“Slater. I’m her soon-to-be mate. Nice to meet you.” He grinned.
“Mate?” His brows rose in surprise as his eyes searched mine for an answer.
“So he claims, but there is no matebond,” I explained, feeling my cheeks heat up. My heart lurched at my own denial, like I was denying something special.
“Ah, but there will be, venom baby. Mark my words.” He let go of Koa’s hand. “I don’t mind sharing with your other mates, though. Maybe he’s your mate, too.”
Koa choked on a breath, beating his fist on his chest before a streak of pinkish-red settled over his cheeks. “Good to meet you, Slater.”
“You too, man.” Slater grinned. “I’m sure we’re going to be brother-mates, so let’s be brothers now, huh?”
“Uh.” His eyes pleaded with me, but I wasn’t arguing with a delusional demon.
I shrugged, ever so helpfully.
He sighed and looked back at Slater. “Sure. I guess.”
“Welcome to entrance exams, applicants!” Dad’s voice boomed as the doors burst open to the auditorium. Desks and chairs were set up in rows behind him. “Come in and find a seat. I’ll explain the written portion of the exam once everyone is seated.”
The applicants flooded in. I sat in the first row, between Slater and Koa, and once everyone was in a seat, Dad clapped his hands to demand attention.
It was weird seeing him in his headmaster role, but it was also comforting in some way knowing it was my dad up there.
“This exam is to make sure you’re competent enough to become an agent. The agent coordinator of the SupernaturalCouncil herself is here to observe the exams this year.” He gestured to Mom, who stepped forward with a stern expression.
“Do Kalista proud today,” she stated.
“The written examinations are thirty percent of your entrance exam,” Dad took back over the speech, placing a soft hand on Mom’s shoulder before she stepped back into Pops. “It was created by some of our top performing agents, and it’s aimed at testing your intellectual capabilities, political familiarity, tactical thinking, and ethical reasoning. As my lovely mate said, do Kalista proud.”
For the fourth time today, my gaze caught on another pair of mesmerizing eyes belonging to a way too attractive man.
He stood at the front of the room, a few feet from Pops and Mom, humming with raw power. The air around him rippled every few seconds with tiny bursts of magic that sparked from his fingertips and dissolved into the space like glitter.
I watched as a flicker of blue light snapped off his index finger and vanished with a sizzle into the air. There was no doubt that his magic was alive and desperate to play.
And why did I want to volunteer to play?
He just stood there, staring back at me.
It took me a moment before I realized that this man had to be Drecken Grimsworn, the warlock representative on the Supernatural Council. I’d only heard stories about him. Mom said he was one-hundred-sixty-six years old, but he looked barely over thirty. He was slender and had the figure of a dancer.
I knew enough about him not to underestimate his looks, though. He was the most powerful warlock in Kalista. One of the most dangerous supernaturals in the world.
His hair was a storm of green curls, chopped short on one side while the other side cascaded down to his jawline. His hair looked to belong to the earth fae. Perhaps he has some fae blood somewhere in his line.Thatwas how ethereal he was. His eyeswere blue, clear as the Moonfolk Ocean, and just as hard to read. Not cold but deep as he quietly watched me.
My nostrils flared as I scented him. He smelled like old tomes and pure, undiluted magic. The kind that clung to your skin and whispered things in forgotten tongues if you were around him for too long, and I loved that. I wanted to lose myself in his magic.
Tattoos curled out from beneath his open sleeves and collar. “Protect your energy” was scrawled along his left wrist, and I could see the outline of a full magic circle on his chest, layered with crescent moons and ancient runes from beneath the thin white fabric of his buttoned-up shirt. I’d never wanted to rip someone’s shirt off as badly as I did his.
He even wore enchanted earrings that were small, blue, precise little magic circles.
And even though he hadn’t said a word yet, the magic kept exploding from his fingers. I wasn’t sure if he even knew he was doing it.
I couldn’t stop my lips from quirking into a small smile, and he tilted his head a fraction of an inch before his lips curved into a breathtaking smile back at me.
“Show us your intelligence and critical thinking.” Dad’s voice raised in volume as Drecken snapped his fingers and a flutter of papers rained down in a neat stack on top of each desk. “Best of luck, applicants.”
Luck had nothing to do with it when my parents had taught me the skills I needed to become an agent since I was three.
