Duality Read online

  Duality

  Lughnasadh Elite Academy 3

  Layla Heart

  Duality (Lughnasadh Elite Academy 3)

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  Copyright © 2019 LAYLA HEART

  All rights reserved. No part of this story may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without express written permission of the copyright holder.

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  This book contains sexually explicit content which is suitable only for mature adults.

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  Edition: 20190726

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  Get updates about Layla Heart’s books by signing up to the Easily Distracted Media Newsletter:

  Easily Distracted Media Newsletter

  Contents

  Blurb

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Next in this series: Legacy (Lughnasadh Elite Academy 4)

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  About Layla Heart

  About Easily Distracted Media

  Published by Easily Distracted Media

  Blurb

  One secret between princes, six students called in to see the headmaster.

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  The last couple of days haven’t been easy on Litha, being sent to a world she had no knowledge of, finding out she’s part of a prophecy which will bring peace to the four kingdoms, getting pursued by four sexy princes and finally walking in on her hot roommate getting ready for bed. The last one she definitely didn’t do on purpose.

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  But things between the princes aren’t going as well as they appeared either, Rune has been keeping a big secret and Kit is very hurt when he finds out about it, putting a strain on the friendships of all four men.

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  Having added another member to their harem, Phoenix, daughter of the highest witch priestess, the six are called to the headmaster’s place for a ‘chat’, and that can’t mean anything good…

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  1

  I clutch my phone between my hands, keeping it close, as I stare ahead, everything around me a blur. I blindly walk around the campus, not paying attention to anything, but luckily there aren’t many people around. When I finally clear my head a little, I find myself sitting on the ground, my back against the wall, under Litha’s window. I didn’t even mean to come here, it just happened.

  I wanted to be anywhere but near Rune. I thought he trusted me, I thought I knew everything about him, that we had no secrets from each other. But for him to have hidden something so important from me, him not only being able to sense our emotions but always aware of our location, it feels so invasive. It’s like everything in my chest is breaking, my head hurting, everything in pain. I feel broken and so alone.

  Being away from Rune is the strangest thing ever. When I need time to myself, I normally run towards him, and now I’m trying to get away from him. It feels wrong, but I guess it’s telling that I’m now under Litha’s window, wanting to be close to her, near her, touch her. I need her.

  I slide my fingers over the screen of my phone and then put it to my ear. I know that she’s with Phoenix and all that, and I should probably let her be, but I need to hear her voice, I just need her.

  Her voice is full of surprise as she picks up. “Hey.”

  “Hey.” I force the word out, leaning my head back against the wall. Why did I think this was a good idea?

  “Are you okay? You sound... off.”

  “I guess.” I close my eyes, relief flooding me at hearing her voice, at her not sending me away.

  “Did something happen? Are you in trouble?” She’s getting more serious and the need to hold her becomes stronger.

  What can I tell her? How can I explain things without giving away things she has no idea about yet?

  “Kit? What’s going on? You’re starting to scare me.”

  “Open your window. I’m downstairs.” Why am I telling her this? I shouldn’t do this, I should just let her be. I hear wood creaking, and as I look up, I catch a glimpse of a very blurry Litha. I hadn’t even realised I started crying. When did that happen?

  “Why are you here? Where are the others?” I hear her double, both from the window above me and through the phone.

  “I have no idea. I’m not with them.” I close my eyes, leaning my head against the wall again. It feels good to talk to her. If I can’t touch her, at least I can talk to her. It’s all I can ask for right now, all I can wish for.

  “Wait there.” I hear her move, and when I open my eyes again, I don’t see Litha’s head, but I do see a head full of red curls, Phoenix. I guess if anyone sees me like this, it’s fine if it’s Phoenix... Then her head disappears too and I hear the sounds of the window closing again, right before there are soft footsteps next to me.

  I look up and find Litha staring at me, her eyes worried, a line between her delicate eyebrows and she’s pulled her beautiful rosy lower lip between her teeth. “Hey.” This time, the word slipping out of me is little more than a whisper.

  “Oh, Kit.” She kneels down next to me, her arms around my neck and her worry floods into me.

  I wrap my arms around her, tightening my grip as I bury my nose into her neck, taking in her woody-fiery scent. This is so good. I pull her into my lap, not letting her go at all, keeping her even closer as I feel my body change. I wince for a moment as my wings slowly grow out of my back, wrapping around us, protecting us from whoever may be looking our way. Our little bubble, our little sanctuary, our safety.

  Litha moves to the side a little, still tightly against me, and her fingers slide over the leathery skin of my wings, sending shocks of desire through my body and I try to keep my voice contained. Wings are very sensitive, which is why people will break the skin of our wings when they try to hurt us most. “They’re beautiful.” She puts her full hand against my wing, heat spreading out from it. “And they feel so tough.”

  I nod against her neck. “They’re almost like leather, but they’re very sensitive, lots of nerve endings in there.”

  “Oh.” She quickly pulls her hand back, cradling it against her chest. “Sorry.”

  “Don’t worry. You’re not hurting me.” I put my head on her shoulder, just having her here with me already calms me down.

  “What happened?” She slowly plays with her fingers over my shoulder as she makes herself more comfortable in my lap.

  “Rune told us something and...” I take a deep breath. “I thought I knew everything about him, but he’s been hiding a big secret from me.”

  “You felt hurt?”

  I nod. “I thought I knew him. But now...” I shrug. “I didn’t know what to do. Where to go.”

  “So you came here?”

  I nod again. “I’m sorry. I know that it’s late and that you were probably getting ready for bed... I shouldn’t have--”

  She puts her fingers to my lips. “You’re always welcome. Don’t apologise for coming to me. Never.” Her eyes are filled with energy.

  How can she be so strong and steady? How can she feel like this, like she really cares, when she barely knows me? I feel the emotions rush through her, and it’s all caring, and... And something like love. I let out a soft gasp, not sure how to respond to that, to her.

  “Have you always had your wings?”

  I blink, not sure where this question is coming from. “Yeah. It took me a wh
ile to learn to control them. And learning to fly is a totally different skill altogether.”

  She smiles softly. “I’m a little envious. Wings are cool.”

  I carefully kiss her shoulder. “You’ll have a great time learning your own skills, I’m sure of it. Maybe not flying with wings, but the things I’ve already seen... I’m sure you’ll learn to do awesome things.”

  She lets out a low laugh. “How can everyone be so sure of that when I’ve not got a clue?”

  “Because you’re Litha fucking Vigil, from one of the oldest witch lines there is. You’re basically royalty, and your family has had some really powerful witches in the past.” I loosen my grip on her a little, looking at her face in the low light of our wing-bubble. “From what I’ve seen, you’ll have great power, even if you don’t know how to do it yet.”

  She smiles softly. “I guess it’s good that someone has faith in my ability.”

  “No pressure, but four kingdoms kind of depend on you, you know.” I wink and a pinkness spreads over her cheeks, then I lean my forehead against hers. “I know that you’ll be amazing.”

  “What’s the use of you knowing when I don’t know?”

  “Trust in me?” I don’t know why I say it, but somehow she relaxes against me, accepting my words without question. “Trust in us,” I murmur, her comfort in my arms seeping into me and making me sleepy.

  We’re quiet for a while, enjoying being together here, until there are footsteps not too far off and it pulls me back to where we are. We’re not somewhere safe, we’re basically out in the open. I’m about to pull Litha against me tighter so I can attack whoever it is, but a soft voice stops me.

  “I think you should go to your hall.” It’s Phoenix, and Litha stirs in my arms, unfolding slowly.

  I open my wings, not pulling them in, but still allowing me to look at her. I blink as I look Phoenix over. She’s wearing a bathrobe and she’s on bare feet. I didn’t realise she could look this cute, and I feel the lust flush through Litha, making me smile a little. Rune was right, she really does like Phoenix. I thought I’d feel more annoyed by it or something, jealous maybe, but it’s okay, it feels okay.

  “It’s not that late.” I don’t want to have to let go of Litha, not yet.

  “Yes, it is.” Phoenix smiles, her eyes soft. “It’s past midnight already. If you want to see her again, pick her up for breakfast or something.”

  I watch as Litha swallows hard, her face going all red, as her body responds to whatever is going through her head, probably what happened the last time we had breakfast together. Oh, that’s cute too.

  Phoenix raises an eyebrow, looking between the two of us, then she turns to the back door. “Don’t keep her up much longer, or she may get into trouble, and that will be on you.” Then she walks away, rounding the corner.

  “I should go.” Litha looks at me, her fingers playing on my chest, skimming over places where my shirt has slipped down when I pulled my wings out.

  “I guess.” I tighten my arms around her again, leaning in. “Can I get a goodnight kiss, though?”

  Litha grins as she nods. “Because you’re asking so nicely.”

  I get closer to her. “I could ask in not-so-nice ways.” I wink.

  She smirks, closing the distance between us as she kisses me hard. The lust spiking in her, and in me too, makes me want to do so much more than a simple kiss. But Phoenix is right, it’s no good if I get her in trouble. Ugh!

  2

  The last couple of days have been insane. The full moon celebrations were rudely interrupted when we heard about the prophecy documents having been stolen, and then my family had to help out with trying to figure out what happened, who took them. That’s what you get for being the family of the highest priestess and your dad being one of the best scryers around. And then Mum and Dad wouldn’t let me come to the academy on the first day, because they wanted to be sure everything was safe. Which, of course, meant that I had no idea Litha had arrived until I actually got to my room.

  Litha, here. All my life I’ve been waiting for this moment, and she’s finally here. Almost as if out of nowhere. I may have gotten a little too excited when I saw her, years of wondering what she’d be like finally coming to an end. She’s... She’s like I expected her to be, at least from stories about her parents. Her whole family went into hiding when she was born, everyone trying to survive. Her parents took her to the human world, but the rest of her family took on new names, new identities, until it would be safe to return. Each one of them could be used to not only track her down, but to influence her parents and force the choice they want, or just kill her. I’ve never knowingly met any of her family members, though my parents were close friends with her parents when they grew up. That’s what happens when you’re both part of ancient witch families. So finally meeting her was very exciting.

  I tried to make her feel more comfortable by wearing clothes to go to bed, but I’m not so sure that worked out well, she seemed... distracted, before she went outside to meet Kit. Somehow, she’s only been here for a few days and she’s already gotten closer to Kit than I’ve seen anyone in all the years I’ve known him. Apart from maybe Rune, but that’s different.

  I pick up Ember and put my face into her fur. “What do you think of her?”

  Ember moves in my hands and pushes her head against my face, headbutting me.

  “Yeah, that’s what I thought too. She’s pretty cute.” Too bad she’s Kit’s mate, or I would have tried to make a move on her. At least I get to be her friend, right? If I haven’t scared her off yet.

  There is a soft knocking on the door, and then it opens, Litha stepping inside. “Hey.” She closes the door behind her, her face all flushed.

  “Hey.” I put Ember back down again. “Sorry about interrupting you two, it’s just...” I shrug, feeling awkward now. “The staff...” The rules here aren’t as strict, but they could still get in trouble for being outside too late, especially right now and especially them.

  “It’s okay.” She softly smiles. “He was... Stuff happened apparently. He fought with Rune.”

  I frown. “That’s kind of rare to happen.”

  She nods, sitting on her bed. “Yeah, it is.” She stares out the window. “I just don’t know what happened, so fast too. I saw Rune just an hour or two ago, he seemed happy. So I’ve got no idea what happened.” She lets out a deep sigh, glancing my way for a moment. “Sorry, it’s... probably not very interesting to you.”

  She’s been alone with Rune too? How well does she know all the princes? I thought it was just Kit, they looked so comfortable together before, but she’s also friends with Rune? “They’ll probably get over it. They’ve been friends for a long time.”

  Litha nods, her eyes sad, coming back to herself. Then she stands up. “I’m going to...” She grabs a stack of clothes. “Gonna change.” She walks to the bathroom and closes the door behind her.

  I have no idea what to think of what’s going on. Is she friends with Rune and Kit? Or Bane and Finn too? And how does that work? The princes’ friendship is already so unusual but if they’re all friends with Litha? They’re going to get hurt, at least, three of them are.

  I sigh, climbing in bed and I pull the covers over me. I guess I’ll find out later, but we should probably go to sleep now. If only because I have no idea how to ask her things without it being weird.

  I blink, my mouth full of Ember’s fur, and then I realise I’m not at home but at the academy in my room. Right. Ember jumps off my chest, onto the floor and she immediately starts to meow at someone.

  “Hey, little one, did I wake you?” Litha’s voice is a little groggy, and when I turn to my side, I can’t help my smile at the sight in front of me. Litha is sitting on her bed, her covers still around her shoulders, her dark curly hair all messy around her face, and she’s softly petting Ember. “I can’t feed you or anything, you’ll have to ask Phoenix for that. I can just give you scritches.” She twirls Ember’s tail around her f
inger before petting her again. My heart gets all fluttery, watching her be so soft.

  I lean up on my elbow. “Her food is on the shelf next to the door, the highest one. You can feed her, if you want to.”

  Litha jolts for a moment, before glancing my way and a blush spreads over her cheeks. She keeps doing that when she looks at me, blushing. Strange girl. “Right. I guess I could do that.” She takes Ember in her arms like she’s always done this and it’s not the first time waking up with Ember around, and then climbs out of bed, padding over to the shelves and reaching up high, it’s almost out of her reach so she has to stand on tiptoes. She takes down the can with food and then glances around, trying to find the bowls, which are between our desks. “How much do you normally eat, little one?”

  I like how she keeps calling Ember ‘little one’, when she’s not little and definitely too old to be coddled like that, but Ember seems to have no problem with being babied like this, as she’s loudly purring.

  I sit up, stretching. “I’m taking a shower, I’ll be right back.” A shower helps with waking up, usually. I grab some clothes from my closet and enter the bathroom, locking the door behind me. I check myself in the mirror, my hair is a mess and I definitely didn’t get enough sleep last night, but I guess I can take a nap later or something. I make quick work of the shower, not really wanting to stretch it too much, especially if I want to be on time for breakfast.