Page 56

It doesn't come.

She just stares at me. Then at the others. Then she frowns.

"But I've always heard that dragon kings can only take royal mates," she says. "That's what everyone says. Even in my village. It's in all the old stories."

"It's true," Zarek says.

"Then how can I be your mate? I'm not royal. I'm no one. I sell herbs at the market."

"You must have royal blood somewhere," Zarek says. "Somewhere in your family line. Far back, maybe. Hidden, or forgotten. Your family might not even know it's there. But it's there. Our dragons don't make mistakes."

She stares at him.

And fascination comes into her face. "Does that mean I can turn into a dragon?" she asks.

Rhydian lets out a startled laugh. It's soft, but it's real.

"Not necessarily," he says. "Not everyone with royal blood can shift. Some can. Some can't. We won't know until we learn more about your family."

"But I might?"

"You might."

She looks down at her hands like she expects scales to sprout out of them.

I watch her. I can't stop watching her. I keep waiting for her to scream, or cry, or start shouting at us for lying. She doesn't. She's just sitting there in a tangle of blankets with her hair a wild mess, frowning hard, turning it all over in her head. Fitting pieces together. Trying to understand.

Gods, she's brave.

Then her eyes come back up. And they come back to me.

"Your mate," she says slowly. "You said I'm your mate?"

"Yes."

"Your only one?" Her voice wavers. "Your one and only?"

"Yes."

It comes out of me harder than I mean it to. Rougher. Raw. All the things I can't say crammed into one word.

"There will never be anyone else," I tell her. "Not for me. Not for any of us. Never."

Rhydian nods. Zarek nods.

"Our dragons knew you the instant they caught your scent," Zarek says. "We're bound together, the three of us. It's an old bond. A clutch bond. It means we share one mate. We've been searching for her for a very long time." His voice softens. "We'd started to think we'd never find her."

"But you need to understand something," Rhydian says. "This doesn't mean you have to say yes."

"He's right," Zarek says. "Destiny doesn't get to choose for you. Neither do we. That's why we didn't tell you who we were."

"We wanted you to know us," Rhydian says. "Just us. Not the crowns. Not the kingdoms. Not some bond you never asked for."

"Not because you thought you had to," Zarek says. "Not because you were afraid to refuse a king. Or because you thought you didn't have any other choice." He holds her gaze. "We wanted you to choose us. Only if you wanted to."

Elara doesn't say anything.

She looks down at the blankets.