Page 93 of Born in Fire
I take in the sight of him, the strong lines of his face, the muscular angles of his tall form. And all of it builds a sweet ache in my chest.
I don’t know his name or who he is to me, and after what I just did, I should be running, hiding.
Instead, I move forward, drawn by a certainty I can’t explain, and don’t try to resist. Whatever I am, whatever I’ve done, this man holds answers. This man matters.
This man knows me.
And somehow, despite everything, I know him too.
Chapter 29
Dorian
Time stands still. My vision tunnels. The world compresses to a single point—her face, confused and pale butalive. Fuckingalive.
It’s her. My God, it’s her!
I can’t move. Can’t draw breath. My dragon roars inside me, clawing to break free, to reach her. But my human half is paralyzed, terrified that if I blink, she’ll vanish like smoke.
Her eyes find mine across the distance.
Something breaks inside me.
I move, cutting through the crowd like they’re not even there. Bodies blur past. Someone shouts. I don’t care. Nothing matters except closing the distance between us.
Ten feet. Five. Two.
I stop, trembling. She’s real. Standing there. Breathing. Her scent—rosemary and something new, something burning—fills my lungs.
“Juno?” My voice cracks.
She stares at me, eyes wide. “Juno,” she repeats blankly.
“My God… It’s you.” I can’t believe it, certain that I’m hallucinating.
“Yes,” she says. “I’m Juno.” Recognition flickers, but it’s swimming in confusion. “I… know you.”
Not a question. A statement. But hesitant, like she’s testing the words.
Why wouldn’t she know me?
My hands rise of their own accord, hovering inches from her face. Afraid to touch. Afraid she’ll dissolve under my fingers.
“You’re real,” I whisper. “You’re here.”
I touch her cheek. Warm skin. Solid.Real.
Something inside me shatters completely.
I pull her against me, crushing her to my chest, burying my face in her hair. My body shakes with emotions I can’t name. Relief. Disbelief. Rage at whatever kept her from me. Joy so fierce it burns.
“I don’t understand,” she murmurs against my chest. “There was fire. So much fire.”
I pull back just enough to see her face, my hands framing her cheeks. “What happened? Where have you been?”
Her eyes—still blue, but different, lighter, like quicksilver—search mine. “I woke up in ash. A logger found me. I was… naked. In the forest.” Her words come in broken fragments.
There’s movement behind me.
