Page 48 of Daring the Drakarn Warrior Lord
Pride. Frustration. Relief. Desire.
All of it tangled together until I couldn't tell where his feelings ended and mine began.
I flexed my fingers under the water, watching the way the ripples distorted the view of my hands. My knuckles were scraped. My palms were raw. The cut above my eyebrow had stopped bleeding but would probably leave a scar. Small prices for what I'd accomplished.
Or tried to.
"So," I finally said. "On a scale of one to ten, how angry are you?"
Darrokar's tail moved beneath the water, the tip breaking the surface for just a moment before disappearing again. "That depends on the scale."
"Human scale. One being mildly annoyed, ten being ready to lock me in our quarters for the next decade."
"Fifteen."
I laughed despite myself. The sound echoed off the stone walls, too loud in the quiet space. "That's not how it works."
"You asked how angry I was. I answered." His voice was calm. The kind of calm that came from very carefully controlling what you actually wanted to say. "You entered a sacred trial designed to test Drakarn warriors. You fought your way through obstacles that could have killed you. You made it to the inner sanctum and then tried to fight me for access to the blood-flame."
"Technically, I got past you."
"Terra."
The way he said my name made something clench in my chest. Not quite a warning, not quite a plea. Just my name, weighted with everything he wasn't saying.
I shifted on the bench, water sloshing around me. "I know I crossed some lines."
"Some lines." He repeated the words like he was tasting them. "You crossed every line. You risked yourself in ways that made me question whether you have any sense of self-preservation. You forced me to choose between my duty as Warrior Lord and my need to keep you safe."
Each point landed like a stone. I felt them settle in my gut, heavy and uncomfortable. He wasn't wrong. About any of it.
"I'm sorry," I said quietly.
"Are you?"
The question caught me off guard. I looked up, met his gaze across the steaming water. "Yes. I'm sorry I put you in that position. Sorry I made you worry. Sorry I dragged Vega and Lexa into my mess."
"But you're not sorry you entered the Skalanth."
It wasn't a question. He already knew the answer.
"No," I admitted. "I'm not sorry about that."
Something shifted in his expression. The careful control cracked just slightly, letting me see the turmoil underneath. "Why?"
"Because I needed to know if I could do it. Needed to prove to myself that I could compete in your world on your terms." I moved through the water toward him, slowly, giving him time to stop me if he wanted. "I know it was reckless. I know it was dangerous. But I can't spend the rest of my life wondering if I'm only here because of who I'm mated to instead of who I am."
"You're here because you're strong. Capable. Brilliant." His tail found my leg under the water, wrapping around my calf with gentle pressure. "You don't need to risk your life in trials to prove that."
"Maybe not to you." I reached him, close enough to see the gold flecks in his eyes. "But I needed to prove it to myself."
He studied my face for a long moment. Then his hand came up, cupping my jaw with claws that were careful against my skin. "You're going to give me gray scales."
"You keep saying that. I still don't see any gray."
"Give it time." His thumb stroked across my cheekbone, the pad rough against my flushed skin. "You terrified me today, luvae."
The admission hit harder than any anger could have. I leaned into his touch, letting the warmth of his palm seep into me. "I know. I'm sorry."
