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Like a foolish, idiotic man, he crept even closer. “I am saying... stay with me.”

“Have you ever been hexed to not return to your Dragon form?”

“Of course I have.” He gave a laugh, shaking his head. “It is a popular hex dark Witches use against my kind.”

“How does it feel?”

He had to hide the urge to shudder at the memory.

“Appalling. I am a Dragon before I am a man, and not being able to shift to what I really am is abhorrent.”

Being comfortable in his human body was one thing, but not being able to access the beast side of him was another. He’d been hatched from an egg. The first time he felt the world was with his soft, baby scales.

“Imagine it being permanent.”

Geryon’s expression hardened. “No. I would never allow it, and I would much prefer not to imagine it.”

Her own face softened with mocking humour. “That is the future offered to me, and I do not want it.”

He tilted his head sharply with a frown, not understanding how she would be affected by such a hex. “I do not–”

“I am without my magic.” She looked down to her free hand, clenching and unclenching it. “It is the same. As you need that side of you, I need to feel my magic coursing through my veins.”

“But you were the one who wanted this.”

She swiped her blade, even though he hadn’t come closer.

“Until my death! Which I did not think was going to be long after.” She gave a shake of her head, and her beautiful long brown hair swayed around her small shoulders. “My body aches for it, like an itch that is never scratched, like a thorn that cannot be pulled, like a cut that never heals. It nags constantly, and I do not wish to tolerate it for the next hundred years just to satisfy your desires.” She turned her gaze to the side. “Or my own.”

His mouth went dry at what he’d just heard.

She wants her magic returned to her?He thought she was afraid she would turn if she could feel her witchcraft.How do I feel about this?

Did he really want Valerie to the extent that he would allow such a glaring risk?I do not think she will become corrupted.Rurik’s mate hadn’t, and she’d cast blood magic. Everyone could tell she was still pure hearted, although she had only ever used her own blood to cast – except for one time, recently.

Amalia had been offered a heart to eat by a Dragoness who had become fond of her. That was a few years ago, and even now, she was still pure.

However, Geryon also needed to think on if he could trust her enough to bed her if she were filled with magic. The idea didn’t repulse him like it should, though he would be far more careless and vulnerable. Could he trust Valerie that deeply?

“What... What if I were to release it?” How bad could it be to at least contemplate such a thought?

“No.” She took a step back, but her brows knotted deeply –she was confused he even offered. “I do not want that either.”

Then what does she want?

His eyes widened before he slowly pointed to himself. “Iam the problem?”

Something sunk inside his chest; a creeping sadness, a feeling of rejection.

“No, you are definitely not the problem.” She snorted a single laugh. “But that was self-absorbed of you. There is another reason, one I will not share with you because you will use it against me. I have two paths available, and I have decided which one I will walk.”

Geryon gave a snarl, stepping closer regardless of her blade.

“For three weeks I have been chasing you, and I will have you!”

He’d decided on what he wanted, and he very much desired it. He would pluck her from this forest, take her back to his lair, and figure out why she was so hesitant so he could mitigate her fears, her uncertainty. Until she told him what the big fucking issue was, whether it be him or something else, Geryon knew he wouldn’t stop.

At his shout, Valerie turned and ran. He quickly gave chase, but before he could get his arms around her, hoping he could figure out a way to convince her to stay with him, she jumped.