Souljacker by Kodilynn Calhoun Read Free Book Online Page A

back against the building beside him,
stuffing both hands deep in my pockets, rolling the lint at the
bottoms between my finger and thumb. I could lie, but lying won’t
get me very far.
    “I can’t help it, Sare. I really like her.
It’s not some silly crush—this is the real thing.”
    “We don’t have hearts. How can you think that
you love her?”
    “We have hearts,” I mutter. Everyone has a
heart. It’s just how you use it that counts. “And don’t start your
bull crap about us not having souls. Just because we were created,
rather than born, doesn’t make us any less human.”
    “And that’s your problem, right there. When
are you gonna pull your head out from up your ass and realize we’re not human. No matter how hard you try and play the part,
you’ll never be part of their world. That’s just how it is, Io.” He
sighs, his head resting against brick. He drops the cigarette to
the ground and snubs it out with the tip of his boot.
    “Look. We all have feelings. I understand
that, but you can’t just pretend to be a normal guy. You’re going
to end up breaking that girl’s heart, and from the look of her, I
don’t think she’d handle that real well. She’s human. She’s
fragile.”
    I snarl at him. “She is far from
fragile!”
    “She acts tough. Maybe that’s why you like
her. I dunno and honestly? I don’t really give a damn. All I know
is it’s only gonna lead to a dead end for both of you. Leave the
girl alone, Iofiel. Save her poor heart any more pain. And it’ll
save you a whipping from Lylan. He’ll be beyond pissed if he finds
out.”
    I bite my tongue hard enough to taste blood.
I know this. Lylan will skin me alive and send me to the Unseelie
for punishment. I doubt I’ll even get a warning. But I can’t
just…forget about Lucy. She’s like a virus, injected into my very
soul. Eating away at my heart. I want her so badly it hurts. I
shake my head.
    “I can’t just leave her alone.”
    “Then you’re not a very bright pup,” Sariel
says, a little sadly.
    I shrug. “No one ever accused me of being
smart, Sare. Just…don’t tell Lylan. Please. Pretend we never had
this conversation, pretend you never saw me.”
    Sariel sighs and wraps an arm around my
shoulders, tugging me into a loose, brotherly hug. Then he rubs his
knuckles against my skull and I growl and squirm away from him. He
makes a shooing motion with his hand and I shift and turn away, my
heart lodged somewhere deep in my gut.
    Lucy and me, we’re kindred spirits. And I’ll
find a way to keep her, if it’s the last thing I do.

Chapter 8:
    Lucy

     
    “You’d look like an American flag,” Sync says
as I pull a red and white dress out of its drawer, holding it up to
my body to show off my ideas for an outfit.
    Hell, she’s right. I groan and fling it to
the floor, where it piles up with all the other discards. Having a
limited wardrobe is a slag. Why couldn’t I have gotten fostered by
a rich couple or something? At least then I’d be able to dress nice
for my date.
    My stomach flips over. I press both hands to
the flutter there, unable to completely erase the grin on my
face.
    I have a date. With a totally hot guy. Who
seems to really like me, despite the crap I put him through. Just
the way he looks at me, beaming brighter than the sun, is enough to
send me into melt-mode.
    “I don’t know if I can do this…” I admit,
reaching for the next shirt. My stomach’s totally in a knot
now.
    “You’ll be fine! You like him, right?”
    “More than I should. This shouldn’t even be
happening—I don’t trust myself. What if I hurt him? Or worse?”
    “Deep breaths, Luce. If you freak out, just
tell him you’re schizo or something and excuse yourself to go to
the bathroom. If you have to, crawl out the window and come home.
I’ll support you, even if I think that’s the cowardly way out.” Her
faceplate grins at me and I shake my head.
    I settle on a blue and black plaid mini skirt
with