Chapter 14
Fourteen
Rose
After I’m safely inside my room, I lean against the closed door for a second, forehead against the wood, and force myself to breathe, trying not to think about Jasmine’s creepy touch, or the cold look in Ollie’s eyes.
I need comfort. I need something warm and alive and not liable to snap my neck on a whim. I need Hank.
“Hank,” I whisper. “You can come out now.”
It takes a minute, but then there he is, big, green, and googly-eyed, perched the desk, looking at me.
“Ribbit,” Hank says.
I scoop him up and press him to my chest, feeling his little heart thump.
He licks my thumb with his tongue, then just sits there, perfectly content to be held.
He’s the only thing in my life that doesn’t want anything from me.
And I can’t believe I ever didn’t want him, because I can’t imagine my life without this little green amphibian in it.
“You missed some serious shit, Hank. Helena tried to kill me, but then Helena’s psycho sister took her out in front of me.
Then the psycho decided I should have my magic turned on full strength, plus she’s the new headmistress.
And Ollie is a snake now. Like, literally.
Also, Ash might not be the worst. But he also might still be. ”
“Ribbit.”
I tuck him into the front pocket of my hoodie, his usual ride, where he settles in, and I decide that I should eat something. Lucien would kill me if I starved to death now, after everything.
I’m on my way to the dining hall, but my feet don’t cooperate. Instead of heading towards the lasagna and chocolate cake, I find myself wandering towards the faculty wing, towards Soren’s quarters, and before I can change my mind, I’m standing in front of his door.
My hand is halfway up to knock when the door swings open.
Soren stands there, his hair sexily messy, shirt unbuttoned and exposing those abs that if God didn’t make them the Devil surely did, sleeves rolled up over tattooed forearms, looking exactly like the kind of guy you absolutely should not be left alone with at midnight.
His eyes glance down at my bulging hoodie pocket. “Is that a frog, or are you just happy to see me?”
I tilt my head back, rolling my eyes dramatically, anything to hide the way my heart races when he stands this close.
“Hilarious,” I mutter, but Soren’s already reaching for me, one hand against the doorframe while the other catches the fabric of my sleeve, drawing me forward with a gentle tug.
I brush past him into his room, ignoring the drumming in my ribcage that threatens to give me away.
I set Hank on the edge of Soren’s desk, where he immediately starts sniffing a stack of old books. “I liked you better when you didn’t tell bad jokes.”
Soren gives me a lazy, crooked smile. “You liked me better when I came to you in your dreams and did whatever you wanted.”
My cheeks go hot. “You stopped,” I say, the words out before I can take them back. “You don’t come anymore.”
That stops him. He blinks, genuinely caught off guard. He watches me for a moment. “I was trying to, you know, respect you.”
I cross my arms.
Soren seems to get it.
I step forward. “You could have asked me if I wanted you to stop. Before you stopped.”
He tilts his head. “Would you have told me the truth?”
“Probably not.”
He grins, and I want to slap it off his face, but I want to kiss him more.
Instead, I plant my hands on his chest, right on his bare skin where his shirt gapes open. “Professors are not supposed to be this hot,” I grumble. “It’s unprofessional.”
“You’re the one who came to me after hours. If anyone’s unprofessional, it’s you,” he teases.
I shove him, but he barely moves. “You’re such a pain in the ass.
Soren looks down at me, and for a second, the usual banter is gone. “Do you want me, Rose?”
It’s so blunt, I can’t tell if he’s teasing. I don’t answer. I just grab his shirt and pull him down to me, kissing him hard.
He tastes like every bad decision I’ve ever made, a mistake I’m going to enjoy making over and over again. His hands go to my waist, sliding under my hoodie, fingers hot like fire, and I melt into him like I always do. For a minute, there’s nothing but us, mouths hungry, hands everywhere.
Soren breaks away first, breathless. “You know, you could have just told me.”
“I’m telling you now. And I don’t like making things easy for you,” I say, tracing his jaw with my thumb.
He catches my wrist, holding it tight. “You don’t make anything easy.”
I grin, triumphant. “That’s why you like me.”
He pushes me gently back against the desk, crowding in until I’m pinned between his body and the edge. “There are other reasons,” he says, voice rough.
I hook my fingers into his belt, pulling him tighter. “Prove it.”
He does. He kisses me again, harder this time, and the room goes blurry around the edges. I lose track of time, of everything except the feeling of his hands on my skin and the heat building between us. I wouldn’t care if the world was ending, which it might very well be. My world at least.
All I care about is this, with him, right now.
When Soren finally lets me go, I’m dizzy and my lips are swollen. I straighten my hoodie, grab Hank off the desk, and look Soren dead in the eye.
“I’m going to the dining hall now,” I announce, like nothing happened. “You can come if you promise not to be a creep.”
Soren smirks. “I’ll just sit here and think about you, then.”
I head for the door, but he calls after me. “Hey, Rose?”
I glance back, Hank peeking out of my pocket.
Soren’s smile is lazy. “See you tonight.”
I roll my eyes again, but I’m already wet just thinking about it.
I head down the corridor, my mind already on the triple-layer chocolate cake waiting in the dining hall. If I’m destined to be devoured by this world of witches and madness, I might as well savor every sweet moment I can steal for myself.