Dragon Fire Academy 3: Third Term

by Rachel Jonas

  All eyes were on me, while mine stung with unshed tears.

  “Noelle, your hands,” Toni whispered, gripping my shoulder lightly to get my attention.

  It wasn’t until I glanced down that I realized my fists had been clenched so tightly that they shook with violent tremors. I loosened them and breathed deeply, feeling my senses sharpen. My wolf wanted out again, and the deep growl I had no control over was proof.

  Hearing it, Ms. Audrina took a step back, staring wearily just as the guards did, awaiting my response. But not my friends. They weren’t scared off so easily.

  “We’re coming with you,” Toni declared, prompting Blythe to follow her footsteps as both moved in my direction. Only, the guards had other plans, which became clear when they shifted into position, creating a wall that blocked my vision.

  “We can’t let you do that,” one said sternly. “Our orders are to insist that Noelle return to her dorm alone, while all other parties attend their scheduled classes. She has until day’s end to gather her belongings and remove herself from campus.” When he finished speaking, his gaze drifted over his shoulder and landed right on me. “Or we have permission to remove her using whatever physical force we deem necessary.”

  Oh, I would love to see you try …

  They expected a show, expected me to prove how unstable I was, confirming that Chief was right to force me out. So, I wouldn’t give them that.

  Instead, I turned to leave the room with my dignity still intact.

  Was I angry?

  Heck, yeah! So much I could hardly see straight, but I couldn’t let Chief win. I’d find some other way to let it out without causing a scene, without losing myself even more than I already had.

  But whatever that something was, it had to happen now, or I couldn’t promise I wouldn’t do something stupid.

  Chapter Seven

  Paulo

  I should’ve asked why she stormed out of the building while she was supposed to be in class.

  Or why she charged toward me with hell’s fury blazing in her eyes.

  However, there was no time. Before I could say more than a syllable, my back was slammed against the brick façade and a kiss shut me up. All of a sudden, I knew enough to gather she didn’t need to be questioned, didn’t need to be coddled.

  She needed something else. Something I was more than willing to give.

  Lips that tasted like cherry-flavored candy had my heart racing, and the stickiness of the gloss against my mouth … it got me going even more. A soft, seeking hand snaked its way around my shoulder, up the side of my neck, and finally settled against the back of my head. Never had a woman’s touch made me crave her like this. While we were still clothed.

  While we weren’t horizontal.

  Someone passed, and I could only guess they gawked a bit before heading into the building, but there wasn’t even a thought of stopping. My fingers teased the side of her thigh, just below the hem of her skirt, while I worked my free hand beneath the dark uniform jacket, bracing my palm against her back to bring us closer. I loved the way she relented, the way her body curved in and formed to mine despite proving she’s more than formidable. She didn’t have to submit to my touch, but she did, because this was what she wanted.

  “There’s a van,” she panted. “I can open it with magic. No one will see.”

  I swallowed her words, barely comprehending them as every ounce of blood in my body rushed to one place. She couldn’t ignore that she felt me, not even if she wanted to. A quiet moan moved up her throat, seeping out of her mouth and into mine.

  “Where?” I groaned, suddenly frustrated I had to tear myself away to speak even that one phrase.

  Instead of answering with words, Noelle took my wrist with a rough jerk, and then I was yanked from my post at the top of the steps. Our feet didn’t slow until we reached the back of a maintenance vehicle—solid white with the academy logo printed in black.

  There should have been at least some concern we’d be caught, but that concern was completely non-existent.

  Completely.

  Noelle aimed a finger at the door, and with one surge of purple energy, the metal lock sparked a few times before melting down the pristine paint.

  I didn’t miss the triumphant smile that followed her success. Nor did I miss how the next second, her fingers began undoing the buttons of her shirt. I groaned with a smile, burying my face in her neck when I lifted her into the van. The airy laugh that left her didn’t match the mood she’d come to me in just a short time ago. It meant I hadn’t misread the signs.

  She did need this.

  I climbed in after her, and the second the door slammed behind us, it was like the wild side of her nature and mine broke free. Without hesitating, she tore off every stitch of clothing she had on, except the plaid skirt and knee-socks … per my request. The next second, she was on me like a predator on prey, only I was the most willing victim that ever existed. I barely had time to push my pants and boxers halfway down my thighs before she took me in—hard, deep.

  My pride wouldn’t let me say the things I wanted to say, wouldn’t let a single sound leave my mouth. So, I held my breath like a man, and my head fell back when the sweet relief of being as close to her as physically possible nearly gave me a heart attack.

  Her hands came down on my bare chest and her dark hair fell over both shoulders like curtains. I took her thighs and squeezed them to hold my composure. She was beautiful, and sexy, and … incredible.

  Her hips swiveled with unmatched skill, riding me slowly, until I nearly lost the inward struggle to keep silent. Lying beneath her, I stared up at this goddess who had given herself to me, and my hands traveled on their own. They pressed into her soft skin, moving up her naked ribs, and back down again to settle at the waistband of her skirt.

  Polished fingernails dug into my pecs when tension spread across her brow. For a moment, her eyes were open and focused on mine, but then they slammed shut with the deepening of her breath, which turned into quiet, rhythmic moaning the next second. Still, despite being distracted by what was coming, I saw it; whatever it was she meant to hide, whatever had sent her raging toward me ten minutes ago, seeking comfort, escape.

  I put the thought off when she tipped her head back, facing the van’s ceiling when the release she had been desperate for came down on her—intense, unrelenting. She wasn’t careful about the volume of her voice carrying. Hearing my name woven into her sounds, the beast in me had all he could take. Squeezing her tight, I lost myself right along with her, and when it was over, her lifeless body collapsed on top of mine.

  Had it not been for our labored breathing we would have been completely motionless. For this being our first time, she was already so free with me, which I loved. She didn’t see the need for faked innocence or teasing any more than I did. She wanted it, so she took it.

  My kind of girl.

  She lifted her head, but only to kiss me. This time, it was softer and there was no missing that she was calmer. Or, perhaps, satisfied was a more fitting word.

  There was no urgency within her, which led me to guess she didn’t intend to head back inside the building. My fingers weaved their way through her long hair, settling into the warmth of it. The gloss that once coated her lips was long gone, but she still tasted amazing.

  When she pulled away, just a little, my eyes were slow to open, not wanting to lose the moment. But then I saw that look again, the one that told me she had needed this moment between us in ways I didn’t yet understand.

  “What is it?” I rasped, still unable to find my voice after … after … her.

  Perfect teeth sank into her lip as she thought, and I wanted to bite it myself. I held that thought inside, sensing the moment had suddenly turned serious.

  “Nothing,” she answered. “This, between us, it was perfect. I won’t ruin that.”

  She dropped her head to my chest then, apparently deciding she wouldn’t say more. Keeping her close, I somehow felt her sadness,
which made me determined to fix whatever was wrong.

  “There isn’t anything you could possibly say to ruin this moment,” I assured her, meaning every word.

  After I kissed the top of her hair, she relaxed even more in my arms.

  “They kicked me out,” she admitted with a deep sigh.

  I felt my expression harden. “They what?”

  She took a deep breath and her bare chest pressed into me with the motion. “My instructor said the order came down from Chief. I have until the end of the day to pack up and leave campus.”

  Just a short time ago, Chief had forbidden her to return home. Even though, at the time, we all believed there might be a chance that may have been the safest thing to do. Now, all of a sudden, he pulled this on us.

  My fist tightened against her back when I imagined it broadsiding the face of the one responsible for nearly every bad thing that had happened to Noelle since stepping foot on this island. Now, Ori’s report made sense. We thought Chief disappearing had been because of the moves he already made, but he clearly had more tricks up his sleeve. Every chance he got to push Noelle, he took it.

  Only, it didn’t seem she’d taken the bait this time.

  Instead of freaking out in class, instead of going atomic, she came to me. I squeezed her tighter as a small bit of hope crept in, wondering if this was a sign that all wasn’t lost after she’d taken in so much darkness to save Rayen.

  “It feels like I keep losing,” she said thoughtfully. “The Guard, school, I nearly lost Rayen, and … now Ori’s gone, too.”

  I touched her chin, prompting her to lift her eyes to meet mine.

  “Ori isn’t gone,” I assured her. “Yeah, he’s … got some things to work out, but once he comes to his senses, he’ll come around.”

  When the statement first left my mouth, there wasn’t a doubt in my mind it was true. No way in hell could Ori stay away from her. Then, I remembered who we were dealing with. He was always the most stubborn out of the four of us, using his steadfast conviction as an excuse for holding grudges. I’d seen him detach before, and he made it look like such an easy thing for him. Hopefully, this wasn’t another of those instances.

  Noelle had her own portion of doubt to contend with, so I didn’t add to her load by sharing my thoughts.

  “Have you all talked to him recently?” There was so much light in her eyes when she asked.

  “Yeah, at least one of us talks to him every day. Just … not all at once, not as a group.”

  The light dimmed, and then went out with the realization as to why that may have been.

  “Because of me,” she guessed. “Because I can hear you, and he doesn’t want me inside his head.”

  One-on-one communication was the only way we could interact without the conversation including our entire hive of five, so, yes, that was the reason.

  I didn’t have to say anything for her to know she was right.

  “He hates me,” she added next.

  “He could never hate you. Not even if you did the worst thing you could imagine. It’s not possible.” To her, that may have seemed farfetched, but I knew it to be a fact.

  Silence followed, leaving us both in our thoughts for a bit.

  “It’s the weirdest thing,” she finally said. “I’m so, so angry with him—because of the things he said, because he’s so pigheaded—but I’m also hurt, and … I also miss him,” she confessed. “A lot.”

  I wondered if she’d believe me if I told her Ori likely felt all those same emotions.

  “I’ll see what I can do to get him to—”

  “Don’t,” she cut me off. “I know what you’re gonna say and I don’t want that.”

  Confused, I didn’t know how to respond.

  “When and if Ori speaks to me again, I want it to be of his own free will, because it’s what he wants. Not because it’s what the rest of us want,” she explained. “Plus, in the meantime, we could probably both use the time to … you know … cool off a bit.”

  I read between the lines, read her body language. The way her eyes dimmed the longer this conversation wore on said a lot. I guessed another reason she didn’t completely resent the space between them was because, in some ways, she needed to recover.

  Ori said things that cut her deep, low blows he couldn’t take back. His emotions ran wild that day, and while he had every right to speak his mind, I only wished Noelle hadn’t overheard him venting.

  Our entire hive was in upheaval. Mostly, the task of holding it together had fallen on Kai and me, with Rayen still seeming a bit off. I suppose dying and being brought back could take its toll on a person.

  So, here I was, trying to put out yet another fire.

  “Look at me,” I urged, bringing Noelle’s eyes to meet mine. “No one is giving up on you. No one. Not even Ori, despite what you might think. We’re still all in, and we’re still all fighting right alongside you.”

  Tears pooled in her eyes and I hadn’t meant to make her cry. She stretched closer, until our lips touched.

  “I don’t know how or why you still believe in me, but … thank you,” she said softly, letting her gaze roam my features.

  If I didn’t know any better, I’d say she was just as consumed by her feelings for me as I was by mine for her.

  A sigh left her, and she sat up, both thighs still warming my waist. “Well, I don’t suppose those guards were kidding about putting me out.” She paused and a weary smile curved her lips. “Mind helping me pack?”

  I hadn’t wanted to disrupt the moment, but Rayen was on campus, waiting to take over my watch.

  “I wouldn’t mind,” I assured her, “but I have to go patrol. I know Ray will help, though.”

  She gave somewhat of a distracted nod. “I think I already know what you’ll say, but it couldn’t hurt to ask.” Her teeth sank into her lip when she hesitated. “Do you think that, one day, I could maybe … go with you guys? It’d be cool to watch you work.”

  Her eyes lit up and the hint of excitement within them broke my heart a little. I wasn’t sure I had it in me to tell her why that was a terrible idea—taking her so close to where the Darkness’ energy was the strongest. However, instead of being the bearer of bad news, I kissed her forehead and laced my fingers with hers.

  “How about we both just pray for the day that our ‘work’ is no longer needed?”

  Her expression softened then, and the idea of this being a possibility seemed to fill her with something I hadn’t seen before.

  Hope.

  Perfect lips parted with another smile. “I like your idea better.”

  “Thought you would.”

  Leaning down for one last kiss, Noelle backed away to slip into the rest of her clothes. I did the same and there was no hiding what we’d done when we emerged from the van—messy hair, wrinkled clothing, the buttons of Noelle’s shirt misaligned. Classes had just let out, so there were a few knowing looks that came our way, but we were beyond caring what others thought.

  “See you tonight?” A warm stare passed over me and I nodded, still holding on to visions of her naked, despite the crested blazer she now wore.

  She seemed to read my mind when my gaze slipped up the length of her figure. “Of course. Well … eventually,” I stated, remembering that Kai, Ori and I had plans later.

  “Good enough,” she said with a smile.

  Her attention came back to me once or twice, as we went our separate ways on the walkway—me headed toward the others to patrol, her headed toward Rayen where he waited a few yards away.

  It hadn’t been the morning I expected, but then again … my girl was anything but predictable.

  Chapter Eight

  Kai

  Times like these, being a wolf would’ve come in handy.

  Yeah, as dragons our eyes were sharper than a human’s, but nothing like the lycans. Especially as we searched for the needle in a haystack—my father.

  We were out here on a hunch. My hunch. There was a place he’d t
aken me a few times when I was a kid, an old hut that, even back then, had long since been abandoned. Still, being there seemed to bring him comfort. I used to get the impression the place was special to him, although he never said as much. My father had always been a man of few words.

  It wasn’t until I became an adult that I realized this was mostly because he was also a man of many secrets.

  We circled above the trees, and I lowered when I spotted the weather-worn thatch roof I’d been looking for just beside the ridge.

  “You sure this is it?” Paulo questioned.

  Distracted, I offered a slight nod as I began to search for clues that I hadn’t just brought two of my brothers here in vain. From a distance, it appeared just as empty and lifeless as I remembered it, but looks could be deceiving.

  Especially with powerful witches involved.

  My feet touched ground and so did my brothers’ behind me. In the dead of night, the small structure looked ominous—just the right amount of moonlight outlining the eastern-facing side. As if on cue, a breeze passed between the trees, sending a chill up my spine.

  “There’s no one here,” Paulo sighed.

  “Or that’s what they want us to believe,” Ori countered, taking the words right out of my mouth.

  He scanned the landscape, probably hoping as hard as I was that we’d find something. So much depended on it.

  “What’s the plan when we find him anyway?”

  I shrugged at Paulo’s question. “Guess we’ll cross that bridge when we get there. Mostly, we need to see if we can make heads or tails of his plan. Granted, I know he won’t come straight out with anything, but he might leave breadcrumbs.”

  Ori scoffed at that. “A man that calculated doesn’t leave behind anything unless he means for it to be found.”

  I gathered he had a point there. Among the many things my father was, intentional was definitely near the top of the list.

  “Can’t believe the coward ran off.”

  I glanced to my right when Ori grumbled those words. “Can’t you, though?” I countered. “He created a monster, and then bailed.”