Thornhill Academy (By Sheridan Hartin) novel Chapter 46

“Ally…” My name broke from his throat, strained, almost pained.

I hummed in response, thoughtful, noncommittal, even as my pulse roared. He turned, just enough that his face angled back toward me, golden eyes catching mine before they flickered down to my breasts. The pure hunger there wasn’t subtle. It wasn’t polite. It was raw and consuming, like fire catching dry grass. And damn me, but the heat that shot through me, low and fast, made my knees weak.

Evander had been kind to me. Not just in the heroic, dragon-shifter way, pulling me out of the woods and shielding me from monsters, but in the quiet moments, too. He’d been steady where everyone else wanted to tear at me. Steady enough to make me wonder, for half a heartbeat, if maybe he liked me. If perhaps someone could. And for once, I wanted something. For me. Not because I’d earned it, not because I’d clawed it out of survival, but because I wanted it. I stepped forward before I could think better of it. My palm flattened against the hard plane of his bare chest, heat rolling off him like a furnace. His breath caught sharply. I closed the distance, pressing my cool skin to his hot, toned stomach. His muscles flexed under me, and for a dizzy second, his body melted into mine, his hands finding the bare skin at my waist. He leaned down, so close I could smell the smoke clinging to his breath, the faint metallic tang of magic. His scent flooded my senses, heavy and consuming. I closed my eyes, wanting this. Needing this. Just this one thing.

But it never came. The heat shifted. His hands trembled, then left my waist. I opened my eyes in time to see him pulling back, his golden gaze full of something complicated, all of it cutting deeper than a blade. The rejection hit like a physical blow. Ugly. Familiar. I felt it crawl up my throat before I could stop it. I yanked back, quick and hard, reaching for my own shirt, not his and pulled it over my head

with shaking fingers.

“Ally…” he tried, voice hoarse.

“Don’t,” I cut in, sharp and small all at once. Because I already knew the truth. I stormed past him before he could see whatever cracked across my face. I’m not worthy. The words echoed with every step, no matter how hard I tried to smother them.

Evander

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12:47 Tue, Dec 30

Beaten By A Girl.

“Fuck.” The word tore out of me as I bolted after her.

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I hadn’t wanted to pull away. Gods, every shred of me, human and dragon, had wanted the opposite. My beast had been roaring to kiss her, to claim her, to mate her right there on the tile floor. But I needed to tell her the truth first. She deserved that. And I couldn’t get the words out fast enough before she’d already stormed past me, fire blazing in her eyes.

“Ally, wait!” I called, catching up just as she hit the sparring field, every line of her body set to stone. Her face was pure fury, but I could see the hurt beneath it. And it gutted me.

The coach’s whistle cut through the air. “Save the drama for later. Pair up!”

Kael, the bastard, smirked like he’d just been handed a gift. He turned toward Allison, ready to claim her as his partner. I didn’t think; I shoved him out of the way, hard enough to make him stumble.

“Hey! What the fuck, man?” Kael snapped, glaring.

I ignored him. My focus was already locked on her. “Come on.” I caught her hand, firm but not unkind, and tugged her toward the far edge of the field. She resisted every step, glaring holes into my side. The coach barked for us to start. I didn’t want to spar. I wanted to talk. To explain… but there was a flash in her eyes. A dangerous, electric glint. The next second, my jaw exploded with pain as her fist cracked across it. I staggered back a step, shocked at the sheer force behind it.

“Ally-” I started, clutching my face. “Can we talk, please?”

Her only answer was a sharp, deadly, “No.”

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