Kane and Vale step back, Kane explaining as Maz stretches his arms above his head. “We’ve got somewhere to be. Black’s gonna stay with you for the training.”
“Wait, you shouldn’t walk out. You’ll be at the bottom of the leaderboard,” I warn them.
“Doesn’t matter. Not if you’re planning not to be here by the end of the year.” Maz winks at me before all three of them leave, and I wonder what they are up to. I don’t get a chance to ask Black because Den is here.
“Why are your dragons going?” His grunt nearly makes me jump.
“Yeah. They said they don’t all need to be here to train me, so Black stayed,” I mutter, crossing my arms.
“Great, the one that cannot touch you,” he answers sarcastically.
I reach up and touch Black’s cheek, and he frowns at me, slipping his glove off and linking our fingers together. “He can. It must be a thing between us from having a bond.”
“Oh, how interesting! Someone should research that.” He eyes me suspiciously. “Fine. The two of you over there, hand to hand combat. I will be watching.” He walks off, and I wonder how much he knows. We need to be more careful.
There aren’t many people left in here, and I listen to the pouring rain against the rooftop, the crack of lightning as we choose a mat in the middle. Most have shifted and gone out.
Black lets me go to pull off his cloak, and to my surprise, his shirt too. I stare and I don’t even know what happens to my body, but I feel stuck, staring at his chest. He is stunning. Tight pants cling around his waist. Everything about him is defined and beautiful. His waist has a line of hair that drifts up the flat muscles, up to his huge pecs and thick arms and shoulders. There is a tattoo right in the center of his chest, nearer his heart, tribal and strange. The tattoo drifts over his shoulder. “That’s a bit unfair, don’t you think? Using all that”—I wave at his chest—“to distract me.”
I love his returning laugh as he closes the space between us. “Juniper Daygan, I can hardly distract you with what is yours and what you can touch any time you wish. By all means, look.” My mouth opens and shuts, and I’m thoroughly speechless. This man. My man? Yes, he is. “I thought we could start with posture. It’s the easiest way to train your body to be ready.”
“Some of the years you forgot, you taught me to fight. Not you specifically. Kane mostly. I don’t need to start with posture,” I softly explain. “I’d like you to teach me more self-defense. Just in case.”
He nods. “Then stop me.” That’s the only warning I get before Black moves, and he is fast. I barely see him slide across the mat, his hands reaching for my waist, and he flips me over his shoulder as I squeak. I fall with a thud onto the mat, and he pins me to it with his body.
“When did you learn to move like a ghost?” I whisper in shock, trying hard to distract myself from how good Black feels pressed against me.
He leans closer and the room fades until it’s only Black and me. “When everyone is scared of you for something you can’t control, the only way to have some peace is to be unseen. I learned how to hide as a child.”
“Black,” I whisper softly. “I’m so sorry she did this to you. It’s not fair.”
He leans up, offering me a hand. “Maybe when we meet her, she might listen to her daughter and undo the curse. Maybe Maz’s curse might be lifted too.” Why are Black and Maz cursed like this? Do Kane and Vale have curses too?
But what if she doesn’t undo the curse? She must have loved dragons once, at least one of them, to have me. Why would she curse the last of their race? What if my mother is a monster and everything I’m doing right now is just helping her win the war? I push the thoughts away and take Black’s hand. “Show me how to move like that, please.”
“You never have to beg me, Juniper. Everything I have and am is yours.” For the next few hours, Black relentlessly teaches me how to move, and I know I’m not nearly as good as he is, but I make some progress. Either way, it distracts me from the family meal of deception tonight and the dread building in my stomach that they will see right through my lies.
Chapter 7
“What do you think, Minnie?” I question, running my hands over the red dress that leaves little to the imagination. Minnie blinks up at me from the counter, and I sigh. “I’m nervous to walk out in this dress. Anxious maybe? I don’t care about Lock’s opinion, but I care about my bonded. I guess I want them to like me and—” Minnie squeaks, cutting me off. “You’re right, I’m overthinking this.” I finish off the spell for my hair, making it perfectly curl down my back in soft waves, and I put on a little makeup, tickling Minnie with the blush brush, and she huffs at me. I’ve never had a pet, but I really love Minnie. I keep my watch on, tightening the strap and not caring that it doesn’t exactly blend in with my outfit.
The dickhead with no boundaries knocks on the door twice. “We’ve got to go. We’re going to be late, and mother hates that.”
I reluctantly open the door to Lock. He’s standing there in a gray suit and blue tie, polished and pretty like he has always been. I can’t believe I ever let myself fall for his bullshit. His eyes widen as he stares, lingering on my legs, on the red high heels he’s bought for me, slowly making his way up and up to the low cut of the halter top part of the dress. I don’t like how he is staring, and I blurt out the only thing that comes to my mind. “Ihave heard that waiting until marriage is something people do. Humans do, I mean. But I think it’s awfully romantic, don’t you think?”
“No,” he coldly answers, finally meeting my eyes. He goes to reach for me, but he pauses when I step back. “Juniper, you need to get better at lying.”
I gulp. “Everything has just been changing so much. It’s a lot for anyone, Lock, let alone a relationship in this chaos.”
Lock stares at me for a long moment, long enough my heart pounds in my chest from worry. “Of course I understand that. Don’t worry, everything will work out in the end.”
Yes, it will. I take his elbow, loving how he gets paler the longer we walk together through the castle. Lock talks the entire time about his classes, about how he is better than everyone, and I try my hardest to look like I’m interested. I focus on the gothic architecture to calm myself. The castle is quiet, not a whisper in the air as we keep walking on the plush red carpets and eventually come to private quarters I’ve not seen before.
Two shifter guards stand by the door, never lifting their heads, and as they go to open the door, Kane steps to my side. Relief pours through my body as his hand brushes mine, and I turn to meet his eyes. Lock might be wearing a suit, but Kane is owning one. The black suit clings to his impressive build as he towers over Lock and me, his tie the same color as my dress. He looks amazing and time seems to slow as we stare at each other until he looks down at what I’m wearing. He fumbles with his tie, blowing out a breath and dragging his eyes from my dress as heat trickles down my spine. Kane runs his hand through his hair and looks over at Lock. “Lock.”
“What the fuck are you doing here, shifter?” Lock snarls, possessively placing his hand on the middle of my back.
Kane’s eyes darken as he fixes on Lock’s hand for a long, tense moment. I’m surprised how calm he manages to keep histone as he answers. “Aster is invited to the meal with Winifred. He told me, and I thought if bonded are allowed to come, then I don’t see why not. After all, in these early weeks of us being newly bonded, it’s important we spend time together.”
