Page 47 of Hoarded By the Dragon

He presses his lips together. “We may not have a romantic relationship, but you are mine. I care for what is mine.”

I narrow my eyes at him to keep from melting, from trusting him. I trusted him too quickly last time. “I’m not yours. Let’s just focus on keeping the baby healthy.”

His nostrils flare, as if annoyed that I’d assume he’d do otherwise. He glares at me like he wants to say something else. Maybe deny my assertion. The tension in the room rises, and the hand on my belly grows hotter.

The knock at the study door dissipates whatever he’d been wanting to say.

“Come in,” Kalos growls.

“I brought dinner,” Maggie says as she walks in with a tray.

“You should put me down so we can eat,” I say.

Kalos ignores my words for a beat, and I wonder if he’s going to tune them out completely before he finally moves to set me on the couch. He arranges me right next to him so that our outer thighs press together. His body burns against mine. It’s distracting, but better than that one time he’d fed me.

No wonder I’d assumed that we could have a relationship. Kalos sends the worst mixed signals. Of course I’d be confused.

Telling me we can’t be together one moment and claiming I’m his the next. The way he touches me flies in the face of us not being romantically together, but then again, that could just be sex. We’re compatible. It doesn’t mean more than that.

I won’t let my lonely heart try and convince me otherwise.

Maggie sets the tray on the coffee table, and Kalos pulls it toward us so I can reach the plate.

“It looks delicious,” I say, even as my eyes water at the spicy steam rising from it.

Maggie runs her fingers over my shoulder, and her shoulders drop in relief. “Improving already.”

Kalos’s face shows no emotion at Maggie’s declaration. So the extra cuddles will work. More conscious time spent with this man who so blithely offers me things that I can’t trust.

Goody.

17

KALOS

I knock.My dragon grumbles at knocking on a door in our own home, but this is her space, and she isn’t asleep this time.

Katarina swears softly on the other side, moving around the room as if in a hurry. I furrow my brow.

“Who is it?” she calls out.

“It’s… me.” I mentally curse myself for how awkward I feel. It’s silent on the other side of the door, and I sense her surprise.

She finally answers after a pause. “Come in.”

I enter, expecting her to be on one of the couches in the lounge area of the room or by the bed, but instead she stands in front of the closed bathroom door. I swallow at the scent of the room. Over the past month, this place has become more hers with the scent of her permeating every inch. There’s a variation of that today, but I’m too distracted by her to pick apart whatever is new.

“What are you doing here?” she asks. Her heart races with what seems like nerves.

“I thought we could add a contact session in the time before bed as well as in the morning. Does that work for you?” I ask. It’s odd to not just lay out my plan and expect her to obey, but I’m not in charge of her. She is mine to protect, but she isn’t my employee.

I have very few people in my life who wouldn’t do as I command. It’s easier to be around people who know what’s expected of them. Katarina and I don’t have a contract or any connection other than the young she carries. My dragon wants to provide for her, but I can’t just go around doing what I please when it affects her life.

Katarina’s shoulders relax.

“That’s a good idea.” She glances down and blinks. “What are you wearing?”

I look down in confusion before arching a brow. “A robe.”

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