Despite his rejection, I love Vexxion. I won’t let anyone, and I mean anyone, hurt him.
As it should be between fated mates. Now go to the inn. Eat. Sleep. I’ll see you tomorrow.
I’d rather stay here with you and talk.
And I’d rather go to an aerie and rest my weary wings.He ruffled them, stretching them out far enough to touch the woods on either side of the meadow.I’m hungry enough to eat impertinent fae ladies like you.
I stroked his cheek and kissed his snout.You’d never eat me.
Are you sure about that?
My snort rang out, but I stepped away from him, watching his eyes like I used to do whenever I worked with a dragon. I found no sparks of irritation there, but you never knew how a beast might behave if you irked them.
Would you have told me any of this if I hadn’t asked?I asked.
Perhaps,he drawled.Perhaps not.
Could you tell me everything else I need to know?
No.Madrood’s gaze lifted toward the village nestled beyond the trees.
Seek a man named Prager, and he might be persuaded to tell you.
In the distance, people moved about, speaking in low voices. Madrood huffed, shooting sparks down my front I absently brushed away.
I’ll see you tomorrow,he said.
I’m sorry I keep pestering you.
He nudged me with his snout.You’re a good person. You’ll do the right thing when the time comes. Trust in that.
See you in the morning.My left thigh on fire, no longer conditioned to riding, I limped over to my waiting friends with a half-asleep Drask bobbing on my shoulder. If I thought he’d let me carry him like a baby, I would, but he’d squawked the last time Itried. He’d only let me hold him like that the day I found him injured.
The dragons took flight, leaving us staring after them.
I should’ve picked Madrood’s mind the entire time we flew here, not spent every second sulking at Vexxion, which had only fed my frustration.
Being with him was torture, but it would be worse if I wasn’t with him.
What if I couldn’t make him fall in love with me again? A vast wasteland without him stretched ahead of me. I’d taken our love for granted. I’d trusted it would always be there for as long as we lived. And now it had been plucked from his heart like a cancer that needed to be destroyed.
Reyla’s gaze flickered from me to Vexxion. The sympathy in her eyes gouged through me, making my chest spasm.
She put her arms around me and tugged me close, pressing her forehead against mine. “It’s going to be alright,” she whispered for my ears alone. “I know it. Trust and keep trying. You didn’t give up on me, and I know you’ll never give up on him. He’s waiting there, hoping to come back to you, like Brodine and I were when we were trapped in the ether.”
Pain swarmed through me, an angry nest of bees stinging every exposed surface. “Thanks for being here for me. For believing in me when I’m full of doubts.”
She backed up a step, giving me a smile. “There’s time yet. We’ve only started this journey.”
“Yup.”
“You’re good?”
As good as I could be. Forcing a smile that would never match hers, I nodded.
She scanned the meadow.
The weight of Vexxion’s gaze remained on me.
