DRAVEN
“Draven.” Jasper’s voice pulled me from my thoughts.
I looked up and saw him watching me.
“What happened?” He asked.
For several moments I said nothing, eventually I looked away and said, “I went close to her.”
Jasper frowned, his playful demeanor vanishing.
“What do you mean? You said-”
“Karl did,” I cut him off.
“He took over and went to her chamber.”
The glass in his hand froze halfway to his mouth as he stared at me.
Then he slowly lowered the glass.
“How close?”
The question should have been simple.
Instead my mind immediately returned to her scent.
Creator.
Being that close to her had felt like drowning in something sweet and intoxicating.
Every instinct in my body was screaming at me to go back and touch her again.
The memory unsettled me.
Nothing had ever affected me like that before.
Nothing.
“Very close.”
Jasper froze, color instantly draining from his face.
He slowly rose to his feet, staring at me in disbelief.
“Is she dead?” He whispered, his voice trembling.
“Draven… did he kill her?”
I stared at him, but I wasn’t really seeing him.
All I could see was Diana pinned to the door with flushed cheeks.
She had stood there and allowed Karl do whatever he wanted.
I didn’t know if was fearless or just reckless.
“Draven! You’re freezing the windows again.”
I blinked.
He was still waiting so I finally answered.
“She’s alive.”
He just stared with his eyes wide open.
“She is alive, Ariel,” I repeated, the words sounding foreign even to my own ears.
Jasper’s jaw dropped.
“I was right there. So close. I was so close I almost marked her. Still… she survived.”
He took a step back, his eyes practically bulging out of his head.
“You almost marked her?” he choked out.
“Karl did.” I said, rubbing my eyes.
He clapped his hands together, a breathless laugh escaping him.
“I said it! I knew it! Creator, Draven, I told you this before!”
I winced.
He looked ready to throw himself through the ceiling.
“I told you that if she was truly your true mate, Karl wouldn’t kill her. The beast knows its own soul. It would never destroy its other half!”
“Jasper.”
“No.” He pointed directly at me.
“I told you. I told you this was possible.”
Then he started pacing with a wide grin on his face.
I stood rooted to the spot, my hands tightening into fists to hide the tremor in my fingers.
I was deeply shaken.
It defied everything I knew.
“No woman survives being near you.” He pointed at me again as his eyes shone with excitement.
“None….but she did.”
The idiot looked happier than I had ever seen him.
Then he stopped pacing and stared at me.
“Do you have any idea what this means?” Jasper said, his voice thick with emotion.
I could already tell where this was going and I didn’t like it.
“You’re overthinking it.”
“No, Draven. I’m not. For once in your miserable life, you finally have a chance at happiness.” He said, looking genuinely happy for me.
“You can actually have a real marriage. A real life. I’m happy for you, man. Truly.” He added with a smile.
I watched him celebrate, but the storm in my chest only grew.
I wasn’t happy.
The realization didn’t bring me peace, it brought me an intense frustration.
“You have absolutely no idea how happy this makes me.” He whispered.
I frowned.
“I fail to see why.”
Jasper looked genuinely offended.
“Draven. I’ve known you for almost seven decades.”
I looked away, but he continued.
“I was there when the first woman died. I was there when the second one died.” Then his voice softened.
“I watched you stop trying.”
My jaw tightened.
“Jasper.”
“No.” He shook his head.
“You don’t get to dismiss this.”
“You think I’m happy because I was right.” He laughed.
“Creator, no. I’m happy because for the first time since I’ve known you, there might actually be a future where you aren’t alone.”
I scowled but he continued before I could interrupt.
“You’ve spent centuries convincing yourself that this was your fate. The monster everyone fears.”
Jasper’s smile faded completely.
“You built an entire life around your isolation. You stopped expecting companionship.”
He released a long breath.
“So forgive me if I’m a little pleased to discover that the Creator hasn’t completely cursed you after all.”
For a moment neither of us spoke, then I laughed.
“You are celebrating far too early.”
His brows rose.
“Oh?”
“I am the Commander of the realm’s armies. Seven kingdoms, Jasper.” I growled.
“I do not need a chance at happiness. And I certainly do not welcome the idea of being permanently tied to a human.”
He stopped pacing, his smile faltering.
“Draven, she’s your true mate-”
“She is a human princess who cannot even defend herself,” I snapped, cutting him off.
“She is fragile. One political scheme from the court, one stray arrow and she could break. I bow to no one, and I will not have my soul, my power, and my beast bound to a woman I have to constantly shield from the world.”
The words immediately killed half his enthusiasm.
“How can I carry that weight when I am tied to a fragile human girl? She has no dragon abilities, no combat training. She weighs less than my armor. A strong wind could carry her away. If she is what you believe she is…” I paused, because I still wasn’t prepared to accept them.
“then she is not suited for it.”
His smile faltered but I continued anyway, looking at the fireplace.
“She walks directly into danger. She argues with people way more powerful than her, completely blind to the target on her back.”
The memory of her standing up to Roderick and Valera flashed through my mind.
“She possesses absolutely no instinct for self preservation.”
Jasper watched me, then his smile slowly returned.
I narrowed my eyes.
“What?”
He looked way too pleased with himself.
“You care already.”
“I do not.” I countered immediately.
“You rode into the palace with your men to attend a competition you’ve never attended and Draven….you just spent five minutes listing reasons you’re worried about her.”
“Because she was attacked on her way! And I listed facts.”
He laughed.
“Of course you did.”
I hated that laugh.
He laughed like that whenever he believed he had won.
“She survived Karl, Draven.” he said softly, stepping closer.
“That isn’t weak. No other woman has ever done that. Doesn’t that mean anything to you?”
“It means nothing.” I snapped, turning my back on him.
I walked over to the table, picking up the glass and finishing the liquor in one go.
To me, love and romance were nothing but foolish distractions.
They were weaknesses that bled a warrior dry.
I slammed my fist on the table, the wood groaning under the force.
“My life belongs to the battlefield and the throne. I have more responsibilities than to spend my days playing the doting husband. I have a realm to protect, rebellions to crush and borders to guard.”
Jasper didn’t answer.
He just watched me and his silence only fuelled my agitation.
“You see this matebond as some sort of silver lining. You think it’s a gift.” I shook my head.
“It isn’t. It is a burden.”
He sighed, the disappointment he was feeling obvious in his eyes.
He slumped back into the chair, running a hand through his hair as he looked at me.
“You’re unbelievable, Draven. Any other man would kill to be in your position, and you’re treating it like a death sentence.”
I didn’t answer.
I just glared at him.
“Well, it doesn’t matter what you think,” he continued, fixing me with a serious look.
“The Creator chose her for you. You can’t survive rejecting a true mate bond, Draven. You know that.”
I leaned on the table and crossed my arms.
“So you better find a way around this soon,” He warned.
“Because if Karl almost marked her today…. it only means whatever control you think you have over that bond is slipping. Fast.”