Page 25 of The Heart of the Dragon

Maybe.

"I don't believe that for a second. There are always other choices."

"Not ones that you would enjoy."

She shook her head and turned towards the cupboards. "Nope. I'm not even going to ask. If you think your brother and his wife can help, and no one has to get hurt, then that's where we'll go." She halted mid reach and turned back. "Where is that, exactly?"

"Edinburgh."

A heavy sigh pushed through her lips. "That's going to be a long drive. The roads out here are a mess right now and there's a lot of miles between here and the nearest motorway. And considering I drove through the night last night, we are going to have to wait until tomorrow or the next day at least depending on the weather. It's looking a bit gloomy out there and the weather service is calling for snow. Should we call them and give them a heads up about our plans?"

"And give Isaac an opportunity to tell me to fuck off? Hell no." But the idea that I had to rely on human travel rubbed my nerves. This world seemed to be more trouble than it was worth. I didn't understand at all why anyone from the fae realm would want to come here, let alone stay. I'd thought the rule that we had to hide ourselves was idiotic, but I'd found something worse.

Losing my dragon.

"Okay, then. I'll make us a proper dinner, and then we'll get some rest so we can leave in the morning."

"I can help." I stood to join her.

"This from the man who can't even figure out an electric stove."

"Where I come from, we don't need electric appliances. We use our natural resources like magic, water, wind, air, and of course fire to run things."

"That sounds smart," she said as she turned the knobs on her stove and placed an iron pan on top of the circular flat coals. "Unfortunately, we don't have magic here, and I think it's cheaper to produce electricity than it is to power everything with more natural resources. Although many places do use alternative forms of energy. Solar and wind are popular in some parts of the world.”

"You do."

"I do what?" she asked while adding links of sausage to her pan, and then reaching for the bowl of potatoes.

"You have magic here. Quite a lot, actually."

She jerked around to face me. "That's impossible." She hesitated. "Well, kind of. But I don't think we are talking about thesame kind of magic. The natural energy in the atmosphere can sometimes be harnessed in very small amounts. But certainly not enough to power this cottage, let alone our cities."

I didn't respond right away. I sat transfixed watching her simple movements. The way she handled the knife with skilled precision while she prepared food, and the light sheen of moisture that had begun gathering on her skin. I wanted to lick it and see how she tasted. And once again, my gaze was drawn to the curves of her figure. The indentation of her waist, the flare of her hips, her backside that I wanted to feel in my hands...

Not to mention the long column of her neck that reminded me of some of the proud strong female fae.

The almost translucent nature of her extremely fair skin...

I blinked and jerked my gaze back to her face. I really needed to figure out what was going on. This constant pull towards the woman herself was throwing me off. Not to mention distracting me at every turn. I had to focus.

"Just because humans are unable to harness it, doesn't mean it doesn't exist. It does. The earth here is rich with it. Without it, there would be no portal between this realm and mine."

"You have no idea how badly I don't want to believe any of this. It sounds insane." She spoke quietly without turning to face me. The resignation in her voice told the truth. She may not want to believe, but she did. Or at least was beginning to. She'd apparently seen the science of it in my blood and now she would have to face the truth.

There was no going back.

Chapter

Eleven

Rose

After we got through dinner—whereMagnus had proven the accuracy of his stated appetite by eating every bite of the three pounds of sausage I had cooked. He'd even accepted my leftovers. I would need to make another run to the food shop as soon as I returned.

Dinner aside, I had so many questions swirling in my mind about how the whole dragon thing worked. The mechanics of shifting, the intricacies of fae magic, and the differences between realms all piqued my curiosity. But despite my burning desire for answers, I could barely keep my eyes open.

The events of the two days had taken their toll, and exhaustion was creeping in fast. How long had it been since I'd last slept? It felt like ages. My lids fluttered closed, and I decided that a few minutes of rest were definitely called for before I mustered the energy to get up and tackle the dishes. I leaned back in my chair, allowing myself to relax for just a moment.

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