Night Witch (Weatherstone College, #2)(78)

Green eyes pinned me in place, and my pen fell from my hand and rolled off the table. When Logan was in the room, he eclipsed everything else in existence.

Would it always be like this?

An all-consuming desperate need.

Two large warlocks followed Logan, and somewhere in my mind I knew it was Noah and Tobias, but again, there was only awareness of the spellcaster. He stalked forward, and when he reached my chair, he hauled me into his arms, burying his face against the side of my neck. A gust of air escaped him, tension releasing as he slowly drifted his nose along my skin, breathing me in.

He finished with a press of his lips just behind my ear, and I gasped, my lungs screaming at me. Logan had me so fucking discombobulated that I forgot to breathe.

“Mate,” he growled against my skin. “I missed you.”

We’d only been apart for a few hours, but in this newly blossomed bond, that was far too long for both of us. “I missed you too,” I whispered, my throat tight, need fluttering in my core. “So fucking much.”

He let loose another growl. “Precious, I’m two seconds from hauling you over my shoulder and heading for our room. If you still have schoolwork to finish, tell me now.”

I couldn’t imagine any class more important than being alone with Logan, and just as I was about to tell him that, Haley piped up. “She has a lot of work to finish, so drop her back into her chair, lover boy.”

My bookish bestie didn’t use her teacher tone around powerful warlocks much, but today she meant business. Logan groaned as he gently returned me to my seat. “You get her for another hour,” he grumbled. “Then she’s mine.”

A shiver of anticipation raced down my spine and into my magic. Noah, already understanding what his best friend needed, reached out and dragged Haley’s chair away from mine, making space for Logan at my side.

He pulled a chair up and sat close, leaving me breathing in ragged, awkward gasps. “Deep breaths, baby,” he whispered, handing me my dropped pen. “You have fifty-eight minutes now to finish your homework.”

“Paisley,” Haley snapped, and I shook my head in the hopes of finding focus. “Here’s your essay.” She leaned around Logan to return it. “It’s quite good, actually. You write in such an easy-to-read and engaging tone, but you’re right about some of the timeline and facts being out of order. I’ve made notes of where you need to look, and I suggest you get to work.”

I pressed my lips tighter to hide my smile. “Yes, ma’am,” I chirped, dragging the papers toward me. “And thank you. I appreciate your help.”

She blew me a kiss. “I’d do anything for you, Paisley Hallistar. You and Sara are my chosen sisters.” Her eyes were glassy as she continued. “We almost lost you, and I’m eternally grateful that we’re all together now.”

Noah wrapped a beefy arm around her, his expression thunderous as he stared at the tear that spilled down her cheek. According to Haley, they hadn’t had the conversation yet about what they were to each other, but it was clearly coming. Noah’s possessiveness toward my friend reminded me of Logan, and there was only one path for a warlock with those feelings.

“I’m grateful too,” Logan said, the tenor of his husky voice filling the air. “But the danger isn’t over just yet. We still need to discuss our next steps. Not here, of course,” he added, eyeing all the full tables around us, “but when we leave for our gig next weekend, we will talk about the future.”

A tense silence descended over our group; even Tobias wore a composed expression.

Our moments here at Weatherstone were nothing more than a reprieve.

A reprieve from the next battle we had to face.

How to stop the council from destroying me.





Chapter 37




“Little Gem!” I heard Dad’s call as I hurried toward the breakfast cart.

I’d gotten up early hoping to grab coffee and food for Logan before he woke up. He’d been working overtime to look after me and needed rest. For once, I wanted to be the one who took care of him.

“Hey, Dad,” I said, shooting him a smile as I waited for him to catch up. “I didn’t expect to see you here so early.” Classes didn’t start for at least an hour and Dad usually spent as much time as he could with Mom in the mornings.

When he didn’t return my smile, dread slithered through my stomach, twisting it into knots. “What happened?” I asked, not sure I could handle the answer. “Is everyone okay? Mom and the twins?”

He wrapped his hand around mine. “They’re all fine, honey. I’m sorry to scare you, but we need to talk, and quickly.”

Anxiety was my new bestie as I followed Dad through Writworth and up two flights of stairs to his office. I hadn’t had any reason to visit the row of faculty offices, and I was surprised to see dozens of doors open, professors already inside preparing lessons or meeting up with students. Apparently, Dad was one of the few not normally here early.

He was greeted warmly as we passed, his colleagues glancing my way as he all but dragged me along, but no one made any comment. When we reached his office, I was waved toward his spare chair; he shut the door firmly and pressed his palm against the frame. I felt a wash of magic as he murmured a spell to shield our voices from being overheard.