Trevor

The talk with Ralph and Demetrius hadn’t gone nearly as bad as I’d expected. There had been a few threats thrown around, but as soon as they’d realized how much Melina meant to me, they’d both suggested I convince her to marry me soon. Demetrius had even offered to demand an immediate union, which apparently he had the authority to do since Ralph couldn’t attend meetings. The most bizarre part of the talk had been when Ralph had taken out some pastries to have a sex talk with me. I’d been too shocked by the whole conversation to point out that I already knew where babies came from. Now, I might never be able to eat an éclair again.

I was finally seated near the front of the room with Melina beside me. Her fingers were digging into my thigh as the meeting started. Even though we were first on the agenda, it still took over twenty minutes to get everyone settled and quieted down. Then the council had to go through their ridiculous opening crap, which included reading the agenda and asking if anyone wanted to add last minute items. Several witches had jumped in, and the council had taken their information before informing them that the schedule was full, but that they could be added to the next meeting. Why they couldn’t have told people that up front and taken their information to add to the next meeting later, I had no clue.

While we waited, I thought about how appropriate our robe colors were. My robe was red, while Melina’s was black, each matching our magic perfectly. That wasn’t how robe colors were assigned. The colors were assigned by the station of one’s family. Melina’s family ranked higher than mine, but not by much.

“Trevor Dupree and Melina Blackwood,” my father called out from the front of the room. “Please step forward and remove any spelled items.”

Melina took a deep breath before standing and walking to the front of the room where we both removed our spelled items. Melina only had a small charm bracelet and a ring. I had my keys, wallet, and cell phone.

I noticed that Melina’s face was flushed, and I understood how she felt. It was hot as hell in the room with all these people piled in here. “Why don’t you take your robe off, honey,” I suggested.

“The robes must stay on,” insisted a nasally warlock on the council who’d obviously heard me.

“As I recall, I’m the one performing the test,” my father snapped at the warlock. “They could take the test naked, and the results would still be the same.” My father’s face softened when he addressed Melina. “Go ahead and take your robe off, dear. You both look terribly hot. There’s no reason to make this unnecessarily uncomfortable for you.”

We slipped out of our robes and set them on the table with our other items before making our way to the center of the room to wait for my father’s instructions. Each affinity test was different, and I knew my father was testing our magic to see how to proceed. I could feel his power sliding along mine before moving on to Melina. When her demon magic flared, I forgot all about waiting for instructions. Her magic wasn’t reacting well to the probing, and it was my goal to subdue it before it lashed out at my father, something Melina would never forgive herself for.

I sent my magic out, and the strands of red silk slid along the black haze of Melina’s magic. That’s when the heads of the serpents formed in her magical strands and they coiled around mine, writhing against it. I let out a hiss as pleasure and pain shot through my body. Her magic slid along my skin, and I saw mine doing the same to her. Melina moaned and swayed toward me.

Without hesitation, I caught Mel and slammed my mouth down onto hers, claiming her mouth as our magic continued to twist around us. Her snakelike magic made a moaning sound that echoed through my body. As for my magic, the hot strands of silk caressed the snakes, while sliding along Melina’s body, slipping between her legs. Her head dropped back as the magic stroked her, bringing her even closer to orgasm.

I hesitated for mere seconds before swirling my magic through hers in an intricate knot that I instinctually knew how to make. I bound her magic to mine. Crimson threads of my power curled around Melina before fading into her body, becoming a part of her. Melina screamed with her orgasm, and I was fighting my own release.

The cool air flowed through the room, hitting my sweat-dampened skin and making me shiver as I gathered Melina into my arms. I felt my magic being forced back into my body. I also felt my magic in her body as it remained tied to hers. My breathing labored, I stared down at my witch. It took some time for my mind to return to the present and remember we were not alone. We were standing in a room full of witches and warlocks who were watching us silently.

Melina blinked twice. She didn’t pull away; instead, she gave me a shy smile and allowed me to tuck her protectively under my arm as we faced my father.

“I take it we passed,” I stated, my voice thick with arousal.

“As you already knew you would,” my father said. “The Dupree family is not insisting on an immediate bonding of magic,” he added. His eyes landed on me, and I was certain he already knew what I’d done. “Is anyone else asking that a bonding ceremony be performed immediately?”

Demetrius looked like he was going to speak until Viviana Blackwood’s hand made contact with the back of his head. He glared at Viviana over his shoulder, but remained silent.

“Are we done?” Melina asked.

“Yes,” my father replied with a warm smile. “You’ve passed, and you’re free to go.”

“Get your stuff. We’re leaving,” Melina insisted, hurrying toward the table.

While I grabbed my stuff from the table, I leaned in close to her. “Was there some reason we need to leave in such a hurry?” I asked, because I wanted to hear the words from her mouth.

“I’d rather not have you fuck me in front of all these people. Is that reason good enough?” she asked.

“Let’s go,” I told her, rushing her past the shocked crowd and out of the room.