Chapter 31 Chance
Chance
The sheets were twisted around my waist. Tash was sprawled next to me, one leg tossed across my thigh, her beautiful brown hair spread out everywhere.
Her breathing was slow. She was finally settling after the wild ride we'd just had. Shit, I couldn't blame her. We'd hit every base. Left nothing on the field.
But I couldn't let it go. Not with Caden pacing like a caged tiger since the second I'd touched her.
Tell her!
Wanting a woman so bad it hurt, this hunger with sharp, glassy edges to it, had never happened to me before. I guessed it was time to fucking face it.
Finally.
I propped myself on one elbow and caught the drowsy edge of her gaze.
"Can we talk?" I sounded normal, but it took effort.
She blinked. "That's never a good opener."
I reached for her fingers, but she shifted position and fidgeted with the pillow instead. "Okay. Hit me."
Fuck it, then. I dropped the bomb.
"I think you might be my mate. Not just the ‘I want you' kind. Real thing. It's…" I shook my head. "Caden's been losing his mind since you walked in the bakery and we saw you again."
The words fell between us like live wires.
"Mate?" she managed, voice mouse-small.
"Yeah. It's rare." I locked eyes with her, refusing to blink.
"But it's not like in the romance novels.
It's not a fated thing. Once a dragon picks a mate, it's nearly impossible for them to move on to anyone else, but it's not a complete loss of free will or anything. Caden's picked you. So have I."
Yes.
She went quiet. Her thumb flicked the edge of the pillow, like she was thinking hard.
I gave her space. "If it's too much, say so. I can shut up. But I think you deserve the truth."
She shook her head, soft dark hair brushing my chest. "No, keep going. I need to know. I want to know."
"Okay."
I took a breath. "There's no magic spell, no fucking soulmate lottery.
But if my dragon picks you as his mate, that's it.
It's you, or nobody. The pull doesn't fade.
Not ever. It's possible for me to walk away, but it would be the hardest thing I've ever done or ever will do.
And I haven't picked you because he did.
That's not how it works. If we weren't right for each other, neither of us would've picked you. "
She didn't speak, but her eyes were wide, glued to my face.
"Most dragons can survive if their mate leaves. It hurts like hell, but you don't die. Unless you finish the bond. That's, well, that's where a bite comes in. That part the romance novels get right. If we do that, we're
locked together for life. No take-backs. No divorce. You get the powers, you'll either become a witch or a dragon. You'll get the strength, all that. I get—" I shrugged and smiled. "Everything I could ever want. You. Forever."
"Bite?" She made a little face. "Like, literally?"
"Yeah. Back of your shoulder, usually. Near the crook of the neck. I'd never do it without your consent, though. But if you wanted… It's not just sex, it's more. It changes stuff. You'd live as long as I will, for one."
She sucked in a breath so sharp I felt it in my bones. "How long is that, exactly?"
I tried not to laugh, but the tension in the room needed breaking. "A long-ass time. Most dragons can live three, four hundred years easily, if nothing takes them out."
She blinked. "So, I'd turn into a dragon?"
"Probably. It's my understanding that happens more than turning into a witch. Once the bite sets, you get the perks, faster healing, crazy strength, senses through the roof. You wouldn't be human anymore, not fully."
She was breathing slowly now, digesting every word. "The girls? Would it change them?"
"No. Though, they were born hybrids. I don't know of any others.
As far as I can tell, they're exactly like any pure-blood dragon and witch.
The bond only changes you. But it'd give you an edge in protecting them, more than you already have.
And most humans who are bitten by dragons don't end up being able to have dragon babies.
It's magic, it doesn't always follow logical patterns or rules.
" I blinked a few times. "My mother has been looking into how and why you were able to get pregnant, as it's otherwise unheard of.
So far all she's come up with is a big shrug and that magic is unpredictable. "
Tash snorted. "Comforting."
I couldn't help but laugh at that little sound she made. "Lucky for me, though."
She dropped her eyes, lashes trembling. "Does it hurt?"
"The bite?" I hesitated. "Yeah. I only know what I've heard, but it's only supposed to hurt for a short time.
They say the rest of it, the bond part, feels better than anything we can either imagine.
The best orgasm of our lives. And after that, if we bite each other during sex, it's the same feeling. "
She went silent, chewing on it. I could see her brain weighing angles and risks. Tash the scientist. "What if I don't want to? Am I screwing something up? For you?"
I shook my head. "It's your call. I want you, even without the bond. Having it dangling won't be fun. Caden hates it. He wants you all the way. But I'm not pushing you. I'm just laying it out."
Her lips pressed together. "So if we just stay like this, nothing bad happens?"
"Nothing." I'd have to fight the grumpiness from Caden, but that's all.
That earned me a look. A glare, almost. "You're an idiot if you think I believe that."
"Yeah, but I'm your idiot, apparently."
She tried to crack a smile, but it wobbled at the edges. Then she asked, "What if we did it? Would I wake up different? Would it freak the girls out?"
I thought about it. "Your powers might come on slowly, or all at once. You could have your first shift within hours of the bite or it could take days or weeks. Everyone is different."
She nodded and sucked in a deep breath. "Okay. If I changed my mind, could we undo it?"
I didn't sugarcoat this, either. "No. Once the bond is complete, only death breaks it. And if you die, my dragon would follow. It's a hardwired thing."
She looked at me for a long time, silently, contemplating.
So I kept going.
"You've got questions. Ask them."
She inhaled, then rattled them off. "Why me? How does your dragon even know? And what if you're wrong?"
"Caden knows. It's instinct. He picked you the second you walked into my bakery.
I really think he would've picked you seventeen years ago if I hadn't been so drunk.
We've thought about you nearly every day since.
And every minute since you came into the bakery, he's been chewing through me to get closer.
If I was wrong, and he was just drawn to you, the compulsion would fade.
It hasn't. If anything, it's getting stronger. "
She picked at her thumbnail, lashes lowered. "Does it creep you out? That you're hardwired to want somebody?"
"No. With you, it's not just my dragon. All of me wants this. Even the dumb, human part." I chuckled. "Besides, you're hot as hell. Smart. You care. If I had to be stuck with somebody forever, I'd pick you all day long."
She flushed but didn't look away. "What if I don't want to change? Would you resent me?"
"No, I'd live with it. I'd rather have you as you are than not at all."
That did something. Her lips trembled, like she was fighting back tears.
I reached over and took her hand. "Hey. You don't have to decide tonight. Or next week. Or even next month. This is a huge decision. I can wait."
She closed her eyes, fists clenching. "I'm scared," she whispered.
"That's normal. I'd be worried if you weren't."
She let it sit, then blurted, "What if I lose myself? What if the dragon takes over?"
I didn't hesitate. "You won't. The magic is yours.
The dragon doesn't just appear and take over.
She's still you, only bigger and scalier.
It doesn't make a lot of sense if you analyze it with your big scientist brain.
The magic of it all makes it work. Your dragon would never do something you wouldn't, though she might do things a bit differently. "
After a minute, she rolled onto her back, staring at the ceiling fan like it held the answers. "So if I said yes, what would you do? Just bite me?"
I grinned, wicked. "Not quite. There's a ritual to it. Sex is part of it. The dragon side of me would want to mark you when you're at your limit, when you want it most."
She ran her tongue over the curve of her plump bottom lip. "I need to think."
"Take all the time you need."
She peeled off the blankets and stood, naked, letting every inch of herself soak up the moonlight angling through the window. She paced the length of the room, stopped, turned, and started again.
I watched her, not bothering to hide it. She was gorgeous. Every curve, every scar, every ripple of muscle under her skin. If I could've painted her in my head, I'd have burned the image there for the next five centuries.
"I'm supposed to be the organized one." She let out a wild, broken laugh. "How the hell does anybody plan for this?"
Caden nearly lost it. He roared in my skull, hungry, sure that if she just said yes, we'd never have to let her go. But I held him back. It's her decision, not ours.
After two more laps, she snatched her sweater off the floor and wriggled it on. Next came the pants, no undies. Last came her boots.
I braced myself.
She turned, sweater twisted under her jacket, hair wild, eyes warm.
"Chance." Her voice was soft, softer than it'd been all night. "Don't think I'm running. I just need to breathe."
I nodded while Caden howled under my skin. "I know."
She moved in, three quick steps, and pressed her lips to my jaw. "I care about you. That's not in question."
"Then what is?"
She squeezed her eyes shut. "It's everything. It's all just very, very fast."
She gave me a lopsided smile. "I'm not going to ask the girls for permission, but they factor into the decision. I don't want to fuck things up. So I need to think clearly for a few minutes. Give me a day?"
I took her hand, pressed my lips to her knuckles. "You're not going to fuck things up."
She made a face. "You don't know that."
I did, but I didn't say it.
Instead, she threaded her hand into the back of my hair and pulled me in close. Her breath hitched. She wasn't faking. Her whole body trembled against mine.
The kiss was the kind they put in movies. Teeth, tongue, every ounce of need that had been building since the second I laid eyes on her. I wanted to mark her, leave her gasping and sure of it, but instead I just held her, let her taste the promise in my heart.
She broke away first, sucking in air like she'd run a race. "Wow," she whispered.
"Yeah."
She smiled, weak but real. "That's why I need to go home for a bit. You're too damn distracting."
"I get it."
Caden preened but also whimpered that she was leaving.
She hitched her bag over one shoulder, squared up, and checked the mirror once. The sight of her, messy hair, swollen lips, almost ruined me.
I followed her to the door, fighting every instinct to drag her back inside like a caveman and lock the world out. She lingered on the porch, searching my face for any sign of doubt.
"We're good?" she asked.
"We're fucking great," I answered. Caden wanted to put her over my shoulder, drag her to the bedroom, and keep her until the sun burned out.
But I held the line.
She gave a shaky laugh, then unlocked her car with a flick of her keys.
"Text me when you get home," I said. It'd been long enough since she'd had her last drink that I didn't worry about her being too tipsy. It was nearly dawn now.
She nodded and got in the car. I memorized every move. The way her hands shook on the wheel, the set of her jaw as she reversed out. She gave me a single, loaded look through the window that said everything she couldn't speak before she headed for the street.
I stood outside until the taillights faded.
Caden seethed, but this time he didn't fight me. It was patience, not pain. The certainty that she'd be back.
She was my mate. No matter how long it took, I'd wait for her.