average human’s Reviews > Clash of Claws > Status Update

Damn it.
“Shut up, dickhead,” Heath growled at Wyatt. “I wonder how many times Callista will knock on our door this week after you let her blow you at the Bergs’ holiday party.”
“Mmm, yes, she did give that her all, didn’t she?” Elijah said, chuckling. “So generous of Wyatt to let me watch.”
“Heath’s just salty because his dick’s about to atrophy from lack of use,” Wyatt drawled.
I sighed and banged the back of my head against the door. “Anyway. I’m meeting Avery in a few hours for runes tutoring. No—” I held up a hand as Elijah sat up in his chair, his face brightening. “—none of you are invited. Get your heads on straight about her. She’s a beautiful novelty, but that’s it.”
Wyatt rolled his eyes. Heath glowered—at who or what, I wasn’t sure.
Elijah’s smile was a dare, his pupils slitting. A flash of his insane beast. “Have fun, Aiden,” he purred.

43%

And yet here I was, bulldozing my way through the college and inflaming the zealots. My actions could make things worse for girls like Mallory, and I did not like that.
I pointed at her with my fork. “If something happens, don’t be a hero. Shift and scurry your little cat butt away.”
“Says the lady who was literally underneath a bear less than twenty-four hours ago,” she retorted, and then her gaze snagged on something over my shoulder, a sly grin forming on her face. “And not in the fun way.”
Wyatt had just breezed into the room, dressed to kill in a dark green Henley and his usual distressed denim. Heath and Aiden entered behind him, deep in conversation with each other. Heath wore a long-sleeved black T-shirt sporting the Guardian logo and snug blue jeans. Aiden’s dress shirt was navy blue today and tucked into fitted gray pants.
Behind them walked Elijah, wearing only a loose cream-colored tank top with his jeans, the inked snake wrapped around his neck on full display, the thin gold hoops in his ears and nose glinting under the light of the chandeliers.
I had to tamp down the little thrill his presence elicited. I’d yet to see him in the dining hall, and by the blatant staring of 80 percent of the room, it must not have been a regular occurrence.
“Ooh, if Elijah’s here, does that mean⁠—”
Shrieks from the tables near the entrance answered my question.
“Oh, fuck no,” Allen said, grabbing Mallory and lifting her on top of the table like she was a doll. He scrambled up after her, while Chance and one of Brody’s friends stood on their chairs.
A seven-foot train of sparkly purple scales wound its way into the room. Elijah and the rest of his quad went about piling their plates with food in the buffet lines, blatantly ignoring the fact that people were crawling on tables and fleeing the room behind them.
George slithered under our table. Ian laughed, and Brody, to his immense credit, had gone only slightly pale. Ash pulled her feet up underneath her body on her chair but otherwise seemed unaffected.
“Yes, hello to you too,” I cooed at George as he climbed into my lap. “Who’s the prettiest snake in the world? You are, that’s who. Did you have a nice long nap after your daddy fed you?”
“Avery, why?” Mallory moaned.
“Did you know snakes only eat a few times a month, and they have to nap for several days afterwards while they digest, depending on the size of the prey?” I asked her. “Fascinating.”
“Avery, we are eating,” Allen whispered urgently. “Put the snake down.”
George slanted Allen a snakey glare, and then he continued his climb to his favorite spot, wrapping himself around my shoulders, where he could sniff my hair.
“Pythons aren’t venomous, Allen,” I said. “You guys all need to calm down.”
“No way, I’ve seen him choke a guy out,” Chance said, still standing on his chair. “That thing is vicious, and I don’t know if you realize this, Avery, but he is wound around your neck.”
“George won’t harm her,” Elijah announced, popping up behind me and jump-scaring half the table. He stroked George’s head with one long finger, and the snake made a pleased sort of hissing noise. “He’s partial to our dove.”
“Hi,” I said to him, lamely. His yellow-gold eyes were full of mirth as he observed me wearing his snake like a scarf. “Do you want George back? Or can I take him to Aiden’s class with me?”
He grinned. “You think I can tell him what to do? He’ll go where he wants to, and right now, I suspect that’s with you.”
“Aiden will be thrilled,” I said.
With that thought, I darted a glance at the faculty dining area, set apart from us by a wide arched doorway. Aiden was sitting next to a young female professor, who looked like the polished version of a teenage boy’s hot-for-teacher fantasy. She gazed at him adoringly, but his eyes were on me—or my situation, at least. He appeared as exasperated by George and me as he had been on the first day of class. I fluttered my fingers at him in a wave, and he shut his eyes like he was praying to the Moon for peace.
“Don’t let Aiden fool you,” Elijah said in a conspiratorial whisper. “He and George are practically best friends.”
“Who wouldn’t want to be your best friend?” I crooned at the snake. “You’re so pretty and smart and cuddly.”
“Avery, honestly, I think you may have hit your head when that bear crushed you,” Mallory said. “Did Dr. Lee check you for a concussion?”
Heath and Wyatt strolled up, plates in hand. “Dude, we only have, like, fifteen minutes to eat,” Wyatt said to Elijah. “I’m sure the wildcat will take good care of George while you scarf down a sweet potato bowl or whatever vegan bullshit you’re eating today.”
A jolt of adrenaline sizzled through my veins. “Wildcat?”
Wyatt’s grin was wicked. “What, Elijah can have a pet name for you, and I can’t?”
“Uh—”
“How are you today, Avery?” Heath asked diplomatically. “Any lingering problems?”
“I’m well, thank you for asking, Heath,” I replied, matching his tone but adding one dash of sarcasm.
His hazel eyes blazed, but he snuffed it out instantly. “Good. We have training this afternoon, and you’ll want to be in full health for that.”
I resisted rolling my eyes and turned back to Elijah. “Heath thinks he’s my dad,” I told him.
He barked out a laugh. “I can promise you, Dove, that he does not.”
Heath shoved Elijah. “Table. Food. Now.”
As they shuffled off to join the elite student tables, Wyatt cast one heated, lingering look at me over his shoulder, sinking perfect white teeth into his lower lip before he turned around.
I ate the rest of my breakfast pretending that there wasn’t a python wrapped around my shoulders, that the entire room wasn’t staring at me, and that my dear brother wasn’t laughing at me with his eyeballs.