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He was genuinely worried about Julian.

Still… “Is that why Finn was monitoring my web history? Was he even my friend?”

“What?” Anthony blinked, surprise flickering across his features. “What kind of question is that?”

My stomach twisted painfully. I knew it.

He’d never thought of me as a friend at all.

“Some of us might be friends with you, but we’re alsomore.” Anthony sounded genuinely offended. “You’re not only human, and there’s something aboutthe Xing that makes anyone with abilities want to be near you. People are going to both want to use you and hurt you. Officers aredrivento protect. ‘Friendship’isn’t even remotely close to reality.” Then he sighed, tapping his fingers on the table. “But, no, we don’t generallymonitor your web histories. I’m not making excuses for him, but Finn can be excessive when it comes to his methodology. As you can see.”

I could scarcely breathe, but definitely couldn’t describe how I was feeling. “As I can see?”

“How he’s acted with you,” Anthony replied. “Also, bonding with Kiania. Finn is extreme and needs to succeed. There was absolutely no need for him to contract withher, but he did it because it would make him stronger forDamen. Even though he knewhe could die.”

“He was going to let a ghost kill me,” I pointed out. This all started because he ignored me when I told him I was being haunted. So really, Finn wasn’t all that attentive. It wasn’t like I hadn’t warnedhim I was being stalked.

Anthony frowned. “He’s also human, and who knows what he was thinking.”

“Is someone monitoring me now?” I asked, glancing at his notebook. “Are you keeping notes about me in there too? Do you talk to Titus about me?”

He didn’t answer, but his semi-guilty expression told me everything I needed to know. “I don’t like this.” I narrowed my eyes on the book. “The watching and stuff, whatever, I get it. But talking about us…”

“Then finish bonding with everyone.” Anthony leaned over the table, tone deadly serious. “I’m going to be blunt with you. Right now, Julian is going around unchecked, and Damen is almost entirely unhinged. He’s feeding off you and your emotions and has no idea how to handle it. You need Julian to control Damen, but Julian won’t be helpful without Miles. If Julian goes after Damen as he is now, it’ll be a disaster.”

My breath hitched. I knew that sometimes Damen and Julian didn’t get along, but ‘disaster’? “What will happen?”

“Nothing good,” was Anthony’s grim reply. “They’ve already had a history of clashing, and it’s nothing that anyone wants repeated.”

I couldn’t help but ask. “What did they fight about?”

Anthony’s even stare was the only reply needed, and my breath hitched.

Me.

Either now or in the past, I was the reason the two of them went after each other. Could it also be part of the reason why Julian hated onmyoji so much in general?

“Today is Miles’s first day back on campus, so I’m checking up on him.” Anthony moved past me, pushing open the heavy metal door. “I’m assuming that if he’s here, maybe he won’t miss practice.” Anthony sounded hopeful.

The soccer team had moved to the gymnasium due to the colder weather, and it didn’t take long to spot Miles as he ran alongside his sweaty teammates.

The witch was shirtless again and gracefully weaved around the other players as he took control of the field with effortless movements. His skin, though, was a testament to the level of his excursion, and a slow flush crawled over the base of his neck, creeping toward his face.

My breath caught in my throat—it felt like ages since I’d last seen him. He was, as always, delicious to look at, and that warm feeling was back.

Plus there was the fact that he’d been getting up to some shady nonsense behind my back.

My fist clenched against my thigh. I wasn’t sure if I should be excited or annoyed.

He hadn’t noticed us, and he shouted out another player’s name as he passed the ball. After, he came to a halt, wiping his forehead with the back of his arm, and my attention wandered to the still-pink scar on his left cheek.

Guilt replaced my growing trepidation.

“Oh?” Anthony linked his hands behind his back and peered down at me. Something about the tiny grin on his face made my hackles rise. “You like that? Don’t let your brothers know; they’ll never let you leave the house. They don’t believe you could have a serious sex drive.”

“What?” I pulled back, my sudden intake of breath making me dizzy. “No, I do not!”

Have a sex drive of any kind, I meant.