by Cali Mann
“Oh, yeah, except for you.” I picked up Nox, snuggling him against me. “But why me?”
Nox didn’t answer, only purred. I headed down the aisle. I wasn’t spending another night here. I needed my shower and my bed and my quiet suite. Convincing the nurse that I didn’t need to stay for observation took some doing, but no Poseidon was lurking outside in the lobby. Was I finally going to be able to go about unhindered? I asked her about Alex, and he was doing well. They’d fed him, replacing his lost fluids, and he was resting peacefully. I peeked in on him, and he was as the nurse said, asleep. For some reason, I didn’t feel the need to run to his side. I knew he was safe.
The nurse gave me my clothes, and I pulled them on. They were filthy and smelled of smoke, but at least they were mine. No more hospital gowns—just jeans and a tee shirt for me.
I strolled toward the girls’ dorm, enjoying the quiet of the darkened hallways. I hoped they hadn’t decided since things were fine and dandy that I should move back in with the triplets. I rather enjoyed my peaceful suite. Nox walked alongside me, his paws silent on the stone flooring.
As I passed the courtyard, a shadow stepped in front of me, and Nox hissed. I was about to scream, but then I saw his face.
“Sasha,” Lucan said, stepping into the light. His shoulders were slumped, and his eyes clung to me.
“Hi, Lucan,” I said, crossing my arms over my chest and waiting for the barrage of telling me what to do. I expected he’d say, ‘Go back to the infirmary. You should be resting.’
“Are you okay?” he asked, concern filling his voice.
“I’m fine,” I said, more sharply than I intended.
Lucan nodded and turned away. “Good, I’m glad.”
I reached out a hand, catching his shoulder. “What’s the matter?”
“You were right,” he said. “I can’t trust my uncle.”
“How do you know?”
“I don’t know how much you remember,” he said, “but I got all hot-headed on Chuck and he took me hostage.”
He still wouldn’t look at me. I moved closer. Above us, the full moon shone through the sparse clouds.
“He held a gun to my head and forced me to drive away, and there was nothing I could do. He would have gotten away with it if someone hadn’t shot him.”
“And we still don’t know who,” I said, frowning.
“Before he died, Chuck said that he didn’t want to kill me because my uncle had done him a solid. That he hated spirit shifters almost as much as the executioner did.”
I shook my head. “That doesn’t matter. We knew that.”
“But, Sasha,” he said, bowing his head. “I went to my uncle about you, about all the problems you were having with Chuck. I betrayed you.”
“You told him about faking the headmaster’s death.”
“I did, and that’s why he tried to kill you . . . and Alex.” Lucan’s voice broke. “I didn’t think my uncle would ever hurt me like that.”
“You didn’t understand the depth of his hatred of spirit shifters.”
Lucan nodded. “I understand if you never want to speak to me again. I never intended to hurt you. I just thought . . .”
“. . . that you were right,” I finished.
“Yes,” Lucan said. “I thought I was protecting you.”
I studied his face. He hadn’t meant to hurt anyone. He only wanted to help, to do something. He couldn’t stand to be idle. But not every problem could be solved by barreling into it.
“My fierce wolf.” I wrapped my arms around him. “Chuck was going to kill me and my brother no matter what.”
“But it was my fault . . .”
“That he was an asshole? That he knew about our little stunt?” I shook my head. “No, he had spies everywhere. He would have found out from someone.”
Lucan looked up at me for the first time. “Is there a chance that you could forgive me?”
I smiled. “I forgive you, and what’s more, I need you by my side. We may both be stubborn and foolish, but your strength was what gave me the power to break out of that barn. Without you, I would have been lost.”
His arms slid around me, and he pulled me to him, inhaling my scent.
“The Oracle warned me—”
“You spoke to the Oracle?” he asked, awe in his voice.
I nodded. “She said that we aren’t safe yet. That Chuck isn’t the only one who hates spirit shifters.”
“My uncle for one.”
“Will you stand with me, not in front of me, but next to me?” I asked.
Like knights of old, Lucan bent on one knee and bowed his head. “I pledge my service to you, Sasha Wren. Do you accept?”
“I do.”
He stood and took my face in his hands, kissing me. The world swirled around us, and I wanted to hold on to him forever. My mates and I were meant to be. Drew had begged me to let him in, and I thought I could keep everyone else out, but I couldn’t. We needed to work together.
30
Sasha
I took Lucan’s hand, and he walked me to my dorm. “Can you text Drew? Tell him to meet us at my room?”
Lucan nodded, digging his phone out of his pocket.
“And who was the water shifter who came with you to the barn?”
“Cal Bass.”
I laughed. “Of course it was. Can you text him too? And tell him to come by?”
Lucan frowned at me. “What are you doing?”
“He’s my mate too, Lucan. I pulled power from him yesterday, just as I did from you.” Lucan knew I was right, but I watched the growl roll over him. He didn’t like thinking about me having other mates, even though he’d come to accept Drew.
I pushed open the door to my suite. Somehow, despite everything I’d been through, my key was still shoved in the bottom of my jean pocket. I don’t know how I didn’t lose it. I sighed in relief as I crossed the threshold.
“I’m gonna shower. Will you let them in when they get here?”
Lucan nodded.
I could probably have gotten the guy to do anything right about then. He was still feeling so guilty. I sighed. Chuck hadn’t changed his plans. He’d have killed us both anyway if my guys hadn’t come, hadn’t been there for me to call on. I turned on the spray and ran my hands under it. I couldn’t wait to wash the grime off and hay and whatever else was on me. They’d wiped me down when they’d checked me in the infirmary, but it hadn’t been a real bath.
Glancing in the mirror, I sighed at the circles under my eyes. Their blue depths were tinged red, probably with strain and tiredness. After stripping, I turned and stepped into the shower. The warm water ran over me, and I moaned. I scrubbed the filth away, enjoying feeling free and safe for once. Chuck was dead. Alex was hurt, but he’d recover. I didn’t need to stand over his bedside anymore. Who was I when I wasn’t Alex’s parent? I didn’t know. The Oracle thought I might be her warrior. I liked the sound of that. A warrior sounded like someone who could stand up for themselves.
When I finished cleaning myself, I stepped out of the shower and dried off. My towels felt bigger and fluffier, even though they were the same school-issued ones I’d always had. My whole life felt bigger, as if I’d lifted a heavy weight from my shoulders. I put on a robe and walked out into the lounge. Instead of the triplets, three handsome guys sat on my couch, and their heads turned to gaze at me hungrily.
“Hi guys,” I said, casually strolling over and leaning on the edge of the couch.
Cal jumped to his feet. “I’m not here to mate you.”
I chuckled. The expression on his face was priceless. This from the guy who’d casually been trying to get in my pants since day one. “We’re already mated.”
“No,” he said. “We haven’t fucked.”
“That’s true,” I said. “But I was able to pull on your power. How do you think I got out of the barn alive?”
He shook his head. “You didn’t. It wasn’t me.”
My mouth dropped open and I
stared at him. “Not you?”
Drew frowned and Lucan looked on impassively. I knew my wolf was fighting the urge to rip Cal apart for rejecting me. But he hadn’t really. He wasn’t the one. I’d thought for sure from the attraction we had and how we’d been getting to know each other.
“You slumped forward when I did,” Lucan said, a growl in his voice.
“Mom’s driving is a mess,” Cal said. “My stomach was rolling.”
“You didn’t feel any tug on your water powers?” Drew asked.
“No,” Cal said, moving toward the door. “Sorry.”
“Who else could it be?” I asked, rubbing my head. “Who could have been at the barn?”
“Maybe one of the guards,” Drew said. “I’m sure there were water shifters there.”
“But how could I have made a connection with someone I never met?” I sighed. “The Oracle was helping me. Maybe she helped me see something I don’t know is there yet?”
“I really hope you find him, Sasha,” Cal said, his hands in his jean pockets. “But I’m gonna go.”
“Okay, bye,” I said, sliding over and settling between Lucan and Drew. “It doesn’t make any sense.”
The door closed behind Cal, and we all stared at it. I was so confused. I had thought maybe I finally had this whole thing figured out. Well, almost all of it. I still didn’t have a fire shifter, but I’d used water, earth, and air at the barn. They had to come from somewhere. “It doesn’t make any sense.”
“Maybe like you said—” Drew stroked my thigh. “You just don’t know him yet.”
“Not that I mind,” Lucan said, kissing my neck. “Having you all to ourselves for a bit longer.”
I laughed.
“You do have this amazing tendency to keep wearing robes and nothing else,” Drew said, pushing the table aside and sliding between my legs. He kissed and sucked his way up my thighs.
“She does,” Lucan agreed, pushing aside the robe and cupping my breasts. His rough thumbs flicked over the nipples, peaking them.
The sigh that escaped my lips turned to a gasp when Drew’s mouth came down on my sex. He swirled his tongue over my clit, and I bucked against him. I gave myself up to it in a way I couldn’t before, even when we’d had sex in the woods. I was free of Chuck. I didn’t know everything yet, as evidenced by Cal’s departure, but I had a chance to find all my mates and live.
Lucan explored my chest and kissed along my neck, tickling my ear. My hand drifted over and stroked his cock through his jeans. He groaned, meeting my eyes.
I smiled and whispered, “Take off your clothes.”
He nodded, standing and stripping quickly.
Enjoying the way he let me call the shots, I devoured his form with my eyes.
Lucan came back to the sofa, his dick already hard and betraying his interest.
I wrapped my hand around it and pumped as Drew plunged his fingers into me. Heat flooded my body and pleasure overrode my senses. I moaned.
Their eyes watched me, seeking my pleasure. No matter how sexually experienced I was, I’d never had the love of two more perfect men. And with their love came new heights of pleasure. This wasn’t a hurried fuck in the backseat. This was devotion.
Moving up and down, I rode Drew’s fingers as he rubbed my clit with his thumb. Lucan ravaged me with his lips and tongue. Between them, I was a perfect storm. Rising and falling until I hit the cliff and their combined desire pushed me over into bliss. But they didn’t let me rest there.
Lucan sat back on the couch, pulling me into his lap. I positioned myself over him and slid down. Bracing myself with the back of the couch, I took up the rhythm driving us both toward pleasure.
Drew peeled the robe from my shoulders, tossing it away. Then he kissed along my shoulders, nibbling with his fangs. His fingers played along my buttocks and he whispered, “May I?”
The thought of both of them filling me almost made me scream right there. “Yes,” I gasped. “Please, yes.”
He pushed me forward, and I kissed Lucan hungrily, taking what was mine. Drew stroked and played with my backside, preparing me until I was moaning. Then he pressed himself inside, well coated in lube, one slow inch at a time. Between them, I was pinned, dependent on their mercy, and they rocked me back and forth. Caught between air and earth, I was bursting with sensation. Every nerve I had was sparking. I needed one more thing to make it complete.
“Bite me,” I cried.
Drew pushed aside my hair, and his fangs dug into my neck. At the first tug, I exploded into so many pieces, I didn’t know how I was ever going to find myself again.
31
Cal
I marched away from Sasha’s suite, ignoring the pang that ran through my heart. I didn’t want to mate. I’d been living on the edge of adventure since I was born—why would I ever want to settle down?
Bitterness settled in my mouth. I’d lied to Sasha though. I’d felt her pull my water powers, but I couldn’t commit to her. She deserved someone stronger, someone who loved her. I was always up for a good time, but I’d never said “I love you” to anyone but family. It wasn’t my scene. She was better off looking for a different mate.
If we never had sex, there’d be no commitment and she’d find someone else. I was sure of it. On my way back to my rooms, I found myself walking the long way around and out into the courtyard. I looked up at the moon. It had passed fullness a few nights ago. I sat down on a bench, trying to sort through my thoughts.
When I was little, my mom used to take me out in the evening to look at the stars. She’d tell me how she and Dad met, and how there was someone special out there for each of us. They’d been true mates even without a tattoo. But watching her and Dad grow apart over the years, I wasn’t sure she’d been honest. They claimed it was just work keeping them busy. But they lived on different sides of the world these days, never near each other for more than a day or two. They never divorced, but they took jobs as far away from each other as they could get. I’d rather be alone than in a relationship like that. In fact, with all the sexual adventures I’d had, I’d never fallen in love. Perhaps the Bass’s were just broken. We couldn’t love, not properly, anyway.
Somehow, the Oracle must have let Sasha use my power, even though we weren’t fated mates. We Bass’s didn’t mate.
Voices drifted to me on the breeze, and I looked around.
The headmaster and Professor Roth stood nose to nose in the entryway. Illuminated by the hall light, they were so focused on each other, I don’t think they saw me.
I hadn’t seen Roth since she left on sabbatical, but I was grateful she was back to over from Professor Abbott. He was deadly boring, and Roth in her stylish dresses was a whole lot prettier to look at. I leaned forward, curious as to what they could be talking about so late.
“The Council has decided you need a watchdog, Larkin,” Professor Roth said. Behind her stood a small piece of luggage. She must have just arrived.
“And you think you’re the one, Wilma?” the headmaster asked.
Professor Roth smiled. “I’ve been assigned by the Council. You can’t fight this, Tessa.”
“Oh, you can bet I will,” Larkin said. “I have the backing of the Oracle, if not the Council.”
“Thornbriar Academy isn’t under the purview of the Oracle,” Roth said. “And the parents are very worried about the risks you’re exposing their children to.”
“Nonsense. Sasha has been cleared.”
“Cleared by who?” Roth asked, her voice sickly sweet. “Has there been a trial? She tried to murder you in your own office!”
“She was under duress,” Larkin said and then realizing her mistake, “And besides, how do you know that?”
“We have our ways,” Roth said. Her black-framed glasses made her eyes look larger than they were, as if she truly could see everything.
Larkin snarled.
“Spirit shifters can’t be trusted. You know that, Tessa,” Roth said. “And they don’t belong at Thorn
briar.”
“They’re just kids,” Larkin said.
“Trouble with a capital T,” Roth chirped, taking the handle of her suitcase.
“Spirit shifters deserve an honest trial. One that will really determine whether they are safe to have at Thornbriar.”
Roth looked down her nose at Larkin as if she were a wayward child. “I’m here to put this house in order.”
“This house is in order,” the headmaster insisted.
“Starting with you.” Roth shook her head with a soft tsk-tsk. “And those evil spirit shifters.”
“But—”
“You really don’t have any choice in this,” Roth said. “Thornbriar is going back to the way it’s supposed to be.” She turned and strolled away.
Crossing her arms over her chest, Larkin gazed after her for a long moment. Then she marched off in the opposite direction.
I pulled out my phone to text Lucan and Drew. I didn’t know what would happen, but this spelled trouble for Sasha and they needed to know. Even if we weren’t fated mates, I still didn’t want to see her hurt.
* * *
Will Sasha find her other mates before the spirit madness kicks in? Or before the new threat at Thornbriar eliminates her? Find out in the next installment of Misfit of Thornbriar Academy— Ruin.
And feel free to check out my vampire series, Blooded Hearts. Preorder book one now: Seized.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Cali Mann is the author of the Thornbriar Academy series and Misfit of Thornbriar Academy spinoff series. She writes paranormal romance, the sexy kind with why choose, hunky shifters, sexy vampires, and women who stand up for themselves. She learned romance by reading through her mother’s entire Gothic romance collection in her teens so she and dark romance go way back. When she’s not writing, she spends her time streaming shows, playing video games, and pestering her two tuxedo cats.
Say hello to Cali online:
www.calimann.com
