I was. For one violent moment, I'd imagined all the ways a rider could fall from their dragon. But I wasn't that guy.
I had a mission, a purpose, and jealousy was beneath me. If Kailin wanted to be with that guy because he was her brother's commander or for any other reason, it was her choice.
I had no claim on her.
Perhaps I should confess who I was to her. I was a damn prince. He had nothing on me.
"Let him have her," I muttered, but the words tasted like ash in my mouth. "She's just a distraction anyway. We're here for more important things. We need to graduate and become riders."
Codric's expression shifted to something that looked dangerously close to pity. "We are. But now that Kailin is also a cadet, there is no more reason for you to deny your feelings for her. Don't just give up on her without a fight."
For a moment, my competitiveness reared its head, and my entire body coiled in preparation for a ferocious fight. That rider might have seemed all that to her, but he wasn't a prince.
I was.
Yeah, and he also wasn't on a secret mission.
But wait, Saphir knew who I was...
He'd called me 'prince' and winked, but he hadn't exposed me. He hadn't prevented me from being chosen. Maybe I didn't have to choose between my mission and Kailin.
"She was just overwhelmed," I said slowly, working it out as I spoke. "Seeing her brother again, all these dragons, her brother's commander. She probably was afraid to say no to him because of the repercussions it could have for her brother. It's not like she could have refused."
"Reality check." Codric put his hand on my shoulder. "Kailin seemed infatuated, not overwhelmed. You can still fight for her, but don't lie to yourself. She looked at him as if she recognized him."
The hollow feeling in my chest turned sharp, like broken glass under my ribs. "What do you mean? She knew him?"
"That's what it looked like to me, but you can ask her yourself when we get there. Then again, maybe you should accept that some things are beyond your control, your high?—"
"Don't." I cut him off sharply.
He raised his hands in surrender, but his eyes taunted me with things I wasn't ready to acknowledge.
I turned away, focusing on the sky and waiting for the dragons to return. This time, I wasn't letting anyone go ahead of me. I needed to get to the Citadel and guard Kailin from that conceited commander.
I knew the type. He was the kind of man who thought of himself as a cut above the rest, deserving the attention of every female he encountered.
I didn't have to wait long, and as a group of dragons circled above, readying for landing, I realized that they were not the ones who had taken the first group of new cadets.
They were all a sight to behold. Beautiful, but none as striking as that obsidian beast that had carried my Kailin away.
A rider approached our remaining group, her dragon a magnificent creature whose scales shifted between blue and silver depending on how the light hit them. She moved with the easy confidence of someone who spent more time in the air than on the ground.
"Who's ready to fly?"
"I am." I stepped forward.
I needed to catch up to Kailin before that guy charmed her into submission.
"I'm Avida," she said as she motioned for me to follow, "and this is Barobian." She looked over her shoulder at Codric. "Come on. More riders are waiting to take you up."
I was surprised by the warmth of the dragon's scales as I pulled myself up, settling into position with more grace than I felt.
Everything about this moment should have been triumphant. I'd been chosen, and I was about to take my first flight. I was one step closer to achieving my goals. So why did it feel like something essential had been stolen from me?
"Secured?" Avida asked as she mounted in front of me, checking the straps that would keep us connected to the saddle.
"Yes." I looked back at the Circle of Fate and the mass of pilgrims still waiting to hear their fates.
