Total pages in book: 124
Estimated words: 117246 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 586(@200wpm)___ 469(@250wpm)___ 391(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 117246 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 586(@200wpm)___ 469(@250wpm)___ 391(@300wpm)
“What’s happening to you is terrible,” I rasped, deciding to empathize with what I understood. The delay of a dream. I wrapped my arm around his waist as we snaked around a corner. “What are you going to do?”
“Figure it out or pick a new field of study.” His posture stiffened with determination. “There’s nothing else I can do.”
He must be gutted. “I wish I could wave a magic wand and, poof, fix this for you.”
“Come play with me.” A woman dressed as a lizard beckoned from the shadows of a statue of a half man, half lizard. “The things I can do to you. . .” She unrolled a forked tongue and flicked it in our direction.
We ignored her. “While I’m without a wand,” I told Shiloh, “I can balance the scale between us.”
His brows winged up. “Okay, I’m intrigued. How is the scale unbalanced?”
“Well, just before we met, I learned I’d achieved my lifelong dream of being accepted into the Center for Agriculture and Life Sciences. But. To free my mom from the shackles of debt, I agreed to spend three years at Fort Bala Royal Academy. I was a mess. Then this charming guy showed up and made me forget my troubles. Suddenly I had a reason to smile. Now I owe him a day of fun and adventure.”
We stopped at the end of a long line. He gazed down at me, the full megawatt sparkle reignited in his eyes. There was no mistaking it. His irises were a festival of lights.
“Balanced scales are important,” he said.
“I concur.” I straightened the already-straight neckline of his shirt. “Have I told you how handsome you look today?” He wore jeans and a comfortable tee with the words Trust Me I’m Almost a Doctor scripted across the chest.
“So I’m charming and handsome.” He teasingly puffed out his chest. “Good to know.”
I chuckled as we moved up the line. “The most charmingest and handsomest in all the land.”
He chuckled, too, but quickly got serious. “I think you are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.”
Dazed, I peered up at him. “Thank you.”
He peered down at me, and a thread of longing uncoiled between us. The air thickened.
He wanted to kiss me; I knew it. Honestly, I wanted him to kiss me too. And I could ask him to do it without saying a word. Mykal had taught me the hand sign. But I didn’t do it. For some reason, the HP’s face flashed across my mind. That caged aggression in his eyes. That hint of amusement and that almost smile. His intensity. My stomach flipped inside out.
“Hey! Move up,” someone called, and I jolted.
The moment with Shiloh ended as quickly as it started. We stepped forward, both nervously laughing off whatever had happened. Or hadn’t happened. I didn’t let myself consider why I’d hesitated or how I’d inadvertently planted an unwanted seed of desire for Cyrus Dolion.
I balled my hands into fists. Seeds could be dug up. That unconscious flash didn’t have to mean anything. Crush on my instructor? The son of the king. Grandson of the emperor, the most powerful man in both worlds. No. We weren’t even friends.
Shiloh was an amazing guy. I wanted him and only him. End of story. No need for further thought.
Arden Dawn Roosa.
“Yes?” I twisted my head this way and that and spun, searching for the woman who’d spoken my full name.
“Is something wrong?” Shiloh asked, confused as he looked around.
“No, I—” Across the street, a beautiful young lady draped in a red robe crooked her finger at me. Recalling the bearded man who’d worn something similar, I frowned.
Her mouth moved, as if she were speaking. Somehow, I heard her as if she stood directly beside me. Shiloh’s execution is set. If you’d like to save him, say nothing and follow me.
My jaw slackened. Her voice. I hadn’t heard her with my ears. I’d heard her in my mind. I opened and closed my mouth, questions and statements dying one after the other before one emerged. “How are you doing that?” I demanded.
“Doing what?” Shiloh asked, his confusion escalating.
She said nothing else. Just pivoted and disappeared around a corner.
“Arden?” my companion prompted.
I should forget her. Pretend what happened didn’t happen. No doubt she meant me harm. But a need to speak with her stirred within me, strengthening into a tug before becoming a full-blown obsession. Resisting became impossible. I had to know how she’d done what she’d done and what she knew about Shiloh.
“I’ll be back,” I muttered, rushing off before my date could respond. At the intersection, I paused for traffic. No one else traversed this area, so I had no trouble finding my target.
I lurched, halting as if I’d hit a brick wall. She had positioned herself in front of the Rock. The very Rock I had (not) seen the bearded man standing in.