by Eva Ashwood
“Guys!” I screamed out toward the bodies I could barely see in the darkness ahead of me. “Scrolls! There are scrolls down here! Grab them!”
Wind tore at my hair as I continued to fall, and as terrifying as the long drop was, it was even more horrifying to know that it would stop at some point—with me in a giant splat if I didn’t get out of here.
But I wouldn’t end this until the men were out. I waited, straining my eyes as I peered into the darkness. I saw Lachlan then Trace each grab a scroll, and as soon as they did, they vanished from below me. Merrick glanced up, hardly more than a blur in the darkness.
“Take a scroll, Ari.”
His voice was hard, and I could hear the anger and worry in it. Those twin emotions burned in my chest too, and I shook my head. If my arms hadn’t been too busy flailing as I fell, I would’ve crossed them over my chest stubbornly.
Merrick gave a growl of frustration and finally reached out, snatching a scroll as he fell past it.
Relief flooded me, and I began searching the darkness for my own scroll.
But I couldn’t see any more. I fell and fell and fell, covering what felt like an endless distance, but no flashes of light caught my eye.
Motherfucker. Had I waited too long?
My heart beat against my ribs like a drum, and panic began to claw at my throat. Then, finally, a small scroll appeared in the darkness below me. My whole body tensed, and I reached out, straining from the tips of my toes to my fingers as I fought to move through space.
My hand wrapped around the slim roll of paper, and I felt a strange pop.
Everything went white, and when I opened my eyes, I was back in the amphitheater. Back on solid ground. The few people in the stands were cheering, and several students were gathered in a cluster off to the side, nursing injuries that ranged from mild to severe as the school healing staff tended to them. They must’ve bailed on the challenge early, or been disqualified.
The dean cleared her throat, looking at me and the three men standing next to me. Wesley stood on my other side, a scroll clutched in his hand, and beyond him were a few other people who had teamed up with him to try to take us down.
My blood boiled. We’d had a fucking plan to deal with these assholes, but Merrick had gone after Wesley and given our game away too early. Now the asshole and his asshole buddies would be competing against us in the Gods’ Challenge.
All because Merrick couldn’t control himself.
“The preliminary competition is complete!” Dean Frost’s voice echoed through the stadium. “These are your champions.”
Lachlan shrugged, leaning down to whisper in my ear, “Hey, at least we made it here. Now we can move on to the next part of our plan.”
My jaw clenched.
Sure, we had won, but I was angrier than hell at Merrick.
As soon as each of our names was called and Dean Frost finished her speech, I stormed out of the amphitheater toward the school building, anger turning my veins red-hot. Merrick split away from the other men, but I threw a bolt of energy straight at him as he tried to follow me.
I didn’t need a godsdamn babysitter.
Chapter Ten
Fuck!
If I could have slammed my feet down harder on the ground, I would have. It took everything in my power not to turn around and just knock Merrick right out. I was so pissed at him, more than I’d ever been before.
Why couldn’t he have stuck to our plan? Why did he have to go after Wesley? I’d had it under control.
The fact that he thought even for a second that I wasn’t able to defend myself, that I was some damsel in distress who needed rescuing, was absolutely enraging. He knew me better than anyone else there. Better even than Lachlan and Trace in some ways, since I had actually known Merrick long before coming to Magic Blessed Academy.
He, of all people, should have known that I didn’t need someone’s help. If I did, if I truly thought my life was in danger, I would have asked for it, but instead he took it upon himself to break rank, basically ruin our plan, and come try to be a shining knight to save me.
He could’ve gotten himself killed, but since he hadn’t, I was about three seconds away from doing it myself.
“Slow down,” Merrick said roughly, reaching out for my arm as I raced toward the school.
I pulled my arm away and gave him a narrow-eyed stare. “Don’t touch me. Do not. Touch. Me.”
His forehead wrinkled, and he looked furious. My lips pressed together.
As if he has any right to be angry.
“I don’t know why you’re so pissed, Ari.” He shook his head, running a hand through his blond hair. “It’s fucking stupid. I couldn’t let Wesley go after you like that, and I know what I did wasn’t part of the damn plan, but it all worked out in the end. We all won. We’re all moving on to the Gods’ Challenge.”
I skidded to a stop at the foot of the steps to the school and stared at him with wild eyes.
“You don’t know why I’m pissed? Oh, I don’t know, maybe because we had an entire plan, and you fucked it up within the first three seconds? Or maybe it’s because you think I’m a weak and defenseless little girl who can’t defend herself against some idiot who thinks he’s bigger and better than me. What did you learn in the time we knew each other in Boston? What did you actually think I did for a living? I faced stupid boys in the ring all the time who thought they were stronger than me just because I’m a woman. And I’ll have you know, I took down every single one of them.”
Before he could say anything else, I started up the steps toward the door. He grabbed me by the arm and spun me around. I snarled and jabbed him in the shoulder with my finger.
“Touch me one more time. Go ahead, do it. I will lay you out so fast your head will spin.”
Something gleamed in his amber eyes, and he stepped closer, pressing against my finger. “You’re being so dramatic, Ari.”
Heat radiated from him, and my body’s response to his proximity only made me angrier. I didn’t want to want him right now. I just wanted to be pissed at him.
Turning, I headed up the stairs to the front door and flung it open, trying to hit him in the face with it. Unfortunately, he caught it, barely breaking stride as he followed me into the academy building.
“I put my life on the line to help save you from that asshole Wesley, and you’re the one who’s pissed,” he argued. “I could’ve gotten killed. And you’re mad because I tried to help you.”
I shook my head as I stalked down the hallway. “Wesley is an idiot, and there’s no way he would’ve killed me. He’s better than I thought, I’ll give you that, but I had him. I was handling it. I did not need you to come rolling out of the jungle, leaping through the air like you were fucking Rambo. I don’t need a man to protect me. When will the three of you get that through your head? We are a team, not three guys trying to save the helpless little girl.”
I was getting closer and closer to my room, hoping to make it there and lock myself inside. But when I was about two paces from my door, Merrick grabbed my arm again and whipped me around.
Shoving at his chest, I broke his hold on me, ignoring the feel of his muscled pecs beneath my hands.
“You better not pull any shit like that when we’re in the godly realm, or you could get all of us killed,” I hissed.
Merrick scoffed and shook his head. “Oh, we’re a team, are we? You might want to send yourself that fucking memo, Ari. Because you don’t act like we have a team. You act like you’re a lone wolf who got forced into a pack against your will.”
His words stung. Partly because they felt true, and partly because I knew they weren’t true. These three men meant more to me than anyone had in my life, and I trusted them—something that still felt strange to me.
But I needed Merrick to understand that he wasn’t allowed to be my savior. My rescuer. He needed to have faith in me to handle myself.
Just as I reached the door to my room, I turned around and grabbed Merrick
, using my magic to brace him. With one swift move, I lifted him up and slammed him down on the floor on his back. I followed his body down to the floor, straddling him and pinning his arms to sides. I let my face stop just inches from his, angry breaths heaving in my chest.
“I’m going to tell you this one last time,” I said quietly. “I don’t need you, Trace, Lachlan, or anyone else protecting me. I’m no weak little girl.”
For a moment, he lay still beneath me, staring at me with his too-damn-handsome face and his striking amber eyes. Our faces were so close that I felt the whisper of his breath on my face as he murmured, “I don’t think you’re weak, Ari. And I don’t think you’re a girl. You’re the strongest fucking woman I’ve ever met. But in case you haven’t noticed, we care about you. We’re going to protect you if we can. And you just need to learn to deal with that.”
His words seemed to invade my soul, shocking me like an electric current. My grip on him loosened slightly—and the second it did, he flipped his arms, breaking the hold I had on him. He shoved me off roughly, using his magic to settle me on my feet as he stood quickly. Instinctively, I put my hands up as he took several steps toward me. Waiting for him to strike. If he wanted a fight, I was ready for it.
Instead, he grabbed me by both arms and yanked me toward him, pressing his lips hard against mine. At first, I fought against it, moving right and left with my shoulders, but the familiar scent and taste of Merrick’s lips was too much to resist.
The tension between us began to boil higher and higher, and I finally broke my arms free, grabbing his face with my hands. I sank deeper into the kiss and pushed him up against the wall next to my door. We kissed desperately, and his hands pulled at my shirt, yanking it up so his fingertips could run across my skin. As I kissed him, I grabbed the key out of my back pocket and began to grope for the keyhole in the door. After stabbing the key into the wood several times, I finally managed to find the lock, and the door sprang open.
We tumbled backward into my room, a flurry of lips and hands and teeth.
Residual anger toward each other seemed to spur both of us on, not to mention the adrenaline still coursing through us from the preliminary competition. My body felt like a frayed wire, sparking with electric energy and needing just the smallest push to explode.
When Merrick shoved his hand down the front of my pants, his fingers landing directly on my clit, that was all the push I needed.
I bucked in his arms, crying out into his mouth as pleasure rocketed through me.
He didn’t take any mercy on me, pinching my clit between two fingers and making a new wave of sensation slam into me. It was ecstasy tinged with a bite of pain, and it rolled my first orgasm into a second, pleasure spiraling in on itself until I was panting for breath.
When the world finally came back into focus, all I could concentrate on was the bright amber of Merrick’s eyes as he watched me. There was a look of satisfaction on his face that made annoyance and arousal rise inside me in equal measure.
He was so fucking cocky.
But then again, he had every damn right to be.
Still, I couldn’t let him think he was in charge here, so even though my heart was still racing and my body quivering from the two mind-blowing orgasms, I gave him a taunting smirk as my hand found the bulge straining the front of his pants. I squeezed his thick length, running my palm up and down the steely heat, and a little of the cockiness faded from his face as his jaw clenched, his neck muscles tensing as he fought for control.
That’s right, buddy. Two can play this game.
Moving lightning-fast, I swept his legs, bringing him down to the floor. He grunted in surprise, and I held back a laugh as I followed him down, pinning his body with mine before slowly sliding down the length of him. I let my breasts rub against his chest, and even through the layers of our clothes, I knew he could feel my peaked nipples, feel how hard they were for him.
When I reached the waistband of his pants, I glanced up, holding eye contact with him as I very deliberately flicked open the button.
Pulled down the zipper.
Tugged the fabric down over his hips.
His cock sprang free as I pulled his boxer briefs out of the way, and I licked my lips, trying to hide the fact that I was practically drooling at the sight. Merrick had a fucking gorgeous cock. Thick and long, with a velvety smooth head and veins the pulsed angrily when I teased him with my mouth.
Darting my tongue out, I flicked just the tip of it over his slit, lapping up the small bead of precum that gathered there. The salty taste made my pussy throb as a fierce hunger built deep inside me.
My gaze darted up to meet Merrick’s as he watched me with hooded eyes.
“You pissed me off today,” I murmured roughly, licking him again. “You got me all worked up. And now I’m gonna have to take out all that aggression on someone.”
His laugh turned into a tortured groan as I wrapped my lips around him, taking him as deep in my mouth as I could. I chuckled, letting him feel the vibrations in my throat.
He had pissed me off. And even though I was no longer angry, I planned on making him pay for it.
Again.
And again.
And again.
Chapter Eleven
My attention was so focused on the task in front of me that I didn’t even hear the bell go off.
I stared at the magical apparition in front of me, energy swirling from my fingertips. I had learned how to separate the stream of magic that came from my palms, moving the separate threads in all directions.
Focusing hard on the wavering shadow in front of me, I sent a spiral of energy outward. As it moved toward the apparition, it split off in several directions, wrapping itself around the ghostly creature’s body, then piercing it through the top of the what seemed like a head. A loud, echoing scream reverberated through the classroom, and the apparition disappeared.
As I let the magic curl back into my hands, I twisted my neck from side to side, dispelling the tension that had gathered in my shoulders.
Professor Howes walked up next to me and clapped her hands. “You’ve come a long way. I like to see that you’re able to separate the threads of your magic. That will help you a lot in the Gods’ Challenge.”
As she said the word “challenge,” her voice trailed off. I looked around the room as the other students in my Combat class began to trickle out of the large room. I cleared my throat, flicking my fingers as pricks of magic made them tingle. Then I turned to face my professor. “Anything that will help, I guess.”
She nodded, her large eyes seeming to grow even wider as she regarded me. “Just a few days left before the challenge.”
I shook my head, looking at the spot where the apparition had once stood. “I’ve been preparing the best that I can. Though, I have to admit, it’s hard to prepare for the unknown. They don’t really give you any kind of clue as to what you’ll be facing. It doesn’t even go along with your training.”
I didn’t expect anything from my teachers; none of them had even spoken to me about the challenge. But Professor Howes seemed almost sympathetic. Maybe even… worried.
She let out a long sigh and nodded. “It always seems that the best students are selected for the Gods’ Challenge. It’s a shame that they don’t all come back.”
Her words took me by surprise. No teacher had ever said that to me before. I tilted my head to the side and stepped toward her. “Do you know what happens to the students? Why so many people don’t make it back?”
I could see a tightness suddenly appear in her shoulders. I pushed onward though, hoping for something, anything that would help me when I reached the godly plane.
“I…” She winced slightly, her voice growing quieter. Then she shook her head. “I really can’t speak to you about this. But I do wish you all the luck. They send students to the godly realm every semester, and they will continue for as long as necessary.”
I stepped forward again, closing the space betwee
n us. “And how many years have they happened? Why does the Gods’ Challenge even exist? What’s the purpose of it?”
She fidgeted nervously, and I got the sense she was afraid of something; as if all the teachers were afraid of something. They refused to speak to me about it, or about anything having to do with the gods, and this was the closest I had gotten to getting any answers. It was obvious that my questions were making her incredibly nervous, and I couldn’t help but wonder why. What was it about the Gods’ Challenge that made the teachers here so absolutely terrified?
Professor Howes shook her head and glanced up at the door as if somebody were watching. She leaned toward me, keeping her gaze down.
“I can’t speak to you about this anymore. However, if you go to the school library, down the third row to the end, take a left—on your right-hand side will be an empty section of the wall. Use your magic to tap three times right in the center and a door will appear. Only those that know the spell are allowed in, and no one will know that you’re there. You should find the answers to your questions, or at least some of them, inside. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to prepare for my next class. Good luck with the challenge.”
I moved out of the way as she hurried from the classroom, my heart beating faster. I’d just learned about a portion of the school library that I hadn’t even known existed. Not to mention the fact that apparently it held answers to the secrets that I had been searching for this whole time.
I waited until that evening, when the rest of the students were either eating or studying in their rooms, then headed off to the library. Inside, students sat along the tables, their heads buried in their textbooks. Over top of them was a glimmering veil of magic, a shield of silence. It kept the noise out if someone entered and exited the room, which served my purposes well. No one even knew I’d walked in.
The librarian, a squat little woman who I was pretty sure was more gnome than witch, sat at a large desk. She glanced up at me, but paid me no attention as I walked down the third aisle of the library shelves. The bookshelves rose up high toward the ceiling, far beyond anyone’s reach without magic.