Pheromonal: One Night With the Alpha novel Chapter 124

Chapter 124: Denial Shattered -- END SEASON TWO

"I thought this was all just a giant ruse. Like when rich kids go to college and pretend they’re learning and graduate with a degree they didn’t earn, because they’re paying people to take their tests for them."

The words come out a little shrill, and Penelope shushes me. I snap my mouth shut, trying to pretend I’m not as panicked as I am.

She grabs my arm. "Come on, let’s get you to the dorm advisor. I’ll show you every class on your schedule."

"My schedule?"

"Which I share with you, of course." Her smile brightens the hallway.

I follow her through the winding corridors, my feet moving on autopilot while my mind spins. The opulence of this place already made me feel like I didn’t belong here, but now I really don’t feel like I do. I was expecting to play a part, to pretend. Not to be a proper student.

I was, in fact, under the vague assumption that this was just a place to keep me while they observed me and kept the Moon siblings from kidnapping me again. I’d thought it was kind of ridiculous and overkill then, but this?

This is just... crazy.

Who does this?

"You’ve been here already?"

"Three days." Penelope’s heels click against the floor. "I wanted to learn the ropes before you arrived. Make it easier for you to settle in."

She didn’t say a word about it in three days. Pretended everything was normal. All to surprise me.

Well, it worked.

My throat tightens. "What about the bar?"

"Marcus hired someone to manage it while I’m gone."

"Marcus?" Seems like she’s been seeing him a lot. "How long am I stuck here?"

"Hard to tell. This place doesn’t work like a regular college. Time moves differently here."

I’d been so excited to get out of that damn hospital, I did not ask all the right questions. Completely blinded by my impending pseudo-freedom.

Once again letting the world just happen around me instead of taking control... Damn it. Get a little high on the idea that you’ve got some leverage on these people, and the rug gets pulled out from under you a week later.

Rookie fucking move.

Completely stupid.

I’m mortified at my own self. I’m old enough to know better, damn it.

Can I blame Logan’s pheromones? He’s been dumping them every time we’re together, and my body’s been interested in other things, regardless of the awkwardness of being essentially a captive.

The corridor opens into a circular anteroom. Dark wooden doors line the walls, each bearing a brass nameplate. Penelope leads me to one marked ’Dorm Advisor’ and knocks with three sharp raps.

My hands tremble. Penelope squeezes my fingers, her touch warm and familiar.

"I’m so happy to see you okay," she whispers.

The door creaks open. My jaw drops.

Marcus Ashby stands in the doorway, impeccable as always in his tailored suit.

"What the fuck?"

"Language, Ms. d’Armand. Please. This is a place of higher learning, not your friend’s bar."

I glance down the empty corridor, grateful for the momentary privacy. My hands connect with Marcus’s chest, shoving him back into his office. I grab Penelope’s wrist and drag her in with me, slamming the door hard enough to rattle the brass nameplate.

"What kind of game is the Conclave playing? Why do I need to pretend to be a student? I thought I was just here for observation and to keep me under control."

Marcus straightens his tie, his composure intact despite my outburst. He politely ignores my panic-stricken anger. "You misunderstand, Ms. d’Armand. You’re not pretending anything. You are a student here."

"How does that make any sense? I have a job, a life—I can’t just spend the next four years here to get some sort of magical degree. Why would I?"

"Had." Marcus settles behind his mahogany desk. Even this office of ’dorm advisor’ is ridiculously lavish. It looks more like a CEO’s study. "Your previous employment has been terminated."

This doesn’t exactly surprise me, since I’ve been gone forever, but—"You can’t do that!"

"They already have." His fingers steeple together. "This isn’t a choice, Nicole. You need to learn control."

"Control? I don’t need—"

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