Courage (Mark of Nexus) by Carrie Butler Read Free Book Online Page B

pushed myself to my feet. “Rena, come on…”
    “I don’t know what you expect me to say,” she snapped as she opened the door to make her escape.
    Before I could stop myself, I slammed my palm against the door and forced it shut over her head. “How about starting with why you refuse to accept the fact that you might not be human?”
    Her back went rigid. “ Why? Because I woke up normal, and now I’m some kind of freak, Wallace. You, of all people, should understand.” And with that, she ripped the door open and stormed out.
    I stood there, frozen, as her words burned like acid through my chest. “Yeah,” I mumbled as I watched her go. “I get it. You're a freak like me now.”

CHAPTER 9

    What I read last night—what I didn't tell Wallace—had kept me awake until four thirty in the morning. Tossing and turning, gripping the band on my arm, trying to come to terms with the facts Henry had laid out for me. If I was an Augari, how had I stayed in the dark this long? Was it because no one in my immediate family had crossed paths with a Dynari before? Or was Faye puppeting Henry to lead us down another rabbit hole?
    I almost wished it was the last one.
    If the Nexus didn't mark the bond between an Augari and a Dynari, if it wasn't considered both a blessing and a curse, I wouldn't have to live with this new fear. The book said I could unintentionally lose hold of whatever supercharging abilities I possessed and overpower Wallace. That I could… kill him.
    I dabbed concealer under my eyes in a vain attempt to mask the dark circles and buffed it out with foundation. The last thing I needed was for everyone to think I got trashed this weekend. Because, you know, that's what college kids do. Please.
    Someone knocked on the door, and Gabby rolled over with a huff.
    I hobbled over in my stilettos, grateful that I didn’t have to stand on tiptoe to see through the peephole, and flinched. There stood Wallace, my fellow church-skipping partygoer, waiting for me like nothing had happened between us. I fumbled for the knob twice before I got the door open.
    He was wearing the blue button-up like I asked two weeks ago. He’d even shaved. Honestly, after the way I’d reacted last night, I wasn’t sure he’d show up at all. Now he was here and…
    “I’m sorry,” the words spilled from my lips at the same time as his, layering the apology. We both blinked a few times and an uneasy laugh settled between us.
    “Why would you be sorry?” I asked.
    His hands found their way into his pockets, and he hefted his shoulders. “I pushed you. I should’ve realized what a shock that must’ve been.”
    “Yeah, but I shouldn’t have said what I did.” I ran my fingertips down his shirtsleeve. “I didn’t mean it.”
    “Uggggh, make up outside,” Gabby groaned from under her covers. “Don’t yap in my doorway at ungodly hours.”
    Wallace grinned and offered me his arm. “I guess that’s our cue. You ready?”
    I took it and relaxed against him, ignoring my zombified roommate. “Ready as I’ll ever be.”
    We hurried downstairs and out to my Sentra in the parking lot. There was no way I was going to climb in and out of Wallace’s truck in a sundress. He opened the passenger door, waited a few seconds to block the inevitable panty-flash, and then jogged around the side like a gentleman.
    Should I tell him?
    The driver’s seat clicked on its tracks as he shoved it back. “You’ll have to be the navigator. I’ve never been to Clayhaven.”
    I nearly snorted as he got in and started the car. “I hate to tell you, but you haven’t missed much.” I loved my hometown as much as the next girl, but it was a snoozefest for outsiders—aside from the squash festival.
    “Are you kidding me? You grew up there.” He reached over and tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. “I want to see everything.”
    I smiled and resisted the urge to roll my eyes. “Yeah, we’ll see.”
    Okay, I'm so not bringing it up now.