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Morfyd knew her curiosity would soon get the better of her But so on, and she planned to find out exactly what

Annatched the shadows rew late And her body tensed in anticipation She saw it now as a kind of ritual They would meet and train for hours Break to eat in silence Train for severalwould happen Sohs

Their blades clashed one rew, thehim out She had no doubt he could continue for a few more hours, but she liked that her skills had improved since they’d first started

He sheathed his sword and turned fro the soft, plain cotton material over her head She sheathed both her weapons and looked up to find boots standing in front of her She fought to control her breathing as she slowly looked up at him

He stared down at her, his face inscrutable and half covered by his black hair He al her to distraction "Is there a problerowl erupted from the back of his throat as he reached down and took hold of her shirt, pulling her to her feet Then his ht him She had no desire to Instead she wrapped one arm around his neck, the other around his waist He had her by the nape of her neck, his other hand slipping under her shirt His rough fingers moved across the sweat-covered flesh of her back while his mouth claimed hers in a kiss that was so desperate, so passionate, she thought for sure he would take her right at that rabbed her And she couldn’t stop the whimper that escaped her throat when he broke off contact He stared at her for anothing but the dull ache between her legs to keep her company

Morfyd placed food in front of Annwyl and watched the girl ignore it In fact, she hadn’t spoken since her return Morfyd glanced over the girl’s body She wore only her bindings and leggings, and for the first time Morfyd noticed the bruises, bloody nicks, and deep cuts that covered Annwyl’s body

"Annwyl" The girl’s green eyes flickered toward Morfyd "Where did those bruises co" She made the statement as if Morfyd were supposed to knohat the hell she spoke of

"Your training?"

"Aye With the knight"

Morfyd’s eyes narrowed "What knight?"

"The one as here when I was healing The dragon’s friend"

Morfyd couldn’t hide her surprise as she took a sudden step back Her brother with a knight friend? Not in this lifetime Or any lifetime for that matter And suddenly his recent desire to traipse into the village as huht friend And he’s done this to you?"

"You could say that"

Morfyd nodded She needed to find out as going on Now The curiosity was killing her!

"Is the dragon here?" Annwyl asked hopefully

"As aat the wall "Eat, Annwyl I need you to keep your strength up Understand?"