Page 15 of Whisper Pretty Lies (Lust & Liars #1)

Mrs. Conrad comes in. She’s young for a teacher at Deimos, still in her twenties. She wears pencil skirts and blouses, which means most guys barely concentrate in her classes. Her dark hair is pulled up in a tight bun. Her blue eyes scan the room.

“Welcome to Calculus. If you are in the wrong room, get out.” She picks up a dry erase marker and starts writing on the board.

“If you think this is an easy A... what the fuck were you thinking? Get out. I don’t have time.

If you think you need extra help, find the smartest student in this room and make them your friend.

We will be going fast. There will be quizzes, tests, and homework.

So much homework, you’ll wish you’d signed up for basic math. If you can’t handle that, get out.”

She turns to face the class. “Who’s going to be bold enough to solve this equation?”

She steps out of the way. It’s a complex equation we learned last semester.

No one moves.

“Okay, let me sweeten the pot. Whoever gets it correct starts the semester with ten points of extra credit.” She leans against her desk. “If someone doesn’t at least attempt it, everyone loses ten points.”

Brad, a Devil, stands. “I’ll do it.”

She holds out the marker to him and he takes it. He walks up to the equation and stares at it. When he starts to write, she makes a buzzer sound.

“No. Next.”

Brad sits down. Renee stands. She’s in the visual arts program at Anteros. She takes a crack at it.

“No. Next.”

Most of the front row has made an attempt, when Mrs. Conrad walks to the back of the class. She glances at the back row. “You.”

She points at me. I stand and take the marker.

I’m self-conscious of the length of my skirt as I walk to the front of the class—this is one I should really replace or at least stop wearing.

But the equation on the board doesn’t intimidate me.

I quickly write down the answer before returning to my seat.

“Interesting.” She clears the board and writes another equation. When she holds up the marker, a few students raise their hands. She ignores them. “You. Damon Storm. Come up here.”

He stands, stretching to his over-six-foot height, and walks to Mrs. Conrad. He has at least six inches on her, even though she’s wearing three-inch heels. He takes the marker and has the answer in seconds.

“Very nice.” She takes the marker and erases the problem. She adds another problem.

This goes on for a while until everyone has gone up to the board once.

“Grab your things and stand against the wall.” Mrs. Conrad goes to the front seats and calls out. “EvanAnn, you’re number one until someone beats you. Damon, number two. Gareth, number three. Cadence, number four.”

She calls out each of us and we fill the seats, meaning I’m sitting next to Damon after all. I release a breath, but don’t look at him while the rest of the class gets sorted.

Brad now has my seat in the far back corner.

“Take note. We rearrange weekly based on scores. If you’re sucking, you’ll be in the back. If you’re a winner, you’ll join me in the front.” Mrs. Conrad smiles. “You want to be a winner.”

When the bell rings, we all rise and grab our books.

“Homework is in the portal. Grades will be published on the home page. You’ll see your ranking in the class as things are turned in. It resets every morning. Don’t disappoint me.”

I head out into the hallway. Everyone says to avoid Mrs. Conrad’s class, but she also gives the best recommendations. I need a stellar recommendation from her for college.

My next class is next door. I know I have this one with Mia, and I’m looking forward to having someone to sit with. American History is one of those classes that has multiple sections and every senior must take it to graduate.

So, I’m not surprised when Damon follows me in. I head away from him and he takes a seat near the door. Mia comes in and glances at Damon before heading over to me with a grin.

“I’m so glad to see you.” She puts her books next to mine on the four-top table. It’s a weird setup, but discussion is a big part of the history classes here. “Oh my god. My first class I have with Chase and Hawk. It was an interesting hour. How have your classes been?”

“Uh, good.” I honestly don’t know what to say about them since the one with Cam had me uncomfortable the entire class and the one with Damon had me uncomfortable in a different way.

Brandt walks in with Drake, his friend. They look around the room and I see him zero in on Mia. Fuck. I really don’t want to spend the class discussing things while Brandt flirts with Mia. As they start our way, I look down at my book.

“Oh, good.” Mia seems really happy when the guys join us.

I cringe. Brandt doesn’t actually do his classwork. So if we end up having to do a paper together, we’ll be doing all the work.

But it’s better than sitting with Damon. I lift my head and meet a set of familiar green eyes. My pulse jumps.

“Hey, Annie.” Hawk smiles like we’re best friends.

Damon sits next to him at our table. I look around, wondering if I could get Brandt instead. He’s sitting at the table behind Mia. Close enough to chat or to catch her on the way out of the classroom.

“I was telling Evan you’re in my first period class.” Mia twirls her hair and purses her lips at him. “With her boyfriend.”

My stomach falls, because she’s not attached to anyone. If she wants Hawk, Damon, Cam, or all of them, she can have them. Not that I want them, because like she said, I have a boyfriend.

That doesn’t stop the twist in my gut, which doesn’t make sense.

“I don’t think we’ve met yet.” Mia smiles at Damon and holds her hand across the desk. “I’m Mia Lewis.”

“Damon Storm.” He takes her hand and gives her the smirk I’ve seen him give other girls. Not me though. No, he hates me.

“I can’t wait to come to the first hockey game to cheer you guys on. I never went to a hockey game at my old school.” She smiles at me. “Evan and I are going to come watch.”

Hawk leans his arms on the table, angled toward me. “Are you, Annie?”

Mia turns and nudges me.

“Of course.” I already agreed to it, anyway. I catch Damon’s glance. Fortunately, the teacher comes in and we don’t have to make any more small talk.

The teacher announces that there will be a group project this semester. And of course, my group is my table.