Zodiac Academy Fated Throne - Caroline Peckham Page 0,136

eyes and he stamped his foot, slamming it down on top of mine.

I shot a sideways glance at Sofia who was biting her lip and looking between us, not stepping in. Though I was fast learning that that was the way of our kind. The guys had to fight to have the best female, and she needed to make sure she was with the right mate. So goading me into this was a standard mare move. And knowing that she wanted me to fight for her made me feel all kinds of good.

Tyler suddenly pulled away, twisting his fingers and casting a vine which tripped me up in the dirt. I raised my own hands to fight back as I hit the ground, throwing out a blast of fire. A wall of earth flew up to block it and I wasn’t sure how to counter that. I just wasn’t well enough trained.

Tyler stepped around it, offering me his hand and whinnying softly in an offering.

“Accept your place,” he insisted and I sighed, letting him pull me up with a hard grip on my hand. I clenched my teeth as he tried to crush the bones in my fingers and I returned the favour. He lingered close to me for a moment and my gaze dropped to the hard slash of his mouth before I looked him in the eyes again with my throat thickening.

“Good.” Tyler’s face split into a wide grin. “I knew you’d never do me dirty, Xavier.”

“I’ll see you guys later,” Sofia called, batting her lashes at Tyler which just made my skin run hot with anger. Hell if this was the end of me trying to win her.

She trotted off and I was left with my Dom who looked as happy as anything now he’d won a point over me. I had to give in this time, but that didn’t mean I was giving up.

“There’s nothing wrong with being the third in the herd,” Tyler said with a grin. “You could date any of the Subs. Or all of them if you want. Why don’t you ask a few of them back to your room sometime?”

“No,” I grunted, my muscles bunching as we started walking down the path together.

He gave me the side eye and I could see him trying to draw his shoulders back so that he was taller than me, but even on that we were pretty dead on. We were too damn close of a match.

“Well Sofia is off limits,” he warned, saying it with a casual smile, but his eyes were all murder. He glared down at me until I looked away, his status in the herd forcing me to give in. For the star’s sake.

“Fine,” I muttered and he clapped a hand to my back.

“Good. Now come and get high with me in a rainbow. There’s usually a few about by the waterfall in Water Territory. And if we’re lucky, some of the water Elementals will be casting rain showers so there’s even more of them.”

“Alright,” I agreed, liking the sound of that.

He started stripping down, casually tossing me his stuff. “Put it in your Pegobag.”

The direct order irritated the hell out of me, but I did as he said. I’d been beaten by him today and I had to accept that like a Fae and come back to fight another day when I was ready. My gaze dipped to his muscular chest as I started pulling off my clothes too and suddenly we seemed to be racing to do it first, the challenge in his gaze goading me on. I stuffed my clothes roughly in the bag while he tossed his shit my way. I whinnied angrily as I had to carry it like a little bitch, but he just snorted at me and tossed his head.

Furious tension rippled through the air as we pulled off the last of our clothes and I put my bag back on. He took in my body with an assessing gaze like he was trying to figure out if he was bigger than me or not and I realised for once I hadn’t felt bothered about stripping off. I guessed after I’d gotten butt naked in front of all the fire Elementals in school, it had kind of gotten me over my fear.

I took in his body with an equally assessing gaze, unable to avoid looking at his dick which was ringed with silver stones at the base and a rainbow made of coloured gems