Thornhill Academy. Chapter 100

**Kael**

And just like that, I’m alone with Allison. Well, not really, Evander’s still here, but it’s not like he really counts.

“Are you hungry, pet?” he asks her, voice low and warm.

She hums in thought, head tilted. “Not really. Tea would be nice, though.”

He nods, kisses her forehead like it’s the most natural thing in the world, then shrugs off his jacket and lays it over the back of the couch before heading to the kitchen. Just like that, he’s gone, and I’m left standing here with no idea what to do with my hands or my thoughts. Allison moves with that quiet grace of hers, like she’s half-unaware of the chaos she stirs up just by existing. She plops herself down on the oversized green couch, flicks on the TV, and settles in like this is the most normal thing in the world.

Then she glances up at me, one brow arched, a small smirk tugging at the corner of her mouth. “It’s weird if you just stand there staring at me,” she says, patting the spot beside her.

I blink, caught off guard, because yeah, she’s right. I probably look like a lunatic frozen mid-glare, hands shoved in my pockets, trying too hard not to move.

“Didn’t think you’d notice,” I mutter, because words are safer than what’s actually going through my head.

“Please,” she teases, eyes glinting. “You’ve been staring since the second he left the room."

My hound stirs, pleased by the sound of it, and I give in, crossing the room before I can overthink it. I drop down beside her, close enough that the heat from her thigh seeps into mine, but not so close that I’ll scare her off. Her scent wraps around me—wild magic, sweetness, and something soft underneath that’s all her. The TV hums softly in the background, forgotten. She’s watching some random movie, but I couldn’t tell you a thing about it. Not when she’s right there, tucked against the couch, her bare feet pulled up, hair messy from the day.

“Better,” she says softly, not looking away from the screen.

Something in the light shifted when I sat down beside her. At first, it’s easy to miss, just a faint dimming around the edges of her usual brightness, but when I look closer, I notice it. She’s paler than normal. Her lips a little duller, her pulse a little slower. The kind of off that only someone who’s been watching her too closely would catch.

“You okay?” I ask quietly, leaning forward, elbows on my knees.

She glances at me, giving that small, soft smile she uses when she doesn’t want anyone to worry. “I’m fine,” she says. “Just… haven’t fed in a while.”

Fed.

Right.

Fed—as in siphoned.

My chest goes tight. She says it so casually, but it lands like a punch. My mate needs something, something I can provide for her. Before I can ask, Evander’s back and he moves fast, like he’s been listening from the kitchen. The mug of tea clinks softly as he sets it down on the table in front of her, but he doesn’t hand it over. Instead, he drops to a knee in front of her, big hands braced on either side of her thighs, searching her face like he’s checking she’s real.

“You need to feed,” he says, voice quiet but edged with command.

Allison nods once, small and tired. “I know.”

He nods too and then turns his head to me.

I frown, pointing at myself, my brows jumping. “Me? You want me to… her to…”

Evander’s expression barely shifts, but there’s meaning in his silence. *Yes.*

“You wanted that before,” he reminds me, voice low and sure. “And I denied you.”

Yeah. I remember.

I swallow hard. “Yeah.”

My pulse hammers as I turn back to her, reaching for her hands. They’re cold against mine, small but strong.

“Would you feed from me, Trouble?” I ask, the nickname slipping out before I can think twice.

Her head tilts, a spark of something like surprise or amusement lighting in her tired eyes. “Trouble?” she echoes, lips quirking at the corner.

The way she says it makes the air feel thick, makes my grin twitch up to match hers.

“Yeah,” I murmur. “That’s what you are.”

Evander watches us from his place by her knees, steady and quiet, his eyes burning like he’s both guardian and witness.

Allison squeezes my fingers gently, her voice soft but laced with heat. “Then I guess you don’t mind a little trouble.”

“I love trouble,” I grin, and it earns me that little breath of laughter that always feels like sunlight after a storm.

She smiles back, and then her hands tighten around mine. The air shifts with a pressure of heat and a pulse that’s both hers and mine, and I know it’s starting. I can feel it through our bond. Her power slides against my skin like silk. My hound perks up inside me, a deep, eager rumble vibrating through my chest. *Our mate. Feeding. Finally.* He’s happy to be the one giving her what she needs. To have her small hands cupping his wrists, drawing the magic straight from me. It’s beautiful. The connection hums through me, low and slow, until every nerve sings. It’s not pain; it’s surrender. Like she’s sipping the sunlight straight from my veins, taking what she wants, and in return, leaving warmth behind. Every breath she takes fills the space between us with something that feels a lot like belonging.

Then the pull deepens. My body jolts, a growl slipping free as my hound presses harder against the surface, desperate to give more. She’s taking—really taking—drawing from the core of me now. The world narrows down to her heartbeat and the faint tremor of her lips parted in focus. Her eyes flicker with threads of gold and blue light, pulsing in rhythm with my pulse. She gasps, and that’s when I realise just how hungry she’s been. Her touch becomes fevered, the siphon pull becomes stronger, faster, until the air around us thickens with heat and energy. My power bends toward her willingly, too willingly. My hound’s tail is metaphorically wagging like he’s offering her the whole damn soul if she wants it.

"Pet. Slow down," Evander warns her.

“Trouble,” I breathe, voice cracking as her eyes flare brighter, brilliant and unearthly. “Oh fuck…”

Her breath catches. Power arcs through the room, rattling the picture frames on the walls. My hound’s joy flips into alarm, but I can’t pull away. She’s radiant, divine, like every drop of magic she’s taken from me has turned her into something else entirely.

Her voice is barely a whisper when it comes. “I—can’t—stop—”