Wed to the Basilisk

No one touches my bride. No one but me. I am the last basilisk on Alia Terra. As I roam my lands, loneliness muddles my mind and pumps violence into my veins until I don’t recognize myself. Soon I’ll become a feral beast—unless I mate.

The matchmaking temple is the only way a creature like me, scaly, fanged, and with lethal eyes, can marry. Soon I have a match. My temple bride is everything I dream of—sweet and resolute; her delicious scent calms my rage with the first inhale.

It seems like it will work out until a human male barges into the temple, grabs my bride so hard she cries out, and tries to drag her away. My fury burns too hot to control. I unleash my lethal sight, killing him on the spot.

My bride is terrified, cringing away from me. Will she ever trust me again after this?