The Legend of the Eight: The Wicked (Book 2)

16: Mercy

SIXTEEN: MERCY
MARCH 25
PHOEBE DOMINGO

EIGHT MONTHS AGO (JULY 2015):

"Come on, Fi. Stay!" Leo Diamond begged, rolling in his bed and wrapping his arms around her. Bedsheets draped their bodies in silk—the most glamorous thing to have touched Phoebe's skin—and she rubbed her legs against his beneath them.

"Leo," she giggled and then pecked him with several kisses. "You know I can't. I have to get home and start packing. I leave for school soon. I've already wasted enough time today."

Leo groaned and flipped so that her naked body was on top of his. He snaked his hands around her waist and held her there.

"Wasted?" he laughed. "What about this was a waste?"

She giggled again and then pushed his arms away. She hopped off his bed and then began searching his room for her clothes which she'd carelessly stripped off after sneaking in with him hours ago.

"Believe me. I would much rather stay in bed with you," she said, snatching her underwear and stepping into them. She cupped her chest while searching for her bra, lifting pillows and blankets that had fallen onto the floor from his bed.

"Looking for this?"

Leo whipped the bra out from under him and smirked. He dangled it by his finger but when she went to grab it, he quickly swiped it away.

"What about this?" he proposed, still holding her bra captive. "You stay here with me a little longer and then I'll come with you later and help you pack for school. Or better yet, you stay here with me and I'll send some of my people to pack for you."

Though she certainly found the idea of Leo's people sorting through her messy bedroom for her favorite hoodies and trainers amusing, Phoebe shook her head. Then, with careful timing, she snatched her bra back from him.

Phoebe smirked and with careful timing, quickly swiped her bra back from him.

"I wish I could," she told him honestly. "But I haven't been homing all day. My mom's probably wondering where I've been."

That was a lie. Lyla probably didn't wake up until well after Phoebe left and after a few drinks, she probably would forget she even had a daughter in the first place.

"What if you didn't go back for preseason?" Leo asked, joining her across the room and hugging her from behind.

"Right," Phoebe chuckled. "I'm sure Coach would love that." Leo rested his chin against her head. "It's senior year," she reminded him. "It's our last chance for a championship. And if we don't make it to playoffs, there's no shot of playing in college and—"

"College?" Leo's chest rumbled against her when he spoke. "You want to go to college?"

Phoebe shrugged in his arms. "Try to sound less surprised."

"No, I just meant—" Leo stopped to recollect his thoughts. "I didn't know college was in the cards for you."

Her freckly cheeks brightened with a blush.

"I don't know. Going to the Mortal World... Experiencing all of that... It could be fun."

Leo chuckled. "Mare lives in the Mortal World and she says it's not that great. It's certainly not the World of Magic."