As well as that. I shook my head. “Nothing, Wolf,” I countered. This made him chuckle, so I obviously got away with that. I smiled. “And what are you guys talking about? Bring who in?”
The pair exchanged a glance before Ares closed his locker.
Ares bunched his jacket sleeves up. “Imma see you two around, then,” he said, but then pointed at Dorian. “I’m assuming you’re still ditching practice today.”
Dorian’s brawny arm hooked around my waist, which apparently gave Wolf his answer. I didn’t know he was ditching practice for whatever we were going to do today.
Wolf nodded. “Have fun, then.”
His statement accompanied a look in Dorian’s direction. Ares started to pass us, but stopped. He frowned. “Your hair always like that?”
It took me a second to realize he was talking to me and another to figure out what the fuck he was talking about.
I supposed I had worn my hair differently today, curly. Thick and frizzy curls hadn’t held up today, and I shrugged. “I’m naturally curly. I just usually straighten it.”
I’d been running late this morning, which was the only reason I hadn’t. I guessed the only reason he hadn’t seen it in all its frizzy glory was because I’d worn a messy bun at lunch. I’d tugged my hair free toward the end of the day.
Ares opened his mouth, as if to say something, but in the end, he didn’t. He simply told Dorian he’d catch him later, and after I texted Bru he could go on home without me, I joined Dorian in his car. My brother and I had been driving to school together since he didn’t have his football obligation anymore.
“So, uh, you going to keep pretending like I didn’t ask you guys a question?”
We were driving by the time I asked, and the question caused the dark prince to cock his head at me.
“You’re relentless as fuck, you know that?” he stated, his fingers tapping on my knee. His meaty hand had found a permanent place on my thigh, and I let him since I fucking liked it. Long fingers massaged through my jeans. “Wolf and I were just talking.”
“Talking about what?” I cocked my head, and he smiled.
“Wolf wants to bring you into our crew.” He adjusted in his seat, his eyes on the road. He glanced my way. “Be one of us, I guess.”
One of us.
I folded my arms. “You mean your little Court?” I laughed. “You guys must be on crack.”
I wasn’t interested in being in anything that had to do with that, whether they did hazes still or not.
Dorian grinned. “The Court isn’t a bad thing. Hasn’t been for a long time.”
“How do you explain what happened to Bru?”
“A mistake.” His expression was serious, his nod firm. “And something Wolf has owned up to. He knows he messed up.” He shrugged. “He thought he was looking out for me. The way he went about it was fucked, but he did. He was being a brother and supporting me, but stuff like that doesn’t usually happen. Not anymore.”
I recalled my own conversations with Ares. He had believed I was a threat.
He’d even said he was jealous.
We really had come a long way, our ease together in the hallway definitely saying that and not to mention all the stuff he’d done before for my brother.
“The Court is about brother and sisterhood.” Dorian raised a hand. “We’re a community.”
“A community?”
“Yeah.” He draped his arm around me, that chunky gorilla ring with the ruby eyes below his knuckle. “It’s about unity, and it’s not bad. Members look out for each other and do a lot of good for the city. We volunteer and stuff.”
“You volunteer?”
His grin was wiry. “Some of us more than others.”
I played with his fingers over my shoulder. “You want me to be a part of that?” I swung my gaze over. “Your community.”