Epilogue Archer
One Week Later
Steel flashed, striking steel as my sabre collided with Valen’s.
The weight of the blade in my hand felt familiar and welcome after everything that had happened.
The afternoon sun reflected off of the windows of Valen’s cottage garden, casting dancing shadows across the grass as we moved through our forms.
“Better,” Valen said, his amber eyes following my movements with the critical gaze of a professor. “But you’re still telegraphing that thrust. I can see it coming from a mile away.”
I adjusted my grip, trying to incorporate his feedback. A week ago, I would have bristled at the correction. Now I just nodded and reset my stance.
A lot had changed in seven days.
The Elder Council had cleared Valen of any criminal wrongdoing, thanks largely to Councilor Briar Hall’s surprisingly progressive stance on vampire-witch relationships.
Not to mention, they had far more important things to deal with right now.
My father’s testimony about the Purity Front attacks had helped pull their attention away too.
Apparently his months of subtle eavesdropping had provided crucial evidence that several prominent magical families were funding the terrorist organization.
Dean Thornfield had quietly removed me out of Valen’s history class to avoid any appearance of impropriety.
But he’d suggested private fencing lessons.
The only thing he asked was that we keep our relationship discreet until I was graduated.
With the Purity Front growing bold again, the last thing he needed was a bunch of students thinking it was okay to sleep with their professors.
“Again,” Valen commanded, settling into his guard position.
I lunged forward, putting everything I had into the attack. This time I managed to slip past his initial parry, though he caught my blade on the second pass and twisted it aside with casual expertise.
“Much better,” he said, and I caught the hint of pride in his voice. “You’re damn near perfect.”
“I have a good teacher,” I replied, lowering my sabre and wiping sweat from my forehead.
He stepped closer, that familiar heat in his eyes. “Do you now?”
“The best,” I said softly, reaching up to trace the line of his jaw. The cut from the Purity Front attack had healed completely, leaving no trace of how close I’d come to losing him.
His hand covered mine, pressing it against his cheek. “I love you,” he said quietly, like he still couldn’t quite believe he was allowed to say it out loud.
“I love you too.” The words came easily now, no longer weighted with fear or uncertainty. “Even when you’re being a demanding bastard about my footwork.”
He laughed, the sound rich and warm in the garden air. “I’ll show you demanding,” he growled, backing me against the cottage wall.
“I’m not sure this is going to help me prepare for any possible attacks,” I said, looking up into Valen’s hungry eyes.
“Then call it protest,” Valen grinning. “Our own little way of not letting the Purity Front win.”
“That’s something I think I can definitely get behind…”
Instead of answering with words, he kissed me, hard and possessive and full of the passion that had nearly destroyed us both. But this time, there were no secrets between us. No hiding, no shame, no fear of discovery.
Just us, and the love we’d fought for, and the future we were building together one day at a time.
“Is this what we’re doing now, Professor Crowe?” I asked, grinning at him between kisses. “Are you going to take me right here in your garden?” I reached down, tracing the hard line of his cock through his pants.
He groaned against my mouth, his hips pressing forward into my touch. “That depends,” he murmured, his fangs grazing my lower lip. “Are you going to be a good student and let me teach you a few new things?”
“Always,” I breathed, my cock already straining against my jeans at the promise in his voice. “Though I have to warn you, I’m a very hands-on learner.”
“I’m counting on it.” His amber eyes darkened with hunger as he ground against my palm. “And I think it’s time for a practical lesson in... endurance.”
I laughed, the sound breathless with want. “Is that what we’re calling it now?”
“Among other things.” He captured my mouth again, deeper this time, his tongue sliding against mine in a way that made my knees weak. Through our bond, I could feel his arousal mixing with mine, that intoxicating feedback loop that made everything more intense.
“Valen,” I gasped when he moved to nip at my throat, right over my pulse point. “Someone could see us out here.”
“Let them,” he growled, his hands already working at the fastenings of my shirt. “I want the whole world to know you’re mine.”
The possessive edge in his voice sent heat straight to my cock. After the busy week we’d had with almost zero free time, having him claim me so openly felt like freedom at last. I reached for his shirt, desperate to feel his cool skin against mine.
“Impatient,” he chided, but his own hands were just as eager, pulling my shirt up and off before tossing it into the grass. “I thought I was supposed to be teaching you about patience.”
“You’re a terrible teacher then,” I shot back, finally getting his shirt open and running my hands over the lean muscles of his chest. “All you’re teaching me is how much I want your cock.”
He pinned my hands above my head against the cottage wall, his body pressing against mine in a way that made me arch into him. “Is that so? And what else am I teaching you?”
I looked up into his eyes, seeing my own desperate need reflected there along with something deeper. Love. Trust. The absolute certainty that this was where I belonged.
“That this is exactly where I belong,” I said honestly. “That some things are worth fighting for, even when the whole world tells you that you’re wrong.”
His grip on my wrists gentled, his thumb stroking over my pulse point. “And what else?”
“That you’re mine too,” I said softly. “Just as much as I’m yours.”
Something fierce and tender flashed across his face. “Always,” he promised, releasing my hands to cup my face instead. “For as long as you’ll have me.”
“Forever sounds good to me,” I whispered, pulling him down for another kiss.
This time when our mouths met, it was slower, deeper, full of promise and possibility. Through the bond, I could feel his emotions as clearly as my own. There was love and gratitude and wonder that we’d somehow found our way to each other despite everything that had tried to keep us apart.
“Then take me right here,” I said. “Give me everything you’ve got.”
Valen’s eyes darkened at my words, his control visibly fraying at the edges. “Fuck,” he breathed, his hands already moving to the button of my jeans. “You have no idea what you do to me when you talk like that.”
“Show me,” I challenged, my own hands working frantically at his belt. The afternoon sun was warm on my bare chest, but it was nothing compared to the heat building between us.
He spun me around suddenly, pressing my chest against the stone wall of the cottage. The rough texture scraped against my skin as he ground against my ass, his hard cock evident even through our remaining clothes.
“Right here where anyone could see us,” he murmured against my ear, his fangs grazing the sensitive skin of my neck. “Where the whole academy could know exactly what their proper little Quinn heir is doing with his vampire professor.”
I moaned at the combination of his words and the way he was pressing against me, my cock straining painfully in my jeans. “Less talking, more fucking,” I managed to gasp out.
His laugh was dark and promising as he yanked my jeans and underwear down in one swift motion, leaving me bare and exposed against the wall. The cool air hit my heated skin, making me shiver despite the warmth of the sun.
“Someone’s eager,” he said, and I could hear the smile in his voice as his hands mapped the curve of my ass. “But I think I need to remind you who’s in charge of these lessons.”
Before I could respond, one slick finger was pressing against my entrance, and I realized he must have been carrying lube in his pocket. That bastard.
“Always ready, aren’t you?” I gasped as he worked the finger inside me, my body already welcoming the familiar intrusion.
“For you? Always,” he replied, adding a second finger and making me arch back against him. “I’ve been thinking about this all week while we were stuck in those meetings. About having you like this, open and desperate for me.”
The feeding connection sparked to life as my arousal spiked, that familiar warmth flowing between us. But this time it felt different somehow. Stronger. Like the bond was deepening with each passing day we spent together.
“More,” I demanded, pushing back against his fingers. “I need more, Valen.”
“So impatient,” he chided, but he added a third finger, stretching me thoroughly while his free hand roamed over my back and sides. “I want to take my time with you.”
“We have all night for taking our time,” I panted, turning my head to look at him over my shoulder. “Right now I just need you inside me.”
The raw need in my voice must have broken his resolve because he withdrew his fingers and I heard the sound of his zipper. A moment later, the head of his cock was pressing against my entrance, and I had to brace myself against the wall as he began to push inside.
“Fuck, you feel incredible,” he groaned, his hands gripping my hips as he sank into me inch by inch. “Your ass is always so perfect.”
“So is your cock,” I replied, pushing back against him.
I was made for him, I realized as he filled me completely. Every part of my body, every beat of my heart, every breath I took… It all belonged to him now. The thought should have been terrifying, but instead it just made me feel complete.
“Please,” I begged, my body already adjusting to his size. “Please, Valen, fuck me.”
He pulled back slowly, almost all the way out, before driving back in with a force that made me cry out. The angle was perfect, hitting my prostate with alarming accuracy. Pleasure flooded through my body, making me tingle from head to toe.
“Like that?” he asked, though his voice was strained with his own need.
“Just like that,” I gasped, already lost in the rhythm he was setting. Each thrust sent pleasure cascading through both of us via the bond, creating that perfect feedback loop that made everything almost unbearably intense.
The stone wall was rough against my palms as I braced myself against his increasingly powerful thrusts. Behind me, I could hear the soft sounds he was making, those little groans and gasps that told me he was just as lost in this as I was.
“I love you,” he said suddenly, his voice rough. “I love you so fucking much, Archer.”
“I love you too,” I managed to reply, my voice breaking as he hit that perfect spot again. “More than anything. More than everything.”
The words seemed to drive him wild because his pace increased, his hips snapping against mine with desperate need. Through the bond, I could feel his approaching climax mixing with my own, building toward something that felt like it might consume us both.
“I’m close,” I warned, my body already tightening around him.
“Me too,” he panted, one hand reaching around to wrap around my aching cock. “Cum for me, darling. I want to know how much you love this.”
The combination of his hand on my cock and his relentless thrusts was too much.
My orgasm hit like lightning, white-hot pleasure tearing through me as I came with a broken cry of his name.
Through the bond, I felt him follow me over the edge, his cock pulsing inside me as he spilled himself deep within my body.
We stayed like that for a long moment, both of us trembling and breathing hard. The garden around us was peaceful, filled with the sounds of birds and distant campus life, as if nothing had changed in the past weeks.
“Well,” I said finally, my voice hoarse. “That was definitely a hands-on lesson.”
Valen laughed breathlessly, pressing a kiss to the back of my neck. “And we’re just getting started,” he murmured. “I have so much more to teach you.”
I smiled, already looking forward to every lesson he had in mind.
We had the rest of our lives to spend in one another’s embrace, to explore each other’s desires.
It was wonderful to know that this was nowhere near over between us, despite broken school rules or how forbidden our relationship might be.
But that was half of the fun, wasn’t it?
If you enjoyed this book, please leave a quick rating/review!
Want to read the bonus story between Valen and Archer? Read it here –