Apparently, people have a lot of opinions on whether or not I deserve my own inner circle. Not that I can blame them, I’m not sure I deserve it either. But I’ll take it because even though it’s such a weird and aristocratic tradition, I want my friends to have access to my prison. If I need to deal with a little bit of negative attention for that, I’ll take it.
People will get used to it eventually.
We cross through the sunroom, where Stassi now sits surrounded by a group of shifters whose sharp gazes stick to Thompson like glue. Stassi, however, gives me a friendly wave.
I’m surprised, though, when we enter the hall toward my—well, Jarron’s—bedroom. There’s nothing else down here. This hall was exclusively for the Orizian royalty, of which there are none left. Except me, to some people.
“Where are we going?” Is the surprise somehow in my own room? And if so, won’t it look weird to enter my bedroom alone with an attractive shifter while my boyfriend is away? It wouldn’t be the first time people started rumors about Thompson and me, but it would be worse now because Jarron and I are publiclytogether.
“You’ll see.”
“Is it in Jarron’s room?”
“What?” He jerks his attention to me and then pauses. “No. No, it’s not. Sorry, I can see why this would seem weird. It is somewhere different, back in this hall.”
He continues walking, and to prove his point, we pass the door to Jarron’s room and continue forward. Are they giving me my own room?
We passed the side hall to Trevor’s and Bea’s old rooms already. What else is down here?
“I have a confession, though; this isn’t my surprise.”
“No?” My heart picks up speed. I don’t know why I’m nervous, but I honestly have no idea what this could be at this point. Except, maybe my own room. Which, I guess could be cool, but do I want to give up sleeping in Jarron’s bed? No. No, I definitely do not. Maybe it’s for the best, but I certainly don’t want it.
“No, this is Jarron’s surprise,” he tells me. “I helped with it a little—although, maybe not to your satisfaction. I did try, though. Before he left for Oriziah, he had a meeting with Mrs. Bhatt and made a few demands, as you know. Well, one of them was this room. Since it was important for you to stay in Elite Hall during his absence, he knew you’d need a few things to keep you truly comfortable here. I think this will make a big difference for you. It’s not going to solve any of the big issues or anything, but it’s still a huge step.”
“Okay…”
The hall ends in a fork. One leads to a long hall. I can see two mahogany doors, but it continues on around a bend. The other leads to a large circular room with several bronze doors. Those are what grab my attention the most.
“What is all this?” I ask, spinning around. I’ve never been all the way down here. I know Laithe must have a room in the area. Are these more bedrooms?
“There are a few additional rooms for the inner circle down that hall,” he tells me. “Manuela technically has a room here; she just doesn’t use it favor of sticking around her girlfriend. And Stassi prefers to be close to his pack.”
“Do you have a room here now?”
“There are some available. I wasn’t sure how you’d feel about it, though, so I haven’t selected any. Lola and Janet could take them too if they wanted. And you. If you cared to move out of Jarron’s room and have a little independence. They often go unused, but they’re reserved, regardless of if the inner circle uses them or not.”
“Hmm.” This is all very interesting. “So, I have the option of selecting my own bedroom. Is that my surprise?”
“No. If you wanted a room, you’d be directly next to Jarron.” He points to the bronze doors. “These are different.”
I swallow. “Okay.”
“I can’t show you all of them. Some are private. One belongs to Bea and Trevor, apparently. Not sure how long it will remain for them, but for now, it’s private. Another is Jarron’s—only he has access to it, so that would be for him to share if he chooses. One of them is yours.”
I purse my lips. “This is all very cryptic.”
“I suppose it sounds that way. But once you see what yours is, it’ll make a little more sense. Honestly, I suspect Bea’s and Trevor’s is some kind of sex cave with chains and whips and things.”
I grimace. “Stop saying the quiet part out loud!” I laugh. The image is a bit much for me to handle.
He shrugs. “Just calling it like I see it.”
“So, they’re just recreational rooms of whatever the inner circle wants?”
“Something like that.”
“So, what’s Jarron’s?”
