Night Witch (Weatherstone College, #2)(44)

Magical overflow happened in large bursts of energy. It lingered in the air, tainting the land and world around it. Unless someone gathered it up and used it to funnel into other spells.

Rafael struck me as the type of warlock who’d use whatever power he could for his own end, even if it meant encouraging war. Even if innocent people got hurt.

Maybe especially if they did.

As we’d learned in history class, the grounds of this school were powerfully imbued with hundreds of souls. Death left a particularly strong magical essence.

“Why are they fighting?” Haley asked. “At home we tend to exist in the human world, outside of occasional coven events. I only heard about the unrest this morning in class.”

I’d learned about the unrest from Belle last year, when she’d accidentally spilled elder secrets, but the information was widespread now. At least in the magical communities.

“They’re trying to abolish and reform the council,” Logan said shortly. “Spellcasters don’t like answering to anyone, and they’ve banded together to control the narrative.”

“Explains why Daddy Kingston is interested,” Sara said as she wrinkled her cute nose. “That bastard screams of I need to control the world and every witch and warlock in it energy.”

“Daddy Kingston,” Tobias said with a hoot, before he waggled his eyebrows at Logan. “And here I thought you’d be the first bastard to rock that name.”

Fucking Hel. My face felt hot at the mere thought. Logan leaned closer, his scent and magic adding an extra element of heat to my body. “What are you thinking, dirty girl? You want to call me daddy in the bedroom?”

Any denial on my part would only lead to more ridicule, and I was too frazzled to come up with a better reply than “A title you’d have to earn, spellcaster. I’m not sure you have Big Daddy energy.”

I mentally applauded myself for trying to make light of it, especially as everyone else laughed. Logan gripped the sides of my chair and dragged it and me between his legs, his lips so close to mine that I could taste his power. “Challenge accepted, Precious.”

“Get out of here,” Trevor said, throwing a napkin at us. “You might have claimed her with some freaky magic when she was four, but she’s still my sister. And I’ll still beat your ass.”

“Trevor,” I groaned, shaking my head at him. “I’ll say this once and once only. I’m twenty-three years old. I don’t need your advice or assistance with my love life. Especially considering you’ve banged half the school.”

Trevor opened his mouth and then slammed it closed again. “I’m a one-witch warlock now. Belle has more than enough personalities to keep me interested.”

I snorted before coughing to cover it. Haley tapped the table with the nail on her pointer finger. “Do you think her dad stopped her from talking with us? Or she made the choice?”

“I think it’s both,” Sara said, a neutrality in her tone that I’d never heard from her before. She had big feelings usually, but with Belle, she’d gone cold. “He’s been in her ear, influencing her. The few times we chatted on the phone, she was distant in a way I’d never felt from her before. We can’t expect the same Belle to return tomorrow.”

It hurt to think that we might lose her. Belle had been the first friend I made at Weatherstone, and through everything we’d had each other’s backs. I couldn’t imagine her not being part of my life, but I also wasn’t going to beg for her friendship. If she chose to believe her dad after all we’d been through, there wasn’t much I could do.

“We need to talk more about Paisley’s affinity,” Trevor said, a yawn overtaking his face as he rubbed a hand across his eyes. “But not tonight. I need to get some sleep so I can function with whatever bullshit the world throws at us tomorrow.” He pushed to his feet, before pausing and meeting my gaze. “I’d like to read that reaper book if you still have it.”

“Me too,” Jensen said, also getting to his feet. “We’re here for you, sis. Alice and Jenna will be as well, even if you end up as a lonely old spinster with twenty pet monsters.”

I glared at him.

“No chance of that,” Logan drawled, and as he stood, he pulled me up beside him. “She’s my bonded mate, and we’ll have babies and monsters, which means she’ll never be alone.”

Trevor and Jensen replied with jibes and threats to kill his arrogant ass, in the way only brothers can, but I didn’t hear a word. Logan had my full attention as he swept me out of the dining hall, and when we reached his dorm, our lips clashed in a desperate kiss.

No level of fatigue would stop what was about to happen next.

A night being loved by Logan was totally worth any exhaustion.





Chapter 20




Sara and Haley were waiting for me at the breakfast cart. “Well, hello there,” Sara said as I stumbled toward them. “Look at what the cat dragged in.”

My head felt heavy, and the mirror hadn’t been my friend this morning, but there was no containing the pure contentment radiating from me.

Logan was in the running for Mate of the Century, eclipsing even my favorite book boyfriend.

“You just missed Belle,” Haley said, and I jerked my head up, focused on more than my sexy spellcaster. “She took off for class but said she’ll catch us at dinner.”