Page 26 of Owned By Four Alphas

He didn’t blame her. Ordovic was an old enemy, and not one he wanted anywhere near his mate.

He sighed. Perhaps ripping his throat out would be the best course of action, after all.

Chapter 11 - Selena

“Again,” Elian’s voice brooked no arguments, despite the sweat running down her forehead, despite the tremble in her hands,

“Elian, I’m too tired. Please, can we take a break?” she begged, biting her lip at him.

He merely laughed. “That sort of trick may work on Ronan, but it’s not going to work on me. If you want me to get the books from the archive for you this afternoon, then you’re going to have to do things my way.”

She rolled her eyes, taking a few steady breaths. They had been working on her magic for what felt like hours, but the sun had barely shifted in the sky beyond the arching windows. Since her outburst at the Winter’s End feast, and a few other—albeit much smaller ones—since, Elian had switched his teaching to entirely focus on control.

Today, he was trying to get her to the point where she could hold the magic stable around her, a calm blanket instead of a violent storm.

It wasn’t going very well.

She braced herself as Elian’s shadows spread from his fingertips, swirling over the rugs towards her, a thick cloud of magical energy. As it got closer, malevolent and searching, her own magic sparked in defense, lashing out from her skin.

“Picture it settling,” Elian urged, pulling back his shadows ever so slightly, “like a suit of armor around you instead of arrows flying from you. You want it to be defensive, not offensive.”

She ground her teeth together, finding the strands of magic within her, tugging and wrestling with them. They hissed and writhed under her touch, escaping to bite back against Elian’s magic, refusing to settle into the shape she tried to force them into.

Truthfully, it was everything she could do to keep it under control and not exploding entirely from her.

Elian withdrew his shadows, a heavy frown on his beautiful face. “I don’t think this approach is working.”

“You don’t say,” she gasped, trying to catch her breath, her muscles trembling with the effort of keeping her body under her own control. Her magic skittered over her skin, agitated and angry, leaving streaks of silver light in their wake.

“Perhaps using my magic is too aggressive at this point. I am, after all, devastatingly powerful.”

“Elian.”

“Not to mention undeniably handsome.”

“Elian!”

“And, of course, wickedly intelligent.”

Against her will, a bubble of laughter burst from her, and Elian’s eyes brightened at the sound.

“What do you suggest instead?”

A glint in his eye was the only warning she got before he launched at her, fingers arched into claws to swipe at her. She squealed, throwing her arms over her head, but the impact never came. Blinking, she lowered her hands to see Elian hovering over her, his fingers a mere hair’s breadth from her stomach.

“Fascinating,” he said, “it seems that your magic doesn’t lash out at physical threats. How odd.”

“Well, I know you wouldn’t actually attack me!” Selena half-shrieked, batting at his chest. “I was shocked, not scared!”

“Hmm,” Elian’s grin was positively wicked. “How about we try something else?”

Instantly, she was on guard. “Like what?”

“Close your eyes, little dove.”

She narrowed her eyes, “What are you going to do?”

He grinned, “Do you trust me?”

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