Supernatural Academy: Year Two (Supernatural Academy, #2)

by Jaymin Eve

Changing my hair color was a ritual … a process that I went through once a year.

All of them wanted to be here with me at the stroke of midnight, when I started the next chapter of my new life. The Atlanteans had been here as well, but then they’d had to get the party ready.

This year I’d gone purple: a light jewel tone, with hints of violet and lilac. My hair had been a variety of colors over the years, most of them bright: bright orange and green and even a startling magenta.

Pink had brought me some of the best friends I could imagine … and Asher.

The purple made my eyes bluer, my skin more bronze, and my eyebrows very golden.

she was one of those all-or-nothing, foot-flat-to-the-floor, devil-may-care magic users. She was badass, and she suited the natural red in her hair, but the last year had left its mark on her. On all of us.

She eyed my hair again. “I really love the purple. Here’s hoping it’s kinder to you than pink was.”

“Hey,” I replied, stepping toward him. I could feel the smirks that were no doubt on my friends’ faces—always teasing me about how “dick-whipped” I was—but I ignored them. Asher had all of my focus.

flowing alcohol, and Calen doing the Macarena on the stage.

“You know I don’t need anything. I’ve never even celebrated a birthday before. Trust me, this has been more than enough.”

“Listen up, water baby, you will get used to presents and birthdays and surprises. Because I’m not ever going to stop.”

He’d taken to calling me water baby because my newly-unlocked powers had me all fish-like.

I was obsessed with water. I could swim faster than any of the guys, breathe under there, see in the darkest of nights, and manipulate the water to do my bidding. All the power was taking some getting used to, and I was damn glad that I had Louis’s pendant ...

“Does this present involve nudity?” I asked breathlessly.

Sold. Sign me the fuck up!

Ilia smirked at me before her right cheek bulged in the mime of cock sucking. Dirty bitch. Dirty, accurate bitch.

I ditched my heels, relieved that those assholes weren’t on my feet any longer,

Asher kissed me suddenly and all words and thoughts faded away. “So fucking cute,”

“Ever since that first class, you’ve been on my radar. Only those with very strong water magic could have broken through the spell. I didn’t know what

you were then, but I was certainly intrigued.”

than his physical perfection. It was the way our energies

mingled and our souls reached for each other, just the way I imagined true mates’ souls would.

We might not have triggered the actual true mate bond yet, but I didn’...

His arms wrapped around me and I snuggled against him, loving the feel of his skin on mine, and our energies together. It was hard to believe that when we’d first met, the block on my power had clashed hardcore with Asher’s energy, and we’d almost blown up the school.

I focused on the only thing here more captivating than the ocean. Asher.

“Today I’m here. At the ocean. With … you.”

As I dropped my hand, he moved forward and kissed me with enough force that my toes curled and my stomach filled with swirls of butterflies and arousal. His arms wrapped around me, pulling me closer, and I let out a soft breath as his firm grip ran across my back and down to my ass. His touch sparked tingles across my body. As he gripped the bottom of my dress, pulling it up so that he could scrape his fingertips across bare skin, I felt like I was actually going to combust. “You’re so damned sexy,” he practically growled against my lips. “Seriously, Maddi, you’re all the fuck I can think about.”

No complaints here. I’d always hoped that if I ever fell in love, they’d be equa...

When you loved someone, they had a certain amount of control over you. A scary concept when you truly thought about it, especially when it was someone who didn’t deserve or cherish that gift. Asher had never made me feel like that.

I affected Asher, and it was the best fucking feeling ever.

He allowed me to touch and explore for longer than usual. “It’s your birthday,” he joked when I laughed about his need to control. “It’s all about you.”

“Baby…” Asher said warningly. “Stay still.” I moaned again. “I can’t, fuck. Please touch me. I need you to touch me.”

I got his pants off, and then both of us were thankfully naked. Clothes were such cockblockers. He slid inside in one firm stroke.

For many long minutes we remained in that position, breathing heavily, and I loved the feel of his body against mine. I loved having every part of him like this. Our energy hummed together, and if this was the sort of chemistry that books talked about, then it was no wonder everyone searched for it.

“I believe we are,” he said. “There’s a bond between us that goes way beyond a normal attraction. Even before I loved you, I wanted to be near you. You consumed my thoughts and my dreams and my attention.” My heart pretty much stopped beating, and I sucked in air, trying to feed my starving lungs. “You … you said you love me?” Asher’s lips quirked up, dimples came into play, and I was a fucking goner. “Baby, you already know I love you. I’d sacrifice myself for you. I’d sacrifice the fucking world for you. If that’s not love, then I don’t have an explanation for it.” A tear escaped. “I’ve never had anyone tell me that before. Not really say it and mean it.”

He kissed me again, and I wondered if I’d ever feel this happy again.

Calen got to me first, and I barely caught a glimpse of his golden brown hair—that was a little longer than it had been the first time I saw him—and silvery brown eyes before he yanked me up into his arms. “Happy birthday, baby girl,” he said softly, pressing a kiss to my forehead.

Calen was the joker of the group, the one who didn’t like shit to be too serious, and the one who had been sleeping his way through the Academy until he got hooked on Ilia. But he was loyal as fuck, and I adored him.

Jesse was next, and even though I’d never admit it to any of them, he was probably my second-favorite Atlantean behind Asher. There was just something about the huge shifter that made m...

he was half the reason I hadn’t lost my mind when Asher was taken last year. Jesse had gorgeous dark skin and a mop of dark hair. His eyes were green, but not like Asher’s; more like a leaf edged in silver. He was hot. Not quite Asher hot, but … close. Maybe it was only that I loved A...

those two were almos...

This continued with Axl, the resident genius and bookworm, and despite the fact he was the smallest of the guys at just over six foot, he was by no means weak or small. I brushed back his messy auburn waves, delighted that they were all here with me.

“Don’t forget me,” Rone added, and I marveled at the relationship I had now with the prickly vampire. When he’d first met me, he’d been a right old asshole, and his distrust of me had lasted for quite a long time. But eventually we’d found a friendship, and now he was as important to me as the rest of the guys.

Looking between the four, I had to laugh. “Ash said he had another surprise, but I didn’t think it was you four. I got you guys last year.” I wrinkle...

“I’m going to give you your own Atlantean tattoo.”

Asher chuckled. “Something tells me Maddi would be even better at it than me.” I waved him away. “I can’t draw for shit, so unless you all want water-drawn stick people, it might be best if Ash sticks with being the resident artist.”

This was Axl’s unique mark, and it was an Atlantean symbol for knowledge. Flowing lines that looked like water but all connected to each other. The water connected the world and it held secrets and knowledge that was beyond all else.

Axl wanted to unravel these secrets, so his preferred symbol was that of water knowledge. Asher’s, of course, was a large crown that was filled in with swirls of water to show that he was directly descended from a royal bloodline. I wondered if he would put a crown on me too, since that was my heritage as well. Royal and a god, apparently. If the rumors were to be believed.

Instead of showing me his arm as Axl had done, he lifted me off the ground so that I was facing his right pec. Across it in a large geometric design was another water symbol. This one meant

power. Calen hid his drive and ambition behind a playboy asshole exterior so that no one saw what was really going on underneath. But I knew the truth. He was someone who never gave up. When he set his mind to something, he did not waver.