Academia of the Beast: A Dark Retelling of Beauty and the Beast Read Online Free Page B

in a suit had his hands up a skinny blonde’s blouse as she straddled him.
    Allyn swallowed, definitely not liking what she saw, and what she guessed was expected of her and her friends.
    She tried to relax as her heels tapped along the black floor, but when they stopped at the back of the section her eyes locked with the man in the far corner.
    He looked vaguely familiar, but there was something about him that made her face flush, her heart stop, and her eyes widen. Never had she seen eyes so icy blue. Even in the dark, they stood out to her. His hair was dark, and short, unlike the long styles the men were wearing in town.
    “Have a seat, ladies,” Edan said. “I’ll have the private waitress tend to you.”
    Still frozen in place, Allyn had to force her feet to move forward. When he looked away, she was broken from her trance and was free to sit...as far away from him as she could.
    Something isn’t right. Leave, Allyn. She fought with herself until she found her hesitance replaced with intrigue. The man in the fancy black suit with the red tie was mysterious. There was something about him that pulled her closer.
    When he stood, Allyn held her breath. He was tall—at least six-foot-five, with a square jaw and a clean-shaven face.
    The shots from earlier warmed her from the inside out at that point, and as she looked up at him, she began to relax. Looking into his eyes did that to her. In his gaze, she was safe.
    “Good evening.” He held a hand out to her. “Join me for a walk,” he said, the same accent Edan spoke with lacing his words with an intoxicating flair.
    It wasn’t a question, and she could listen to him talk all day.
    Confused by her sudden desire to do what he said, she accepted his hand.
    “Where are you going?” Aude asked, sitting up as she watched Allyn come to her feet and follow the stranger.
    Allyn glanced back and shook her head. “I don’t know.”
    With a charming smile, the stranger turned to them. “You don’t mind if I steal her for a moment, do you?”
    Allyn noticed how the color in their faces drained as they got their first real look at his face. Did they see what she did? A man that was too handsome to be real?
    “Of course, your highness,” Aude said, lowering her head.
    “Forgive us,” Khia said, her head lowered as well.
    Your highness?
    Realization hit Allyn like a cold bucket of water was splashed onto her face.
    That’s why he looked familiar.
    She tensed.
    Holding her hand was Conall Baran, the crown prince of the Baran clan.
    A Wolf.

CHAPTER 5
    ––––––––
    T HE HAIRS ON Allyn’s exposed arms stood on end as she walked behind Prince Conall Baran from the VIP lounge. He didn’t glance back at her as they walked down the long hallway lit with neon lights that trailed along the grooves of the floor. The sound of the music faded farther and farther away as they approached the far door that led to the elevator.
    Once they reached the elevator, Conall pressed the button and it opened. They stepped inside and she stood far from him, watching him select the eightieth floor at the very top of the building. Why he chose to take her far away from her friends she was uncertain of. But, as they rode the elevator to the top, she could feel sparks of electricity between their bodies.
    It was odd. She’d never felt such magic just by standing beside a man. Her brows furrowed as she glanced at him. The urge to touch his face was almost unbearable.
    Did he have magic as well?
    When he met her gaze, she looked away, fixing her eyes on the glowing buttons on the elevator panel. “What is your name?”
    “Allyn.”
    “Allyn, what?”
    “Allyn Carmody.”
    “Oh, you have Irish ancestry. Nice.”
    “Thank you. There aren’t many of us in Central Elastria.”
    “Don’t worry. We are all blended. There aren’t many Scots outside of my clan anymore either.”
    The world was a mixture since the wars of the old days. The old countries and kingdoms were no more,