Whirl (Ondine Quartet Book 1) by Emma Raveling

made of plush red velvet, lined the walls.
Aubrey quickly found us one in the back where we could check out
the scene and set up base for the night.
    A waiter soon approached. Like all the staff
here, he was dressed in all-black, pairing a muscle shirt with
jeans.
    "What can I get you gals?"
    I ordered a vodka tonic. Aubrey got an apple
martini and Chloe asked for a cosmopolitan.
    The waiter gave us a long look. He looked
like he was in his late twenties and was leanly muscled, like he
was a runner or played some kind of recreational sport. His pale
green eyes held a hint of amusement.
    "You're from Lumiére, aren't you?"
    Shit. We'd managed to get our way past the
bouncer based on sheer charm and a little bit of flirting. If this
guy knew we were from the Academy, then not only did he know we
were ondines, but he also knew we were underage.
    I lifted my shield and gently pushed into him
with my Virtue. Solid.
    "You're a demillir!" I blurted out.
    He grinned. A lock of golden brown hair
dropped over his eyes as he leaned forward. "That I am, sweetheart.
I'm Bastien."
    My mouth was still a little open.
"Kendra."
    Chloe and Aubrey recovered their composure
quicker than me and introduced themselves.
    "But if you're a demillir, what are you doing
working here?"
    "Kendra!" Chloe groaned. I suppose I was
being a little rude, but I had never met another elemental in the
human world. It was pretty weird.
    Bastien didn't take offense. "I grew up in
Fontesceau, the community in Florida." He shrugged. "I got bored.
Wasn't really cut out to be a chevalier. I prefer food, drinks, and
good times to fighting, you know?"
    He gave a twinkling smile which I didn't
quite return. I would've killed to have natural demillir
abilities.
    "I decided to go Rogue and made my way across
the country taking jobs in human restaurants or bars." He looked
around the club. "I enjoy it. I like being around people."
    "How long have you been Rogue?" Chloe asked,
fascinated.
    "About five years now. I ended up in Lyondale
about a year ago."
    "How'd you know we were from Lumiére?" Aubrey
asked.
    "I've come across a few of you at other
places I've worked at. I'm supposed to sniff out kids as part of my
job." His expression turned suspicious. "Aren't you supposed to
have gardinels with you?"
    "We just wanted to have a girls' night out,"
I said. "I just moved here and wanted to see the city. Please don't
make us leave."
    His eyes flickered over the three of us while
we looked at him with big, pleading eyes.
    "God knows I could never resist ondines." He
heaved an exaggerated sigh. "Don't get too crazy, okay? My ass is
on the line."
    "We promise," I said solemnly. Bastien rolled
his eyes and went to get our drinks.
    Relaxed, we sat back to enjoy ourselves. We
didn't have long to wait. Soon after our drinks arrived, three guys
approached our table. They were pretty cute and looked like they
were in college. The guy in front had short, spiky brown hair and
warm brown eyes.
    "Hey," he said, looking at me. "Mind if we
join you?"
    I flashed him my sexiest smile. "Not at
all."
    We stood and shifted around so that we each
sat next to a guy. I made sure I ended up next to Brown Eyes.
    "I'm Jake," he said, offering me his hand.
"That's Matt and Jason." He nodded to his buddies.
    Aubrey's brilliant green eyes flashed a
seductive look at Matt while Chloe tossed her silky hair and gave
Jason a half-smile. Both guys looked like they didn't know what hit
them.
    "Kendra." I turned on the charm.
    Jake turned out to be a normal human guy,
just like the ones I used to have fun with in San Aurelio. He and
his friends were all first year students at the university. I
flirted outrageously with him, determined to push all the
frustration out of my head just for tonight. I missed my daily
night time prowls, where I had completely control and freedom to do
what I wanted.
    The vodka tonics I downed numbed my
anxieties, and Jake's admiring eyes and warm laughs made me feel
fuzzy and good.
    I