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That’s never bothered you before. I resisted the urge to narrow my eyes. I knew when Arthur wasn’t telling the whole truth.

“Besides, I was in the area for another meeting.”

And there it was. No need to inconvenience himself by trekking all the way to the school when he could summon his son, day or night, to anywhere in the greater Chicago area.

“Is the new mermaid in love with you yet?”

Disgust seeped into my bones, both at his words and the callous way he said them.

“No,” I said slowly, then leaned forward. “You told me tobefriendher. And I’ve done that. We’re friends.”

“Afriendisn’t going to divulge the same information a love-sick girl might,” Arthur said with a half-smile that was rarely a friendly one. “You’re aDracul, son. We’re royalty. And with that, a good head on your shoulders, and a face that any girl would fall for, I don’t see the problem.” He leaned back with his arms crossed. “What sort ofcomplications?”

Kendall’s smug face flashed in my mind. I shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. I can handle it.”

“Good.” Arthur unfolded his arms and tapped the fingers of his right hand on the table. “Because if you bring up some excuse about taboo relationships between dragons and mers, I’ll yank you from that school so hard and slap you right into the military where you belong.”

My heart sputtered before speeding up. “But school—”

“Nonsense!” Arthur said. “You’re seventeen. You’re of age. And Colonel Candida has been asking about you.”

There were a thousand different things I wanted to say, but I knew better than to speak another word.

“Do what I’ve asked, and we won’t have a problem. You can stay in your littleschooluntil graduation. Now…” he smiled, another forced half-smile. “Just so we’re clear, what is expected of you, son?”

I wanted to point out that he really had only asked me to befriend Arya. But it was pointless to argue it now. If it sounded like an implication or suggestion before, it was clear now. And if I didn’t do as he bid, he’d take away the last string of freedom I had left to grasp.

“Make Arya my girlfriend.”

In order to make him happy and to get the information he wanted, it was non-negotiable that Idateher. Seduce her.Make her my girlfriend. It was the only way to ensure I could spend enough time with her to find out if she was indeed the siren from the prophecy.

Arthur raised an eyebrow. It wasn’t enough.

“Make Arya my girlfriend and make her fall in love with me.”

The words took the last of the breath from my lungs, making me feel empty. In order to do the latter, my heart was in serious danger.

Because I liked her too much already, despite how I’d tried to distance my emotions from her. Because my instincts knew something that I wasn’t ready to accept. And might never be.

Arthur smiled. Now it was enough.

The weight of what the General wanted me to do pressed down on me, crushing my spirit little by little. What I was being asked to risk, mixed with the sugary chocolate sitting in my stomach like a rock, made me nauseous.

Satisfied with the utter destruction of my will, my father stood. “I’ll expect a detailed report about a proper date in one week’s time. And, please, do bring her by the house for dinnersome time. Your mother would love to meet your new girlfriend.”

I was too defeated to scowl at his back as he left the restaurant, to even mutter to myself that my mother would be heartbroken over such an introduction.

With heavy shackles dragging at my feet, I took the long walk back to the subway on autopilot. How could Arthur be so blind to the difficulty of the task he’d ordered me to do? Or maybe he thought that I had inherited his inability to love anyone. He didn’t care how many shattered hearts he left in his wake.

And he was asking me to do the same thing to Arya.

But what choice did I have? I may have only had a few more months of school left before I graduated and got sucked into the army anyway. But those were the last precious months of freedom from my father’s total control that I’d ever have. I wasn’t willing to give them up.

I was entering the school before I realized how much time and space I’d covered while lost in my turbulent thoughts. And I’d come to a decision.

I’d go through with Arthur’s wishes. I’d lay the charm on thick to Arya, stop pushing her away, get her to trust me. She didn’t have to fall for me, and I’d make sure she didn’t. We could come to some arrangement, something physical but just friends. And I’d lock my heart up so tight that she’d never be able to reach it.

But before any of that could even be a possibility, I first had to apologize for how big of an ass I’d been to her. She hadn’t spoken to me since she slapped me in the hallway a few days ago. She might not even want anything to do with me, and if that was the case, there was no reason to worry about any of this because Arthur would send me so far away that I’d never see her again.