I swallowed. “Are you sure you’re up for it?”
“Well, there is another way to release tension,” he suggested.
I froze.
“S’okay, Angel. This is right.” He stood. “You two behave yourselves. I’ll just be over with the Spanish bloke.”
Mari watched him go. “I doubt I will ever understand him. But he is likeable.”
I smiled at her. “That sums Matt up perfectly.” I rubbed my hands on my legs. “I’m going for a walk. You coming?”
“If it’s okay with you, I’d like to meditate,” she said.
“Yeah, no biggie.” I briefly considered fetching Trix from Kitani, but with her guys gone after Galeran, she’d likely appreciate my dog’s help with the twins.
So I headed off alone, strolling between the lake and the meadow. I caught movement in the sky and looked up to see, not one—but two Dragons soaring through the clouds.
I was seized with a sudden longing. One was definitely Talakai, but I had no idea who the other one was. Tyrez had left through the gate earlier in the day.
They vanished in the distance. My heart gave a pang as the trees closed in around me.
The late evening sun slanted through them, and I heard the little birds flitting through the branches as they followed me. The occasional branch cracked as larger creatures moved through the bushes.
I was never truly alone. But I felt it. I wanted to fly with Talakai. I wanted to have sex with Matt. Both were things that I could not do.
And that didn’t even touch on the Bellati who would barely look at me.
Then, suddenly, all the animals scattered. I gritted my teeth and continued my walk, aware that there must be at least one Dire in the forest. Likely there were many, considering the students were freewheeling today.
But the silence was eerie.
Then three Dires stepped out onto the path ahead of me.
I stopped, and contemplated them. I didn’t recognize them, but then, I didn’t know every Dire student. They seemed very intent on me. “Can I help you?” I asked.
“They’re with me.”
I spun to see Aaron. He was much closer than I expected, and totally naked. I must have really been lost in my thoughts to not hear him before he spoke.
My pulse pounded, adrenaline flooding through me. I kept my voice steady with an effort. “What do you want, Aaron?”
His eyes gleamed with a mixture of lust and hate. “Darius wants to talk to you.”
“Yeah, well, I don’t want to talk to him. So get lost.”
He stepped closer, and his intensity, along with his lack of clothes, caused me to take an involuntary step away. Which was when something growled behind me.
I glanced back, and the Dires had moved in closer. I was pinned between them and Aaron.
“Don’t be like that,” Aaron snarled. “We just want to discuss your training. Unless Darius intercedes, there won’t be any.”
I swallowed. “You don’t have control over that.”
He sneered. “Don’t be so sure. We have connections on the council.” He took a step closer. “Come with me, and we’ll smooth the way for you.” His teeth had grown long and sharp, as though he wanted to sink them into me.
With a crash of foliage, two more Dires leaped onto the path. For just an instant, I panicked. One had red fur—
And the other was Matt.