"And I keep an eye on everything. The discontent in the academy is growing." He pauses when Jamie stifles a yawn. "You should sleep, Jamie. I don't believe you've fully recovered."
"Yeah, it's late," Ash says as he stands. "I'm headed back; I have rugby practice tomorrow."
The gathering breaks up, like a business meeting with matters closed, which is almost what we are. The knot in my stomach grew through the conversations, worse since my visions were mentioned. Away from the academy, they'd lessened, and I believe Jamie that there's something unsettling about the academy building. My visions told me that.
I glance over at Andrei, who watches me intently.
“I need to speak to you,” he mouths at me.
Chapter Forty-One
MAEVE
I take the mugs from the table into the kitchen and turn on the tap to rinse them. Andrei appears by my side and rests against the counter, silently looking at his shoes.
"Are you feeling better, grumpy?" I ask and flick water at him.
He wipes it from his cheek. "Sorry."
"You should apologise to everyone, not only me."
He lowers his voice as he points at the others preparing to leave. "I'm still freaked out by seeing my mother and discovering she's reconnecting with the Blackwoods. That’s bloody serious, and I didn't feel that anybody was listening to me in there."
"I understand." I set the rinsed mug on the drainer. "But try to stay level-headed."
He smirks from under his hair. "Yes, ma'am." Huffing, I flick more water at him, and Andrei cracks a smile for the first time since he arrived back. He grabs my wrist. "Don't."
"I can't wash these if you have hold of my wrist, Andrei."
Tobias ducks his head in the door and informs us he's leaving, giving us a cursory glance before he walks away. The cottage drops into silence as the front door closes. Andrei immediately takes my other wrist and pulls me towards him.
"I'm so fucking worried about you," he says. "I keep imagining you with them. My mother attacking you—and I don't believe you've been straight with me about Nikolai."
Downplaying Nikolai’s mental attack seemed the best idea; I want to forget and deny that dark magic doesn’t exist. "He didn’t touch me, Andrei. Not... like that."
"But he planned to." Andrei drops my wrists and strokes my cheek with the back of his hand, watching the movement. "If he did, I would've found the bastard and killed him."
"How do you think I'd feel if you died?" I whisper. "Because that's what would've happened if you attacked a Blackwood."
He wrinkles his nose. "Yet Tobias thinks he's safe. What's with that?"
"Who knows with Tobias? Probably another of his mysteries."
"Hmm. The guy has too many secrets."
I turn back to the sink, wanting to avoid the conversation. As I pick up another mug, Andrei pushes my hair to one side then wraps his arms around my waist. He presses his lips to the back of my neck, and I dip my head forward as he trails kisses slowly across the skin towards my collarbone. Hairs lift on my arms as the lingering kisses continue, and I drop the mug back into the sink as his teasing mouth and tongue distract me.
Andrei slips his hands beneath my shirt, and his light touch sparks against my skin. "Your breathing sounds strange," he whispers against my ear.
"So does yours," I murmur.
“That's because sometimes I can't breathe when I'm with you."
I turn in surprise at his words and rest my back against the counter, winding my arms around his neck. “I missed you.”
With a smile, his lips meet mine with the same sensual softness as on my neck, hand moving to the nape to hold me steady.
Kissing Andrei triggers a slow burn inside from the moment his lips touch mine. I constantly crave his touch, and the passion he returns matches mine, every time. We could lose ourselves in each other for a whole day, and I’d still want more.
Andrei grips my hair with his other hand, tugs my head back, and his kiss becomes stronger as he delves his tongue into my mouth. He pushes me harder against the counter and the urgency grows as I rapidly lose sight of how late in the night it is. Andrei sweeps his tongue against mine, and I surrender my control as the desire for Andrei pushes through my body; a body that's now aching for his attention and touch.
The counter is cool beneath me as Andrei lifts me up, and I wrap my legs around his waist. I clutch his back, digging my fingers into the lean muscle as I kiss him with the same need and hold tight. We should leave, but my mind fills with ideas about what could happen next.
Andrei slides his mouth from mine and nudges my ear. "I caught that image," he says, voice thick with shared desire.
"Stay out of my head," I murmur and tip my head back as he switches to kissing my neck again.
"That's not what kitchen counters should be used for," he says. "Or is that what you use them for in your human world?"
"Stop teasing.” I take a surprised breath as Andrei hitches my skirt and drags my hips closer to his.
Slipping my hand beneath his shirt, I run my fingers along his stomach, tracing the contours of his muscles. Andrei pushes up my shirt, hands rough against my skin as his lips move to the side of my neck, kissing my pulse point, nipping his way to my collarbone, breath coming in short bursts.
I shift against Andrei and his hand brushes the edge of my cotton bra. He groans as I arch myself into his hand, stroking me through the fabric. With this, he trips the switch on the lust I’ve fought uselessly to hold back. Kissing him harder, I unbutton Andrei’s shirt, smoothing my hands across his chest. Andrei pulls his mouth away and rests his forehead on mine.
“Do you trust me?” he whispers.
“I always trust you,” I say hoarsely.
I wriggle towards him, not wanting him to stop. Andrei puts his palms on my back and squashes my breasts against his chest. My hardened nipples touch his smooth, warm skin; a connection that's only the start of what my body wants from him. We collide mouths again, his heart hammering against mine in unison. Holding each other's heads, as if not wanting to let go, we kiss fiercely as we hurtle towards another moment where we step into the forbidden.
The place we find ourselves in within seconds.
The intensity of our passion when we’re together constantly burns between Andrei and me. The moment he touches my skin, the desire triggers. The second his mint-cool lips touch mine, common sense leaves. How much restraint does Andrei have when we’re together like this? I’m unsure I’d have the same, because every time, he drags me away from decorous Maeve into the girl who loves the taboo and surrenders to the thrill.
Andrei’s eyes always go to mine if his touch becomes harsher or I sense his control slipping. I recognise the struggle in his look now, and use the moment to whisper how I feel, how I trust, and how I love him. We’re more than the infatuated vampire who craves the witch’s blood. But without the heart-bursting emotional bond we’ve created between us, sex with Andrei could lead in a dangerous direction.
Andrei grips the counter either side of me, preventing himself bruising my skin, as he did once before. He'd reacted with anger and shame, despite me reassuring him I was okay. One small bruise, but to him, one step in a risky direction.