Page 40 of Microburst

The air in the room went razor-sharp tense, but I simply swallowed a chuckle as I pulled away from Darren. I moved over to the man, my dragons enjoying when he looked nervous.

I leaned in and studied him. “You just learned thateverywoman here has been getting shocked like animals to ‘correct’ their behavior and train them. Again—like animals—and you’re focused on what I did to the person who was in charge of it all?” I blinked at him. “Yeah, I’m not the psycho here.” I snorted. “Definitely not the only one at least.”

11

Sagan

I hoped that Darren could turn that family around when I saw at least a dozen men give that asshole looks that they agreed with me and he was a psycho.

“I will stay,” Modren said as he joined us. He gave me and Darren an intense look to listen to him. I was glad when Darren accepted the backup.

Part of me wanted to say Belinda should stay too, but she shook her head as if knowing where my mind was. So Modren was enough?

I wasn’t sure, but after giving Darren one more hug—and flicking off the guy who’d called me a psycho—I went with the guards to be escorted back out.

Benson stopped us when we reached the plane and the guards had left us. “I think you should take this chance to let Eloise fly. She needs it. You both do.”

I couldn’t hide my shock and Belinda was amused for some reason.

Benson didn’t meet my gaze, looking away and scrubbing the back of his neck. “I’ve been thinking about this a lot. Dad’s mentor lives about a thirty-minute flight from the castle. He’s got a private landing strip and wouldn’t think twice if I called insaying I wanted to land because I’m testing out the planes after what happened.

“Fly with Belinda so she can cloak you—this can be the regular excuse even. Me doing normal checks on all of the planes. Trying out the new planes. Even with other guards. They don’t need to know you fly as Eloise, just without other eyes and to work with Belinda. Or I’m teaching Fraser to fly after he’s upset about your parents.

“There are lots of ways to spin it that make a lot of sense. Worst case, his landing strip might need to be repaved so it doesn’t fuck up wheels and a better explanation if we make it a regular thing. But Darren’s too overloaded to figure this out.” He snorted. “Especially now. Fuck that crazy and Eloise needs this.”

“This is the Benson I fell in love with,” I whispered before I even realized it, shocking all three of us. I cleared my throat when he slowly met my gaze with wide eyes. “You used to always see me for who I was and truly care—know I needed special care.” I stepped away when he moved closer. “But then it changed.”

He swallowed loudly. “I don’t know when.”

I pressed my lips together. “Yes, you do. I told you how I loved you and you lied to me. Then I accepted Kole and you always chose Elira, letting me think you were just nice to the next queen, but you actually loved the snake who made my life miserable—the woman who wanted to take my place and my parents actually liked better than me.”

He grabbed my arm when I went to turn away. “That was never true. None of it.”

“But I didn’t know that, and you weren’t man enough to put me first when I did you,” I said, finally getting something off my chest that I’d needed to say.

He dropped my arm like I’d burned him, and maybe I did, but not physically. “I’m sorry.”

I let out a slow breath. “I believe that, but it changes nothing.” I looked away when I saw in his eyes that thingsweredifferent now. I’d known that since we learned my parents didn’t want me to be queen.

Something changed with him. He’d basically said it that night.

Like now that he knew my father might not object to us being together because he hadn’t wanted me to be queen, Benson could see us having a future. Except that was something I could never want. That was… Toxic wasn’t a strong enough word.

It really wasn’t.

“I’ll cloak us so we can undress and shift,” Belinda instructed, knowing it was time to move on. She moved in front of me and kept my gaze. “I can cloak while shifting because of my age. Never forget that you cannot. No matter your power level, you will not be able to until you are hundreds of years old. It—certain things cannot happen. Shifting takes all your power.”

I nodded like I understood, but I didn’t because shifting was easy. And it didn’t take focus, but Belinda knew best, so I listened to the warning.

I always listened to whatever Belinda said. Smart people who wanted to live a long time did.

She nodded when we were set and started undressing. Benson muttered something about his life being wild as we tossed our clothes at his feet and he still looked away even if he couldn’t see us.

It was amusing to say the least… But it wasamazingto fly as Eloise. I hadn’t in… Long enough that I couldn’t remember. At least a year. Maybe two? The last time had fallen through.

No, the last couple of times, and each time I tried to remember, I just realized it was another time that something had come up and we never did. My parents had scheduled another event for me to attend. Another lecture for me to give.

Another “learning experience” for me, which was really a hoop for me to jump through to be worthy of being King Rhys’s heir. Except he’d never wanted me to be. So what was the point?