Page 69 of Shadowed Fate

My eyes drop down to her plump lips again, so close I can almost taste them. I wonder if she tastes as good as she smells.

"What are you going to do, Lochan?" she breathes, her voice husky.

I want her. I shouldn't, but I do.

My cock yells at me to close that final inch, to claim her mouth with mine. To run my hands over every curve of her body let her know that it’s mine to take.

But I can't.

This pull I feel—I can’t give in to it. I can't trust it. Can't trust her.

I wrench myself away. I'm disgusted with myself for getting that close to begin with.

I force a sneer on to my face. "You think you're so fucking smart, don't you?" My voice is cutting, slicing through whatever fateful strands there are that are pulling us together. "Playing innocent, batting your eyelashes like you don't know exactly what you're doing. But I see right through your bullshit, Brigid. It's pathetic. You're nothing but trouble."

Her expression darkens, hurt flashing across her features before her mouth hardens and her shoulders go rigid.

I turn and walk away, unable to look at her a second longer, each step putting more distance between us.

Chapter 31

Brigid

I stare at the chalkboard, my mind far from the mundane lecture on Fae history. My thoughts keep drifting back to yesterday.

To Lochan.

I still don't know why his dislike affects me the way it does. People disliking me is certainly nothing new. But with him, it hurts more than it should.

The classroom hums with whispered conversations and creaks as students shift in their chairs, but I'm lost in my own world. Professor Eldritch arranges papers on his desk, preparing to start the lesson.

I think about yesterday afternoon, after whatever that fucked up encounter was with Lochan. Sure enough, I’d had a visit from members of the Council.

Apparently, the Council is the authority responsible for governing the supernatural realm, including Grimstone Academy, and any use of magic to commit a crime is immediately their jurisdiction.

I’d learned from Eira that the Council had formed after the Raven King’s rebellion, creating a single governing body to unite the different groups in an perpetual state of peace. The Council was permanent and absolute, made up of the rulers of each faction.

The investigators' cold eyes had bored into me as they questioned me in my room. They’d asked if I had been in contact with anyone outside the academy. Their voices had dripped with suspicion.

I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to block out the interrogation replaying in my mind. But when I do, all I see is Lochan's face, his strong arms on either side of me as he cornered me in the hallway. My stomach twists. Why does he get under my skin like this?

One minute he's threatening me, the next... I remember the heat of his body as he leaned in close, his scent, like spiced bourbon, overwhelming my senses.

Damn him.

I hate how he makes me feel—vulnerable, exposed. Yet there's something about him that I can't shake. It makes me stay when I should run. Makes me move closer instead of backing away.

"Ms. Ryan?" Professor Eldritch's voice cuts through my reverie. "Perhaps you'd like to share your thoughts on the Seelie Court's influence in the 16th century?"

Shit. I straighten up, scrambling for an answer as the class turns to stare at me.

I clear my throat, buying time. "The Seelie Court's influence was... significant?” My mind's blank.

A low chuckle from beside me. “What’s got you worked up this morning?”

Marius.

His fingers brush my arm, raising goosebumps. "Little bird. Who do I need to kill?"

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