Page 28 of Possessed By the Dragon Alien
“Nothing,” he said finally. “I’d be losing nothing.”
But his hand tightened around hers, and she knew that wasn’t quite true. He’d be gaining something instead. The chance to become who he was meant to be. The opportunity to fight for something that mattered. Even for him, a powerful Axis leader, the thought of leaving everything he knewhadto scare him.
“Then we go,” she said.
He nodded slowly. “Yes. We go.”
The decision felt monumental, like stepping off a cliff into open sky. But for the first time since arriving at Central, Nena felt something she’d almost forgotten.
Hope.
SIXTEEN
Madrian watched the emotions play across Nena’s face—hope, determination, a flicker of worry she tried to hide. The way she looked at him, like he could actually be the male she saw instead of the weapon the Axis had forged, made the knot in his chest loosen for the first time, well,ever. In fact, he hadn’t even known the knot was there. It had been so deeply ingrained in him, he’d assumed itwashim. But no. It had been put there.
“We should contact Rien immediately.” Nena released his hands and moved toward the communication panel. She peered at it with a furrowed brow. “If my friends are alive, if your brothers are out there fighting—”
“Wait.” The command came out sharper than he intended. She stopped mid-stride and turned, one eyebrow raised in question. He forced himself to soften his tone. “Rien will contact us when it’s safe. Any communication I initiate will be monitored.”
Nena’s green eyes studied his face. “That makes sense. I’m not usually impulsive, but now…” She looked down and shook her head. “I don’t even recognize myself right now.”
It wasn’t an accusation, just an observation. But it hit him like a blow. “Because of me?”
“Of course, because of you.” She clearly thought that was obvious, and it scraped against something raw inside him. “I don’t go around kissing Axis leaders, you know. Or anyone, for that matter. This is…” She waved a hand, searching for a word. “New. Very,verynew.”
“For me, as well,” he admitted. His body felt edgy. Only a lifetime of discipline prevented him from pacing restlessly, moving just for the sake of it. It wouldnotbe an efficient use of energy. “I don’t know how to do any of this,” he added, with a small, hopeless shrug.
She stepped closer, and he caught her scent—soil and growing things mixed with something uniquely her. “Neither do I.”
The gentleness in her voice nearly undid him. He wanted to reach for her, to pull her against him and bury his face in her hair until the weight of responsibility stopped pressing down on his shoulders. But years of conditioning held him back.
“Nena.” Her name came out rougher than he meant. “What you read in those files—about what the Axis did to our people—I participated in that system. Every decision I’ve made, every order I’ve given, it’s all been in service to the empire that destroyed us.”
Her hand came up to cup his cheek, and he leaned into the touch without thinking. Her palm was warm against his skin, calloused from garden work but infinitely gentle.
“You didn’t know,” she said simply.
“Does that matter? Worlds are still conquered. People are still dead.” He caught her wrist, holding her hand against his face. “But I know now. And I swear to you, Nena—I’ll spend whatever time I have left, proving I can be better than what they made me.”
She cocked her head and looked at him with those eyes that saw far more than he wanted to show her. “I trust you, Madrian.”
“You shouldn’t.” The harsh tone in his voice surprised him. “I’ve done terrible things. You’re trusting me with your life, with your future. I haven’t earned that.”
“Okay, fine.” Her eyes narrowed on him as color darkened her cheeks. Was this Nena’s way of showing her temper? If so, it was stunning. “I trust my instincts. That’s one thing that’s never been wrong. It tells me you’re not the enemy.”
“What if this is the one time your instincts are wrong?”
“They’re not.” She said it with such quiet confidence that he almost believed her.Fekknew, he wanted to believe her. Wanted to believe that the evil that had been forced into him since infancy hadn’t ruined him forever. “I can feel it, Madrian. The goodness in you that they tried to bury is still there.”
He stared down at this small female who’d somehow managed to see past everything dark and twisted about him to find something worth saving. The possessive need that had been building since he first saw her crouched in the ferns, roared to life.
Mine, his instincts whispered. Protect her. Keep her. Never let her go.
The primitive thoughts should have alarmed him. Instead, they felt like coming home.
“Nena.” Her name was a growl in his throat.
She quirked one eyebrow, appearing to expect another argument about his lack of virtue. “Yes?”
