This was the only part of the training I wanted to join in on, I was pretty sure I could tap into my wolf and have a shot at fighting. I wasn’t skilled or connected enough to use my dragon yet, but something told me once I had better control over my shift, I’d be able to use her extra senses in a similar way to the dragon spirit.
All of the Compasses were in the room now, having trickled in slowly over the last hour, bringing food and goodness. Since I had no dragon spirit, I was able to sit out of most activities, hanging with my boys enjoying all the scrumptiousness of my first love – food. Grace and Tyson were back to ignoring each other, peeling off to opposite sides of the group. I was going to guess that the pair definitely did not do enough arguing. Their shit still wasn’t resolved.
“What’s with you and Grace?” I asked the wizard during a quiet moment.
He growled, running a hand through his hair. “Frigged if I know, I can’t understand that woman to save my life.”
I snorted. “Keep calling her ‘woman’ and you probably won’t have a life.”
He shook his head. I could see the tension was wearing him down. “I most probably deserve the silent treatment, but I never thought I’d want to hear someone’s thoughts so much. Shit, even yelling would be better.”
I reached out and took his hand. He needed the comfort.
I remembered what that had been like, the uncertainty, fear, longing. Seemed he was the one now who wanted something more, and Grace was the one not ready.
Many boring hours later, the marked training was done and it was time for the mystics to focus on my quads. I was leaning against the wall, Braxton on one side with his arm wrapped tightly around me, and Jacob on the other. Just as the dragon marked supes started to exit the room, one of the mystics slithered past. He paused near my group. “Any luck finding your spirit?”
They were such asshats. I bared my teeth slightly, my eyes flat as they locked on him. “If I find it, you’ll be the first to know.”
He blinked at me once or twice before backing away slowly. It would be nice to think he was scared of me, but most probably the quads had been doing something off to the side. They were kings of the scary face.
“They think you’re deliberately not following their instructions,” Braxton said, his voice close to my ear.
I nodded. “I know, but that’s better than them knowing the truth. They’re on the king’s team, and unless the stories about him were very exaggerated, I will never stand with the king. I don’t want him to ever know I’m a dual shifter. He will use me, and I will not be used.”
Braxton leaned in and nuzzled me, partly comforting and partly pantie-drenching. He was sporting the slightest stubble today, and as he rubbed against my cheek the sensation was deliciously hot.
Louis appeared at our side. Braxton’s dimples disappeared as he leveled a stare at the sorcerer. “You better have a really good reason to be interrupting us, magic man, or Jessa is going to be sticking you back together with tape.”
Truth.
Louis let out a huff of air. “No need to start breaking things you can’t afford, the mystics need you.” Braxton and I had been too distracted to notice that the room was now empty of the other marked.
The dragon shifter released me, muttering something under his breath. I could tell he was a little pissed, but I actually didn’t mind the interruption. I loved the delicious buildup, the teasing. As long as it didn’t go on for too long, then I’d be cranky … to put it mildly.
Braxton pressed a lingering kiss to my lips. “Don’t go anywhere,” he said, “I’ll be right back.”
He strode across the room to join his brothers, and I forced myself to see through the haze of sexual need, and focus. This was the joining of my boys’ powers. Nervous tension flooded me, washing away the fire which had been blazing through my veins. What was going to happen? Would their joining give them the same urges as the Four, the urge to hunt and imprison dragon marked?
Chapter 15
“What have you done to our famous dragon shifter?”
Louis’ question distracted me for a moment. “What do you mean?” I wrinkled my nose at the sorcerer before turning back to the quads.
Braxton looked slightly bored, as if he had not a single care about what was going to happen next. But I could tell by the rigidness in his jaw and semi-hooded state of his eyes that he wasn’t as calm as he portrayed. None of us knew what was going to transpire after the joining of their power.
“You’re wearing quite an interesting look right now, Jess.” Louis’ grin was as wide as his damn, arrogant face. “That dragon has you all wrapped up in emotions.”