Sky, Vince, and Noah sat on the outside bench of another table, looking into the center of the gazebo. I felt oddly exposed standing where everyone could see me, but that was kind of what we were all here for. I pretended to be comfortable next to Luca while Gavin sat at an empty bench with his back against the table.
I expected some small talk or casual conversation to fill the space while we waited, but it seemed that everyone took Luca’s instructions a bit too seriously. I offered a smile to Noah’s table and received three in response. As awkward as this was, it had been a timely distraction from them being mad at us for not telling them about our break-in plans. They would probably bring it up later, but by then, more exciting things will have happened.
I didn’t have a single doubt this meeting would be eventful. From everything I heard about the girls, I was in for a war to break out. Would they challenge me right off the bat? Demand that they get a fair chance to be with any of the guys? It wasn’t like they would actually want to fight, right? We wouldn’t do that. The Society was above such plebeian behavior.
“Finally,” Tyson groaned, and I turned around to see Sean walking up with CeeCee and Gwyneth. They were dressed similar to me in jeans and coats, which strangely made me feel like we were on even footing.
“Well, well. The mighty Luca has called a meeting.” Gwyneth’s voice held a venom that surprised me. I could feel her dislike the night before, but this felt different. Personal.
“It was actually me.” Sky waved a hand.
Gwyneth rolled her eyes in response and sat on the far side of Gavin’s table. CeeCee gave me a small smile before following her.
“We meet again, Olivia.” Sean grinned at me.
I let out a single laugh. “Right.”
He shook his head while taking a seat next to Aaron. Luca and I stood in front of the only unoccupied table, and I realized he somehow orchestrated this without words. Everyone moved as he predicted, and now, we were the center of attention.
“I know you all have a lot of questions, so let’s start with bringing you up to speed with what’s happened with Avalon. If you still have questions, we can answer them after.” Luca looked over to me and gave a slight nod, directing me to take over.
I swallowed. “Um, hi. I was born and raised in Malibu, California. I was raised by my dad and the woman I believed to be my mother.” I ran through the details of the accident, moving here, and meeting the guys, skimming over what happened with Carter and my cousin. Leaving out anything to do with Emery and her family as well as Juliet. I finished by bringing up my recent training and how I was now able to shield my body without exposing my shield.
Luca stepped away and looked at me, and I realized Sky, Vince, and Noah were wearing similar expressions of confusion.
“Oh, right. I forgot to tell you and thought Gavin would have mentioned it.”
Tyson started laughing, and soon Aaron and Sean did too.
“Full of surprises, that one,” Sean called out.
“So you’ve been here since September?” CeeCee repeated. “Why are we just now meeting you?”
I looked to Luca, allowing him to explain their decision. He cleared his throat. “There are several reasons. First, her situation was obviously unique. She didn’t grow up knowing about the Society, how large it is, what we do, our purpose. We didn’t want to overwhelm her right off the bat. So we moved slowly. Then, some unfortunate events occurred that delayed things. We wanted her to trust us and the Society before introducing her to you guys.”
“Why?” Gwyneth asked. “We could have helped. Don’t you think CeeCee and I know some things that might have been beneficial to her in the introduction process?”
It was shocking that she was the one to point this out. I didn’t get the warmest feelings from her and assumed she didn’t like me. I crossed my arms and waited for his answer. It wasn’t that I was angry, but this was a point I’d brought up before.
“In retrospect, yes. You guys probably would have been helpful, but again. Avalon’s situation was so far from normal. Our parents were also figuring this out and making decisions for the first time. There’s no handbook that gives instructions on what to do if a Society member is discovered just weeks before her sixteenth birthday.”
Gwyneth huffed and leaned on her elbows over the table.
“Is that why you lied when we ran into you guys at the movies?” Aaron asked.
“Yeah,” Vince answered. “Things have been crazy since the moment we met Ave. We were trying to keep things as simple as possible, but you guys should know she wanted to meet you for a while.” His eyes found mine. “It was wrong of us to prevent you. We should have set this up the day you asked.”
I agreed, but now wasn’t the time to talk through that. Not in front of these near strangers.
“Well, we’re here now,” CeeCee started. “Why don’t we introduce ourselves?” The others agreed. “I was born and raised here. I’ve known all these guys since diapers. I turned sixteen in November and can sense emotions, in the way some people see auras.”
I wanted to ask her more about what they looked like, but I smiled and Gwyneth went next. “I’ve lived in the Gold Coast my whole life. My Dad is a judge but also sits on the council.”
I felt like she was bragging, but I didn’t know enough about Chicago and the Society’s structure to understand.
“I can make people believe whatever I say.” She grinned wickedly. “But I’ve made an agreement not to use it on Society members.”
“Not that she obeys that,” CeeCee mumbled.