“Let her be,” Morgan tells me while guiding my face away from my sister.
“She’s my sister.”
“And she’s in good hands.”
Before I can respond, Victoria and Sterling step forward. “Hello, brothers and sisters. New recruits, welcome to Secretum Societatis. You all know why you’re here, so let’s get started.”
Flawlessly people step forward with drinks on trays and start handing them out. Sterling hands one to V and takes one for himself. I grab one for both Morgan and me.
“Drink!” Sterling proclaims.
Everyone drinks in unison, finishing our glasses before handing them back to the waitstaff.
“Enjoy,” Sterling says in a devilish tone right before the music starts, the deep bass making everyone move.
“And now it starts,” I tell Morgan as I pull her into me, swaying to the music.
“So what do we do?” Morgan asks as I ghost my lips against hers.
“Well, while the sacrifices go at it and lose their virginities, the couples surrounding the fire and the bed will… play with each other. But I refuse for the first time I touch you intimately to be in front of others.” I trail kisses over her face and neck while ghosting my hands over her sides. “So, I will touch your ass.” I grab her ass as I bite her collarbone. “Maybe your boobs." My hand slides up, and I tweak her nipple. "That okay, baby?”
“Just remember, turnabout is fair play.”
Morgan and I get lost in each other, not paying attention to anyone around us until we hear a guy next to us say, “Holy shit,” sounding in awe.
Both Morgan and I look over at him and follow his gaze towards the bed. We watch Sterling push Victoria onto the bed next to where Poppy’s riding Ryan.
“Is this normal?” Morgan asks with a laugh.
“Yeah, no....” I watch as Poppy leans over and takes Victoria’s nipple into her mouth while still on Ryan as Sterling is between V’s legs.
“What the fuck?” I cry out. “This is like watching Tinsley or Sage have sex. It’s wrong!”
Morgan grabs my face. “Then don’t watch. Just look at me.”
“I’m not the only one who thinks it's awkward as fuck, right?”
“No, it’s weird. I mean, I won’t lie, both Sterling and Victoria are insanely beautiful people, but this is a little much. And speaking of sisters, Finley pulled Tinsley away as things went a little south over there.” Morgan tilts her head towards the bed.
“Thank God. That’s the last thing she needs to see.”
“You know what I want when we leave here?” she asks.
“Tell me and it’s yours.”
Morgan giggles. “French fries.”
“Pretty sure I can do that.” Out of the corner of my eye, I see Sterling and V jump off the bed and take off towards the house. I don’t know when Ryan and Poppy got off, but the bed is empty and no one’s moving to burn the sheets.
“Come on, we gotta strip the bed real fast and throw the sheets in the fire. Then we can go get fries.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
After we strip the bed, I grab up the mic Sterling used and announce, “With this sacrifice, we keep the spirits at bay. Go forth and consummate this glorious sacrifice!” I step forward and throw the ,sheets into the fire and the crowd cheers.
I turn back towards Morgan. “French fries?”
“French fries.” She nods as she takes my hand.
✽✽✽
Morgan
We walk into the kitchen at Keaton’s house. I jump up into a chair at the island and work on setting out our food while Keaton grabs the ketchup.
“I have questions.”
“I figured you would.” He sets the ketchup onto the island before sliding plates my way.
“Was it your first Samhain? Why do they do Samhain and a ‘sacrifice’?” I finger quote sacrifice. “How do they decide who can join and, most importantly, what’s next?”
“I got to take part last year, but as a junior you don’t get to choose someone to bring in. That happens when you’re a senior, and you have to tell another member, who's been in longer, who you want to pull in with you. So, I told Reed I wanted you. He took that to someone else who approved you joining with me. Samhain and the sacrifice, yeah, I think that’s just something weird they started in the beginning. Sacrifices and Samhain go hand in hand. If you read through the history of Samhain and secret societies, they have a thing for weird, off-the-cuff traditions.” He pops a couple fries in his mouth and chews before continuing. “As for what’s next?” He shrugs. “Who exactly knows at this point. From my understanding, it's basically about who you know, right? Like, say you get in trouble and need a lawyer, call S.S. and they will send you one without question. Need a surgeon, we have one of those at our disposal. That kind of thing.”
“Basically, it’s a giant address book, everyone has a skill or something another member could need?” I question.
“That’s the way I take it. I know V and Sterling were playing a bigger part in everything this year, so I’m sure if we asked, they could explain the operations better. I just know I like knowing that someone’s always there for me if I need it outside of my family.”
“Makes sense. It was interesting, though,” I muse.
“Gah, don’t remind me. I can never unsee V and Sterling.” He shivers, making me laugh.
“You have to admit it was kind of hot,” I tease.
Keaton gives me a dirty look before standing and throwing away his trash. “Come on, let’s go watch a movie.”
✽✽✽
Chapter 11
Morgan
December
Two months have gone by, and I have to admit, I’m loving the way Keaton has been treating me.
When we walk in the halls at school, he’s always touching me. If it’s not holding my hand, then it’s a hand on my back or an arm around my shoulders.
