Chapter 9 #2
“You just scared ten years off my life,” I panted, too jittery to even raise my head. “Where’s Rían?”
“He’s with Gran.”
As my lungs recalled how to inflate, I caught a second wind and faced her. “Do they know you’re here?”
“They said you needed time alone.” Her voice came out soft. “But I wanted to stay here, with you.”
When I first heard Rían’s reasons for lowering the wards and reactivating cellphone service and internet, I had assumed I was the cause.
He wanted a quicker way to reach me, and a faster method of conveying information to his enforcers in the event of a Sartori attack.
With Carmichael MIA, he needed those things more than ever.
It had been shortsighted of me to forget that, while Goldie acted mature beyond her years in matters of enterprise, she was still a little kid with abandonment issues that stemmed from losing her parents so young.
“Ana?” Sloane’s voice rang out. “Everything okay in there?”
“Fine,” I called back, voice thready. “Can you preheat the oven for me?”
“Say less.”
“Can you go wait with Sloane in the kitchen?” I accepted the towel from Goldie. “I’ll be out in a minute.”
With one last pleading glance, she exited the bathroom and plodded down the hall. Slowly. Very slowly.
As soon as feeling returned to my legs, I stood and dried off before tugging on my clothes. I met Sloane and Goldie in the kitchen, their heads bent over a recipe book I had left out at some point.
When Sloane spotted me, she hooked a thumb over her shoulder, sympathy darkening her eyes.
“I’ll go let them know where this one is,” she said, pivoting toward the door. “Be back in a few.”
Alone with the escape artist, who must have crept into the house through an unlocked window to avoid Sloane scenting her, I went to ask if she had any requests.
Giving a kid sugar this time of night wasn’t wise, I knew, but she was hurting.
I couldn’t bear to tuck her in and turn my back.
Not when I would have given anything some nights for someone to comfort me.
Homemade food, I had learned, healed a great many wounds. Even those inflicted on the heart.
“Gingerbread?” I was impressed with her selection. “That’s what you want?”
“You don’t like it?” She traced a finger down the page. “Nobody else does either.”
“Then they haven’t tried my gingerbread.” I ruffled her hair until she grinned up at me. “I have a recipe for soft cookies too, if you would rather have that than the traditional kind.”
“It tastes the same?”
“I promise.” I placed a hand over my heart. “It’s just easier on the teeth.”
Before we got farther than placing our ingredients on the counter, Rían prowled into the kitchen.
Even knowing he wouldn’t hurt her, I found myself wanting to inch in front of her and cut off his line of sight.
Except she had run twice now. Safe enough, for tonight, but I couldn’t say the same in a few days’ time.
That meant no swooping in to save her from the consequences of her actions, no matter how much I might want to be her knight in royal icing.
“I apologize if I caught you in the middle of doing something nice for Goldie, Ana, but she’s not baking tonight.
” He aimed his full attention on her, and she shrank away from his tone.
“You’re grounded.” He pointed down the hall.
“Go to your room, and when I come to tuck you in, you better still be there.”
What a world Goldie lived in where she might be in trouble, twice in one night, but her pseudo parent hadn’t withheld his affection or leveraged her angst over disappointing him to extract a vow for good behavior in the future.
For a brother, Rían made a great dad. And no, that was not my ovaries talking.
Probably.
Thin shoulders bowed, Goldie slipped down the hall to the bedrooms and shut herself in hers.
“Let’s take this outside.”
Rían exited into the backyard, an area I hadn’t spent much time in.
Mostly because it reminded me of all the time and effort I had put into mine only to have it come to nothing when I abandoned my house.
His space reflected the previous owner, not him, but it was ideal for a kid Goldie’s age.
Plenty of room for an obstacle course of her own, if she had wanted one.
A fence for a dog. Er. No. Never mind. I remembered Rían telling me once that fledging dragons and pets didn’t always mix.
Pets were too snack-sized during the period where human and dragon were still figuring things out, including what was and what was not a treat.
“Usually, those are fighting words.” I tried to joke to cover my nervousness. “Do I need a pistol?”
“We’re not dueling.” He sat in the grass and surprised me by flopping onto his back. “I just couldn’t be inside anymore. I get that way sometimes after my dragon stretches his wings.”
“It must be hard, not being able to shift like everyone else.”
“You would know that better than anyone.” He patted the spot next to him. “This world can’t handle creatures my size. I’ve always known that, so I’ve got a good handle on best practices to make the most of the time I have in my other form.”
Accepting his invitation, I dropped down next to him. “Have you considered allowing Fayne to bind you in a different shape?”
“Many, many, many times.”
“But you need your dragon to make a statement when one is warranted, like when you faced down the Nelson pride. The sight of you alone was enough to stop a brawl before one started. Minus the one guy Liam stomped flat.” I bit down on the thought too late. “But let’s not talk about him.”
“He shot you,” Rían rumbled softly, his temper sparking.
“If you could choose any animal, what would you be?” I diverted his attention, determined to bring down the temperature. “Lion, tiger, bear?”
“A shark, but it’s sadly impractical.”
“I did not see that one coming.”
“What about you?”
“A dragon, of course.” I didn’t have to stop and think about it. “Who wouldn’t want to be one?”
Considering how long I had pined for a wolf spirit of my own, I was adjusting to the idea of scales rather than fur quickly.
Wolves were awesome, they would always hold a special place in my heart, but wolves also served as a reminder of Carmichael’s betrayal.
I was glad to be something else, something different.
A smile tipped his lips as he gazed at the dark sky, and I couldn’t help but wonder how much more beautiful the stars would have been if we were at the ranger station and away from the light pollution.
“Discussing your shark fantasy isn’t why you asked me out here though,” I said, nudging him along.
“You heard Goldie.” He sounded resigned to his fate. “Do you have any idea what she meant?”
“Which part? Mate or bargain?”
“Either?” He made a fist and thumped it against his forehead. “Both?”
“I’ve heard Goldie call me your mate before, but I wrote it off as her being a kid.
I figured she believed our betrothal, where our parents promised we would marry, was the same thing as mated, where fate says we’re meant to be together.
After I got to know her, I should have reconsidered.
Goldie is a smart cookie, and she wouldn’t toss around words so casually.
There’s been so much upheaval, I haven’t given it another thought, really. ”
“I should have told you from the start, but it was already a lot to explain you had a surprise fiancé.”
“Honestly, I can’t hold it against you.” I spluttered a laugh. “I would have bolted out of that room so fast, your head would have spun. I never would have believed you. It’s still hard to wrap my head around, but maybe shifting will help me pull it all into perspective.”
“You’ve been controlled enough, had your life planned out for you and your decisions stolen from you. I didn’t want to omit the truth, but it’s a lot. This situation you’re in.” He angled his head toward me. “It’s not too late to bolt, if it’s too much.”
“I’ll let you know if the sudden urge strikes me.”
“Thanks.” He grew solemn. “It’s more than I deserve.”
“Us being mates explains a lot.” I gnawed on my bottom lip. “Things that weren’t adding up do now.”
“Such as?”
“You could have written off the betrothal if you couldn’t find me.
You didn’t have to go through with it. But to know you have a mate?
Who wouldn’t fight for that? You uprooted your clan for me, moved into hostile territory.
I’ve struggled with being the cause of their strife, with the impact it’s had on their lives.
The risks you took make more sense in hindsight. ”
“Can you forgive me for not being more straightforward sooner?”
“Let’s hear what the bargain is first.” I cocked an eyebrow. “Then I’ll render judgment.”
Rather than picking up on my joking tone, which I will admit had gone flat, he took me seriously.
“I had blue eyes like Goldie when I was a boy.”