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I lean on my desk as she rants away. “For a good year, you ignored me, and then we came here, and you’ve been all over me for months. Then suddenly you’re cold with me again. I don’t get it. I thought you wanted me to be your queen and that was why you were so into me since I got here. What’s changed?”
My dragon pushes against my mind, wanting to be free again. I’m not in the mood to deal with Hope. It was a bad fucking idea, starting things with her again when I got here. I was lonely, and she was just there. She wants to be my queen, fine, but I don’t want the happily ever after she has planned. My plan with Arden and Ellelin is all that matters. “Nothing. Just get out, Hope.”
She walks up to me, brushing her hands up my thighs. “I can make you feel better. Whatever has you in a bad mood, I can distract you.”
I’m tempted for a moment, but I’m done fucking her and thinking of only one person—who isn’t her. Hope has always been desperate for attention, for me. It’s becoming nothing more than annoying and unattractive. She has this imagined bond to me thanks to my dumb ass saving her life as a kid. I remember seeing her floating on a long piece of wood, not breathing. I used my power to pull the water from her lungs, and my mum decided she would love a daughter. We didn’t grow up together; she was always sent off to train in various courts. My mother thought it was best she learnt to be as strong as she possibly could get before the race. The first time we were together, she told me she loved me, but I just wanted to get laid. I should have stopped this then. I remove her hands and head to the open window in my room. “Lysander!”
I jump out of the window to escape her, shifting and roaring as she screams my name. I let myself fly around the island, to the sea, before diving in deep. The ocean washes away everything, including thoughts of Ellelin fucking Ilroth.
CHAPTER 15
KING ARDEN OF THE FIRE COURT.
“I don’t want Ellelin to enter your race.”
Grayson looks up at me from the couch, stretching his legs out. I thought he’d look at me like I’m insane, but he doesn’t. I swear I see understanding in his gaze.
“You know I can’t.” He purses his lips and I growl. This stupid fucking curse is like a noose around our necks. All of ours. We can’t stop the race, only guide it and choose what parts of our magic we want to use within it. I didn’t see her coming. Ellelin fucking Ilroth has taken hostage of every inch of me. In my head, I’d convinced myself I could pretend to accept some girl as my queen and then leave her alone within my court for the rest of her life. I didn’t want a bride…not until I met her. Now all I can think about is having her in my court, sitting on my throne, and in my bed in the evenings. Or mornings. Or whenever we want.
We can’t save any of them without losing our magic and putting our court in danger. Asking Grayson is pointless, we both know it, but he is my trusted friend, and I want him to know what is going on in my head. “I don’t want her in it either,” he murmurs.
“There must be a way. We could take her back and swap her for someone else,” I desperately suggest.
“Arden.”
Flames flicker in my hand, and I put them out before I burn our room down. Again. “I know.”
“Come and spar with me,” Grayson commands. If anyone else commanded me, I’d tell them to fuck off, but not Gray. He was always commanding with all of us since we were kids. He would stand apart and boss us about even in stupid games of hide-and-seek. Lysander always cheated by using his powers, and Emrys would take the time to fly around his castle and find an impossible place to hide. The fucker always won. But Grayson wanted to be with us, just from a distance. It took me years before I realised why.
I nod, following him out the doors to the sparring field. “No magic. Just spears. Make it a challenge.”
I grin, picking up a spear off the rack. Grayson does the same. I rip off my shirt. It’s too hot out today for it. I’ve only ever seen Gray take his shirt off once, and I understand why he won’t, even if it gets soaked with sweat when we spar.
I sense her before I swiftly turn to see Ellelin coming out of the castle through a tunnel. I love this interfering castle. Ellelin and her talkative friend, Amy or something, are with several of the other girls, who all come to a stop when they see us. She smiles brightly at me, and I grin back. Fuck, I’m falling for this girl. The new tutor is with them, and he steps in front of Ellelin. I frown at the fucker for ruining my view. “Ah, we came to see if we can train outside, but it seems like you’ve taken up the area. Maybe a demonstration on how to properly fight is in order? My students could observe.”
Hope laughs. “Oh, I’m down for watching.”
I roll my eyes at her flirting, noticing how Ellelin glares at her for a second. Grayson nods, looking Ellelin’s way for a few seconds too long. He follows her gaze to me. Elle’s eyes are wandering over my chest like she can’t stop looking, and when her eyes drift lower, I know I’m fucked. I’m going to lose this fight while she is watching me like that. Her eyes meet mine, and I wink. She smiles slightly. I don’t know when she got under my skin, but she has, and I live for every time she looks my way. I don’t think any other girl I’ve ever met has been able to do that.
I look at her once more, and I swear my mind goes foggy. I fuck up on everything and anything that I meant to be doing when she is around. I glance at the ring on her finger. I shouldn’t have given her that. Absolutely not. It’s worth a fortune, and there is only one of those rings left in the world. My father might have invented a way for it to be worn as jewellery for my mother, but the stone is thousands of years old and belongs to the ruling family of the Fire Court. It shouldn’t leave the court.
Fuck it, she is going to be my queen. She deserves the ring. I lost my mind a long time ago when it comes to her. It started in a little tiny house with weird pictures of a cat on the wall, and a fiery hellcat who knocked out my friend with a toilet lid. That night, I was done for.
Grayson’s playful growl snaps me out of those fond memories. I straighten my back. Grayson won’t care where my thoughts are. He will literally beat the shit out of me if I’m not focused. He doesn’t have any sympathy for his enemies and not much for his friends.
He’s ruthless and my best mate. Grayson gives me no chance for any kind of breather before he’s lashing out at me, his spear heading straight for my head. I block it with my own, spinning out of the way and twisting on my foot and turning to block his next move. Our spears clang loud, and even while we aren’t using powers, I can taste magic in the air around us from our dragons. He blocks my attack, and for a while we circle each other, our spears clanging with each hit, smashing and vibrating around the field. I feel Elle’s eyes on me, watching like a hawk, and I can’t focus as much as I did. Sweat pours down my body, Gray’s too, and we both are panting hard after half an hour of this. I fucking love sparring with him. Grayson whacks me hard on the side, sending me stumbling a bit. I huff, literal smoke coming out of my mouth, and he grins.
“No magic, asshole,” he reminds me.
I chuckle and jump at him. He uses his spear by holding it with both hands, blocking my attack, and I push down my spear with all my strength. Just then, I scent Ellelin. Fuck, she is turned on by this. I can smell it in the air. My dragon roars. Grayson’s just as strong as I am, and we both know it, but I’m far more easily distracted than he is. I push down with the strength from my dragon, him growling in the back of my mind, adding to the sense that we absolutely have to beat Gray to impress Ellelin. My dragon’s a competitive asshole, but even now, he seems distracted by her as much as I am. I want to shout at him to focus, to push all of his strength into me, especially when Grayson manages to push me off him hard enough that I fall backwards and land on my ass. The tip of his spear is pressed into my neck in a second.
The bastard doesn’t even attempt not to look happy as he lifts his spear and brushes sweat off his face. The girls are cheering. I climb to my feet. “You win, clever bastard. Maybe we should get Emrys and Lysander down here. We haven’t sparred all together for months.”
“Lysander is busy and Emrys isn’t going to fight with an audience. He doesn’t like to show off,” Grayson points out, lowering his voice. “For pretty girls he might change his mind though.”
I resist the urge to smack his arm, knowing he doesn’t like to be touched. Except…he let Ellelin hold his hand and lay her head on his shoulder. That shit shocked me the other night. I’d like to know how she has gotten him to trust her. Livia, I think that’s her name, is talking to Elle as we walk over. “I could get used to the Magic Mike show any day. That was hot and I’m not even into men.”
Ellelin nods. “I love Magic Mike shows. So hot, but maybe this was even better.”
