PHOENIX
Jax’s head whips towards me, and he looks bewildered.
I bet the same look sits on my face right now.
Nix?His voice is in my head.
That deep timbre is unmistakably his.
What. The. Fuck.
Before my mind can spiral, Ezkai Emil approaches me and whispers, “General, Master Oka Oya has arrived. She’s waiting for you and the Taaslord in the war room.”
I blink and look away from Jax.
Kazh is here?
Oh, yeah. That’s right. She was supposed to meet us today right after the trial to discuss the hunt for my dragon.
I clear my throat and nod. “Thanks. We’ll head there now.” I turn to Noire. “We good here?”
Noire smiles and nods.
“Great,” I say, rising. “We must go now.”
I whirl on my heel and, without waiting for Noire or Jax to answer, stride out of the damn auditorium. Thankfully, they follow me into the corridor.
My shoulders are so tense it hurts.
Damn, that’s hot. Jax’s voice comes through that new tether that binds us.
“Jax!” I snap and my steps halt.
I turn to face him. At least he has the decency to look sheepish.
“Sorry, darling,” he says with a shrug. “It’s all so new.”
I glare at him and grind my teeth. This is the last thing I need, to have someone else inside my mind.
The more the merrier.Lorca’s chuckle echoes somewhere far away in my mind.
Noire frowns. “General, what’s happening?”
“The fucking bond, that’s what’s happening!” I snap at my second-in-command. His eyebrows rise. “You didn’t tell me there would be a mind connection, too! I can hear his thoughts and he can hear mine!”
Noire’s face stills for a second. “You can communicate through your minds?”
I blink and snap my mouth shut. Noire asking me this question, the surprise that shines in his eyes, tells me this is so not supposed to be happening.
Oh, fuck me.
Wait. That’s notmythought.
With a groan, I whirl on my heel and stride towards the damn war room. I try everything I know on shielding my senses and attempt to throw it all at the pathway in my mind connecting me and Jax.
I can’t deal with this right now.
When I reach the heavy double door, I open it before my Ezkai can. I push it a little harder than I have to, and it swings allthe way on its hinges. The whole castle rattles from the impact when the heavy door hits the stone walls.
