“Your family has lived in Grove for a long time, huh?”
Wyatt followed her gaze to a pair of stone dragons outside the library. The corner of his mouth quirked in pleasant surprise. She pointed out another hidden dragon and he shook his head, expression incredulous.
“The Drakes have been here for a long time. Maybe two hundred years? I can’t believe how much we’ve influenced the town, though. These are things I’ve never noticed before.” Wyatt’s eyes were searching up and down the street now. He let out a breath, but it didn’t seem annoyed or sad. “We all try to leave Grove at some point, but we’re drawn back for one thing or another. This is where we belong.”
***
Wyatt knew as he spoke the words that he had convinced himself, a truth that had been growing inside him that he’d barely looked at. Grove hid the dragons from the prying eyes of the world, but it also welcomed them and made for them a home that would never turn them away.
He’d left and tried to find himself in the world outside Grove, but he’d only truly found himself once he returned. He wondered if that was what it’d been like for Ashton. Had his cousin rebelled against the thought of Grove until he actually set foot in the town? Had it been the sight of Makenna that reignited his love for the place?
There was only one thing that would make Grove the home of his heart and he was currently holding her hand. He wanted to hold onto her forever, but he still wasn’t sure if that was real or if Kennedy was everything Nicole hadn’t been, and he was desperate to hold into the idea and not the woman.
He hadn’t expected to spend three hours painting a coffee mug in the little craft shop, but the time had been more pleasant than he thought. Even if they hadn’t been sitting at the same table, making something for her and overturning all the truths he’d hidden from left him feeling…light.
It was as if he’d shrugged off the shame he’d held onto. Wyatt knew he shouldn’t feel shame, but he did nonetheless. It’d made him feel heavy, like he could barely lift his feet off the sidewalk. He’d kept Nicole in a loveless relationship, forcing them both to be unhappy for the years they’d been together. The lie that he’d fostered had wasted so much time. It’d nearly broken something inside him, the hope that love could be real.
When he returned to Grove, he’d been convinced that he would never find happiness with someone. While he could watch Makenna and Ashton flaunt their happiness, Wyatt had to face the fact that he would never be allowed the same feeling. At least, that was what he’d thought until Kennedy arrived.
She’d shown him that there were so many ways to be happy. Through her eyes, he could see the world and all the unexpected joy it had to offer, from a steak seasoned with coffee to painting mugs. These things seemed silly on the surface, but he never would have thought of either without Kennedy urging him forward.
Being with her was like breathing again. Wyatt hadn’t realized he’d been holding his breath. Not just since he returned to Grove, but long before that. He’d been holding back, as if waiting for something to happen when he should have been making things happen.
Their long walk through town had led them back to Kennedy’s hotel. He looked up at the old building, a relic of days long past that caught the light and tried to transport them back to those days. Wyatt shook his head.
“Well, looks like this is my stop,” Kennedy said as she kicked the ground.
He could see that she was biting her cheek. He reached for her, rubbing his thumb along the cheek she was worrying. Kennedy offered an apologetic smile. They were both thinking the same thing. His beast demanded that he follow her inside. She’d offered it before. He could still feel the press of her lips against his. It ignited hunger deep inside him, one that refused to be ignored.
But, he wasn’t sure if he was ready. It wasn’t about Kennedy. It was bout getting his own mind in line. He wouldn’t be able to give Kennedy what she deserved until he knew his mind was free of Nicole. When he no longer thought back and compared every step to the woman he thought he’d loved, then he could experience love.
Real love.
Kennedy sighed. She placed her hand over his, holding him to her cheek. “It’s alright if you want to say no.”
He could hear the disappointment in her voice. He didn’t want to disappoint her. It was the last thing he wanted. Wyatt couldn’t help but feel like he disappointed everyone. He’d yet succeed in stopping Jasper’s tantrums. Every time he had to face his cousin, he needed the help of the others to keep his cousin from killing him. If he thought harder, Nicole’s disappointment would surface to twist his insides.
To hear it in Kennedy’s voice hurt him, but he knew it was the right thing. Eventually, there would be a day when he would make up for every small disappointment. He would fill her life with happiness.
He wanted to make a promise to her, but that seemed too forward.
“Rain check?” he asked.
Kennedy turned away from him, but nodded. She swiped at her cheeks. Was she crying? His heart cracked and filled him with pain. He wasn’t sure how to make the situation better. Wyatt felt like a fool, a man who knew nothing about the ways of the heart or the happiness of lovers. He was useless as he watched Kennedy retreat inside the hotel.
Chapter Nine
Kennedy had been so hopeful after they day they’d had. She’d thought he’d made a decision. There had been a look in his eyes, past the bronze of his beast, that made her feel like she’d won a place inside his heart. Then, he’d abandoned her at the front door.
She drew in a breath, slow and long, to settle herself and organize her mind. She’d jumped to panic, but the truth of the situation was not so bad. If Wyatt needed another day, then she could give it to him. Her desire for him was not all consuming. She had work to do, anyway.
She tightened her jacket around her as she headed toward the elevator. Her head went up when the feeling of being watched crept over her skin and raised the hairs on the back of her neck. Across the way, a man watched her. His lips slowly split into a smile, one less kind and more predatory.
A chill rippled through her, but she shrugged off her coat. Immediately, the man’s eyes fell to her neck. His face blanched and he scurried off. She fought the urge to touch the mark Wyatt had left. It had worked the way Wyatt promised, but she couldn’t help but feel like it was more than he’d meant.
He’d implied there was meaning behind the mark, more than he’d been willing to explain. Kennedy could not claim to understand it, especially since she knew nothing about the dragons who lived in these mountains, but she could read Wyatt.
Her earlier disappointment faded and was replaced by a spark of hope. She grinned as she stepped into the elevator, letting her hand slide over the mark on her neck. Warmth pooled inside her, cascading from her neck to her core.
Of course, she thought Grove was unlike nay other place in the world. It was here that she discovered Wyatt and the magical secret his family hid from the world. She never knew that was exactly what she was searching for all her life, but when she found it, a part of her was nearly complete.
Now, all she had to do was wait for Wyatt.
Chapter Ten
Kennedy wasn’t sure what she wanted to do the next day. She dressed with the hopes that she might run into Wyatt, though she was sure he would give her space for the day. She pulled tight leggings over her hips, the kind that lifted and showcased her butt. From the bottom of her suitcase, she found a gauzy shirt that hung low between her breasts. Remembering the way Wyatt had stared at her long necklace the night at the bar, she added that as well.
Together, the outfit gave her athletic frame the impression of curves. She mourned hiding such a look under her coat, but it was too cold outside to go without it. The mountains forgave no one unless they were a dragon, it seemed.
In the lobby, she felt eyes on her. Behind the counter, the same man from the day before watched her. When their eyes connected and she let her coat slip lower on her shoulders, his gaze
dropped to the mark on her neck. Quickly, he looked away and pretended to busy himself with a task.
She smiled, glad to bear the mark. Not only because of the way it deterred creepy strangers, but because of what else it meant. Kennedy had a feeling something like the mark on her neck was reserved for private relations. Even if Wyatt wasn’t ready, every other dragon in town would know she was waiting for Wyatt.
For her bronze dragon.
The doors swung open. She tore her gaze away from the stranger to find Wyatt. His cheeks were pink from the cold, his hair tousled from the wind. Her lips parted in surprise. She hadn’t expected to see him. Just standing before him filled her with joy.
“What are you doing here? Don’t tell me you came to pick up your great aunt and this is just an awkward encounter.” Kennedy thought they agreed they would give it more time, more space.
Wyatt scratched the back of his head sheepishly. The little quirk at the corner of his mouth made her heart do backflips. “No, I came with the hopes of finding you before you left for the day. Do you have anything planned?”
She couldn’t help it. She grinned like an idiot. “I’m sure there are more places I could check out, but I don’t have any reservations, if that’s what you mean.”
“Great!” He grabbed her hand and tugged her out of the lobby.
She let him lead her along, uncaring of where they went, though she had to admit she was a little curious. A truck was parked on the side of the street. In the back were sheets of drywall and what looked like a new window. Kennedy pressed her lips together.
“I write a travel blog. I don’t do construction.”
“What?” Wyatt paused. He followed her line of sight and realization dawned across his face, making him shake his head. “That isn’t what I wanted to do today. Do you trust me?”
He could be stuffing her in his truck to take her out of town to his secret sex murder-dungeon and she would just smile and follow along. Her trust for him ran deep, even if they hadn’t known each other for long. Lines had been crossed, making their relationship more intimate than it should have been. She’d seen him shift forms and helped carry him when he was broken and bruised.
Kennedy got into the passenger seat of the truck. He drove out of town, which made Kennedy dig out her camera. The mountains were gorgeous, prettier than anything she’d ever seen in her life. Each small valley hid a little secret, from cave mouths to tiny lakes. When life should have been quiet and sleeping, the woods seemed alive. She could have sworn they passed a bear that waved.
When she turned to Wyatt, lips parted in question, he simply nodded.
So, there were other kinds of shifters, too. This secret world was unfolding before her, drawing her deeper. The more she learned, the more she felt like she belonged. It felt right, somehow. Like she’d been waiting for this world of magic to sweep her away. Every city she’d visited, every small town, had never been enough because it’d been missing this fundamental thing.
Wyatt.
Kennedy hadn’t known what she was looking for. She had no idea that her soul had been calling to him all this while. When she landed in a new town and looked around, excitement quickly giving way to disappointment when she didn’t immediately fall in love, it had been because she hadn’t found him.
Unable to share the knowledge with Wyatt just yet, she tucked it away for a later time. She could give him the time he asked for. If they were to move forward, his heart would have to be whole and his head clear. Kennedy wasn’t sure she could do anything to help him through that part of the healing process. Her intervention might only muddle things further, anyway.
Her attention was drawn back to the world outside when the pine trees gave way to charred earth. A vast swath of the mountain side had been cleared by flames, leaving behind blackened earth and charcoal stumps that must have been trees. Her stomach sank at the sight of it. When she turned to Wyatt, he glanced out at the wreckage, too.
He had to know what she was thinking. The world of magic she’d been searching for was not a perfect wonderland. She shouldn’t have expected it to be one. Dragons were dangerous creatures, larger than a house and capable, she guessed, of spewing fire.
“This could be one of two things,” Wyatt began. “Before I arrived, Jasper set fire to a part of the mountain while he was fighting his cousins. I was told that Griffin and Ashton managed to put it out pretty quickly. Not long after, a wildfire came through and destroyed some homes. Ashton’s mate got caught up in the second one. No one knows how it started.”
Kennedy nodded. The mountain was scorched and barren where they drove by, yet she realized that dragons were like a force of nature. They were mobile wildfires.
Wyatt pointed to a lake at the bottom of the valley. “A lot of the water sources around here are fitted with massive buckets that we can lift and pour over the fires. It helps us take care of our own messes or, like the recent fire, keep humans from having to risk their lives.”
She smiled. Her mind had already attached to a new thought, a word ringing through the empty cavern of her skull.
Mate.
“That’s not the first time I’ve heard that word,” she told him. “But I’m not sure what it means.”
Wyatt seemed confused, casting sidelong glances at her while she wrung her hands in her lap. “I said a lot of words just now. I’m not sure which one you’re talking about.”
Sheepishly, the word struggled to make it to the surface. Embarrassment heated her face. It was so easy to think, but so hard to say out loud. Maybe just then wasn’t the right time. Wyatt still had so much to work through.
So, she shook her head and waved it off. Wyatt didn’t look convinced, but he didn’t push the issue. There would come another time, one that was right. It was then that they could talk about things like mates and mating and what that meant for her.
Once more, the world beyond the glass of her window transformed into a lush evergreen landscape. Kennedy reached to touch the mark on her neck. Even the small touch sent a wave of sensation through her. One that she savored quietly.
“When are you leaving Grove?” Wyatt asked.
Her head jerked up and fear stabbed her in the stomach. She had to remind herself he wasn’t asking her to leave, just when she would. The two questions were very different.
“I’m not sure, yet. You don’t have to drop me off at the airport, if that’s what you’re asking.”
He stole a sidelong glance at her. “Don’t you have someone expecting you to come home? Wouldn’t they be worried if you didn’t show up?”
Kennedy shook her head, pulling her lower lip into her mouth. After a moment, she replied. “No one will be at the airport, waving a sign with my name. Everyone in my life knows what I do, and they don’t care. Out of sight, out of mind. You know?”
Silence filled the truck cab. Then he nodded. “Yeah, I think I do know. Not that my cousins didn’t think of me, but that I left and never thought of them.” He propped his elbow on the door beside him and let his head fall into his hand. She watched him sink into the realization that he had abandoned his family and felt the sting of guilt.
“But you’re here now,” she reminded him. “You came back. It might not be the best situation, but you love them or else you wouldn’t have returned.”
The corner of Wyatt’s mouth curled upward in a slow smile. Then, it started to fall again. “I could have done better. Your family could do better, too.”
Kennedy shrugged. “I didn’t belong there, anyway.”
She wiggled her toes, wondering where the roots had gone. Were they still trying to dig into the ground here in Grove? Or were they winding around Wyatt?
“As for your original question, I think Grove has more for me to discover. I’m not ready to leave it yet, so I think I’ll be sticking around for a little longer.”
He tried to hide it, turning his face away from her, but she could see the happiness that overtook him. It warmed her, lighting a fire in her core. It was
not a raging flame, but a gentle and crackling fire. The kind that would keep her warm all night.
Chapter Eleven
Kennedy wasn’t expecting the house outside the truck window. It was like a cabin, if someone had spent a million dollars to build it. A wall of stacked stone was cut by a narrow driveway that ended in a loop around a fountain. The mountain around them was reflected on the giant windows that spanned the front of the house.
“Do you live here?” Kennedy asked, awestruck.
“Not on my life. I couldn’t stand being under the same roof as these idiots.”
She bit the inside of her cheek, trying to understand what Wyatt was saying. He reached for her hand, and her heart did flips inside her chest. She let him gently pull her up the steps and to the door, which he threw open without invitation.
She studied him, trying to understand what was going on, but his face was guarded. The only part of him that she could read was the swirl of molten metal over his eyes. The beast inside him, she realized. As it surfaced, his grip on her hand tightened, an encouraging squeeze.
“Wyatt!” someone shouted.
She tore her attention away from her dragon man and found another massive man with his hands thrown in the air rushing toward them. The man leapt from the floor and crashed into Wyatt, clinging to him. Wyatt grumbled about how much he hated the man in his arms, but held him nonetheless.
Kennedy couldn’t help but smile. The scene was hilarious and heartwarming.
“Ashton, meet Kennedy. Kennedy, this is my asshole cousin. Would you believe he actually works for the bank? Doesn’t seem the type, right?”
She shook her head. She couldn’t imagine Ashton, with his floppy and unkempt hair sitting behind a desk. Nor could she imagine him wearing a stuffy suit. Ashton leapt away from Wyatt and looked between the two of them. His lips pursed in an unspoken question.
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