“Yes, but not at cost to you. You matter, too,” Luc said.
Luc was everything Dom wasn’t. Clean cut with a lightness about him that drew people in. Everything about Luc was exactly as you saw it. No secrets, no deception—as far as he knew.
And he heard Luc’s thoughts a lot.
“I don’t know,” Dom said. “I was only woken for this, and after it, I’m going back to sleep.” He finished his sandwich and brushed off his hands on his jeans. Then he leaned back, trying to remember what he’d been wanting to ask. “Oh right, I was going to ask.” He fingered the ring on his hand. “I noticed all your mates are wearing your rings. What does that signify exactly?”
Luc blinked. “You don’t know?”
“Should I?” Dom asked.
“No, I guess none of us did until it was relevant, but since you expressed no interest in finding a mate, we didn’t think to say anything.”
“So what is it?”
“Well, when we give the ring to a human female, it marks them as our mate. Permanently.” Luc scratched his neck absentmindedly. “It’s actually caused a bit of confusion with us, as none of us knew it worked that way in the past. Anyway, along with giving them some of our powers, it seems to also make it possible to mate between dragons and humans. To pair bond. Even to get pregnant.”
“Is that the final mating?” Dom asked. “Does it have anything to do with the collars?”
“Well, the mate still has to be asked to mate and accept the mating. But, um, after the ring, it isn’t really reversible, so the dragon just better damn well hope he can make it work out.”
Dom fought back a smile that crept onto his lips. It was purely a mean one, but he didn’t know how else to react to the absurd situation.
In his first dream of Diamond, he hadn’t been sure, but now he was.
Diamond had definitely given his ring to the little human he was traveling with. They were mated, and he had no idea.
He blanked his mind when he saw Sapphire looking at him, before he could read his thoughts.
“What is it?” Luc asked. “You thought something weird just then.”
“Just an unexpected twist,” Dom said, standing and bracing himself to get back to bed.
“Tell me,” Luc said.
But Dom didn’t want to. It was Diamond’s issue to work out now. And terribly amusing at that. Or it could be. Maybe it would end up catastrophic. Or not.
No one knew the future. Except for him sometimes, in confusing bits and pieces.
But all he knew was for now, Diamond and his mate’s biggest worry was the danger coming after them, which meant he needed to hurry and locate them, which meant more sleep.
“I’m headed back to bed,” he said, giving Sapphire a wave.
Luc slumped in the chair slightly, cocking his head at Dom like he just couldn’t figure him out and was waiting for him to share all his secrets.
Never.
“Sweet dreams,” Luc muttered.
Dom threw him a look over his shoulder. “Never sweet. Sometimes useful.”
Then he headed off to bed to face his nightmares.
Alistair felt a sense of unease as he woke the next morning.
Like something bad was approaching, but he didn’t know how or why.
It had been awkward the night before, getting ready for bed. Diamond hadn’t known if he should offer to sleep in the same room, but when Bridget had gone to hers, he’d decided to just take the other one, since it was just across the hall.
Even if the entire night he’d lain awake, thinking of her body, her smile, her heart.
And wanting to spend every day with her.
Meanwhile, she’d just smiled, told him good night, and headed to bed, being her usual patient, non-demanding self. She wasn’t begging him for promises of the future or feelings, and it was kind of bugging him, even as he woke this morning, that she wasn’t.
She should want those things from him. He was a powerful dragon. He’d be rich soon, able to give her everything.
But none of that seemed to particularly matter to Bridget. What did she want, then?
He let out a huff and crossed to the window to look out the drapes as the uneasy feeling came over him again. He didn’t see anything from his window, so he put on his sweatshirt and took the stairs two at a time to go down to the front door.
Bridget was awake, making something in the kitchen that smelled amazing, and he felt a little guilty for sleeping in.
“Something wrong?” she asked, looking rosy-cheeked as she poked her head around the corner, only to see him put up a finger and peek out the window by the front door.
Still didn’t see anything. Or did he? It was hard to see in the shadows of the forest.
He made a gesture for her to stay back and then walked out the front door and onto the porch. He closed his eyes and let his body just sense things.
Scent things.
And he then he did. Two people, in the woods. With a vehicle. It smelled of chemicals, interrupting the pure scent of the forest.
He slammed the door behind him, making sure Bridget wouldn’t come out. He took a step forward.
“I know you’re out there. Come out!” he yelled, folding his arms.
He wasn’t surprised when, a few moments later, he saw two figures step out of the woods. Two men, holding long, skinny rifles.
“Who are you?” Alistair asked, remaining calm. They were only humans. Even their weapons wouldn’t be able to hurt him.
“We own this cabin,” the older one said. “And we don’t think you’ve paid enough to stay in it.”
Alistair raised an eyebrow sardonically. “I believe the rate was negotiated before we were given keys.”
The younger man hefted his gun, pointing it at Alistair. “Well, we’re going to renegotiate.”
The older man grinned. “We find it’s best to renegotiate after someone decides to stay here.”
“So you draw people in and then rob them?” Alistair asked.
“Eh,” the older man said. “Sometimes. When we know they’re on the run and can’t afford to report us…” He held up a printed piece of paper, and Alistair acted disinterested.
“This says there are people looking for you,” he said. “Says the lady with you is kidnapped. You hiding a lady in there, doing things to her?”
Rage burned through Alistair. How dare they bring Bridget into this? He walked forward and yanked the paper out of their hands. He cursed as he saw the picture of Bridget. It looked like it was taken from her employee badge, and it said she’d been reported missing and for motel owners around the area to watch out for her.
“So we’ll let you keep the girl, but you’re gonna give us any money you have first,” the younger one said.
“You can have our money,” Alistair said, sounding intentionally bored. “But what assurance do I have that you won’t bother us after?”
“I guess you’ll just have to trust us,” the younger one drawled.
“What’s going on?” Bridget asked as the door opened behind him. She gasped as she saw the guns, and Alistair cursed under his breath.
“Get back inside,” he bit out, but the men had already noticed.
“Not so fast, sweetheart. Come out on the porch. We’re here to help you,” the older one said.
“She’s pretty,” the younger commented. “Maybe we should take her back with us.” He leered. “You know, so she’d be safe.”
The older one cackled, and Alistair cursed his collar as he stepped in front of Bridget, blocking her from view.
If he had his powers right now, he’d use telekinesis to jam their guns down their throats for their audacity in talking about his mate.
His mate? He nearly choked on the words, but decided it was just stress making him think like that. Right now, he needed to stay focused on Bridget.
He was just feeling protective. That brought the “mate” thing up. That was all.
“Come on now, girly,” the older
one said. “We ain’t gonna hurt ya. Let’s just head on out now. We’ll even let your man keep his money.”
He felt her hand twist into his shirt. Just when he’d thought these men couldn’t make him any angrier, they’d gone and made Bridget nervous.
“Get out of here, jackasses,” he grated out. “Before you’re just another reason the police are looking for me.”
The older one grinned at the younger one before pointing his gun at Alistair again as they both took a step forward. “We got weapons and you don’t. I think we’ll give the orders, if that’s okay with you.”
But they clearly didn’t care what was okay, and they were moving closer.
He could step forward and grab one of them, throw him into the forest, but would the other have time to grab or shoot Bridget?
Fear shot through him at the knowledge that even though he would recover if they shot him, as a human, Bridget wouldn’t.
The men separated and started to circle around them on both sides so Alistair couldn’t block her from both angles. His heart pounded as he considered his options, and he focused on his powers, trying to draw them from wherever they were trapped.
He heard the click of a hammer and looked over to see one of the guns pointed straight at Bridget. She let out a gasp, and he felt the hold of the collar break with an incredible rush of power.
He didn’t know if it was the sheer amount of anger and hate he’d felt in the moment, seeing someone threaten his mate, or if the collar just had odd rules he didn’t know about, but he was free to kick both their asses now, and he was going to do just that.
He closed his eyes, calming his rage so he could focus, and then snapped them open just as a rush of energy knocked both men off their feet, sending them and their weapons flying. He jerked open the door and shoved Bridget inside where she’d be safe and then calmly strode down the front steps to the middle of the clearing.
He rubbed his hands together. “Let’s see. Who was it that pointed their gun at my woman first?”
Chapter 9
The men stared at him, too afraid to even scramble to their feet. He eyed their guns, like black snakes in the dirt. He lifted them both in the air with one motion of his hand and then tied them both neatly in knots. Then, with a wave of his hand, he propelled them into the forest.
The men’s fear was palpable now, delicious to his senses. They knew he was something more than human now. He would make them regret ever seeing his face.
He took another step forward just as the door opened behind him and Bridget came running out. She grabbed his arm. “Stop it. They’re just humans. Let them go.”
He gave her a look like he couldn’t believe what she was saying. “They aimed a weapon at you.”
‘They wouldn’t have hurt me.”
“What? They would have raped you,” he said irritably. “And I’m going to make sure they can’t do that to anyone else.”
“We wouldn’t, honest,” the older one blubbered. “We was just teasing. We’d have taken her back to the police, safe and sound.”
“Liar!” Alistair said, taking a step forward, all too aware of the way Bridget was tugging at his arm, trying to pull him back. “You pointed a gun at my mate. You’re going to die.”
She sighed. “Alistair, not everyone who wrongs you needs to die.”
“Fine,” he quipped. “Everyone who wrongs you needs to die.”
She sighed, and with one hard pull, he finally stopped and faced her. He kept the men frozen with the invisible energy he controlled with his mind. It was as strong and clear as diamond, and they wouldn’t break it until he wanted them to.
“I know there’s another way to take care of this,” she said. “Being needlessly cruel won’t help us with our goals. And I know you aren’t the villain you keep trying to be. I know you can’t just kill someone and not feel bad about it.”
“I wouldn’t feel bad about it,” he snapped. But maybe she was right. Damn. Could he actually feel guilty about something like that? He took a hesitant step back. “Fine. I’ll deal with it another way,” he grumbled as he walked over to the guys, something unintelligible about people trying to steal his woman.
He knelt in front of them, enjoying their frozen expressions. “You know I’m not like anything you’ve ever seen. Nod if you understand.”
They both did.
“Great. Then know this. I can hear your thoughts. I can watch you whenever I want.” Okay, that was a bit of a stretch, but whatever. “And if you ever think of doing something like this again, if you ever try to harm another person again, you’ll see what I’m really capable of.” Then Alistair tightened his grip on the older one’s throat. “And if you or your partner even think of her again, ever, you’re dead.”
The man gasped while nodding, and Alistair released him. “Get out of here.” He watched them scramble to their feet, shaking visibly, and shouted after them. “And if you tell anyone you’ve seen us, you’re dead! Anything I don’t like, you’re dead!” Just to make his point, he waved his hand, launching their broken guns at them and hitting them in the back, enjoying the way they stumbled.
When they’d disappeared in the forest and he heard the start of whatever vehicle they’d been driving, he smiled in satisfaction.
Nothing like making someone nearly pee themselves for bothering you.
He saw Bridget standing a few steps behind him, shaking her head. “I don’t get why you get so insane about me.”
“What do you mean?” he asked, walking to the door and holding it open so she could go inside.
“I mean, it’s like you don’t have feelings for me. Even the physicality we’ve had, you made it clear it was just to show me a good time. To have fun because maybe there’s attraction.”
“There is definitely attraction,” he said.
“But your reaction to someone threatening me, it’s just really unreasonable. I mean disproportionate.”
“What is the appropriate response to someone aiming a weapon at my business partner?”
Her expression shuttered. “Business partner?”
“Yes,” he said, knowing he was a coward for not saying more. But how could he tell her about his feelings? That would only be selfish, considering he knew he wasn’t ready for the type of life she deserved.
She sighed. “You get that jealous over a business partner? You threaten to kill people for just thinking about them?” She shook her head. “You’re crazy.”
She walked inside and into the kitchen, and he stood there trying to figure out what to say.
“I… I’ve never had a partner,” he said. “I don’t know what’s going on with me. I just know I want to protect you. Yes, maybe it’s crazy. Maybe you make me feel crazy. What do you want me to say?”
“I want you to be honest,” she said. “How do you feel about me?” She leaned on the kitchen doorway, and he felt his heart skip a beat at how right it felt to share a home with her. Even one as humble as this.
Even though it was nothing like he’d ever wanted before.
But if he admitted how he was feeling and it was just an odd reaction to being free or them being stuck together and ended up breaking her heart, he’d never forgive himself. It was best to downplay it until he truly figured it out.
Plus, he didn’t feel anything romantic from her. She was digging into his feelings but wasn’t sharing any of her own.
“I’m attracted to you, obviously,” he said.
“Go on.”
“And I’m your friend, which is saying something because I’ve never had many true ones.”
“Is that it?” she asked.
“And I suppose I do want to kill anyone who looks at you. Is that normal friend behavior?”
“No,” she answered.
“Damn,” he said, slumping on the couch. “I don’t know, then.” He gave her a haggard look. “Look, I don’t know what to tell you. Last night was amazing. One of the best of my life. But I don’t know where this is going. And the feeli
ngs you’re asking about? I don’t know if I’m capable of them. I can feel anger, jealousy, but those aren’t noble emotions.”
She sat on a chair she’d pulled in from the kitchen. “I have a crush on you,” she said flatly.
“A what?”
“A crush,” she said. “I like you. And I think you like me… more than you want to.”
“It’s not that I don’t want to; it’s that we’re too different. You’re a human, and a good one. I’m a dragon. A shallow, stupid one who seeks his own interests.”
“That’s funny, because since I’ve known you, you’ve been watching out for others’ interests. Like me and Scrangey.”
“I need you,” he said.
She flinched slightly but recovered. “And Scrangey?”
“I don’t know.” He rubbed his hands over his knees, still trying to get rid of the lingering stress of her being in danger. Was this what having a mate meant? Feeling like you were going to have a heart attack at any moment if someone threatened them?
If so, he wasn’t sure he wanted to have any part of it. It was too intense.
So he changed the subject. “They had a poster with your employee badge on it. Looks like you’re the one who is gonna need to change your appearance, unless you have powers I don’t know about.”
“No powers that I know of,” she said glumly. “Except I’m kind of good at restraining a certain dragon.” Her eyes twinkled, and he felt himself relax. “Thanks for defending me.”
“Thanks for stopping me,” he said and meant it. No one had ever cared about his morals before. His soul’s welfare. Perhaps all of this was happening because he truly had found a good friend for the first time.
But did people usually want to have sex with their good friends?
“I guess we should head out and find a new place,” she said. “And probably a salon along the way.” She twirled her hair pensively. “I guess it was time for a cut anyway.”
He frowned. He didn’t want to change anything about her, but if it would help her stay safe… “Okay. I’ll get started packing, and we’ll head out. You look online for our next place.”
“Sure.”
But as they got up to do their different tasks, he could still feel the awkwardness between them. No matter what, last night they’d been one.
Diamond Dragon (Awakened Dragons Book 4) Page 8
