Rejection (The Mate Games 2)

Fuck.

Kingston rose right along with me, his arm around my shoulders, holding me close.

“Not you, Mr. Farrell. I assure you, your mate will be fine.”

He reluctantly released me, but by the set of his jaw, he wasn’t leaving me alone with her. He’d wait.

The headmistress beckoned me with a crook of her finger. With a heavy sigh, I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. “I’ll be fine.”

“But of course you will. How silly to think otherwise,” she said as I left a glowering shifter, curious witch, and intense demigod behind.

Their gazes weighed on my back as I approached Madame le Blanc. My neck prickled, and I glanced to the left where I spotted Caleb lingering in the shadows, his gaze locked onto me as well. It looked like our conversation was going to have quite the audience.

“Do we have to do this here?”

She waved a hand, and my ears popped as the air pressure changed. “There. No one can hear us. Have you forgotten something?”

My eyes widened as I thought over the events of the last week. “No?”

She crossed her arms, looking supremely disappointed in me. “Have you really forgotten so soon? Did I not convey how gravely important it was for you to take your weekly tonic?”

“Oh!That. Well, the demon—”

She waved a hand, cutting off my excuse for the missed appointment. “And after the demon?”

Why did it look like she was trying not to laugh? No way in hell was I telling her I’d been participating in an epic fuck fest.

“I got distracted.”

A delicate snort left her. “Distracted. Well, you are lucky the dose I gave you was strong enough to remain effective for several weeks. I was under the assumption you might be as irresponsible as most young women your age. And look, I was correct.”

My eyes narrowed at the burn. Even though she was right, the need to defend myself came roaring to life. “Well, it doesn’t matter because the suppressants arrived.”

Thank you, Moira, for leaving those on my bed. They’re really coming in handy, helping me save face right now.

“Is that so?”

I nodded.

“Well, why didn’t you say that from the start? If you’ve begun taking them, then you have no need of the additional elixirs. The strength of the first dosage is enough to protect you until the suppressants take full effect.”

I squirmed, thinking of what Kingston said about my scent. “And what if... it comes back?”

Her brows rose. “I’m assuming you’re referring to your heat?”

“Yes. I... well, sometimes I think I feel it.” It was a truth I hadn’t wanted to admit to Kingston earlier, but what Alek called bloodlust seemed a lot like a weaker version of heat now that I thought back on it.

“It is said that shifters often have... relapses the first time.”

Dylan had warned me of the same thing. I guess minor flare-ups were normal. My cheeks burned.

Thank God I had so many men willing to service me.

“Things will level out soon. And with the precautions in place, you won’t have to deal with males acting like feral idiots around you. I could always put you in the well if they do.”

I balked at the thought. “It seems a little harsh to confine me over something I can’t control.”

“The safety of the school is always more important than the comfort of a single student. I will not allow you or anyone else to jeopardize that.”