“You don’t love me,” I finished for her, and she flinched as if I’d struck a physical blow. “I never asked you to, Ember.”

“I know,” she murmured. “But we can’t move on, any of us, with the Sallith’tahn hanging over our heads. I need you to let me go, Cobalt. I don’t want you to be waiting for Garret to die so we can be together. That’s not fair, to you or to me.”

“I’m a dragon, Firebrand,” I said flatly, trying not to let the anguish I was feeling bubble to the surface. “A human lifespan is nothing. I can be patient.”

She shook her head. “I don’t want you to,” she said, a little more forcefully. “I don’t want to be with someone because of instinct.”

I growled, feeling desperation rise up to swirl with the despair. “You said dragons can love like humans, that it’s a part of us. Well, so is the Sallith’tahn. If you deny it, you’re denying a part of who you are.”

“Cobalt.” Ember stepped forward, coming very close. I looked down and saw my reflection in her brilliant green eyes, felt the heat pulsing between us. She held my gaze a moment, then asked, very softly, “Do you love me?”

“I...” Taken aback, I staggered away from her, mind spinning. She waited, her gaze never leaving mine. “That’s not something you can just drop on me, Firebrand.”

“I know.” Ember’s voice was gentle. “But... I need more than the Sallith’tahn, Cobalt. If I have to choose between instinct and love, I’m going to go with love. That’s my choice, and I can’t be with someone who can’t return my feelings. So, I have to know. For both our sakes. Do you love me?”

“I... I...don’t know,” I stammered. “That’s not something I have much experience with, Ember. Hell, I spent my whole life thinking that dragons can’t feel that human crap. That it wasn’t something we could do.” I sighed, putting a talon over my eyes, resisting the urge to dig my claws into my skull. “I don’t know what you want from me,” I growled. “I would give you everything, but I don’t know if I can...feel that way.” Raising my head, I glared at her. “Just because you say dragons can love doesn’t mean I know what the fuck it’s supposed to feel like. Is wanting to be with you not enough? Is accepting you as my Sallith’tahn, the dragon I’m supposed to be with for the rest of my life, different than the human’s idea of love? I don’t know. Hell, maybe this is love, after all. Maybe...” I faltered and had to sit down for a moment. “Maybe I do.”