by Leah Ross
Lawson picked himself up from the ground, strode over to Laria, and slapped her hard across the face. “Witch.”
She spat blood in his face.
He sneered at her. “Tie her up! And gag her. No more of that magic nonsense! I get her first.”
A primal roar suddenly emanated from the alley entrance. William lifted his head and sighed in relief to see Guinn there, the very air around him vibrating with his fury. He raised his arms to the sky. “NUVANIN OVKRAKAAV!”
A blinding flash shot from Guinn’s body, followed a half-second later by a deafening boom. The ground shook violently, knocking the criminals from their feet. When the roar of the explosion finally died away, the men were huddled in little balls on the ground, scared witless by the blast created by Guinn’s rage. Laria slowly raised her head, frightened of what she might see. Guinn was on his knees, gasping for breath, the ground a crater beneath him and cracks shooting in all directions.
Suddenly there were dozens of people in the alley, all curious about the commotion. The authorities arrived in short order and the thugs were detained and dragged off into custody. Guinn gathered Laria in his arms.
Shana rushed to William’s side. “Gods, Will! Are you all right?”
He stumbled to his feet, holding his side and grimacing with pain. “I’ll be… fine.”
She turned to look back at Guinn and saw him taking Laria away. “Guinn? Guinn!”
He didn’t slow or stop for anyone, carrying Laria back to Holystorm and directly to her room. He laid her on the bed, acquired a cool, damp cloth, and gently pressed it against her swollen, split lip. Then he sat on the floor beside the bed, his face buried in his hands. Laria reached over and threaded her fingers through his hair. He clasped her hand tightly and trapped it against his chest.
“I’m sorry.” He said it so softly that she almost didn’t hear him.
She cocked her head at him. “For what?”
“For not paying enough attention to you, for letting you go off by yourself, for...” He sighed. “For failing to protect you and nearly getting you killed.”
She gently turned his face to look her and gazed directly into his eyes. “Guinn, you saved me. It was your spell that prevented those felons from raping me, or worse,” she said. The she lowered her voice. “I’ve never seen such a powerful spell.”
His brows furrowed. “There will be hell to pay for this.”
“Surely there are exceptions for extenuating circumstances?”
He shrugged. “Maybe. But let’s not worry about that now. You need some rest.”
“Stay with me.”
“I had no intention of going anywhere.” He joined her in her small bed, drawing the covers over them.
She snuggled against his chest, inhaling his warm scent. He wrapped his arms around her small frame and held her close. Then he kissed the top of her head and closed his eyes. Within minutes exhaustion overtook them and they were both fast asleep.
~*~
“Laria.” William’s voice was just as soft as his touch on her shoulder at breakfast the next morning.
“Will!” She jumped up and wrapped her arms around him, pulling back quickly when he grunted at the pain in his ribs. “Sorry,” she apologized.
He smiled at her. “It’s all right.” He glanced around the sparsely-populated dining hall. “Where’s Guinn?”
“Still asleep. He used an extraordinary amount of energy last night.”
William took the seat next to her, the look in his eyes tortured. “Speaking of last night…”
“Will, you don’t need to explain. It’s none of my business. I didn’t see—”
“Don’t lie just to spare my feelings, sweet. I know what you saw.”
She looked down at her hands in her lap. “I didn’t mean to. I was worried about you. I’m still worried about you…”
He traced a thumb over her cheek. “I’m glad that someone cares.”
Leaning forward, she hugged him again. “Thank you for protecting me.”
“How could I possibly have done otherwise?” He held her close, gently placing his hand atop her head. Forgive me, Laria.
She squeezed him hard, making him pause. “Please don’t, Will.”
“What?” He pulled back and frowned at her.
“My memories from last night,” she said softly. “Please don’t take them.” She bit her lip and looked at the floor.
William slumped back in his chair, shocked bewilderment in his eyes. “How—? When—?” His breath rushed from him. “Why?”
“I swear I won’t tell anyone. About any of it.”
A frustrated sound escaped his lips. “I can’t… I won’t put you in danger with the knowledge of what I really am.”
Offering him a sad smile, she took his hand. “You’re my friend, Will. I want to know the real you. Please don’t hide yourself from me.”
“Laria…”
“You protected me last night. Now let me return the favor.” At his agonized look, she grasped his other hand and stared intently into his eyes. “I know you could make me do whatever you want, change my memories, or erase them altogether, but I trust you not to do that. All I ask is that you trust me to keep your secrets safe.”
“Morning.” Laria and William looked up to see Guinn striding quickly toward them, a wary brow raised in question. “Everything all right?”
Laria smiled brightly at him. “Everything’s fine. I was just thanking Will for his help last night.”
“Indeed.” Guinn clapped William on the shoulder. “Thanks, mate.” He dropped into a chair. “So what did happen last night?”
Fear flashed across William’s face, and Laria spoke up. “When I left the tavern to find Will, I was an idiot and went into that alley alone. Those guys found me and started harassing me. That’s when Will arrived and interrupted them.” She sent a sympathetic look in his direction. “I’m so sorry you got hurt defending me.”
He reached forward and squeezed her hand. “I’d do it again in a heartbeat, sweet.”
Guinn stared at his best friend, his expression pensive and somber. “I owe you huge, Hannigan. Thank you.”
William shrugged. “Anyone would have done the same.”
“No, they wouldn’t. Stop being so irritatingly modest; it doesn’t suit you a bit.” Guinn shot his friend a grin. Then he stretched his arms over his head and stood. “I’m starving. Will you keep an eye on her while I grab some food?”
“My pleasure,” William said. When Guinn was out of earshot, he smiled at Laria. “Thank you.”
She grinned. “See? You can trust me.”
He pulled her into a hug. “I don’t deserve such amazing friends as you and Shana.”
“Guinn’s right,” she said with a laugh. “Modesty doesn’t suit you.”
The corners of his lips turned down in a pathetic mock pout. “Why does no one believe me when I’m being sincere?”
“Perhaps it’s because of your roguish reputation, sir?”
He flashed a wicked half-smile at her. “Ah, yes. That.” He stood, snatched up her hand, bowed low, and kissed it. “Come, milady! I, your wounded warrior, require much sustenance in order to recover from my grievous injuries, and I shall need assistance in carrying the mountains of nutritionally-void food that I require. Pray, come be my brawny savior now, will you?”
Laria dissolved into a fit of giggles. “There’s my William!”
~*~
Classes were finally over for the day, and Guinn and Laria sat entwined together beneath one of the large trees on the school grounds. Guinn had spent every moment he could with Laria for the past few days since their ordeal in town. She thought it amusing that he insisted on acting as her personal bodyguard, but she loved spending the time with him.
He brushed her hair to one side and laid kisses on the back of her neck. Her skin erupted in delicious rippling tingles, and she leaned back to encourage him to continue, reaching her hands up and wrapping them behind his neck to p
ull him closer. She giggled as a low, throaty groan of pleasure escaped his lips.
She buried her fingers in his hair and traced her nails over his scalp as she pulled his head down and kissed him. He felt his desire rising and his pulse quickened. His breath came fast and heavy as all of his senses filled with nothing but Laria. The urge to have her was so overwhelming that he actually ached with the exquisite pain. Finally he could fight his desire no longer. He kissed her mouth several times, then wordlessly pulled her up and led her toward the men’s dormitory, his intense lust mirrored in her eyes.
“Guinn McCabe? Laria Brookes?”
Guinn turned, murder in his gaze, to glare at the idiot audacious enough to interrupt them. “Bugger off. I’m trying to get some action here.”
Laria giggled, and the young woman asking after them averted her eyes in discomfort, color rising in her cheeks.
“I was sent to find Guinn McCabe and Laria Brookes,” the woman repeated.
“Who’s asking?” Guinn’s frustration was mounting quickly.
“Headmistress Layne.”
Guinn and Laria exchanged glances. A summons by the Headmistress could mean only one thing. Laria grabbed Guinn’s hand and squeezed it hard. He lifted his chin in defiance. He had nothing to hide and nothing to be ashamed of. He squeezed Laria’s hand reassuringly and the two of them followed the Headmistress’ assistant to face their fate.
~*~
Headmistress Layne was a severe, serious woman, intolerant of free thinkers and rule breakers. Neither Guinn nor Laria had faced her directly before. As they were escorted into the office, Guinn was dismayed to see cranky Mr. Polk there. He supposed it was inevitable, since Mr. Polk was the fifth-year faculty advisor, but it did not give him a lot of confidence in his representation. The woman who was obviously the second-year advisor looked much more open-minded and forgiving. Guinn had much higher hopes for Laria’s chances of emerging from this hearing unscathed.
“Have a seat,” Headmistress Layne barked, motioning to the two seats directly in front of her.
They sat. Laria chewed her lip nervously and looked scared. Guinn folded his arms across his chest and glared directly at the Headmistress, issuing a silent challenge.
“You know why you’re here,” Headmistress Layne began, “The only reason you weren’t summoned immediately was because we were figuring out exactly what to do with you.”
“So we’ve been tried and sentenced without even a chance to defend ourselves?” Guinn provoked, “Why even bother with this formality then?”
“You must be advised on how this will proceed, Mr. McCabe.” She turned to the second-year administrator. “Miss Andrews, do you care to enter a statement on behalf of Miss Brookes?”
“Headmistress, I would like to plead Miss Brookes’ innocence in this incident,” Miss Andrews stated confidently, “She has followed every rule here to the letter since she arrived, and her unauthorized spell casting the other night was purely in self-defense. Laria is an exceptional student and will become a truly gifted mage. It would be more detrimental to this school to send her away than to deal with the consequences of this incident.”
“Thank you, Miss Andrews,” Headmistress Layne replied, “Mr. Polk?”
Bloody hell. This is the man arguing my case? He’s been looking for a way to get rid of me for years. I’m finished. Guinn’s scowl deepened as he anticipated the carnage of his career.
“To call Mr. McCabe a model student would require an extreme stretch of the imagination. He is overconfident, arrogant, stubborn, and lazy. He is wholly consumed by his career ambitions, and if not for the requirement that he be here, I doubt he would deign to grace us with his surly presence at all,” Mr. Polk said sourly.
Guinn rolled his eyes. Wonderful. Goodbye Holystorm, so long magic license, farewell career. What an ass!
“Thank you Mr.—”
“I’m not finished!” Mr. Polk snapped rudely. “I used to think that Mr. McCabe was incapable of focusing on anything besides his career. Then he met that girl. His marks improved, he wasn’t constantly mooning over the ocean, and most importantly, he cared about someone other than himself. It’s ludicrous that a man should have to face such dire consequences for merely protecting the one he loves!”
“Unauthorized extracurricular spell casting is a serious offense and should carry dire consequences, Mr. Polk,” the Headmistress countered.
“They were going to rape and kill her!” Guinn shouted, “I had to do something!”
Mr. Polk pointed at Guinn. “That. That unbridled passion is what will make this man great. He won’t be the greatest mage this world has ever seen, but he sure as hell could be the greatest sailor. This school has already improved him. It would be the greatest disservice we could imagine to this young man to deprive him of the short time he has left here and deny him his license.”
Guinn stared at Mr. Polk in disbelief. “I thought you hated me.”
“Mr. McCabe, I may come off as a grouchy asshole, but I assure you the dissonance results only from differences in personality. I can’t help that no one else is as intelligent as I am; I can only hope to cope until the next batch of imbeciles crosses my threshold. I dislike all of my students equally. That doesn’t mean I don’t recognize loyalty, determination, and passion when I see it.”
Headmistress Layne sat and considered for a few minutes. Then she sat forward in her chair and spoke softly but clearly. “I was decided and prepared to cast you out from this school without another thought, Mr. McCabe. Your spell seemed like a willful and careless display of power and nothing more. Now I realize that it was an unexpectedly powerful manifestation of your deep-rooted passion and your love for Miss Brookes. Since the spells the two of you cast were meant for self-preservation and protection, I have decided to place you both under probation for the remainder of the school year.”
Laria could not hide her elation. “Thank you, thank you, Headmistress!”
Headmistress Layne leveled her gaze directly at Guinn. “Take heed, Mr. McCabe. I expect your behavior to be so exemplary I don’t even want to hear your name uttered until you walk across the stage to accept your diploma. Do I make myself clear?”
“As a pane of glass, ma’am,” Guinn agreed.
“Good,” she said, “You can all go.”
Guinn grabbed Laria’s hand and practically sprinted out of the building. “Let’s celebrate!”
“Now?” Laria gasped as she struggled to keep up with him, “We don’t know where everyone is.”
He stopped, cupped her face in his hands, and kissed her. “We don’t need anyone else.”
“But don’t you want—”
“All I ever want is you.”
~*~
Finally making it back to his room after a trip to their favorite tavern, Guinn lifted Laria through the door, kicking it closed behind them and locking it. His brush with certain expulsion and the effects of a few too many helpings of rum making him reckless, he tore the shirt from his body and stalked toward Laria like a predator. Lust consumed him, burning white hot from repeated denial. This time he was determined; the world would have to explode in fiery apocalypse to keep him from finally having this time with the woman he loved.
He kicked off his boots, not caring where they landed, and discarded everything else until he stood before her, only the thin barrier of his breeches separating his skin from hers. She breathed hard, savoring the tanned, muscled expanse of his broad chest. Reaching out a hand, she stroked his collarbone, then trailed her fingertips down his ribs and across his abdomen. He closed his eyes as a wave of desire left him breathless. Grabbing her wandering hand, he pressed her palm to his lips and kissed a molten trail up the inside of her arm, over her shoulder, across her collarbone to the silky skin of her throat, lingering there for several maddening moments before claiming her mouth. His velvet tongue ravaged the liquid heat of her mouth again and again until she moaned against his lips, stoking the flames of his passion even higher. As h
er hands caressed and scratched over his back, he groaned deep in his throat and lifted her onto the bed.
Finding the hem of her dress, he reached beneath the fabric, pushing up her skirt as he caressed the length of her creamy thigh. She jerked in response to his fingers tickling over her hip and side, and then drew a shaky gasp as his palm covered her breast. Her nipple tightened at his touch and she arched against him. He smiled and lowered his head, drawing the tender bud into his mouth. He sucked and licked and nipped gently with his teeth until the thin bodice of her dress clung to her breast like a second skin and he could see the darkened pink of her areola through the white fabric.
She tugged at his thick hair as he attacked her mouth again. When she raised her hips in search of what her body craved, he bore down, the solid length of his erection pressing tight against her core. She whimpered with need, and the sound unhinged his control. Suddenly his hands were everywhere, rubbing and stroking, teasing and playing, yanking at her clothes until she was sure he would rip them from her body.
When a loud pounding rang in her ears, a momentary concern floated through her muddled brain that she hoped Guinn wasn’t able to hear her heart banging so terrifyingly hard. But when he groaned with frustration instead of desire, the realization registered that the pounding was coming from the door.
Guinn lifted his head and growled like an enraged beast. “Hellfire and damnation! Someone’s head is going to roll!”
The pounding continued. “Guinn! I know you’re in there!”
“Go the fuck away!” he snarled.
“Guinn, please! You have to help! It’s William!”
~*~
“What the hell happened?” Guinn asked as he, Laria, and Shana sprinted across campus and into the surrounding woods.
