Spycraft Academy by B. Miles (little readers .txt) 📕

before he clasped his hands and gave them a big, friendly grin. "I can see I'll have my work cut out for me."

"Pardon?"

"I'll not be living with somebody who can't carry on a conversation in polite company. We'll be working on that, you and I."

Sam's face was suddenly warm. He didn't know whether to be insulted or thankful that the man wasn't completely turned off by his lack of grace.

"Um. Right, well, this is Mattisan." Sam gestured to her and to his surprise, she gave Fletch a once over, smiled, then curtsied . . . correctly.

"Mattie, if you please."

"Oh, aren't you delightful!" Fletch sidled right up to her. "Tell me, Mattie, is Sam your beau? I couldn't help but notice how close you two seemed to be on the trip here."

Sam swallowed and looked to Mattie for an answer to Fletch's rather good question. What were they? Was he her beau, were they courting, or were they just best friends who'd fooled around a bit under a blanket?

"Um." Mattie pulled at a lock of auburn hair and didn't look directly at Sam. "I suppose?"

Fletch laughed and patted Mattie on the shoulder. "Well, no matter. I'm sure you'll have a more confident answer soon enough."

After a few friendly words, Fletch excused himself and meandered away to look for a snack. When he was gone, Mattie met Sam's eyes met and an embarrassed smile tugged at his mouth. She returned the grin.

"So . . ." Mattie slid closer to him.

"So." He couldn't wipe the smile off his face.

"Do you wanna go sit down while we wait for the summons?" She had this mischievous little grin on her face, leaving the unanswered question hanging in the air for him to grab. Part of him wanted to, but another part of him wanted to play along to whatever game she was thinking of, just to see where it would go.

"Sure." Sam stuck his hands in his pocket and her grin twitched a little wider. Mattie grabbed his hand and tugged him along with her to an empty love seat. He collapsed on it with a content sigh and she threw her legs over his lap, one dainty ankle crossed over the other. They sat in silence after that, letting the cacophony of chatter wash over them. The silence wasn't comfortable. It was tense with something unnamable crackling in the air between them.

And then, it was broken by a husky female voice behind the couch. Sam startled for the second time and, honestly, what was with these people and sneaking up on him?

"Mattisan?"

"Mattie, yeah."

"Mattie. Right. I'm Drina. Looks like we're sleeping together."

Sam craned his neck and found himself staring at a rather beautiful girl with a decidedly large chest and a salacious smirk. She spared him a passing glance and Sam could feel the spit gathering in his mouth as she sashayed around the back of the couch, her black curls bouncing against the swell of her heart-shaped backside. There was another girl following her, but he only noticed her after he tore his eyes away from Drina.

And Mattie caught him.

Sam blinked owlishly at her and she quirked an eyebrow at him. Other than that, she didn't give any indication that she was offended by his accidental staring.

Drina took a seat on the opposing couch and crossed her legs, and thank the spirits she was wearing trousers instead of one of those dresses with the slits in the side that the noble girls seemed to favor.

"So, it looks like you've nabbed one of the only boys here." Again, Drina gave him a glance, but it was fleeting and casual enough to be disappointing.

"I estimated a three to one ratio," Drina continued. "Then again, boys make shit spies, so I'm not surprised. I suppose that means us girls are just going to have to get creative with where we find our entertainment."

She gave Mattie a very pointed look, her smirk spreading into a cocksure grin. If Sam didn't know better, he'd think that girl was openly flirting with Mattie. She wasn't, was she? He looked at the redhead to study her reaction. She still had her legs tossed casually over his lap and her answering smile was bright and friendly. She wasn't blushing or laughing nervously or anything. Drina was probably just being friendly and Sam was just tired from the boat ride.

It dawned on him that she just said he’d be a shit spy. While it was true that most of the Varin Shadow Knights were women, that didn't mean that men were inherently bad at it.

"You're right." Sam smiled. He could spin this into something smooth while maintaining his dignity, surely. "Boys do make shit spies. That's why they recruit men."

Drina and the other girl laughed. Even Mattie giggled. Sam felt quite proud of himself for that one.

"Maybe so," Drina said after her laughter died. She was looking at Sam fully now, not just a passing glance. Her eyes were tilted up at the corners, and they were so dark that they were almost black. When she pinned him with her gaze, he had a distinct feeling that he was going to be eaten. "But I think even men make shit spies. I bet you can get information out of them much easier than you can a woman. In fact, I would put money on it. Ten specs."

Sam was hovering between a smile and a frown, as if his face didn't know what to do when his brain was screaming at him to shut up. Surely, she was kidding. That was a lot of money to put down on a bet.

"Ooh," the girl beside her leaned in. "I'll raise that bet to twenty."

Drina looked at Mattie then, who'd been sitting quietly and just watching them. "How about it, Red?"

Mattie shook her head and folded her hands between her legs.

Drina lifted an eyebrow at Sam, and he almost told her 'no bet,' but then she smiled and put her palms on the couch, leaning