The Hidden Princess At All-Boys Alpha Academy novel Chapter 965

He has much less, doesn’t he?

“It leaves us as friends, Luca,” I say quietly, meaning it very much. He lifts his eyes to me with a sigh. “We…start over from there. See where it goes.” I smirk a bit. “I still own half your gym, after all.”

He huffs a laugh, looking to the side. “I know. My uncle is pissed.”

“Your uncle is a dick,” I say, dry. Luca laughs harder at this, turning that gorgeous smile on me. And, as usual, my stomach flips a bit at the sight. “Are you coming back to school?”

He shrugs, clearly implying that he’s unsure.

“Think about it,” I say on a long exhale. “And…we’ll go from here. But I’m sorry, Luca. And I forgive you and I care about you a great deal. I’m…very happy that you came today.”

“Yeah,” he says on a sigh, slipping his hands into his pockets, regret taking his features as I take a step away. “I’m glad too.”

“I’ll see you soon?”

He shrugs, tacitly agreeing to it but unhappy that this apparently didn’t go as planned. “I love you, Ariel.”

I give him my best smile – a true one, not a Princess Ariel smile. “I love you too, Luca. Just…in a different way, now.”

He sighs as I turn away, clutching the magazine to my chest and hurrying into the palace. As soon as I get inside I turn my mind away from Luca, knowing I’ve got more important things to deal with right now. I rush up the stairs, eager as hell to find my mate and fill him in, to assure him that everything is fine.

When I hurry into the living room my eyes quickly sweep around, taking in Rafe, Mark, and Ben sitting around the coffee table with Jesse, a sleeping Seraphina sprawled chaotically over his lap. My cousin grins at me as I immediately stride across the room, heading for the hall and my room beyond.

“Hey, cuz,” Jesse says, grinning wickedly at me. “What have you been up to?”

“Hey, Goldie,” I whisper, moving from Jackson’s lap to the bed next to her, laying my body horizontal and propping myself up on my elbow, laying the magazine face-down next to me. “Did you have a busy day?”

“Yes,” she whispers, happy and sleepy, looking up at me. “Ariel.”

“Yeah, that’s me,” I whisper, laughing a bit, reaching out to pet her little dark head. “You feeling sleepy?”

She nods, taking a deep breath. “Can Fifi come tomorrow?”

I laugh lightly, delighted at their growing friendship. I glance at Jacks, who shrugs, letting me know he has no idea what the plans are. “We’ll see. Hey, I brought you an amazing story book,” I say, grinning wickedly, turning the tabloid over and handing it to her.

Jackson leans forward, confused and curious.