Page 33 of Burned

I look forward again, focusing my keen vision on the mountains up ahead, my chest tightening as they get closer.

“It shouldn’t be much longer.”

Alrick glances back at me, his brow creased. He nods before blowing out a breath that moves a wisp of hair from his cheek. “You can see better than me, right?”

I nod. “Yes. If we make good progress the rest of the day, I’d say one more overnight and we’ll make it there sometime tomorrow.”

“Cool.” He pauses, allowing me to catch up, then brushes his arm against mine. “The rest was good though. The water felt rejuvenating.”

“I agree.”

We walk alongside each other in silence for more than an hour, navigating the brush and tree branches. Once we reach another clearing, Alrick twists his head back and forth and bends slightly backward.

“Does your back hurt?”

Alrick shakes his head. “Nope. I stretch to keep that from happening. Something my dad taught us growing up. Prevention is key since we never know when an enemy will attack.”

The reminder of what he is leaves a bitter taste on my tongue. I’m tempted to ask what happened the night he was nearly killed, but I think a part of me doesn’t want to know the details. Maybe if I did though, it would make breaking the bond more appealing.

He’s killed my kind.

At least, his family has. I can’t accept that, no matter how desperately I want to touch him again. I wait for a reaction from my dragon but he’s weirdly silent. No reaction to our mate killing dragons? Really?

“What’s it like being raised in a dragon family?”

Alrick’s question causes me to misstep for a second. I catch myself on a tree branch before I completely tumble over.

“Is that okay to ask?”

“Yes, of course. I was lost in thought for a moment.” Glancing at him, I see true curiosity reflected in his gaze. “It was wonderful. Very loving and filled with joy. We’re born in clutches, a group of eggs that hatch at the same time. I have siblings much older and much younger than me.”

“You were hatched? That’s really true?”

“It’s true. I was born before the others in my clutch, as I mentioned, so I’m the oldest. Dragons tend to stay closely attached to their clutchmates, and I would say I’m even closer to my brothers than most. We live together, work together, do everything together. I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

“You actually like them? It’s not just an obligation for you?”

“I adore my brothers and now their mates.”

“Mates?”

My chest tightens when I realize my slip. I suppose it doesn’t hurt to explain it. “Mates, yes. When dragons are hatched, the path to our destined love is also created. Without our knowledge, everything we do ultimately leads us to that person. My brothers have all found theirs in the last couple of years.”

“But you haven’t?”

My dragon surges forward again and a puff of smoke escapes my lips. Alrick tilts his head.

“No,” I manage to say. “I haven’t.”

“Does it make you sad?”

Shaking my head, I have to look away from his beautiful face to avoid blurting out what I’ve done. “No. It’s just not my time yet. I trust fate to guide me.”

“Is it different from just a regular relationship? Like, how do you know it’s a mate and not just someone you’re into?”

“It’s very different. You know it on a soul level, driven by your dragon.”

“So, like a soulmate?”

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