Forbidden Honor (Dragon Royals #1)(19)

“It would be weird if he wasn’t antagonizing her, let’s be honest,” Lynx said. “He’s always an asshole and the ladies still line up.”

Jaik sauntered toward us, then he saw me and his gaze hardened.

“You should go,” Talisyn drawled. “Last time you two were face to face, I could barely get the blood stains out of my clothes.”

I scoffed. “He’s not worth it.”

When I lost my place with the dragon royals, I lost everything. All I had left was my room at the academy, my gambling skills to fill my pockets, a few illicit activities, and a position teaching lesser shifters.

I could feel Jaik staring at me as I walked down the path toward the long, stone steps that twisted down the academy to the gates, then the city street below. I started to jog down them once I was out of sight.

Until I caught up with Honor.

Why was Jaik—and the other dragon royals—paying so much attention to her? She was beautiful; even from behind, with her long hair swishing across her back and the graceful, easy way she moved, she was striking. But they had plenty of beautiful women hanging off their arms and on their every word.

She was brave, too. I still didn’t understand why Jaik would pull her into the training yard. Of course a trained dragon royal could decimate any civilian, most likely any other shifter warrior, forget an untrained girl. Why were they so obsessed with her?

I reached her, then matched my pace to hers. “Hello.”

She glanced at me out of the corner of her eye, then turned to face me with disbelief written across her face. “Now what?”

I raised an eyebrow at her. That wasn’t usually how women reacted to me. “Why is Prince Jaik picking on you?”

“I don’t know. You fling cake at a noble one time, they get all weird.” She seemed to contemplate. “Maybe that’s his kink. Do you think that could be his kink?”

I didn’t want to think about Jaik’s kinks, although I’d certainly had a front-row seat to them many times before. The dragon royals had perverse habits.

“What’s special about you?” I mused.

“Absolutely nothing. Who are you?”

“Oh, I doubt that very much. Caldren.” I offered her my hand, and she shook it.

“Honor.”

“I’m a teacher here.”

“Great. Please don’t get me fired… I swear I’ll stay away from the royals. Somehow.” She cast a glance over her shoulder at the academy, which seemed to loom above us the closer we came to the street.

I didn’t want her to stay away from the royals. I wanted to know what the degenerates were plotting.

“It’s all right,” I said. “No one’s getting fired. That wasn’t your fault. Jaik goaded you into sparring.”

“How’d you know?”

“Jaik goads everyone. He’s an asshole.” I eyed her contemplatively. “You might be no match for him, but you have good moves.”

“Just not good enough.”

“Not good enough,” I agreed. “But they could be.”

She laughed. “Please.”

“I teach weapons at the academy. I can teach you.”

“Why?”

“Because when one of the royals warns someone to know their place, it pisses me off.” The truth of it unfurled in my chest, and some of the tension I carried every time I saw Jaik released.

She glanced at me, her eyes widening. “What did he do to you?”

“Nothing,” I said curtly. “He’s just the inevitable result of a fucked-up system.”

She watched me curiously as the two of us kept heading down the stairs.

“There’s nothing for me to train for,” she said finally.

“Bullshit. It’s always worth being ready for a fight.”

She hesitated, licking her lips absently. I found myself watching her, studying the tiny tip of her pink tongue, her curvy red lower lip and the distinct bow in her upper lip. There was something magnetic about her, and it wasn’t just her beauty. No matter how much she claimed to be trying to be practical, to be invisible, there was something fierce and fearless about her. Something wild that she couldn’t quite deny.

“When?” she asked, and I grinned, knowing I had her.





The next day, I was surprised when she showed, trudging up the dark stone steps just before dawn broke over the academy.

“I didn’t think you’d come,” I admitted.

“I’ve got nothing better to do at five in the morning,” she said. “Just…sleeping. And sleep is so boring.”

“Exactly,” I said.

I tossed her a training sword. This time she managed to catch it, which was a small improvement already. She frowned at the sword as if she were thinking the same.

“Why don’t you come at me?”

I’d intended to let her get some good shots in, to build her confidence a bit after her humiliation the day before. She came at me with a burst of violent fury, her long red braid flying behind her head, and I found myself taking a step or two back, trying to block each quick blow. She had explosive power and good instincts, even if she lacked the higher-level technique that came with years of training.

I trapped her sword with mine, and the two of us finally came to a halt, both of us breathing hard. She looked up at me, her eyes bright. Some insane part of me wanted to lean over and kiss her.