Page 19 of The Heart of the Dragon

But if there was meat in this kitchen, I would find it. I mean, how hard could it be?

Minutes later, I'd drug everything from her cold box and cabinets to the table so that I could examine this atrocity closer. Her supply of meat was sorely lacking. I sneered at the meager packages of bacon, sausage, and ground up meat that I didn't even want to sniff let alone taste.

She had more cookies, cakes and scones than anything else. And while I had discovered these last few months that freshly made Scottish scones and cream were a delicious treat, a dragon could not exist on them alone. I wasn't even sure a human woman could either.

"What in the hell?"

I turned to find Rose standing in the doorway with her hands back on her hips again. Did she realize that by taking that stance it drew my eye to the curve of her entire profile and made my cock swell at the sight?

"I was trying to find something suitable for a meal and failing miserably. This is all so useless."

She glared at me, that fire inside her flaring in her eyes. "So you thought dragging everything from the cupboards the solution? Goddess, what is wrong with you?"

I grunted. "Easier to assess how bad the situation is by taking inventory of what's actually available."

She shook her head. "This isn't some sort of military operation that you have to layout and study. We aren't preparing for battle. It's just supposed to be breakfast. You know. Eggs, bacon, maybe some pancakes or scones..."

"How are you supposed to survive on this? That's not enough meat for one meal let alone however long you thought this might last."

"That's a week's worth of groceries. That is if it doesn't spoil because you've got it sitting out on the table getting warm. We need to put all of this away and then I'll make breakfast." She whirled back to face me once more. "And this time I won't put anything in the food, I swear."

That fire in her eyes gave me the impression she meant what she said, and my gut told me that despite everything there was some honor in her. But that didn't make me a fool either. I would watch her like a hawk.

"I made the mess, I'll put it away," I stated, brushing past her to do just that. "But I'm serious about the lack of food. It's not enough for you, let alone me."

"I don't know if you've noticed, but it's more than plenty for me. In fact, I could live off the fat of the land for a while this winter," she said, waving her hand in front of her body.

Everything stilled inside me as I processed her words. While we spoke the same basic language there were some differences. I had to have misunderstood, because it sounded like— "Surely you aren't implying that you are too plump. Because that would be ridiculous."

"Fat. Fluffy. Overweight. Whatever you want to call it. But I could stand to lose a little weight by eating a little less."

Violence rose swift and deadly at her words. The idea that she considered her figure anything less than perfect pissed me off. I dropped the few items I'd picked up and stalked towards her. "That has to be the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. And considering I've lived my entire life in the shadow of a twisted king with a mean streak, that's really saying something." I tried to take a breath, but my lungs were as heated as the rest of me. It was as if the dragon was trying to get out and couldn't because he was stuck. I could almost feel...

The pain of his struggle sliced through me, and I was forced to grab the edge of the table and breathe through it.

"What's wrong?" She rushed to my side. "Are you sick again?" She reached up and pressed her hand to my forehead. The time she'd spent outside had chilled her skin, and it felt amazing pressed to my burning flesh. "You're really hot."

"I always run hot. Side effect of being a dragon."

Her eyes shuttered closed, and when they opened again, I could see the disbelief and mistrust deep in their depths. The more I talked about my dragon, the less she believed. This woman of science would need proof before she'd ever see reason.

"Maybe youarehaving a reaction to valerian. I'm going to need a sample of your blood to test. In the meantime, you should rest. And drink a lot of water. We need to flush it out of your system."

"I am not an invalid," I said, still gritting my teeth against the pain of my dragon trying to get out. It had been so long since I'd had this much control, I almost forgot what it felt like. While it hurt like a bitch, it was also kind of nice. I did have a need for rest, but not in the way she might think. I needed a break from him so I could think. This might be the perfect opportunity forme to finally come up with a plan. Because I wanted nothing more than to go home.

"No one said you were. Hasn't anyone ever cooked for you before?"

I barked with laughter. "Nearly every day of my life. The King's castle comes equipped with a full staff and an endless supply of food. I utilized it well in between hunts."

"You make it sound so real." Her butter soft words traversed the planes of my body until they lined my ears with her genuine curiosity.

"That's because it is. If not for that cursed plant, I could prove myself."

"So there's nothing different about you in—like—the way you are now?" She stumbled through the question as she started to gather what she needed for a meal. "I would have thought that if fae were actually real that they would have at least some different physical characteristics than humans. Maybe the ears?"

I stared at her in shock as my muscles tightened and my cock grew to the point of pain. Her words had come out sounding innocent, but I'd taken them far differently because there was only one major visible distinction I could think of and it sent my thoughts immediately south. And when she bent over to retrieve something from her lower cupboard, my brain nearly exploded.

I'd encountered a naked human male in my travels these last few months, and I knew exactly how my body differed from theirs. The ridges on my cock would give her the kind of pleasure no human woman had ever encountered before. And my barb... Not that I thought she was ready to experience that.

---