Burnett, looking baffled at Kylie's emotional dilemma, leaned closer and whispered, "If you really don't want to meet them-"

"No, I ... I'll do it." It was crazy not to. And she felt like an idiot for letting her insecurities be known. It wasn't that she completely hated meeting people, she just hated meeting people who already had a preconceived notion about her. And she sure as hell didn't like knowing that people in Italy were talking about her. Probably in Italian, and she couldn't even understand it.

Stiffening her backbone, she plastered a smile on her face, hoping to appear less like a freak than they considered her to be. It was, however, the same fake smile she wore when her mom took her someplace she didn't want to go-like to one of those mother/daughter days at work, or to one of those stuffy volunteer luncheons. What was it that her mom had said about that smile? Oh yeah: You look like you just swallowed a mosquito.

Yup, she was going to look like a freak, all right.

Chapter Seventeen

Kylie, practically holding her breath, suffered through Burnett's introduction of all three teachers. First was Hayden Yates, aka Mr. Yates to the students, who gave her a nod and a more than uncomfortable stare. The new half vampire, half fae science teacher shook her hand and held on for a second longer than she'd liked.

Considering his fae half was dominant, she was surprised she didn't feel any emotion-altering warmth from him. And although he didn't strike her as a pervert, something about him gave her just a bit of the creeps. She wasn't sure what it was, but she didn't like it, or him. Odd, because Kylie normally didn't make rash assumptions about people-with the exception of her mom's new boyfriend, of course. But that was a special case. That guy wanted to dirty up the sheets with her mom and that just wasn't okay.

Ava Kane, aka Ms. Kane, wore the title of English teacher. She was half-witch and half-shape-shifter, with shape-shifter being her dominant species. She seemed nice enough, but the way she kept twitching her brows, trying to see something different in Kylie's brain pattern, made Kylie uncomfortable. Exactly what did she think she'd find?

Collin Warren, a half-fae, half-human, was the history teacher and a geologist who came off as the quiet type. Odd, for someone with fae blood, because they usually seemed to have a certain amount of natural charm, but then again, perhaps not all half-fae inherited that talent. Kylie had heard that, on rare occasions, some human supernatural blends tended to be more human than supernatural, so perhaps that was the case with Mr. Warren.

Nevertheless, he smiled, said the proper things-"Nice to meet you"-but Kylie got the feeling he was as uncomfortable being put on the spot as she was. Which made her wonder why he'd want to be a teacher.

After everyone knew everyone's name, Kylie stood there, her smile still spreading her lips tight, and waited for something to end the awkward moment. Burnett finally intervened. "Well, I'm glad you all met."

Kylie spun around, thinking only of escaping. But one step forward, and she found herself surrounded by six or seven teens she'd never met. Obviously the new students. The blunt stares and open curiosity in their expressions made her catch her breath again. It was one thing to be gawked at by the regular campers, but newbies ... Her heart raced and her palms began to itch. Hives were only a few minutes away.

Her swallowed-a-mosquito smile fell flat. And that mosquito she'd supposedly inhaled buzzed in her stomach. She didn't know if she could handle more brain gaping and uncomfortable introductions.

"Is it true that you didn't even have a pattern at first?" one of the girls, a witch, asked.

Suddenly, an arm fell across her shoulders. Before she looked at the owner of that appendage, she recognized Derek's warm touch. "I'm sorry, but you guys are going to have to meet Kylie later. I need to steal her away."

"Lucky guy," one of the new vampires said.

"Yeah, I am," Derek said, sounding possessive.

He guided her through the circle of new students. Moved her with confidence and with purpose-the purpose being to get her the hell away from the gawkers. But damn, she appreciated Derek being there so much. She leaned against his shoulder and heard him sigh.

"Hang in there," he whispered. "I'll get you out of here."

He glanced over his shoulder and she followed his gaze to see him looking toward Burnett. The vampire nodded as if giving permission for him to take her out.

She didn't breathe again until they walked out the dining hall door.

Derek's arm tightened as they left the building, as if telling her he didn't want to let her go. While she hated admitting it, there was a small part of her that didn't want him to let go either. But knowing what was right, she stepped away from his side. And then she met his soft green eyes.

"I'm sorry," she said.

"For what?" he asked.

For everything. For feeling things I shouldn't. "For needing to be rescued. It's crazy. I should be able to handle it. It's just that people stare at me like I'm..."

"Special?" He grinned.

"No, like I'm a freak."

He shook his head. "They don't think you're a freak. They're curious. And that one vamp was totally into you, but I'm sure it's still hard."

"Maybe when I know for sure what I am, then it won't be so hard." But she did know, didn't she? She was a chameleon. Was she starting to doubt her heritage like everyone else?

Derek's eyebrow rose. "You still don't believe you're a witch?"