Until Elodie.
The first time I laid eyes on her, in the damn hall closet of all places, my cock stirred to life. It was a sensation I’d never felt before. I knew my need for her was stronger than anything else when I watched her scarred back in the shower, but my fate was truly sealed when I tasted her sweet center. A spark ignited inside of me. There’s no denying it, and there’s definitely no taking it back.
She’s mine.
A fact I’m all for, but it’s going to take a moment for me to adapt, her even longer, but that’s okay. It seems I’m a forever kind of guy. I can wait.
Although, if I wait a second longer outside of Laurie’s office, she’s going to be pissed, and I don’t care to deal with the consequences that come with that. Have I been too harsh? Maybe, but it’s nothing she doesn’t deserve, not now that I can seethe world truly through my wolf’s eyes. He’s laid eyes on his mate; nothing else matters.
I rap my knuckles on the door and her terse voice creeps from the other side.
“Enter.”
Turning the door handle, I ensure my facial features remain neutral. The desire to sneer at her or glower until my wolf takes the lead and we rip her to shreds is strong, but I fight it down. Any kind of rise or reaction from me is going to please her, and that’s not what I’m here for.
“Professor Drayker, I’m here for my solitary training. Shall I meet you on the combat field?” I ask, watching as her eyes darken and her lips pout in distaste.
She always insisted I call her Laurie, but I hope the adjustment will make her see that all ties have been severed.
“Take a seat, Rion. I feel there are some issues we need to discuss first,” she states, folding her arms over her chest as she leans back in her seat.
“Is it with regard to my training?” I push, knowing it damn-well isn’t, but the certain cock of her brow tells me she’s not budging until I sit down.
With a sigh, I take a seat in the chair across from her, purposely leaving the door ajar. Her nostrils flare, acknowledging the move, but I slumpin the seat with a sigh, refusing to acknowledge that I can read her every move.
“Don’t you care, Rion?” she blurts, her eyebrows furrowing slightly as she flicks her attention between my eyes, searching for what, I don’t know.
“About what?” I indulge, and she swipes her tongue along her bottom lip. When Elodie does it, my dick goes hard; when Laurie does it, it shrivels up inside of me.
“Me. Us. Our history. Oureverything.”
I shrug. “I don’t know what it is you want me to care about.” My words hang heavy in the air as her chest rises and falls a little faster, her attempts to contain her frustration growing weaker and weaker. “I thought I was here for my outburst in class,” I reiterate, and she huffs.
“You are.”
“Then how about we stick to that?”
Her palms slam against the desk between us. “Don’t you care about me?”
That’s a little more specific, but I know she won’t like my answer if I give it. Instead, I stand, wiping my hands down my sweatpants before I rise to my full height.
“Are we training or not?”
“I’m the one in charge here, Rion, not you,” she bites, launching to her feet too, and I scoff.
“Then maybe you need to show a little more professionalism.”
She’s around the table and in front of me a breath later, palm raised and aimed in my direction. The sting dances across my skin, but I don’t react. Instead, I simply stare at her, watching as an array of emotions shimmer in her eyes.
“I’m sorry, Rion,” she whispers, covering her mouth with her hand in fake shock. “You make me do stupid things.” Her fingers press into her temples in a poor attempt at calming her emotions, but we’ve been through this kind of situation before. She’s not sorry, and we both know she would do it again. Despite how much she angers me, I vowed as a child to never lay hands on a woman. My father set the worst example, and she knows it. “I can’t control myself when I’m around you,” she breathes, looking up at me with longing in her gaze as she strokes a hand down my shirt.
“Try harder,” I grunt as I take a step back.
She doesn’t allow the distance to grow between us as she follows after me, a snarl on her lips. “I don’t like this version of you.”
I scoff. “I don’t need you to.”
She throws her arms out wide, gaping at me as she shakes her head. “Explain to me what’s going on, Rion. I just want to go back to how things were.”
