Wicked Wings

37

Grace gives me a slightly pitying smile. “Pretty safe. There are plenty of professors and official people around to make sure nothing bad happens. Sometimes a fight breaks out, but nothing serious. You don’t need to worry.”

Cyrus glances at her quickly. “Well, I mean, Jonah did go missing after the last championship game against the fae, but that was probably a coincidence.”

I glance up quickly, then shove a piece of pizza in my mouth to hide my surprise. This is news to me.

Grace’s face grows pinched at the mention of my brother. “We don’t know if it’s connected or not. The Archangels cleared the fae of any involvement.”

I don’t know much about the fae, but it sounds like I need to learn more…and figure out what happened at that game.

Araceli and I finish up our dinner, say goodnight to our friends, and head out the door. When we step out into the cool night air, I spot Marcus leaning against the wall outside, looking deliciously sexy in a black leather jacket while the breeze teases his wavy hair. His dark eyes catch mine and lust flares between us, so strong I nearly tremble when it hits me.

“There you are,” he says, straightening up. “I’d like to talk to you. Alone.”

Araceli gives me a nervous glance, but I nod at her. “It’s fine,” I say. “I’ll meet you back at the dorm.”

“Okay.” She hesitates, but then rubs her arms and darts away.

When we’re alone, I ask, “Were you waiting for me?”

“I was,” he says. “We need to set up a time to work on our project for Demon Studies.”

“Is that all?” I let out a soft laugh. “You had me worried there when you said you wanted to speak alone.”

He gives me the sexiest little grin. “I just wanted you all to myself.”

I roll my eyes at the cheesy line. “I’m free at 4pm on Wednesday. Does that work?”

“Sounds good. Meet in the library?”

I nod. “See you then.”

As I walk away, he calls out in a teasing voice, “We both know you wanted to be alone with me, too.”

I pretend I don’t hear him, but I hate how right he is. I do want him alone. In my bed. On a table. On the floor. Doesn’t matter, as long as we’re both naked. But that’s not going to happen, so I swallow my desire and head back to my dorm…alone.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Kassiel

A

t midnight, the campus is deathly quiet, especially out here by the lake. The moonlight glistens off the black water as it moves softly in the wind, and I take a deep breath and take it all in. After a long day of teaching, it helps me clear my head to have a moment alone to myself out here.

“I never imagined I’d see you out of your suit.”

The sultry, familiar voice makes me jerk upright, and I turn to spot the owner of it walking toward me. “Olivia.”

She’s wearing a black hoodie, and she pushes it back as she approaches, then shakes out that beautiful mane of dark hair. “What are you doing out here?”

“I could ask the same of you.”

“I couldn’t sleep, so I thought I’d take a walk around the lake. I didn’t expect to see anyone else out here.”

“Sometimes I unwind out here after a long day of teaching.” I should get up and say goodnight to her to avoid her as much as possible, but I find myself rooted to the bench I’ve been sitting on. Something in her eyes looks so vulnerable and lost I can’t send her away. I pat the spot next to me on the stone bench. “Care to sit with me for a few minutes?”

She glances at her watch and nods her head. If she was half-human like everyone thought, she wouldn’t have been able to see it in the meager moonlight. But she’s not, and she just confirmed it for me without even realizing it. Careful, my dear, or someone else will catch on soon too.

“I guess I can spare a few more minutes.” She perches on the edge of the bench and stares at the water, like she’s purposefully trying not to look at me. Then it hits me…she’s hungry. Lilim are always hungry, especially young ones like her. Since she’s only half succubus, I’m not sure how often she needs to feed, but she can probably feel my own desire for her every time I look at her, and it probably makes it even worse.

I jerk my gaze away from her and try not to think about how much I want her. “How are you doing? With your…special diet?”

Her body visibly stiffens. “I don’t know what you mean.”

“Sure you don’t.” I lean over and pick up a rock, tossing it into the lake. With my superior strength, it skips all the way to the other side and out of view.

“Nice throw.”

“I’ve had a lot of practice.”

She arches an eyebrow. “How old are you? Or is that weird to ask an angel?”

I chuckle softly. “It’s considered rude to ask, because the older you are, the more powerful, but it’s fine. I’m only one hundred seventy-two years old.”

“Only?” she asks, with a little laugh.

“In the supernatural world, that’s practically a baby.”

She shakes her head with an amused smile. “And in the human world, it’s old enough to be my great-great-grandfather or something like that.”

“Time is different for those of us with immortal lifespans. Years will start to fly by, and you’ll wonder where they went. Then you’ll look up, and suddenly all the technology is obsolete, and you need to learn everything all over again.”