‘I can’t face Elnora right now,’ she said.

Kellan shrugged. ‘Then don’t. Come back to mine.’

She smiled. They walked up the stairs, and instead of taking a left to her apartment, she crossed the hall to Kellan’s.

Lupo jumped up on Kellan as soon as he opened the door.

‘Hello, my precious boy,’ Kell chimed while pushing Lupo’s triangular ears back. His tail wagged, and he rolled onto his back.

Kellan rubbed the dog’s belly while Bethan watched the adorable reunion unfold. She moved further into the apartment and sat on Kellan’s leather couch.

He eventually slumped into the seat next to her; they milled over their plans for the following day, when they finally read the Antiphonus.

Thoughts of Elnora flooded Bethan’s mind. It hadn’t hit her until that moment that she had betrayed her. That she was the one who took her powers. Her closest friend. Someone she considered a sister. It was her all along. She had been drugging her for the past year.

‘What’s wrong?’ Kellan voiced.

‘Elnora.’

He nodded, clearly understanding what she was thinking. He and Elnora had gotten along; Elnora was one of his first friends here.

‘Tomorrow could change everything,’ he fretted. ‘Can we not talk about this? Let’s just have tonight.’

He looked starved, and while his piercing eyes focused on hers, she stared at his lips.

He smirked and lowered his gaze; his eyes darkened, and he leant closer. Until his lips were wet on hers, and it felt just like the other times he kissed her. But it was different, intense and passionate.

He was playing rough, tugging on her clothes. The spaghetti straps fell off her shoulder. His hands went to her jeans. She smiled into those kisses; her fingers tangled into his already messy hair. The next thing she knew, she was on top of him. Their lips hadn’t parted, but his hands made their way to the back of her thighs and higher.

In one motion, he turned them over, lifting her in his arms. Her hands tightened around his muscles. He carried her up the hall and into his bedroom.

He set her down gently on his big bed. The mattress folded around her and dipped when Kellan jumped in as well.

He straddled her, unbuttoning her blue jeans and hiked them down; she arched her back, allowing him to pull them off. He grabbed her phone from the back pocket and sat it on the bedside table. He threw the jeans on the ground, leaving her on her bed with nothing but her grey cotton underwear.

He rolled her so she was on her side and whispered, ‘Can I?’

He played with the waistband of her underwear, gliding his long finger on top of the fabric.

‘Yes,’ she murmured.