Page 19 of Forged in Blood

I spin my chair all the way around and give him my undivided attention. “What was that like? Being sired? How old were you? Did it hurt? Did you want to be a vampire?”

He sits up, frowning, and his green eyes appear darker than usual. “You ask a lot of questions, Ophelia Hart.”

I suck on my top lip and resist rolling my eyes. “Well, this stuff is fascinating to me. I mean, you’re a frickingvampire.I am sitting in my dorm room, chatting with a creature I only ever read about or saw on TV. One that I assumed was complete fantasy until a little over a week ago.”

He remains silent but goes on staring at me. My stomach ties itself into a knot. “If the professor’s a vampire, does that mean some of the other professors are too?”

He shrugs.

I’m taking that as a yes. “And are there any other kinds of creatures I should know about?”

He arches one eyebrow, a hint of a smirk back on his lips now, which causes his adorable dimples to make an appearance. “Such as?”

“I dunno. Werewolves? Witches? Unicorns?”

“Yes. Yes. And no.”

Putting aside my disappointment about the unicorns, I shriek, “What?” Then clamp my hand over my mouth when he frowns. “Sorry,” I whisper. “But… for real? Werewolves and witches are real?”

“As real as I am.”

I lean forward, my heart rate increasing with each passing second. “Are they here at Montridge too?”

He scrutinizes my face with such intensity that my skin flames with heat.

“You can trust me, Malachi. I swear even if I thought someone would believe me, I wouldn’t tell a soul.”

“And why should I trust you, sweet girl?” The deep smoothness of his voice warms my insides.

“Because…” I swallow hard. His eyes burn into mine, and I can’t lie. “You’re the only person I talk to.”

His expression softens, and he blows out a breath. “The societies at Montridge represent different factions of supernatural beings. Each faction has four societies; vampires have Ruby, Onyx, Lapis, and Opal Dragon. The witches have their own four, and so do the wolves.”

“So, the societies named after four of Jupiter’s moons have to be the wolves, and the witches must be the vales, then, right?”

“You know astronomy?”

Heknows astronomy? Wow. Could he be any more perfect? Well, aside from the whole vampire thing. “I know about a lot of stuff. I read a lot.” That’s an understatement. I read way more than a lot.

The way he looks at me, like he’s impressed by my hitherto useless knowledge of Jupiter’s moons, has my cheeks heating. Before I can ask another question, Malachi tosses my unicorn plushie back to me. I catch it and hold it to my chest, immediately regretting it when his scent wafts into my nose. Malachi Young smells every bit as good as he looks. Fresh and citrusy with a hint of spice. The impulse to lick his skin has me wondering what on this earth is wrong with me.

“How old are you?” I ask.

“One hundred and twenty-eight.”

“And not a single wrinkle. You should be in skincare commercials.” I snort a laugh at my own joke.

He rolls his eyes. “You think you’re funny, huh?”

Another unexpected laugh bubbles out of me. “I do, actually.”

“Then you’re the only one in this room who does, Ophelia,” he says, but there’s no malice in his tone. Not like the cruelness of Axl’s and Xavier’s taunts when they happen to bumpinto me, usually quite literally, which has become a daily occurrence. Malachi’s teasing is friendly almost.

“How old were you when you became a vampire?”

He sighs. “Twenty-two.” Then he swings his legs over the edge of the bed and fixes me with a glare that makes my core feel warm and tingly. “No more questions.”

“Aw, just a few more? Please?”

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