Page 66 of The Rose in the Shadows

“Your grace,” I wheezed. “I appreciate the advice, but perhaps now is not the time for conversation.”

The gold in his eyes slowly faded as he rolled over to grin up at me while he wiped the splash of blood from his face. I was so momentarily consumed by my small victory that I didn’t notice his leg quickly flying out and knocking me off my feet. I fell to the ground all too suddenly. My arms stung from my feeble attempts to catch myself, and I cried out involuntarily as my still-healing knee took the bulk of my weight.

“Maybe if you listened better, Miss Moore, you wouldn’t have just lost the fight.”

He moved all at once, twisting from where he laid next to me. I tried to react, rolling over and preparing to jump up, but I couldn’t match his speed as hard as I tried. He was on top of me in a moment, straddling me and pinning my arms above my head with a firm, one-handed grip. His eyes had now retreated to their familiar gray color completely, and a taunting grin danced on his features.

“Tap out,” he instructed, not bothering to hide his satisfaction.

For a moment, I lay there frozen. His grip on my arms was tight, pulling them to the point that my back arched. My breasts lifted toward him with each strained breath I took. His hips pressed down onto mine with distracting heat and his free hand rested on my midriff, delicately touching the skin that was exposed from where my shirt had lifted.

“Tap out,” he whispered, his voice low and heavy. “Or do you just enjoy being underneath me?”

I knew I was blushing. I could feel the heat of it as Clay’s gaze trailed down my body. Without meaning to, I arched once more, shifting my hips underneath him and feeling him stiffen above me. There was no drug in my system now to blame for my brazenness. I had only myself to blame for the way I responded to him.

“Are you going to deny thatyouenjoy being on top of me?”

“I see no sense in denying that.” He chuckled, tongue darting out across his lips. “But if we stay here much longer, people will begin to talk, so admit you’ve lost.”

People were already talking. In some corner of my mind, I was dimly aware of the sound of Kent whistling and Lorelai clearing her throat.

At some level, I knew continuing to fight him was pointless; Clay was a foot taller than me and nearly twice as broad.I couldn’t possibly overpower him, especially not from this position. He had, in fact, beaten me.

But I couldn’t give up.

“No,” I insisted, surprised by the heat in my voice.

“You’ve lost, Thea. Just admit it.”

I couldn’t. I couldn’t surrender this fight, just as I couldn’t admit the truth of how much his body against mine was affecting me.

“Getoff!” I cried out, and my magic roared to life suddenly, soaring past the invisible barrier within me, rushing to my fingers and pulsing out.

Clay’s eyes widened as it hit him and carried him off me until he crashed into the wall. The thud echoed as he bounced onto the floor, sending me scurrying back in confusion.

That was not supposed to have happened.

The room was quiet and still until Rankor laughed excitedly. The others gave soft, nervous smiles and applause after him, but I stayed frozen on the floor.

“Guess you didn’t dose her hard enough!” Rankor explained, clapping his hands together.

Clay’s eyes flashed, clearly not thrilled at my using my powers against him for a second time, but he stood and offered a hand down to me. “You let your magic get the better of you. Even if the dose wasn’t enough, you should always be in control of your powers. Not the other way around.”

I nodded, relishing the familiar tingle of my power spreading throughout my fingers. “I’ll take note of that.”

“Well?” Kent asked, waving his arms wide. “What do you think?”

Clay shrugged, accepting a towel from Iris and brushing it over his face. He turned his attention to Rankor. “She has some natural skill, but it’ll never be enough. She needs refinement. Her endurance is pathetic, and her punches barely carrystrength. The trials will be dangerous, my father will ensure that. You can’t be going easy on her.”

“She’sright here," I reminded them, feeling the burn of Camilla’s gaze searing into my back.

Iris giggled and bounced forward to take my arm into hers as she began leading me away from the sparring arena. “That is the closest you could have gotten to a compliment, my dear! Which I think that calls for celebration, and I know just how. You see, there is a lake that’s not far behind the palace, but very private. As teenagers, we had a tendency to steal the palace liquor and go swimming for hours.”

Clay barked a laugh in a momentary show of normality that managed to steal my breath.

Gods what was wrong with me?

“It’s a wonder we never got caught!” He grinned. “Could you imagine the gossip?”

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