“He could claim you,” Ella said in thought. “Track you through the mate bond. I’ve heard rumors it can be done if the dragon is powerful enough.”
Anna looked to me. “Is that true, Caz? If we were … If I let you claim me. Could you find me?”
I longed to shout out that they were wrong. That it didn’t work that way. That Anna needed to stay far, far away from everything to do with this. That she should go somewhere I could protect her, keep her safe. We were talking about risking eternity! That had to mean something.
“Yes,” I said instead. I would not lie to my mate. That was a line my dragon and I both agreed we would not cross. If she asked, we would tell her the truth. We had broken her faithin us once already. Never again. “I could.”
Anna took a deep breath, and I looked at her in horror. No. She wouldn’t …
“Complete the bond, Caz,” she said, her purple eyes never flinching as she looked at me. “I want you to claim me.”
But she didn’t want that. Not really. I knew that. She just wanted her friend, and I wasnotgoing to let her do something so permanent for that.
“Come with me,” I said, taking her by the hand. I didn’t want anyone else around for the conversation that was to come. This was between my mate and me. Because once we were alone, Anna and I were going to talk.
And I was going to let her know in no uncertain terms that she wasnotdoing this.
Thirty-Four
Anna
I spunon Caz as soon as I entered the room. “You aren’t going to stop me if I choose to do this.”
Caz’s mouth slammed closed. Then, slowly, he closed the door.
“You’re supposed to wait until the door is closed to start an argument.”
I crossed my arms defiantly. “If I’d done that, you would have spoken first.”
“Of course I would have!” he barked. “Because I would tell you that you aren’t doing this orb-damned thing. You aren’t going to just go throw yourself at their mercy. I won’t allow it.”
“You won’tallowit?” I asked icily.
“Anna …”
“No.” I sliced a hand through the air. “You don’t control me, Caz. You aren’t the boss of me. I don’tbelongto you. So you don’t get to make these decisions.”
“That’s not how I meant it,” he ground out, his eyes bright and angry.
“Then whatdidyou mean?” I challenged justa bit more belligerently than necessary. I didn’t enjoy being told I was wrong, even when I knew I had overreacted.
Not once had Caz ever tried to control me or tell me to do something. He’d bent over backward to do the opposite, to make me feel comfortable and secure in his world. My comments weren’t particularly fair to him, but I was so angry I didn’t care.
“Just that I won’t let it happen. I won’t claim you.”
My dragon slammed itself against me with furious roars of denial. He had to do it. He had to claim us! We were fated to be together. He had wanted this all along. How could he say now he didn’t want to?
“You don’t want me anymore?” I said, my voice hushed as I processed the shock of his words.
“There is nothing I want more,” he growled defensively, stepping up to me in a blur, cradling my head in his hand, and stroking my hair back over my head. “You are all I could ever hope to be lucky enough to have. I would freeze the world over for you. But, Anna, I won’t claim you just to lose you. You can’t ask me to sacrifice forever. Ask anything else of me but that.Please.”
I shivered. I’d never heard him speak like that before. Not to me, or to anyone.
“Well then, we’re at an impasse,” I told him. “Because asking me to sit back and live the life Iwant with you while I could still find my friend isn’t something I could ever do. That’s not who I am, Caz.”
“I know,” he rumbled. “You’re a better friend than that. But I can’t lose you. Ican’t. If they kill you, the mate bond would take me too. Which would suck, but it’s better than living without you. And I would do it, if it were only you and me.”
My stomach sank as I realized where he was coming from.
