Page 55 of Marked Dragon

His sky-blue irises sparkled, and a tender smile filled his face.You are somehow more gorgeous while you sleep. I hadn’t gotten a chance to watch you sleep before now.

I winced. Though he hadn’t meant it maliciously, guilt still weighed on me. After all, I’d snuck out on him after our first night together, after we’d completed our bond.

My stomach grumbled, and my mouth watered. I wasn’t sure how I could be this hungry.

Untangling from me, Thorn stood and gestured to the door. “Your food awaits, my lady.”

I rolled my eyes just as Cassidy called from the kitchen, “Everyone, come and get it before it gets cold.”

I crawled out of bed and ran my fingers through my hair to tame the beast on top of my head then quickly grabbed one of my outfits from the duffel bag. I put on a pair of black shorts and a flowy, olive-green top, while Thorn dressed in jeans and a navy shirt.

We held hands as we walked into the kitchen, where every seat was already taken, even one of the futon chairs with Tyson, Saphira, and Brenton.

Peter, Eva, and Elliott were sitting at the table between Vlad and Erroll. Though Peter wasn’t handcuffed, I wasn’t concerned with Vlad and Cassie nearby. They could handle him.

Thorn and I filled our plates and hurried to the vacant futon to eat breakfast.

I enjoyed sitting next to my mate while hearing chatter about normal topics around the kitchen. Peter was silent, but everyone else discussed the weather, hiking, and what we should do today. Of course, Elliott was hell-bent on playing video games.

Saphira and Tyson were trying to one-up each other with some sort of roasting. I caught that Saphira had a mouth bigger than the Eiffel Tower. In many ways, those two reminded me more of siblings than cousins.

You’re happy,Thorn connected as he set his plate on the coffee table in front of us.

There was no point in denying it.It just seems normal, which is amazing after going through hell. Let’s go on the hike with Vlad, Cassidy, and Errol.I used to hate hiking but getting out into nature after being trapped in the chateau for so long sounded perfect…and being away from Peter made it even more appealing.

Just no sliding down any hills,Thorn teased and kissed my cheek.

A cell phone rang, breaking the moment.

I glanced over my shoulder and saw Vlad remove his phone from his back pocket. His jaw tensed. “It’s the king.”

“King?” Elliott echoed. “Wait. Is that Arman?”

“Elliott, what did we talk about last night?” Peter snapped. “They’re just messing with us, and for some reason, your sister has agreed to go along with it.”

“I told you it’s alltrue.” Eva huffed as the phone rang a third time. “And it was pure hell being there.”

Neither of us wanted to go back.

Cassidy pointed to the phone. “You better answer.”

Standing, Errol moved behind Peter and placed a hand over my stepdad’s mouth. Peter grunted and tried to move his head, but Errol didn’t budge.

With Peter contained, Vlad answered, “Hello?”

My dragon ears could hear it all. King Arman said, “Run. Now. They’ve found you, and a huge group of warriors is heading your way.”

Vlad hung up, and the room went silent, except for Peter’s mumbles.

My blood turned cold. Just when I’d felt safe enough to want to hike, this happened.

“How did they find us?” Brenton’s hands shook.

I should’ve realized this last night. “Didn’t you say he had a phone?”

Thorn nodded. “Why?”

“His biggest client is the Hales. They gave him a phone to ensure they could reach him at all times.” And it was in the house with us. We should’ve thrown it out last night.

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