Page 121 of Love Bites Extra Hard

“Brilliant,” he corrected, lips stretching in a grin.

“Strong, fast, and brilliant. The perfect combination,” Clem teased.

He laughed.

I heard Stella grit out a curse. And while I felt bad that the conversation had to have been bringing back memories for her, this was the only way our magic could work.

“Shift for me,” Clem said with a smile. She nudged me, and I increased the flow of my magic. “Prove how fast and strong you are.”

His grin widened.

In an instant, his scales vanished. They left behind a lanky, pale man with light brown hair and thick muscles.

He was attractive, and I knew it had worked in his favor. Protected him. Helped him. Kept suspicion off of him.

As fast as he shifted, the dragons moved.

The forcefield vanished, and magic cut sharply through the air. Talon and Stella didn’t need weapons. Not with magic like theirs.

His head fell clean off his shoulders.

My eyes widened in horror, my stomach churning as it dropped.

Talon had me in his arms and pressed against his chest before a sickening noise followed. Bile rose in my throat anyway.

The cell door opened, and I turned to watch as Stella stormed inside. Her fists were clenched, and her power was so thick in the air that breathing grew difficult.

She crouched over him, staring down at his body for a minute.

And another.

Before she finally straightened and walked back to Evan. When she reached him, she laced her fingers through his, and walked away without glancing back.

When I looked at Clementine, I found her face pale and her expression grim.

“Thank you,” I whispered, and she nodded.

Finally, it was over.

twenty-two

AVERY

The next fewdays passed by in a blur.

Sylvester was buried in an unmarked grave in the forest, with more than two hundred dragons watching silently.

Many of them thanked me for what I’d done afterward. Clementine asked me not to tell anyone what role she’d played, so I took the credit for it, though I really didn’t want to.

I spent the next morning in the underwater caves with Clem and Talon. The castle was crazy with everyone taking time off work to celebrate and grieve in their own ways.

We were all feeling more laid-back than usual, and ended up calling it quits halfway through the day. Talon and I spent the rest of it and the next few days lounging around, watching movies, and relaxing.

For the first time in my life, I had nothing to worry about. Absolutely nothing.

And that was bliss.

A few weeks later,I came back from a meeting with one of Talon’s least-favorite departments. I didn’t mind the woman in charge of it, so I’d taken that one over.

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