Page 20 of Cursed Wolfsbane

I wait until the last person leaves the room. Then I slowly make my way down to Xander.

He waits until I’m in front of him and I tip my chin up to look at him before saying anything. “To my office. Now.” Every word drips with barely leashed wrath.

I bite my cheek because matching Xander’s anger isn’t going to resolve anything. It’s just going to escalate the situation. The best thing I can do is stay calm and hope he cools off on the walk to his office.

Dreading what will happen when we’re alone, I reluctantly follow Xander out of the classroom.

CHAPTER 9

BRIAR

“What the fuck was that?” Xander fumes as he slams his office door closed.

Spinning to face him, I open my mouth to answer but snap it shut again when he stomps toward me. I back up to avoid being run into, but he keeps advancing on me. When my back bumps the wall next to his office door, Xander presses himself against me and collars my throat with one hand.

I double-check that a pair of green eyes are peering down at me, not navy. This is way more Malachi’s style than Xander’s. I realize he’s still waiting for me to say something. “I was doing the partner assignment you told us to do.”

“With another fucking wolf! A male wolf! I didn’t tell you to fucking flirt with anyone you could,” he snarls.

My eyebrows rise to almost my hairline. I guess staying calm isn’t in the cards because I’m pretty sure Xander just called me a hussy for just talking to a guy.

What a dick.

Clenching my jaw, I respond through gritted teeth. “I wasn’t flirting with him! You would call insulting someone for not having friends flirting. That’s totally your style. And I didn’t know he was a wolf!”

“You should’ve! You’ve had your wolf for weeks, and you want me to believe you can’t tell who’s a wolf and who’s not?” Xander scoffs, and I feel about an inch tall. I know I’m behind everyone with the wolf stuff, but I’m honestly doing my best.

“Yes, I do because it’s the truth! I’m fucking trying, Xander!” I intend to yell, but my voice breaks at the end. I close my eyes and let my head thump against the smooth wood behind me. Everything’s changed so much in just a month and a half. I’m doing the best I can to keep up with it all, but I guess I’m not doing well enough for Xander, as usual.

“If you think I’m sharing you with another wolf other than my brothers, you’re fucking wrong. You. Are. Mine!” Xander roars before slamming his mouth onto mine. I gasp in surprise, and Xander takes the opportunity to dive his tongue between my parted lips.

Unlike my other kisses with him, there’s no dueling. I’m just desperately trying to keep up with him and taking whatever he wants to give me.

After a moment, he pulls away from my mouth, leaving me breathless and panting as he hikes my skirt up with his free hand. Glancing down, he takes note of my shorts, a frown twisting his kiss-swollen lips. He runs his fingers along the waistband before trailing them between my legs in a teasing caress. My hips buck at his touch, and my gaze jumps to his.

“Tell me to stop,” Xander demands as he rubs my clit through my shorts.

I don’t know what we’re doing right now, but I do know I’m not going to be the one to stop it. If he doesn’t want me, he’s going to have to be the one to walk away. I’m not giving him an easy out. “No.”

“Tell me to fucking stop, Briar. You know we shouldn’t be doing this.”

I shake my head at him and refuse to back down. “No.”

“Goddamn you.” Xander’s harsh tone is at odds with the gentle kiss he places on my forehead. He pauses for a moment, his chest rising and falling rapidly, before ordering in a rough voice, “Take your shorts off.”

“What?” I have whiplash from him. First, he’s yelling at me, then he’s kissing me, and now he wants me to take off my clothes. The man needs to pick a lane and stick with it.

He closes his eyes for a moment before staring down at me once more, hunger in his heavy-lidded stare, along with lingering anger, which I’m not sure ever goes away when Xander’s looking at me. “You want me to stop this, say so. Otherwise, do what I tell you.” I search his face, trying to figure out what this is. “Now, Briar.”

Even though I know this is such a bad decision, I hook my fingers in my shorts and slide them down until they fall to the floor with a quiet thump. Nothing good can come of this. We’re at school. And this is Xander, the man who’s quite adept at crushing my heart. But the reckless part of me wants to see where this will go.

“Panties too,” Xander rasps. I again hesitate, feeling shy about exposing myself to him. Whenever I’ve been naked in front of anyone, it’s always been quick and usually in the dark. It certainly hasn’t been in broad daylight in my professor’s office. “Do it now, Briar. You can be a brat for Kai but not for me. Listen to me when I tell you to do something, or I’ll stop.”

Giving him a jerky nod, I slide my fingers into the top of my plain black undies and let them fall. I kind of wish I had worn more attractive panties. On the list of things I thought would happen today, being pantless in Xander’s office wasn’t anywhere on there, though.

I hadn’t realized I had closed my eyes until they pop open when I feel Xander trailing his finger through my neatly trimmed pubic hair. “Are you wet for me, sweetheart?”

With Xander’s featherlight strokes rendering me speechless, the best I can do is a quick nod. Whenever any of my mates touch me, I get turned on—even when said mate has been a shithead. It’s pretty inconvenient.

---