The Dragon King's Substitute Bride

Chapter 32

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Morgan

Panic surged through me as I clawed at the unseen assailant, gasping for breath.

"Wha..." I croaked, the sound strangled in my throat. I fumbled for my sword, but the arm tightened around my throat. The scent of leather and something metallic filled my nostrils, a sickening cocktail that did little to alleviate the terror gripping me.

I jammed my elbow back, trying to get free before my vision started to go blurry. The angle was wrong for my sword. I slammed my head back but the assailant avoided it.

I clawed at the arm. The man tightened his hold, the world blurring at the edges as darkness threatened to claim me. I jumped, trying to throw him off balance as he dragged me away from the portal and down the hallway, but it was no good. I had no purchase, and the guy was huge, lifting me off my feet with ease. The last thing I registered before succumbing to unconsciousness was the shimmering distressed air that shifted around me like a warning from the palace before. everything was swallowed by the suffocating darkness. Tsuneo

Relief, a sweet and unfamiliar sensation, washed over me as the heavy oak doors of the library clicked shut behind Morgan. The air, thick with tension moments ago, felt lighter, almost breathable again. Watching her leave had filled me with a curious mix of emotions - pride, a possessiveness that surprised even me, and a deep sense of gratitude. She had stayed with me without judgment, willingly and compassionate to my plight.

It felt as though everything about her was drawing me in more and more by the day. With a sigh, I pushed myself to my feet, the dull ache in my shoulder felt lesser. I pressed on it, finding the

wounds closed and smiled.

She really was the one, wasn't she?

stripped off my sweat dampened clothes, a jolt of surprise ran through me. The darkness that had marred my skin

feeling that had nothing to do with the steam rising from the bathwater. The memory of

me, a sound that resonated

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poison threatened to consume me,

hope washed through me. Was the posion taking over again, or was

and the fire in her eyes sparked a

quite define, clawed its

around me, the heat easing the tension from my

on my arm, a testament to Morgan's gentle

had nothing to do with the

down my spine. I closed my eyes, letting the memory wash over me. Perhaps, I mused, the exhaustion of the past few days was finally catching up to me. The vulnerability I felt, the unexpected yearning for her presence, it had to be fatigue and

sleep plagued by nightmares. My muscles would tense, my breath would hitch, and the world would dissolve into a horrifying kaleidoscope of pain and distortion. But last night had been peaceful. The prickle of unease morphed into a strange anticipation. My heartbeat quickened, not from fear but from a different kind of urgency. I closed my eyes tighter, willing the familiar dread to engulf me. But instead, a new image flickered behind my eyelids. The image of Morgan bathed in the soft glow of candlelight, her hair damp. She wore a simple white slip, clinging to the curves of her body in a way that sent a jolt of heat through me. A smile played on her lips, a mischievous glint in her eyes. In my mind's eye, the bathroom door creaked open and she slipped in, a playful glint in her

here," she murmured, her voice

nightgown, revealing the soft curves of her body. My breath hitched in my throat. In my fantasy, I reached out, my fingers brushing against her warm skin. She leaned

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