“What is it?” he asked, brushing his knuckles along her cheek.
Jewel hesitated. “Do you… like being with me because I’m a siren? Or because I’m a girl?”
The question hit him square in the chest. He blinked, then lifted his hand to cradle her face.
“Because you’re a girl,” he said honestly. “Because you’re you.”
She blinked in surprise. He could see the question still lingering in her eyes.
He smiled. “So tell me—do you want to be with me because I’m a dragon… or because I’m just a boy?”
A small laugh escaped her, and she traced her fingers along his collarbone. “Because you’re both.”
His dragon rumbled with smug delight.
“Great,” Jabir said with a chuckle. “Now you’ve made him completely full of himself.”
Jewel giggled, and he kissed her again.
When he pulled away, he exhaled, brushing his forehead against hers. “I never want this day to end.”
She smiled and looped her arms around his shoulders.
He was about to roll her beneath him, to tell her how much he cared, when she stiffened in his arms.
“Jewel?”
She gasped and pushed upright, her tail smacking hard against the water. Her eyes were glazed, distant. Trembling, she dipped her tail into the river.
“Jewel, what is it?” he asked, sitting up with her, alarm rising like a tide.
Her fingers clutched at her stomach, and she looked at him with a pained expression. “We have to go back. Now. My mother has discovered I’m missing.”
Without hesitation, Jabir shifted to help her—but when she tried to form legs, her transformation faltered. Her body wavered halfway, and she collapsed into his arms with a low cry.
“I’m sorry,” she murmured, her voice weak. “Even though we played in the water… it’s not the same. I didn’t realize how weak I’ve become. I thought… I thought it would be enough.”
Jabir’s chest tightened. He scooped her into his arms, cradling her gently against him. “Hold on. I’ll get you back to the lake.”
He didn’t wait for a response.
Heat shimmered around them as he summoned his dragon, pushing every thought aside except getting her home. Scales shimmered over skin, his wings unfurled with a snap, and in the next breath, they were airborne.
He clutched her close to his chest, willing his scales to warm her, to give her the strength she needed.
Faster, his dragon urged. I go faster.
They sliced through the sky like a falling star, the trees and rivers a blur beneath them. Jabir flew harder than he ever had before, his wings aching with the effort, but he didn’t slow. Not once.
Nearly an hour later, the familiar curve of the lake came into view—only it wasn’t calm.
It was chaos.
Jabir’s stomach dropped.
The waters churned violently, waves slamming against the rocks and boats. Fishermen shouted as they tried to steady their crafts. On the shore, women cried out, pulling their mates away from the edge.
And above it all… was singing.
