Elara let out a brittle laugh. "Stay? You actually want me to stay here? In this cave? With a man who also happens to be a dragon?"
Kael tilted his head, unbothered. "You make it sound absurd."
"That's because it is absurd." She swept the torch around the cavern, light catching on piles of scattered treasure, broken furniture, even a cracked mirror leaning against the wall. "What's the plan - kidnap women, toss them in here, and then… what? Expect them to play house while you brood on your hoard?"
His jaw tightened, but instead of snapping, he folded his arms across his chest. His muscles shifted in a way that made her want to scowl at how unfair it was. "They weren't prisoners. They left. All of them."
Elara frowned. "Then why didn't they go back home? Why does my village still send girls up here?"
For the first time, something flickered in his eyes - pain, sharp and unguarded. "Because no one goes back down that mountain. Not alive."
The words sank into her, cold as ice water. "Why not?"
He didn't look at her when he answered. His gaze slid into the shadows. "Because the curse doesn't end with me."
Her usual quick wit faltered. She wanted to demand more, to cut at him with questions, but there was a rawness in his voice that made her soften instead. She shifted the torch to her other hand. "So… you're cursed. Let me guess: you need someone to fall in love with you to break it? Sounds like a bedtime story."
Kael's mouth curved, though it wasn't really a smile. "You're clever. That might be dangerous."
"I'm clever enough to know love doesn't work on command."
"Maybe not," he said, eyes steady on hers. "But can it be chosen?"
The question hung between them, thick as smoke. Her pulse stumbled. She hated how heat curled low in her stomach under the weight of his stare - as if he didn't see her as a sacrifice, but as a challenge.
She forced a scoff. "You're not exactly making a great case for yourself. Most men don't win a woman over by threatening to burn down her entire village."
That earned her a chuckle - low, deep, dangerous. "You wound me. I didn't threaten. That's your people's tale, not mine."
Elara rolled her eyes, setting the torch into a wall sconce. "You know, for a dragon, you talk a lot."
"And for a sacrifice," he countered smoothly, "you argue a lot."
Their eyes locked. Silence stretched between them, thick with something she refused to name.
She broke it first, looking away, pretending interest in a jeweled goblet buried under dust. "If I'm stuck here, I want answers. About you. About this curse. And don't think I'm going to sit quietly while you loom around like some fire-breathing tyrant."
Kael leaned casually against the wall, arms crossed, watching her like she was the most interesting thing in the room. "Ask, and I'll answer. But don't pretend you're not curious about me."
Her throat tightened. Damn him - he was right.
"Fine," she muttered. "Tell me this. When you're like this - " she gestured at his human form, at the faint shimmer of scales across his skin " - how much of the dragon is still… there?"
His lips curved, slow and dangerous. "Enough to burn. Enough to crave."
Her heart lurched, heat rushing to her face. She turned away quickly, pretending to study the floor. Idiot. Don't let him get under your skin.
But his voice softened, and the shift in it made her stomach twist.
"You asked what I want. The truth's simple. I want someone to see both halves of me… and not run."
For a heartbeat, she forgot how to breathe. He sounded so human - lonely, even. And despite herself, something inside her cracked.
But she wasn't about to admit it. So she squared her shoulders, lifted her chin, and smirked. "Well, I don't run easily. You'll find I'm annoyingly stubborn."
Kael's eyes gleamed, humor and hunger twined together. "Good. Stubborn women make the best brides."
"Not your bride," she shot back instantly.
But her voice wavered. Just slightly.
And they both noticed.