Novels by Riri Pearl

The first hour went surprisingly smoothly. I sat with three girls building a solar system model, hyper-aware of Silas across the room but managing to focus on the children. They were wonderful, curious, sharp, asking questions that made me think. It almost let me forget the disaster waiting to attack me.Then Silas asked, "Oh, forgot to ask, Mrs. Rodriguez tell you the setup?"I looked up from where I was helping Lucia glue Saturn's rings. "Setup?""Two-hour sessions, Tuesdays and Thursdays. Homework help and enrichment activities."I nodded. "What if we moved the tutoring sessions to Saturday mornings instead? Research shows children retain information better earlier in the day, and we could extend to three hours, maybe add breakfast—""Can't do Saturdays," said Jayla without looking up from her moon phase diagram. She was one of the older girls, maybe thirteen, with box braids and an air of world-weary competence. "I watch my brothers while my mom works.""I got basketball," added M

He was very handsome. But his eyes were extraordinary. Dark brown, almost black, and intelligent in a way that made me feel immediately exposed. Like he could see through my soul. My wolf woke up, like someone had hit a switch. "You must be Silas," I said. He studied me for a long moment, before leaning closer. I extended my hand, the way humans did. "Mrs. Rodriguez said we'd be co-teaching tonight?" He looked at my hand like it might bite him. Then, reluctantly, he took it. The moment our palms touched, the world shattered. I ripped my hand away and stumbled backward, gasping, barely managing to force my wolf down before I shifted right there in the middle of the community center. My vision blurred gold at the edges. My hands were shaking. Silas had dropped his coffee cup. The moment our hands touched, his knees had buckled like someone had cut his strings. The cup hit the linoleum and exploded, hot coffee spreading in a dark bloom across the floor toward where child

The apartment I wasn't supposed to know about was in Temescal, third floor of a converted Victorian that had been split into six units sometime in the 1970s. I'd rented it three months ago using my mother's maiden name, Selene Matthew, and paid six months upfront in cash. My father didn't know it existed. Killian didn't know it existed. Even my mother only knew because she'd helped me set it up, her hands shaking the entire time as she counted out bills from her private safe. "If your father finds out I helped you—" she'd started. "He won't," I'd promised. "This is just... insurance. In case I ever need to disappear for a few hours." She'd looked at me with eyes that understood too much. "Your grandmother had a place like this. In Berkeley. She'd go there when your grandfather's political dinners became unbearable." A pause. "She sold it the year before she died. Said she'd waited too long, that by the time she was brave enough to actually leave, she'd forgotten how." I'd hugg

He lifted my chin with his middle finger. "God, you're adorable when you're delusional. This isn't a negotiation, Selene. This is pack law. Your wolf will learn to accept me." My vision blurred. I realized, distantly, that I was crying."I dare you," I groaned. "I won't make you break me." "I won't have to. Your father will do it for me." Killian's hand moved to the small of my back, pressing me against him in a way that looked intimate from the outside but felt like being trapped. "The Rite is in six months. Winter Solstice. I'd start preparing yourself mentally if I were you. I hear the process is quite painful when the wolf resists."Something inside me snapped.I shoved him with rrrrenough force that he stumbled backward, and several people gasped. The music didn't stop, but it faltered. The entire ballroom had gone quiet, everyone turning to stare at us. At me."Selene..." Killian's voice was low. "What do you think you're doing?""I'm leaving." My voice was shaking but audible

Being part of the Derimigo family as an heiress was worse than death. My hand was trembling in front of many eyes staring at me.I had practiced this speech for two weeks. Two weeks of standing in front of my bathroom mirror at 6 AM, perfecting every smile and gesture that would make me look like a dutiful daughter instead of a liar.I squeezed my mic and began, "The Derimigo family has always understood that with great power comes great responsibility—"My father's hand tightened on my shoulder. A warning. I was rushing. I took a breath, let my smile widen just enough to show teeth, and continued."—which is why I'm honored to announce the launch of Derimigo Flux's Urban Renewal Initiative, a two-billion-dollar commitment to revitalizing underserved neighborhoods throughout the Bay Area."Then my eyes landed on Killian Drake standing near the far end of the ballroom, and every thought inside my head disappeared instantly.The words died in my throat as fear tightened painfully aroun