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She nodded but didn’t look up at me.

“I, for one, don’t think it’s bad that you have feelings for someone who’s not a mer,” I said. “You can’t always control who you fall for.”

Tobias popped into my head, but I shoved him right back out.

“Like in Shifter Bio, we learned about imprinting,” I continued. “Surely that happens with mer, too. Mrs. Sharp said it has nothing to do with species, that it can happen across species. If a mer imprinted on a hound, wouldn’t the mer community have to respect the match?”

Adina snorted a sad laugh. “Probably not. The elders would probably conduct experiments to remove it.”

The way she said it made me laugh, too. She was probably right. Which, yikes.

“Look, I’m not doing anything for a few hours until dinner. Do you want to hang out?”

Adina looked up at me, and I suddenly felt very foolish for being so nice. I was sure she was about to tell me off.

“You want to hang out with me? After the way we treated you?” she asked.

I shrugged. “Sure. Everyone needs a friend.”

And then, she actually smiled. “Okay. I’d like that. You know, you’re a lot nicer than we gave you credit for.”

“Thanks, I guess.” I just hoped my niceness wasn’t going to bite me in the ass later.

Chapter 29

Tobias

I adjusted my weight again on the faux-leather bench in the corner booth, resulting in the embarrassing squeaking sound that drew the side-eyes of every person at every other table within hearing distance.

I ignored their attention as I swirled my spoon around my mug of too-rich hot chocolate. I actually liked the change of location. Usually, Arthur summoned me to an up-scale private club in the VIP section, or a private table at the Oriole restaurant, which meant I had to dress up for a conversation with my father that would last less than five minutes.

My cocoa had gone cold, but it hadn’t been very appetizing to begin with. I wished I’d brought Niko or Brett to at least kill time, since the Generalalwaysmade me wait. Arthur’s instructions had been very specific that I come to the hole-in-the-wall diner alone.

Being high up in the military, one would think Arthur would always be punctual for his meetings. And I was certain he was for everyone else. I just wasn’t important enough to merit the same treatment, and Arthur never passed up an opportunity to remind me of my place.

When the chime on the door rang the announcement of another patron, I didn’t even need to glance up to know he’d finally arrived, as the head of every host, waitress, and customer in the entire establishment gravitated toward his commanding presence.

If I wasn’t so anxious, I might have rolled my eyes. I had an idea of what this meeting might be about.

“Tobias,” Arthur said in his commanding voice as he slid onto the bench opposite me.

Two of his underlings occupied a table two spots over, within eyesight but out of earshot. Like Arthur actually needed his own security detail.

“Father,” I said, looking him in the eye. “Did Mom come with you?”

“She’s shopping.”

My mood deflated even more. Though I knew the reason he wanted to meet, I’d at least hoped that my preferred parent would be here as a buffer.

Butshe wasn’t aware of the task Arthur had given me. She wouldn’t approve of another Dracul male treating a girl the way she’d been treated her entire life. Octavia would never admit that it was nearly the same, just that it was cruel.

Arthur took the mug I still fidgeted with and slid it to the side of the table, then laced his fingers together and leaned on his forearms. “She sends her love,” he said.

If I didn’t know the words were actually true, there’s no way I would’ve believed it by the tone of his voice.

“So, Caesar’s office wasn’t available this morning?” I asked, eager to cut to the chase.

“It didn’t seem prudent to risk another student eavesdropping.”