Page 159 of Ravenrose

My eyes dart away.

Training? I remember mentioning it. It’s not a bad idea. I’m restless. I need to move—I need to do something. Something that isn’t my enemy princess…

Rowan’s already pacing, anxious energy running through her. She’s still not okay. Whatever she dreamed about—whatever woke her—it scared her.

“If you would like—” I shrug as if I don’t care either way.

“I would like,” she says, a hint of violence in her tone.

“Now get out so I can get dressed.”

I freeze. “What? We’re training now?” I steal a glance out the window at the still dark sky. “It’s barely dawn.”

“Yes, now,” she confirms, not looking at me while searching around for her leathers.

I watch her for a long moment. Rowan isn’t asking to train, she’s asking to fight. And after waking to the sound of her scream, I think we both know what she’s trying to outrun.

The princess finally glances up, catching me staring.

“Out,” she growls.

I huff a quiet laugh, playfully tugging on her shirt before heading for the door.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Chapter 66

AYER

Lethal.

The Rose Princess is positively lethal.

I stand at the edge of the training ring with my arms folded across my chest, watching Rowan circle Theo the way a wolf would its prey.

She had already wiped the floor with Wyatt before she’d even had breakfast. He’s young, still learning. But Hayes was a surprise.

Rowan might look tiny and delicate, but what she lacks in brute strength, she makes up tenfold in speed and agility.

And she’s smart. Always three or four moves ahead of her opponent at all times, anticipating every attack and counterattack; her ability to read even the slightest hint of body language is a skill even I can admire.

She plays with my best fighters like a cat with a mouse. And gods help the poor bastard standing across from her once she decides to stop playing nice.

“I think she enjoys this too much,” Wyatt mutters beside me, rubbing at his jaw. Rowan landed a wicked kick to it earlier, knocking him out cold.

“You say that like you weren’t the one running your mouth a couple hours ago,” Hayes smirks next to me.

Wyatt scowls. “I thought she was bluffing.”

The corner of my mouth ticks up as I keep my eyes on the Sitari princess in the ring in front of me. Her skin is flushed, sweat dampening the loose strands of hair that usually fall into her face.

She’s been at it for hours. Starting with a workout and warm-ups with me before begrudgingly stopping for breakfast, where she challenged Wyatt one-on-one.

Poor guy didn’t know what he was getting into.

She catches my gaze, her mouth twitching up into an unassuming smirk. Not a friendly smirk. I’ve learned to fear the expression she’s currently wearing.

Trouble is what it is.