“What?” I demanded.
Saffron was the only onenotlooking at me. But that didn’t make me feel better, because he stared into empty space instead. He sighed wistfully, making googly eyes at absolutely nothing. Then he slid into the closest chair—the one next to Jade.
On the opposite end of the table.
Now everybody stared athim.Because we always sat next to each other. Always.
Viol slowly craned his neck at the empty chair beside me. He looked like he might explode. Wordlessly, he stalked over and sat down. He was taller than me, and his leather-adorned elbow intruded on my space, but I didn’t dare suggest he move it out of fear of getting stabbed.
This was so wrong.
Jade cleared his throat like nothing happened. “Good morning, everyone! Glad to see you all present. I have exciting news to share.”
“Are we playing fucking musical chairs?” Viol asked.
“No. This is better,” Jade promised. “I’ve made a proposal, and received the green light for the premise of the next Dragonfate Games.”
Cobalt furrowed his brow. “Premise?” he asked, confusion laced in his deep voice. “Isn’t the premise already established?”
When Jade smiled, there was something sly and untrustworthy about it. Like he was scheming.
“Yes, but this time, we’re changing up the formula,” Jade explained. “Nothing like a fresh twist to liven up the show, hm?”
For the first time since arriving, Saffron snapped back to reality. “What is it?” he asked eagerly.
Jade caught my eye. I didn’t know why, but my stomach sank.
“On the fourth season of the Dragonfate Games, there won’t be an alpha dragon bachelor,” he announced.
Saffron’s shoulder slumped. “Huh?”
“What?” I asked at the same time.
Everyone was baffled. But Jade grinned like a snake about to devour a clutch of eggs.
I had a bad feeling about this.
“There won’t beonebachelor... because this time, there will be two.” He swept out his arms. “Saffron and Aurum will be our twin bachelors!”
Two
Mylo
My heart pounded like a hammer.Sweat beaded at my brow. All my muscles tensed as I sat upright, clutching the controller for dear life.
I sat in darkness. The only light in the dark room came from the TV. It created the perfect ambience—a moody, tense atmosphere for my task.
The secret boss in my RPG was down to his last few hit points. He was impossibly difficult. Only a handful of players in the world had ever beaten him.
If I defeated him, I’d accomplish something incredible.
“Come on,” I whispered to my player characters. “You can do it.”
My heartbeat circled in my throat as I hit the next button. My attack connected. The boss’s HP whittled down to a tiny sliver.
I was so close...
A jarring knock came from the door.
