Page 23 of Pursued by the Dragon Alien (Zarux Dragon Brides #4)

TWENTY-THREE

Lilas

“Why are you still here?” Sevas demanded. “He just said he loves you.”

“Shh.” Lilas waved off her friend. “Keep your voice down.”

She, Sevas, Fivra, and Turi were huddled behind one of the thick fabric screens at the far end of the main hall. The screens were for decor only, and to make the massive space feel a little more cozy. They were Turi’s addition to the space, along with updated furniture and a replicator for snacks.

“He seems to be in pain, Lilas,” Fivra said, biting her lip. “He looks like he’s trying not to shift into his dragon form.”

Turi looked at Lilas with alarm. “If he does that, he’ll destroy this space, and possibly hurt someone.”

“He’s never shifted before.” Lilas chewed on a fingernail as she watched the five Zaruxians in the center of the room through a gap in the panels. She was hearing her friends, but not listening to them. Her attention was riveted on Razion, who clearly had not intended to sell her. But now that she heard proof of it and her feelings of betrayal were eliminated, she found herself paralyzed. Her feet were like lead on the floor. Her thoughts were everywhere , which rendered her stuck. Unable to do anything.

“There’s a first time for everything,” Sevas muttered.

Suddenly, Ellion’s voice raised in a way that Lilas knew his words were meant for her. “You heard him. What do you want to do, Lilas?”

She also knew that his words were a judgment: He loves you, he never intended to sell you, and you should come out here and deal with your mate.

That got her feet moving. With a rattling sigh, she stepped out from behind the screen to the sound of relieved sighs from her friends. Lilas got it. No one wanted to see the main hall burnt to a crisp by an emotionally distraught dragon Zaruxian.

Seeing the look on his face when he saw her was all she needed. There was relief, wonder, and utter adoration. And Lilas felt unworthy of it all. How could she have ever thought this male would betray her? Still, she held her head high and met him face-to-face.

Lilas’ heart pounded as she gazed at him. The main hall, with its towering ceilings and carvings, seemed to shrink as her gaze locked onto Razion. His eyes, storm-gray and wild, met hers, and for a moment, time itself seemed to pause. The air turned thick with the weight of unspoken words.

Razion’s face was etched with pain, his muscles tense. His wings were partially spread as if struggling to contain something primal. Yet, as their eyes met, pure, calm relief crossed his features, followed by a deep, abiding warmth that made her chest ache. She felt the weight of her mistake settle.

Lilas stood before Razion, her breath barely even, her hands clenched against her sides as she fought the last remnants of doubt clinging to her thoughts. But in the face of his raw, unmistakable emotion—relief, love, something deeper that threatened to break her apart—those doubts crumbled like dust beneath the weight of what they truly were. Shadows. Misunderstandings. Fear that had nothing to do with the male in front of her.

As they talked, she saw every truth she had ignored, every unspoken fear that had driven her to run. With each word he spoke, the anger she had held onto, the betrayal she had convinced herself was real, melted away into something infinitely more precious. She had been so certain that she had seen the worst of him, but now, with his voice rough with emotion, his hands trembling from the force of what he felt for her, she knew she had been blind to the best of him.

Her walls cracked, then fell, one by one.

She let him in. Completely.

Lilas took a slow, trembling breath, and as she did, her feet moved forward without thought. He closed the space between them, yanking her close even as her hands reached for him. In the desperate ache of their embrace, she felt grounded in the only truth that mattered.

She had been his from the moment she first looked into his silver-gray eyes.

And she would never run from him again.