With that in mind, I put on a pair of tight jeans and a top that revealed my generous cleavage, some mascara, blush, and red lipstick, and headed down to dinner. It was amazing what being left alone did to my overall physical and emotional state! Not being hounded every minute of every day allowed me to breathe, think clearly, and even start falling in love with myself again. As I crossed the inner courtyard to get to the dining hall, I felt pretty good. The winter chill seeped into my bones and invigorated me.
“Hey, you!”
I kept walking. It was a girl’s voice calling from behind. It wasn’t Yolanda, and I didn’t have any friends here, so I ignored her.
“Yes, you, human! Are you too scared to face me?”
My blood froze in my veins. Face her? I didn’t even know who she was! I turned, and when I saw Kassandra, the demoness in the Rightful Death Cabal, I understood I was in trouble. Well, at least my intuition hadn’t been wrong. Yay me! But crap, was I in trouble!
“What’s this about?” I asked in a voice that I hoped sounded confident.
“Don’t play dumb.”
I shook my head. Kassandra’s short temper didn’t agree with that. In a split second, she was right up in my personal space, her hand wrapped around my neck. My eyes widened. I grabbed her wrist with both my hands, but she was stronger than me. Of course she was.
“Kassandra, I don’t know...”
“He is mine, do you hear me? Mine! He’d never want a stupid, weak, filthy human. So, do yourself a favor and stay away from him.”
“Who are you talking about?” I was choking now. Her grip tightened even more, and I couldn’t break free. I looked around me, frantically, but there was no one in the courtyard.
“Jace. Jace Merlin is mine, bitch.”
“Oh my God, you can have him! What the fuck? He hates me! And I don’t particularly like him, either.”
“You were talking at lunch...”
“Is that a sin? I didn’t know I wasn’t allowed to have a conversation with someone in my own cabal.”
“Do you think I’m a fool, human?” She pointed a perfectly manicured finger at her own temple. “I can sense your emotions. If I focus hard enough, I can catch glimpses of your thoughts. I know exactly what you feel for Jace and...” She grinned menacingly. “Ivor. Because one isn’t enough for you. Bitch!”
Oh, shit! Oh, no. I’d thought that whole thing about demons being telepaths was a myth. Apparently, it wasn’t. Kassandra could read my mind!
“That’s right,” she sneered. The look on my face must have betrayed me. “That dream? Perverted as fuck!”
The worst part was that now that I knew she could read my thoughts, I couldn’t think of anything else. Images from the countless dreams I’d had about Jace and Ivor flashed through my head at an incredible speed. I couldn’t stop them. I squeezed my eyes shut and did my best to clear my mind. Think of nothing. Think of nothing. It didn’t work. Think of puppies. Think of cat videos. Think of what you read about unicorns at the library... Yes, unicorns existed. No, I couldn’t think about them when I knew Kassandra was poking through my thoughts, and there was no way I could hide from her. The mental anguish I was going through was even more painful than her choking me.
“You want Ivor to bite you? You want him to sink his fangs into your flesh, feed on you, then lick your wounds clean. And then you want him to lick down your neck, to your collarbone, to your...”
“Stop,” I whimpered. “Please, stop.”
“You want Jace between your legs.” There was vitriol in her voice now. She’d had fun describing what I wanted from Ivor, but now that she’d moved on to the mage, she was getting angrier by the second. “You want him to touch those chubby thighs of yours, put his hand...”
“It doesn’t mean anything!”
“What doesn’t?”
“It’s all harmless, okay? None of it will ever happen.”
“Oh, but you see... I don’t care. You want Jace to kiss you, touch you... it sickens me. You’re not allowed to fantasize about him, do you hear me?”
Actually, I couldn’t hear her anymore. My ears were buzzing, and I was feeling nauseated, like I was about to lose consciousness. I stopped struggling. My hands fell limp at my sides. I closed my eyes and waited for it to happen. I waited for Kassandra to leave me unconscious on the ground, and prayed that would be enough for her.
A whoosh of cold air made the tiny hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. We weren’t alone anymore. I could feel his presence close to me. Kassandra dropped me, and I fell to the ground, coughing violently.
“Fuck off. Now.”
I knew that voice. Low, deep, and dangerous. Ivor Gray.
“Touch her again, and I will snap your neck.”
Kassandra hissed at him, but eventually gave him the finger and walked away. Ivor and I were alone in the courtyard. He knelt beside me and took my chin between his fingers.
“Are you okay? Did she hurt you?”
“I’m okay. It doesn’t matter. I’m used to it.”
“Hayley...” When I tried to look away, he forced me to hold his gaze. His eyes were green and clear. “You shouldn’t be used to it. You should stand up for yourself.”
My eyes were swimming with tears, and there was no way I could control them. Why was he being so nice to me?
“If I stand up for myself, I only make things worse.”
“I heard all of it.”
“What?” The blood drained from my face. I must have looked like a ghost.
“I heard what she said... That you have dreams about me and Jace.” He grinned. “Naughty dreams.”
I pulled away from him and pushed myself to my feet. My knees were wobbly, but I was fine. I could walk on my own. I was ready to bolt back toward my dorm-room, when Ivor caught me by the arm and spun me around. Before I knew it, I was pressed up against his strong chest.
“Let me go.” There was no fight in my voice. He was so close, so attainable... If I lifted myself on my toes, I could kiss his lips. Not that I was going to do it...
“Since I drank your blood,” he began, “you’re all I think about. I can’t get you out of my head.” With a gentle caress, he pushed my dark bangs away from my forehead. “Hayley, I never thought I’d say this, but... I want you. I want you so badly.”
I gulped. I was doing everything in my power to keep a clear head. “No, you don’t.”
His eyes darted to my neck. I could only imagine he could hear the blood pulsating in my veins.
“I’m fat,” I added. “You and Jace make fun of me all the time.”
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry we’ve been so horrible to you.”
“Well, thank you for the apology, but it doesn’t change anything.”
“Why are you denying yourself this? You want it just as much as I do.”
“Because I can’t...” I didn’t finish my sentence. Ivor leaned in and captured my lips in a deep, passionate kiss. I’d wanted to say that I couldn’t give in to someone who’d tortured me for over a month, someone who’d made fun of me and made my life a living hell. When his tongue pushed between my lips, all I could do was grant him access. I melted in his arms, and everything that I’d wanted to throw in his face was gone.
“Do you feel it?” he whispered against my lips. “Feel how good this is?” He licked my bottom lip, and I moaned.
“Ivor, this is too much...”
“On the contrary, it’s not enough.”
We kissed again, and this time it seemed to last for hours. My hands were in his dark blond hair, his hands were all over me, exploring, caressing, groping, and the ache in my core betrayed everything that I wanted from him. Everything that I wanted him to do to me. When we parted to take a breath, there was only one question in my mind.
“Does this mean... you’re over Jace?”
He smiled. “No. I will never be over Jace. I like you both. Is that okay?”
I nodded eagerly. “Oh, it’s more than okay.”
&n
bsp; He furrowed his brows when he saw the glint of an idea in my eyes.
“What are you thinking?”
“What do you think I’m thinking?”
“Impossible...”
“Won’t know until we try.”
Chapter Seven
I woke up in the middle of the night, my heart pounding, feeling like I was being watched. For a moment, I thought that Ivor had sneaked into my room. Vampires were known for doing that. In books and movies, at least. I reached out for the lamp on my nightstand, but someone else was faster. The sudden light made me shield my eyes.
“Shh, it’s okay. It’s me.”
Hayley. I let out a sigh of relief. I sat up in bed and motioned for her to come sit beside me. Her eyes were red, like she’d been crying.
“What happened?”
“I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry. I didn’t mean for it to happen.”
I took her hands in mine and looked into her eyes. My eyes. It was so odd to stare at someone who looked, spoke, and behaved exactly like me.
“Slow down. I’m sure you have nothing to be sorry about.”
Her chin trembled. “I kissed them,” she whispered. “I didn’t want to... I mean, I wanted to.” She sighed deeply. “But I knew it was wrong, I tried to stop myself, and I couldn’t. I suck. I’m such a bad friend. Please, can you forgive me?”
I was baffled. “You kissed... who?”
She rolled her eyes at me. “You know who. Jace and Ivor. I told you: they like you. They’ve been all over me since I got there, and no matter how hard I try, they just don’t want to understand that I am not you.”
I bit the inside of my cheek. Oh, sweet Hayley. For how smart she was, she could be very naïve sometimes.
“Listen to me,” I said. “When I was there, neither of them knew I existed. They’re into you, not me.”
“That doesn’t make any sense. Maybe you didn’t see it, maybe...”
I shook my head. “No. You shouldn’t feel guilty. You and I are very different, Hayley. We look the same, but we’re nothing alike. You’re confident, and spunky, and mysterious...”
“You think I’m mysterious?”
“Yes! And I’m...” I shrugged, trying to find the right words. “I don’t know. Mellow, I guess? I’m shy, not as confident as you are, and I seem to say and do the wrong things all the time, which gets me in so much trouble.”
She sniffed, her tears finally held at bay. “Stop talking about yourself like that. You’re amazing! You just have to look in the damn mirror more often and see it.”
“Anyway, my point is: they know exactly what they want. They want you.”
“Are you sure?” She bit her lower lip, and I could see hope sparkling in her brown eyes. She didn’t want to admit it, but I knew she was here to ask for my approval. “How can you be sure?”
“Because...” And I couldn’t hold back a giggle. I covered my mouth with my hand. “There’s been some development on this side, too.”
Hearing me giggle for the first time since she’d known me, she smiled. I had a feeling she already knew what I was going to say.
“I kissed someone.”
“Who?”
“Ivor. I didn’t kiss both of them. You’re way ahead of me. But... yeah. I think Ivor and I are a thing now. The only problem is that... he still likes Jace, and Jace has no idea.”
She squealed, jumped to her feet, and did a little happy dance.
“I knew it! I told you they were being major jerks because they like you! Twisted and stupid, but there you go. Apparently, mages and vampires are no more emotionally evolved than your regular human high schoolers.”
I giggled again. It sounded weird coming from me, but I realized I didn’t care. I was feeling rather happy, and it suited me.
Hayley sneaked under the covers, and we snuggled together in bed.
“So, what’s the plan? How are you going to convince Jace?”
“I have no idea. He’s nice to me, now. But I made an enemy over him, and if I get too close to him, she will lynch me.”
“Don’t tell me. Kassandra.”
“Yeah.”
“She has a thing for Jace in your dimension, too. The three of us keep hoping she’ll get over it.”
“You should be together,” I said. “Now you know I like your guys, so it’s fine if you like mine.”
A shadow fell over her eyes. “This complicates things so much. We’ll have to switch places again at the end of the year. You’ll be back in your home dimension, I’ll be back here... What do we do then?”
“I hadn’t thought about that...”
Yep, I had been so excited over Ivor and the possibility that we might come up with something to get Jace for ourselves, that I’d completely forgotten that this wasn’t my home dimension, and these weren’t my guys. The moment year one was over, the student exchange program was over, too, and everything would go back to normal.
“They can’t jump from one dimension to another like we can,” she continued. “The only way this could work is if we switched places from time to time. You know... to visit. But that would mean a long-distance relationship. For the both of us.”
“Ugh! Those never work.” We were silent for a few minutes, then I dragged in a breath and said: “It’s too early to worry about all this. I don’t even know if I’m in a relationship with Ivor. We kissed twice, he bit me once... that’s it. And Jace may never be on board. So, how about we just live in the moment and worry about the future later? Go have fun! And I’ll figure things out here.”
“Wait a minute! Ivor bit you?!”
“Y-yes.”
“How was it?”
She sounded more curious than appalled.
“It was...” I closed my eyes and went back to that moment in time when he’d trapped me against the wall and sank his fangs in my neck. I shuddered. “It didn’t hurt. I thought it would, but it didn’t. I felt dizzy at first, then it was... pleasant.” I blushed. “And hot.”
“Wow! I must ask Ivor to do it to me.”
We laughed. We stayed like that late in the night, chatted, made plans, and talked about the guys. It was, by far, the best time I had ever spent with a friend.
“It will all be okay, you’ll see,” she said as she was getting ready to leave.
“If Jace is not in, Ivor will leave me.”
“He won’t. And remember: the parallel universes are different, but essentially one and the same. If I end up with them, you will end up with them, too. It might take longer, you might have to overcome more obstacles, but it will happen. I am here for you. Come see me whenever you like.”
I giggled. “I wouldn’t want to interrupt you.”
“That would be so weird.”
Chapter Eight
One week before Valentine’s Day, the whole Academy knew the VDC guys were throwing a party in the north tower. Why the Violent Death Cabal and why the north tower? Simple. Because the VDC students were all guys, and because the north tower was theirs and all the rooms were at their disposal. Only once in the history of the Academy had a girl been sorted into the Violent Death Cabal. We were all pretty sure it was never going to happen again. Obviously, on Valentine’s Day, the guys wanted to have some privacy with the girls. Everyone was invited. The professors were aware of what was happening, but there were no rules against parties or... sex parties, for that matter. After all, this was a place where the next Grim Reapers were born.
I was nervous, to be honest. I was thinking of skipping the thing, pretend I hadn’t heard about it, and hide in my room with a good book. A romance novel, most likely. The perfect genre when one found oneself in the midst of loneliness. And if no one asked me to be their Valentine, what was the point? I secretly hoped Ivor would want me to go to the party with him, but I wasn’t going to tell him that. Aside from some stolen kisses here and there, it wasn’t like we were dating. In public, we weren’t even holding hands. I was too afraid to ask him directly whether we really were together or
not. I was afraid of his answer. If it was no, it would break my heart into a million pieces I wasn’t sure I could ever put back together. If it was yes... oh my God, what then? It was all already so complicated.
One day until the Valentine’s party in the north tower, and all the girls around me were getting cards. Going to class was turning into something I hated because I was surrounded by couples. Giggling girls, boys who were constantly trying to hide their erections... It was as if everyone was getting ready for an orgy! I wanted and didn’t want to be part of that, at the same time.
Lunch, classes, and then I could go to my dorm-room, maybe skip dinner altogether. Seeing everyone kissing and humping each other was becoming too much. I stalked into the dining hall, looked around me, spotted a few places at the NDC table where I could eat in peace, then went to get a tray and stand in line at the open buffet.
“Sit with me at the RDC table today,” came Ivor’s low, husky voice from behind me.
“I never sit at the RDC table... No, thank you. Kassandra would kill me.”
“Who cares about that stupid bitch? I won’t let her touch a hair on that pretty head of yours.”
I blushed. “Okay.”
I piled mashed potatoes, fried fish, and veggies onto my plate, then grabbed a bottle of freshly squeezed orange juice. I waited for Ivor to get his food, then we walked together to the RDC table. As I sat down and he sat next to me, two things happened. One, Kassandra went completely pale. Fortunately, she didn’t say a word. She didn’t care about Ivor, so as long as I was with him and not with her beloved Jace, she was open to accepting me at the table of her cabal. And two, Jace went just as pale as the demoness. I stole a glance at him over the heads of the other students, and it appeared that his beautiful hazel eyes were throwing daggers at me and Ivor. It was hard to believe he was angry because the vampire had stolen his friend. Jace and I weren’t friends. The fact that he was being nice to me and made small talk when we ate together didn’t mean anything. Okay, maybe it meant something. But not much.
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