Chapter 12
CHAPTER 12
“I hate Valentine’s Day,” Rhiannon whispered to me as we walked through the hall behind Una after classes.
I could kinda see her point. Despite the ley lines still being missing, it seemed as though everyone was desperate to continue as though everything was normal. Today, that meant candygrams and flowergrams were given to your crush.
Una’s arms were overflowing with gifts from her admirers, so much so that she had made a basket for the flowers, a bag for the candy, and was still carrying several stuffed animals.
“What would the stuffed animal telegram be called?” I mused aloud. “Animagram?”
Rhiannon huffed quietly. Her arms were empty, as were mine. I told Aiden I didn’t want any silly telegrams, and he had taken me at my word. I was glad now, because it meant that Rhiannon was confiding in me.
“Would it mean less coming from a friend?” I asked her.
She was silent for a moment, thinking about my question. “I don’t think so. I don’t want the admirers that Una has. It would make me uncomfortable.”
A plan started bubbling in my brain. “I can’t imagine you ever acting like Una.” I linked our arms. “You wouldn’t be you.”
“I’m glad you feel that way.”
“You’re not coming to the dance, right?”
Rhiannon shook her head vehemently. “I plan to curl up with a book and a glass of wine.”
“Sounds delightful,” I said sincerely. “You shouldn’t put yourself through things that make you uncomfortable unless you feel they’re worth it.”
“Like this thesis,” Rhiannon said with a chuckle. “It’s not easy for me to be a TA for Professor Wright.”
“You’re doing an amazing job,” I said, squeezing her arm. “I appreciate you.”
“Thank you.”
“Will I at least see you for dinner?”
“Oh, thanks for reminding me.” Rhiannon gently extracted herself from me. “I wanted to grab dinner to eat in my room to avoid the crowds.”
“Okay. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“At lunch at the earliest,” she said with a chuckle.
“Maybe earlier, if Moonbeam wants real food,” I said.
She flipped me a wave and headed off down the stairs to the kitchen.
“Excellent, plenty of time to enact my plan,” I muttered to myself, rubbing my hands together.
“Uh oh, you look terrifying. What’s going on in that big beautiful brain of yours?” Lilia asked from behind me.
“Exactly the person I was hoping to see.” I half-pounced on her. “You’re super grateful to Rhiannon for the work she did with your dragons at the beginning of term, right?”
“Absolutely,” Lilia said without hesitation.
“What do you think about showing your appreciation in the form of candy or a book?”
“You are brilliant, aren’t you?” Lilia said admiringly. “I’ll wrangle the girls in the northeast wing, you take the southeast. Brom will tackle the boys in the northwest, and Aiden would probably be willing to help out with the southwest, wouldn’t he?”
I nodded. “It shouldn’t take too long. The more people we tell, the more we can enlist into helping us. I think each person should tell ten people. That should cover the entire student body in an hour. We still have to get ready for the dance.”
Lilia chortled. “Rhi will be so surprised!”
“Just make sure everybody knows to deliver it to her room. She won’t be at the dance.”
Lilia nodded her understanding and latched onto Brom’s arm. “Brom, baby, you’ll help me make Rhiannon’s day, won’t you?”
Brom sighed grumpily, but I knew he was on board. He’d do pretty much anything to make Lilia happy.
I didn’t count Lilia as my first person, and started instead on the hallway on our floor, hoping to be done by the time Rhiannon had retrieved her dinner.
Seeing no sign of her by the time I slipped into my room, I mentally patted myself on the back and settled into the process of getting ready for the dance.
Una had made my dress, a beautiful, flowing, gauzy thing that shimmered between red and pink depending on the lighting. I felt like a fairy in it, minus the wings. She’d helped me choose the makeup to go with it as well, soft pinks and muted creams for the eyes, pink on my cheeks, and bright pink on my lips in the shape of a heart.
I caught a glimpse of my magical black dragon tattoo over my shoulder before I got dressed. Lilia had magicked it onto my back at the beginning of third year, and I’d liked it so much I’d kept it. Aiden had loved it as well, tracing the fire that wrapped around my left side with his tongue many times.
I shivered at the thought of the sex I knew would be coming tonight. Aiden loved it when I dressed up for him.
The dress practically floated around my body, hugging my breasts and hips, but keeping my back on full display in a way that could only be done with magic. The material shifted as I walked, coiling around my torso like a living creature.
“The things that girl can do with fabric,” Lilia commented in awe as she entered the room.
“Do you need help getting ready?” I asked her.
“No, don’t worry about me. Aiden’s waiting for you in the common room. Go give that boy a heart attack.” Lilia cackled.
I grinned at her and Hazel, who had followed her in. “What about you?” I asked our third roommate.
Hazel waved me on. “I’m good. Una made me a simple sheath dress in green.”
“Go on,” they both urged me at the same time.
I slipped out the door, but only got a few steps before slender arms wrapped around me in a hug from behind.
“I know you did this, somehow,” Rhiannon’s voice said.
I turned in her arms and returned her hug. “You deserve it.”
“It’s overwhelming,” she said, pulling back and wiping a tear from her cheek.
“People are grateful you helped them with their familiars. I just... reminded them.” I smiled at her. “Enjoy your night in.”
“I have so many books to choose from!” she exclaimed, almost bewildered. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to make it through the stack!”
I laughed. “Welcome to normal life.”
“You look beautiful,” she said suddenly, taking me in fully. “Have a great night.”
“I will.”
The length of the hallway had never seemed so long. I could see Aiden sitting in one of the chairs, rubbing his hand on his knee. He hadn’t seen me yet, so I could study him unaware.
He looked handsome in a red velvet suit coat and black shirt and pants. His tie was pink, which worked well with his complexion.
“We match,” I said, once I was within earshot.
Aiden looked up, his jaw dropping as he took me in. He opened and closed his mouth a couple times, no sound escaping. “Gorgeous,” he finally said, his voice rasping over the word.
“Thank you.” I spun for him, my skirts billowing around me. “And thank you for helping to make Rhiannon’s day special.”
“Anything,” he muttered nonsensically. He got to his feet and took my hand, spinning me again. “Wanna skip dinner?”
I laughed. “Are you seriously asking me if I want to miss eating food?”
“Yeah, I guess not.” He smiled sheepishly. “How fast can you eat?”
I slapped his chest lightly. “Behave. We’re going to have a nice dinner with our friends, dance to a couple songs, and then we can slip away and have wild passionate monkey sex.”
Bruce coughed and Clarissa whooped.
“Monkey sex?” Aiden asked, chuckling.
“I don’t know. It just came out.” I blushed slightly. “You know what I mean.”
“I do.” His fingers trailed down my bare upper back over the dragon tattoo, sending tingles throughout my body.
“Everybody ready?” I asked to distract myself from his hands on my body.
“Just waiting on Lilia and Hazel,” Clarissa replied.
“Hazel should be almost ready,” I said, turning to look back down our hall. “I have no idea about Lilia, though.”
Sure enough, Hazel was leaving our room, followed closely by Lilia.
Brom was halfway down our hallway to meet his mate before I could even blink. He was so besotted with my friend, and I loved to see it. She deserved to be treated well.
The stairs down to the mess had been transformed. The railings were wrapped with garlands of hearts, tiny cupids dangling between the spokes. Each step changed color once it was walked upon, alternating between pink, red, and white. Clouds of glitter burst overhead at each landing, the dust raining down gently over us.
I spat shimmery silver glitter out of my mouth once we reached the main floor. “Una, did you have anything to do with the decorations this year?”
She smiled entirely too innocently for someone bedecked in glitter. “I might have.”
“I’m going to find this stuff everywhere for years,” Aiden grumbled.
“Probably.” She shrugged.
“There’s a counter curse, isn’t there?” I asked her.
“First of all,” she said, holding up a finger, “I’m offended you think glitter is a curse. And second, why must there be a counter?”
I raised an eyebrow and crossed my arms.
“Fine.” She visibly deflated.
“A little glitter is nice,” I tried reassuring her. “But this is too much.”
“No such thing.” Una pointed at each of us in turn and glitter evaporated off us, swirling overhead in a multi-colored cloud.
“Thank you,” Bruce said, giving himself a shake and brushing his shoulders as if to check for himself that she hadn’t left any behind.
“Dinner?” I said, taking Aiden’s arm and letting him lead me into the mess hall.
The rest of the evening was fun, from the delicious food to the glamor of the ballroom, but I was ready to disappear with Aiden after dancing with him only twice. His heated stares made me feel like I was already naked before him, and I was ready for that to be reality, so we needed to find privacy quickly.
Giggling like teenagers, we ran hand-in-hand up to Aiden’s room. At the door, he swished me around to face him and pressed me against it.
“I am so lucky to have found you,” he murmured against my lips. “You’re so gorgeous. I love you so much.”
“Kiss me already,” I whined impatiently.
Aiden grinned, his breath washing over me, and pulled back. “So ready for it. Are you dripping?”
I flushed at his dirty words. “Yes.”
“Not enough.” He opened his door and we stumbled inside.
“Oh, Aiden. You did this for me?” I gasped, looking at the rose petals strewn across the bed. “And all without magic?”
“It had to be magicless thanks to Moonbeam,” he said, rolling his eyes. “Speaking of, where has she gotten to?”
We searched for his pet, finding her inside her nest with one of the magic generators half-eaten between her paws. She’d managed to drag one of Aiden’s shirts over herself, which was why we hadn’t noticed her immediately.
“Privacy at last,” Aiden said seductively. “Whatever should I do with you?”
“Fuck me until I scream?” I suggested.
“I don’t know...” he trailed off. “You didn’t respond to my declaration of love.”
“Oh, sweetheart!” I wrapped my arms around his neck. “I love you so much I don’t know what to do with myself.”
“That’s better.” In quick motions, Aiden stripped us both of our clothing, and we fell onto the bed. “Una’s glitter is still clinging to you.”
“No, that would be my glitter.” I winked at him. “It’s edible.”
“Really?” Aiden pressed a kiss to the swell of my breast, his tongue flicking out to taste. “Vanilla?”
“Some of it is.”
“Only some?” His lips quirked up and he bent lower, circling my nipple with his tongue. “Mmm, strawberry.” Lower still, to my hipbone. “More vanilla.” He spread my legs with broad hands and bent over my clit. “Chocolate,” he groaned in satisfaction.
“I saved your favorite for the best.”
“You know you don’t have to bribe me to eat you out,” he teased, settling on his stomach between my thighs.
“I thought of this as a special treat, not bribery.”
“Happy birthday to me,” he said playfully, dropping his head again to lap his tongue between my folds.
“I’ll keep this in mind for your birthday,” I managed to gasp. “I had been planning on being your cock warmer, but if you prefer this...” I bit off a shriek when his teeth scraped over my sensitive bundle of nerves.
“Both,” Aiden said decidedly.
“Greedy thing,” I said affectionately.
“When it comes to you,” he dipped his tongue inside me before circling my clit again. “I will always demand more.”