The Matchmaker (by Sophie Smith) novel Chapter 66

CHAPTER 66

Saphira and Nikolas had left the hospital, walking site by side in the cool night air as they made their way back to the puck home. The enz was easy settled but beneath it, she could feel the weight of everything still presting against Mikodas‘ shoulders,

Zafira waking up had eased some of that tension. She had seen it in the way his posture relaxed, in the way his expression finally heed to the of Damon’s situation and the even bigger issue with the Elders–was still there, hanging over him like an eser pretent storm.

It was never–ending.

Once inside, Nikolas let out a slow breath, running a hand through his hair before turning to her.

“So… Zafira likes you,” he muttered, his tone casual but carrying something else.

Saphira glanced at him, catching the way his jaw tensed slightly.

He was still off–still bothered by what he had overheard between her and Asher earlier.

She forced a small smile. “Yes. I hope so, anyway.”

Nikolas huffed lightly, but he didn’t say more.

Saphira hesitated briefly, watching the way his expression remained guarded, as if he was holding something back.

Then–she asked.

“But more importantly–are we okay?”

Nikolas froze for just a second–just long enough for Saphira to notice it.

Then he turned to her fully, eyes searching hers.

He stared too long.

Too intently.

“…Of course,” he finally said.

Saphira didn’t buy it.

Not for a second.

She held his gaze, felt the tension/still lurking beneath the surface.

The quicker she understood her dragon’s emotions–the quicker she could figure out whatever was happening between her and Asher–the better.

Then–maybe then–they could finally move forward.

Saphira stood on the balcony of the pack house, the cool night air brushing against her skin, the weight of everything pressing into her thoughts.

She had been avoiding the question for a while–hesitating, waiting for the right moment–but she knew she couldn’t keep putting it off.

Nikolas leaned against the railing beside her, arms crossed, silent but present.

She inhaled deeply.

“How do I communicate better with my dragon?”

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Nikolas glanced at her, golden eyes unreadable for a beat, before he exhaled slowly, considering.

“You need to shift again,” he said finally, his tone calm, sure. “And become one with her

Saphira furrowed her brows slightly, absorbing the words.

*Okay… but how?”

Nikolas turned fully to face her now, his expression lined with quiet determination.

“You need to do it alone.”

The word alone settled uncomfortably in her chest.

She straightened slightly, her fingers curling against the cool railing. “Why alone?”

Nikolas studied her, his posture steady, unwavering.

“Because if you don’t trust yourself to do it alone,” he explained, his voice quieter now but no less firm, “your dragon won’t trust you to communicate properly.”

Saphira let out a slow breath, her mind threading through the logic.

It made sense–but it wasn’t the answer she had

wanted.

Nikolas saw the flicker of hesitation cross her face, and his expression softened slightly.

“She’s yours,” he added, gentler now. “And she needs to know you trust her. That you believe in her. In yourself.”

Saphira swallowed, nodding faintly.

She understood.

And yet–there was a part of her, a small part, that wished she didn’t have to do this alone. That wished she could have the comfort of Nikolas‘ presence, the reassurance that she wasn’t stepping into something unfamiliar by herself.

But she knew–deep down-

That he was right.

And this wasn’t about him.

It was about her–and her dragon.

Saphira exhaled deeply, then turned her gaze back to Nikolas, offering the faintest smile.

“I’ll do it.”

Nikolas nodded, approval flickering in his gaze.

Saphira stood near the doorway of their room, her arms crossed, fingers pressing lightly against her sleeve. She felt the lingering tension in the air, thick and unsettled between them, like an unspoken weight neither wanted to address.

Nikolas sat at the edge of the bed, his posture rigid, golden eyes flickering toward her briefly before returning to the floor.

Saphira inhaled slowly.

“I’m going out to shift,” she announced, keeping her tone even, controlled. “If you need me, I’ll be in the clearing we went to before.”

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CHAPTER 66

Nikolas lifted his gaze again watching het, reading her but he didn’t argue, didn’t ask questiong.

He just nodded.

A simple acknowledgment.

No concern. No protest

And somehow, that iritated her more than if he had actually fought her on it.

She exhaled sharply, turning on her heel and walking out, frustration curling in the pit of her stomach.

The tension between them was still there still unspoken–and she hated it.

We’ll fix it, she told herself, pushing the thought aside.

But when?

She ignored that question, stepping out into the cool night, the forest stretching before her like an open invitation.

As she moved deeper into the trees, her dragon stirred inside her mind–awake, watchful.

Saphira let out a slow breath, speaking aloud despite the quiet of the woods.

“Vaelora,” she murmured, voice softer now. “I hope we can understand what’s happening.”

She didn’t expect an answer–but she felt something. A faint pulse, a shift, a presence pressing against her consciousness.

It wasn’t words.

But it was acknowledgment.

She arrived at the clearing, the same one where she had shifted the first time, where everything had changed.

She inhaled deeply.

She focused.

She reached for the part of her that had awakened that day, the fire beneath her skin, the creature that was her but also something more.

The shift didn’t come instantly.

It took a few tries–hesitation, uncertainty–until finally, her body responded.

Heat spread through her limbs, a sensation pulling from deep within-

And then-

She shifted.

Wings extended.

Claws pressed into the earth.

She became.