Supernatural Academy: Year Two

by Jaymin Eve

  Eh, whatever. This trial was about the Clover bitches. I’d worry about Connor and his devious ways later.

  Fifteen minutes later, I was hurrying with my black bag over my shoulder, staring longingly at the food in the commons. I was tempted to just snatch something as I ran past—they could just order again. But most probably, with this crowd, all I’d get was a fight and I had no time for that.

  When I reached the entrance, Princeps Jones and Asher were both there. “Let’s go,” Jones said, looking relieved. We crossed over the moat bridge and hurried through the barrier. On the other side, there was a step-through waiting.

  “I can open one inside the grounds,” I reminded the princeps.

  He shot me a small smile. “Yes, I know, my dear. But occasionally I like to uphold the rules of the Academy. You know, set an example.”

  A snort of laughter left me. “Uh, yeah. Sorry about that.”

  He waved me off, and I knew he wasn’t really upset about all the special liberties I took here. The step-through sent us to the nearby supe-only airport, the same one Asher’s plane was kept at, and the Academy planes, one of which was waiting for us on the runway, already prepped and ready to go. Asher hadn’t said a word to me, and I’d been avoiding eye contact while pretending to have a lot of important thoughts that had nothing to do with the faded, worn jeans hugging his long, muscular legs, or the brown leather jacket giving him a rakish and sexy look.

  Nope. I was above such thoughts.

  I was a woman of deep intellectual…

  Yeah, fuck. I wasn’t even going to convince myself.

  Planes were definitely not the fastest way for us to get there, but I knew that some supes—especially vampires and shifters—preferred this method of travel. Step-throughs were unknown and scary to those who didn’t control magic in that way.

  “The flight is just over an hour,” Princeps Jones said as he settled into one of the front leather pilot chairs, leaving the ones further back for Asher and me. As I was putting my bag into an overhead locker, I felt Asher’s heat right along my spine. He pushed closer, and the energy bounced between us, his scent filling my senses, sending pain to my heart and heat to my lady parts.

  Fuck. My body didn’t know if it was coming or going with Asher.

  Definitely not coming.

  Thanks for the reminder.

  “Do you mind?” I said bluntly when he pressed closer, reaching over my head to put his bag in the same compartment as mine. “I’m sure there’s somewhere else you can store your shit.”

  I turned my head enough to see his dazzling smile, the scruff of facial hair he wore so well, and motherfucking dimples. “Safer if we store them together,” he said, sounding cheerful. “That way they won’t move around in the flight and get damaged.”

  He was screwing with me, I knew it. I just couldn’t figure out why. What was his end game?

  I spun on the spot, all breath fleeing my lungs, and I swallowed roughly, hoping desperately to find moisture in my mouth. Asher was right behind me, both of his arms braced above on the overhead locker, all but caging me in against the side of the chair.

  “You look beautiful today,” he said softly.

  Fucked. I was totally and completely fucked.

  “Thank you,” I said, trying to keep the huskiness from my voice. “Could you … uh … maybe move. I need to take my seat.”

  His eyes were locked on mine, green storms slashed with gold, and I wondered if I could actually survive not seeing those beautiful irises for the rest of my life. I’d been so strong and independent when he wasn’t around, but having him here now, all I could think about was touching him. Losing myself in him.

  He doesn’t want you! It was a harsh but needed reminder.

  Before I embarrassed myself, Asher lowered his arms and stepped back, taking the seat across the aisle. Red faced—I could feel the heat in my cheeks—I stumbled to one of the double chairs behind him, trying desperately to breathe normally.

  At least he was in front of me and I would only have to stare at the back of his head for an hour.

  Just before the pilot announced that it was time for takeoff, Asher popped up out of his seat and moved with a few graceful strides around to sit … right the fuck next to me.

  “What are you doing?” I hissed, wanting to move, but the plane had started to move and I knew it was only a short taxi to the runway.

  “Nervous flyer,” Asher said, still smiling. All his happiness was weirding me out, because I’d grown used to snarly, surly Asher over the past few weeks.

  I’d never actually flown with Asher to know if he was a nervous flyer, but I had a strong suspicion it was another lie.

  The announcement was fast, and then with a jolt the plane was zooming along the runway. Asher reached out and grabbed my hand, and when I jerked in surprise, turning to him, I almost laughed at the drawn expression on his face.

  “You can fly without a plane,” I reminded him. I kept telling myself to let his hand go, but for some reason I couldn’t make myself. “I literally saw you flying around with your … mother.”

  He shot me a dark look. “Firstly, she gave me additional powers when I was around her. I don’t have them now. And secondly … this is a leftover fear from when I was a kid. My parents’ plane crashed with me on it when I was six. It was during takeoff. Luckily, they managed to get a shielding spell up that stopped the worst of it, but I’ll never forget the fear. I’ve hated takeoff ever since.”

  Holy crap. Asher actually was afraid. I wiggled my hand and he reluctantly let me go. I turned it over and he shot me a surprised look when I linked our fingers together. “You can close your eyes,” I told him softly. “I’ll let you know when it’s over.”

  Our eyes locked again; my heart was trying to launch itself from my chest. Probably to get to Asher. Because I wanted to get to Asher so badly it hurt. I also wanted to run so fast from him that I’d be moving faster than the plane.

  For now, though, I held his hand, and he never took his eyes from me. Not even when I looked away, unable to handle the intensity of our emotions. Not even when the plane leveled out and we cruised for twenty minutes before basically starting our descent again.

  Finally, when I couldn’t take it any longer—my anger getting the best of me—I snarled, “What? Why do you keep looking at me?”

  I yanked my hand back, fighting the urge to shiver at the loss of heat from his skin.

  “I don’t fucking deserve you,” he said in that quiet, rumbly voice. “I’m so sorry for how I’ve been treating you.”

  A feather could have knocked me off my chair in that second. Asher was … apologizing.

  “I don’t understand,” I finally managed to choke out. Why the hell was I trapped on this metal bird with him? I wasn’t sure I was mentally stable enough to handle this conversation, and yet at the same time … I needed answers. “What has suddenly changed? You and the guys disappear for a few weeks, and then when you get back, you’re … nice.”

  Just when I was learning how to live without him … when I was figuring out how to be okay on my own. “Don’t do this, Asher. I’m strong without you now. I can’t go back.”

  He nodded, his face … sad. “You’re so strong, Maddi. The strongest supe I’ve ever met. Not being with you has all but destroyed me, but you just kept moving forward. Your power grows every single day.”

  WHAT IS HAPPENING?

  “I’m going to need you to explain everything to me, Asher,” I said, spitting each word out but trying to keep my voice low. Not that it mattered; with vampire hearing, Princeps Jones would catch our entire conversation.

  The pilot came over the loudspeaker then, announcing our descent into Germany. “Later,” Asher whispered as he reached out and brushed his thumb along my cheek. “I promise I will explain everything later. But I have to remain somewhat separate from you in public. At least for now.”

  “Don’t fucking do that, Ash,” I told him, knowing I was not going to be o
kay with hot and cold bullshit all day. “Don’t go back to ignoring me. If you do, I won’t give you another fucking chance.”

  He squeezed his eyes shut, and when he opened them again, I could have drowned in the pools of despair there. “My first priority is to keep you safe, Maddi. Even if that means, in the end, you hate my guts.”

  He turned away, and I was about to demand more information from him, but we’d just touched down and were taxiing across the airport toward a disembarking point. When we stopped, Asher was up and out of his seat first, moving to where our bags were. Before I’d even unbuckled my seat belt, he was standing there, my bag over his shoulder.

  “Thanks,” I said, holding out a hand for it.

  He shook his head. “I’ve got it.”

  Nope. No way. Not happening. “Dude, I can carry my own bag.”

  His eyes flashed. “Don’t call me dude, Maddison. I’m not one of your friends.”

  Ouch, that fucking stung. And there was no reason it should have. Asher had proven multiple times he wasn’t a friend.

  “Fine,” I snarled back. “Give me my fucking bag, not friend.”

  I added asshole to the end, but only mentally, because I had to be around him for a few more days.

  Asher’s sudden smile gave me whiplash. Moody bastard.

  He leaned down to me, and since I was standing at the same time, our heads almost collided. His breath brushed across my cheek and down my neck. “I didn’t mean it like that,” he said, that rumbly voice doing everything it could to seduce me. “I don’t want you to treat me just like I’m any normal friend. I’m your fucking mate. You are mine, Maddison James, and I will never be just a friend to you.”

  I shoved him, hard, and fought the urge to scream in his face. “Screw you, Asher!” I said loudly, losing my battle. “You’re nothing to me. A mate would never have treated me the way you did. Never! The second we’re done with this trial, I’m never speaking to you again.”

  His half smile was slow, and it stirred heat low in my gut. His face was still close, and I almost moaned as he brushed those full lips across the edge of my jaw. “We’ll see about that, baby,” he whispered.

  Then he was gone, striding away with both bags still over his shoulders, leaving me with weak knees and wet panties as I gawped after him.

  “Arghhhh!” I screamed loudly, startling the flight attendant, who was the only visible person on the plane. When all the lights shattered around me, she jumped back even further, and I shook my head, managing to pull myself together. Barely.

  “So sorry,” I mumbled as I hurried past, embarrassed as all hell.

  Princeps Jones and Asher were both waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs, and I almost tripped as I hurried down. Asher took a step forward, like he was preparing to catch me, but thankfully my reflexes were unbelievable now and I caught my footing easily.

  “Uh, sorry about your plane,” I said to Princeps Jones. “I might have broken it a little.”

  He waved that away like I hadn’t just possibly destroyed something worth hundreds of millions of dollars. “No worries. They’ll get it all fixed up before we leave.”

  Asher leaned over and murmured something to the princeps. I strained to hear what it was, but he spoke too softly. Princeps Jones nodded at Asher, and they exchanged a look that told me that whatever was said, they both agreed.

  Deciding it wasn’t worth stressing over, I ignored them and hurried to the long black SUV that was waiting for us, its doors being held open by a few huge guys. As I got closer, I knew immediately they were shifters. Probably bear, judging by their size.

  I was getting pretty good at picking supe races these days. “Welcome,” one of them said, waving his arm toward the open door.

  “Thank you,” I replied, startled when Asher was suddenly standing between me and the black-suited bear shifter.

  “I’ll get her door,” he said.

  Shouldering Asher out of the way, I smiled sweetly. “Actually, I can get my own door. Thanks so much.”

  Asher’s lips twitched, but he didn’t smile as I shoved him again, sidestepping him to enter the dark interior first. He was right behind me, sliding across the long bench seat, caging me in against the door.

  “You’re a possessive bastard,” I whispered angrily. “If you don’t want me, don’t try and make it so no one else can have me either.”

  Asher chuckled lightly. “Who said I didn’t want you?”

  Don’t scream. Don’t scream. We wouldn’t have time to replace the car if I blew out the windows and engine.

  “Uh, your entire attitude since you detonated into a million pieces and reappeared attached to your crazy mother?”

  I said this offhand, like we were just talking about the weather.

  Princeps Jones entered the car then, moving in on the other side of Asher, and the doors were closed.

  “You’ve gotta look deeper, Maddison,” Asher murmured, so low I almost didn’t hear it. “Always look deeper.”

  The only deeper I was interested in right now was how deep I could punch my fist into his balls.

  36

  “It’s a fairly long drive to the supernatural prison town,” Princeps Jones said. “It’s near Bremen, and both that village and the nearby hidden town are supernatural occupied. They don’t allow step-throughs close by, so this is the fastest way.”

  The driver, who was taking off, let out a laugh. “The villages are small, but the prison there is one of the largest in the world. It’s a great area. You’re really going to enjoy yourself.”

  Yeah, since my idea of a good time wasn’t hanging out in prison, I doubted that. But, as someone who’d never traveled much, I was excited to see more of Germany. Especially some of their little villages.

  At first, all I could see was airport and the nearby large city that we’d landed at, but once the driver was done winding through the streets, we moved out into the countryside, and I could have sighed at how stunning it was. Green as far as the eye could see on both sides, and small villages and mountains everywhere. It was a postcard of perfection, and I felt an insane urge to leave the car and frolic in nature.

  I must have sighed or something, because Asher crowded further into me so he could see as well. Eventually I lowered the window, letting in fresh air and the scent of the countryside. The driver was great, pointing out landmarks and tourist attractions. We saw castles and large estates that held both the character and charm missing from most American cities. The history here was so rich and vibrant that at times we could have actually traveled back to the past. It felt that real.

  “You like it here,” Asher said, watching me closely. He moved his arm so it draped across the back of the chair. I shifted forward so as not to lean against him, but we were on quite a windy road, so I kept ending up back on his arm. Eventually I gave up and enjoyed traveling through such a dreamy country.

  For those few minutes, I forgot everything that had happened. All the hurt and pain. As he leaned across me, surrounding me in warmth, pointing out the landmarks, I pretended Asher and I were still the same people we’d been six months ago. We laughed at children dancing on the side of the cobbled streets, and I made the driver stop at one point so I could grab some brightly-colored flowers sold on the edge of the road.

  Asher paid for them, and I let him, because in this minute we were not enemies. I didn’t want to burst the bubble.

  But eventually … all bubbles burst.

  “You’re required to be at the trial at 7:00 A.M tomorrow,” the man said. I had just opened my door—the room I was staying in was huge and well-appointed, within the supernatural prison village near Bremen. “Please don’t be late.”

  I nodded, but he was already moving past toward Asher and Princeps Jones. They were the next two rooms down from me. I quickly closed my door; we’d only just arrived, and it was late. Food was delivered to our rooms, and I was excited to be able to shower and change after traveling.

  Also food. I would be get
ting to that next. Thankfully it was just sandwiches and some fruit and cheese, all of which would wait until I was clean. I was thankful that all the rooms had en suites and I didn’t have to risk bumping into Asher half-naked in the bathroom. I only had so much self-control, and Asher’s body was definitely a temptation I could not resist. Just thinking about his Atlantean ink and the smooth lines of his muscles, not to mention that perfect V he had that I’d licked my way down…

  A groan left me and I hit the lever in the shower, getting undressed while I waited for it to heat up. I noticed in the large mirror that my tattoo was glowing golder than ever. Whatever had happened when I was changed into a demigod was still morphing inside of me. What would I be when it was finally done?

  There were no answers today, so I focused on relaxing as I stepped inside. A groan escaped again. The water felt so damn good. It didn’t matter if I was in the ocean, a lake, or the shower, just having water across my skin was soothing in a way that nothing else ever could be.

  Squeezing some of my soap out, I ran the coconut-and-lime-scented loofah across my skin, closing my eyes as it glided over my breasts and down my stomach. Being with Asher all day had all but destroyed me, and I decided enough was enough. I needed an orgasm, and I needed it tonight. Otherwise I was going to implode.

  The cloth fell from my fingers, but I didn’t stop the hand that continued down my body. As I brushed across the sensitive ball of nerves between my thighs, I pressed my teeth into my lip to stop from crying out. I had no idea if Asher could hear me through the walls, but he was right next door, and the last thing I needed was for him to know I was touching myself. I especially didn’t want him to know I was touching myself while thinking about him.

  Whatever lock I’d had on my emotions had cracked now; I couldn’t stop the memories of all the times Asher had touched me, loved me, made my body feel like it was going to combust. I stroked my clit harder, leaning back against the wall as my legs grew weaker. The buildup started low in my gut, my body responding even though my chest ached and tears poured down my face, mingling with the water.