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Our champagne glasses clink over the table before we tip them to our lips. Even though I chug down the sparkling liquor, my eyes are fixed on the woman across from me.
“Happy birthday, Aaron,” Delilah praises, her lips forming a faint smile that almost feels forced.
I try not to dwell on the reason behind her hesitance. But I can’t ignore the obvious.
Something is wrong. She’s been acting strange lately when she has no reason to be this way. I know everything there is to know about her—especially the part that she’s a witch. Nothing can surprise me.
Unless she’s figured out, I’m a dragon shifter—something I haven’t told her yet. That’s why she knows me as “Aaron”. They all do, out here, in the real world. I wouldn’t forsake my clan.
Reaching for her hand over the table, I notice her tense fingers.
Shit!
It would be the ultimate betrayal if she found out what I was before I could tell her. It’s not that I intend to keep my identity a secret forever. It’s just that I have to be sure she’ll accept me for who I am, and accept the implications of becoming a dragon’s mate.
“Is something wrong, Delilah?” I ask as I smooth my thumb across her knuckles. I pretend that I’m calm, even though deep down my heart takes on an unrhythmic pattern, the looming dread hanging over my head.
The gold specks in her emerald eyes sparkle with a tinge of sadness, made evident by how her lips form a faint pout. She shakes her head. “No, nothing’s wrong.”
I see right through her—right through the way her brows furrow ever-so-slightly. I’ve known her for two years, built castles in my head with her as my queen beside me. I know every little tick and mannerism. That’s what happens when you love someone as deeply as I love Delilah.
Groaning under my breath, I gently squeeze her hand.
“I know when something is bothering you, sweetie.”
She sighs, taking her hand back. “Not now, Aaron. Let’s just enjoy dinner, please.”
Her blunt words cut through me like a knife, filling me with a weakness I didn’t know was possible for a dragon shifter. As if on cue, the waiter comes back with our meals. Despite how delicious it smells, I’ve already lost my appetite.
“I won’t be able to enjoy dinner,” I admit.
She lifts her sullen eyes at me, sighing discontentedly as she sets her fork down. “I didn’t want to ruin tonight. But it’s been troubling me.”
“What is it, Delilah? You know that you can tell me everything.” I purse my lips as I wait for her reply, feeling like a fraud for my encouraging words. After all, I haven’t told her everything. But right now, it feels as if the weight of what she’s keeping from me is about to crash down on me heavier than the secret I’m keeping. It’s not like I’m doing it out of choice. When the time is right, she’ll learn about who I am. I can only imagine that she’ll accept since we share the commonality. We’re both supernatural creatures.
“So what’s this about?” I nudge her.
“I’m leaving the city,” she shrugs. There’s a void in her eyes as she stares at me. “The coven is moving to Sacramento.”
As soon as she explains her troubles, there’s only one solution I have for it. I can’t imagine leaving her side, so I suggest, “I’ll come with—”
“No, Aragon,” she shakes her head profusely, tears brimming in the surface of her eyes. I’m hit with a sharp pain through my chest, the hurt evident on her face extending to the feeling of dread inside me.
“We’re moving because of me. Because I allowed myself to get entangled with a man.”
“I—I don’t understand,” I stammer in disbelief. “I thought your leader agreed…” My voice falters off. We’d been together for almost a year of the two years I’d known her, and Delilah begged the leader of the witch coven to make an exception for us to be together when I first asked her to be my girlfriend.
“Cynthia has changed her mind,” Delilah reveals glumly. “Ever since the wolf pack discovered our existence, we’re forced to leave. And it’s all because of me.” She drops her face in her hands. “I should have been more careful.”
I hang my head in shame, realizing I’m very much to blame as she is. But it’s not like either of us saw the attack in the woods coming. Delilah had been forced to use her powers to save us. While all I could do was stand there and watch her, unable to use the powers of the dragon.
It was a harmless venture into the woods for a midnight picnic which turned for the worst.
Still, it’s no valid reason for us to be ripped apart like this. The pain in my chest is so unbearable, it sprouts tears to my eyes, hazing my vision. I’d never cried in my life.
I’m about to do that for the first time. The only reason I try controlling my emotions is for Delilah’s sake.
“Let me speak to her,” I press gently, outwardly maintaining a strong resolve while inside, I’m crumbling. “I can explain what happened that night and—”
