always something in bloom.”

It dawned on him how weird it might be for a guy to know so much about the flora on campus, but his mom rambled on and on about it when they first took a look at the academy grounds before his freshman year.

She smiled and shook her head. “My moms would love it. They don’t have the time to keep anything alive in our yard with the businesses taking up so much of their time.”

They continued their walk to the dorm buildings in silence.

He sniffed and looked over at Charlotte. “So, how are you adapting?” Smooth. “I mean…” He groaned, bending his head back and closing his eyes. “I don’t get why this is so hard.”

“What’s wrong?” She looked up at him as they walked. “I’m doing fine. Probably because we’re not in classes yet, so I’m not interacting with as many people outside of our circle, but I have met a few people. Most of them are nice.”

“Most?”

“Well, all but this one girl named Alex.” The puckered expression on Charlotte’s face, where it looked like she swallowed a lemon, made Aiden think there was more to it. “I think she likes you.”

There it is.

“I don’t know if anyone does around here, but I’m not interested in anyone else. I told you it doesn’t work for me like that, and besides, I have you. You’re my Korrena. No one else matters. They didn’t matter before I knew.”

“What do you mean?” Charlotte stopped and turned to him.

He licked his lower lip and pulled it into his mouth, his teeth showing as he tried to sort out how to say what he felt without scaring her away. Screw it. “You were mine before I saw my mark. It wasn’t the Korrena pull. I felt something for you. Genuine. I know this whole biology thing heightens it, but I wanted you even without it.”

Her lips parted as she looked at him in surprise. He wanted to kiss her, but he needed her words more than her lips in this moment. Did she feel the same?

“Well, I don’t get the whole Korrena thing yet, so I know my feelings for you aren’t influenced by anything else. At least that I’m aware of. I thought you were cute when I first met you.”