Phei smiled. "Expect is a strong word. Iâm
hoping
youâll help me put them to their places so thoroughly theyâd never recovers. But I understand if you need proof first."
Brianâs eyes narrowed.
"Proof."
"That I can actually play? That you didnât just sign up to be embarrassed alongside me?" Phei shrugged. "The courtâs empty right now. Schoolâs out. Staff and cleaners only. We could settle this question pretty quickly."
Landon and Brian exchanged looks.
Something passed between themâdoubt, curiosity, the desperate hope that maybe this wasnât a complete disaster.
"
Stole words from my mouth,
" Brian said. "Yes. That is what I want. Show us what youâve got."
The school court was empty.
Quiet.
Everyoneâd gone home and only the echoes remain.
Phei picked up a ball. Felt the familiar weight of it in his hands. The texture against his palms.
Alright
, he thought.
"Two on one," he said. "First to 21. You two versus me."
Brian raised an eyebrow. "You sure about that?"
"Positive."
Famous last words
, Landonâs expression said.
They started playing.
****
Fifteen minutes later, it was over.
Final score: Phei 21, Brian and Landon 2.
For those unfamiliar with pickup basketballâfirst to 21 wins. One point per basket inside the arc, two points for shots beyond it. Simple. Fast. The kind of street rules that separated real players from pretenders.
Brian and Landon had scored
once
.
One basket. Two points. In fifteen minutes of trying.
And that was only because Phei had let his attention slip for half a secondâwanted to see if they could actually capitalize on an opening. They could. Very well.
Every other possession? His.
He did not hold back, with his new body heâd managed to get all the 60% heâd got from the system, which meant, Phei played better than any player right now in history.
His skills were on the
Legendary grade;
better than any player on Earth.
Heâd moved like water. Like wind. Like something that had been playing this game for lifetimes instead of weeks. Every shot sank. Every steal came easy. Every defensive play they tried, he read before they even started it.
The System had made him
good
.
Noâthe System had made him
dangerous
.
And Brian and Landon had just watched it happen in real time.
"Okay,"
Brian said, bent over with his hands on his knees, breathing hard. "Okay. Yeah. We can work with this."
Landon just stared at him. That same expression Emily had worn earlierâlike his brain was trying to process something it wasnât built to handle.
"Tomorrow," Phei said, bouncing the ball once. "We destroy âem."
Brian grinned.
For the first time since this whole thing started, he actually looked
excited
.
"Yeah. Yeah, we fucking do."
Back in the meeting room.
Theyâd discussed strategy for another hourâplays, positions, how to handle Marcusâs inevitable dirty tricks. Brian was smart. Landon was quick. And Phei?
Phei was a weapon they were only beginning to understand.
When they finally wrapped up, his girls came to say goodbye.
Sierra firstâa kiss that promised more later, her Ice Queen mask firmly back in place but her eyes soft when they met his. Maddie after, bouncing on her toes, still riding the high of earlier, leaving lipstick on his cheek and a whispered promise in his ear that made his cock twitch.
Then Delilah.
His cousin lingered in the doorwayâstill flushed, still affected, still carrying the memory of that night in her bedroom when theyâd almost crossed the final line. She didnât say much. Didnât need to. Just pressed herself against him briefly, her breath warm against his ear.
"Soon," she whispered. So quiet only he could hear.
Sheâd pulled back. Eyes bright. Cheeks pink. The promise hanging between them like a live wire.
Then Maya.
"So I just wanted to say," she started, already talking too fast, hands fidgeting with the strap of her bag, "that I hope the Ashford thing goes okay, because Iâve heard things about that family, and not like
bad
things necessarily, but like
intense
things, and the Madam especially is supposed to be reallyâI mean, not that you canât handle it, obviously you can handle anything, Iâve seen you handle things that would make normal people just completely fall apart, but I justâ"
"Maya."
She stopped. Swallowed.
"Iâll be fine."
"You always say that."
"And I always am."
Something flickered in her eyesâdoubt, worry, that thing she carried for him that neither of them talked about. The thing that made Sierraâs jaw tighten whenever Maya was in the room. The thing that made Phei feel guilty for reasons he couldnât quite justify.
"
Text me
?" she asked. Small voice. Hopeful. "When youâre done? Just so I know you didnât get... I donât know... eaten by dragon ladies or whatever."
"Iâll text you."
She smiledâbright, relieved, painfully genuineâand something in his chest did that weird twist again. Before she left, sheâd left him something and whispered something to him.
Later
, he told himself.
Figure out what to do about Maya later.
And finallyâEmily.
Red-faced. Unable to meet his eyes. Clutching a tablet like it was a shield between them.
"I-Iâll have the reports ready for tomorrow," she stammered. "And Iâve confirmed your appointment at the Ashford estate andâand Miss Harrisâs residence afterâandâ"
"Emily."
She flinched. "Yes?"
"Breathe."
She breathed. Shakily.
"You did good today. Thank you."
The look she gave himâgrateful, embarrassed, still hungry underneath all the mortificationâalmost made him laugh again.
Later
, he reminded himself.
Focus now. Claim my beautiful assistant later.
Phei had stayed at the school for more than just the meeting.
In his fresh uniformâthank you, Emily, despite everythingâhe was heading straight to the Ashford Estate after this. Get the apology thing over with. Face whatever judgment awaited him from the Madam, from Elena, from whoever else wanted a piece of him.
Then Miss Harrisâs residence.
Thenâhopefullyâsleep. Maybe. If the universe stopped throwing curveballs for five goddamn minutes.
The hallways were empty as he walked. His footsteps echoed on polished floors.
Quiet.
Peaceful.
Too
peaceful.
What Phei didnât knowâwhat he
couldnât
knowâwas that the Academy had other plans for him today.
A
door opened
.
Sudden. Sharp. The click of it cutting through the silence like a knife.
Feminine hands appeared firstâmanicured nails, elegant fingers, the kind of hands that belonged on magazine covers or wrapped around expensive wine glasses or later, around his cock.
Then a face.
Oh.
Oh, hello.
His chemistry teacher.
Ms. Bloomâ
Patricia Bloom
, thirty-something, curves that her professional attire couldnât quite hide, lips that always looked like theyâd just been licked. Sheâd been one of the teachers heâd noticed noticing him.
One of the ones whose eyes lingered a beat too long during lectures, whose voice went slightly breathless when she called on him in class.
She looked at him now.
Really
looked.
And then she smiled.
"
Mr. Maxton
," she said, her voice silk and honey and something darker underneath. "Just the student I was hoping to see. Would you step into my classroom for a moment? Iâd like to...
talk
."
Pheiâs own smile spread slow.
Well, well, well.
Just minutes ago, heâd told himself he was done playing safe. Done being cautious. Said he was going to step up his game, cuck these spineless bastards, take their beauties.
And now his
hot chemistry teacher
was summoning him into an empty classroom. Alone with her.
The school practically deserted around them.
Universe
, he thought,
you beautiful bastard. You were listening.
"Of course, Ms. Bloom," he said, letting his voice drop half an octave. "Iâd be happy to...
talk
."
He followed her inside.
His eyesâentirely without his permission, entirely on purposeâdropped to her
ass
as she walked.
God.
Bubbly. Round
. The kind of ass that strained against professional skirts and made you wonder
what it would feel like under your hands.
The door closed behind them.
What Phei didnât knowâ
What he
couldnât
seeâ
Was the figure at the end of the hallway.
Amber Castellano
had been hurrying to catch up with him. Had seen him walking out of the meeting room, had been working up the courage to approach, to say something, toâshe didnât even know what.
Her thighs were
still damp
from earlier. From that video. From what sheâd done to herself in her private room while imaginingâ
And then sheâd watched him enter the classroom.
Watched his eyes drop to the teacherâs ass.
Watched the door close with a click of finality.
Oh.
Oh my gods.
Her thighsâalready wet from her earlier climaxâgot
wetter.
Because she knew what was about to happen in that room.
Could
picture
it. Could imagine Ms. Bloom bent over her own desk, that professional skirt hiked up, Phei behind her with that
look
in his eyesâ
Amberâs hand drifted to her stomach. Lower. Pressing against the ache that had suddenly flared back to life.
Heâs going to fuck her.
Right now.
While Iâm standing here.
She should leave. Should walk away. Should pretend she hadnât seen anything.
Instead, she found herself moving closer.
Toward the door.
Toward whatever sounds might slip through the cracks.
What am I doing?
What am Iâ
Her back hit the wall beside the classroom door.
And she waited.
Breath shallow.
Heart pounding.
Thighs pressed together so tight it almost hurt.
What happens next?