Page 90 of The Dragon King

I DON’T KNOW. KHAZMUDA HAS TOLD ME HOW IRRITATING HE CAN BE.

“It’s okay, but thank you.”

He continued to stare at me over the fire.I’M SORRY YOU’RE HURTING. IT MAKES ME HURT.

“I’ll be okay.” I said it as sincerely as I could. But I felt the pain of the lie I told. It was hard to imagine ever feeling okay, not when the first time I had ever felt okay was when Talon came into my life. Now I had to go back to my old life…alone. “Eventually.”

When we finally arrived at Riviana Star, my entire body was tired. Sore from riding the horse all day and stiff from sleeping on the hard ground. I’d felt this way when we’d boarded the galleon, but it was far more manageable with Talon. My hand rested on his heart when we slept at night. His muscular legs between my thighs when we made love. Inferno was a great companion, but he would never replace the love I’d lost.

We stopped outside the forest, and Queen Eldinar instructed some of her men to care for the dragons in the fields outside the line of trees.

Talon approached to address the queen, but his eyes were on me. “Prepare to depart Riviana Star and meet me in Shadow Stone when you’re ready. My men will prepare the ships for our departure.”

“We’ll meet you there, Death King,” she said. “It’s been a very long time since I’ve been in the lands of humans. I’m not sure what they’ll think of us.”

“They’ll welcome you because I command it,” Talon answered. “The world will be a different place once this battle is won.”

“I hope so,” she said. “Travel well.”

He gave her a nod and stepped away.

We’d been apart for days, but it would still be strange to watch him leave my side. We’d been inseparable for a long time now.

Instead of leaving our presence, he came closer to me.

Queen Eldinar dismissed herself and turned to the forest.

My heart immediately jumped out of my chest like it had wings. The terror and the excitement of his proximity drove me into an internal frenzy, but I managed to keep a straight face as I met his gaze.

His hard eyes stared into mine for a long time, for seconds that grew into a solid minute.

I still felt it. That desire that burned me to ash then consumed everything around me. That profound depth of emotion that made it hard to breathe. But there was also rage…so much of it.

“I need you to come with me.”

Disappointment kicked me right in the stomach. Days had passed and he didn’t chase me, so I’d come to accept he would never rectify this. But he somehow continued to disappoint me, destroy what little hope I had left. It took me several seconds to speak. “Why?”

“The black diamonds.”

“That doesn’t concern me.”

“I need my blacksmith to fuse the diamonds into our armor.”

“Then take my armor with you and bring it back when you’re done?—”

“Calista.”

I turned silent at the sound of my name, hearing the power in his voice.

“I don’t want us to be apart.”

“Why?” I managed to keep my gaze on his even when I wanted to look away, to seem braver than I really was.

But his eye contact was more intense than mine. Far more potent and intrusive. “You know why.”

“I don’t know anything anymore.”

His eyes gave a wince like I’d stabbed him.

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