Total pages in book: 59
Estimated words: 55059 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 275(@200wpm)___ 220(@250wpm)___ 184(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 55059 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 275(@200wpm)___ 220(@250wpm)___ 184(@300wpm)
She bit her lip as she grew nervous, unable to say the word both out loud.
“Eira, I have to return to my village. There’s a reason why I was born the way I was. If I don’t return, there will be consequences.”
She didn’t know what to say or do.
“Like you can see me in dragon form”—he nodded toward the little tree-covered island—“you can see the island my village rests on, but no one else can.”
“They can’t …” she whispered, thinking how that could be possible, even though she had just witnessed a dragon. Now that she thought about it, she had never spoken to anyone about the island and just assumed everyone could see it. “But this is a fishing village; how has no one ended up there?”
“The ocean’s current magically doesn’t let it happen.”
All she could think of was one simple word as her mind continued to be overwhelmed in this mythical whirlwind—wow.
“My village is a safe place, protected from the rest of the world, and if I don’t return, it will no longer have that protection.”
Eira looked down at the ground. Freedom to the little island was here, like she always dreamed of, but why was she sad now? The time was here, but how was she supposed to leave her grandparents after everything they had done for her?
“It’s your grandparents, isn’t it?” he muttered solemnly, knowing it was.
She nodded with tears forming in her eyes. How was Eira supposed to choose between her fated mate and the only family she had left?
16
Pain & Hormones
“What is that?” Eira asked as she watched Ryu begin to slowly tip a small vial of clear liquid into her cup of bedtime tea that Grandmother had made.
“It’s supposed to keep you from dreaming the dreams that aren’t yours.” When a single drop fell, he put the stopper back on then slid the precious liquid back into his pocket before handing her the tea. “It’s why I had to go back to my village.”
“It is?” she asked, holding the warm cup between her hands.
“Yes. After I calmed down, I came back late at night to find you sleeping. I wasn’t here but a minute before you began to have another nightmare.”
“Oh,” Eira whispered, staring down at the hot contents, drifting away in her thoughts. Truth was, she didn’t know exactly why he had left her, but she had definitely not expected that. However, it was the fact that he could have touched her while she slept to form their bond but didn’t that held her thoughts. Not once had he dared touch her as he watched her sleep, even once before his vow, and that said a lot about the reverent man before her.
Seeing her hesitation to begin drinking, he carefully sat down on the edge of the bed next to her and lightly cupped her scarred cheek. “Drink it, darling. Something tells me you have enough nightmares of your own.”
Silently, she nodded, knowing he was right. She then raised the cup to let the tea pass her lips. Whatever he had put in it hadn’t changed the taste of her grandmother’s concoction, making her disbelieve it would do much of anything.
“So, as long as I drink that, I won’t dream dreams that aren’t mine anymore?”
“That’s what Itako said, a seeress from my village,” he clarified so she would understand. “Trust me; it will work,” he assured her when she still didn’t seem convinced.
The sight of Ryu turning into a dragon suddenly popped into her head, making her feel silly to think otherwise. Oh, it’ll work, all right.
Taking another sip, she peeked through the open door, wanting to make sure her grandparents were still in the kitchen, drinking their nightly tea. Even though they were, she kept her voice to a whisper.
“You won’t leave my side till I fall asleep, will you?”
“No, I won’t,” he promised with a smile, cupping her cheek again.
Eira started to relax and molded into his comforting touch. When their skin met, it was unlike anything she’d ever felt, and she could only describe it as an all-consuming fire scorching across every inch of her skin, and not until his touch met hers was the fire able to smother in a caressed, melting, icy touch.
At their first touch, the fire wasn’t but a kindling, but by the time they had made it down the mountain to her house, they couldn’t part, always needing to keep skin contact from the yearning burning inside. She remembered her grandmother’s face when they had come in as her jaw had dropped to the floor in complete shock that she could be touched.
Her cheeks had blazed in embarrassment from them seeing her touch a boy for the first time, causing her to drop her hand from his and the flames to burn brighter through the evening. But now that they were alone again and able to touch, it calmed the fire inside.