by G. Bailey
A naked guy.
A very, very attractive naked guy. He has shoulder-length, wavy black hair that is tucked behind his ears, his skin the same colour as Sera with a golden tan. His muscles look like they have their own muscles, and there are two bands of tattoos around his upper arms. I don’t dare look down any further, knowing once I look, there is no going back from that. I do spot three claw marks straight across his chest, and they look like they were once a nasty injury.
“Where is my sister?” he asks me, his voice deeper than most guys. It has a sexy hum to it that is borderline illegally seductively calling to me.
“Sera?” I ask because I really don’t know any other wolves. The guy just nods once, sniffing the air.
“I know this is her room, and that makes you her master. Where the fuck is she?” he demands, getting angrier.
“She went to do some washing. I’m sure she will be back soon,” I tell him because he honestly looks like he is going to rip my head off at any moment, and I’m clearly as powerful as a dull knife against a pineapple.
“If one hair on my sister’s head is missing, I will murder you. Understood?” he asks, and to my surprise, he sits down, his legs wide and not one care in the world for his nudity.
“Oh my. I’ve just changed my mind, I’m now a dog person,” Amethyst says as she walks into the room, her freaky, purple cat eyes fixed on the naked wolf on my sofa. He growls at her, and all the hairs go up on her back. “Change of mind. Good to see the dog didn’t eat you. I have things to do.” I watch as she runs back into the bedroom, kicking the door shut behind her. That was a poor rescue attempt or whatever that was. I step to the side, the glass cracking under my shoes, and I thank my common sense for not changing out of them earlier.
“Don’t leave,” he commands me. “I have not given you permission.”
“I’m going to get you a blanket,” I say, walking across the room. “And you know what? I don’t need your permission, whoever the fuck you are. I’m pretty sure it would be illegal for you to kill me, and Sera would be the one who suffered if you did. So try speaking to—” I cry out as he slams me into the wall, somehow not really hurting me as his hands grip my hands tightly above my head in one smooth motion. I’m stupid as all I can focus on when we are this close is how his eyes are as gray as heavy, rain-filled clouds that always appeared when my dad said we should have a barbecue growing up.
Saying the word barbecue pretty much conjures storms in Scotland.
“I am soon to be alpha of every wolf shifter in the world, and I make the rules about what is illegal between our kinds and what is not. If I want to fucking murder you here and now, I could and would,” he growls, making me shiver.
“Alpha is a leader, right?” I ask.
“Yes,” he mutters, the gray, stormy eyes are so much more this close up. Making me want to dive right into the storm and not look back.
“Then why would you risk war to kill me? I’m not special; aren’t your people worth more than your anger?” I ask.
“I think you need to stop talking real soon, girl,” he warns me.
“That’s not something I do well. Talking is a nervous twitch of mine, and you currently have me pressed against the wall while you’re naked and threatening to kill me,” I reply to him, and I’m speaking way too quickly. His lips twitch for a second.
“Javier!” Sera’s voice rings across the room, and Javier drops me like a bowling ball, letting me fall very ungracefully to the floor as he turns to his sister. I sit up to see Sera throw a blanket at him, and he ties it around his waist before hugging her. She looks over at me and pushes Javier away, running to me as I stand up. “You’re bleeding, Lexi. I’m so sorry; my brother is nothing short of a possessive fool at times.”
“I’d call him a right prick, but possessive fool works too,” I say, narrowing my eyes at Javier who glares right back at me.
“Javier! Say sorry right now! Lexi has done nothing but protect me and treat me as her equal. She doesn’t deserve this!” Sera demands.
“Alphas do not say sorry. Ever,” he replies.
“Well, I’m sorry, Lexi. Are any of the cuts bad?” she asks, moving around me and looking at my leg. I flinch as she pulls something out of a cut on my shoulder and comes back around. “Everything looks small. Go and sit down, and I will get the first aid kit. At this rate, I should just leave it out,” she mutters.
“Might be a good idea,” I say, and she chuckles at me, before turning to Javier.
“You sit down too, Jav,” Sera says, but she isn’t as commanding as her brother. To my surprise, he goes and sits down on one of the chairs, and I sit on the sofa, as far away as I can get from him. I pretty much ignore him, hearing his huffs every few seconds before Sera comes back and sits next to me on the sofa. I turn my back to her, forcing me to face her wayward brother.
“Why are you here, Javier? You know Father would be so mad if he knew,” Sera says as I flinch as she cleans the cuts on my back with what feels like wet antiseptic wipes. Smells like it too.
“I had to see if you are okay. You know I don’t agree with all this,” he replies.
“But there isn’t anything you can do here but cause a war, Javier,” she tells him.
“You’re my sister; I’m not letting you have a terrible life here—”
“It’s not terrible. I wasn’t lying before, Lexi is—”
“A demon, Serafin! If you were on the floor in pain, she would feed off your pain and leave you suffering. Demons are fucking monsters,” he growls at her.
“Coming from the wolf with big bad teeth,” I mutter, and he growls at me. I roll my eyes, flinching once again as Sera cleans a cut on my other shoulder. Javier just smiles. Asshole.
“Lexi is not a monster any more than you and I are. I trust her,” Sera tells him.
“Seriously? You trust this mess of a demon in front of you?” he asks.
“Yes, and I want you to as well,” she demands.
“No,” he replies.
“Javier, come on. I’m happy, can’t you see that? I could have a much worse fate than this, and Father would never accept you starting a war to take me from here like I know you want to,” she tells him.
“Fine, but I’m coming to check on you every Saturday. Understood?” he finally replies, giving in.
“Okay, if you insist,” she says, smiling at me, her eyes apologetic.
“I do,” he firmly tells her.
“I will make sure to be out of the room—”
“You will have to be here too. If you aren’t in your room, I have to go with you, remember?” Sera reminds me.
“Shit, sorry, I forgot,” I say.
“A demon saying sorry to a wolf. I’ve seen everything now,” Javier blandly remarks.
“Will you stop it, Javier Moss Luque. You two need to get along to make this work,” Sera snaps.
“Why?” Javier and I say at the same time.
“Never mind,” Sera mutters, and I go back to glaring at the wolf until Sera says she is all done.
“I’m going to bed early; it’s just been madness today,” I say, standing up, and Javier stands at the same time. He walks right up to me, keeping his eyes locked with mine.
“You protect my sister, or the Lunar wolf pack will never stop hunting you,” he warns me.
“You’re not alpha yet, right?” I smirk. “I don’t think you have the right to say that.”
“Whoa, stop with the threats,” Sera says, pushing her way between us. I shake my head, knowing I’m done for the night. I walk away, and look over my shoulder, seeing Javier’s eyes firmly fixed on me.
“Don’t forget to fix the window, Javier. I doubt your wolfly charm will be able to make it fix itself.” I escape into my room before I can hear his no doubt short-tempered reply. I seriously need to work on my charm; I feel like all I do is pick up enemies by the payload.
One day, one of them is going to bite me in the ass. Quite literally, I suspect, if Javier has an
ything to do with it.
Chapter 11
Some things need to stay a secret
“Good work today,” Mr. Morganach says almost breathlessly as he stops running. I come to a halt at his side, sucking in a breath as I try not to look like I’m close to passing the hell out. It’s been three days since I came to this academy and started these lessons, but at least I’m keeping up with the crazy asshole angel. I nod at him and turn around, heading to the steps up to the academy. Mr. Morganach flies over me, and I look up, seeing nothing but glistening abs as he lands at the top of the steps, watching me as I walk up to them and step around him. His arm snaps out, blocking me from stepping further. My eyes trail up his firm arms, his muscular, large shoulders until I meet his eyes. “Are you not speaking to me anymore? Did I hurt your feelings, baby?”
I push his arm away, and his laughter fills my ears as I storm away from him, refusing to speak to the lunatic until he says sorry or decides to be a better person. He jogs past me like he has to be in front. He is such a child. I stop to do my laces on my trainers up before walking into the academy.
Honestly, I suspect neither of those things is going to happen anytime soon. I head straight inside, only pausing when I see Maggie and Mr. Morganach quietly talking together. Her hand rests on his arm like they are familiar with each other, and he is smiling at her as she giggles. So he hates me but likes one of the crazy bitch twins?
Not that it matters if he hates me or not, but it would sure make it easier if he could at least pretend to like me, considering we are now spending every morning together.
“Don’t be late for my class, Miss Cameron,” he warns as I walk past. I made Sera stay in her room this morning, and I don’t even care if anyone tells me off about it.
“You’re the teacher for survival basics today?” I ask him, stopping just briefly.
“Who else would be? Don’t you know angels are the best fighters?” Maggie asks.
“How on earth would I know that? I’ve been in this fucked-up world less than four days,” I say, and Maggie chuckles.
“We have a natural ability that means fighting and combat are our specialities,” Mr. Morganach explains, his eyes flickering between Maggie and me.
“Don’t the wings get in the way?” I ask.
“Nope, baby. They just make the fight interesting,” he replies, and I actually smile at him.
“Don’t you have to shower or something?” Maggie says, this time her voice is nothing short of impatient and pissed off all rolled into one.
“Yep. See you guys later,” I say, not looking back as I walk away but feeling Mr. Morganach’s and Maggie’s eyes on me anyway as I head down the corridor, seeing no one else as it’s too early for most people. I get the impression Maggie woke up super early to accidentally bump into Mr. Morganach. I don’t get it; he is a right asshole and completely uncrushable. I get my key card out and open the door, walking in to smell the breakfast Sera is cooking.
“Morning! You okay?” Sera asks me as I come in and pull out a stool from the counter and sit on it, resting my elbows on the counter and looking at the pancake pile, the cut-up fruit in a bowl next to it, and the range of syrups Sera has gotten out.
“I’m okay, are you?” I ask her, looking around the room. “Where is Amethyst?”
“She left after breakfast,” she explains to me. “First time I’ve seen her leave the room actually.”
“Strange, she doesn’t usually leave,” I muse.
“I wanted to apologise for Javier and everything that happened,” she says. She doesn’t give me a second to say anything as she carries on word vomiting. “When we grew up, it was just Jav and me. Anytime anyone said anything to me, Jav would beat them until they forgot who I was, and eventually no one picked on me. That and the way the pack is, the expectations on his shoulders as the alpha’s only son...it makes him like he is.”
“Angry? Unreasonable?” I suggest.
“Yes, and he sees me as all he has left of his family, at least family that he gets along with. Our father is difficult, and his mother...well, she is a whole other story,” she tells me. “Please give him a chance when he calms down. Wolves, especially males, are driven by their possessive nature.”
“She isn’t your mother then?” I gently ask. I guess I knew that because she is a bastard-born, but I want to know her story.
“His mother killed mine because of the affair that created me. My father won’t speak about my mother much, other than to say I’m very much like her. An alpha bastard being born is unheard of in our packs, as alphas and their mates—the omegas—have an unbreakable bond. I really don’t know how my father pushed back the magic of the bond and loved my mother, but here I am,” she whispers, her voice laced in emotions that I could never understand.
“This is a lot of information. So wolves have mates? Like husbands and wives but linked with magic?” I ask.
“All races do. Even you will find your other half, a demon, of course,” she says. “There is even a chance you could find more than one if your mates are twins or triplets.”
“I have a soul mate out there?” I mutter with wide eyes.
“We don’t call it soul mates, just mates, but you’ll know when you meet them. Not only will you be instantly attracted to your mate, but a part of you will always want to know them. Or be near them somehow. Most people just find out if they are mates by having sex,” she explains to me.
“Sex makes you mates?” I ask.
“Yes, it’s that simple and why most supernaturals have sex with different species in case they sleep with their mate by accident, and then they are bonded for life to someone,” she tells me. “That’s how wolves end up with bastard children because they use humans for sex, and they are shocked when those humans end up pregnant.”
“So most people don’t want to be bonded for life to their mate?” I ask. “I can understand that; I don’t want to bond to anyone either.”
“If they like them, then sure, it would be great. But if they don’t...” she trails off.
“It would be a prison,” I fill in for her.
“Exactly,” she says. “You can also make a bond to your mate by exchanging blood. I’ve heard rumours that smelling the blood of your mate is very attractive and seductive. It’s a sure sign.”
“Not that dating is on my priority list above surviving at the moment, but thanks for the information. I’m going to eat, then shower before class,” I tell her, knowing I need to get moving despite how my whole body wants to lie on the sofa for the rest of the day.
“You have to wear workout trousers and no tie today. It said in the booklet I was given,” she says, pushing a plate across the table toward me.
“Thanks. So can you find a mate across species at all?” I ask.
“No, or at least I’ve never heard of it happening before. It would be big news in our world, considering the peace treaty between the angels, demons, and werewolves would not allow a new race to be born,” she explains.
“So there are no half children?” I ask.
“Only two that have survived to teenagers. Every other half born has died before the age of five. Many believed it was just not possible for anyone to live, but the Lucifer brothers are different,” she carefully says.
“Lucifer brothers?” I ask.
“Lucifer had two sons eighteen years ago with a demon named Lilith. They were brought up on Earth with human foster parents in secret until a few years back when Lucifer let the world know of their existence. They now attend this school,” she tells me.
“I heard they are back from hell today,” I say, remembering the girls talking by the statue.
“Then you best get moving to survival basics. It sounds like it’s going to be a fun lesson,” she winks at me, and I chuckle before carrying on eating my food.
“Am, what are you doing here?” I whisper to Amethyst as I take my shoes off outside the gym room and Sera picks them up, holding them for me before walking to the line
of wolves. Amethyst ignores me as she walks through the open door, and I follow her inside. The gym looks like any typical school gym with white painted walls and shiny tiles. It smells like sweat like all gyms do, and the room is quickly filling up with students. Lela waves me over from her seat on the bleachers on the other side of the room. Unfortunately, Letitia and Maggie are sitting in front of her as I walk over, and I spot Amethyst running under the bleachers in the corner of my eye. I sit down next to Lela, crossing my arms as I wait for the rest of the students to come in.
“Does the whole year attend this class?” I ask, noticing how there must be over a hundred students in here.
“Yes, it’s the only class we all have to attend. Tomorrow is meant to be voodoo followed by necromancy, but both teachers aren’t here for a bit. It means we will have a quiet weekend at least,” she explains to me just as Mr. Morganach walks into the room, slamming the door shut behind him. Everyone is deadly silent as we watch him walk to the middle of the classroom, his large wings almost captivating to watch as the tips glide across the floor as he walks.
“Welcome to survival basics. If you fail to pass my class, only death awaits you,” he shouts, his voice echoing around the room, and I doubt I’m the only one that gets shivers. He is so young to be so commanding and pull it off well. It’s rather annoying. “As many of you have been trained in combat since you were children, who would like the first one-to-one lesson of the day?” I look to Lela who shakes her head before keeping her eyes cast down.
“He is impossible to beat. Don’t look his way, he will choose you then,” she whispers, carefully warning me, but I’m an idiot as I look at Mr. Morganach anyway, finding his eyes settled on me. His lips turn up in a self-satisfied smirk just before the doors are slammed open, and we both look toward the two guys walking in.
They aren’t just guys though...they are captivating to the point I can’t look away. I focus on the guy on the left, the strong jawline and dimples appearing as he smirks, his thick black hair that is slightly blond on the tips, almost like the sun itself kissed the ends, and it flows down to his shoulders, some parts braided. I never knew long hair on guys could be sexy, but damn, this guy pulls it off in a way that should be illegal. His eyes flicker up to the bleachers, not directly looking at me, but I still catch the unusual eye colour under his thick black lashes. It looks like green and purple waves crashing against each other, mixing together but never changing their colour. I move my gaze from his attractive appearance to the school uniform he is wearing, which damn well suits him better than anyone I’ve seen.