The Hidden Princess At All-Boys Alpha Academy novel Chapter 422

We don’t stay long on the roof – we don’t need to. After all, tomorrow night we’ll be together again, all sleeping in the same room at the Academy. There may be other nights, in the future, where we greet the dawn after our midnight toast – needing to talk for hours, to catch up, to laugh, to cry.

But tonight isn’t one of them. And I’m smiling, warm and pleased, when I press the door to Jackson’s room open and slip inside.

I burst into a smile when I see that he’s dozing against his pillows, Tiger seated neatly at his side, his wrapped present from me still sitting on the bed in front of him. Because even if he fell asleep doing it, I can tell he’s waiting for me.

Softly, I climb up onto the bed, and he’s awake before I can even move Tiger gently to a place of honor on top of the headboard so that I can take his place at Jackson’s side. Jackson inhales a deep breath that turns readily into a purring little growl of pleasure when he sees that it’s me, and he wraps me up tight in his arms, nuzzling his face warm against my neck.

“All okay?” Jackson murmurs.

“Yeah, everything’s perfect,” I whisper, wrapping my arms around his neck and kissing his cheek, his shoulder.

Jackson pulls away a bit, sniffing. “You’ve been crying.” A statement, not a question.

I laugh, looking into his face. “You can smell that?”

He just frowns at me, not answering the question, wanting an explanation.

“It’s okay,” I murmur, cupping his face in my palm. “Happy tears. I just…love them. Jesse and Rafe. So much.”

Jackson looks at me for a long moment, his expression softening, and then he nods, accepting the explanation, not needing anymore. And I smile at him, loving that he lets me have my little inconsequential secrets, parts of my life that are just for me.

But right now, I just want to be with him. “Are you ready for this one?” I ask, nodding over to the present on the bed, wrapped in the same gold paper as all the rest of the gifts this morning. I admit – I had mom wrap it when I ran out of time yesterday.