Estelle got up abruptly, carrying their plates to the sink. The question hit too close, stirring doubts she had been trying to ignore all day.
“Can we go see Leo?” Adara asked, as if reading her thoughts. “Fizz misses him.”
Just Fizz?her dragon teased again.
“I think Leo’s probably busy,” Estelle said carefully, though the idea of seeing him sent a flutter of anticipation through her chest.
“Oh.” Adara’s face fell briefly, then brightened. “Maybe tomorrow?”
Tomorrow. And the day after that, and the day after that. How long could she keep Leo at a distance? How long should she?
The mate bond tugged harder, as if sensing her wavering resolve.
Estelle moved to the window, looking out at the forest as afternoon light filtered through the trees. She’d spent so long running, so long focused only on survival, that the possibility of anything more seemed almost unreal—a fantasy she couldn’t afford to indulge.
But what if it wasn’t a fantasy? What if Leo was offering something real? Something lasting?
The fear is real,her dragon acknowledged softly.But so is the longing. So is the bond.
Estelle closed her eyes, feeling the pull toward him like a physical force. She’d been fighting it all day, and she was exhausted.
“You know what?” she blurted, turning to Adara. “I think we should go see if Leo wants to have dinner with us tonight.”
Adara’s face lit up. “Really? Now?”
“Yes, now.” The decision, once made, felt inevitable, as if she’d been moving toward it all day despite her best efforts to resist. “Go get your shoes on.”
As Adara scrambled to obey, Estelle’s dragon practically purred with satisfaction.Finally, listening to reason.
I’m not promising anything,Estelle cautioned.We’re just... exploring possibilities.
Her dragon snorted.Call it whatever you want. We both know what this is.
And what was it? Surrender? Weakness? Or maybe, just maybe, courage—the courage to reach for something beyond mere survival, to risk being seen, being known, being loved.
The thought made her hands tremble slightly as she helped Adara with her jacket. Love was dangerous. Love made you vulnerable. Love gave others power over you.
But it also gave you power—the power to choose, to trust, to build something worth protecting.
“Ready, Mama?” Adara asked, Fizz tucked securely under her arm.
Estelle took a breath and nodded. “Ready.”
They walked hand in hand to the car and got in. As she drove, Estelle followed the invisible thread of the mate bond tugging her toward Leo. She didn’t need directions or a map; her body knew exactly where to find him, as if he were magnetic north and she the needle of a compass.
With each mile that passed, the ache in her chest eased slightly, replaced by a nervous anticipation that made her palms damp. What would she say when she saw him? How could she explain this change of heart without sounding as conflicted as she felt?
“Are we going to his house?” Adara asked as they turned onto a smaller path through the trees.
“I think so,” Estelle replied, trusting the pull of the bond. “I’ve never been there before, but I can feel where he is.”
Adara nodded seriously, accepting this dragon-sense as naturally as breathing. “Like a treasure map in your heart.”
Chapter Ten – Leo
Just breathe,Leo’s bear told him as he stood at the door, sensing their mate on the other side.
I am breathing,Leo said.It’s my heart I’m worried about. I think it’s going to jump out of my chest.
