Page 74 of Marked Dragon

You took away several dragons back at the chateau.He had done it with ease, so I wasn’t sure why that would change now.

I didn’t mean to. My dragon and I were fighting to save you.Thorn lowered his hands and stared at them.I wasn’t in control. The magic took over.

The same had happened when he’d changed me into a dragon shifter. I’d been dying, and he’d reacted. He hadn’t meant to do it, but I was so thankful he had.Okay. That’s fine. It was just a suggestion.

He turned me to face him as if we were the only two in the room.Talk to them alone, not with Peter around. If they want me to try, we can, but tell them no promises.

I pushed my love for him through our connection. I wanted him to know how much I appreciated and adored him.

“Uh…” Elliott cleared his throat. “What happened here? He was arguing, and now the two of them are looking at each other in a way that’s making me very uncomfortable.”

“It’s call eye-fucking.” Saphira blew out a breath. “And they’ve been doing that since day one, when I thought she’d lost her mind for looking at our kidnapper that way. I’m glad it’s because they’re fated and he turned out to be a good guy, or there would be hell to pay.”

“Good guy?” Peter scoffed. “That’s what you call it?”

“He is to her,” Eva said softly. “That’s all that matters to me.”

That was one way to ruin our moment, but we were with nine other people, so we probably shouldn’t be looking at each other this way. Now that I had Thorn’s attention and he wasn’t being obstinate, I figured now was a good time to try again. “The dragons won’t expect humans to be trained. That could buy us more time to reach them if they need help, and I need to know how to fight now that I have a dragon.”

“We could train them with guns and arrows.” Vlad steepled his fingers. “Even if we wind up leaving the country, we can’t right now. Every dragon shifter is on high alert and so scared that they won’t think twice about reporting us. It won’t hurt to train everyone, and that way, we’ll keep up our strength. Dragons live around the world, so there will always be a risk.”

Thorn huffed, and I placed a hand on his chest and gave him a small smile.I want to train, and my dragon is restless with all the running and sitting around we’ve been doing. What’s the harm in me learning how to defend myself?

“Fine. You’re right. It wouldn’t hurt for all of us to be more prepared and for me not to become rusty.” He mashed his lips together.I can never say no to you.

My pulse quickened, and the jolt of the electricity between us only added to the sensation.

“Then go.” Cassidy shooed us out. “Let me cook while you all train. Lunch will be ready in a few hours. The protein bars you ate earlier won’t sustain you for much longer.”

Our group stood, and even Peter begrudgingly obeyed.

* * *

The restof the day passed in a blur, including our all-too-brief lunch break when we devoured the delicious meal Cassidy had prepared.

Saphira and I teamed up as sparring partners, and though she wasn’t formally trained to fight, she still had more experience than me, and she kicked my ass over and over.

Tyson and Eva partnered up, leaving Peter with Elliott, and Brenton with Errol. Thorn had wanted to work with Saphira and me, but Vlad had intercepted. I was glad because, if Thorn had trained us, any time I got hurt, he’d have been tempted to end the training.

After lunch, Vlad took Errol, Brenton, Saphira, and me deeper into the woods and away from Thorn’s watchful eye. We practiced fighting in our human forms, and I caught way too many blows. My ribs and sides throbbed from how many times Saphira had hit me.

“This is our last round before we call it a day,” Vlad informed us from beside a white oak at the edge of the small clearing we’d found.

Sweat glistened all over my body. Though I ached all over, muscles burning from my efforts, it felt amazing to be sore.

Saphira lifted her hands and smirked. “Ready for another beating?”

She was as competitive as I was, and unfortunately, she was also way better at this.

I was determined that, before long, I’d beat her.

Raising my hands caused my ribs to protest, but I pushed the discomfort from my mind. I didn’t need Thorn homing in on it—he’d already shown up twice to get me to stop.

“Go!” Vlad shouted.

Bouncing on her feet, Saphira watched me, ready for me to strike. I’d been playing offense the whole time, and it hadn’t worked, so this time, I’d make her move first.

She snickered. “That won’t change the outcome.” She stepped forward and shifted her weight to her left side.

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