Academy of Beasts IV Read online

  “You,” I breathed.

  He strolled past me and blew out two of the candles, leaving us in an even darker light. With a casual air, he threw himself onto a couch.

  “Yes, it’s me,” he said easily and gestured to the couch across from him. “Your dress is dangerously short if you ask me.” His gaze went up and down my body, purposefully slow.

  “I didn’t ask you,” I told him shortly. Begrudgingly, I sat on the couch opposite from him and made sure that my panties weren’t showing. The candle was between us. He smirked, and all at once, it reminded me of Ren, Enrique, and Jasper. They were still my suspects. Could one of them really be Mr. X? He was purposefully deepening his voice. I wondered if there was some kind of magic to help make him unrecognizable. I couldn’t seem to focus.

  Well, his lips I could. They weren’t familiar to me. I frowned.

  “What do you want?” I asked.

  “A friendly chat,” he said airily. “I’d offer you a drink, but I think you’ve had enough.” His biting smile sent chills down my spine.

  “I’m not drunk.”

  “I didn’t say that,” he countered and leaned his head against his hand. “You look good enough to eat.” A wave of heat crawled up my neck. I crossed my legs and leaned forward.

  “I know.”

  His eyes danced in the light. Damn, it covered virtually everything except that fine jaw and those lips. The touch of those lips I remembered well.

  “You’ve grown bolder.” His tongue darted out to lick his bottom lip. “I like bold.”

  I crossed my arms. “It’s not for you. What do you want to chat about? The book that you yanked from my bedroom?”

  His lips quirked upward. “Do you know how many times I’ve seen you in your room?” My skin erupted into goosebumps. “My favorite pajamas are the silk kind.”

  “Fuck you.”

  He smirked and pressed on. “I’ve heard that you’ve been having quite a bit of fun here. Enrique?” He wagged his finger. “He’s a dangerous one, but I don’t blame you for trying to seduce information out of these boys. You’re smart.”

  I didn’t want to feel so wonderful from being complimented by him. “These boys? Are you saying that you’re not one of them?”

  He leaned back. “Wouldn’t you like to know.”

  “I would,” I pushed. “We could exchange services.”

  “Exchange?” His voice had become a shade huskier.

  The shadows seemed to darken around us. I leaned forward, making sure to press my breasts against my knees to give him a good show through the opening in my dress.

  “There has to be something you want, Mr. X.” I tried to mimic Enrique’s purr and Jasper’s coyness. Mr. X shifted a centimeter. Good.

  “There are many things I want.” His voice dropped even more. It was sending sparks of electricity through the air. My heart was pounding too hard against my chest. I could barely hear him over my own nervousness. “You’ve been having visions?”

  “Changing the subject?” I asked and pulled back. “Fine. Yes. Now, you tell me something.”

  He sucked in a breath. “You’re not going to make this easy, are you? Fine. What do you want to know?”

  “Who do the Council boys work for?” I narrowed my eyes. “Who do you work for?”

  “Two questions. I’ll answer one,” he replied quickly. “They work for an old group of shifters called The Officials.”

  The Officials? My mouth dropped open.

  “Have any of your visions involved your symbol?”

  I blinked, trying to remember. “Yes…I don’t think I mentioned it to the boys.”

  “The boys,” he repeated, mimicking me. I glared at him.

  “Why are you doing this to me?” I asked.

  A silence settled over us. Time seemed frozen as I watched the brutal grin slide over his face. Sharp incisors. Jasper, Enrique, and Ren were still in the running. Or a totally different man.

  “It’s fun,” he said. His tongue ran over his teeth. I shuddered. His grin grew. He’d seen it. “I like riling you up. You seem so in need of a release.”

  “Not from you.”

  “No?”

  I imagined he was cocking an eyebrow up underneath that mask. With the light, I couldn’t even see if his hair was light or dark. I suppose it didn’t matter. He could’ve easily darkened it with something. His scent was musky, a particular cologne. He was covering all his tracks. Smart bastard.

  I stood and he moved back an inch. I didn’t move my stare from his face as I crossed the space between us. I heard his sharp inhale as I came to sit beside him. “You didn’t have to kiss me that first night.”

  His smirk was even more gorgeous up close. And sadistic. He was enjoying this immensely.

  “But I did,” he whispered in a hoarse voice, choked with tension. He leaned towards me. “I do whatever I want at this place.”

  “Whatever,” I echoed. Carefully, I took my hand up to his face and traced my finger along his jaw. All of the guys had strong jaws. His arm went up and he snatched my hand into his grasp.

  “Nice try,” he muttered and turned my hand. He pressed his lips against the inner part of my wrist. My breath caught in my throat.

  “My turn to ask a question. Are you mad that I kissed you?”

  I blushed and tried to pull my hand back, but he held onto it with a wicked grip. “Sometimes,” I muttered. “Sometimes, I wish you’d done more.”

  “Ah, there it is,” he whispered. His warm breath against my wrist made me tremor. His other hand moved to my knee with the lightest of touches. My insides were turning to jelly. “You can be honest with me.”

  “And yet you hide your face.”

  He smirked. “It’s easier to play like this, Fiona.” There was a whisper of familiarity in the way he said my name. I strained hard to hear for it over the sound of blood rushing in my ears. His fingers danced over my naked thigh.

  “Do you want to play with me?”

  His gaze rose to meet mine. “Is that your question?”

  “Yes,” I managed to choke out.

  Without realizing it, I’d leaned forward. Our faces were only inches apart now. He slowly led my hand to his side. My fingers brushed through the thick fabric of his outfit. Completely black. Beneath the clothing, I could feel hard muscles. Promises of power and strength.

  He leaned into me and pressed his lips to my ear.

  “Fiona, I want to eat you alive.”

  I gasped and he kissed me.

  Harder than the first time. My hands rose up to clasp around his neck. He yanked me into his lap. I moaned as he bit my bottom lip and his tongue slipped inside. My head grew light as he ground against me. I was seeing spots among the shadows in the candlelight.

  My hands dropped and I pulled at the band of his pants. A whisper of a scar peeked through from the naked skin. His hand jerked my chin back up.

  “Naughty,” he muttered into the kiss.

  I groaned and pressed myself against him harder. His other hand snaked up my exposed thigh. My stomach flipped. The room was spinning. He chuckled as I slumped onto him. The shadows were merging together.

  “Little fool, you are drunk.”

  I didn’t remember if I said anything. Maybe another curse word and his name and a bastard tacked onto all of that. The chuckles rumbled through his chest as he carried me away. I fell asleep as his hand wandered across my back.

  The only thing in my mind when I woke up safely in my bed on Saturday morning with a raging headache and a dry mouth:

  Fiona, I want to eat you alive.

  FIN

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