Bridges Burned (Entangled Teen) (Going Down in Flames) Read Online Free Page B

hers. “I don’t want to think about anything right now. Talk to me. Tell me what you did tonight.”
    He’d been strong for her when she’d needed him. She could be strong for him now. “Let’s lie down.” They settled onto the couch. He wrapped his arm around her waist and she laid her head on his chest.
    “Ivy and I flew for a while. Jaxon showed up to mock me, so I beat him in a race. Then we went to the dining hall for dessert, and I ate three pieces of apple pie to celebrate my victory.” So what if it was a skewed version of her evening; it wasn’t an outright lie.
    She continued talking, weaving together unimportant details from past conversations with Ivy. When Zavien’s breathing became regular, she stopped talking and thought about their situation. In two years she’d finish her high school classes. The degree in Quintessential medicine could take four to six more years. Zavien was in the first year of his bachelor’s degree. He could work toward a master’s degree and extend his time at school.
    Originally, he’d told her Nola didn’t want to marry until they had to. The thought of Zavien marrying Nola was like a splinter under her skin. It was always there, annoying her. If she came upon it unexpectedly, it jabbed deeper, causing true pain.
    Zavien assumed Nola was dating someone, but if Nola had someone else in her life, why had she come running to him? If she didn’t have someone else, then where did that leave Bryn’s fledgling relationship with Zavien?
    Frustration fanned the flames in her gut. And then a ray of hope… He’d agreed to take her to the fall dance. That was a victory not easily won. He’d told her over and over again that asking someone to the fall dance was akin to declaring intent to petition for a lineage check. Legally, his contract to Nola was already in place. Even though everyone knew he and Nola were just friends, he’d refused to take Bryn to the dance until she had threatened to go with Valmont. That had changed his uncooperative mind-set. Then he had agreed they could go to the dance with Clint and Ivy.
    Feeling better, she inhaled Zavien’s summer rainstorm scent and watched the rise and fall of his chest. Zavien’s scent differed from Ivy’s and Clint’s. While all Black dragons smelled of rain, Ivy smelled of a lush rainforest, while Clint smelled like wet grass.
    She’d never been close enough to other dragons to detect individual scents. Scratch that. Before she and Zavien had gotten together, Keegan had kissed her. Like all Red dragons, he had smelled of smoke and flames. His scent had reminded her of a cozy fireplace. The only other scent she might recognize would be Jaxon’s. Blues smelled of ice and snow, but Jaxon had an undercurrent of something crisp and clean. He smelled like a fresh-cut pine tree on a snowy day.
    Funny, how Jaxon no longer sat at the top of her most-loathed list. Since she’d sent her life force through Jaxon’s veins to burn out the poison meant to kill him, they’d developed an odd camaraderie. It was a strangely intimate procedure to heal somebody with Quintessence. Now his insults were more of a joking nature.
    Knock knock knock.
    Who was that? She wiggled out from under Zavien’s arm and answered the door.
    An auburn-haired security guard stood scowling in the hall. “Curfew is in ten minutes. Mr. Blackthorn needs to return to his room.”
    His rigid posture and clipped tone implied she’d been up to no good. She opened the door wide enough for him to see Zavien. “He fell asleep on the couch. How’d you know he was here?”
    The guard relaxed his stance. “What do you think all these cameras are for? We’re trying to keep you safe.” He winked. “As far as your grandfather’s concerned, that means your friend needs to sleep in his own bed.”
    Her face heated. “Is my grandfather monitoring all my friends?”
    “He thinks Zavien Blackthorn deserves special attention.” The guard chuckled.
    Great. “Give