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Bellamy’s eyebrows draw down. “Why are you looking up John—I mean, the chief justice?”
So he’s on a first name basis with the asshole, just like Drake. Why am I not surprised? Clutching the laptop to my chest, I shrug. “No reason.”
“You’re a shitty liar.” He leans closer but not before he sends a vicious glare to a group of Foundations who are openly gaping at us from the next table over. They all whirl around fast. Narrowing his eyes, he shakes his head, then looks back at me. “Why are you searching for his family?”
“Do you ever mind your own business?” I ask, packing my things. Bellamy helps me, closing books and handing them to me. I snatch them away from him with more force than necessary. “Why are you even here? Shouldn’t you be holding court like Melody? Making your little Foundation fan club kiss your ass?”
His lip curls in annoyance at her name. “She and I are not the same.”
Scoffing, I stand and stare down at him. “You’re both Foundations. You’re rich, ultra powerful. Everyone knows she’s going to be your tether.” I swear he recoils, but he recovers quickly and stands up to join me as I make my escape.
Leaving the safety of the privacy rune means emerging into the soft hum of conversations filling the library. My eye twitches as the sounds batter me. I really should do something about my sensitivity to sensory overload.
“Are you running from me?” His gaze burns into the side of my face.
I quicken my pace. “Gee, what gave you that idea?”
“Bellamy!” Melody calls as we pass her table.
The vampire doesn't even blink in acknowledgement. “We need to talk, Raina.”
“We really don’t.” I used him to piss Drake off. Simple as that. We exit the study room, and I cut toward the exit. I think I might make it out without him getting in my way, but at the last second, Bellamy grabs my arm. His fingers are warm against my skin.
My breath catches as he drags me into an alcove. I step away from him, back hitting the stone, and my bag slips from my grip. Fear hammers against my ribs as shadows burst out of his form until it’s only me, Bellamy, and the darkness that lives within him.
He’s so tall, he towers over me, and while I don’t know if Bellamy would hurt me, he’s strong, dangerous enough to send my mind spiraling. My body doesn’t know the difference between a vampire who desperately wants more of my blood and being attacked. My pulse drums in my ears, and my chest heaves.
Goddess, I hate this weakness.
Bellamy searches my face, brow wrinkled. “I’m not going to hurt you.”
“Then maybe you should let me go.” I breathe in slowly, hold it, and exhale. Controlling my breath is the only way I can hope to control my body’s reaction.
“I promise I will in a moment, but I have a proposal to present first.”
My eyebrows hit my hair line. “It’s a little soon for marriage.” Marriage is strictly a human thing, but the snarky retort lands. Inhale. Hold. Exhale. My heartbeat slows.
Bellamy’s dark laugh washes over my face. “That’s not what I meant, sweet ruin.”
“I really don’t like that nickname,” I grumble, then shake my head. “What do you want?”
Impossible as it seems, his shadows get even darker. “Everyone thinks Melody is our tether.”
“Right, and I hope you all make each other miserable.”
He licks his lips, searching my face. It’s almost as though he’s nervous? But that’s impossible. This is Bellamy. Other Foundations practically worship the ground he walks on.
Breathe in. Hold it—
“I want you to help me make it clear she’s not.”
Air rushes out of me. “That’s . . . wait. What?”
“Fake date me, help me show everyone she can’t possibly be my bond's tether.”
My head knocks back against the wall. “You can’t be serious. Be a man and tell her you’re not interested.” I try to push out of his shadows, but they’re as hard as the stone at my back. “Bellamy,” I growl. Irritation sends fear packing.
The vampire’s hands cup my cheeks. There’s something pleading in his face that gives me pause. “I wouldn’t ask if I had another option.”
