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Ronan?

He was most definitely not a baby.

“Thanks, Princess,” said non-baby with a wink. I rolled my eyes.

“Wasn’t supposed to hear that.”

“Suck it up.”

I leaned forward to stick my tongue out at him, but I accidentally leaned too far and licked his neck.

Licked. His. Neck.

Okay, so I might’ve just tapped his neck with my tongue, but still.

Fuck.

Ronan froze beneath me, a violent tremor running through his body. I heard him make a sound in the back of his throat: a combination between a sigh and a grunt.

Maybe if I just pretended it hadn’t happen...

From the looks the boys and girls gave me - shock, disbelief, hatred, and jealousy - I figured that wouldn’t work.

“Whoopsies,” I said sheepishly.

“What the fuck was that?” Elena screamed. Literally screamed, as if we weren’t standing two feet away from her.

“Um...an accident.”

“How the fuck do you accidentally lick someone?”

“Easy actually. Like, if you’re walking and you mistake someone’s head for ice cream. Or if you want to stick your tongue out at someone, but you trip and fall into them. There can be a lot of reasons for accidental lickings.”

Calax, seeming to forget he was jealous, doubled over in laughter. Ryder and Asher were on the ground in hysterics. Even Mr. Grumpy had a small smile on his face.

Okay. It wasn’t that funny.

“It really was, Princess,” Ronan said with a chuckle.

Laugh it up bastards.

“What the hell is wrong with her?” Bikini asked in disbelief. She exchanged a long, measured glance with another unfamiliar girl.

As one, the boys and I answered, “A lot.”

Choosing to ignore the glares I felt piercing my skin, I nudged Ronan’s stomach with my good foot.

“Put me down. My arms are sore. I’m weakening...” I said the last sentence as dramatically as possible, a poor impersonation of the Wicked Witch melting. Ronan chuckled at my theatrics but obediently lowered me to the floor. Ryder and Declan moved on either side of me to position me comfortably against the wall. I hissed at the pain ghosting down my spine, but quickly tried to mask my frown when I saw Elena looking at me. I wouldn’t show weakness in front of anyone, especially her.

“What even happened to her?” Elena asked. Though her tone was stiff, her eyes appeared to be almost worried. I must’ve looked pretty damn bad to get such a reaction from the ice queen.

“When the tornado hit, she threw herself on top of Calax,” Ryder explained. He sounded slightly awed, as if he was describing the actions of a mythical creature and not that of an awkward girl. His eyes were warm as they grazed my face. “Had some shit fall on her.”

Elena bit her lip. She seemed to be debating something, but what, I couldn’t discern. After a moment, she sighed heavily and dropped to her knees beside me.

“What are you doing?” Ronan demanded. He had, at some point during Ryder’s explanation, dropped to his butt next to me. His hand currently kneaded at the muscles in my neck.

“Fixing her. You want her to keep that leg, don’t you?” Elena said snidely. Turning towards me, her tone softened marginally. “What hurts?”