Page 35 of Court of Rivals
“I lived with my parents and four brothers.”
“Fourbrothers?” Alaric asks, seeming surprised. “Is that why you seem so fine with all the dragon riders being men?”
She eats slowly. “Yes, I’m pretty comfortable surrounded by men.”
“And I bet all of the men in town had a turn with you,” I say, hoping my jab lands.
Her gaze snaps to me, and she eats a piece of meat, which is strangely hot. “You know what’s funny? I bet you’ve taken that tiny dick of yours all over town, leaving women unsatisfied left and right, but no one ever implies you’re a slut. Funny how that works, huh?”
I shrug. “Well, I’m a man.”
“Hardly.”
“Want to come back to my room and find out?”
Shehumphs. “In your dreams.”
I hate it, but she’s right. I did dream about her last night, and it was plenty damn explicit. I blamed it on my dragon’s arousal though, sensing it through our connection, who knows who I’ll blame it on tonight.
“How come you’re so athletic? Whores are usually good at a few tricks, but they’re not exactly dragon rider material.”
I expect her to get mad. At any of this. All the name calling. All the unkindness, but she seems unfazed, which ticks me off. Ticks us all off.How mean are we going to have to be to this woman before she leaves the academy?
“I’ve always kept in shape. Being active is just part of my life.” Then, she glances at me again beneath her lashes. “Now, can I ask theroyal highnessesa few questions?” She says “royal highnesses” in a way that borders on sarcasm.
“By all means,” I say, continuing to eat.
“What exactly happened to you to be so disrespectful to women?”
I open my mouth, then close it.
“Usually it’s something in your youth. A lack of respect for your mothers, or the women in your lives.”
“Don’t talk about our mothers,” Gareth growls.
She lifts a brow. “Mothers are a touchy subject. Got it.”
And I see it in his face, he hates that she knows that about him. Here we are trying to figure out all her weaknesses, andshe’s finding ours instead.How can a fucking commoner be this smart?
“To answer your question,” Alaric begins in that stiff voice of his. “Each of us respects our mothers very much.”
“Interesting,” she says, eating a sauteed carrot. “So is it a tiny dick thing? The three of you all inherited baby carrots, so now you’re always overcompensating for it.”
“You really have a thing about our dicks,” I say. “Curious?” I ask, lifting a brow.
“Just trying to figure out why you’re so insecure,” she tells us simply.
“We’re not insecure,” Alaric tells her, puffing his chest out. “We just know you don’t belong here.”
“I don’t get the sense that the three of you know very much at all.” Her casual drawl is infuriating.
We keep eating in silence, but I’m in a worse mood than before. It’s not my habit to be unkind to women. I’m a lover of women. Every type of woman. I like them on their backs. I like them pleased beyond words. The last thing I want to do with this beautiful thing is to fight with her, but she’s leaving us no other choice.
“How many times have you fought the Hollowborn?” she asks.
We stiffen.Why does she want to know that?
“Many,” I answer. “Every experienced dragon rider here has taken his turn in the front lines, patrolling the border, which has inevitably ended in battles. Mainly over Gore Rock Island. The Hollowborn have to stop there on their way to Elarwyn because of the long distance between them and us. It’s the only place they can rest and recharge.”
