I don’t bother playing nice. Crossing my arms over my chest, I purse my lips. “Look, you clearly don’t want me here. The next three years don’t have to be painful. Stay out of my way, and I’ll stay out of yours.”
A vein in his neck pulses. “You don’t belong here,wild wolf.” He steps into the room and invades my space, baring his teeth the moment I’m close enough for him to scent. His face blotches an ugly shade of red, and he swallows thickly. “You even smell like the rot. Did you bring it with you?” Without waiting for an answer, he scoffs. “Of course you did. You’re tainted.”
I hate that fucking word.
“I happen to think I smell like lilacs and daisies.” Glaring, I shove him away from me. “Keep your distance or I might infect you, asshole.”
His eyes flash bright blue, signaling his rising power, although I’m not sure what to expect. “It’s not me you need to worry about. I can’t touch you.” To emphasize this, Henson holds both his hands out in front of him to put a barrier between us. The shiny silver pin on his blazer denotes his title asstaff. Guess they can’t fraternize with students, violently or otherwise. “And anyone with half a brain won’t want to. But I saw that other wild one during the trials. The male.” His teeth glint menacingly. “I wonder if he’ll still find you attractive when he’s surrounded by other shifters. My bet’s on him abandoning you the second someone lands in his lap tonight.”
Ignoring the obvious jab, I fish for information. “What’s happening tonight?” Maybe Henson will do his actual job and advise me.
It takes him a second to respond, like he’s warring between his duty and his inherent hatred for me. “Opening night. Eachdorm celebrates their own way, but shifters have a bonfire and a midnight run. Or swim, or fly, or whatever.”
The unspoken hierarchy of shifterkind clearly runs amok within the walls of Heartsflame.
“That’s it? They go for a run?” It’s a little anticlimactic after fighting to the death in the entrance trials.
Henson pushes his wire frames up his pointed nose. Messy blond hair frames his face, and if it weren’t for his piss-poor attitude, he’d be attractive enough to find his own mate. I bet that’s why he’s on staff; he didn’t find a mate within his three years attending as a student and decided that he needed an extended stay.
I’d feel sorry for him if he wasn’t such an asshole.
“It’s not like they’re going for a moonlit stroll.” He looks at me like I’m stupid. “Don’t you know anything about your own species?”
I clench my jaw. “Enlighten me, advisor. What do the wolves do?”
“What they always do.” Exhaling slowly, he stares past me to the arched window overlooking the academy grounds. We’re a few stories up and have a gorgeous view of the snow-blanketed hills leading to a distant mountain range. It might even be the Dire pack’s mountain.
My chest tightens as I picture Alistair Dire in the snow, his glowing eyes burning into my soul. If he finds me tonight, he’ll kill me. We aren’t officially students until classes begin tomorrow, which means that anyone who dies tonight is taken off this year’s roster. All lives are fair game until the academy’s magic binds us to its rules, forbidding students from killing each other.
A half-moon peeks out from behind a dense cloud before Henson completes his thought. His eyes meet mine, flinty and cold as ice. “They compete for a mate.”
Chapter 8
Sienna
There’sa knock on my door as I’m getting dressed for tonight’s celebration. What few belongings I own have been placed inside my new room without permission—yet another wrinkle with this academy’s lack of consent when invading our privacy via magic—but it allows me to wear my favorite black tunic and boots, both cinched tight with a dozen crisscrossing laces. I’m still fiddling with the ones at my waist when whoever’s at the door pushes it open.
“Sienna—” Revyn’s eyes light up when he sees me, their depths shifting from harsh black to liquid iron as he crosses the threshold. “Damn, you look good.”
I flush as his gaze rakes down my body. There was a time when that look precluded raw, deep, animalistic sex, and my blood thrums at the memory. I swallow hard. “Get out, Revyn.”
Stepping deeper into the room, Revyn ignores my request. “We need to talk.”
The last thing I want to do right now is talk with Revyn aboutus.“No, we don’t.”
His eyes flash molten silver. “You wanna take your anger out on me?” He drops the rucksack slung over his shoulder and gestures toward his chest. “Go right ahead. Fuck me up, baby.”
“For the love of—” With an exasperated growl, I drop the corset I’m attempting to lace up and throw a pillow at him. “Get the fuck out!” His scent is overwhelming. As delicious as I remember—no,better.Fuck. Woodsy and earthen, with that hint of campfire that clings to his skin.
Mine, once upon a time.
I hold my breath as he stalks closer. “You know I never meant to hurt you, Si.” Brushing his fingertips over the edge of my corset, he pulls it into place and starts lacing the front with practiced precision. “And I won’t. I promise.” Exhaling slowly, he lingers in far more intimate a space than I should allow, but I’m drawn into him. He smells like home, and it aches bittersweet.
He keeps talking, sounding nervous for once. “All first-year students sleep in the same hall—minus the fangers on account of the sunlight—so I’m only a few doors down.” He holds his palm flat to my ribs, like he’s trying to feel my heartbeat. “Some rooms are co-ed, but mine is private.” Flicking his gaze to mine, he smiles, his lips curving sensually. “So is yours.” Our breaths mingle as he dips his head. “I’ll stay with you, Sienna. If you want.”
My brain takes too long to catch up to my body, giving Revyn the perfect opening to wrap an arm around my waist and pull me into his chest. “I miss you.” His body is blissfully warm against my damp skin. “And as much as I enjoyed rolling around in the mud with you this afternoon, I prefer you like this.” Brushing hair off my shoulder, he bends down and kisses a tender bruise, then cups the side of my neck as he presses another kiss to the silver bite mark matching the shape of his fangs. “Wet.” A water droplet slips down my throat, and he groans as he licks it up.
“Revyn,” I breathe, ignoring my thundering heart and shoving his chest. “We arenottogether anymore.”
