“Guess that’s our cue to finally go to sleep,” Matteo remarked.

  “Thank Holy Drake,” I mumbled. “I’m never gonna stop regretting inviting all these damned people.”

  Matteo arched a sly brow at me. “Don’t think you’ve escaped that conversation, by the way. When we’re awake, I expect a real answer this time.”

  I snorted. For some reason, I liked that he dogged me about it. “Fine. I owe you.”

  He smiled, then closed his eyes. “Goodnight, Thystle.”

  “Night.”

  I thought he’d turn around to sleep, but he lay on his back, giving me a full view of his sleeping face. Was he teasing me, or was I reading too much into it? Dammit, having a crush was impossible.

  Since Matteo didn’t turn around, I didn’t either. I retained my position curled up beside him with my head on the spare pillow.

  I didn’t fall asleep right away. My dragon soul wouldn’t let me. Instead I spent half an hour burning every inch of Matteo’s face into my memory before I was finally content, then I drifted off.

  Nine

  Matteo

  When I woke the next morning, Thystle was still there.

  An intense feeling of warmth and joy seeped through me as I gazed upon his resting face. In sleep, he looked so peaceful and calm. He didn’t wear the prickly mask he showed to the world. When he was asleep, he could just be.

  A smile spread across my face as I remembered what happened last night. I didn’t regret playing possum and pretending to be asleep. Thystle’s ‘crime’ was downright adorable. Honestly, it flattered me that he’d broken the rules because he wanted to see me.

  And when I recalled the sensation of his gentle hand on my face… I shuddered. How sweet, how light of a touch he had. Who knew alpha dragons could be so tender?

  I glanced at the digital clock on the bed stand. On a normal day, I would’ve been out of bed by now. In fact, I should’ve gotten up half an hour ago. Today was the first challenge of the games. I couldn’t be late. But Thystle’s siren song captured me. I didn’t want to leave him. This early morning coziness was a feeling I could definitely get used to.

  I gazed at him fondly. His thin layer of black eyeliner smeared against the pillow, and his wispy lavender and purple hair spilled over his face like a curtain of wisteria flowers.

  An urge overcame me. I reached over and brushed the hair off his cheek, letting my thumb drag against it gently. His skin was soft in that particular way that only occurred during sleep.

  My heart thrummed. Right now, I felt more like a hummingbird than an eagle, fluttery and delicate.

  Thystle made a soft sound, but didn’t awaken. I was surprised my touch didn’t rouse him. He was more honest than me, who faked it just to see what would happen.

  But my fake sleep last night wasn’t the only thing I kept from Thystle.

  I bit my lip. I didn’t want to lie to him, but I also didn’t want the truth to come out. Was that too much to ask? I caressed Thystle’s cheek in a slow rhythm. As I stared into his peaceful face, a great sense of determination came over me. Thystle trusted me. I had to have the same faith in him. I made a vow to tell him the truth, no matter how much it terrified me.

  But not right now. Thystle was exhausted from yesterday’s events, so I let him sleep. Besides, he seemed to be having a good dream, if the slight smile in the corner of his mouth was any indication.

  Before I chickened out, I leaned over and pressed a tiny kiss to his forehead then slipped out of bed to face the day.

  Leaving Thystle to participate in the games was decidedly less pleasant than waking up beside him.

  I expected a headache when I arrived at the location, and my suspicion was correct. Although the number of contestants had been whittled down thanks to the alcohol-related incidents, there were still far too many of them present. The beach felt crowded and sweaty from all the bodies.

  As we waited for the last few contestants to arrive, I looked around. Gaius stood before us with a chipper smile, ready to announce the challenge. It wasn’t hard to guess what it was. Large rings stood on the sand and were hung in the air via tall poles.

  “Oh good,” Alaric said as he strode up beside me. “Thystle is making us literally jump through hoops for him.”

  Despite his consistent stream of snarky comments, I was glad to have a familiar face nearby.

  “I don’t think Thystle chooses the challenges,” I remarked.

  “How do you know?” Alaric demanded.

  “He didn’t mention anything about an obstacle course.”

  Alaric raised a brow. “You spoke to him about it? When?”

  Crap. I had to curb Alaric’s suspicion—not for my sake, but for Thystle’s. I didn’t want him to get in trouble for meeting me after hours. Could he even get in trouble? He had the final say in everything, after all. Either way, I didn’t push my luck.

  “I brought it up during the meet-and-greet,” I said casually. It wasn’t true, of course, but I sincerely doubted this was Thystle’s idea. This type of challenge wasn’t his style.

  Alaric took my comment at face value. As his aura of suspicion vanished, I thanked my ability to blend into the background. Not only were people quick to forget about me, they also assumed I was honest. Because honesty was boring.

  “Wow, an obstacle course!” Muzo exclaimed.

  “Oh dear, an obstacle course…” Poppy murmured at the same time.

  The canine shifters appeared as a pair. I grinned at their polar opposite reactions. It was sweet how two very different people could be close friends.

  “Looks like it,” I said. “There’re rings on the ground and in the air for every type of shifter.”

  Muzo bounded on the balls of his feet. “This is so cool. I love jumping through hoops!”

  “I’ll try my best, but I hope I don’t knock them over by accident,” Poppy said, fiddling with his hands.

  Alaric sighed and rubbed his temple. “Dogs…”

  Shortly after Muzo and Poppy’s appearance, Gaius cleared his throat, flashed a brilliant grin, and began his announcement.

  “Greetings, everyone, and welcome to the first challenge of the Dragonfate Games!”

  Half the contestants roared in excitement, cheering and whooping. It sounded more like a football stadium than a private beach.

  Alaric made a disgusted sound. “Those meatheads are giving me a migraine before we even start…”

  I didn’t reply, but I privately agreed with him. I couldn’t be too harsh on them, though. None of them were Thystle’s type. They never had a chance with him. Not that I was complaining.

  Speaking of Thystle, where was he? I didn’t see him anywhere. In the first season of the Games, Crimson accompanied Gaius at the start of every challenge. But Gaius was alone this time. Maybe they changed up the formula, and Thystle watched from afar.

  I usually wasn’t so competitive, but the need to win burned inside me. I wanted Thystle to see me do well.

  “Your challenge today is a timed obstacle course through these hoops,” Gaius said, gesturing to the rings. “Not only will you race to the finish line, but you’ll need to rack up points by going through the rings. The contestant with the fastest time and most points will be the winner!”

  Something about Gaius’s phrasing felt off. He’d said the winner. In the first season, we entered a pool of winners from which Crimson had the final say—and his choice was always Taylor, obviously. Even if Taylor hadn’t come in the first place during the challenge, he still won in the end. But Gaius made it sound like there could only be one true winner this time—the person who came in first place.

  Now, my competitive urge blazed into a wildfire. If that was true, I had to win. There was no other option.

  Thystle would choose me.

  “How many other flying shifters are here, I wonder?” Talon asked.

  His sudden comment made my spine stiffen. I hadn’t noticed his arrival. How long had he been standing there?

  “I don’t know,” I replied honestly. “We’re the only ones I’m aware of.”

  Talon glanced up at the sky rings. “Who’s faster, I wonder?”

  “I wouldn’t know.”

  Talon sent a sidelong glance my way. “Guess we’ll find out.”

  Was he taunting me? Or was this friendly competition I was taking the wrong way? I stared back at him, trying to gauge the look in his eyes, but Talon was difficult to read. Either that, or I didn’t care enough to figure it out. I wasn’t here to make friends. I was here to find my fated mate.

  And I suspected I’d already found him.

  “Contestants!” Gaius called. “You may now shift into your animal forms!”

  My body changed in a flash. Rich brown feathers erupted across my skin, my feet curled into powerful talons, and my mouth became a sharp, hooked beak. I unfurled my powerful wings, ready to launch myself into the sky on Gaius’s mark.

  My vision improved a hundredfold. On either side of me, I saw rows of shifters. I recognized the white house cat, arctic wolf, and black-backed jackal beside me. The other side were all strangers. My real competition.

  On my right stood another eagle. Talon. His eagle form was starkly different from mine, with a distinct prominent beak and white markings. A flashier form to suit a flashier man.

  I couldn’t help a surge of bitterness flowing through me. I’d given up looking flashy in human form a long time ago. Talon reminded me of my past in a way that left a bad taste in my mouth.

  “Ready...” Gaius called.

  “Good luck, Matteo,” Talon said under his breath.

  The feathers on my neck ruffled. Did he really mean that, or was he playing mind games with me?

  “GO!” Gaius shouted.

  I rocketed upwards, beating my wings hard. Fiery determination surged through my muscles. I wouldn’t lose.

  The first ring hung ahead. All I had to do was fly through the rings as fast as possible. No problem. Despite living in a human city, I was an experienced flyer. Unlike wolves or tigers, it was easy for me to sneak away to spread my wings—figuratively and literally. Humans didn’t bat an eye at a brown bird, especially not one thirty feet in the air.

  As I neared the first ring, I tucked my wings close to my body to make myself more aerodynamic. I shot through the ring like a bullet. Free from it, I unfurled my wings again to fly towards the next one.

  I heard loud flapping behind me. With his bulk, Talon struggled to keep up.

  I scanned the beach. The four-legged shifters on the beach stormed the obstacle course, but their paws and hooves slowed on sand. None of them were as far along as me.

  That meant I was in the lead.

  A strange high washed over me. It felt familiar, like the presence of an old friend. It bubbled and welled up in my chest until it overflowed in a loud, sharp victory cry.

  That’s when I realized what the high was. It was the same feeling as being on stage, singing my throat raw, spilling my heart out in front of a screaming, adoring crowd.

  The recognition shocked me. I faltered, stalling in mid-air.

  It had been so long... Why did I feel this way now? And why did it feel so good?

  A wing crashed into mine. The momentum sent me into a tailspin. I gasped and caught my bearings, flapping desperately to stay afloat.

  Talon flew ahead. Did he hit me on purpose? He didn’t stop to check if I was okay.

  But now he was in the lead. Fury set my blood on fire. I darted behind him, flying as fast as my wings could carry me. He wasn’t going to win. I wouldn’t let him.

  Urgency drove me forward. I was in a frenzy, determined to beat Talon and win this challenge. Was Thystle watching? Did he see how badly I wanted this?

  I wanted to look for him, but there was no time. I couldn’t spare a second to scan the beach when Talon was still in front of me. He ducked through the next ring, folding his wings the same way I did, then used gravity to his advantage to dive into the ring below it.

  I cursed. His bulky size hindered him during lift off, but it was an asset now. I couldn’t catch up to him.

  The finish line was ahead. My heart sank. Talon was a whole wingspan away. If I didn’t close the gap between us now, it would be too late.

  Gaius got closer each second. He clutched a stopwatch in his hand, watching both land and sky eagerly for the winner to cross the finish line.

  I pushed my body to its limit. Fire burned agonizingly in my muscles. I clenched my eyes shut through the pain. A few more wing strokes—

  “TIME!” Gaius called.

  I sucked in air and my eyes snapped open. Had I done it? I floated down to the sand where the rest of the exhausted land shifters panted for breath. I didn’t see Talon. Hope fluttered in my chest. Was he still behind me?

  “Who won, Gaius?” I asked.

  Gaius wore an odd expression that set me on edge. His mask of confidence would fool most people, but I wasn’t most people. I recognized a fellow liar hiding the truth.

  “Why don’t we wait for everyone to catch their breath first?” Gaius said, flashing a grin that failed to comfort me.

  I realized Thystle still wasn’t here. Did that have anything to do with Gaius’s weird behavior?

  “Gaius,” I said firmly, glaring at him with my eagle eyes, “announce the winner.”

  His brows rose. He seemed taken aback by my sudden personality change, but I didn’t care. I had to know.

  Gaius summoned the closest member of the camera crew. “Can we double-check the film?”

  The kobold nodded and showed Gaius a small screen. His face paled. He glanced distractedly at the stopwatch in his fist.

  My feathers puffed up in anger. If he didn’t tell me I’d won soon, I’d shred that stopwatch to pieces.

  Gaius looked around, as if searching for someone, then cleared his throat and injected some enthusiasm into his voice. “All right! The winner of the first challenge is...”

  My heart thudded, ruffling the downy feathers on my chest.

  “Talon!”

  I stopped breathing.

  A victorious cry pierced the sky above me. Dread consumed me as I glanced up to see Talon circling above the beaten contestants in a victory lap.

  Loud groans sounded among the crowd. Some complained loudly about how unfair the challenge was for land shifters, which made me angrier that I’d lost.

  I should’ve won. Not Talon.

  Poppy slumped next to me, putting his head on his paws in defeat. “That was so hard... But you did really well, Matteo.”

  His gentle voice yanked me out of my furious headspace.

  “Thank you, Poppy,” I said quietly.

  Muzo sighed and collapsed on top of Poppy’s back in a dogpile. His tongue lolled out of his mouth. “Geez, that was rough. There’s so much sand between my paw pads. You were lucky you got to fly over it.”

  I didn’t feel lucky at all.

  Surprisingly, Alaric mirrored my feelings. He hissed as he padded closer, lifting his dainty white paws to avoid touching the hot sand. “He’s not lucky. None of us are. We lost.”

  Muzo tilted his head. “Yeah, but we tried our best.”

  “Who cares?” Alaric spat. “Only the winner is important. Do you even know why you’re on this island?”

  “Uhh—”

  “To find a fated mate. Nothing else matters.”

  “I was gonna say that,” Muzo mumbled, his ears flattening against his head.

  From the corner of my eye, I saw Talon gloating and thanking Gaius for announcing him the winner. I caught Gaius’s awkward expression as he congratulated Talon.

  What was going on? Why did Gaius choose the winner instead of Thystle? And where the hell was he? A thought struck me like lightning. The image of a peaceful Thystle floated into my mind.

  There was no way he’d overslept and missed the challenge... right?

  Ten

  Thystle

  Everything was soft. Warm. Comfortable. I never wanted to move.

  A slow exhale left my lips as I nestled against the downy pillow. Cozy was an understatement. I was halfway to becoming one with the mattress itself.

  As I inched closer to consciousness, I became sharply aware of Matteo’s scent. It surrounded me like a soothing blanket. I breathed it in, then sucked in deep lungfuls, suddenly hungry for it.

  Heat stirred between my legs. The fuzzy, horny feeling manifested in a growing erection.

  I wriggled closer to Matteo’s pillow, where his scent was the strongest, then buried my face in it. An electric jolt zapped down my spine.

  Fuck, it smelled amazing.

  I groaned, rubbing my face against his pillow, breathing in as much of his addictive scent as possible. It enticed me, allured me. My lips parted as I panted in choppy breaths. My cock hardened until it brushed against the mattress, sending a burst of arousal through my blood in a heady feedback loop.

  I lost myself in my obsession with it. Dazed, I bucked my hips against the bed and sniffed Matteo’s scent. It was sweet as honey, earthy as the ground after rain, and utterly drool-worthy.

  In the back of my mind, I wondered what time it was. I had the vague memory that I had somewhere to be, but Matteo’s aroma rooted me to the spot. No way could I escape it—nor did I want to. I was blissfully unaware of the rest of the world as I rubbed my face against his pillow, flooding my brain with his scent...

  The key card clicked at the door.

  Right. Matteo wasn’t in bed, so he must’ve left. Had he returned? My heart skittered in excitement.

  I opened my eyes just in time to see Matteo stride into the room. His usually tamed hair was mussed up, as if strenuous exercise had thrown it out of place, and his face was drawn in a tense way. Despite all that, his eyes flashed warmly when he saw me. The swelling remained, but had gone down considerably, giving me a clearer view of them. They were gorgeous.

  But before I had the chance to study them, Matteo let out a breath and gave me a tired smile. “Good morning, Thystle. Or should I say good afternoon?”