The Hidden Princess At All-Boys Alpha Academy
Chapter 0279

Chapter 0279

I move fast down the hall, Jackson at my heels, and I hope desperately that we’re lucky enough toevade the guards who prowl these halls at night. I mean, we haven’t had a problem with beingattacked in our own Palace…ever? So the guards are few and far between. But still, we’ve got tomove fast – because if they see us, they’re definitely going to tell my mom that I’m out of bed.

And I really, really want nothing more right now than a few stolen hours with Jackson.

My mate runs after me, shaming me a bit with his speed and his silence, and I can feel the joypulsing through him as we go. He’s checking his steps, I know, to let me take the lead – but thenagain, I’m the one who knows where to go. When I get to the end of the hall I fling open a door andwave him through, whispering “to the top! All the way up!”

Jackson sends a gorgeous grin over his shoulder before he starts to run up the stairs, so sweet andhandsome that it makes me stumble in my steps a bit. But I recover quickly, dashing up after mymate. When Jacks gets to the top of the fourth flight he pushes open the only door there, and stepsout onto our rooftop garden.

“Whoa,” he says, going still so fast that I almost bang into him.

“Move!” I say, laughing, not bothering to be quiet anymore as I give him a playful shove out of thedoorway and press the door shut behind us. Jackson obliges, stepping out into the garden andlooking around.

“What is this place?” he whispers, a bit in awe, turning and taking in the four ancient, gnarled olivetrees that stand in the four corners of our garden. Scattered fruit trees grow between them, as wellas lots of pretty little potted roses and herbs, creating the effect of a very charming little orchardgarden. Along the southern wall there’s an outdoor kitchen all set up and fully stocked, and next tothat a little shed that contains everything we need to make a picnic.

“Mom was worried we weren’t getting enough sunshine when we were kids,” I say, moving to theshed and pulling out some blankets and pillows, handing them to my mate, who follows. “So, shebuilt us this little garden. She said kids are like plants – they need sunshine to grow.”

Jackson murmurs something that sounds like assent as I move to the kitchen. “Are you hungry?” Iask, pulling open the little fridge and pulling out a bottle of white wine, pouring us each a glass.“There’s food, if you want it.” I nod towards the cabinets and the fridge, which I know will be packedwith food.

“I’m not hungry,” Jackson says, watching me curiously and peering around. “You guys keep…foodup here?”

“We keep food everywhere,” I say, grinning at him and nodding my head to the side, silently askinghim to follow me to the center of the garden, where you can see the stars between the branches ofthe trees if you lay down on the ground. “Mom didn’t grow up with much, so she has kind of ascarcity mindset. She stocks snacks all around the Palace so that if anyone ever feels a singlehunger pang, she can be on it. Plus, growing up, Rafe did eat pretty much constantly. So it was kindof necessary. And Markie’s doing the same.”

I trade Jackson the wine for the blankets and spread one out on the thick plushy grass before Iscatter the pillows around. Then I sink down onto the blanket, patting the ground next to me, invitingJackson to sit. He does, handing me one of the glasses. “Your mom didn’t grow up with much?” heasks, a little confused. And I guess that makes sense – mom wears her Queen status like she wasborn to it.

“Mom was an orphan,” I say, peering at Jacks, curious that he didn’t know this. I thought everyonein the country knew mom’s story. “She and Aunt Cora grew up together in the orphanage – it wasonly when they were all grown up that they found out that they were biological half-sisters.Daughters of the moon goddess.”

“Yesss,” Jackson says, narrowing his eyes at me a little in a playful way. “This bizarre little bit oftrivia was mentioned earlier with a promise of an explanation later. Can I have that now?”

I laugh, nodding and scootching close to Jackson so that I’m pressed to his side, and Jacks windshis arms around me as I give him the quick version of mom and dad’s history – how they thoughtmom was a human, how she was accidentally pregnant with dad’s baby due to some shenanigansat a sperm bank, how they fell in love and uncovered a world of secrets while she was pregnantwith Rafe. Jacks listens carefully as I speak and I lean against him, curling into his side and lookingup into his handsome face as I tell it.

“That’s really weird,” he says when I’m finished, stroking my cheek with his hand, and I laugh at thesimplicity and the understatement of his chosen three words. “So, your magic comes like…immediately from the moon goddess? A gift from her?”