Chapter 7 #2
A growl rumbled in my throat. “That sack of scales! He used a military tactic known as the gingerbread trail to draw you in, effectively neutralizing your suspicions about him.” Taught by my father, no less.
“Lorik sent you the original information, wanting you to find him so you’d see him as a partner rather than a foe.
You did exactly what he hoped. Cut me, bonding us. ”
A muscle jumped beneath his eye. “Which we must break.”
“As soon as possible,” I rushed to agree. “I understand Lorik’s plan now. Why he’s determined to kill you, even though you collaborated with him to make me crazed.”
A faint spark lit Taron’s gaze before his mouth tightened, and that flicker of heat faded. “So the legend is true. You grow desperate to be near me.”
“Ja.” Wasn’t like I could hide it. But what was he feeling? His tone gave nothing away. “My sister believes we can break the bond with a potion. Guarantees it, in fact.”
“A dragon’s guarantee isn’t something I trust,” he said, his voice bitter.
“Hey, you aren’t the only one not happy about our connection.” Adelaide must be right. She had to be. “No other options have been presented so, I say we give the potion a try. We have only to gather the ingredients.” Speaking of…
I withdrew the list from my pocket. The professor observed me with the same gravitational pull as the sun. My heart thumped a wild song against my ribs, the dragon in the shadows of my mind, listening, waiting.
Gulping, I unfolded the paper.
Taron snatched it, earning a smoky huff from me. “I have this, this, this, this and this.” He pointed to many items. “Actually, I have everything but this, this and this.” He pointed to the three items he referenced. The Sunsong Crystal, the Bloodpetal Blossom and the Lament Stone.
First, he’d managed feats that would’ve been difficult for dragons, much less a human. “Who even are you?” I quipped. “Never mind. You’re the treasure hunter who’s been stealing my stuff.”
“I’m the man who’s trained since childhood to slay dragons.” The flatness of his tone said more than his words.
“Well, let’s hope you’re up for this next challenge. All three ingredients are guarded by forces even dragons avoid.”
“Those forces are the reason I don’t have them,” Taron said with a sigh.
I rubbed the center of my chest, where an ache bloomed. Had Cedric told the truth? Was he dagger-bound to Nyla, and it had made him crazed? Would I experience the same madness without the potion?
And now, I had to work with the very man responsible. Though we shared the same goal, we were far from allies. How could I make him understand my side? I’d never wanted to kill his family. They’d come to me. They donned the chains of their own accord to draw me in. “Your father and grandfather—”
“Aren’t up for discussion,” he snapped.
Fair enough. I hadn’t looked forward to reliving what had happened with the men, either. “We’re supposed to gather everything side by side.”
“And we will. We’ll visit my hideout together.”
Excellent. “Can I trust you not to attack me during the gathering process?”
He pursed his lips but nodded. “The desire to kill you is just…gone. Since it’s a desire I’ve coddled and pampered like a cherished lover most of my life, I want it back. I gave you my word, and I meant it. No attacking until the bond is broken. Only then do we resume our war.”
I gulped, reeling all over again. “Has the desire to kill me been replaced by a different desire?” As mine had.
“Yes,” he hissed, and my heart almost stopped. His gaze flicked to me, dropped to my lips and heated. Voice low and heady, he admitted, “I think you’ve experienced a similar reaction.”
Tremors rushed across my limbs. “Ja,” I confirmed.
“If my desperation for you turns… sensual, I expect you to remind me of all the reasons I dislike you.” We shouldn’t ignore the possibility since, well, it was a possibility.
I’d be a fool to deny the attraction that continued to swell and strengthen.
Because right here, right now? I almost couldn’t suppress the urge to lean closer. To nuzzle against him. Perhaps curl up in his arms and wind my own around him. To—
Gah! I exploded from the couch, moving several feet away before I faced him once more.
He stared at me again while rubbing his fingers into his jaw, deep in what must be a troubling thought. Then he stepped forward.
“I will remind you,” he vowed as my heart went haywire, “and you will remind me.”
Ignore the cascade of shivers. The Yrnblade was responsible for any softer emotions, obviously, and only the Yrnblade.
Which wasn’t disappointing at all. It was for the best, truly.
Desire from Taron Locke would only fuel my desire for him and spell total disaster.
The urge to burn him would consume me, becoming utterly irresistible, as soon as the bond broke.
Did I really want to thirst for the however-many-greats nephew of my former flame? Ridiculous.
One heartbeat passed in loaded silence. Two.
He took another step closer.
“Very well,” I rasped.
He arched a brow and advanced a third step. “Say the words, Olyssa,” he urged, pure temptation. “Say, I agree to a temporary truce with you.”
This might be the most foolish thing I’d ever done, but I could smell his intoxicating scent, and I couldn’t think properly, so I nodded. “I agree to a temporary truce with you, Professor Locke.”