Page 37 of Seven is Swell

“Has anybody wondered if he has the ability to camouflage himself?” Cory asks.

Delaney whips her head towards them. “What do you mean?”

Something settles in my gut. “I have heard several accounts of different colored skin,” I admit.

“I mean,” Cory says carefully, “what if the reason we haven’t been able to find him again, is because he’s able to change his appearance? What if he’s parading around as a student and appearing as the actual demon he is only when he feels like it? He literally could be anybody.”

Adam says what we’re all thinking. “That’s a terrifying thought.”

I completely agree but admitting that won’t make this situation any better. “We need more information on this guy somehow. It’s imperative.”

“I’ll try to get some,” Jackson says, kissing Delaney on the cheek before starting out of the room with his phone out.

Ash is shaking his head. “This is nuts, and not really the kind of shifter I prefer to need information on. How is your world not simply imploding right now, dear heart?”

“You get used to the chaos of how her family operates,” Adam says reassuringly. “And we’ve got you, Delaney. If anybody starts trying to charm you, just let us know and we’ll try and do some recon, okay? For now, let’s just work off the assumption that he might be able to change his appearance. You probably shouldn’tsleep with anybody unless we know they’re not a demon. Wait,” Adam says suddenly, looking around the room. “Nobody here is a demon, right?”

“Idiot,” Delaney says under her breath, head in her hand.

“Well, it seems like the obvious thing to ask,” Adam explains.

Chapter Thirteen

Delaney

“Alright everyone, excellent job today. I’d like to commend Wilford and Delaney especially for really understanding the heart of this assignment— you all could stand to learn a thing or two from them. We’ll pick this up again next week when we start discussing ways to create little moments of intimacy when you’re surrounded by lots of other people.”

“Fucking pushover,” someone spits at Wil as they walk by us, exiting the classroom.

I’m proud of him; this week’s assignment had been about providing for your mate, and try as they might, nobody has been able to do better than Wilford. Every week, assignment after assignment, he consistently continues to prove that he would make the ideal mate.

I’m not saying it’s really hot, but…

What I’m saying is that it’s sexy as fuck that he’s so into proving how good at all of this he is. “Don’t listen to them. I feel like I’m flying by the seat of my pants trying to navigate this whole conduit business, and honestly, you’ve been a huge help. You’re helping me to realize there are ways to help my partners know I’m thinking about them in little ways, things I wouldn’t have thought to do before. You make this all look so easy.”

It's actually adorable how hard he blushes. “Don’t sell yourself short, Delaney. I might be doing well in this class, but that’s only because I’ve been obsessed with conduits most of my life. I think it’s riveting how you are all called upon by the goddess to build these bonds, and they’re such blessings. I can’t even imagine how wonderful that would feel to know that you had a whole group of people committed to making sure you were not only happy and healthy, but like you always had someone to hang out with, no matter the time of day. These are just silly assignments; you’re actually living it. You’re doing a pretty kick butt job I think, if the smiles on your bondeds faces are anything to go by.”

“You uh…you see that, huh?”

We start gathering our things up, and I find I don’t want to rush out of here because there’s something calming about being around Wilford.

“Delaney, everyone on campus sees you guys; you don’t do the whole conduit thing like anyone else. Then again, I suppose that’s to be expected since your mom shook everything up too when she was a student here. Do you think I could…you know what? Never mind. That was stupid of me. Can I maybe walk you to where you’re going next?”

“What were you going to ask, Wil?”

He stands slowly and runs his hands through his hair, disrupting some of the curls and making them frizz a bit. It’s hard to resist the need to smooth them down, and my fingers itching probably means something. He leans down to where I’m still sitting, barely just finishing zipping up my bag. “You cover them up a lot; and that’s not at all a criticism, I imagine they feel sort of...private? That’s how I’d feel anyway. I just wanted to know if I could perhaps look at your goddess marks.”

I whip off my sweatshirt, absolutely not missing how his eyes get caught in other places or how his breath gets heavier as he drags them to my arm. The tender way he picks my arm up to examine it like it’s something precious is such a weird thing to turn me on.

“You got a new one.”

I finally rip my eyes off him and look to my arm too, to where the headmaster’s mark sits high and proud on my arm. “Yeah. That one’s kind of complicated. It will probably be empty for a while.”

His demeanor changes in an instant. “Did someone turn you down, Delaney? I’m definitely not a fighter but maybe I could…talk to them. Surely there’s nothing more important than giving into a goddess-blessed bond.”

I stand with my bag hooked over my arm, which Jackson discreetly grabs from me. I flash him a smile before I carefully link my arm with Wil’s, feeling like it stabilizes me.

His eyes bounce down to the connection and he blushes even deeper, if that is even possible, but he puts his other hand on top of my arm, keeping it anchored to him. “I like this. So. Where are you headed to?”

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