40. Chapter 39 #2
A few years ago, maybe he’d be fine without an explanation.
But until he got an answer, he wasn’t sure how he could touch Silas again because he wanted more.
More than he could have. More than he deserved to have.
He clenched his jaw, forcing himself to turn away.
In his periphery, Silas disappeared into the crowd.
About twenty minutes later, he navigated through the room, carefully balancing everyone’s drinks in his hands. He came across Maeve, Liam, and Rhea first, handing them the drinks he’d gotten.
“Where’s Ivy?” he asked.
“Second floor. She mentioned it was too hot down here for her,” Rhea said, pointing at the balcony.
Ezra turned toward the stairs, and as he reached the top, he found Ivy leaning against the wall near one of the windows. Except she wasn’t alone. Her magic reached out for him, and instead of the typical petals that would softly brush against him, the edges of her magic almost felt frozen.
She smiled brightly over at him, and Silas, who had his back facing him, glanced over his shoulder.
Seeing the two of them standing together tightened something in his chest, a longing seizing him so tight he couldn’t decide whether to give in to the feeling or run from it.
She gently waved him over before turning her attention back to Silas.
With a deep breath, he came to stand between them.
“This is for you,” he said, handing her the glass of champagne. He didn’t want to get anyone anything too strong. After all, they would still need their wits about them for wandering through what lay beneath the exam hall.
“Thank you,” she murmured before taking a sip. “Silas was finishing a story about one of the anomalies he was sucked into on campus last year. It’s quite funny, actually.”
“I’m sure it is,” Ezra said, unable to hide his annoyance as he stared at Silas. “I didn’t realize the two of you knew each other.”
“We met the night of the Halloween party. I was doing my duty as host.” The corners of Silas’s lips curled into a smirk before turning his gaze back to Ivy.
Ezra watched the subtle way his dark eyes lit up as he took her in.
It’d be unnoticeable to those who didn’t know him the way Ezra did.
Or maybe he also recognized it because she had the same effect on him, too.
“We’re going to be seeing a lot more of each other in the coming semester.
I’m the teacher’s assistant to Professor Walsh, and she’ll have a class with him. ”
“Interesting,” Ezra said flatly.
Ivy took a step closer to him, her shoulder brushing his arm. “He also offered to tutor me should I need it. Apparently, Walsh doesn’t hold back, and a lot of students underestimate the difficulty of his classes.”
Ezra smiled tightly, keeping his attention fixed on Silas.
“How nice.” He wished he could believe Silas offered such out of the kindness of his heart.
Ezra knew better. It was a reminder that if he continued getting close to her, Silas would have no choice but to intervene.
“I’m sure you wouldn’t mind if I were there as well.
I could always use someone to keep me accountable for studying. ”
“Not at all.” Silas chuckled. “Perhaps I could be of some use to you as well. You know better than anyone the many talents I have.”
Heat flooded Ezra’s cheeks, and from the corner of his eye, Ivy was blushing as well as she downed her drink. Ezra cleared his throat and shifted on his feet. “I’ll keep it in mind.”
“See that you do,” Silas said with a devilish grin. His eyes shifted back to Ivy, and he took her hand in his. With a slight dip, he pressed his lips to the top of Ivy’s hand.
Ezra’s jaw clenched. He wanted them both.
Not only for a night, but for as long as he could have them.
Maybe it was selfish, but a part of him didn’t care because the last thing he expected was for two people to take up so much space in his heart.
A mix of ice shards and flower petals swirled around him as Silas stared at Ivy with a kind of reverence he’d seen before when Silas would look at him.
Silas flicked his gaze to Ezra, who sucked in a sharp breath, before standing straight. “I’ve taken too much time away from the party. It was a pleasure seeing you both.”
Silas turned away, and as soon as he was halfway across the balcony, she tugged at Ezra’s hand. “Hey, are you okay?”
He pulled his attention away from Silas to Ivy, whose cheeks were bright pink. “Yeah, yeah, I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be? Are you?”
“I’m…fine. I don’t know why he would kiss my hand.
Maybe to be polite? It was more than…” Her eyes darted to the ballroom, then back to Ezra, and she cleared her throat.
“Anyway, he mentioned last time I saw him that the two of you used to be friends. But…it seems like there’s more between you two. ”
Ezra sighed. Silas wasn’t subtle about the display of flirtation with either of them.
“We were…” He paused. Can he really say they were exes?
They were never together in the traditional sense.
And the title implied that any sentimentality was left in the past. For Ezra, at least, his feelings for Silas were still very much in the present. “We’ve been…closer than friends.”
“Oh,” Ivy said, her cheeks growing a light shade of pink again. “You aren’t anymore?”
“I…” His hand shot to the back of his neck.
“I’m not jealous,” Ivy said quickly, her blush deepening. Her brows crinkled. “Not that I have a reason to be. But even if I did, I wouldn’t be.”
He chuckled, but his cock stirred to life at the thought of the three of them.
Together. He and Silas have shared a few women before.
But to have Ivy between them? He pressed the back of his head against the cold window behind him.
He needed to stop thinking about it. It wouldn’t happen.
Ever. As far as he knew, Silas would hurt Ivy at the orders of his father.
Hell, as far as he knew, Silas could be helping take the missing students.
Ezra only knew Silas was watching him and reporting back.
What if there was more? There were always secrets between them about their duties.
And if that was the case, how could he crave the three of them being together in any way?
“It’s alright, snapdragon.” He took her hand gently, weaving his fingers with hers. “If there…are lingering feelings between us, it’s better left in the past.” He should believe that, but he didn’t. And judging by her pursed lips, she didn’t believe it either.
“Okay,” she said, dropping the subject for now and squeezing his hand gently. The familiar petals of her magic slid smoothly against him, calming the tight nerves in his shoulders. “We should go find the others then. It’s getting to be about time for us to leave.”