Dragon couldn’t keep his hand from reaching for her. Being close to Jade and not being able to touch her was madness. He didn’t know how long he could bear the torture of restraining his body.

One moment she had been fire under his hands, the next moment, the cold assassin had come back. He could see the first cracks in her armor, but she resisted him, them, and it was driving him crazy.

She looked at his hand, tentatively stretching to touch her stomach. His gesture made her move away from him. “I can’t think when you touch me,” she said.

“We shouldn’t be thinking at all.” He lowered his hand to his thigh. “Lovers only feel.”

“I can’t be your lover.”

“I love you,” he said, breaking inside.

“I don’t love you.” She shook her head. “My body wants you, but it’s not enough.” Her hand went to her stomach. It was an automatic gesture. Even after spending so little time with this new version of her, he recognized it as such.

“Your body recognizes me because you are part of me as I am part of you.” He wanted to scream at the unfairness of it all. “I can’t live without you. You are my soulmate—”

Jade gave him a cold stare. “I know nothing of it. What I know is that my child deserves more from me. I can’t make mistakes now.”

It was too much to bear. Dragon stood, needing to put as much distance as he could between them. “It feels like the gods have decided to punish me.” He raked his hand through his hair. “Promise me you’ll give us a chance. If not for you, for our child.” His voice shook as he uttered the words.

Their child.

He had suppressed his desire to be a father because he wanted this woman more than anything else in the world, but now, they could have it all.

He had fought the notion at first because it was too much to hope for. Two dreams came true on the same day. Now, the only thing he wanted was for Jade to let him cradle her in his arms. He would whisper against her soft bump how much he loved their child already. Jade had erected a barrier between them, though, and he would respect her wishes. Even if it felt like dying inside.

“Give us a chance,” he said again.

Jade’s stiff posture relaxed, and a new light shone in her eyes. “Give me time,” she finally said, breathing some hope into Dragon’s battered heart.

Afterward, they ate in silence, separated only by a few feet. To Dragon, it felt like there was a gulf between them. He had thought the intimacy of feeding each other would help them regain some of the familiarity that had been lost. It tortured him instead, and it infuriated her.

Unlike Jade, his memories of their past together were intact, and they were tormenting him with vivid clarity as she ate a few meters from him.

Still, Dragon couldn’t bear the idea of not being in her presence and suffered through the ordeal.

Only after the servants came back to retrieve the trays did he talk again.

He took a long breath, then turned on his seat to face her. “From now on, you’ll stay with me. I won’t let you out of my sight ever again—”

“I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

“It’s not up for discussion.” He raised his hand to stop her from interrupting him. “I won’t ever touch you again unless you ask me to. We’ll sleep in separate beds, here, in this basement where there are no rooms, and I can check on you at all times. This is a temporary arrangement. It’s my intention to leave for Solaria as soon as possible.”

“And you expect me to go with you.”

Dragon inwardly sighed. “If you don’t want to go to Solaria, say the destination you have in mind, and we’ll go there instead.”

Jade tilted her head, her expression guarded again, but he caught a glimpse of something that looked a lot like a timid smile. It was brief, and had he blinked, he would have missed it altogether, but it had been there.

“I’ll think about it,” she said.

“It’s all I ask of you.”

Loud steps resonated from the staircase. Since both Valentine and Gabriel had surprised their enemies more than once by sneaking silently on them, it was clear they wanted to announce their presence. In a perfect world, their thoughtfulness would have been much appreciated. At the moment, it only increased Dragon’s frustration.

“Can we have a word?” Gabriel asked, walking toward them. The vampire’s face was dark, as was Valentine’s.

The werewolf’s eyes cut toward Jade.

“She stays,” Dragon said, gesturing for them to sit. “How did your missions go?” As he asked it, he suddenly noticed Valerian’s prolonged absence. Since finding Jade, Dragon’s focus had been solely on her. Not once had he thought of his lieutenant until now. His heart dropped into his stomach. “Has anything happened to Valerian?”

“He’s just returned,” Valentine said, but he couldn’t hide the wretched tone in his voice.

Neither Valentine nor Gabriel would have disturbed Dragon’s reunion with Jade for anything less than critical.

“Tell me he’s alive,” Dragon demanded, standing at once.

“He is.” Valentine looked over his shoulder. “You might want to see him.”

Dragon’s mind raced through several scenarios, and he was glad when Jade stood and followed them upstairs without him having to ask. The somber procession ended at Gilda’s internal chamber. The number of guards protecting the apartments had grown to a small army. A sorrowful expression marred the stoic faces of the soldiers.

Gabriel opened the door and held it for Dragon and Jade. When he crossed the threshold, the smell of blood hit his nostrils, making him recoil even before he took a look inside the room.

Valerian’s large dragon lay on the floor, his maimed body taking all the space available, his long tail coiled tight against his hind leg. Gilda was at his side, her arms thrown over his dark hide. The princess’s face was stricken with tears, but she wasn’t crying any longer. Instead, she rocked against Valerian’s dragon, kissing his feathers, whispering for him to come back to her.

It was a heartbreaking sight, and Dragon felt responsible for it. Valerian wouldn’t be fighting for his life if Dragon had gone to the appointment with the rebels. Instead, he had sent Valerian disguised as the High Lord. They were of similar build and height; a wig was all it took to make Valerian look like him.

“What happened?” Dragon asked, unable to step into the room.

From behind him, Gabriel answered, “It was an ambush. The rebels never had any interest in negotiating for Lauren’s release. As soon as our lookalikes arrived at our locations, they were attacked. Of course, we’d expected violence and planned accordingly so we could save our men.” He hesitated a moment before resuming, “But we don’t know what happened at Valerian’s meeting. He’s the only one of his crew who came back.”

“There’s nothing we can do for Valerian. His dragon is healing him,” Dragon said.

Gilda buried her face in the dragon’s flank, oblivious to the rest of the world.

“He’s strong,” Dragon threw over his shoulder for the princess’ sake, but she didn’t acknowledge him.

“Lauren?” Dragon asked when they moved into the foyer.

After exchanging a poignant look with Gabriel, Valentine answered, “She’s either dead…”

“Or she’s with the rebels,” Dragon finished.

“I sure hope she’s alive and well, but she’s playing a complicated game if that’s the case,” Gabriel said, wording Dragon’s thoughts and silencing the room.

The vampire went to one of the many liquor cabinets that seemed to be present in every room of his mansion, no matter the function of the space. He poured red Laurum for everybody, but when he went to offer Jade a flute, he remembered her condition and ordered a tea for her instead.

When everyone had settled in the sofas with a drink handy, the conversation resumed. Jade chose a seat far away from Dragon, but this time, he welcomed her decision. Her scent alone had the power to distract his thoughts.

“What happens now?” Gabriel finally asked Dragon.

“We’ll wait for Valerian to wake, then we’ll go from there.” Dragon had more questions than when he left Solaria, but Jade was at his side now, and that made all the difference in the world.

He looked at his love, his soulmate. The rest of the room disappeared as he stared into her obsidian pools. He would make her remember, and together, they would fight against the entire universe if necessary to keep their family safe.