Chapter 4
Chapter
Four
Tyr could feel Sloan’s presence.
Oh, it was not as if the big dragon with the red hair was in his home, or even nearby, staring at him. No, he knew Sloan was still up at Cosmo and Cullen and Corbin’s house.
But he could feel it. The yearning.
His whole body returned the sentiment. He ached, and not in a good way. He felt as if he needed to leave the house and fly up the mountain.
Even the bees had been pushing him that way today as he worked among their hives. But he’d already met with Sloan through the windows twice this week, and it was the middle of the night—
A little bee, one from his farthest hive, zipped in through the window, which was cracked open to let in just enough of the still-cool night air.
“Hello, little one. What are you doing here? Is all well?” He supposed it was silly to talk to them, but they seemed to respond to him.
The bee buzzed back to the window, then back to him.
“You want me to come with you?” He rose from bed, pulling on a robe. It was still spring, so it would be colder out there than in the house. If it was summer, he would just go out with nothing on. He loved that, the freedom to be natural, to take off flying if he wished.
He let the bee out carefully, then followed, expecting the wee one to go toward the hives. Instead, he zipped off toward the mountain.
“Oh, you will wear yourself out, little one.” He stared up the way.
“Is something wrong up there?” He hoped not.
But his friend Cade and Cade’s mate Poe were halfway up.
If the big guardian house needed help, surely they would call on the Rocky Mountain clutch, whose houses were there, or Poe and Cade…
The bee buzzed back to him, circling his head, then headed off again.
“Okay, okay. You go be with your hive in the warm. I will go up and see what it is you want me to see.” He wanted to go up there anyway, truth be told. So why not? He would never sleep now until he assured himself all was well.
Tyr took off the robe and tucked it into a bundle so that when he shifted he could pick it up, and then he called on his dragon inside.
His wings sprouted, his scales closed around him, his tail pulled out, and his body was completely transformed.
He jumped into the sky, trying not to make a great deal of noise as he crossed over the village.
Not that it would matter. Cade was the dragon defender of the village, and he was one of Tyr’s best friends, so he would be recognized.
Once past the village, he gave a great flap of wings to gain momentum, and he flew up the mountain, up and up and up, checking over Poe and Cade’s house to make sure that all was well before continuing past the Rocky Mountain clutch’s enclave to the guardian house.
There he landed a bit away so that he wouldn’t make the huge whomping noise at touchdown, just in case everyone was fine and asleep.
Then he pulled on the robe he’d brought with him and headed to the house.
He knew that it was ridiculous, but even if everything was perfectly fine, he would end up sitting outside of the conservatory for a while, imagining Sloan out there talking to him.
There was something about the big alpha that just made him silly for a smile or a wink or a long discussion about the differences between desserts in their two separate worlds.
Apparently, Sloan had something of a sweet tooth, which suited Tyr just fine, since he had tons of honey to make things.
He’d brought honey cakes to Sloan and his brothers just a few days ago, but now it was in the middle of the dark of night, and he knew that Sloan would be sleeping peacefully in his bed.
And it was probably strange and intrusive for him to be out here staring into the windows, but he couldn’t help himself.
He needed to be close to Sloan, and this was the only way he could accomplish that goal.
He wanted to touch that big alpha so badly.
In fact, it was becoming a terrible physical ache, a deep itch inside him, but he also knew that it was an impossible thing.
If Sloan walked out of the house’s back door, he would never be allowed to go back to the human world, and Sloan had explained to him about Riley.
Sloan’s youngest brother was so attached to all things human.
It wasn’t fair. Not to Tyr, but it was to Riley who had depended on Sloan his whole life, and who had been brothers with him for their entire history. Tyr could understand why Sloan didn’t want to give that up for him.
Even if he wanted to be mated.
Though if he were honest, from what Sloan said, even if it was obliquely, Sloan did want to give that up, or more precisely he wanted to give up the human world, and he wanted his brothers to come with him.
But that transition had to be hard. The dragons who had come across the veil from the human world, the ones he knew—the Rocky Mountain clutch and even the guardians Cosmo and his brothers—hadn’t had a choice.
The veil had pulled them through to Lunastra, bringing their houses and their belongings and everything with them.
Their whole families and even their pets and some of their friends had come along.
Tyr thought the werebears were fascinating.
But to actually have to make that choice to leave everything you knew might be too hard.
Tyr didn’t think he could do it, really. If someone asked him to give up his home and his bees… Well, he simply didn’t think he would be able.
He sat on one of the lovely chairs scattered about outside the conservatory windows on the little patio, and he watched the inside of the house. One of the familiars, a sweet little Earth creature called a marten, came to peer at him, paws up on the glass, and he smiled.
“I didn’t bring any honey this time. I’m sorry.”
The little beast just chittered at him and then ran off. He guessed it was making the rounds maybe. He had no idea if that sort of animal was nocturnal.
Tyr sat for a long while, and then he finally decided that nothing was happening, that his little bee friend had just wanted him to go up the mountain because he thought Tyr was sad.
Which he supposed was a fair analysis, although really it was more wistful.
But it was time to go home. There was no sense in sitting here when he could be in his comfortable bed.
He rose to take off his robe, and that was when he saw Sloan appear in the conservatory, gliding over to the window to open it and then smile at him. That one blue eye somehow shone brighter in the moonlight than the green, and it was fascinating to him to watch.
Sloan said his name. Just his name, “Tyr”, and he caught his breath, his whole body tightening with need.
“I wish you could come out,” he said. “I feel a terrible need for you.”
“I feel the same way. I just haven’t convinced my brothers yet, and it’s not fair to try to take that choice away from them.” Sloan put his hand on the window next to him.
He nodded, his shoulders rising up around his ears, so he forced them down. “I know, and I know that it’s not right for me to be angry at you for it.”
Sloan frowned at him, but he didn’t think it was because he was mad. Tyr thought it was because he knew Tyr was upset, and he was trying to figure out how to fix it. That was the alpha way. He experienced the same thing with Cade, who got angry when there was nothing he could do to solve a problem.
“I’ll talk to them again tomorrow,” Sloan said. “I know it’s hard for Riley. I think Brayden would come over with me today. He wants to fly free so bad, and he’s never been particularly technological, but Riley…”
Sloan trailed off with his words and shook his head.
“Perhaps he should speak to the Culebre brothers,” Tyr suggested.
Sloan raised an eyebrow. “Who are they?”
“Part of the Rocky Mountain clutch. They lived in a place called Santa Fe. And apparently, they were very technological. They have ways of getting some of the things they used to like through Cosmo and his brothers in the house, even though they can’t go in.
Maybe you should ask them how they did it, or how they do it, or whatever.
It might make Riley feel better to know there’s someone else like him here. ”
Sloan brightened, his smile returning. “I think that sounds like a wonderful idea. I want Riley to know that there are people who are like-minded, that there are dragons he could get to help him to transition. I feel bad that I suddenly want to change his life so much, but I know you’re my mate.
I know who you are, and I want to touch you and kiss you, and I want to meet your bees. I want to visit your village.”
His heart swelled in his chest, because that was the most wonderful thing anyone had ever said to him, and he didn’t quite know how to respond. Except that he smiled wildly; he smiled so hard it stretched his cheeks.
“I want that too,” he said, “and I’ll do anything I can to help, but I would never ask you to leave your brothers behind or to hurt them so that you could be with me. Family is important. As important as the rest of the clutch if not more so.”
“That’s exactly how I feel, and that’s how I know you’re going to be the perfect omega father to our children.”
His scales felt like they were rattling, and goosebumps stood up on his actual skin. Even his hair tingled just at the mention of having babies.
Tyr had never really thought he would. So many years had passed in the village with him and his friends remaining single dragons and not mating off.
But then Cade had mated with Poe, and that had made him start thinking about how much he wanted it. About how he adored the idea of having children who could learn to love his bees and to take over his hives should something ever happen to him.
Dragons didn’t live forever, no matter that they had longevity compared to others, and to have a legacy like that would be amazing.
“I— I don’t even know what to say,” he told Sloan. “You’re talking about giving me everything I’ve ever wanted.”
“So it seems too good to be true, doesn’t it?” Sloan chuckled. “I’m sure there’s a catch somewhere, but right now, I can’t see any bad in this.”
Tyr beamed at Sloan. “I can’t either. All I can see is the good.
” He paused, trying to find words for his feelings.
He spent a lot of time alone with his bees and not talking to other dragons, so this was difficult for him, but he had to come up with a way to say it.
Sloan deserved it. “You make me feel like I do when I’m with my bees. ”
Sloan’s eyes widened. “Thank you. That’s probably more than I could ask for.
You make me want things, Tyr.” Sloan’s fingers moved down the glass next to him as if he would touch Tyr, but they both knew better than to reach through the window and try to find contact.
Who knew what the wards would do to them if they did that?
The magic the guardian brothers and the veil itself had put in place was very strong.
“I should probably go and let you go back to your bed,” Tyr said, his whole body aching. “I’m not sure it’s doing us any good to pine for each other this way at this time of night.”
“Yeah, maybe not.” Sloan gave him a wicked little grin. “But I know what I’m going to dream about tonight when I go back to bed.”
Tyr put his hand on his belly, because there was this feeling down there that was tight and achy but also fluttery. “I think I know what I will dream of too.”
“Be safe, dear one,” Sloan told him. “I know you’re used to flying, but I do worry about you coming up and down the mountain.”
“I’ll be fine, and I’ll see you again soon?” He made it a question, because he feared that someday he would come up to the house and Sloan and his brothers would just be gone.
Sloan cleared his throat. “If you have time, you could come up again tomorrow, or today. Whatever it is.”
“It’s still early in the season for working with the bees, so I could absolutely come up.”
“Then I’ll see you soon. Goodnight, love.”
“Goodnight.” Tyr turned to go, taking off his robe so that he could spring into the sky and fly away. Otherwise, he might have just tried to step through the window and be with Sloan, which was unwise.
But at least he knew now that there was nothing wrong, and that his little bee had just wanted him to be happy.
He sure hoped it worked out that he could be.