Page 18 of Fortune Academy: Year Two
Orion growled and stormed into the room, slamming the door behind him that sent a thud through the whole building. He always had a divine sort of glow to him that speckled across his body through his freckles, making him look like a living constellation, but a deep red blossomed to life in his otherwise golden eyes. I knew that I had put that fragment there.
A piece of me was inside of a god.
And it glowed with the red of blood, of mortality… of Hell.
“Why do I sense you in my head?” Orion demanded of Kaito as he closed in on my mentor. “Who are you?”
The counselor straightened as his tattoo shimmered with power. He wasn’t intimidated by the Demigod, which had me even more curious as to what kind of supernatural my first bond-mate really was. “I’m one of Lily’s Virtues, as are you,” Kaito said. He motioned to three chairs he’d set out, as if he’d been expecting us. “Would you care to have a seat? I can tell you anything you wish to know.”
I internally groaned, not looking forward to a mile-long conversation involving the Third Echo of Calamity, my Virtues, or how we all played into the grand scheme of things to save the world—or worlds, in my case.
I just wanted to bond with Orion. Why did that have to come with so much baggage?
Orion scoffed. “Don’t worry. I’m not staying for long.” He gripped Kaito’s arm and his hand began to glow. “Whatever magic she’s cast over you, I’m going to break it.”
It must have hurt, given the white-knuckled grip the Demigod had on Kaito, but the counselor didn’t move and defiantly stared up at Orion as a golden wash of magic swept over him. After a moment Orion’s eyes grew wide and he released a dangerous growl. “Why isn’t it working?”
“I already told you. I’m one of Lily’s Virtues, the very same bond that’s making you so protective over her right now. You can’t harm me because being a Virtue ties us together.”
Orion’s grip tightened, making Kaito flinch. “I don’t care. I’ve decided that if I’m stuck with her, she’s mine and no one else can have her. What’s it going to take to break the bond she has with you?” He tilted his head. “Do I have to kill you?”
“Orion,” I warned, shoving between them. Orion refused to let go, which only wedged me between his perfect chest and Kaito’s warm body. A plethora of unseemly images filtered into my mind as my mentor slipped a hand around my waist, pulling me close to him.
“Mmm,” he murmured as he buried his nose into my neck. “You smell like sex and sunlight.”
“That’s me you smell, you idiot,” Orion shot back.
Kaito shrugged.
I rolled my eyes. “Both of you just stop it, okay?” I fisted the thin shirt Orion had put on, ignoring the part of me that wanted to rip it off again. “Orion. I asked you if you were okay with this and you said yes.”
Orion’s eyes widened and he shoved in closer, gripping my hips as he pinned me against Kaito. My mentor didn’t budge and my insides did a cute little flip of excitement. “You didn’t say other men would be involved.”
That made me laugh. “Wait a second. The Demigod of sex, the guy who hasorgiesand fucks around on the regular is lecturingmeabout being with multiple partners? Grow the fuck up, Orion.”
He growled, digging his fingers into my skin as his breath puffed hot against me in warning. Even though he’d just climaxed inside of me, he hardened, his body responding to mine. “Those girls never meant anything to me. Youdo.”
I shrugged. “And you mean something to me too, Orion.” I reached behind me and ran my fingers through Kaito’s hair as he moved to kiss my neck. I didn’t feel it was wise to provoke the Demigod, but he deserved it after what he’d put me through. Plus, if he was going to be one of my Virtues, he had to come to terms with this. He couldn’t be a fucking hypocrite. “Just as Kaito owns a piece of me, so do you. Are you incapable of sharing?” It fucking amazed me that men expected women to share, but when the shoe was on the other foot it was a foreign concept.
Orion narrowed his eyes and shoved off of me as he scowled. “You’re a liar and a bitch.” He stormed out, leaving me with my jaw hanging open.
“Just give him time,” Kaito said as he released me.
I appreciated that my mentor could sense I didn’t want to be touched right now. My heart twisted with guilt. “Are all Virtue bonds like this?” I croaked, stumbling to a chair and sinking into the seat. I pulled my knees up to my chin and sighed. “Am I being unreasonable?” Maybe I had lied to Orion. And I had hurt Logan. And I wanted them both anyway. Maybe that made me a bitch.
“I thought you wanted to make him pay?” Kaito asked, pulling up a chair as he rested his elbows on his knees. He plastered on a concerned expression, one that was better suited for a mentor-student relationship.
I sighed. “I did, but now I feel bad, and I meant it when I said that he means something to me.” I buried my face in my hands. “Maybe I’m not cut out for this revenge shit.”
He chuckled. “You’re tossing him into a world where he’s not in control. It’s going to be hard for him.” He pulled one of my hands away so that I could see his face. “He cares for you, Lily. He will even come to terms with sharing you, but it’s a new concept for him. I can sense his feelings through the Virtue bond, and he’s not with you just because it’s predestined. It’s possible for bondmates to reject one another and he has no intention of doing that. He just needs some space to adjust to the idea that he’s entering into a relationship where he’s not in control.”
I perked up at that. Orion had instantly felt Kaito the moment our bond was sealed. “Is he jealous?” I asked.
Kaito smirked. “Do you really have to ask?”
I crossed my arms and pouted. “I mean, I guess I could understand. Seeing Orion with other girls drove me mad.” In fact, I believed that my jealousy was what had initially triggered our Virtue bond.
Was jealousy something that I had with all my Virtues? I flickered my gaze to Kaito as I tried to picture him with someone else.
