Chapter 11

11

MARIELLE

A lthough I took a long bubble bath last night, the ache between my legs hadn't eased enough for Artemis and me to have sex again before I had to head back to campus. Which left me feeling cranky even though he'd used his mouth to give me two orgasms this morning and had served me breakfast in bed again. Pancakes and bacon this time, along with a cup of coffee fixed exactly how I liked my daily dose of caffeine.

It was a good thing the existence of shifters was a well-kept secret from humans, or else every human woman would want a fated mate of their own. Even Shelley probably would've given up on her gold-hunting plans if she knew how amazing shifters treated their women.

I would've been fine driving myself back to campus, but Artemis insisted on bringing me. And using his truck instead of my car since it had rained a little this morning.

"There's a parking lot around this corner," I instructed, pointing to the left. "If you drive there, you can pull up to the curb and drop me off right in front of the door. I should have just enough time to run upstairs and change before my first class."

"You don't want me to come up with you?" he asked.

Turning toward him, I quirked a brow. "I would, except then I'd never make it to class on time. The second I pulled my pants off, we'd both want your mouth on me. Then we'd forget where I was supposed to be, and I'd probably miss my second class too."

"True," he conceded with a smirk. "I'll wait here and drop you off after you've changed. Or you could just keep my shirt on."

I laughed at his suggestion and plucked at the neckline that had slid off one of my shoulders. "Wearing it at your cabin is one thing. It's way too big on me to wear around campus."

"Hurry up." He stroked his thumb over my exposed shoulder, sending a delicious shiver down my spine. "I want enough time to send you off to class with a kiss."

"Be right back," I promised before climbing out of the truck to run upstairs.

It only took me a few minutes to change outfits. I tucked his shirt under my pillowcase, wanting to keep his scent on it in case I stayed in my room without him sometime. Then I headed back down to his truck. Artemis followed my directions to the building across campus where my chemistry lab was held.

After he parked in the visitor's lot, he climbed out and circled around the front of the vehicle to open my door. "Thanks."

"My pleasure."

"What're you going to be up to while I'm busy today?" I asked, not having any luck tugging my backpack out of his grasp.

"I'm gonna walk you to class and then I'm gonna hunt down that professor of yours who stole our moon rock."

I sighed in exasperation, rolling my eyes. "Dr. McCord might be a jerk, but he didn't steal anything. I gave him the lunar meteorite for testing."

"Only because he tried convincing you that it was a worthless chunk of iron ore," he argued. "The bastard had you doubting yourself, and that will not stand. You're too damn smart for him to fuck with your head like that, and now you've got me to make sure he never does it again."

It was tough to argue with his logic when that was exactly what Dr. McCord had done. I'm not sure what his motive had been for telling me that the black rock was magnetite when someone at his level of expertise should've known darn well that it wasn't. Testing for the presence of cosmogenic nuclides would prove that it was a lunar meteorite, but his visual examination of the rock should have made him suspect that I was correct.

"I know, but I don't see how this will go well. He gets cranky about students wanting to meet with him outside of office hours," I warned him.

Artemis crossed his muscular arms over his broad chest. "Then I guess it's a good thing I'm not a student."

"Which will probably make him even grumpier," I mumbled, shaking my head. "And I'm the one who'll pay the price if you piss him off. The man holds the fate of my education in the palm of his hand. I cannot afford to get on his wrong side."

"When I'm done with the professor, you won't have to worry about him ever again," he vowed, a determined gleam in his eyes.

I assumed he said that to reassure me, but it only concerned me more. Especially when I remembered what Evette and Laina had said about how there were no lines a shifter wouldn't cross for his fated mate. "Maybe you should wait until this afternoon after my class so I can be there too."

"Will that make you worry less?" he asked.

I nodded. "Yes."

"Then that's what we'll do," he agreed.

"Thank you," I whispered, going on my toes to give him a quick kiss before I headed to my class. He was waiting for me outside the door when it was over and did the same for my second lecture of the day. Then we had lunch at the campus deli. I nibbled on my sandwich, my nerves getting to me again, until Artemis reminded me that he wouldn't let anyone hurt me—physically or mentally.

As soon as my geology class was done, he slipped in the side door that only Dr. McCord used. I wasn't sure how he'd gotten access to that hallway, but it turned out to be a good thing because he blocked my professor from leaving as the lecture hall emptied.

"Who're you?" Dr. McCord demanded when Artemis didn't step out of his way.

"Artemis Drake."

Dr. McCord scoffed at his reply. "Your name means nothing to me."

Artemis wasn't intimidated by my professor, straightening to his full height as he quirked a brow. "I'm the man who's here to talk to you about being in possession of stolen property."

"Stolen property?" Dr. McCord echoed, his head jerking back.

"The lunar meteorite Marielle brought to you on Monday," Artemis explained.

Dr. McCord shot me a dirty look. "I can assure you that I would never knowingly take possession of something that had been stolen. I have too much to lose to take a risk like that."

"Don't blame Marielle." Artemis moved to stand next to me, sliding his arm around my back. "She's not the thief here. You are."

"I didn't steal anything," Dr. McCord protested, his eyes widening. "Marielle gave the Lunaite to me for testing."

"Only because you wanted to prove me wrong when I was right," I muttered.

My complaint earned me another scathing look from my professor, which Artemis did not appreciate judging by the threatening growl that rumbled up his chest. "And if I hadn't come here, knowing damn well my rock was Lunaite and not magnetite because I've owned it for years, would you have told her you ran the test but didn't find any cosmogenic nuclides?"

"Of course not," Dr. McCord denied. "She would have gotten the credit due to her for finding a lunar meteorite although it appears my doubts were warranted since I'm assuming you didn't get your Lunaite in the woods near here. So Marielle technically didn't discover it."

"She might not have, but she's still the rightful owner of the lunar meteorite that's worth more than you make in a year. Maybe two."

Dr. McCord's gaze darted between us, and he gulped. "And as such, I will make sure it is safely returned to her. Today."

"Good," Artemis grunted. "Try to fuck over my woman again, and losing your job will be the least of your worries. Dead men have no need to work."

Artemis's parting words were probably over the top, but they turned out to be effective. Dr. McCord never gave me a bit of trouble during the remainder of my studies.