Chapter 21
His palace. His rules.
I swallowed hard, having forgotten for a second who I was talking to. But my curiosity got the better of me.
I glanced up at him, biting my lip before finally asking, “That hairpin… Who did it belong to?”
Damon’s jaw twitched.
“It’s important to you, isn’t it?” I added, watching the way his expression tightened.
I thought he wouldn’t answer, but after an agonizing stretch, he spoke more to himself then to me. “It’s… a memory,” he said finally, his tone quieter than before. “A precious one. And I won’t allow anyone to defile those memories.”
Something about the way he said it made my chest tighten and I didn’t press further.
Instead, I forced myself to breathe, shifting the conversation. “You’ve been watching the training,” 1 murmured. “Is it what you expected?”
Damon studied me for a long moment. “You’ve been pushing yourself,” he said. “More than the others.”
“I have to ”
He narrowed his eyes. “To win?”
“Yes,” I said without hesitation.
Damon’s eyebrow rose as though he didn’t believe me. Or maybe he didn’t like my answer. “You told me before that you didn’t want to be chosen,” he murmured.
I hesitated, my fingers tightening in the fabric of his oversized shirt. “I changed my mind,” I lied.
His eyes traced over me–lingering, unreadable. Damon stepped closer, and suddenly, the space between us felt unbearably small. More of his scent wrapped around me, making my pulse flutter.
His fingers brushed the hem of his shirt where it hung loose against my thigh. Barely a touch, but I felt it everywhere.
there was no combat training tomorrow,” he asked, “would you still come?”
I blinked. “What?” I swallowed, my skin burning where his gaze lingered.
“If there was no fight,” he repeated, “would you still come?”
My lips parted, words failing me for a second. Then, finally, I nodded. “Yes, I would.”
Damon reached up, tucking a damp strand of hair behind my ear. His fingers lingered against my cheek, a whisper of warmth.
His eyes searched mine and i had the sudden, dangerous feeling that he could see right through me. My heartbeat pounded in my
ears, a wild, unsteady rhythm.
+15 Bonus
Then, as quickly as it had happened, he pulled away. The space between us stretched, and the air grew colder without his body
heat.
“Go,” he said, his voice quieter now, but firm. “Before curfew.”
I nodded, my throat too tight to speak, and turned toward the exit, hyper–aware of the oversized shirt draped over me, of the scent of him clinging to my skin.
By the time I returned to the dorm, it was late.
Thankfully, no one seemed to notice the oversized shirt I was wearing; not that I would have explained if they had. I slipped inside my room quietly, carefully folding Damon’s clothes and setting them aside.
I barely remembered climbing into bed. Sleep pulled me under quickly, exhaustion taking over. But the moment my eyes cracked open the next morning, something felt… off.
I frowned, rubbing the sleep from my eyes as I reached for the small slip of paper on my nightstand. The lot I had drawn yesterday that determined my opponent in the combat selection.
I unfolded it absently, still groggy and stared at the paper, my stomach twisting violently.
No. I blinked, my fingers tightening around the slip.
The name had changed. Instead of the quiet girl I had been assigned to fight, the lot now bore a different mark.
The Lycan King’s insignia.
My hands trembled. This wasn’t possible. My chest tightened as I read and reread the name, disbelief flooding through me.
Someone had switched it while I slept. And I was going to have to fight Damon.
