Page 11 of Whispers of Wisteria (The Garden of Eternal Flowers #5)

“Two,” she replied, stirring her tea. “Including you.”

“Two?” Who came up with the idiotic idea to hide me here? I stuck out like a sore thumb!

“Yes,” Ms. Protean said.

“Do I know the other fae girl?” I bet no one bugged her about chaperones. I needed to meet her—to compare notes.

“I doubt it. She’s a junior in Communications. Her name is Zahara Sadek,” she said. “Please sit down. Your fidgeting is worrisome.”

I sucked in a breath and moved to a seat. “Sorry.”

“Stop apologizing.” She rummaged around in a drawer, then pushed a white napkin and a small water bottle across her desk. “Take that.”

“Take…” I began, then spotted the two orange pills. “Oh, no thanks.” I’d forgotten—this was yet another con with being around shifters during that time of the month. “I’m fine.”

She stared at me, one gray eyebrow slowly raising. “You must, or Mr. Abernathy has threatened to send that horrible creature of his after me.”

She pulled out a bright red cellphone and perched a dainty pair of glasses on her nose as she read, “He says, and I quote, ‘I leave it to you to care for the blossom of my soul. Otherwise, I will destroy everything you hold dear.’ There are more veiled threats of an unsavory nature, but the gist is that you’re to take this ‘second-class medication’ until he can ‘hold you in his arms once more’. ”

Oh my God.

I hid my face in my hands as my embarrassment burned down to my toes. “I’m so sorry!”

“Why now?” She lowered her phone and peered at me over her glasses.

“Because…” Wasn’t it obvious? “He’s just so… him.”

“That’s how an onmyoji loves someone.” Ms. Protean lowered her phone back to the table. “They feel with all their heart, even though it might sometimes be annoying.”

“That can’t be true,” I muttered, pulse soaring. “They don’t all have the same personality.”

“No…” She braced her arm on the table. “They don’t. However, onmyojis are passionate, even if they have different ways of showing it. Once they’re fixated on something, they’re obsessed. It can be rather unhealthy.”

But… That wasn’t true at all—because Damen didn’t love me.

“On a different note, here’s some advice: go to the doctor. You shouldn’t be in this much pain. Have you been around Mr. Ducharme since your cycle began?”

“No!” I was close to panicking. “Why?”

“He’s your mate, Bianca.” Ms. Protean closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead.

“Even if you wanted to hide this from him, he can tell. Nobody knows how a mated dragon will act, but I can’t imagine he’d let you pretend this away.

Besides, you also have Mr. Montrone and Mr. Kohler.

It’s no wonder Mr. Abernathy is concerned.

For your own sake, be proactive and visit the doctor.

This is not something you should ignore. ”

“It’s fine!” I snatched the pills and put them in my mouth before guzzling the water. I had to be careful. I doubted I’d get away with hiding from everyone for a few days.

I could only hope my luck would hold out and it wouldn’t be terrible this time. I had to stay hydrated, and definitely no puking and fainting.

“No one has reason to be worried,” I added. Especially not once the pills kick in.

I, most definitely, was not worried. Or I tried not to be.

Ms. Protean remained silent. I hadn’t convinced her of anything.

Thankfully, though, she let the subject drop. She leaned forward, locking her fingers under her chin. “Have you given my offer much thought?”

“Thought?” I asked, but I knew what she meant.

“I didn’t want to presume. If you stay on campus even though you’re on leave, you might as well get credit. After all, you were easy enough to find when I needed you.”

I blushed. “How did you know where to find me?”

“I have my ways.”

“It was Cécile, wasn’t it?” I narrowed my eyes. I knew she was spying on me.

The older woman pulled back a fraction, surprise flicking across her face before it was masked with cautious indifference. “Yes.”

Of course.

“Does Damen know she’s still wandering around?” I asked.

He hadn’t been happy the last time.

“Mr. Abernathy…” Ms. Protean said slowly, choosing her words carefully. “Sometimes chooses to ignore things happening in front of him. But this is good; it shows you’ve been paying attention. Does this mean you’re accepting the position?”

I clenched my fists in my lap. I wanted to, but should I? Uncle Gregory would be displeased.

Actually, that was kind of a pro.

“There’s no pay, of course.” She sounded apologetic. “Not until you’re a senior, but this experience can count toward credits and—”

“Yes!” I said. “I’ll do it!”

“Yes, what?” A weary voice cut into our conversation.

I turned in my seat, pressing myself against the back of the chair as Bryce, who stood in the doorway, studied me. “What have you been up to that has got Uncle Gregory in a mood?”

He’d actually called him!

Ms. Protean scoffed. “When isn’t he in a mood?”

“He didn’t even tell you?” I gasped. How lazy. “He’s angry because I don’t want to study with him.”

“Oh.” Bryce deflated a bit—like he was expecting something more profound. “Why?”

“Does it matter why?” I asked. “I want to study with Ms. Protean.”

“Gloria,” Ms. Protean interrupted. “I’d rather you call me ‘Gloria’ if you’re going to work with me,” she clarified.

Bryce glanced between us, and I could see his hesitance. The lines under his eyes were drawn and haggard, and I almost forgot what we were even talking about.

I couldn’t remember the last time I’d spoken to him alone.

Why did he look so tired?

“I don’t know.” He sounded so defeated. “I don’t understand why it’s an issue, but he’s really against it.”

“He’s… what?” Ms. Protean stared, open-mouthed, at Bryce. “Why in the world—”

“Please don’t ask me.” Bryce began to rub his temples. “I don’t have time for this. He won’t say why. Maybe he’s afraid Bianca will get hurt?”

“That is…” Ms. Protean—Gloria—pursed her lips and glowered. “Insulting. You can tell him that—”

“I’m not going to tell anyone anything.” Bryce opened his eyes and pointed at Gloria’s phone. “If you have a problem, you two can talk to each other. Otherwise, I don’t want to hear about it. I’m tired of this drama.”

All my protests and arguments faded at the furious glint in his eyes, and I ducked down a few inches behind the seat. Thankfully, his attention wasn’t even on me but on the wolf behind me.

Brayden was grouchy today, and now Bryce too?

I’d never seen either of them like this before.

Maybe…

Was there another reason Uncle Gregory was upset today? Maybe it had nothing to do with Gloria. It seemed like something larger was going on that I didn’t know about.

My movements caught Bryce’s attention, and I pressed my nose to the back of the chair.

His eyes widened as the annoyance faded from his face, and his voice was lower when he spoke next. “Bianca,” he said, softer, “what do you want to do?”

I didn’t respond—a million scenarios raced through my mind. Had I done something? Maybe I shouldn’t have yelled at Uncle Gregory. Or perhaps I shouldn’t have been nice to Damen at all. That’s what’d made Brayden mad.

But that wasn’t right. There was nothing wrong with my being nice to Damen, and I hadn’t even known I was doing anything that might be noticed.

That wasn’t my fault, right?

Or maybe there was something else—some way I’d been inadvertently offending them all without realizing it.

What should I do?

“Bianca?” Bryce was watching me, eyes heavy with expectation. He was waiting for an answer.

My eyes stung as my thoughts spiraled.

“Do you want to go to Uncle Gregory?” Bryce asked, his cautious gaze softer than I’d expected. “He really would like for you to work with him.”

I shook my head. Even if it offended the older man, I wasn’t getting anything done that way.

“Okay.” Bryce took one slow step into the room. “Then do you want to work with Gloria when you come to the school?”

I nodded. But, wouldn’t they be mad—

“Then you’ll study with Gloria.” He looked behind me. “You’re not taking on any other cases like in the past?”

The past?

What kind of cases did Gloria usually work? I hadn’t even thought to ask her directly. But Ms. McKinnen had said—

“No.” Gloria’s voice had lost its angry edge. “I’m too old for that. Mostly sleuthing and acting as an intermediary at rendezvous points.”

Bryce shrugged, and my shallow breathing began to even out.

“Then it’s settled. I’ll deal with Uncle Gregory.” He held out his hand to me, and I stared at it. Although his hands smelled of soap, they were stained with red dirt and ash.

“I’m going back to Damen’s house,” he said. “Come with me?”

My gaze followed the line of his arm to his face. Now that I was paying more attention, I noticed he even had smudges on his sleeves.

Was he working in the greenhouse?

“Bianca?” My spine tingled at how he said my name, and I looked into his face. There was a certain level of expectation there, and right now, I didn’t feel like fighting it.

“Okay.”