Page 13 of Plug and Claim

“Pity.” I might have said yes. He drained his cup and set it down. “We’ll arrive at the academy soon,” he informed her. “The carriage will take us directly there.”

“Will it, now?” she said bitterly. “It would have been nice if it had taken us directly to the academy in the first place.”

“It would have, if you’d obeyed my order. Your noncompliance delayed what should have been a quick journey.”

She sniffed. “You are loathsome.”

“I’m sincere,” he corrected, “and I have your best interests at heart.”

“I sincerely doubt that.”

“Truly, you have nothing to fear from me. The academy has recently introduced new rules to ensure the wellbeing of all its pupils, including shifters like yourself. As a student of the academy, you have certain rights, privileges, and protections. No one will touch you without your consent. As the chief security officer on campus, you have my protection.”

“Fuck your protection. Do you really think gagging me was in my best interest?”

“It was for my own safety.”

Kira was struck speechless, and he could see her deciphering the meaning behind his words. After all, he’d just acknowledged that she had the power to harm him. It was a mutual respect of a sort.

Kira lifted her chin. “Yes, well…it wasn’t as if you didn’t enjoy it. Gagging me, that is.”

“I never said I didn’t.”

She huffed and looked out the window, and it was with some difficulty that his gaze slid past her.

They had arrived in the Capital. The sandstone city buildings were illuminated by burning torches and the early rays of sunrise. Despite the early hour, there were already people moving about the cobblestone streets.

“Is this your first time in the Capital?”

Kira nodded, muttering something that sounded like ‘first time with an asshole like you,’ as she craned her neck to peer at a man patrolling the streets.

“Vampire,” she observed, her nostrils flaring as if she were sampling the air.

“A watchman of the city guard. You can tell by the red uniform. Speaking of which…you’ll receive a school uniform at the academy. But I must ask, why did you not pack anything?”

Kira had packed a small silk bag of coins, but he didn’t need to know that. She shrugged. “I didn’t think my clothes would be suitable.”

She was right. If her current attire was anything to go by, plain peasant clothes in faded colours and frayed edges, she would need a new wardrobe. There was nothing wrong with a respectable set of working clothes, but her ankle-length skirt and belted tunic was a far cry from the chic fashion observed by the academy’s students.

“I can arrange for someone to take you shopping in the city,” he offered.

They exchanged a small smile, and his heart skipped a beat as Kira leant forward.

“Nathaniel?” she whispered softly, sending an involuntary quiver through him as she shuffled closer.

“Yes, Kira?”

Her expression hardened. “Why don’t you fuck off?”

He didn’t bat an eyelid. “Why are you living alone in a cottage on the outskirts of town?”

Kira looked surprised by his question. “To get away from people. I like nature.”

That was obviously not the whole truth. “And your parents?” he asked.

“I never knew them. I was raised by humans, but they abandoned me when they realised what I was.” She paused, swallowing dramatically as she stared at her hands.

Nathaniel couldn’t tell if she was genuinely upset or not, but either way, he didn’t buy her story. The subtle tremble of her hands was—he was sure—just an act. He tilted his head at her. “What about the wolves who raised you?”