Felicity stepped into their home studio later that night and said something.

Focused deeply in her task, Nora made a noise acknowledging she knew Felicity'd spoken, but the majority of her mind was on the song in front of her. Her laptop was open and connected to the soundboard, her mixing software up and running. Seven different instrumental layers lined up along her screen, each its own strand of color.

She bit the side of her thumb and cut the first 15 seconds of the third strand down.

"—ven listening?" Felicity slammed her laptop closed.

Nora jolted as if her stepsister slapped her. "What? Why would you do that?" She asked, outraged.

"Oh, now I have your attention?" Felicity crossed her arms and rested a hip against the table holding the soundboard.

Blearily, she noted time—12:34 a.m.—and rubbed under her glasses at the bridge of her nose. If it were any other time, she might've considered putting up a fight. Right now the only thing she wanted was a completed song and a solid 4 hours of sleep.

"What are you working on?" Felicity asked.

Nora frowned. Since when did Felicity care? Unless it was her own work, she didn't often think about what else Nora worked on. Knowing Felicity, she didn't care. Not unless it benefitted her.

"It's for Garth," Nora said. "Not that he'll be awake enough to sing it."

"I thought he was still on vacation."

"That was last week," Nora said. This week he was back and looking for new music to release. Or rather, his parents were looking for him to release new music.

Felicity gazed at the soundboard and all the different knobs and dials Nora had carefully arranged as if she had no idea what they were, what they did and, regardless, did not care. "How did it go with Eli today?"

Ah.

Eli had played the game smartly. Once they finished the first stages of their project, he'd dawdled a little bit. Despite their social status differences, Nora and he fell into an easy conversation about food and music. Everything and nothing.

Nora loved it.

She couldn't remember the last time she was able to sit around and laugh with someone else. Not since the start of her high school career. Even Tessa, despite being her closest friend, was often busy running around, working on her art projects for her major, and attending to her after-school projects.

But with Eli it was just...easy. She didn't have to write a song for him, didn't have to worry about making friends with him or playing any sort of game. He was Eli Leonger. She was Nora Davis. She was out of his realm—exactly where she needed to be—and after this project, the two of them would retreat back to their corners and pretend nothing happened.

"Fine," Nora said. "It's just a project. Nothing happened."

Felicity snorted, "of course not. Not with you."

"Of course not," Nora repeated softly.

"Well, I just wanted to check-in and see how it went," Felicity said as she stepped back toward the door. "I hope you're working on my showcase piece next." Her stepsister pointed at her, "I expect it next week."

Nora nodded, her head feeling heavy. At this rate, she wouldn't even dream of sleep until 3 am.

Because, damn her, she'd forgotten about Felicity's showcase piece.

"It'll get done," Nora said, more to herself.

"It better." And with that, Felicity left.

Ten minutes. It took her an added ten minutes to figure out where she was in the arrangement of Sleepy's song. And then after that, another hour or so to compile and arrange it for the final product.

At 4 am her eyelids drooped...

❄❄❄

Nora spent the next school day scribbling nonsense lyrics into the margins of her notebooks. On any other occasion, they may have been okay, but after only 2 hours of sleep, they were downright atrocious.

Because she and Eli were to meet at his house—er, palace—after school today, she texted Bashful to cancel her after school recording session and sent Sleepy his lyrics for the piece they were recording tomorrow.

Eli told Nora to wait for him in the courtyard outside the front entrance after classes. Winter was heavy across the kingdom this year and today was no exception. Nora curled her coat closer and ducked her chin against the bitter breeze. For some reason, she had the distinct thought that if she could just get an hour of sleep maybe the air wouldn't seem so cold.

Hmm...there was a song lyric somewhere in that thought.

Students crowded the courtyard around her, laughing and vibrating with a new energy that only appeared at the end of a long school day. She tucked herself behind a brick pillar to stay out of the wind and watched her classmates shuffle into the row of waiting limos and high-end cars waiting at the curb. Others hopped into their own vehicles in the front lot and peeled out, revving their expensive engines and flying out of the gates.

Another chill swept past her. She clutched her coat tighter and crossed her arms over her chest. Normally she didn't mind the cold, but right now she'd fall asleep on her feet if she wasn't careful. They'd had 2 inches of snow over the last week and were expected 2 more tonight.

She couldn't wait to watch it fall outside her window—there was something about a snowfall that made for better songwriting. Something weirdly inspirational—

The front doors flew open next to her.

"—would be a great idea, don't you think, Eli?"

Eli and Felicity came out into the courtyard, completely passing by her. She took a step—

"I mean, only if you have time. I know you're busy with Nora, but..." Felicity shrugged.

Nora froze.

Eli scanned the courtyard, searching for her, but missing her as she was still half-hidden behind the pillar.

"It's a busy time for me right now," Eli said.

Felicity's shoulder's dropped. She curled inward "Oh. I get it. Not too many people want to work with me anyway."

What?

Eli noted Felicity's downtrodden look. He hesitated, then, "I can't do anything before the winter showcase. But maybe we can talk afterward."

"Great!"

"Now, if you'll excuse me—" He finally caught sight of Nora. "There you are." He grinned.

Caught, Nora stepped out of her not-really-hiding hiding spot. "Hey," she said awkwardly. She didn't like being an eavesdropper—most times she didn't have time to even think about other people's drama—but from the glare Felicity shot her over Eli's shoulder, her stepsister didn't appreciate it either.

"Ready to go?" Eli asked.

He nodded goodbye to Felicity and then gestured for Nora ahead of him. Bemused at the way he'd dismissed her stepsister yet feeling the heavy weight of her stare on her back as they approached an SUV, Nora clutched her backpack straps tighter.

Eli led her to the same sleek black SUV that had picked him up the other day and opened the door for her.

She could feel the stares of the other students, not just Felicity, as she hopped in.

Eli got in behind her and dropped his own bag on the floor. "Markos, where's Ian?"

"He is with friends today," the bulky bodyguard said from the driver's seat.

"Huh."

The two of them were relatively quiet on the ride over to the palace. Other than general school topics, Nora didn't have too many similarities with Eli. She found it hard to find something to talk about. Although Eli absently looked out the window, seemingly fine with the quiet.

Nora didn't mind. It gave her time to mull over the next piece she was working on.

The palace was a 20-minute drive from Jostlin Academy. Despite the quiet car, Nora found the trip passing fast.

She'd only been to the palace once when she was little. A tour with her father that was supposed to be fun. But while they'd walked through the wide archways and stared at the delicate, golden ceiling designs and extraordinary glass chandeliers, her father kept mentioning how her mother would've loved every second of it.

Markos drove the SUV past the tall black iron main gates and around to another street where an entrance rested hidden among bushes lining the gates. They came upon a small, light brick gatehouse. Markos barely had his window down when the security guard opened the gates and waved him in.

The SUV wove up the curling cobblestone drive to the back of the palace. This must be where all the deliveries come in, Nora thought.

The sprawling spires of the palace towers extended beautifully into the sky. It was awe-inspiring, this building that was not only a symbol of their monarchy but also proclaiming the financial status of the upper, upper class. This was wealth beyond Nora's imagination. How much did it cost to maintain these grounds? She wondered as she glimpsed the edge of the carefully cultivated palace gardens in the distance.

"It makes you feel so small," she said softly. As soon as she said it, she winced.

Eli only nodded. "I suppose. It's different when you live here."

Something about his tone made her pause. His face closed off.

No doubt it was very different when one lived here. She took the image of the public and flipped it. Everyone trying to get in, having tours always around. People scrambling to get a glimpse of the people inside.

She curled away from the image in her mind. Their society tended to get greedy and grabbed for fame with such a ferocity it occasionally blurred people's moral lines. Being here in the palace, right in the heart of fame and royalty... She wasn't sure she'd ever want that.

"I would think you'd get tired of it after a while," she said.

She'd been lucky in her life. Her father ran his own company and found minor success, but not so much it changed their lives. His financial success had been modest—enough to keep them comfortable, but not drowning in it. His company wasn't one of the top music production companies, but it'd worked with a few moderately known artists.

So she wouldn't have a golden toilet or live in a full-scale mansion. That was fine. At least she and her family got to keep their privacy.

At her statement, Eli glanced over at her. A peculiar expression crossed his face.

Nora looked up at the palace through her window. "What do you have to give up to live here?"

Silence. Then, "somedays...too much."

After a quick run through security in which Nora and Eli had to take every item out of their backpacks and pass through a metal detector, Eli led them up the stairs of the servants wing and over to another, more embellished corridor she'd definitely not seen on her tour the first time she'd been there. She would've definitely remembered these light blue walls and white trim. Almost every fifty feet or so, a mini glass chandelier with gold embellishments dotted the vaulted ceiling. Nora recognized this style of art and architectural design from one they'd studied in her Ace history class. It dated almost 100 years ago.

Three doors into the long hallway, Eli stopped in front of a pair of tall, white double doors. "Promise you won't laugh?"

Her curiosity peaked. "What happens if I don't?"

Eli chuckled, a low smooth sound that played with her ears. Could she somehow work that sound into a song? "Hey, I didn't laugh at yours."

"Okay, fine, fine," Nora put a hand over her heart. "I promise."

Eli opened the double doors and gestured for her first. Nora shot him a bemused look and took in the room around her.

Eli's bedroom was not a bedroom. Her room was a bedroom. This was a mini house. In older days, they would've called these chambers.

The first section of the room was a receiving room—a wide-open room with a white brick fireplace and a set of posh, golden armed couches. A TV rested over the fireplace and a coffee table sat near the couches. Two open doorways revealed a bedroom with a large king-sized bed and navy bed dressings. The other room had a small table for eating and sat beside a pair of glass French doors. The walls were the same light blue with gold and white embellishments that decorated the hallway outside.

She couldn't imagine anyone ever laughing at Eli Leonger's bedroom unless it was in self-deprecation for their own miserable situation. "This is a house, not a bedroom," Nora said.

Eli shifted his weight. "I suppose. Just needs a kitchen and laundry room."

Which meant there was a bathroom tucked away here somewhere.

She couldn't imagine ever having this type of room. As a young child, this would've been way too much space. Almost lonely in that regard. And to grow up with all this?

Nora held up her backpack, "Where should I...?"

Eli gestured to the sitting room. "Here's fine."

"Thanks," she sat on the couch, noting the stiffness of the cushions. This room wasn't meant for comfort—it was meant for decoration, a receiving room for guests. Even the couch wasn't truly comfortable. And unless Eli had a bizarre secret hobby as an interior decorator, he surely hadn't designed the rooms either. "Are you even allowed to decorate?" She asked, noting the lack of personal effects around the room.

Eli frowned at her, "of course. Why wouldn't I?"

"Oh, never mind." Maybe the staff put any trinkets he had out away when they cleaned. Still, she found it odd that other than a few framed pictures along the fireplace mantle, there weren't any other knick-knacks or anything. Eli was a teenage boy—what kind of teenager didn't have some type of poster along the walls?

The two of them got out their books and got to work on their project. Much like before, Nora found herself working into an easy rhythm with him. Something shockingly comforting.

Eventually, they took a break just as a thin older woman knocked on the door with a tray in her hands. "Sir?"

Eli waved her in, "Thank you, Janice."

Janice, dressed in a simple white chefs' coat and black pants set the tray on the coffee table, smiled at Nora, and silently excused herself.

Eli immediately grabbed from the array of vegetables, dipping them in the creamy white dip included in the sauce bowl in the center of the tray.

Wow. "This was nice of her," Nora said, wishing she'd have thought to thank the woman before she'd made her quick escape.

"I wasn't sure what you liked so I asked for a bit of everything."

Indeed he had. The tray also had a variety of colorful fruits, some crackers and meat slices and even— "are those tarts?"

Eli shrugged, "possibly. I told the kitchen to surprise me."

A crease appeared between her eyebrows. "And when did you do that?"

"On our way over, I texted the kitchen staff."

Despite the nonchalance with which Eli spoke, Nora found something moved in her chest. She couldn't remember the last time someone had gone out of their way for her like that. It was quite amazing.

"Thank you," Nora said softly.

Eli's gaze focused on her, an amused smile curling the corner of his lips. "All I had to do was send a text. That's hardly worth being thanked for."

"Just accept my gratitude," Nora teased. Teased! Good Creator, what was happening to her?

He snorted, "Fine. You eat some of this. I'm going to change out of this uniform." As he spoke, he got up, pulling at the necktie at his collar and went back toward the bedroom.

Nora munched on a few vegetables, soaking them in dip before popping them into her mouth. She tried to focus on the paper she was handwriting for their project and absolutely positively keeping her eyes away from the open doorway of the bedroom. Especially as she heard the muted snick of a door opening and closing. The rustle of clothes and hangers being moved in the closet.

Nora wasn't usually the type to have...delicate sensibilities, however for some reason completely beyond her, her brain decided to imagine Eli changing. Heat flooded her face.

Despite her own reaction, she turned the situation around and analyzed it. Hmm...quiet rustle of clothes.

She scribbled that down in the margin of her paper. Bare skin, she wrote, shape of your flesh. She let her mind free to wander and let her hand catch as many thoughts as she could. Useless banter, she wrote, both straining for something we know we can't have, but I see you. The way you want to be seen and I know, I know, you'll do anything—

"What are you doing?" Eli's voice was close at her shoulder.

Nora jolted as if she'd just been electrocuted and snapped her notebook closed. "Nothing."

"I'm not an expert, but it looked like you might've been possessed for a moment there," Eli said, humor lighting his tone. "Should we get a religious professional?"

She snorted. "Maybe keep them on call. You never know what can happen."

Eli chuckled as he sat back down next to her on the couch.

A tentative knock in the doorway had both Eli and Nora looking over.

Red hair, famous red hair, poked around the door. Nora'd have to be blind and deaf to not recognize the young woman who peeked in. 

Anonymous. 

"Eli? Dinner's ready. I told Dad I'd let you know." Her gaze warmed when she touched Nora. "You must be Nora. I'm so happy you're here."

Nora swallowed past the large bundle of air caught in her throat. Freaking Anonymous knew who she was. And based on the welcome in her expression, she even liked her. Her. A dumb nobody. It took her a moment to find her vocal cords. "Hi—nice to meet you."

Eli got up and strolled over to his sister. "We'll be down in a moment," he said and blocked Nora from Anonymous' view. "Anything else?" He asked lower, but not quiet enough that Nora couldn't hear.

"Eli, she's so cute—look at her glasses," Anonymous gushed not at all quietly. "I need a pair like that."

"You don't wear glasses."

"I could. I'll betcha Ethan would love—"

"That's enough from you," he jokingly pushed his sister out the door and slammed it shut.

"You can't hide her during dinner!" Anonymous called through the wood.

Nora's face flamed. "She doesn't think we're...right?"

Eli ran a hand through his hair. "No, no. She's just a nosy sister. Sorry about that."

She fought through her embarrassment and willed the heat at her cheeks down. "It's sweet."

"It's meddlesome," she thought she heard Eli mutter. Then louder, "I forgot to mention tonight is family dinner night."

Family dinner night. Nora hadn't had one of those in years. Not since her mother died. Her father had tried to keep up family dinner in the first two years after his mate's passing, but every time they'd sat at the table, the silence was heavy and her dad got this quiet, somber expression. As if it reminded him too much of his lost wife and how she should be there but wasn't. And when Nora was old enough to finally get it, she put up a stink and told him she was "too old" for family dinners. When really she couldn't stand the thought of forcing her father to remember such aching memories. Her father was all too quick to let their family dinners drop.

Maybe that was one of the signs she should've seen.

Family dinner night was important. And it was also private. "I'm sorry, let me get out of your hair." She started shoving her heavy chemistry book into her backpack.

"You're not leaving."

She snorted and continued packing her meager belongings away. "Nice try. I'm not going to stay here and be your homework slave. Besides, I should run home and grab food anyway."

Eli plopped on the ground next to her, entirely too close, and snatched her bag up only to launch it across the room.

Nora waited for a beat, then, "...you don't think that was overdramatic?"

"Nope. Not at all." At her raised eyebrow he said, "I meant that you have to stay for dinner. Not that you're supposed to be my homework slave."

"I'm not going to intrude on your family dinner."

Something about what she said had the corner of his mouth twitching. "Do me a favor. Go with me downstairs and tell Lizzie that you're sorry to intrude on family dinner."

"Lizzie?"

Eli pointed at the door where his sister just left. Oh. Anonymous's name was Lizzie? That was so...mundane. She would've thought that being that famous came with a really cool name. Like, say, Kamree. Or if you were male, Daxton.

I really need to stop obsessing about those two, she thought.

There was something behind Eli's expression. It was the slightest touch of teasing, of wickedness. Having his full attention on her only made her cheeks heat. He had such a strong gaze. As if he wasn't just seeing you but seeing you. She wasn't quite sure she liked it. But her body sure did.

"You want me to apologize to your sister too?" Nora frowned. She'd do it—a polite decline of the invitation was rather normal.

Eli leaned forward, his forehead dangerously close to hers and whispered, "I dare you."

His seriousness made her laugh. She pushed at his shoulder the way she would any other friend, both as a way to get him out of her space but also as a precaution because having him that close was entirely too dangerous.

Dangerous? Eli Leonger near her was dangerous? Since when?

"You're weird, you know that?" She got up, brushed off imaginary dirt from her school skirt, and said. "Whatever. Let's go."

He hopped up like he was on fire and all but dragged her down the twisting halls to the first floor. Among the turning hallways, the decor started to muddle—still beautiful and artfully arranged hallways with classic landscape paintings and gold wall art, but less of the embellishments and fanfare that the rest of the palace had.

If Nora had a guess, she'd say they were close to the staff wing. Her suspicions were confirmed as Eli led her into the dining room.

She'd seen the formal dining room on the palace tour when she was younger—a massive, cavernous room with a long one-of-a-kind table and huge triple tier crystal chandeliers, the formal dining room was meant to entertain foreign dignitaries and numerous well-standing political figures.

This room was almost like a mini version of the formal dining room. A twelve-seater dark wood dining table filled the most of the room. An archway in the back led to a hallway but Nora could distinctly hear the clatter and bustle of dining plates and silverware being cleaned. A few kitchen staff moseyed about the room, setting down family-size portions of quartered potatoes and perfectly sliced drizzled turkey, and even an array of steaming glazed vegetables.

The smell of it all sliced right through her. It was the smell of her childhood—home-cooked meals.

Ian was the first one to spot them through the doorway. "Nora—I saved you a spot next to Eli."

With a small grin she didn't understand, Eli left her by herself to head to an open chair.

Traitor.

Nora barely so much as looked at the chair. Instead, she focused on Lizzie who sat on the right side near the head of the table. Lizzie beamed over at Nora, something soft in her eyes as her gaze flickered to Eli who sat next to Ian and then back.

She tried not to let her brain run wild breaking down what that look meant. "I'm sorry," she said instead, "I can't stay."

Lizzie's face dropped and Nora immediately felt guilty for causing the emotional shift. "Really?" Lizzie glanced to Eli who had his arms crossed and sat back in his chair. "Oh, but we had a great meal planned tonight. Are you sure you can't stay?"

Nora hesitated. The disappointment in the future queens face made Nora feel like she also kicked little kid's sandcastles at the beach. "I.."

Lizzie caught the hesitation and immediately pounced. "Please? We'd love to have you, Nora."

Now she understood Eli's laughter earlier. Nora was the last person who wanted to make Anonymous sad. Not with the way she looked up to her. But damn, that face. That was a weapon of manipulation right there. And with the way Nora paused, she knew Lizzie won. And would forever win a battle such as this.

We'd love to have you, Lizzie'd said.

Reluctantly, Nora took her seat next to Ian. Eli sent her a smirk, to which she narrowed her eyes. What? She mouthed.

Eli only shook his head.

"Where's Ethan?" Ian asked.

Mild surprise filled her at the casual way Ian referred to their Crown Prince. However, she supposed it made sense. If anyone would be able to refer to the prince casually, it would be Anonymous, his mate, and the rest of the Leongers. They'd been at the palace their whole lives—the families were probably a lot closer than most people believed. Definitely more than Nora believed. The palace was like its own city. She imagined one could wander around here forever and ever and never seen another person.

"He's with His Majesty at an advisory meeting that ran late," Lizzie said, "he told us not to wait up. Which is why I'm so excited Nora is here to fill the void in his absence."

Nora wasn't going to touch that statement with a ten-foot pole.

But apparently, Eli was, "just don't get all lovey with her. She'll never come back."

"And then you'll have an even bigger void," Ian piped in with a grin.

Nora flushed. "I don't...I'm not..." she wasn't the type to lose track of her words, but what the hell was she supposed to say in this conversation?

Lizzie grinned, "you don't love me, Nora?"

"What? No, I—"

"I'm kidding," Lizzie said, laughter in her voice. "Enough torture, please," she gestured at the mostly covered table, "help yourself."

It was just the four of them—Eli, Lizzie, Ian, and Nora. And yet there was so much food, Nora had a hard time fitting the food on her plate. Did they do this every night? It was a wonder they weren't all somehow 500 pounds. They must have really good genes.

Not five minutes in, two tall, hulking men walked in. Adrian and Jackson Leonger. Silver-haired Former Commander Adrian Leonger gave her a nod and sat down to the right of the head of the table, leaving a space open next to his son. Jackson Leonger sat at the head of the table and looked at Eli expectantly.

Eli complied with his silent request, "this is Nora. She and I have a chemistry project together. Nora, this is my older brother Jackson, and my father."

Nora carefully wiped at her mouth with her heavy napkin. Dear Creator, she really hoped she didn't somehow have anything stuck in her teeth. "Nice to meet you."

"It's not often Eli brings a friend to family dinner night," Jackson said, scooping a pile of quartered potatoes on his plate and the empty plate to his left.

With the size of his broad shoulders, she imagined he could eat two full plates, but it was a bit odd—

"Where's Avery?" Lizzie asked.

"Here!" A skinny, dark-haired woman with black frames swept into the room, "I'm sorry I'm late."

"I told you to close everything down fifteen minutes ago," Jackson said in a weird tone.

Avery shot him a look as she took the seat to his left, "Just because I always have to tell you that doesn't mean you get to suddenly—"

"No arguing at the dinner table," Jackson interrupted.

He didn't smile, but Nora swore she was something mischievous cross his face.

Avery huffed and looked at Lizzie who shrugged and said, "I'm not picking sides on this one." Then, Lizzie hopped once in her chair. "Avery, this is Nora. She's Eli's friend."

Eli groaned and sank in his chair, "Is this how this is going to be?"

"For the rest of your life," Lizzie confirmed with a bright grin. "What's the point of being the sister if I don't get to mess with you?"

"Nora," Adrian sliced into a thick piece of turkey, "do you have any plans once you graduate this year?"

Nora almost choked on the green bean she'd eaten. She swallowed quickly and opened her mouth to explain, but Eli beat her to it. "Nora's a Sophomore. She's got time to figure all that out."

Surprise lit Lizzie's face, "You're a Sophomore? You must be pretty smart to be in Senior Chemistry. Even I had a hard time with Chemistry when I was at Rayne."

Anonymous had gone to Rayne? That must've been pretty interesting—the other students could've been in a class with one of their kingdom's top artists and never even know it. She always found it odd that Lizzie had hid her identity when she first started producing music. When one was a part of the Leonger family, what was the use of staying under the radar? Unless she didn't want all of the attention?

Nora could understand that.

"I'm a Scholar," Nora explained.

Both Lizzie and Jackson frowned. "A scholar?"

Nora nodded, "On scholarship."

Understanding lit Lizzie's eyes, "Oh. Why is that a bad thing? It's not easy to get a scholarship. You should be proud."

Not wanting to get into it, Nora shrugged.

"Do you know what you'll be Focusing in when you get to university?" Adrian asked again.

How could she even possibly begin to explain that she wouldn't be going to university without delving deeper into topics she definitely didn't want to share at the dinner table with people she'd just met? "Not yet," she said instead. Hopefully, they'd leave it at that.

Thank Creator they did. "Eli, I was talking with Kamree the other day," Lizzie said.

Nora tried not to freak as Kamree's name came up. At their dinner table no less! What an interesting world they lived in in which the top stars in their kingdom were regular people they discussed at the dinner table.

"And she was hoping once you graduate you'd be able to work with her and Daxton a bit. Daxton said he'd love to have you as an intern."

Eli shifted the turkey on his plate with his fork. "Maybe."

Nora wanted to throttle him. Everything she could want was literally right there for him, but all he could say was, "Maybe?"

The Leonger's chatted for the rest of the meal about general life happenings. Nora answered when the conversation was directed at her. When it wasn't, she thought about a gazillion things—her next piece, how she was going to enter Daxton Cavenaugh's contest, but most of all, how Eli Leonger had everything she needed to be successful and he didn't even realize it.

After dinner, Nora made up some excuse not to stay later and tried to figure out how the hell she was going to get home. She didn't want to ask Eli for a ride, but she also couldn't have Tessa pick her up. What would that even look like? Did they just give her name to the guard at the gate? She could have Felicity pick her up—no doubt she'd love any excuse to get closer, hell, even inside, the palace.

Eli led her back up the endless twisting hallways back to his room so she could grab her things. "I'll have Markos drive you home," he said.

She thought about making some snarky comment asking if Markos could even leave the palace if he were inside, but Eli didn't deserve her attitude. It wasn't Eli's fault he was well off or had the potential for success literally in the family. It wasn't his fault she was bitter and pissy.

All she wanted now was to get home and get working on her piece for Daxton Cavenaugh's contest. She knew she wouldn't be getting any sleep tonight, but at least she'd be able to get work done.

"Thanks," was all she said.

Eli frowned at her. "Everything okay?"

Get it together Nora. Curling a strand of her caramel hair behind her ear, she pushed up on her glasses. "Of course. I just remembered I have a lot of homework to do," she lied, "and I'm really not looking forward to it."

Eli shot her a sympathetic look. "It must be hard having a scholarship. All that extra work you have to do."

You don't even know the half of it.

Remembering her manners, Nora said, "thanks again for hosting today. Next time we can work at my house."

"Actually," Eli said, "there's this coffee shop by school that I really wanted to try. I figured we can work and enjoy a cup there. Do you drink coffee?"

These days? All the time. "I do. That would be great."

The two of them made plans for their next meeting, and then Eli had Markos drive her home.