Page 26 of Chains of Nightshade

The realization crashes over me like a wave. All those gentle words, those tender moments in our shared dreams – they were just tools, carefully crafted to manipulate me. I was never anything more than a means to an end.

Tears spill down my cheeks, but I don't bother wiping them away. What's the point? I'm right back where I started – worthless, unwanted, alone.

I watch Aurel's back as he coils at the edge of our makeshift camp, his shoulders tense and rigid. The moonlight catches his scales, making them shimmer like liquid silver. Even now, when he's trying so hard to be cold, he's beautiful.

My fingers trace the bandage at my side, remembering how carefully he'd tended to my wound. For someone claiming to see me as just a tool, his hands had been so gentle.

"I know you can feel it too," I whisper, more to myself than to him. But in the quiet night, my words carry.

His tail twitches. Just slightly, but enough to tell me he's listening.

"In the dreams, when we touched..." I swallow hard, gathering my courage. "That spark wasn't fake. You can't fake something like that."

"Vera." His voice is strained, warning.

"No." I push myself to my feet, ignoring the twinge in my side. "Look at me. Really look at me."

He doesn't move, but his coils tighten further. "You're being foolish."

"Then I'm foolish." I take a step closer. "But I felt it. When you carried me through the forest, when you cleaned my wound – those weren't the actions of someone who feels nothing."

"What I feel doesn't matter." His words come out clipped, controlled.

"It matters to me." Another step. "You could have left me behind a dozen times. But you didn't."

His hands clench at his sides. "Don't."

I'm close enough now to see the muscles in his back trembling. "Why did you save me, Aurel? The truth."

He whirls around suddenly, his eyes blazing in the darkness. "Because I couldn't leave you!" The words explode from him like he's been holding them back for days. "Are you satisfied now?"

I meet his gaze steadily, seeing past the anger to the confusion and fear beneath. "No," I whisper. "But it's a start."

My bare feet sink into the cool earth as I follow Aurel's path to the river. The moonlight catches his scales, turning them toliquid silver as he moves through the water. My heart thunders in my chest, but I force myself to keep moving forward.

He hasn't noticed me yet. His back is turned, water streaming down the muscled planes of his upper body. I've never seen him like this – unguarded, vulnerable. The sight steals my breath.

The river laps gently at the shore, its whispers matching the rapid beat of my pulse. A cool breeze raises goosebumps on my skin, but I barely notice. I'm transfixed by the way the water droplets trace paths down his back, highlighting every curve and dip of muscle.

I take another step closer, twigs crackling beneath my feet. Aurel's shoulders tense, but he doesn't turn around. He knows I'm here – he must – but he remains still, waiting.

The distance between us feels charged with electricity, like the air before a storm. My fingers tremble at my sides as I gather my courage. This might be my only chance to bridge this gap between us, to make him face what's growing between us.

I pause at the water's edge, my toes just touching the cool surface. The current swirls around my feet, urging me forward or pulling me back – I can't tell which. All I know is that I can't stay here, frozen in this moment of indecision.

This is my chance. My choice.

"Aurel," I whisper, my voice catching in my throat. The water laps at my ankles as I take another tentative step forward.

He turns, water cascading down his muscled chest. His eyes widen slightly, and I see his tail coil tighter beneath the surface. The moonlight catches the droplets on his skin, making them shimmer like tiny stars.

Neither of us speaks. The only sound is the gentle flow of the river and my heart thundering in my chest. The air feels electric, charged with something I can't name but can feel deep in my bones.

I take another step closer, the cool water now reaching my calves. My thin dress clings to my legs, but I barely notice. All I can focus on is him – the way his chest rises and falls with each breath, how his eyes seem to glow in the darkness.

"I..." My voice trembles, and I swallow hard. "I don't want to be alone anymore."

The words hang between us like a physical thing. Aurel's expression remains unreadable, but something flickers in his eyes – a flash of emotion I've never seen before. Is it hesitation? Desire? The water ripples around us as he shifts slightly, his tail creating gentle waves that lap against my legs.

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