“Excellent. Me too. Now, what size dress do you wear?”

The next thing I knew, I was in the north-facing dorm amidst a swarm of Harvest girls. Despite my protests, Kaja bullied me into an ankle-length blue dress the same color as the sky at dusk. The dark material was a stark contrast to my pale skin, but apparently it met the high mage dress code for formal events by covering my knees.

Who knew?

Most likely everyone—except me.

Chapter 4

Kaja and her elder twin sisters were in first and second years respectively. Then, she had another two sisters in third and fourth years, but they’d stuck to their rooms when I’d come in. Apparently, their mother bore lots of daughters but only one son, who was currently two years old. The poor kid would probably never be alpha of the pack either. That went to the eldest, who was almost always the strongest.

The twins had the same dusting of freckles as my new friend, but their wavy locks were the color of honey, not auburn like Kaja’s. The twins also had skills, I had to give them that. They’d done something crazy to my eyelashes that made them look like fans, and I was pretty sure this gunk wasn’t ever going to come off. I put my foot down at the body glitter. Allowing only a sprinkle on the braid on the top of my head, which made it look like a crown, especially with the rest of my long blond hair in soft curls. We didn’t dress up like this in Montana. This felt like wedding dress-up. It was weird … and fun.

Kaja and I walked along a stone path, our pace hurried so we didn’t miss the ceremony. Turning my attention back to my new friend, I asked, “So, seventeen siblings … what’s that like?”

“Fun. Loud. Crazy. I would probably talk to myself all the time and die of boredom if I were an only child.” She shrugged, chuckling.

I laughed with her. “Then, good thing that’s me being the only child and not you, right?”

Kaja nodded; she had quickly wormed her way into my heart.

“Who’s your eldest heir?” I asked.

We weaved in and out of walkways and past buildings, and I, totally lost, was glad Kaja knew the way.

“Nala. She’s set to become alpha. Her water bending is probably powerful enough already.”

“Cool. I heard—”

A blur leapt from the trees, cutting me off as I stumbled to avoid the collision. “Effin’ mage!”

My cousin Nolan popped in front of me, glaring daggers. “Nai, I need a word with you.”

He grabbed my arm and yanked me off the path, into the bushes.

My heels sank into the dirt, and I snarled at him. “Let me go.”

He dropped my arm just as Kaja peeked through the foliage and frowned at us.

“Nai?”

“Tell me where to go, and I’ll meet you there,” I told my new friend, jerking my head at my cousin. Whatever Nolan wanted had better be good.

She told me to follow the path, and after she left, I faced Nolan, glaring.

“Don’t you ever touch me like that unless you’re issuing a direct challenge, in which case I’ll happily oblige,” I snapped, seething.

How dare he! I was the heir, and he was the spare. Apparently, he still thought he was better than me. Totally delusional.

However, Nolan had changed over the last year. Where he’d always been scrawny, he now had the build of an alpha, well over six feet tall with broad shoulders. Yet, if his oily hair and smell were any indication, he was still weak-willed, lazy, and—obviously—quick to anger.

“What the hell is going on, Nai? I heard the Midnight heirs brought you in?” Nolan towered over me, his voice low. His features were furrowed in what appeared to be concern though, something he’d never exhibited on my behalf.

Maybe I didn’t know how to read him after all.

“Yeah … well, I started a year early.” I crossed my arms, not willing to give him any other intel.

Two other heirs passed by. Nolan glowered at them before pulling me further away. He swallowed, his eyes widening, making him look almost … desperate.

“Our parents didn’t prepare us for this place, Nai. We have nothing: no maids, no money … nothing. They make us work for food and then give us leftover stuff. We’re second class citizens—if that.”

My stomach sank, and I frowned, suddenly nervous. My mind went to the rotting box of food on the kitchen table. Surely that wasn’t provided by the school? Swallowing, I focused on what I knew. Nolan had always been a pig. Maybe he was complaining as an excuse for the sty-like conditions of our dorm.

“Well, would it kill you to clean up a little? The dorm is disgusting?”

He shook his head as if he knew what I was thinking. “You’ll see if you have a spare second after tonight. You’re about to become a slave to the alpha king.”

With that, he stormed off, leaving me with a tornado of confusion. Slave to the alpha king? What the mage did that even mean?

“Nai? You lost, luv?” a familiar voice called, and I spun to find Noble, hand extended through the bushes. He looked as handsome as sin in a three-piece suit. Behind him stood Honor, Justice, and … Rage.

When my gaze fell on the meanest of the four Princes, my mind blanked. Warmth spread through my chest like liquid honey. As if that man could get any hotter, Mr. Lickable-incarnate launched into the stratosphere of hotness in a charcoal gray suit.

Yum. No, wait … bastard.

Rage said nothing as his gaze traveled over my body, slowly, the heat in his eyes making his attention a tangible caress. My heart flipped.

“Noble, let’s go,” Rage snapped.

Why were the hot ones always such assholes?

Noble extended his arm to me, and I grinned, taking his outstretched hand. “Thank you, friend.”

He tucked my arm into the crook of his, and I let him lead me down the path.

“You clean up good, cub,” Honor called out behind me, making my grin spread. “And that dress—”

Rage blasted past and quickly outpaced us. “Focus on the ceremony, you idiots.”

“Do they teach anger management here?” I pondered aloud. “Someone might suggest that … as an elective. Just a thought.”

Noble waved my comment off. “He’s grouchy because Uncle Declan was pissed we went to fetch you, and he ripped us a new one.”

“Again?” I cocked my head. “Wasn’t that what he was doing when we first got here?”

It was not lost on me how crazy it was that they casually referred to the alpha king as Uncle Declan. I wanted to know more, like why the king appeared to have no children, but I didn’t dare ask.

Honor snorted.

“That was just the warmup,” Justice muttered.

Yikes. “Do I want to know?”

Noble shook his head. “If you ever get called to have a meeting with him, make sure you let me know before so I can be there with you.”

“Why?”

Noble lowered his voice just as Honor stepped up next to his brother. “To help you.”

Honor leaned forward to look me in the eye and offered a sad smile. “The alpha king doesn’t like mistakes, so do your best to stay under the radar.”

Whoa.

I nodded as his words sank in. The king was worse than I’d believed. My attention drifted ahead, to a well-lit atrium, and curiosity seized me.