Page 102 of Dream Reaper

And yet he could imagine himself reaching out, catching her around the waist, and pulling her close so that he could inhale the scent of her hair, so he could press a kiss to her forehead and swear on his life that he’d come back for her…

Blithering bones, I already told her all of that!

Jerrid started and took a step back, shaking with a sudden surge of anger as he spun to sling his satchel over his shoulder.

He didn’t care if Ava was elvish, and he was human. Didn’t care if their kingdoms were on the brink of another war. Didn’t care how impossible it might seem to build a relationship during these times. But he did care about Dragon.

He couldn’t have any kind of relationship as long as Dragon was in the picture.

So, he walked away, striding into the forest and leaving Ava and all those foolish dreams behind. He had a feeling he’d never see her again with his own two eyes. When he came back, if he came back…

He wouldn’t be the same.

Once a safe distance from the camp, he removed his clothes and packed them in his satchel. Pain lanced through his body as Dragon initiated the shift. The air felt cold against his exposed flesh, but he ground his teeth together and focused on what needed to be done. He had to do this. This had to work.

Stop working so hard, Dragon snarled. You always make it harder than it has to be!

“How am I supposed to let it happen if I don’t work for it?” Jerrid snapped back. “It’s not like you’ve ever made this easy. It hurts, curse you.”

It won’t hurt if you just get out of the way and let me handle it. Just relax. Close your eyes. Invite me in. I need to feel your thoughts, know them…

No. He couldn’t make himself that vulnerable. Couldn’t think about Ava making herself that vulnerable to Dragon so that he could use her body. It made him want to be sick that he—they—had taken such liberties with her soul.

He twisted to the side and retched into the brittle leaves.

Dragon cursed soundly. That’s not how it was at all. She wanted me to be there.

Jerrid spat onto the ground, bracing his palms against the damp soil. “She didn’t know what she was doing. She’s an innocent, and you violated her.”

I did nothing of the sort. I didn’t exactly ask permission, granted, but I made sure she wanted me to be there, and I didn’t go anywhere she didn’t want me to go. Now stop whining and just shift!

“Not until we get this all out into the open. Do you hear me? No more skulking around in my brain, threatening to take over and eat people⁠—”

I never actually intended to eat anyone, you know. I just ate jackrabbits and stuff. A dragon’s got to eat.

“Then why the blazes did you make it so difficult?”

Because you would have just shut me out if I hadn’t made a fuss. It was the only way to keep your attention. You would have put me in a box and forgotten about me long ago…

Was that sadness Jerrid detected in his tone? He could almost taste the flavor of Dragon’s grief, his hurt, as if it were sitting on his tongue and not resting in his mind.

“I never asked for this,” Jerrid began, unsure what he could or should say.

Everything Dragon had accused him of was true.

“I never asked to be a shifter, and suddenly you just woke up in my mind one day, and I couldn’t control you. I was scared. People got hurt.”

I never meant to hurt anyone. I couldn’t control it either, you know.

Jerrid sank back on his heels, frowning. How had he not known that? He’d always assumed Dragon was in complete control. He was so confident and sure of himself.

If you can’t be in control, pretend you are. At least everyone will respect you until you figure it out.

Jerrid snorted. “That was a really bad plan.”

I admit it didn’t work out so well for me.

“You can say that again.”