by A. J. Macey
“I’m pretty happy with where I’m at, and if I can control the shadows again, that’d be cool,” he said as he lined up his shot and missed, his ball disappearing before dropping in front of him with a thud.
“It’d be cool to see how life would be as a spell caster like my family, but I do love making potions,” Caspian added, giving me a soft smile. We’d both been there.
“I’m happy too,” Drayce said with a shrug. “Oh, look! Aris won one!”
“I’ve got my question already too. What is your favorite thing about the person to your left?!” I asked, looking pointedly at Kye standing on my left. “My favorite thing about you is you share your sweets with me,” I answered, giving him a happy smile. With Kye, I felt like that was a rare thing, and it made me feel special.
“My favorite thing about Caspian is he didn’t hesitate to be there for Aris when she was having a bad day,” Kye said quickly, avoiding everyone’s eyes. All attention on him was not his thing.
“I like that Drayce isn’t afraid to be himself, unapologetically so,” Caspian said, giving Drayce a grin. This time it was Drayce’s turn to lightly blush at the compliment.
Aww, that’s so cute! Can you hope for a relationship between two of your own boyfriends?
“Xan, I love that you stepped up to take some heat off of Aris when her dad was here and bringing us together to make sure she was alright,” Drayce said, giving him a pat on the back. When Xan turned to me, his expression softened a bit, a small smile on his lips.
“I love that you show me it’s okay not to be professional all the time, not to be perfect, to be myself. I feel like this is the first time I’ve truly taken a deep breath in a long time,” he said, taking a breath as if to punctuate his point. At this point, Xan won again, earning him the next question.
“What’s your dream familiar?” he asked with a grin, this question a bit more fun than deep. I could visibly see him loosening up, and it made me so happy.
“I want something cute and fuzzy! Like a bat,” I cooed, picturing an adorable, fuzzy, black bat.
“You’re so weird,” Kye said, shaking his head at me and laughing. “I want something fierce like a wolf.”
“Oh! I always wanted a fun familiar like a fox,” Caspian said, his eyes lighting up excitedly.
“A sloth, those guys are so calm and still adorable, kind of like me,” Drayce teased, giving us a toothy grin.
“I want something ridiculous to add a little excitement to life. Something big and bold like a tiger,” Xan said with a chuckle. “Can you imagine one of those in a council meeting?”
“That’d definitely be exciting,” I chuckled, imagining the councilors all freaking out as he walked in, companion by his side.
“Yes!” Caspian cheered, making us all jump. We looked over to see his victory dance as he sunk his ball in one try. “I finally get a turn!”
“Well, hit us with it,” Drayce said, holding out his hands like we’ve been waiting forever already. Caspian rolled his eyes but started walking toward the next course without answering right away. After Kye’s second exaggerated sigh, he finally asked his question.
“What’s your biggest turn on?” he finally asked, his smile laced with a hint of devious.
“Pink hair, apparently,” Kye said in a tone I couldn’t quite read. He might have been joking, but I gave a sexy smirk and a flip of my bubblegum hair, anyway.
“I’m a sucker for smiles. I’ve been around too many grumpy people in my life, so I live for bright smiles,” Xan said, smiling at me. My blush deepened, still unused to compliments so freely being sent my way.
“It’s a toss-up sometimes, but I’m an ass man, and I’ve got my eye on two perfectly sculpted ones right now,” Drayce said, winking at me before checking out Caspian’s ass as he bent over to place his golf ball on the course.
“I can’t argue there,” I agreed, reaching over and smacking Caspian lightly on his ass.
“Thanks,” he grinned, shaking it toward us before taking his turn. When he missed, he turned around with a pout. “That leaves you, Cupcake. Piggybacking on someone else isn’t good enough.”
“Well,” I started, looking at each of them slowly before finally giving up with a pout. “That’s not fair. I like something different about each of you guys. Let’s just say, my biggest turn on is confidence.”
“We’ll take that,” Kye said, giving me a wink and a half-grin before taking his turn. “That makes me the winner of this course,” he announced, landing his golf ball in the cauldron after somehow bouncing it off the sidewall. I swear these boys are using magic!
“Why am I more nervous about your question than anyone else’s?” I asked, starting the final course. This, of course, was the hardest. With more than one magical barrier in our way, it would take some serious skill to even make it in, let alone on the first try.
“Don’t be,” he said with a shrug, chuckling at my easy miss. “Do you have any siblings?”
“I have two brothers and a sister… and yes, they’re clones of my parents,” I said with a crinkle of my nose.
“I’m an only child,” Kye said, “but I always wanted more. My parents were busy, so it was fucking boring growing up.”
“I’m surprised! I thought for sure the way you hide in pantries with your snacks, you must have come from a huge family,” I teased.
“Nah, I just hate sharing. It’s an only child thing,” he said, laughing at being called out.
“I have Torryn,” Caspian deadpanned, not sounding happy about it.
“Well, I have a feeling you won’t be against that much longer,” I said happily… not if I have anything to do with it.
“I have five siblings… all girls,” Drayce said with a happy smile. “My house is chaotic, loud, and perfect.”
“It’s just me,” Xan said, looking a bit jealous at Drayce’s answer. “I always wanted a big family.”
“Oh, look, Xan made it… again,” Kye grumbled as Xan grinned happily. Magic swirled in the air above the course, showcasing Xan’s color as the winner.
“Come on, Xan, this is how you victory dance!” I cheered, coming over and dancing in a circle around him, shimmying my hips and doing ridiculous dance moves until the others were cracking up too.
“You’ve got the last question, let’s hear it,” Caspian said as he wiped tears from his eyes.
“What do you want to do after Aether? What do you want out of life, not just what anyone else wants for you?” Xan asked, the mood turning serious while we thought about the loaded question.
“I’d like to open a potion shop or something like that. Be my own boss,” Caspian said quickly, his cheeks tinting a bit at admitting his dream.
“I want not to be around people for a while,” Kye half-joked, though knowing Kye he was probably serious. “I think I’ll figure it out when the time comes, but for right now, I don’t have much of an idea.”
“I just want to be my own man. I love to paint, and I want to do that freely, and I want a future not in the council’s shadow, though I know that’s unlikely,” Xan added with a sigh.
“Why is it unlikely? Just because dear old dad is a councilor doesn’t mean you are,” Drayce asked, clearly confused about Xan’s conclusion.
“No, but he does expect it. His father was a councilor as well, and since it’s the High Council, I don’t have much of a choice.” His voice was pained but resigned to what he thought was fact. He wasn’t his own man, and he never would be. It broke my heart. I knew all too well the disappointment of not living up to parental expectations.
“Sure, you do. We all have choices. Your choices could be staying with the council and being miserable or doing your own thing and living your life how you want. It’s that simple. They can’t force you. If they’re disappointed, then they’re selfish, and you’ll be fine without them,” Drayce countered, conviction clear in his eyes.
Needing to ease the tension now that he stated his point, I jumped in. “I can agree wit
h that sentiment... I just want to be myself. Travel. I want to do something that goes down in history that doesn’t include my powers, to show them it’s not all about affinities or family names. I want to make a difference.”
“You’re just too pure,” Drayce joked.
Glancing over at him, I warmed from the inside out at his proud smile that told me how much he liked my answer. Seeing the brightness of his smile and the happiness shining at me through his eyes, I wanted it all that much more. To show my guys, who all had people look down on them or saw us looked down on in some way, it was okay to be yourself.
“I’m not as bold as my Angel. I want to teach. I want to inspire students to be themselves,” Drayce said. I thought over all their answers, my heart growing at their answers, loving that we all seemed to be on the same page. I loved that we are all trying to be unapologetically genuine.
“Okay, enough of this deep shit,” Caspian joked, coming over and leading us out. “Let’s grab some ice cream!”
I couldn’t stop the bright smile that had been permanently affixed to my face as we made our way to the small, brightly colored shop.
This was the perfect date, minus one thing.
Ah, here we go, the one thing I missed during our night out. Standing outside Torryn’s classroom door, I don’t exactly know when it became our meeting spot, but ever since we decided to blur the line of student and teacher, we met in his office. Feeling giddy and nervous about seeing him, I took a deep breath and headed into his classroom. Soft music was playing, and the flickering light from his fireplace lit up under the bottom of his office door as I neared it, not even bothering to knock as I pushed it open.
My breath caught. Torryn sat on his couch, a glass of wine clutched in the hand that rested against the arm of the leather furniture. One leg was crossed, his ankle resting across his knee as he looked at me. The blue in the fire intensified the turquoise tint in his seafoam irises as they centered on me. As much as his eyes held my attention, I couldn’t help as my gaze drifted down to his dress shirt, the top couple buttons opened, showing his smooth skin underneath.
“Hey there, Gorgeous,” he murmured, getting up from the couch and coming over to me. Placing a hand on my lower back, he pulled me fully into his room and shut the door behind my frozen body.
Apparently, seeing Torryn ooze sex appeal breaks my brain. Who would have guessed?
“You thirsty?”
I nodded, not trusting myself to speak in case something rambly or weird came out and ruined the moment. Flashing me a tiny grin, he turned, pouring me a quick glass of wine before handing it over to me, but when I tried to take it, he pulled it back.
“Have to pay the toll first, miss.” Cocking a brow, I started to grow more sure of myself, his confidence fueling my own.
“Oh, yeah? What would that be?” The sinful smile that appeared made my toes curl and my blood pump, eager to do whatever the hellsticks he wanted at that moment.
“Need to give me a kiss first. I’ve had to wait all damn day to touch you, and I’m not going to wait any longer,” he murmured.
Seeing the fire burning in his gaze had me closing the distance between us in an instant, popping up on my toes and grabbing the open lapels of his shirt. His lips were smooth, but his kiss was demanding. Moving surely against me, he took control of our kiss but pulled away too soon, leaving me pouting.
“Don’t give me that lip, Gorgeous, the night’s just getting started.”
Handing me my glass, he led me to the couch, situating me next to him. I angled slightly so I could face him, nerves growing as I realized I had no idea how to act. I mean, this was Torryn, my professor, who was both cool and sexy at the same time while I was... me.
“How was the town?” he asked quietly, his hand coming to rest on my knee. I took a sip of wine for encouragement, the red liquid decadent with hints of fruit, chocolate, and something slightly earthy.
“It was fun. We went to get dinner and did a round of mini-golf,” I explained, feeling good about the fact I hadn’t embarrassed myself yet. “I wish you could have been there.” His smile was breathtaking as he squeezed my thigh.
“Me too, Aris. Maybe one of these days, I’ll get to take you out and show you off to all the other witches. Let them know I have the sweetest and prettiest one around,” he teased, but a hint of honesty shone in his gaze reminded me he was telling the truth about how he felt.
My chest warmed as I nibbled on my lip in a futile attempt to keep a giggle contained, but it ended up bubbling out of me, anyway.
“I would like that. Maybe we could find some time for the Samhain festival in the capital, I mean, if we go,” I stumbled over my words, but Tor didn’t seem bothered as he beamed.
“Absolutely.”
I perked up, taking another few sips to finish off my glass as we sat in comfortable silence, the blue light from the fire casting a romantic glow around the room. Feeling confident from the wine and Tor’s hand on my leg, I reached around him to place my empty glass on the table, my chest brushing against his. Instead of pulling back to settle on the couch next to him, I latched on to that bravado and pressed my lips to his.
Torryn’s hand tightened against my leg as I cupped his face, his upper body leaning into me. He nipped my bottom lip, brushing his tongue to help ease the sting as he set his glass down and grabbed me around the waist. Our kisses deepened, growing with intensity as he pulled me onto his lap, my legs straddling his trim hips. Sinking down onto his legs, I felt just how turned-on Tor was as his cock pressed into the seam of my jeans.
He groaned as I decided to push him further, rocking my hips at a leisurely pace. Hands gripped my hips tightly as if he was struggling to control himself from laying me on the couch and taking me like I knew he wanted. Not wanting to push him too far, I slowed, focusing more on kissing him.
“You’re absolutely perfect, Gorgeous,” he whispered against my lips, his half-lidded gaze looking at me. “But when we have sex, it’ll be in an actual bed where I can shower you in the attention you deserve, not on my office couch where we have to be quick, in case a student comes in.” I smiled, my chest squeezing at the sweet sentiment.
“Deal, Sir,” I agreed, kissing him once more briefly before pulling back.
“But I’m not missing the opportunity to hold you, so come here,” he murmured with a lazy, yet happy smile. Shifting, he angled himself until he was half lying on the couch and maneuvered me until I was curled into his side, my head and hand resting on his chest. We cuddled and watched the flames of his fires dance into the early hours of the morning, neither wanting the moment to end.
Is it Samhain yet?
September 19th
Thursday Midday
Xanthius
After the trip to Crystal Borough, I hadn’t been able to keep my mind off Aris. Something about her made me want to enjoy life, throw away everything I’d been forced to work for and find out what I really wanted. Ever since the questions, I’d been asking myself that, but I kept coming up blank.
I started mixing the two colors in front of me, adding a bit more red until it was the perfect shade of pink. My paintbrush danced across the canvas, adding soft waves to the long pink hair. Aris’ smile beamed up at me as I added the finer details. I hadn’t painted in a long time, but when I couldn’t get her image out of my head, I decided to put it on canvas.
I checked the time again and realized an entire hour had passed, meaning I’d have to rush to get to mentoring on time. After last week’s mentoring session getting interrupted by her terrible family, I hoped this one would go more smoothly. She was already waiting for me by the time I got there, her smile still in place.
“Hey, Xan!” she said, giving me her signature quick wave.
“I’m sorry I’m a bit late, I had a project I wanted to finish,” I said quickly, closing the door and taking the chair opposite of hers. “So, I thought we could delve a bit into your family’s magical history to try to see where we should start
figuring out this bonding situation. So, what affinities are in your direct household?”
“Mother is an Earth elemental, Dad is a fire elemental, my brothers both ended up with fire, and my sister is air,” she said, looking down at the table, a bit of shame marring her gorgeous features.
“There is nothing wrong with being a Mixta,” I reminded her firmly. “You have amazing powers and apparently, more emerging every time you bond, so you’re stronger than all of them.” She grinned at that, a spark of excitement in her eyes.
“Can you imagine what they’d say if they knew?” She snorted and threw her voice into a fake deep tone, mimicking her father as she continued, “We knew a Calisto would never be a Mixta.”
“I feel like they look at your powers the same as mine look at art. That was my only escape as a kid, but my father would literally set fire spells to them in front of me,” I revealed. When I caught the quick grimace she tried to hide, I realized I was saying more than I intended, yet again.
“That’s terrible,” she said, fire dancing in her eyes as she clenched her fists. “I would practice the only skill I had, telekinesis, and my parents or siblings would snatch things out of the air and tell me to stop playing around and practice ‘real’ magic. That’s what I hate about Akasha. People want to fit us into these five pretty boxes some asshole set up and fuck everything else. Let’s not care that witches use herbology to make our fucking lifesaving medicines and tinctures, that some people can work with animals and form a magical connection to them all, that some people maybe aren’t Mixtas, that they have a power we can’t find because fuck everything that doesn’t follow their standards,” she finished her rant, meeting my eyes. I couldn’t look away from hers, her anger and resentment at the injustices mirroring my own sentiments.
My fingers tingled as I clutched the table, a burning smell reaching my nose and forcing me to look away. Smoke billowed out from both ends of the table as our palms flared a molten red, fire shooting out of our palms. Magic tethered us together at that moment, something in the flames connecting us and bringing us in for more. The fire burned brighter still, dancing along the table until it started to crumble under the heat. A loud squeal echoed through the halls as I grabbed Aris’ hand and our stuff before darting out of the room.
