Chapter 120: Then It All Snapped into Place

Blair sat at her desk, her pen mindlessly scratching across the surface of her notebook.

Her notes were a jumbled, illegible mess. Her mind was miles away, trapped in the ruins of the professor’s office. When Daemus had returned from his run, Jack had effortlessly kicked the door right off its hinges, allowing her to slip out before the Wolf Prince reached the second floor.

A fresh wave of guilt gnawed at her stomach. She greeted Daemus on the stairs as he headed for the bathroom. She had kept her gaze firmly glued to his shoes, unable to look him in the eyes.

Blair let out a long sigh, running her trembling hands through her hair.

How was she any different from the other human women? Jack hadn’t needed to force her to sleep with him. He had barely even needed to persuade her. She hadn’t fought him. She hadn’t made it difficult for him at all.

Deep down, staring at the blank page of her notebook, Blair finally admitted the truth. Daemus was right. Long before today, she had harbored a crush on her professor. The exact same professor she hated for constantly degrading her and accusing her of whatever his mind came up with.

So why didn’t she regret having sex with him?

Is it because I actually wanted to? she wondered, her cheeks flushing a warm pink. She had only imagined having sex with him a few times in her head, but honestly, who doesn’t let their mind wander when they have a crush on someone?

A sudden knock on the door made her jump out of her chair.

Her heart raced a frantic rhythm. Expecting Daemus, she rushed to the door.

It wasn’t the Wolf Prince.

Jack stood in the hallway, his flawless face an unreadable mask. He raised a brow. "Expecting your boyfriend?"

Without waiting for an invitation, he stepped right past her and into the room.

Blair let out a defeated sigh, closing the door. "He’ll be coming soon so I can tutor him in math," she said softly. A deep frown pulled at her lips as she looked at her hands. "I’m not sure I’ll be able to lie to him."

Jack hummed. "You never had a problem pretending before."

Blair snapped her head up. "Will you stop accusing me of lying and pretending if I prove to you that I am human?" she asked quietly.

Jack tilted his head, his red eyes narrowing slightly. "And how would you prove it?"

"My blood," Blair offered without hesitation. "You can test my blood."

Jack reached into the pocket of his trousers, deciding to change the topic entirely. "More importantly, I found Clarice’s phone."

He held up a black smartphone.

"It was dead," Jack explained. "I put it on the charger just long enough for it to turn on and load the video."

Blair’s pulse leaped into her throat. She held her breath, bracing for the absolute worst.

"The video captured Clarice pushing you into the office," Jack listed off dryly. "And it recorded me working at my desk while you hid underneath it. That was it. I am assuming the battery died before it could record anything else."

Jack put the phone back in his pocket. "I overestimated the intelligence of a wolf."

A heavy weight instantly vanished from Blair’s shoulders. Her knees went weak. She stumbled backward, sitting down on the edge of the bed as a breath of relief slipped past her lips. Daemus wasn’t going to find out.

"It’s none of my business," Jack started. "But good relationships are built on mutual trust. Secrets destroy that trust."

Blair bit her bottom lip, carefully considering his words. She looked up at him, her pink eyes meeting his crimson gaze. "The truth does the exact same thing."

Jack turned around, walking calmly toward the door. "If the person you like cannot handle the truth, then you probably shouldn’t be together."

His hand gripped the doorknob.

"Wait," Blair called out.

Jack paused, though he didn’t turn back around.

"On the laptop," Blair asked, her voice trembling slightly. "What did you find out about the Church of Sol Cadens?"

Jack glanced at her over his shoulder, a smirk touching his lips. "Solve the assignment, and you’ll find out."

He pulled the door open.

Daemus was striding toward the room, the mouth-watering scent of sizzling bacon and sweet maple syrup wafting through the air behind him. Clarice was cooking up a storm in the kitchen.

Daemus stopped, his silver eyes darting between Jack and Blair’s open door. "What were you doing in there?"

Jack stepped out. "Did you forget I am responsible for teaching the both of you?"

"Oh," Daemus blinked, rubbing the back of his neck. "Right."

Jack walked right past him, disappearing in the direction of the stairs.

Daemus stepped into Blair’s room, a bright, easygoing grin stretching across his handsome face. He carried his laptop tucked under one arm and a spiral notebook in his hand.

He offered her a playful salute. "I’m ready to learn, Professor Blair."

Blair chuckled, the lingering tension in her chest melting away at his teasing tone. She grabbed her pens and her notebook from the desk and moved over to the bed.

They settled onto the bed side-by-side.

"I’ll show you the syllabus," Daemus said, flipping his laptop open.

The screen came to life, displaying a login prompt. Blair watched as he typed in his username. It was a combination of exactly four letters and three numbers.

Her brows furrowed as a curious thought crossed her mind. "Did you choose that username?"

"No, it’s my student ID number," Daemus explained casually, hitting the enter key. He let out a scoff. "If I could choose, my username would be much cooler. Like, MonsterTruckTRex or something."

Daemus began listing off a few other ridiculous username ideas like HockeyGodWolfKing and Bunny’sNumber1Boyfriend, but Blair wasn’t listening anymore. The gears in her brain were locking into place.

That was it.

She figured it out.