Valkyrie's Harem (Academy of Immortals 1)

“Fuck the church,” I mutter. “You’ve literally been carrying around that baggage for hundreds of years. It’s time to let it go.” I walk over to the chair and grab my jacket, slipping my arms in the sleeves. “Whoever told you that sex is evil is the bad one. It’s a bunch of bullshit, and frankly just your father and his advisors trying to exert control over you. I hate to tell you, but your father is long dead, and it’s time for you to get laid.”

His jaw, clamped tight, flexes. He knows I’m right. He also knows that he had the opportunity of a lifetime presented to him last night and he screwed up, because Hildi? Although I can never admit it, but that is a woman worth waiting for.

“Come on,” I say, throwing his rumpled jacket toward him. “Let’s go.”

He reluctantly gets out of bed and follows me downstairs to the dining hall. Hildi sits at a table alone, nursing a cup of coffee. Her eyes are ringed with red and she looks like she’s come off a bender. While Rupert heads to the restroom to avoid seeing her a little bit longer, I slide onto the bench next to her.

“You look a bit…strung out.”

“Shut up.” She takes a sip of coffee.

“Next time you need a quick bang, come to me. Rupert can’t handle that shit.”

She turns and glares at me. “You weren’t around. Plus,” she swallows, “we’re not doing that anymore.”

“I think we could have made an exception, for health purposes.” I smile cheekily, and she rolls her eyes.

The truth is that I’m a bit miffed she didn’t come find me. We could have taken care of that quick, and I wouldn’t have been in the shower jerking off to thoughts of her in that ridiculous uniform. An image that has kept me hard for days.

It’s like the gods want me distracted from the mission.

“You know, this whole thing is your fault,” she says abruptly.

“Me?” I ask, starting to fill my plate. “How so?”

“Rupert didn’t tell you?”

“No.”

“Marielle bit me so she could find out if you and I are a thing.” She grabs a piece of bacon off my plate. “She’s into you.”

I frown. “Oh, well, too bad she’s not my type.”

“I thought everyone is your type.”

“Touché.” She’s right. Everyone was my type. Until recently. Instead of answering, I dig into my breakfast aware of one thing for sure; Rupert may not be the only one that’s changing on this mission. Things are different here and, I consider, looking at the blonde warrior next to me, I think I know why.

33

Hildi

My body is still a mess when I go back to my dorm room, and I groan when I see the door ajar. The last thing I want is an altercation with Marielle right now. Although I feel violated and betrayed by her actions last night, there’s something else. The lingering want that came from her biting me. Gods, it was s

uch a rush and I’m not sure I trust myself around her.

I brace myself outside the door, trying to decide if I’m going in. I see a figure walk by the gap and frown. It’s not Marielle in my room. It’s Elizabeth.

I cross the threshold.

“What are you doing here?” I ask, assessing the room. Marielle’s belongings are gone—her entire side of the room a blank slate. The sheets are stripped, the decorations hanging on the wall. The closet is empty, and the dresser cleared out. “Where’s Marielle?”

“I got a notice from Headmaster Gardener’s office asked me to swap rooms.”

“Did he say why?”

“Not really.” Her eyes linger on my neck. “But there are a lot of rumors going around. Did she really bite you?”

“Yeah.” I sit on my bed. “She really did.”