“No, we snuck in—”
“Falcon Lord?” A woman approached us, and Tae quickly clammed up about his childhood criminal activities.
The woman's chestnut hair was touched with gold and hung over one slim shoulder in a long braid. Although she wore the robes of a scholar, her feminine form was evident beneath it in a very alluring way, but it was her beautiful face that drew the most attention. Sultry lips, big blue eyes, and long lashes. I glanced at Tae and saw his eyes widen in appreciation.
I hated her instantly.
“Yes?” Taeven smiled at her, making me grind my teeth together.
I had to remind myself that Tae had told me just an hour earlier that he was mine, and we were not sharing. Also, I was not an insecure man. Or clingy. Or cynical. No, he still hadn't said the L-word to me, but he'd basically said that we were in a fully committed relationship. No need to get nervous around ridiculously beautiful women who had body parts that Tae might be lusting for—body parts that I didn't have.
“I'm Mistress Avanla. I've been chosen to be the Valorian's teacher.”
Oh, great.
“Nice to meet you.” Taeven shook her hand. “This is Shane Rumerra, the Falcon Valorian.”
“Hi.” I grudgingly shook her hand.
“It's an honor to meet you, Valorian.” She looked me over in the way Tae had looked at her. “You have the most beautiful skin.”
“Thank you.” All right, maybe she wasn't horrible.
“Yes, he does.” Tae stroked my back. “The Goddess was good to me.”
“Flatterer,” I teased, but inwardly, I was overjoyed.
“I have to meet with the King,” Tae said to Mistress Avanla. “But I'll return as soon as I'm able. Where will you two be?”
“Oh, in the library, I'd think. I've been advised that valorians learn best through books, so I've chosen a few books on shifting for the Valorian to read before we try anything physical. And, uh, just to warn you, His Majesty has asked me to attempt a rapid instruction.”
“What does that mean?” I asked warily.
“I'm to push you to learn as quickly as possible and advance to lessons as soon as you've shown competency in the previous.” She made a face. “This is not how I normally teach. I think a student should master each lesson before proceeding.”
“Then perhaps a compromise?” Tae offered. “Advance to the next lesson once you feel that he's capable and not just competent.”
Avanla smiled in relief. “Yes, that would be much safer.”
“Safer?” I asked. “Is learning magic dangerous?”
“Some types of magic can be, yes,” Mistress Avanla admitted. “But only if you don't know what you're doing. I will make sure that you are prepared, Valorian.”
“Please, call me Shane.”
“And you can drop my mistress title too.” She leaned in to whisper, “It's so stuffy, don't you think? It makes me feel as if I'm five centuries old.”
Five centuries. I blinked at that. “Yeah, totally stuffy.”
“Well, I'll leave you to it then,” Tae said, then bent down to give me a quick kiss goodbye. “I'll see you soon.”
“All right,” I murmured as I watched him leave.
“He's absolutely dreamy.” Avanla wagged her eyebrows at me. “Well done, you.”
I chuckled. “Thank you. We'll see if I can keep him.”
Avanla frowned. “It's in doubt?”
