Elle POV
By the time Blake finally calls a break for the day my arms feel like they’re made of stone and my legs tremble every time I shift my weight.
I don’t complain.
I don’t even sit right away.
I stand there, breathing hard, sweat cooling against my skin as the echo of clashing movement fades from the training chamber. The male dragons regroup on the far side of the room, already sliding back into discussion with Blake—voices low, sharp, focused. Even exhausted, I can feel the intensity rolling off them like heat from embers.
They’re planning.
Always planning.
Blake looks… right there.
Not distant, not distracted. Fully present in his element. He moves among them easily, correcting a stance here, challenging a point there. They don’t defer to him because of rank. They defer bec
