“I’m still mad as hell at The Magic, but I also know I should trust it,” Myve replied in a low tone. “Hans cornered me a few days ago, trying to apologize again, blaming his phoenix form on his agitation that day.”
“I don’t know much about phoenix shifters,” I said, thinking if I’d ever even met one before coming here. “But is it like with dragon shifters?”
Myve shrugged. “I didn’t let him elaborate, just hurried to evade him.”
“Maybe you should hear him out,” Nym said, surprising us all. “If his phoenix is somehow close to what I feel when it comes to instincts, then maybe he does have a good reason for acting out.”
“But he hurt Harpy!” Myve argued, looking hurt. “How could I ever betray you like that?”
Nym smiled softly at our cousin. “This has nothing to do with me, or my mate. This is about you and your mate.” Myve bristled at that. “You don’t have to seal your mating bond unless you want to, but hearing him out will only help you make a decision faster.”
“He’s right,” Nazuss said. “I hate seeing you suffer like this.”
“I—” she swallowed. “I don’t think I’m hungry anymore.” Myve then left the table, walking out of the dining room with her head hung low.
“This is nice,” Casey whispered. The steam from our bath rose around us, making the fresh scent of oranges flood the room as we bathed. I was resting against the back of the tub with Casey laid out between my legs, his head on my shoulder as I slowly traced my fingers over his arms.
We hadn’t wasted much time before we got into the tub, even if I could tell Casey wished to admire my body some more. We were both eager to start collecting shiny objects for our nest and we would likely need lots of sticks as well. It could take us hours, but we still rested in the warm water like we had all the time in the world.
“I wish we could stay like this forever,” I whispered, kissing his neck.
He smiled, closing his eyes. “When we’ve graduated, we can. I plan on doing a lot of resting in the future, preferably after having some sweaty fun.”
I chuckled. “That sounds wonderful.”
“I know, right,” he sighed. “I can’t wait.”
Casey then carefully moved his body, straddling my legs as best as he could with the narrow space, and kissed me. We’d picked the tub in the far corner; a wall of wood panels hid us from view. All the bathtubs were partitioned off with wooden walls, one window next to it to let out the steam. We had a view of the ocean through the slightly frosted glass, making us feel like we were in our own little haven.
A shriek had us jolting apart, the water sloshing over the sides. “This is a public space!” Hyland’s outraged cry filled the room.
I was glad we’d used lots of my soap, making bubbles obscure our bodies. I didn’t want to kill Hyland, but I would’ve needed to if he’d seen my perfect mate all wet and naked.
“What the fuck!” I yelled. “We had the door closed! You’re the one walking in on us bathing!”
Hyland seemed to splutter, no actual words escaping his mouth. He turned around without a word and I hoped that would be it.
Casey sighed. “I guess this won’t be a thing we get to enjoy in the future then.”
I mirrored his sigh. “Let’s just wash up and get dressed. We have a nest to make.”
Chapter Eleven
We’d only made it one step out of the bathroom before Headmaster Wren intercepted us. “Come with me, boys.”
We shared a confused look behind his back, following him silently down the hallway. We passed areas I’d never been in before until we reached a door that was painted a dark purple. A golden sign was on the door with Headmaster Wren written on it.
“Take a seat,” he said, gesturing to the two chairs in front of his wooden desk. He then sat and crossed his arms over the desk, taking us in.
We stayed silent, both of us too afraid to talk. I had no clue why we’d been called to his office and I feared the librarian might’ve told him about what we’d been up to in there.
“Casey and Jamie,” he began, looking serious but still kind, like a disappointed father that couldn’t hide the love he felt in his eyes, even as he scolded his misbehaving children. “I know there’s a certain kink around being caught, but this is not theplace to explore said kink.” I choked on my spit, but Wren kept going. “I would’ve expected this from a dragon shifter, and have several times over during my time as Headmaster here, but never before have I had to tell two students not to get intimate in the bathrooms.”
“Bathrooms?” I blurted, then anger coiled through me. “Did Hyland tell you we were having sex or something?!”
Casey gasped indignantly next to me and the sound would’ve been funny had I not been so mad. “We weren’t having sex!”
I nodded and pointed to Casey. “What he said.”
