Page 19 of Legend

“Over a female,” I scoffed, my warm breath dissolving instantly.

But my protest wasn’t as forceful, and my words not laced with as much disdain as they should have been. I should have been furious with myself for letting a female get into my head. I should have been focused on my work. But instead, I was running around the academy in the cold in a vain attempt to purge myself of feelings I was sure I’d long since abandoned.

I should not feel anything for the human. I should never feel anything for any human female again. I should have learned my lesson. Being betrayed once should have been enough, but here I was, opening myself up for more pain. And there was no doubt in my mind that Fiona would cause me pain.

She was already a pain in my ass. How could spending more time with her be anything but more pain?

Pain you brought upon yourself. Pain you sought out. Pain you want.

I growled and ran faster, kicking up hard clumps of sod that flew behind me. Why would I want pain? Did I think I deserved it? Did I want to torture myself?

You did betray the first-years, a little voice whispered to me as I raced past one tower and then the next. You are one of the reasons Drexian cadets are dead. Don’t you deserve to be punished? Fiona certainly thinks you do.

I gritted my teeth so hard they hurt as I rounded the corner and raced toward the shipyard. The sleek, black hulls of the ships reflected the gold light that was washing over them, and the sight of so many fighters made my chest swell. I thought back to the first time I’d seen the rows of ships lined up on the stone.

I’d been a fresh-faced cadet, with no clue about the academy or what I would have to endure. I had no idea that I would go onto join Inferno Force and spend so much of my life living in shiny, black Drexian ships. I had no idea of the challenges that faced me. If I had, would I have walked through the arched entrance?

“Of course I would have,” I said out loud, my deep voice breaking the peaceful silence.

All the sacrifices had been worth it because I believed in the Drexian Empire. I believed in our mission to protect the universe from cruel aliens. I believed in our duty to protect Earth from the Kronock. Above all, I believed in Drexian honor and might.

It was why I’d returned to the academy. I believed I had a duty to give back and train cadets.

A duty you neglected, the small voice whispered like a venomous snake curled around my ear.

“I will not fail again.” My feet pounded on the stones of the shipyard as I crossed it, and rounded another tower to hug the wall that abutted the sheer cliffs leading down to the Restless Sea. I could hear the thrashing water as it was hurled onto the rocks, even if I couldn’t see it.

I shielded my eyes as the sun hit the water and bounced off, sending blinding gold light off the surface. As bright as it was, I didn’t want to look away. I couldn’t. It was both cruel and beautiful, like everything I was attracted to, and just like Fiona.

She was as tough as she was striking, and it was her hard edges that pulled me to her, even more than her beauty. It wasn’t punishment I wanted when I’d challenged her and made the bet I knew I’d collect. It was the thrill of possessing something both alluring and deadly that I craved.

Not that I possessed Fiona, or probably ever would. She had made it perfectly clear that trying to claim her would be the end of me. But I had never been one to shrink from a challenge. I’d danced on the edge of danger for so long when I served in Inferno Force, but the academy held fewer chances for risk.

Fiona was a risk. If I pushed her, she could cut my throat. If I succeeded in winning her over, I would have to admit that what I truly desired was a human. If I fell for her harder than I already had, I would never recover if she rejected me. If there was ever a lose-lose-lose scenario, I was in it.

Chapter

Fourteen

Fiona

“It makes no sense,” I said under my breath, as I stood at the front of the classroom and stared at my lecture notes on the lectern without focusing on the words. Of course, I wasn’t talking about my lecture on using traditional battle formations for battles in space. I was still obsessing over the bet I’d lost against Vyk.

Why did the Drexian want to spend the night with me—aside from the obvious, which he promised he would not attempt? It had always been clear that he hated me, hated my kind, hated that we were ruining his academy. So, what kind of twisted mind wanted to submit himself to my presence and force me to spend time with him when I’d made it equally clear that I would rather do just about anything else? Hell, if we were going to get real, I would rather do just about anybodyelse.

I frowned at this, realizing that it wasn’t entirely true. As much as I hated Vyk for his attitudes toward humans and women, he was exactly the type of growly older guy I’d go for,ifhe wasn’t such an ass.

I glanced up when I heard footsteps. The seats that fanned out around me in a half moon were empty, and the light were dim. Cadets weren’t even at the academy, but someone was walking toward me, their face obscured by the low lighting. I frowned at the male form that I suspected was Vyk. “Are you here to discuss details?

“I am not.”

I instantly recognized the low, deep voice, and my shoulders relaxed. Tivek. Then I realized why he’d probably sought me out, and I bit my lower lip. I’d made Vyk promise not to reveal the terms of our wager to anyone, which meant that I also couldn’t reveal it. As much as I wanted to expose the commander, I did not want to expose myself and the impulsiveness that had gotten me into my current mess.

It was a situation that did not look good for a Strategy instructor. Of anyone, I should have seen it coming. I should have known that he was better at Drexian cards than me. I should have known that he would not make a huge wager he thought he had any chance of losing. Now that I had some distance from the game, I could see all my mistakes. I also knew that they were all a result of me being convinced that I was smarter and shrewder than a big warrior who struck me as a hit-first-and-ask-questions-later type. It was hard to admit how badly I’d misjudged him and myself.

When he came fully into view, I attempted to act surprised. “I thought you were someone else?”

“Someone else who needs to discuss details?”

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