Page 218 of The Iron Flower

“Stranger things have happened.”

I look up at him. “We did rescue Naga from a Gardnerian military base,” I say, as bold defiance starts to rise within me.

“And destroyed half the base,” he adds thoughtfully.

“And the Selkies. They’re free.”

“That was a long shot, as well.”

“As is you turning out to be half dragon.”

The edge of his mouth lifts in a smile. “And then there’s you...being, of all things, the Black Witch.”

I nod, a bit dazed as I glance at the flaming trees. “That isdefinitelyunexpected.”

Yvan gives my arm a warm squeeze, gets up and walks down to the lake to gather his things. When he reaches the shore, he goes very still. Then he pulls his wings in tight behind him, folding them flat against his back, until only their imprint remains. His hair morphs from vibrant red back to its glamoured brown, and his ears shift to a rounded shape once more.

When he’s done, Yvan lets out a long breath, as if it’s taken quite a bit of effort. Then he quickly throws on his shirt, his belt, his socks and boots.

He offers me his hand as he approaches. “Let’s go to Kam Vin,” he says. I take his hand and let him pull me up. “It’s time for her to know we’re ready to fight with them.”

“How did you learn how to hide your wings?” I wonder, amazed at what I’ve just witnessed.

“I’m Lasair, Elloren” he says matter-of-factly. “We can form weak glamours.”

“Oh.”

For a moment I just stand there, feeling dazed.

“Elloren,” Yvan says softly as he pulls me into a warm embrace, his lips soft on my temple.

“I still can’t believe you can fly,” I say, surreptitiously feeling along the hard planes of his back for some hint I might have missed. But I can’t feel any trace of his wings.

He lets out an incredulous laugh and leans down to lightly kiss me, his lips enticingly warm. “And I can’t believe I’ve fallen in love with the Black Witch.”

“It certainly seems that way.”

Yvan pulls away a fraction, his gaze ardent and firing up to gold. “Itisthat way.” And then he kisses me again, his lips growing heated, his fire building and then flashing through my lines with a feverish urgency that makes me shudder against him.

“I’ll bet no one imagined this when they wrote that Prophecy,” I whisper as he brushes his mouth along the edge of my lips.

“I imagine not,” he breathes. Then he brings his lips back to mine and kisses me ravenously.

He feels so good, so deliriously warm, that my thoughts tangle in on themselves and I almost forget about the fasting marks on my hands, about the huge forest fire still burning, about every impossible, world-shattering thing going on around us.

“So,” I breathe, completely under his spell, “this is what it’s like to kiss a dragon.”

He smiles suggestively, his eyes blazing to gold. Then he leans in and kisses me again, his tongue twining around mine, his movements slow and serpentine as his fire curls in a slow caress down my lines, trailing sparks all the way to my toes.

The sensation startles me, all the more heightened by the way he’s pulling me against his long, hard body, and a tight desire takes hold.

“That’s...interesting,” I say, overwhelmed by my reaction to his touch, to his unbridled fire.

“I love kissing you,” he says. “Sharing this fire with someone... It’sincredible.”

“What did you mean when you said that kissing would bind us?” I ask as he threads his fingers back through my hair, brushing his lips along my neck.

He hesitates, his breath hot on my skin. “A dragon’s kiss binds him to his mate.”

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