Page 109 of Silent Jay

“If I follow her, will you keep calm?” I asked.

Although my dragon couldn’t speak, my base instincts softened, and the haze of my oncoming rut eased.

Casting wind at my back, I burst forward before slowing to fall into step with the woman.

“Did anyone show you around?” I asked.

She eyed me.

“I didn’t like your last question.” I grabbed her arm, forcing her to stop so I could meet her gaze. “You were the center of attention at The Hunt. A volcano erupted when you relit Tyson’s fire. The rumor mill says you were at the heart of the sudden conflict between fire, earth, and water.” I took a deep breath. “Now you’re here at my orphanage, which has spent the last twenty years under the radar of all the elements. I am deeply uncomfortable.”

Nothing I’d just said was a lie. But not a word of it was why I stood at her side.

The woman raised an eyebrow before gesturing for me to lead on.

My dragon pranced.

This wouldn’t end well for either of us.

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

JAIYANA

Sister Abby had gone from angry to a knowledgeable tour guide so fast it gave me whiplash. When our tour ended, instead of leaving me on my own, she took me to the tiny library and pulled out a board game, which felt so, well, normal. It wasn’t a hobby that screamed dragon shifter or ‘evil genius involved in a plot to trap me on an island.’ Sister Abby seemed like a woman just trying to make friends after a really rough start from said friend… twice now.

I can’t believe you claimed you were broken to a person actually missing limbs.

I’m not a wordsmith, fuck’n sue me.

I feigned scrutiny of the cards in my hands to blatantly stare at Sister Abby.

Did I need to be more suspicious of her or less?

I really thought Caoimhe, the little redheaded not-nymph, could have been on the island to watch me. Yet, since making my clothing what felt like years ago, I hadn’t seen or heard from her. She was either terrible at her job, or I was paranoid.

Oh, I know the answer to this one.

Shut up.

Library books, with their color-coded bindings, filled the shelves around me. The living room-sized space only had one battered square table in the center, and we occupied it. The sun had set a few hours ago. Glowing balls of swirling air magic floated above us.

I placed down my sixth unique science symbol, winning our third game of Seven Wonders in a row. The sister’s pencil-lined eyebrow ticked. She was not a good loser. Although I usually loved to bask in my victories, I gave the woman some privacy by standing and studying the books on the shelf behind me.

The sound of her controlled breathing filled the small space. I bit my lips together to keep my humor at bay.

“You have to have played before,” she said, coming up behind me.

Her body heat kissed my back, and the scent of fresh laundry, deodorant, and an unmistakable masculine musk made my head spin. I tried to shimmy to the side to give her more space, but she rested her hands on either side of the bookcase, pinning me in place without touching me.

“Have you played the original game, not the one meant for two?” she demanded.

I shook my head and pulled out a book titledThe Great Elemental Split.

Sister Abby put her hand on the book before running it up my arm, leaving a trail of goosebumps in its wake. Once her fingers rested on my shoulder, she spun me to face her. I pushed down my libido, still on overdrive from my foursome, apparently.

Her gray eyes bore into me. “What other games have you played?”

I clasped the book to my chest. “Squeak?”

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