Free Dragon Lord by Kaitlyn O'Connor

with him than I could help falling in love with her.
    “He will fight harder if he believes that I care for her. That will give him two very good reasons to keep his distance--self-preservation for the heart he has already had broken once, and a reluctance to hurt me again.
    “Please the gods, that will be enough, because I must pretend to be smitten with her or he will not hesitate to strike when his blood reaches full boil--and I am not at all certain that I can pretend and protect my own heart at the same time. In fact, I am afraid I can not … and it will be a sacrifice for me either way.
    “If we succeed and Simon turns his sights upon Schalome again, even if for no other reason than his need for a suitable mate, I will have to leave her.
    “And if Simon can not contain his desire for her, then I am fairly certain that I will not be able to hold her to me anymore than I could hold on to Evangeline.
    “The gods must hate me as much as they love Simon, else they would either have given me the same ‘gift’ with women that they did my half-brother, or they would not have given me the same taste in women,” he said tiredly.
    Elden draped an arm over his friend’s shoulder, planting a sloppy wet kiss on his cheek, and then laughing uproariously when Audric glared at him and shoved him away. “I love you, Audric! I will save you from yourself by seducing Raina away from you before you can loose your heart to her!”
    Audric gave him a look. “Such a sacrifice will not be necessary on my account!”
    All of the men chuckled at that.
    “I love you, too, brother!” Jorell announced with a grin. “I will gladly throw myself into the breach!”

    Chapter Five

    Simon was appalled to realize, once he had beat the edge off his fury, that every muscle in his body was screaming in protest and he was breathing as heavily as if he had sprinted five miles. He had worked out diligently for most of the years he had been in exile, all except the first anyway when he had been so weak and ill from prison and Jaelen’s attempts to break him, in the beginning because his companions would give him no peace if he didn’t, later mostly because it had become a habit--never once because it mattered to him that he keep in good fighting shape.
    He was either getting old, or he had simply not pushed himself as he once did.
    He frowned over that thought--both doubts.
    He had not given any thought to his appearance or the years in so long he couldn’t remember the last time it had occurred to him to wonder if a woman might not find him appealing.
    Not that he was wondering--or cared. It had only occurred to him to think of it because of Audric’s comment about the woman finding him appealing. He scrubbed a hand over the faint bristles along his jaw, wincing as the gesture reminded him, sharply, that he’d beat the bag barehanded until his knuckles were raw and bleeding.
    That had been unwise, he thought, studying them wryly. It was going to be hell working out now, until they healed.
    He frowned as his stomach growled and he realized he was starving.
    He couldn’t remember the last time that had happened either. Mostly he ate because he knew he needed to, not because he had any enthusiasm for it. His ‘enthusiasm’ was back with a vengeance, however. He discovered he couldn’t ignore the grumbling as he generally did and finally yielded to the demands of his belly and left the basement gym.
    He paused when he reached the first floor and heard the tone that announced that dinner was served. He’d broken a sweat and he hadn’t changed since that morning. Ordinarily, he would never have considered sitting down to eat as he was--unshaven, unwashed, completely disheveled. Resentment filled him, though, when he realized a part of his reluctance now--the biggest part of it--was a disinclination for ‘that woman’ to see him as he was.
    “To hell with her,” he muttered to himself. He was not likely to see her, or she him. She would