“I told her I’d quit the Academy and go back to take care of them all.”

  For a moment, I tried to picture it. I tried to picture a Triton’s Academy without Rafe in it, and it hurt.

  “Your aunt came by, said she wanted to reform my siblings. Turn them from our Gods and our heathen ways. That it was her good deed as a woman of society.”

  How dare she say that?! Worse, how dare she make him and his siblings feel inferior, like barbarians?! A part of me wanted to scream at my aunt for her carelessness in ways I’d never screamed at her before.

  “Why would she do that?” I asked, my voice a confused whisper.

  My aunt professed to be charitable, and she did it all to protect her image as the sister-in-law to a Syrosian General. The deeds never came from her heart, but rather from a strange, warped sense of duty.

  It made me instantly suspicious.

  “I don’t know, Calliope, but I let them go with her. It was either that or let my sister become an old man’s mistress. Your aunt, at least, can give them the life they deserve until I graduate.”

  There was so much pain and hopelessness inside him that I could read from across the room. I didn’t have the heart to voice my own fears, to tell him that maybe my aunt had ulterior motives. That maybe she would demand something of him in return or throw her kindness back in his face.

  The truth was, I didn’t understand a single fucking thing about Rafe’s life. I didn’t understand poverty, or what it was like to see the Sons take down your family right before your eyes. I didn’t know sleepless nights out in the cold, the loss of a home.

  I did understand love, though.

  He would do whatever he had to for his siblings and his cousins. He would tear through the earth and challenge his Gods himself if he had to, if it only meant his family was safe from harm.

  It made my heart ache for him all the more.

  I wondered what it felt like to be so hopeless in that way. To not be able to give them what they needed, what he thought they deserved.

  It was a heartbreaking thought.

  Slowly, I unfurled my legs and slid from the bed, prowling to his side of the room.

  His eyes snapped to life and watched me warily, though I didn’t imagine the flare of desire in his blue depths.

  I climbed up his bed. His leg lowered, allowing me to climb up his body and straddle his waist.

  Already, I felt his strong cock rise against me. I pressed down on him, torturing us both.

  His big hands settled against my waist gently. He groaned. “Calliope…” It was a warning. He shook his head. “We can’t. Not anymore.”

  My hopes started to plummet. “If it’s because you feel you owe my aunt…”

  “I do owe your aunt. She’s saving my family from a terrible fate.”

  My hands rested lightly on his shoulders. I pushed away the strands of his hair with my fingers. “But that has nothing to do with you and me.”

  “Doesn’t it, though?” His hands glided up my sides, thumbs grazing across the undersides of my breasts. “I have nothing to offer you, Calliope. No house, no land, no fancy manor.”

  “I’m not asking you to give me anything.” I could feel my temper rising hotly.

  He brushed aside my own hair to expose my neck, and he pressed his thumb against my pulse. “You don’t have to. Don’t you understand? If we do this…” His hips lifted in insinuation. “I will want you. All of you. And I can promise you that if we start a relationship between us, I will never let you go.”

  Those words sent a thrill through my body. I’d never felt so wanted before, and in that moment I could imagine it so vividly in my mind. A future with Rafe where he loved me fiercely, wholly, and would give anything for me.

  I wanted that.

  I wanted Rafe’s love.

  In response I leaned towards him, digging my fingers into the roots of his hair and scraping my nails across his scalp. He groaned, and the sound alone was enough to send me quivering with desire. Our lips were a whisper apart, hovering but not touching.

  Our lips caressed, and it was an explosion of magic and pleasure between us. I was suddenly enveloped in the sharp scent of cinnamon and it sent my mind whirling. I groaned against him, grinding my hips down on his shaft. The hard press of his dick against me made me cry out.

  “I want you,” I whispered. His beard scraped along my jaw. I turned my head, feeling his lips press along my throat, his tongue slipping against my rapidly beating pulse.

  His calloused fingertips slid up along my outer thighs until he reached my hips and pulled me down hard against him. His magic seemed to penetrate my whole senses. It was demanding, aggressive, and passionate.

  I wanted every bit of it.

  My fingers grasped for his chlamys, twisting it in my grip before I pressed my palms to his chest and shoved him down on his back.

  He went willingly, a small smile tugging at the side of his mouth.

  “I want to pleasure you,” I explained as his eyebrows rose in question.

  His hands fell to his sides, and he watched me with a half-lidded expression. I felt suddenly a bit nervous as he watched me, but at another sting of his cinnamon scent, I garnered my courage. Reaching for the black brooch at his shoulder, I ripped it off and tossed it to the side. Then I reached for the material and slid it slowly down his body, exposing the delicious carved panes of his abdomen.

  I left the material bunched at his waist momentarily and let my palms roam over his skin, feeling every hard bump and warmth of him. His chest felt infinitely wide, his body hard and god-like. Hair encircled his navel, trailing down... down…

  I slipped my fingers beneath the material and grasped him in my hands.

  His hips jerked up, and he let out a hiss. He was soft and velvety in my hands, and I slid up and down slowly.

  Drawing out the pleasure for him made me feel powerful. It was the look in his half-lidded eyes, the way he bit his bottom lip. His whole body was tense, tendons standing out against his neck. He looked wild and primitive and so like a god that I grinded against him, creating friction between us, rubbing my clit.

  My whole body trembled against his. “Gods…” The word came out breathless.

  I gripped him tighter, squeezing his cock at the hilt. I pushed the material down over his hips quickly and leaned forward, my lips pressing against the head of his cock. My tongue darted out to swirl against him; he tasted like salt. I closed my lips over him and his hips jerked up, causing his dick to slide deeper into my mouth. I relaxed my jaw, taking him further. What I couldn’t take, I grabbed with my hand. My tongue flicked over the underside of him as I slid up and down against his shaft.

  Fingers tangled into my hair, pressing me down tighter against him. I sucked and licked, sliding my mouth all over him. His hips lifted to meet me until he was making love to my mouth vigorously. He pumped inside me, and I tasted nothing but salt and passion. I took him deeper and he let out a growl as he ripped me away from his cock.

  I smacked my lips, tracing my tongue across them, tasting him in my mouth. He gripped me by the hips and turned me around so I was straddling him with my ass pressed against his dick. He gripped me tightly by the front of my thighs and slid me across his chest so my waist was near his mouth.

  My cheek pressed against his thighs, my breathing growing heavy as his fingers pushed the hem of my chlamys up and pushed aside the material of my undergarments.

  At the first rasp of his tongue, I jerked against him. His tongue dove into my folds, teasing the sensations out of me. He gripped my hips, pulling me down against his mouth. His teeth grazed against my clit and my scream muffled against his thigh.

  Rafe pulled away with a lick. “Take me in your mouth,” he rasped. “Suck my cock.”

  I pushed myself up, fingernails digging into his skin, mouth meeting the head of his dick. My tongue flicked against him.

  His mouth closed around my clit and I gasped, swallowing him deep into my mouth. We moved in tandem, my hips rolling against the workings of his tongue and teeth. It was a dance of frantic, drawn out pleasure, and I couldn’t get enough of it.

  I groaned around his shaft, sucking him into the back of my throat. He fucked my mouth and my clit with the same urgency. With a growl, he ripped the seams of my undergarments as he shoved them aside to give himself better access to me. His finger slid along a single fold before diving into my center, stroking while he pulled my clit into his mouth.

  The pressure built inside of me, rising higher and higher until I was writhing against him in earnest. The pleasure expanded, and I was acutely aware of every little thing; of my own rapid heartbeat and the thick length of him inside my mouth; of his beard scraping along my skin as he drew out these sensations with his tongue; of another finger sliding inside while one hand palmed my ass, tightening.

  The hand that grasped my ass slid closer to the center, and I felt the pressure of his finger pushing into my hole.

  My passion exploded, my screams muffling around his cock. He sucked my clit between his teeth, putting pressure on it to wring out every cry out of me. My hips moved harder and harder against him, desperate to make the feeling last for as long as possible.

  Even when my orgasm ebbed, Rafe didn’t stop. His fingers moved within me and he inserted another, stretching my body. I had to tear my mouth from him to gasp, forehead dropping against his thigh.

  “Rafe…” I groaned as that feeling built all over again. He didn’t release my clit. He teased me with reckless abandon. My fingers raked across his thighs, looking for purchase to push myself up, but my mind was whirling.

  His fingers curled, and I felt something inside me fracture.

  I screamed, my orgasm overwhelming me in a single vicious wave. His nails tightened against me. As the last of my cries abated, Rafe flipped me around and slammed me into the bed.

  My breath caught in my throat as he looked down at me a look of primal pleasure over his face. A smile quirked the side of his mouth as he loomed over me. His eyes flared with the promise of a conquering, and it sent a thrill through my trembling body.

  He kept me pinned down between his thighs as he rose to his knees. Every movement he made was languid and smooth. He was confident as he reached for my clothes and began peeling them from my body until I was naked beneath him.

  My fingers reached for the clothes bunched at his waist, tugging them further down. He growled. “Leave it.” And then his hand was at the back of my neck, pulling me up. I rose to meet him, and our lips came together in a clash of tongues and teeth. He nipped my bottom lip, sucking it into his mouth.

  I felt his fingers brush across the ends of my long hair before he grabbed a fistful of it and wrapped it around his hand, tugging my neck backwards as he pulled us apart. My hands reached for him, arms wrapping around his shoulders.

  “Spread your legs for me,” he commanded on a growling tone.

  I could do nothing but obey, spreading my thighs further. His cock, warm and wet, pressed against my stomach, demanding and throbbing.

  His other hand slid down the length of my back, leaving a heated trail of desire in his wake. He gripped my ass and lifted me one-handed, setting my entrance against the tip of his cock as I wrapped my legs around his waist.

  “Slide into me,” he ordered.

  I grinded my hips down slowly, taking him in inch by inch. He stretched me to complete fullness, and when I was buried to the hilt, he began to move me against him. He lifted me with one hand digging into my ass just to slam me back down against his cock.

  I gasped as our bodies joined, slamming together. It was all made even more intense as he stared into my eyes. Like he didn’t want to miss a second of my expressions. A flush heated up my face, and I closed my eyes.

  He dug so deep inside me, my eyes flew open again.

  “Look at me.” He pressed his lips to my chin, nipping at my skin. “Don’t fucking look away. I want to see all of you.”

  A groan tore through my throat and my eyelashes fluttered, but I kept them opened as he slammed me against him again. His every movement was wicked, piercing my senses with the aphrodisiac of his sharply scented magic. He penetrated me everywhere with it, and my whole body thrummed tightly, desperate for release.

  He moved his hips against mine, slamming so deep and hard inside me that I cried out, moving to meet him. The heels of my feet slid against the backs of his thighs, pressing down for leverage as I controlled the pace, bounding up and down against him, faster and faster. He groaned, and just as I rose that crest of desire, he smashed his lips against mine, muffling the cries of my orgasm into his mouth. A moment later, he was pulling out of my body and grunting. I felt the warmth of his release squirt over my body.

  We fell backwards on the mattress, his arm wrapped around my waist and the other loosening his hold on my hair to catch himself before he crushed me with his weight. Not that I would have minded.

  Our chests rose and fell against each other as we tried to catch our breathing. His dark hair fell over his broad shoulders, and I flicked it back before cupping his face. A smile touched my lips.

  Rafe mirrored the action and turned, pressing a kiss to my palm.

  “Calliope…” His breath fanned across my skin. He looked at me again, and his blue eyes flared. In that single look, I could read everything he thought and felt.

  Love. Possession. Desire.

  “Mine,” he growled. “You’re mine.”

  My chest clenched tightly at those words, so welcome, wanted and precious. I held them close to my heart. Everything had changed between us with those simple words. We were woven together now, soul against soul, and there was no going back. My fingers brushed across his bearded jaw, and my throat tightened as I took in this moment and kept it close.

  “Yours,” I agreed. “I am yours.”

  Chapter Ten

  Calliope

  As I’d never had an active sex life before now, there were some things I might have overlooked. Like the fact that, if I wasn’t careful, I could get pregnant. For so long, starting a family had been ingrained in my mind as a woman’s sacred duty. Even when I’d so strongly rejected such a fate, a part of me did see the appeal in it.

  That was something for the future, though.

  I had dreams and desires, things I wanted to accomplish before I even thought about marrying and starting a family.

  Rafe and I had been careless. Careful, but careless just the same. I knew I had to take precautions, so the next morning before breakfast, we wandered along the island in search of ginger root and rue. Once we found it, we took it back to our dorm and I stashed it away but not before chewing on both just in case.

  Rafe walked me to breakfast afterwards, his hand clasped firmly in mine. I was aware we garnered dirty looks and unwanted attention, but if I’d expected Rafe to cringe away from it, he didn’t. In fact, he appeared to be filled with pride as he walked at my side into the dining hall. We were two of the biggest outcasts at the Academy and we were together.

  It felt right.

  I saw Ambrose and Maksim clustered together at our usual table. I had to pull away from Rafe for a moment to run and wrap my arms around Maksim’s body, relief lifting a heavy weight from my shoulders.

  “I’m so glad you’re okay,” I said.

  He snorted almost mockingly but didn’t acknowledge a thing about what had happened to him the previous day. Instead, he wagged his dark eyebrows at me and made serious crazy motions with his eyes in Rafe’s direction.

  “Told you he’d get over it,” he whispered, low enough so no one else would hear.

  I punched him in the arm lightly.

  Breakfast proceeded as normal, with Maksim filling the table with his quirky conversation. I tried to search for signs of sickness within him but didn’t find any and eventually relaxed. Perhaps it had just been a false alarm… I made a mental note to speak with him about it later.

  Before breakfast ended, Ambrose cut in to tell them, “Remember to stay in groups. There’s a killer roaming the Academy and we have to be cautious.”

  I tried not to roll my eyes at what he was really saying.

  Keep an eye on Calliope.

  But I didn’t want to argue, especially when he was correct. Vitas and his menagerie bested me within moments, no matter how hard I fought. If Vitas really was behind this, it was better not to be caught alone with him ever again.

  So I didn’t argue when they all agreed.

  After breakfast, it was Ambrose who offered to escort me to class, as his was closest to mine and Maksim and Rafe had to trek halfway across the Academy to theirs. Before I could say goodbye to Rafe, I was caught up in the whirlwind that was Ambrose. He tugged me lightly just as I managed a wave and a smile for Rafe and Maksim.

  Ambrose was surprisingly silent as we walked towards Magical Practices. I wondered what he was thinking about, but I was too absorbed in my own thoughts to ask him about his until we nearly reached our destination.

  “Is Maksim alright?” If I asked him, I knew he would tell me the truth. Maksim disregarded his health like it meant nothing and would lie through his teeth.

  Ambrose startled out of his thoughts. “According to the medic, he can’t find anything except a gentle trace of magic, but it doesn’t seem dark or to be a curse. He told him to be careful, though. Not like Maksim is going to listen.” He shook his head back and forth.

  I loosed a breath. “Well, I’ll make him listen.”

  Ambrose snorted. “Good luck with that.” We arrived at Magical Practices and stopped beside the door.

  An uncomfortable feeling coiled its way in my gut as I took Ambrose in. He looked stiff and not at all like himself. My hand reached out for his arm, and our skin met for a second before he slipped from my grasp by taking a step back.

  My eyebrows furrowed. “Ambrose…”

  “So, you and Zemir, huh?” His voice sounded casual and light, but I noticed how his jaw tightened and he seemed to avert his gaze.

  My gut clenched tighter.

  “It just kind of... happened.”

 

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