Asp of Ascension (A Nefertari Hughes Mystery #1)

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Zach moved toward her, but the guards put a hand on his chest, warning him.

"You know this boy?" Prince Kamal asked her.

"Of course," she said. "He's in my class."

It took Terry several attempts to convince the hotel manager and Prince Kamal that Zach wasn't a threat. She led Zach to her suite, the questions piling up inside her head.

Prince Kamal pulled her aside. "I'm just down the hall," he told her, "and I'll have a guard outside your door."

His overprotective, brotherly concern made her smile. "I'm perfectly safe," she told him. Prince Kamal did his usual elegant head nod as a way of closing the conversation. Terry stepped back inside her room and quietly closed the door. Zach's expression flickered between discomfort and relief.

She leaned against the wall, using it to prop up her tired body. "Why did those guards think you were trying to break in?"

Zach put up his hands in a defensive gesture. "I wasn't trying to break in," he insisted. "I had to see you."

A warmth started to creep up her neck. Terry limped toward the living area. "Why didn't you just text me?"

"I did." He followed her a few steps then stopped. "And I called you too. But when you didn't reply, I got worried so I came over and waited outside your door." He stopped to gauge Terry's reaction.

"Seems kind of over the top," she said, trying to keep her voice firm, but her half grin betrayed her.

"Then the dudes in suits swarmed me," he said. "They made a big deal of how I'm not on a special list or something."

Terry dropped her backpack and eased herself onto the couch. "Prince Kamal runs a tight ship."

"Prince Kamal can kiss my—"

"Asp?" Terry gave a tired laugh at her own joke. "Oh god, I'm pathetic," she said. The momentum of the day was starting to catch up. Terry took a deep breath. "Listen, Zach, if you're so concerned for my safety, maybe you should talk to your ex-girlfriend." She didn't want him to see her as victim, but everything was wearing her down, and all she wanted was a hot pizza and a hot bath. "Sorry. Today has been brutal. Thanks for checking on me, but the bodyguards are all the protection I need. You should probably go."

Zach's jaw tightened, but he stayed quiet. He turned toward the door, then stopped and faced her again. "Since I came all this way, I might as well give you these." He held out a small plastic shopping bag.

Terry looked inside. There were several packages of different types of pens; glitter pens, the kind that click, felt-tipped pens and even ones with erasable ink. "You're giving me pens?" she asked.

He gave her a shy shrug. "You never have a real one," he explained. "I borrowed yours the first day. I was going to replace it anyway, but I saw it was from a hotel." Zach cleared his throat, and his tone became softer. "I noticed the next one you used was from another hotel. So I thought...I guess I thought you might need some new ones."

Terry stared at the pile of pens. It seemed too intimate all of a sudden. He'd taken her pen that very first day. He'd noticed how lost she seemed.

He took a few steps closer, then hesitated. "When you didn't show up at the library," he said, "I asked around, and someone told me what happened in the cafeteria. I'm sorry. I knew Allison was upset, but I didn't think she was stupid enough to go after you like that."

"It's not your fault," she said.

The cushion tilted when he sat beside her. "Yeah, it is. Allison's jealous."