Chapter Seventeen
Gasping, my hands fly back to grab the support pole behind me as Reya’s cold fingers slip inside my trousers and slide straight to the needy ache pulsing between my thighs.
Even through the thin fabric of my underwear, the touch sends a sharp tremor through me and a broken sound escapes my throat. It ricochets off the dimly lit canvas walls and slams back into me, bringing a flood of awareness with it—how close Reya is, where she is, where Talen is.
Instinct takes over and my hand flies down, catching her wrist.
She stills beneath me.
I should stop this. I know I should.
But then I look at him.
He’s still staring at me, and everything about him lights my nerves on fucking fire.
The way his eyes keep widening as they rake over me; the way his uniform is pulling taut across the muscles of his chest with each laboured inhale; the way his fingers are digging into the solid muscle of his thighs as though he’s holding himself back, restraining himself.
Fuck, I want this man.
Something dark and reckless unfurls beneath my ribs and my grip on Reya’s wrist loosens. Only slightly, but enough.
She understands immediately, and as she slips beneath the final layer of fabric separating us and glides her fingers over the swollen, sensitive flesh between my thighs, a wave of white-hot pleasure races up my spine so fast that my knees almost give out.
A strangled moan slips from my throat and across the tent, I catch Talen’s expression shift. His jaw locks tight, muscles flexing beneath his cheek in the flickering candlelight, and he starts breathing heavily through his nose like he’s trying to cage something dangerous, something feral.
Keeping my eyes fixed on him, I feel Reya’s touch turn firmer, more certain now—slow, merciless circles against me that build pleasure so unbearably intense it borders on torture.
And I let her.
I drop my hand fully from her wrist and let the lie slip in.
That it’s him touching me—his hands, his mouth, his body pulling these helpless cries from my lips.
It’s wrong. I know it. I shouldn’t want this.
But Reya’s rhythm never falters, never eases; it stays maddeningly precise, and my body folds beneath it completely, my hips rocking against her hand, chasing the friction, the sweet pressure.
Across from us, Talen’s breathing becomes rougher, faster, and mine matches it as I let my gaze drift down his body, over the carved lines of muscle flexing beneath his uniform, lower and lower until I reach the tight fabric stretched across his thighs.
Every Thread in me sparks to life.
God, he’s so fucking hard.
Solid and straining, like he’s barely holding himself together. Like one wrong move would shatter whatever control is keeping him standing there instead of crossing the room and taking over completely.
A pounding, uncontrollable wave of need—for him, for it—crashes through my veins so fast that my toes curl against the leather of my boots.
I need his weight pinning me down, the hard length of him thrusting into me while his mouth is groaning against my throat.
I need his fingers tangled in my hair, losing control, while he drives me right to the edge and keeps me there until I break apart.
Reya’s circular strokes pick up and my breathing fractures into short, uneven gasps as every sensation intensifies, the tension winding higher and higher, until I can barely even think around it.
And Talen continues to stand there, watching all of it—how my body rocks helplessly against Reya’s hand, how I clutch the pole behind me tight enough for my knuckles to pale, trying to hold myself upright even as my thighs begin to shake.
I bite down on my lip to smother another sound threatening to escape, and his gaze darkens as though he knows exactly what I’m thinking—exactly how badly I want it—this—him.
The look hits me harder than the searing bliss between my legs, causing my back to arch against Reya's touch, every muscle pulling taut as burning desire rushes through me so hot and sweet that I can’t hold it back anymore.
He stops breathing.
So do I.
For one suspended beat, everything hangs there, stretched impossibly tight, his eyes locked on mine.
Reya’s hand tightens against me—
—and the tension snaps.
Suddenly it's all too much, too fast. My head tips back, eyes slamming shut, and the orgasm tears through me all at once, pulling a scream from my mouth as pleasure crashes over me in molten, violent waves—
—I bolt upright.
Darkness.
Silence.
My hands are twisted in the bed sheets, nails biting into the rough woollen fabric and my breath comes in heavy, ragged pants as the last echoes of bliss ripple through me.
I look around the dark tent, disoriented and dripping with sweat.
Ezzy, Neeve, Reya—all in their beds, all asleep.
What the—
“Are you okay?” Neeve asks as I slide in beside her at lunch the next day, my tray landing on the wooden table with a soft thud just as Ahria snatches the roll from it and darts to the far side of the Food Tent, joining the other dragons all perched there.
“I heard you scream last night. Did you have a night terror?”
Across the table, Darren and Reya stop eating, their spoons pausing mid-air as their attention shifts to me. Reya raises a brow, a smug smile flicking across her face, and I shift in my seat, trying to lessen the tension crawling up my spine.
“Yeah,” I reply, shrugging off Talen’s flight jacket and dropping my attention to the bowl of soup in front of me, its steam curling upward, thick with the smell of swede and meat. “Only a nightmare.”
“Did you manage to sleep well after this nightmare though?” Reya's voice sounds way too curious and as I glance up, I catch her tilting her head at me, waiting.
God, I just want to get through this meal without thinking about last night. It was a dream... But why the fuck is Reya staring at me like that?
“Yeah, were you okay?” Neeve adds quickly.
“Yes.” My teeth clench as my fingers bite into the cold of the spoon. “I got some sleep.”
But I got more than some. After the nightmare, I passed straight out, slept all the way through until breakfast. The briefing is today, so there was no training, no teaching; for once I actually feel refreshed and the itch that's been under my skin all month seems to have finally settled.
Reya keeps watching me, that same smug smirk plastered across her face, while Darren’s gaze flicks between us. His eyes narrow first, then widen as something seems to click into place.
“Oh, Reya... You didn’t?” A chuckle escapes him, and her grin only grows more self-satisfied.
“Didn’t what?” Talen’s voice sends my heart lurching into my throat as he drops his tray down and slides into the space beside Reya opposite me.
He must have come straight from the Citadel as he’s in his officer whites, the bright fabric making the bronze of his skin and the gold in his eyes stand out all the more.
Glancing over, he flashes me a quick smile that makes my thighs clench together as my mind immediately flashes back to last night but I look away fast before he notices, focusing my attention on Darren.
“It seems Reya here has been Dreamweaving again.” The corner of Darren’s mouth curves as he shakes his head at her, then turns to me.
“What was it this time? Dragons roasting you at the Blood Moon? Or—” he snorts “—suddenly realising you’re teaching naked in front of everyone? She’s sent me a few of those.”
Reya only lifts a brow at him and continues eating, tearing off a piece of bread entirely unfazed. Meanwhile my jaw hangs open, Neeve’s too.
She orchestrated last night? That was her? She knows?!
“You got into my dreams?” My voice comes out way too high as I nearly bend the spoon in my grip. “What the fuck? Why the hell would you do that?”
“Hey,” she snaps back in defence, dipping her bread into her soup, “you’ve been sleeping like shit all month. Listening to you toss and turn every night has been driving me insane. I merely... helped.”
Talen's head whips to me. “You’re not sleeping?”
“Well, she wasn't,” Reya cuts in before I can respond, turning to Talen with a mouthful of food. “But after she woke up gasping, she passed out like a baby. First proper sleep in weeks.” She glares back at me. “So you’re welcome.”
My stomach practically hits the floor and heat sweeps my face as my thoughts ricochet between rage and total humiliation.
“Reya...” Talen cocks his head at her, and the officer’s warning in his tone makes my skin prickle. “What did you send her?”
Unflinching, he holds her gaze, but she just keeps eating.
Oh god, no. This is bad enough that Reya knows about the dream, but if I let this go on, Talen will find out too. I’d never survive that! I need to shut it down—now. Bury it before he starts asking more questions.
“We’re done talking about it. I’m fine. It was only a bloody dream; it didn’t mean anything. I slept, that’s all that matters. Reya’s forgiven—end of—”
Pushing back from the table, I’m already moving to leave the conversation there, but Neeve’s hand wraps around my arm and yanks me back into my seat.
“No.” Her eyes narrow on Darren. “I think Reya should explain herself. Don’t you, Daz?”
Oh god-fucking-damn-it.
Darren leans back, folding his arms. “Pretty sure we have rules about messing with people’s heads, Reya,” he quips, nodding toward Talen. “You might want to start talking before the boss here decides to make it official.”
Reya exhales, long and dramatic, as she pivots to Talen, who’s now staring at her in a way that for the first time I do not envy. “Fine,” she huffs. “But don’t blame me in a few seconds when you all regret asking.”
My pulse spikes.
Hell, swallow me now. Just fucking take me.
Risking a glance up, I catch Talen as he lifts his glass and takes a sip of water.
“I was getting Lyra off in the Combat Tent,” Reya admits with infuriating ease, “while Talen watched and got hard.”
“Fuck—Reya—!” Talen chokes, water spraying from his mouth as he jerks forward, coughing.
Darren just stares. “What the—why would you—?”
“I told you,” Reya shrugs, already eating again. “She needed sleep. I simply helped her scratch an itch.” She fucking throws me a wink and I decide I might as well just die right here.
Gripping the spoon tighter, I feel it start to warm beneath my fingers as my teeth grind until my jaw aches.
Across from me, Talen lifts a hand, dragging it across his jaw while colour rushes into his face, staining his cheeks red before he can school his expression.
God, I want to throw something back at her, anything to stop everyone from staring at me, but I can’t move, can’t speak, my body is frozen solid with embarrassment, hot and suffocating, like my skin doesn’t fit right anymore.
And it’s not only me. Beside her, Talen’s gone rigid, colour still high in his face.
“How can you even do that?” Neeve asks, blinking rapidly. “Have you ever done that to me? Got inside my dreams?”
“No—stars, relax,” Reya mutters, swallowing a mouthful of soup.
“You’ve got enough going on with your dragon dreams already.
And it’s new, alright? I’m still figuring it out.
I’m not inside the dreams; I can just somehow alter Dream Threads in people.
Not found a good use for it yet, except having fun.
If someone doesn’t like the dream or if it seems too fake, they change it or wake up.
” Her smirk returns as she arches a brow at me.
“Though, judging by the sound you woke up with, I’m assuming you didn’t have many complaints. ”
My spoon hits the table with enough force to make Neeve jump. “Screw you, Reya.”
“Please do! Anytime,” she responds as her catlike smile widens.
I tear my gaze from hers, only to catch on Talen’s, and everything inside me tenses. His chest rises slow and heavy as his eyes lock on mine—too intense and now far too fucking aware—
“Goldie!” Lucien’s voice cuts through the Food Tent.
My head jerks toward the entrance as he strides in, and opposite me, Talen curses under his breath.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” Lucien demands. “I told you we had the briefing handled. You’re going to ruin yourself.”
“I’m fine,” Talen grumbles. “I happened to be in the area anyway.”
Lucien's attention flicks between him and me, stern and unimpressed. “Well, now you’re here we might as well talk.”
“If this has to do with moving the camp...” Talen’s jaw stiffens. “I told you, going there is not an option—not yet anyway, there's too much to risk.”
“I’m not discussing it here.” Lucien spins, already walking away. “Outside, come on. You too Reya.”
Bringing her bowl to her mouth, Reya pours in the remains of her soup before shoving away from the table and heading after him.
Across the table, Talen exhales forcefully through his nose, then pushes back his tray and stands to follow. But before he turns, he hesitates, reaches into his pocket, and pulls out a small brown paper bag, placing it in front of me.
His golden stare finds mine again, softening as his mouth pulls into a small smile. “Happy birthday.”