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  Lilith looked at Kain, then turned to Alexi, as if she was waiting for them to say something. Actually, she was waiting for one of them to withdraw their pledge, as it should have happened in such a case. Again, an unwritten rule. It was easier for two mentors to settle it amongst themselves than it was for an apprentice to choose between them. Alexi returned Lilith’s look and shrugged his shoulders, a sign that he couldn’t care less about what she wanted from him. Lilith turned back to Kain. The blond raised a perfectly shaped eyebrow and gave her a defiant smile.

  “No way.” Two words. That was all he said.

  Lilith sighed and looked up at Sophie, whose bones were visibly trembling underneath her white dress. Her pretty brown eyes showed fear and confusion, and she literally looked like a deer caught in the headlights.

  “My dear,” said Lilith. “I’m afraid it’s all up to you now. Two mentors have pledged their claims, and you have to make a choice.” She touched Alexi’s arm with one hand and Kain’s with the other. They both looked up at her. Alexi’s eyes were kind, Kain’s were wicked. “Alexander Volkov and Kain Svjetlo. You’ve been blessed. They are currently the best cambions Lure Academy has, and their experience and expertise is beyond anything you could imagine. Whomever you choose, he will teach you well. He will make a professional out of you. You have until the end of the Midnight Ceremony, which is…” she stole a glance at the huge grandfather clock behind the stage, “at 5 in the morning. Good luck!”

  Lilith returned to the Pantheon’s table. Alexi and Kain threw each other one more challenging look, then stepped away from the stage and merged into the crowd. Sophie started hyperventilating, and she would have succumbed to a panic attack if she hadn’t felt Lamia’s small hand squeezing her shoulder and bringing her back to reality.

  “Honey, you look so pale. Let’s get out of here for a minute.”

  CHAPTER FOUR

  “There you are, Miss La Volpilliére!”

  Sophie jumped at the sound of Kain’s voice and turned around to see him descend the few stone steps of Septentrio. In the dim light of the lamp posts, his shoulder-length hair looked like molten gold, and his blue eyes were a shade darker. He strolled like a big cat preparing to pounce on its prey, and Sophie felt her knees turn to jelly. She remembered the hot kiss between him and Lamia in The Red Chamber, when she had ended up sandwiched between the girl’s soft breasts and his hard cock.

  Lamia rubbed at her arms emphatically and took a few steps towards the building. “It’s getting really cold. I’m going inside, okay?” She smiled when Sophie begged her not to with big, puppy eyes. “You two need some time alone anyway. See you later!”

  Sophie watched Lamia disappear behind the heavy, wooden door, then turned her gaze to Kain, who was waiting for her to acknowledge him.

  “Feeling better?” he asked. “You looked a bit lost back there.” He closed the space between them and cupped her cheek with his cold hand.

  She shivered at his touch, but managed a smile. “Oh, definitely. I’m sorry, I was a bit confused. I didn’t know how to react. No one had filled me in on how the ceremony was supposed to work, so I was kind of trying to do what the others were doing.”

  “Except the others weren’t chosen by two mentors.” His fingers went up to her temple, rubbing it softly, soothingly. He was so close that Sophie could feel his breath on her forehead.

  “Yeah…” She was completely lost in his touch and the depths of his eyes. It was incredible how both the cambions and The Alluring Ones could do that to people. It was close to hypnosis. She tried to snap out of it and reclaim some dignity. “Why did you choose me, Kain? You’ve only met me once.”

  “And that was enough for me to make up my mind.” His body inched closer to hers. Even though she was wearing high-heels, he was still taller than her. He could rest his chin on the top of her head if he wanted. “I was, and still am, intrigued by your innocence.”

  “You can’t know how innocent I am.” She tried to keep her voice even. The heat his body was giving off was almost driving her insane. He was so close.

  “I do, actually. I can see it in your eyes, notice it in your gestures, hear it in your trembling voice. What I don’t understand is how you still have it when your demon is so close to the surface.”

  “Is it?”

  “Yes. It’s weird, you see.” He sounded genuinely interested in the matter. He wasn’t just talking to charm her into picking him over Alexi. “I can feel it in your aura. It burns brighter than the auras of any other new cambions I’ve seen. It’s like your magic can’t wait to burst out of your body. It just needs a… nudge. The right kind of nudge.” He smiled wickedly, and pressed his body to hers.

  She felt the hardness of his cock against her stomach, the scent of his skin invaded her nostrils, and the sheer heat of his intense aura enveloped her completely. Fresh air and bloody poppies; it felt like summer in January. And she knew. In that fraction of a second, she knew. That was the unique signature of his inner demon, of his magic and power. It was overwhelming. It was maddening.

  Kain captured her lips in a tender kiss. One of his hands had taken possession of her waist, and the other was holding her chin tipped up to make sure she wouldn’t pull back. As if she could. She responded to his kiss, and the tip of his tongue teased at her lips, urging her to open up for him. Sophie let him in, and he ravished her mouth with his tongue and teeth, biting at her plump lips. She moaned deep in her throat, and his cock twitched in his black jeans, his balls painfully hard, and the tip releasing pre-cum that left a damp spot on his boxers. Confusing, chaotic thoughts were going through his head, making it impossible for him to focus his powers on her. Damn, she was hot. And she was fighting back, he could feel it. She had no experience with her own magic, but her instinct was sharp. Her demon was stirring incredibly close to the surface, and Kain knew that when it was finally released, it would be a sight worth seeing.

  Sophie pulled back to take a couple of deep breaths. She felt like Kain had been sucking the life out of her. If he could do that with a kiss, she wondered what he could do with his whole body. She’d be completely at his mercy, she knew it.

  “Maybe we should go back inside,” she said, her voice hoarse and insecure. She cleared her throat and cursed herself for not sounding convincing.

  “Are you sure?” His hand moved from her waist around her hip to squeeze her ass in a firm, possessive grip. “There are so many things we could do right now.” He rubbed his rock-hard cock against her stomach to emphasize his point.

  “I’m sure.” As hot, sexy, and demanding as he was, Sophie knew that Kain was just trying to win her over, make her choose him over his roommate. If she hadn’t met Alexi two hours before and seen how awesome and kind he was, then her choice would have been made in Kain’s favor ages ago. However, as things were right now, she couldn’t make up her mind that easily. She placed her palms on his muscular, yet lean chest, and pushed softly. “It’s getting cold anyway.”

  “I can warm you up, Sophie.” His voice was pure sin. It was what temptation would sound like if it could speak.

  She struggled to find her way out of his overpowering aura. It wasn’t a matter of getting out of his arms. That was the easy part. Regaining control over her own mind and desires was the tricky part. She had no idea what she was doing, but she focused her thoughts on that one thing inside her, that one thing which throbbed somewhere in her stomach and which she felt so strange and foreign, like it wasn’t entirely part of her. Or, maybe it was, but she didn’t know how to assimilate it yet.

  Kain let go of her ass and took a step back. Curiosity danced in his beautiful, unreal eyes.

  “Shall we go back inside?” asked Sophie.

  “Of course, my lady.”

  ♥

  Alexi had seen Kain leave the ball room to follow Sophie and Lamia outside, then had spotted Lamia returning alone. If there hadn’t been so many people around, he would have smacked himself over the head. Of course Kain would make
a move to try and gain Sophie’s attention. He drank his wine in a single breath, left the empty glass on a nearby table and grabbed another one. “Why do I even care so much?” he asked himself. He tried to convince himself that the only reason he had made the decision to offer Sophie his claim ring was that he had seen her so vulnerable and frightened on that chair up on the stage. A girl who had been thrust into a world she couldn’t yet understand and forced to keep up with it. He couldn’t just leave her there. “Who am I bullshitting?” He sighed and took a sip of wine. Alexi had felt the strong presence of her inner demon outside, in front of Septentrio, and he had wanted that power and passion the moment he touched her chin and wiped her tears off. “All right, I can live with that,” he reasoned. It was difficult for him to accept that he truly wanted someone after so long. “But why Kain? Why does he always have to compete with me?” He saw Sophie coming back from outside, shivering slightly, her eyes searching for Lamia. Alexi grabbed another glass of wine and made his way towards her.

  “Wine?”

  Sophie jumped in surprise. She had expected Kain to be right behind her, but she knew that deep, soothing voice and it didn’t belong to the blond.

  “Yes, thank you.”

  “You’re looking for your friend.”

  “Yes, have you seen her?”

  “She’s right over there.” Alexi pointed towards a table where Lamia was chatting with a tall, brown-haired guy who was three times bigger than her. “That’s her mentor.”

  “Oh. Then I probably shouldn’t bother them.”

  Alexi smiled. That was the reaction he had been aiming for. He didn’t want to give Sophie the impression that he was holding her there, to chat with him. He wanted her to believe it was her own choice.

  “You’re still cold. Here, let me give you my jacket.” He set his glass on the nearest table and made to take off his jacket. He didn’t add what he was actually thinking: “It’s obvious that jackass Kain didn’t offer you his.”

  “Oh no, I’m fine. Really. I’m warming up.” She took a sip of wine. “And the wine helps too.”

  “Well, I’ll take it off anyway.”

  Sophie raised a perfectly arched brow in confusion.

  “Because we’re dancing.”

  “What? Dancing? No.” She almost shrank in panic. “No, no, no. You don’t wanna dance with me.”

  Alexi laughed cheerfully. “Why not?”

  “I’m clumsy. I dance like a confused duck, trust me. I’m the worst. I’m gonna step on your toes, make a fool of myself, and drag you down with me into the pits of unpopularity.”

  His eyes lit up at her words. He studied her pretty face for a second, the blush the wine had already painted on her cheeks, and the full lips that were, oh, so inviting. He realized then he wasn’t attracted to her only for her looks and the intensity of her inner demon. There was something else there, behind that shy smile and doe eyes. Something uniquely… Sophie.

  “You’re funny,” he said, and offered her his hand. She eyed it reluctantly.

  “No.”

  “Yes.”

  Sophie smiled. His insistence was winning her over, but not the way Kain’s insistence did a few minutes before. Alexi was different. It was as if he was asking for her permission, and she could say “no” at any time, except she didn’t want to. She set her glass next to his, then placed her small hand into his hand. She loved the way his long fingers closed around hers, gently, yet possessively.

  Alexi dragged her to the center of the ball room. A song was playing, and there were already some couples moving to the music slowly, teasingly. His left arm went around her waist, and she responded to his touch by pressing her body against his. His cock stood up to attention, which was highly uncomfortable, since Sophie had already given him an erection before the ceremony began, and his balls were still sore. However, when she looked up into his eyes, he forgot all about it.

  “Why did you choose me?” She had to ask Alexi the same question she had asked Kain. No, she wasn’t fishing for compliments. She didn’t expect them to praise her or beg for her to choose one or the other. She simply wanted to know the truth. Why had two hot cambions like Alexi and Kain, two of the very best Lure Academy had, as the headmistress had put it, want her, Sophie, an insecure girl with more curves than the white dress she was wearing could fit inside.

  “You’re special.”

  Sophie threw her head back and laughed wholeheartedly. “Yeah, right.”

  Alexi watched her mesmerized. “No, I mean it. There’s something about you I can’t put my finger on. But it’s there, and I can’t wait for us to discover it together.”

  Sophie looked him in the eyes, trying to find any sign that he was mocking her or trying to deceive her. His dark green eyes looked sincere.

  “Kain said something similar,” she whispered, unsure if she should mention her discussion with the blond. For some reason, she felt like they were rivals. She remembered those challenging looks of defiance they had thrown each other over the glass goblet.

  “Did he?”

  “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t…”

  “It’s okay…” He pulled her even closer. They barely moved to the rhythm of the music. His right arm came to join the other on her waist, and the small gesture made Sophie encircle his neck with both her hands. He leaned in to whisper in her ear. “Just promise me you’ll choose the one you truly believe will help you unleash the power inside you.”

  His hot breath tickled the shell of her ear and spread down her neck, raising goosebumps on her bare arms. She hugged him tighter, holding onto his strong shoulders for dear life. She wasn’t sure her knees could take any more tension from these two hot men who seemed to want her so badly. If Kain and Alexi kept it up, her legs would surely give in. A shiver went down her spine and settled right between her legs when she felt the tip of his tongue trace the shell of her ear. She moaned and bit down on her tongue, trying to stop herself from being too loud.

  “You’ve got potential, my lovely Sophie,” he whispered. “Your magic is boiling so close to the surface. It’s going to tear you apart if you don’t let it out and learn how to properly control it. Choose the one who’s going to teach you everything he knows, turn you into an expert in the art of…” he trailed off, letting Sophie guess the end of his sentence.

  She was too far gone. She was sure she couldn’t make sense of half of what he was saying. All she could see was his rainbow-colored aura dancing around her, transporting her to a dense forest, right after a heavy rain. A small glade, the intense smell of damp earth and crushed leaves. Her pussy throbbed painfully, and she dug her fingers into the soft material of his shirt. He took her earlobe between his teeth and teased it playfully. Her panties were soaked, her walls were clenching like mad, screaming to be stuffed full by the hard cock that was pressed against her stomach. Sophie knew she had to focus if she wanted to break Alexi’s spell and come back to her senses. She gathered the few coherent thoughts which hadn’t been corrupted by the cambion’s aura and aimed them at that foreign thing in her stomach. She felt the skin there burn, as if something was trying to emerge to the surface but didn’t know how.

  Alexi noticed the change. Sophie’s fingers released his shirt and she relaxed in his arms. He pulled back slightly, still guiding her through the movements of their slow dance, and studied her face. She smiled up at him, an innocent glint in her brown eyes.

  “You already know how to control your powers, don’t you?”

  Sophie looked genuinely confused. “I… I don’t.”

  “You’ve just fought me. You pushed against my aura.”

  Sophie thought for a second. “Instinct. I don’t know what I’m doing. I just know that sometimes, when I’m around you or Kain, I feel… threatened.” She stopped, unsatisfied with her choice of words. “No, that’s not right. Not threatened. Enticed. Tempted. In danger of losing control, of falling prey to… your desires.”

  Alexi gave a short laugh, took a step back, maki
ng enough space for her to twirl. Her long skirt brushed against his calves. He pulled her back against him, but left some space between them. “You’ve just described the power of a cambion. Or, of an Alluring One, if you increase it tenfold.”

  Sophie furrowed her brows. “This means you and Kain were using your powers on me?”

  “No.” He smiled, hoping she’d understand. “It’s in our nature. What you’ve felt just now, and probably with Kain a couple of minutes ago, wasn’t us using our powers on you. It wasn’t an attack. If it were, you’d be on your knees now, begging for… well, let’s just leave it to begging.”

  “How charming.” Should she have been angry? Sophie didn’t know anymore. Alexi didn’t look like the kind of guy who would lie to her or do anything to harm her. He just had this tendency of being painfully honest.

  “I’m sorry. I’m… I’m doing my best to explain this to you. We are equally humans and demons. We can suppress one of these sides as needed, but when we’re being ourselves, as we always are at Lure, the people we come in contact with can see both sides. Except that one side might sometimes dominate the other depending on our thoughts and emotions. When I’m so close to you, Sophie, my demon gains ground. It’s what your body does to my body, what the smell of your skin does to my senses. It happens involuntarily because I’m not trying to suppress it, to hold back. But, you’ve figured it out. You didn’t allow yourself to be overwhelmed by my magic, which means that your powers are more developed than you think they are.”