Chapter 16
Sixteen
HAVEN
A crash wakes me from a deep sleep and I sit up with a gasp, disoriented at first before I remember where I am.
In the safe house with Becks, in the middle of nowhere.
Outside, the wind howls, practically shaking the cabin with the force of the gusts. It’s amazing I stayed asleep as long as I did.
The curtains next to the bed billow with the next gust, and I realize I left the window cracked before falling asleep.
I may like it warm when I’m awake but have always preferred the temperature lower when I’m sleeping so I can bundle up in my bedding. Now the room is practically glacial. In the low light I can see white puffs of condensation in the air every time I exhale.
Wrapping my arms around myself, I slip from underneath the comforter to shut the window. My feet touch the icy hardwood floors, and a shiver works its way through me. Goose bumps break out on my arms as I pad over to the window, my off-the-shoulder sleep tee doing very little to keep me warm.
I reach for the window to seal it and draw the curtains shut, already picturing the warmth of the bed behind me, but the storm outside steals my attention.
My room backs onto the forest. I know the trees are there, but I can’t see them because flurries of snow whip against the glass. Big, fat flakes funnel and twist through the darkness, making it impossible to see more than a few feet, even with my enhanced eyesight.
It feels like staring into a frozen abyss.
A prickle of unease slides over me, my heartbeat quickening.
I latch the window and reach for the curtains when something slams into the glass right in front of my face.
A startled cry catches in my throat as I reel back. My feet get tangled in my pile of discarded clothes and I go down, landing on my hip.
Footsteps thunder nearer down the hall, and before I can shove myself upright, my door slams open and Becks bursts into my room.
Hair tousled and wide-eyed, he scans the room until he spots me on the floor. As he rushes over, his eyes search for injuries.
“What happened? Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
He’s only wearing a pair of gray sleep pants, so as he helps me to my feet, I get another eyeful of his bare chest. I have to clench my free hand to keep from reaching out and stroking the scaled heart over his pec.
Eventually, I’m going to become immune to the sight of his perfectly chiseled abs and pecs, but today isn’t that day. I feel myself heat despite the cold.
I rub my sore hip. “That’s going to bruise.”
“Let me see,” he says and tries to lift up the edge of my sleep tee.
With a squawk, I bat at his hand and hop away from him, suddenly very aware that I’m half naked as well.
“Dude. Boundaries.”
He takes a step back. “Sorry, I just need to make sure you’re all right.”
Something flashes in his eyes. For a split second, his pupil appears slitted, but the light is too low to be certain. The air fills with the scent of ash, and an iridescent shimmer ghosts over his bicep.
Reaching over, I flick on the bedside lamp, catching another flicker of color appear on his shoulder, the one without the dragon tattoo.
I thought I saw something similar back in the hotel, right before we were attacked by the demon again, but I brushed it off as a fear-induced hallucination. But I know this time I’m not imagining it.
I move closer, staring intently at Becks’ exposed skin.
“What was that?”
Becks mumbles that it was nothing, sounding a touch embarrassed.
“Were those your scales?” I guess, awed.
He grunts, and I think that’s supposed to mean yes.
“Can I see them?”
Becks crosses his arms over his chest, covering some of himself up. “What happened in here? I heard you scream.”
I guess that means no.
I gesture toward the window. “Something slammed into the window and startled me.”
Becks steps around me to peer out the window. “Do you know what it might have been?”
I shrug. “I didn’t get a good look. But it was loud. Maybe a large bird?”
With his back to me, I catch another ripple of scales.
Iridescent teal. Beautiful.
They melt back into his skin almost instantly.
Wanting to see them again, I brush my fingers over the same spot, slow and intentional.
Becks sucks in a sharp breath, his back muscles tense. A shudder rolls through him as scales bloom again, rippling from his shoulders down to his waist.
This time I’m ready, my gaze tracking every detail before they fade.
Becks spins and I’m met with a faceful of man chest.
“You did that on purpose,” he accuses, the cutest scowl on his face.
“I did,” I admit with an impish grin.
He doesn’t seem to know what to do with my honesty besides huff.
“Your scales are beautiful. The iridescent teal was like nothing I’ve seen before. I don’t know why you’re embarrassed by them.”
A touch of color appears high on his cheeks. Is Becks blushing?
I grin wider.
“I’m not embarrassed by my scales,” he says gruffly. “It’s that they appeared when I didn’t want them to. To a shifter, losing control of your shift is humiliating. It usually only happens in the first couple of years after your powers emerge, or when—”
He cuts himself off.
“Or when what?”
“Never mind,” he says, which only makes me want to know more, but I’ve pushed him enough tonight.
“Thanks for coming to make sure I’m okay,” I offer.
Becks’ gaze slides down my body, lingering as if he needs to see for himself.
Goose bumps pebble my skin again, but this time it’s not from the cold.
Clearing his throat, he runs a hand through his unruly hair. Soft tendrils go every which way, making him look both adorable and irresistible at the same time.
“Glad it wasn’t anything. I’m just a little on edge,” he admits. “I’ll go see if there’s anything on the ground outside your window. If it was a bird, it might have broken its neck.”
He passes close enough that his arm grazes mine, but I catch his hand before he can leave. He glances back at me over his shoulder.
“You can’t go outside now,” I argue. “It’s a blizzard out there. You’ll freeze.”
The cocky grin he gives me makes my stomach bottom out. “I run hot, remember? And I could use a little cooling off right now.”
He squeezes my hand then slides out of my grasp and disappears. I’m left staring at the closed door behind him, wondering how I’m going to get back to sleep after that comment.
“You want to . . . ride me?”
Heat flashes to my face, burning my cheeks. “That’s not what I said.”
Becks smiles so wide, dimples I didn’t know he had appear. “Actually, that’s exactly what you said.”
“Well, that’s not what I meant, and you know it.”
He crosses his arms over his chest, the look on his face saying he’s clearly enjoying my discomfort. “I didn’t say you couldn’t. I just want to be clear about what you’re asking.”
“Just forget it,” I grumble, and try to stomp back to the cabin, but it’s difficult in knee-deep snow, courtesy of the storm from last night.
To my surprise, I was able to fall back asleep after the window incident. I woke to the aroma of bacon, stumbling down to the kitchen to find Becks making a full breakfast of bacon, eggs, and hashbrowns.
He was, of course, shirtless again.
A shirtless Becks making a delicious breakfast seemed like a dream, so I pinched myself to make sure I wasn’t still sleeping. I wasn’t.
After breakfast, Becks announced that we were going to start training, and that’s what we were doing when I put my foot in my mouth and asked if I could ride him.
Since seeing his scales, I’d become a little obsessed with what he looks like full-shift. So of course, I asked him if he shifted into his dragon form if I could ride him.
But I didn’t mean it literally. I meant it hypothetically. As in, if it would be possible for someone to ride him, not asking him if I could right then.
“Haven, wait!” Becks calls, laughter in his voice. It only takes him two giant dragon shifter steps to catch up to me. He grabs my gloved hand. “Okay, okay. To answer your question, yes, I could carry someone on my back in dragon form, but I never have.”
I cross my arms over my chest, trying to look annoyed rather than embarrassed. “Well, now I don’t believe you. You’re probably a really puny dragon. I’ll bet you have a hard time flying at all.”
Becks just looks amused.
“Yep, you’ve got me pegged,” he says, with that annoyingly attractive grin still on his face. “Now that we have that cleared up, can you start?”
A ball of nerves knots in my stomach. Part of the reason I asked about his dragon form at all was because I was stalling.
Nervous about working with my magic.
Nervous I’m not going to be able to produce it.
Nervous I will, but it will be uncontrollable.
And most of all, nervous I might reveal too much.
Despite my best efforts, my emotions must be splashed across my face, because Becks’ gaze turns understanding and he shifts closer.
“There are no expectations here. Let’s just give it a try and see what happens.” When I hesitate, he adds. “Remember, I’m fireproof, so you don’t have to worry about setting me ablaze.”
I let out a humorless chuckle. That’s the least of my worries.
Time to woman up. I take a deep breath. “Where do we start?”
Becks led us into the forest to a clearing he’d found on his morning jog.
Overachiever.
I’d say we were less than a quarter mile from the cabin, but it took nearly half an hour to trudge through the snow. In places, the drifts reached my waist. Becks could’ve covered the distance in a fraction of the time without me slowing him down.
Thank goodness the cabin is stocked with winter gear, and that I’m pretty much the same size as my twin, because from the hat on my head down to the boots covering my feet, I’m wearing Locklyn’s outerwear. But even bundled up as I am, the cold is starting to get to me.
In contrast, Becks only has on boots and a light jacket. No hat or gloves. And his jacket is unzipped.
“You look cold,” he says, a note of concern in his voice.
“I am.”