CHAPTER 45: HURDLES

The sound of swords clanging together, combined with the heavy scent of trampled grass and earth, permeated the air. The sun was beating down mercilessly on the shirtless men as they trained like their lives depended on it, the muscles in their torsos rippling with exertion. Drakon had purposely stopped and removed himself when he almost seriously wounded one of his soldiers because he hadn't been paying as much attention as he should have. This was exactly why men with family problems were told to stay home during important gatherings or situations. He took a long drink from the water in his gourd, the liquid tasting lukewarm from lying under the rising temperature of the hills. He pulled on his shirt before sinking onto the grass with a loud sigh. His eyes were on his men, but his mind was at home, on Shirley specifically. Things still had not gotten better between them yet, and they had gone back to ignoring each other again. No one had told him marriage would be this hard; if so