I blame it on the magic. That must be it. My magic is fucking with my head again. There’s no other explanation. There’s no way I’d be attracted to such assholes if it wasn’t for that. Because I’m not just attracted to Rocco. I’m attracted to Thorn, too. Not to mention I’m still crushing on Professor Darius. Yep. It’s totally the magic.
I wish I could convince myself that’s all it is.
Chapter 10
I’m rudely awakened by someone storming into my room first thing Monday morning.
“Get up,” Ryker barks, yanking my blanket off. “You’re late for class.”
I groan and bury my head in the pillow. “What ungodly hour is it? I just fell asleep.”
“Think about that the next time you want to take off in the middle of the night,” he says, tossing a uniform onto the bed. It falls on my bare legs, reminding me that I’m only wearing underwear and a T-shirt, and he’s seeing more of me than anyone has since… Ever.
“Get up.” He stands over the bed looking down at me with barely restrained fury. “Now.”
I’m too tired to fight, so I drag myself out of bed, spend five minutes in the bathroom, and then follow Ryker out of the dorm.
He shoves my spork at me, and I grab it and hold it close to my body, suddenly angry. Not only did he touch my weapon, he’s walking so fast I have to nearly run to keep up, chasing after him like one of his desperate fangirls.
“Would you slow down?” I demand, almost out of breath as I run a few steps to catch him.
“We’re late,” he says, not even looking at me.
“Where are we even going?” I ask. “I don’t have a class this early.”
“You do now.”
He opens the door to a classroom and strides in, and the protest dies on my lips when I see a large room with rubber flooring and a small gathering of students waiting. They each hold a sword, and they all turn to the door as we enter.
“Sorry for the delay,” Ryker says, stopping in front of the class.
“You have got to be kidding,” I mutter.
Black-Haired Bella gives me the evil eye stare down.
“Now that Jade has graced us with her presence, we can start class,” Ryker says, glaring daggers at me.
“What’s she going to do, stab us with her spork?” Bella asks with a sneer.
“Focus on your partners,” Ryker says to the class.
When everyone starts sparring, he stalks over to me. “Get out your weapon.”
“You’re a teacher?” I ask. “I thought you were a student.”
“I’m a grad student,” he says. “I’m also the best swordsman in the academy. Which means that now that you’ve figured out your weapon, I’m your instructor.”
“Guess it’s my lucky day,” I mutter, brandishing my spork.
“Damn right, it is,” Ryker snaps, his blue eyes flashing. “If it wasn’t, you’d be out on your ass after the stunt you pulled Friday night.”
“Is he okay?” I ask, glancing at the other students. But they’re all busy sparring, which means I have Ryker to myself.
“You’re weeks behind in your training,” Ryker says, stalking forward. He swipes at me, and I jump back with a yelp.
“Treat your weapon like an extension of yourself,” Ryker says, swiping at me again. I slash back at him with my sad little spork, willing it to change into a sword.
It doesn’t.
“Your weapon is your best friend, your teammate, your soulmate,” Ryker says, slicing at me again. This time, he makes a clean swipe through my skirt, leaving it half as long as it was before. Which means I’m pretty close to flashing my entire class every time I move.
Ryker doesn’t even stop to laugh. He jabs at me again, sending me scurrying out of his way.
“You need to bond with your weapon like it has a mind of its own. It’s a magical relic, so it actually does. Which is why you don’t throw them in the garbage.”
“That’s why it’s not coming out right now?” I ask. “Because I offended it?”
I jump back, but Ryker is too fast. He swipes my legs out from under me, and I fall flat. What little is left of my skirt flies up, and I flash the entire class a view of the worn-out old underwear I retrieved from home the other night.
Everyone in the room laughs. Bella doubles over with her hands on her knees, howling and pointing to make sure everyone sees. “Did you get those at the thrift shop, or while you were out Dumpster diving?” she cackles.
“Get up,” Ryker says. He stands over me, brandishing his sword while everyone laughs. He doesn’t laugh. But he also doesn’t look like he gives a single fuck that he just made a laughingstock of me even more than my spork did.
Because I’m not suicidal, and he’s holding a blade pointed at my heart, I scramble to my feet, humiliation raging through me. I clasp my spork between two hands, which makes Bella snort even louder. Now that we’ve drawn attention, everyone stops to watch.
Ignoring their stares, I swallow back the fist of tightness lodged in my throat. I won’t let them win. I focus on my fury instead of my humiliation as I try to replicate what I did last night by visualizing what I want the spork to be.
I feel a vibration of magic, and triumph blooms inside me. The spork begins to buzz in my hand, and the next moment, a shimmer of magic surrounds the utensil. I’m doing it! I’m transferring my magic.
In a burst of light, the spork transforms.
Into a rubber hose.
It dangles from my hand like a limp, impotent dick.
This time, the laughter is even more raucous. The knot in my throat chokes off my air, and I turn and run for the door. Before I reach it, Ryker appears in front of me, blocking my path.
“Get the fuck out of my way,” I hiss, shaking the length of hose at him.
Behind me, people are rolling with laughter.
“Is that all it takes to make you quit?” Ryker asks. “A little mishap with your weapon, and you’re ready to run away and hide? I thought you wanted to learn magic.”
“I do,” I say, shoving my way past him. “But I don’t see anyone else having to do this shit.”
“You think you’re the only person here who’s had a hard life?” he asks. “Look around you, Jade. Everyone in this room has struggles. Not just you.”
I pause at the door. He’s right. No one else is running. And I won’t run, either. Let them laugh now. The bitches won’t win. I won’t let them. Not this time.
I turn back to Ryker. “Fine,” I say. “Teach me.”
But it’s a little hard for a swordsmanship teacher to teach someone without a sword. And my spork seems determined to be anything but a sword. Ryker rides my ass the entire class, but it doesn’t help. My spork will not cooperate. I’m about ready to toss it in the trash again because it clearly hates me.
“Let’s go, Jade. Class is almost over, and you haven’t even started,” Ryker barks. “Quit playing around.”
If I had a sword, I’d shove it down his fucking throat right now. I focus as hard as I can, and… It turns into a broom.
“Hey, look,” Bella jeers. “The janitor finally has a tool she can actually use.”
“Yeah, maybe I can use it to sweep off your ass,” I say. “I hear it gets a lot of use.”
Bella dives at me, screeching, “Bring it, bitch.”
Ryker steps between us and holds out his arms, holding us apart. “That’s enough,” he growls. “Class dismissed. Everyone except Jade.”
Bella scoffs, flips her hair at me, and stomps off out of the room with the rest of the class. My jaw drops, and I start to protest, but Ryker shuts me down.
“You’re going to get yourself killed if you don’t learn to control your magic,” he says as if he didn’t even notice the fight that almost happened in his class. “Now do it.”
“I’m going to be late for Professor Darius’s class,” I protest.
“I said, make your sword,” he says, his eyes narrowed with fury. The rest of the class is gone
, and all I want is to go ask Professor Darius how to transfer magic, because I obviously missed something despite my meticulous note-taking. But Ryker looks like he wants nothing more than an excuse to bind my magic and kick me out of the academy for good. I don’t trust him not to rat me out for Friday night’s excursion if I don’t do what he wants, so I sigh and try again.
I spend the next twenty minutes doing the exact same thing. The spork continues to do nothing but embarrass me. I get so pissed that I scream in frustration, but it is not swayed.
Ryker holds out his sword with two hands, ready to strike. “Weapons up,” he warns. “Unless you want to die.”
Picking up the spork, which is currently shaped like a crowbar, I close my eyes and focus, imagining a long sword, longer than Ryker’s. Feeling the crowbar transform in my hands into something, I open my eyes… And see a wooden mallet.
“What the hell is wrong with me?” I yell, hurling the thing at the wall. “I don’t know what to do anymore. This thing is incorrigible.”
“Pick it up.” Ryker stares at me, still holding out his sword.
I pick it up and try again, and again, and again, but the damn thing takes on every shape imaginable… Except a sword.
After an hour of fighting with it, I’m at my wit’s end. I’m exhausted and frustrated to tears. Ryker moves closer, holding out his sword. There’s nothing I can do. I’ve done everything, and nothing worked.
When I don’t move, he grabs me, spins me around, and holds my back against his chest, the flat side of his blade pressed to my throat, the killing edge skimming along the bottom of my chin. “Fight or die,” he growls. “Your choice.”
I’m out of breath, and I’m glad to feel that he is, too. His chest heaves against my back with each breath. His body is damp with sweat under the white shirt and tie he wears, like all the students. The heady, fresh scent of his sweat makes my head swim, and suddenly, all I can think about is his hot, hard body pressing against mine. My spork is beyond useless, but I have one weapon I haven’t used.
Ignoring the blade at my throat, I melt back against Ryker, pushing my backside gently against his dress slacks, letting him feel the roundness of my ass moving against his crotch. I close my eyes and press back harder, grinding against him. Mere moments pass before I can feel his erection throbbing against me. A shudder of longing wracks my body, and I have to fight the urge to reach back and grab the huge, hard cock crushed to my ass.
Ryker’s sword clatters to the floor. A low growl reverberates through his chest, vibrating my back and making me hot all over. I squirm against him, wanting more. He grasps my chin and turns my face around, angling his mouth to mine. I respond hungrily, without thought. I know this guy is an asshole who just drove me to tears, but I don’t care. My body doesn’t care. It only wants one thing—him.
I want his sweating body riding mine, his thick cock pounding into me endlessly, his cum filling me to overflowing. The dirtiness of my thoughts shocks me, but it also makes me even hotter. Wet heat throbs between my legs, and I moan into his mouth.
He lifts my chin, his kiss increasing in pressure and intensity. My breath comes heavy and fast as I arch back against him, needing more, and he gives it. I gasp, and his tongue slides inside. He lets out a helpless groan, and pleasure ripples through me and slides between my thighs. I can feel the heat and wetness there increasing as his tongue caresses mine, slowly at first and then faster, thrusting into my mouth. His hands explore my body, pressing over my ribs, cupping my breasts, pinching at my nipples through the fabric of my uniform. His other hand slides down my belly and under my skirt, fingering my soaked panties. He groans again, rolling his hips against mine.
“Ryker,” I breathe, tingles exploding in places I didn’t know existed. “Fuck, I want you.”
As if I’ve flipped a switch, Ryker leaps away from me. He stares at me, turbulent emotions swirling over his features, and then his face settles into an inscrutable expression.
Then he laughs. Laughs.
If this is his attempt at throwing me off my game while keeping his own dignity, it works.
I’m mortified.
“I’ll remember how easy you are next time I need to get laid,” he says, swiping his sword off the floor, striding across the room, and disappearing out the door.
I stand there a second, too humiliated and pissed to move. What was I thinking? These guys are all the same. Zebras don’t change their stripes, and assholes don’t become nice guys.
Well, fuck him. Fuck all of them.
Shaking my head, I pick up my spork, stuff it into my pocket, and head to my room to change my ruined skirt and wet panties. I don’t even care what time it is or what class I have next. I’m not about to show up looking flushed and disheveled, giving the Bellas more ammunition than they already have.
The first half of my walk is fast, but it’s such a nice day today—not too humid, not too hot—I decide after that disappointment, I need to cheer up. May as well enjoy the weather on my way back. I even decide to take the long way, walking behind the academy along the edge of the woods.
The closer I get to the dorms, however, the weirder I start to feel. Like there’s something following me. Occasionally, I glance behind me when I hear leaves rustling or something in the bushes, but there’s nothing behind me.
Still, it gives me a creeped out feeling, and I pick up the pace. After the second attack by that disappearing hot lady, I know I’m not entirely safe off campus, but the Academy of Sorcery is protected by heavy magical spells and safeguards. No one can even get onto campus without being invited by a resident, which means a student would have to be following me. If one is, they’re wearing an invisibility spell.
Right before I clear the back of the building, I hear a rustling in a nearby saw palmetto. I grab my spork and pray it’s done being pissed at me. Suddenly, a hissing demonling leaps from the bush and lands on the path behind me in a crouch.
“Fucking A,” I mutter to myself. The demonling is small and horned, with greyish skin and beady black eyes filled with malice. I don’t know much about demonlings, but I know that despite their size, they’re incredibly fierce. And I know this one’s about to attack me. Clutching my spork, I imagine that it’s a sword.
My spork turns into a cane just as the demonling lunges for me. It’s less than half my height but incredibly compact, and it hits me like a ton of bricks. I stumble backwards, smacking it with my cane. The thing retreats, baring a row of shark-like teeth as it hisses louder.
Shit. I swing for it with my cane, but it leaps aside with surprising nimbleness considering its stout stature.
“What do you want?” I shout, swiping at it again.
It charges at me in response. Not that I expected an answer. Demonlings are pretty limited when it comes to speech.
“Go away,” I yell.
But it doesn’t go away. It ducks under my cane as it arcs toward the little beast. The next second, a fifty-pound weight slams into my legs, knocking me to the ground. Fear shoots through me, and I try to jump up, but the demonling clings to my legs, pinning me to the ground.
I’m beating it over the head with my cane, cursing the damn spork with the fury of a woman about to die, when footsteps sound on the path. The next second, Ryker appears over us.
The demonling looks over its shoulder, then leaps at my throat.
I scream.
Ryker’s sword blurs through the air, and the demon’s head topples to the ground beside me.
Fighting back another scream, I roll over as quickly as I can, dumping the body and scrambling away from it as I jump to my feet. “Are you hurt?” Ryker asks, reaching over to help brush me off.
“What the hell just happened?” I ask.
“You were attacked by a demon,” Ryker points out. “A minor one, but still a demon.”
“I know what it was,” I say through clenched teeth.
“You do?” he asks, looking a bit surprised.
I’m well acquainted
with the magical community, but it strikes me that he’s telling me because he thinks I don’t know. Not to be an ass. A lot of the kids here are privileged because their families use magic to get ahead. They went to the same preppy high school and hung out with each other on weekends. I might actually have an advantage for once. While they were learning about history and conjugating verbs, I was working for Silas, who was quite involved with the entire supernatural community, not just magic wielders. I decide to keep that to myself for now.
“There shouldn’t be any demons on campus,” Ryker says, frowning at the body on the ground. “It’s supposed to be sealed off from outsiders.”
“I think it was here for me,” I admit.
Instead of scoffing and telling me I’m full of myself, Ryker eyes my bare legs. “Undoubtedly,” he says. “But even on campus, you’re not supposed to be alone. That’s why you have guards.”
“I seem to remember my ‘guard’ walking out on me a few minutes ago.”
Ryker gives me a sour look. “I thought you were going to your next class. You seemed pretty worried about missing Professor Darius.”
Do I detect a note of… Jealousy?
“I couldn’t exactly go to class in this,” I say, gesturing to my half-skirt. “Or maybe I could…”
Ryker takes my elbow in his hand and marches me toward the dorm. He is totally jealous.
The thought gives me more pleasure than it should. It was just a kiss. One that was totally and completely calculated and meant to distract him from murdering me. That’s it. It had nothing to do with any actual attraction between us.
Who am I kidding? When I look up at him, it’s all I can do not to drool. His sculpted jawline, even the golden bristle of his stubble, makes me sigh. His eyes, when they’re not boring into me with hatred, are a storm I want to chase. And I can still feel his hard chest and abs against my back, the even harder ridge of his erection aching to push inside me. The thought sends a tremor straight to my core, and heat pools between my legs again.
Academy of Sorcery: Term 1: Unleashing Trials Page 9
