“I went to find Kai and then fell into the pool by accident. Luckily, he saved me before I drowned, so it’s all fine.”
“Drowned?” My bear’s grumble turned into a full-on growl. Fur sprouted across his chest, and I sighed happily. Thank the goddess for blessing me with a cuddly bear. I vowed to leave her a gift the next time I visited the temple. She deserved it.
“It was an accident.” A deeply embarrassing one I’d prefer to forget about.
“Why were you in there, on your own, with a male, Raven?” The jealousy in his voice interrupted my snuggle-fest.
“Um, excuse me?” I realized the minute I looked up that we were heading into the forest rather than back to my dorm. “Hey! Where are you taking me?!”
“You’re soaked. You need a hot shower, dry clothes, and some warm food in your belly. Let me take care of you, little witch.”
“Okay.” My irritation at his jealous tantrum faded, and I snuggled into his chest again. My tee had already begun to dry, despite the rain trickling down through the canopy. Then it belatedly occurred to me to ask why he’d been outside the sports complex so early.
“My bear was worried about you. He sensed something was wrong and dragged me over there.” He huffed loudly. “After what you’ve just told me, it’s a good thing I listened to him!”
“Oh, I’m sorry for ruining your sleep.”
Maverick huffed again. “I don’t sleep well anyway, so it’s fine.” When he reached the cabin stoop, he kicked open the door with his foot.
“Why don’t you sleep well?” The scent of coffee had my stomach growling. Maverick’s coffee machine was awesome. I loved his cappuccinos. Especially when he added a dusting of cocoa powder.
He placed me on the sofa in front of the fire and knelt down to pull off my sopping wet sneakers.
“Because you’re not there, baby.”
37
Maverick
Working at Starfall Academy was both a blessing and a curse. While it allowed me to stay close to my mate, not being with her as my bear and I wanted was killing us both.
My bear had been a complete asshole lately. I spent more time fighting him than anything else. The only time he settled was when we could touch our little witch.
We smelled her fear from a mile away and had come running. By the time we arrived at the sports complex, her fear had faded. I still had no clue what happened, but it was fucking obvious the blue-skinned fish boy was responsible. Raven’s half-assed explanation about stumbling into the water seemed off, but I let it pass.
For now.
I planned to speak to –threaten –the merman later, however.
He’d regret upsetting my mate once I forced him to complete laps of the obstacle course for two fucking hours.
I looked up from the stove to see my pretty mate snuggled up in a warm blanket in front of the fire. My bear stopped pacing inside me and chuffed happily, knowing our mate was safe.
The eggs were done, so I scooped up a generous portion and added two slices of toast and a spoonful of baked beans. Raven yawned heavily when I handed her the plate.
“I want to see a clean plate.”
She peered at me through her thick lashes, pretty eyes sparkling in amusement.
“And if I don’t?” The minx was teasing me. My bear perked up again, interested to see where this was going.
“Then I’ll have to spank my naughty mate’s ass.”
Her cheeks turned a becoming shade of red. “Um…” From the way she sank her white teeth into her bottom lip, she liked the idea. I inhaled the sweet scent of her arousal and fought back a groan.
Dammit. I had a class to teach in an hour. Turning up with a massive boner would be a nightmare. Goddess knew I already had to deal with a bunch of fucking students flirting with me daily. Some of the wolf-shifter females were fucking shameless in their pursuit of me, even though I was technically off-limits.
“Eat!” I barked when I saw Raven had not picked up her cutlery.
