Chapter 26 #2
Admiration was one word for it, though drooling would have been more accurate.
My hands clasped the fabric as I was unable to take my eyes off him, my throat going dry.
I was tempted to ask whether he was dehydrated because there was no other explanation for why his chest muscles were standing out so prominently.
“Are you coming out to the woods?” Greylen asked as I pulled the hoodie over my head. He seemed awfully pleased with himself that his shirtless state had made me a little gooey. The garment was still warm from his skin, and a salty bright smell covered it.
I shook my head. “No. I was taking a nap when Griffin so rudely woke me.”
I glared at my friend as I said the last part, and he held up his hands in surrender.
“Hey, you were already awake. I simply convinced you to come down here.”
“Same difference,” I muttered.
Turning back to Greylen, I continued, “Anyway, I’m going to eat this amazing food—because, oh my God, this is incredible—and then I’m going to sleep. Thank you for the hoodie.”
“You’re welcome. You look better in it than I do. We really appreciate everything you’re doing for the horde. We can see you’ve been working overtime to help them.”
I took a deep breath, carefully contemplating my next words. “I didn’t foresee how much medical help your horde would need.”
Greylen nodded. “I know. I think, once Rory is better, we need to sit down and have a conversation about how much money our current healer is spending.” He said the last words in a low tone, so no one else could hear.
“If you’re willing to listen, I’ll happily help.” Was it a little weird to be having a discussion about finances with a shirtless dragon? Maybe, but I didn’t seem to care.
“I don’t know whether they told you, but I’m the one who controls the finances. If you tell me that the current situation”—he said the words delicately—“is extortionate, I will listen.”
“Good to know,” I answered, smiling. “So, if I want a Rolls-Royce, it’s you I have to ask?”
There was no way in hell I was actually going to ask him to buy me a luxurious car, but I wanted to play with him.
What I didn’t expect was for Greylen to turn around with a serious look on his face.
“Rowan, if you want a new car, just say the word, and I will get it for you. Though from what little I know about you, I don’t think you’d want a Rolls-Royce.
You’d want a big, suped-up SUV. Something big enough for travel and adventure, but with all the latest technology. ”
For a moment, all I could do was gape at him.
He had hit the nail on the head obnoxiously well.
“Well, that’s annoying.” I laughed. “How dare you know me so well?”
He chuckled. “It’s the mate bond. I immediately understand everything about you.”
“Everything?” I asked, turning my attention back to my plate, unable to meet his discerning eye.
He nodded sincerely, even though a smile tugged at the corner of his lips. “I even understand your love of sour candy. It is delicious.”
“Oh, dude, you lost me there.” Griffin groaned. “That stuff she eats is vile.”
“You just have inferior taste buds.” I growled, turning to my best friend, who was shoving mashed potatoes into his mouth.
“Well, I may have ordered some extra once I heard from a little birdie that you liked it,” Greylen said with a smile, glancing over at Griffin.
My dirty traitor of a best friend.
My mouth fell open for a moment. “Are you bribing me with candy?” I asked conspiratorially.
“Is it working?” he whispered back.
I nodded. “It may be.”
His smile was so wide and bright that I got lost in it for a moment.
“In that case, I will buy you an entire fucking candy store.”
“Now you’re just talking dirty.” I beamed at him. “I’m going to finish my meal and go get some sleep. You need to go have a fly, young man. Actually… how old are you? I never thought to ask.”
“A few years older than you.”
I paused. A thought occurred to me that stopped me in my tracks.
“Wait… how old am I? I always say that I’m twenty-eight, but…” I trailed off. Even though I kept saying otherwise, the evidence was pretty clear. I had been their mate a long time ago, which meant they knew things about me I had been desperate to know for years.
“You were eighteen when you went missing, which would make you twenty-five now.”
Twenty-five. It sounded so juvenile when I had thought I was nearly thirty.
“I don’t know whether I’m happy or upset by the fact that I’m actually three years younger than I thought I was,” I said, staring off into the distance, trying to comprehend his words.
“You really didn’t know how old you were?” he asked, putting his food down and giving me his full attention.
“Kiki did her best to estimate. But no, I knew nothing about myself when I woke up. We just had to assume.”
“When do you celebrate your birthday?”
“On the day Kiki found me,” I said with a smile. “It was a birth, of sorts.”
He nodded. “Well, that’s a day that should always be celebrated… but you were actually born on March thirty-first.”
The date I had been celebrating was in July.
Even though I had never put much stock into my birthday, because I knew it probably wasn’t the real date I was born, it felt weird knowing the truth.
“That’s good to know… Thank you.”
“If you ever have questions, Rowan, I’m here.”
My throat went dry, my eyes stinging from the effort of holding back tears. Having a connection to my past made me inexplicably overwhelmed. On the one hand, I wanted to know everything. On the other, I wanted to know nothing.
After quickly shoving the rest of the food into my mouth, I said my goodbyes and left my best friend and shirtless mate chatting at the table while I scurried back to the safety of my own space.
Unable to bear the thought of taking the item of clothing off that Greylen had given me, I clambered into bed wearing my sleep shorts and the borrowed hoodie, wrapping myself up in his comforting scent and letting it lull me back to sleep.