Free Ethon (The Other Worlds Series Book 2) by M.L. Greye Page A

waited for him to back out of his spot before she got on behind him. Mindful of avoiding his skin, she slid her arms around his waist. He seemed to want to touch her so badly that she wasn’t willing to offer him any accidental opportunity.
    “Ready?” He tossed over his shoulder.
    “Yeah,” she pointed to where she’d parked, “I’m over there.”
    “Great. Hold on.”
    Porter started up his bike and then began it forward. They went slow through the parking lot, but when he pulled them out onto the road he picked up his speed.
    “Where are you taking me?” Olinia shouted up toward his ear.
    He didn’t answer out loud, but internally he was picturing an old swing set. Olinia sighed. Was he trying to take her somewhere romantic? It wouldn’t work. She’d had her fill of Ethon men.
    The ride didn’t last long. After winding through a few tree-lined roads, Porter slowed down to a near crawl and then a complete stop. They’d reached the beginning of a long gravel driveway, leading up to a large old estate. Olinia guessed it had once been a plantation.
    Exterior walls of cream and a dark roof gave the place a rustic feel. Hunter green shutters framed all the windows facing the street. Tall, well-maintained trees were scattered throughout the yard. Had Olinia and Porter been any further back, the tips of the trees would’ve hidden the estate from view. Then, off to one side, Olinia noticed the old swing set Porter had thought about earlier.
    “Why’d you bring me here?” Olinia asked.
    He glanced down at her. “This is DS. I work here.”
    “Where are all the students?” For being a school there seemed to be a lacking population of kids. Maybe DS really was in need of those commercials to get more people.
    “It’s an after-school program,” he told her. “Schools aren’t out yet.”
    “Right.” Olinia felt foolish for not thinking of that herself. “So, thanks for bringing me to see where you work.”
    “Want to go in?” He smiled.
    “Oh, no, I can’t.” She shook her head. Her upcoming conversation with Sazx was still waiting for her. “Thanks for the offer, though.”
    Porter was disappointed. “You sure? There’s a book I want to show you. I think you’d like it.”
    Olinia frowned. He wouldn’t think of the name of the book, but he really was anxious to show it to her. “Just bring it to class next time. I’ve really got to get going.”
    He figured she was just trying to avoid him again, but he started his bike back up again anyway. “Alright, I’ll take you to your car.”
    The return trip was quick. Neither Olinia nor Porter said anything until they pulled up alongside her blue car. Olinia dismounted, using Porter’s sleeved arm for support.
    “Thanks for the ride,” she said with a smile. “I’ll see you next week. Have a good weekend.”
    “You too.” He watched her for a moment, his mind wondering what she would do if he reached out and grabbed her wrist. “Next time, you’ll have to come check out that book.”
    He thought there would be a next time? Olinia only nodded. “I’ll see you later, Porter.”
    As Olinia turned toward her car while Porter headed off in the opposite direction, she couldn’t help but feel confused at the way he had acted. It was as if nothing had happened the other night. Either he was accomplished at whatever he was doing, or he was legitimately a crazy person bent on getting close to her. If he were the latter, he’d picked the wrong person to shadow.
     
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    Being a princess in comparison to what life had once been was dull. Well, really just the sitting-through-endless-political-meetings portion was boring. Tiara Anteal had endured so many such meetings in the past three weeks that it was almost all she could think of.
    There had been meetings about taxes, meetings about militia, meetings about former Kendren ruled worlds – the list went on and on. Currently, she was sitting in on a discussion regarding government