Chapter 134: Small Wins Give Big Rewards*

After dinner, Blair knocked on the frame of the living room doorway.

Daemus was still on the couch, scrolling through his phone with a scowl, as if he could make Jack’s text explain itself by glaring at it hard enough.

"Daemus," she said quietly. "Did you do your homework?"

He froze.

Slowly, he lowered the phone. His ears flattened against his head.

"...Define ’do.’"

Blair held out her hand.

Daemus sighed. He dug into the pocket of his sweatpants and pulled out a sheet of paper that had been folded into a tiny, crumpled square. He smoothed it out against his thigh and handed it over.

Blair unfolded it.

He had done it. All ten questions. His handwriting sprawled across the page in big, messy loops, and there were eraser marks everywhere, some so aggressive they had torn tiny holes through the paper. In the margin next to question four, he had drawn a sad little face.

She checked the answers.

Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.

Then she reached question five.

x + 4 = 7. x = 3.

Blair stared at it.

"Is it bad?" Daemus asked, peering at her face. "It’s bad. I can tell it’s bad."

"You got one right," Blair whispered.

Daemus sat up straight. "Which one?"

She turned the paper around and pointed.

He squinted at it. Then his whole face lit up. "I got one right?"

"You got one right."

"I got one right!" Daemus pumped a fist in the air. "Take that, x! I found you!"

Blair laughed. He was so excited, she found it really cute.

Daemus’s grin softened when he heard it. He patted the couch cushion next to him. "Okay, Professor. Show me what I did wrong on the other nine."

They worked through them one by one.

It was slow. Painfully slow. Daemus kept wanting to add when he should subtract, and at one point he tried to divide both sides by the letter x itself, which led to a ten-minute detour Blair would never get back. But he didn’t quit. Every time she explained something, he frowned hard at the paper, chewing on the end of his pencil until there were teeth marks all over it, and then he tried again.

By the time they reached the last question, Blair had drawn so many little scales in the margins that the page looked like a map.

"If x minus six equals two," Blair read. "What’s x?"

Daemus stared at the paper. His lips moved silently.

"Take the six to the other side," he muttered to himself. "So it has to... add. Because it was minus." He looked up. "Eight?"

Blair smiled. "Eight."

"Eight!" He threw his arms up. "Two in one night! I’m a genius!"

"You’re getting there."

"I’m a genius," Daemus insisted. Then his eyes narrowed. "Hey. You said no kiss breaks unless I do well."

Blair’s cheeks went hot. "I did say that."

"I did well."

"You got two out of ten."

"Two out of ten is better than zero out of ten," Daemus argued. "That’s math. You taught me that."

She hadn’t. But she couldn’t argue with the way he was looking at her, so she didn’t.

He leaned in slowly, giving her all the time in the world to pull away. She didn’t. The kiss was soft and warm and tasted faintly like the chocolate pudding he’d stolen from the fridge after dinner. His hand came up to cradle the back of her head, fingers sliding into her hair.

It was supposed to be a short kiss. A reward. One kiss, and then back to the worksheet.

Daemus didn’t pull away.

Neither did she.

His mouth moved against hers, slow and coaxing, and Blair’s hands found their way to his shoulders on their own. He made a low sound in his chest, and before she understood what was happening, he had lifted her and settled her in his lap. The worksheet slid to the floor.

"Daemus," she breathed against his lips. "The homework..."

"Is done," he murmured. "Class is over, Professor."

His hands settled on her waist. His thumbs traced slow circles just above the hem of her sweater, over and over. Then his fingertips slipped under and rested against her bare stomach.

He stopped there. He pulled back just enough to look at her, his silver eyes dark.

"Is this okay?"

Blair nodded. "Yes," she whispered.

He smiled against her hair.

Above them, a floorboard creaked.

Blair went rigid. "Your mom," she hissed.

Daemus glanced up at the ceiling. Then, without a word, he stood, lifting her with him as easily as picking up a pillow. Blair wrapped her arms around his neck with a squeak. He carried her across the living room and down the short hallway into her room, and kicked the door shut behind them.

He laid her down on the bed.

Beds are for lovers.

The words drifted up from somewhere in the back of her mind. Blair pushed them away. She looked up at the wolf leaning over her, at his messy blue hair and the careful way he was holding his weight off of her, and she let herself stop thinking.

Daemus kissed her again. Deeper this time. He tugged the hem of her sweater upward, and she lifted her arms to help him. The cool air made her shiver. So did the way he looked at her.

She tugged at his T-shirt. He yanked it over his head one-handed and tossed it somewhere near the desk. Then his mouth was on her neck, her collarbone, the curve of her shoulder, slow and unhurried, as if he had all night and intended to use every minute of it.

When he reached the waistband of her pants, he paused again and looked up at her.

Blair nodded before he could even ask.

Daemus smoothly dragged her pants and panties down her legs and tossed them off the edge of the bed. He unhooked her bra with a quick flick of his wrist, discarding it just as easily.

His silver eyes dragged over her bare skin, darkening with unfiltered desire. "You are so gorgeous," he murmured, his voice a low, rough rumble.

He leaned down, capturing one of her breasts in his mouth. His warm tongue swirled around her sensitive nipple, pulling a breathy gasp from her lips. Blair arched her spine, her fingers instantly tangling into his messy blue hair. He divided his attention perfectly, his large hands gently kneading her soft flesh while his mouth worked its magic.

She was already melting beneath him, her pulse racing a mile a minute. Daemus trailed hot, wet kisses down the center of her stomach, making her shiver, before shifting lower and settling between her parted thighs.

Blair’s breath caught in her throat. "Daemus..."

His hands gripped her hips, holding her steady as his hot tongue found her slick center. Blair cried out, her head falling back against the pillows. He was relentless, his mouth eager and demanding, his tongue flicking over her most sensitive spot with a perfect, torturous rhythm. She squirmed against the sheets, her hands gripping the blankets as the tension coiled tight in her lower belly.

Before she could completely unravel, Daemus moved back up her body. He reached over to his discarded sweatpants on the floor, pulling a small foil packet from the pocket. He tore it open with his teeth and quickly rolled the protection over his thick, pulsing erection.

He settled back between her legs, supporting his weight on his forearms. He leaned down to capture her lips in a deep, searing kiss, swallowing her quiet moans as he slowly pushed his hips forward.

Blair gasped into his mouth as he filled her. It was a tight stretch, but she was so wet that he glided inside. Daemus paused, burying his face in the crook of her neck to let her adjust to his size.

"Okay?" he whispered against her skin.

"Yes," she breathed out, wrapping her legs around his waist. "Please."

That was all the permission he needed. Daemus began to move, setting a steady, good pace. The mattress creaked softly beneath them. The friction was electric, sending jolts of pleasure shooting straight up her spine. His thrusts grew deeper, his hips snapping forward to meet hers.

Blair couldn’t hold back her voice anymore. Beautiful, breathy moans filled the quiet bedroom. Daemus let out a low, animalistic growl in response, his pace turning frantic. He drove into her, his sweat-slicked chest slapping against her own.

She was so close. The euphoric high built rapidly, blurring her vision. "Daemus!" she cried out, her nails lightly scratching down his broad back.

She shattered, a wave of intense, blinding pleasure ripping through her body. Her inner walls clamped down tight around him. Daemus groaned roughly, burying himself to the hilt as his own climax broke, his body shuddering against hers.

They lay tangled in her bed, her head on his chest, his fingers drawing lazy lines up and down her spine.

"If you keep practicing like this every day, you’ll pass," Blair said quietly into the dark. "I know you will."

Daemus snorted softly. "Like this?"

She smacked his chest. He laughed, low and sleepy.

"The math part," she mumbled, her face burning.

"Mm. Okay." He was quiet for a moment. Then his fingers stilled on her back. "Bunny?"

"Hm?"

"Tomorrow. Whoever this substitute is." His voice had lost its sleepiness. "I’m not leaving you alone with him."

"Daemus, it’s just tutoring." Blair wanted to tell him he was overreacting. That it was probably some boring old professor from the academy, but then...why did she feel so uneasy?