Page 29 of Rejected By My Shifter Billionaire
Oh God. Thirty-four more steps. THIRTY-FOUR!
"Are you okay?"
She recognized the voice. It was Jacob, coming from behind. She could only wait for him to reach her, having no strength left to even turn around and say hi.
Kassia saw his eyes widen at the sight of her, and she almost found the strength to smile. Almost. "That bad?"
"Umm, yeah. Kind of." He reached to touch her forehead and yanked his hand back. "Kassia, you're burning up."
"I've already taken meds, don't worry."
He frowned. "I don't think you should go to class—-"
She shook her head. "I can't. I've got one last test."
"But you can be excused—-"
She grimaced. "Not when it's Professor Vincent's class."
His protest died. "Damn." The professor Kassia mentioned was notorious for her strictness, and it was more than possible that she would refuse to give Kassia a make-up test even if she was in danger of dying from pneumonia.
Kassia looked back at the flight of stairs ahead of her.
Thirty-four, Kassia. Just thirty-four more to go. You've already climbed 24 steps. You can do this.
Jacob followed her gaze. "Fifth floor, right?"
She nodded.
"Should I carry you?"
It just showed how desperate she was that she seriously considered Jacob's offer. He was a football player, anyway. He was used to heavy lifting. He could probably get Kassia to her class in five minutes.
But...
What if other people saw them and misunderstood?
Kassia slowly shook her head. "No, but..." Biting her lip in hesitation, she took another deep breath before asking, "Is it okay if you let me lean on you while I head up?" By the time she finished her question, she could feel her face turning completely red. It wasn't like her at all to be this forward, but she didn't have a choice. She needed to take that test. Her life depended on it.
PAIN SLASHED AT ALESSANDROwith every step he took. Injuries that didn't heal in a matter of hours were rare for Lyccans, but this was an exception since the wound was a result of having been clawed by his own kind repeatedly. While the wound no longer bled, the Moretti pack's healer told him that it would take at least a week for the scarred tissues to repair itself.
"You should rest, Your Highness. This injury will and is already taking its toll on you, and you'll find yourself unable to function normally."
Alessandro had nodded at the healer's warning, pretending to agree even though he had no plans of staying in bed. No fucking way, not when Kassia's tests were scheduled today. She would need his support, dammit, and he would not let anything stop him from giving her what she needed.
Ahead of him, Kassia's unique scent beckoned, and he followed it doggedly. Even though Alessandro didn't want to admit it, his twin's words had disturbed him.
What was Kassia to him? And what did he intend to do about her?
Even now, he was still unwilling to place any kind of label on his feelings for her. All he knew was that he had to see her. He just had to see Kassia again, and he would know everything then.
Kassia's scent became stronger as Alessandro started for the stairs. While it had the same sweet, delicate hint of flowers to it, there was also something different about her. Not with the way she smelled, but the way she...felt.
It was almost like she was...in heat.
As soon as the thought occurred to Alessandro, he bounded up the stairs, barely able to control himself from using his Lyccan speed to reach her in seconds. When he reached the third landing, he saw her—-
Alessandro froze.
