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My dragon had other plans, though.
“Lucian, are you okay?” She sat up in bed, holding the sheets to her chest. “Maybe I should leave. We can talk later...or if this is your way of kicking me out so that my feelings aren’t hurt...”
“No! I want you to stay. I want to talk. I want...”A whole life with you.That’s what I wanted to say. “Just...a few minutes...”
I stumbled my way toward the door but before I could walk through it, the change began to happen.
Fuuuck!
I fought it hard but lost. My body grew bigger, my eyesight shifted, and wings unfurled from my back.
I was in my dragon form. He demanded a celebration for finding our mate, and I’d fought him back for too long.
I beat my wings to stabilize myself before setting my clawed feet on the ground.
Oh, no. Please, Katerina, don’t freak out.
My dragon form took up the space between the bed and the door. Luckily there was more than enough space, as all the bedrooms were designed with our transformation in mind.
I turned to look at my mate, horror curling around my mind. What was she going to say?
Katerina sat on the bed, frozen. Her jaw slowly dropped, and her eyes grew wide. “Oh...wow...”
If that was her whole reaction, then perhaps things wouldn’t be so bad after all.
The initial shock wore off more rapidly than I’d thought it would and she let out a blood-curdling scream. I roared in response, the pitch of her voice piercing my ears. Not my finest moment.
“Oh my God! Ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod!” She covered her ears and threw the blankets over her head. “Don’t eat me! I am not food! Ohmygod.”
I needed to speak to her and there was only one way. I gathered all of my strength and forced my shifter back inside. Slowly, too slowly, I became a man once more.
“Katerina? No! I’m not going to—”
A small squeak escaped her lips as she sat bolt upright and pulled the sheets down once more. Her face was bright red and flustered. “You talk? Are you a demon? You have to be some kind of unholy monster from Hell to talk! To change shape! You were just...a man and then a dragon...ohmygod...” She started to breathe, heavy and fast.
“Katerina, I’m Lucian. I’m a—”
“No! Stop! I’m not going to fall for it! I’ve seen this movie! A million times! It never ends well.” She whimpered. “Oh, God...please tell me this is all a dream. None of this is real. All a dream. All. A. Dream.”
My heart broke in half. Pain tore through my chest as the intensity of her fear amplified. Of course, she was frightened. Why wouldn’t she be? To her, I was a predator searching for its next meal.
The next question was, should I run?
Yes. In fact, the further I put myself from her, the better. She sounded on the verge of hyperventilation, and someone else in the castle must have heard the scream and my roar. They might even be on their way already.
I’d distressed her, my presence terrifying her. One of her sisters could provide her with the care and comfort she’d need, and I would be far away, unable to cause her more harm. Yes, that was definitely the best course of action. Then she wouldn’t be able to watch me fall apart from her rejection. She didn’t even try to listen...
I let my dragon fly up into my body once more, the panic within my heart settling as my beast took over. I flew out the nearest window, glass crashing to the ground as I took the sky. I’d already caused plenty of damage to Damon’s castle fighting with Dymitri. What was one more window?
The wind kissed my scales, and I barreled toward the forest—toward home. Not the castle that Damon insisted was now my home, but my true one. The one in exile. That’s where I belonged, in the banishment put upon me by my asshole father. Why did I think I could ever leave? Why did I think I could make a home in the castle and have a happily ever after?
How could I have been so stupid?
I wanted to rip the world apart. To destroy the trees, the buildings, whatever got in my way. Wanted to but didn’t. Enough of my humanity remained to remind my dragon that setting the world ablaze would do more damage than good. A mournful cry left my lungs as I soared into the clouds. There, I could wallow in peace.
She was supposed to understand. Her heart was supposed to respond to mine and give her the compassion and grace to accept the dragon inside me. It hadn’t. Probably because my heart wasn’t worthy of love. At least I’d had one night with her I’d rewind and replay it over and over again for the rest of my life.
The cool air calmed me some. I felt more human than dragon again. I almost turned back so I could transform once more and comfort her now that my rational and more logical side had returned. Perhaps we could talk. She might still listen...
