Page 18 of Dragon Daddy's Second Chance

“Blake, I was wondering, well, how do you become ashifter?” she asked, hoping it was the perfect opening. “I mean, do you inherit the ability, or is it just random?”

Blake looked over at her, then set his fork down. “Are you done eating?” he asked, gesturing to her half empty plate.

She nodded, “I’m stuffed,” she said, her appetite suddenly gone. “I couldn’t eat another bite.”

He got to his feet and held out his hand. “Then let’s sit over in the swing and talk,” he said. I’ll take care of the dishes later.”

Without a word, so nervous that she thought her dinner might come back up, she let him lead her over to the swing suspended from the porch roof, and settled down in his arms, hoping it wouldn’t be the last time. They swung in silence for a few minutes, neither speaking, and she wondered if she was going to have to start the conversation again.

“The ability to shift is genetic. It’s usually passed down from fathers to sons. Female shifters are rare, but it does happen sometimes,” Blake said. “Not every male will become a shifter. I honestly don’t know what the percentages are, but I’d guess it’s something like one in four. I’m the lucky one in my family, not that my parents see it that way. To them it’s more like something to be ashamed of, even though all our wealth came from that ability.”

He paused to take a breath. “Wait, what do you mean?” she asked, forgetting about Theo. “You’re rich because you’re a shifter?”

“Sort of,” he said with a shrug. “Our gifts make us just a bit smarter, stronger, a little more cunning than regular humans; some of us, my ancestors, for example, used that advantage to get rich. My parents have conveniently forgotten that fact and are embarrassed by my ability; that’s one of the reasons I was trying to break free that summer, Wren. I don’t want the life they lead. I want to be me, I wantto shift if I want to, and I want to spend my life doing something besides making money and trying to climb the social ladder. Most of all, I want to be with someone who isn’t embarrassed by what I am.”

“I’m not embarrassed, I think what you can do is amazing. I still have a lot to learn about what it means, but I would never want you to hide that part of yourself from me,” she said, aware that she might be having this same conversation with her son in a few years. “Blake, your gift is part of who you are. I wouldn’t want to change that for anything.”

“I should have told you sooner,” he said, pulling her closer, then hesitated. “There’s something else I should probably tell you. I wasn’t sure until we saw each other again. When we were together before, I didn’t really believe the stories that go around, but now, well…”

Suddenly a little alarmed, she sat up in his arms. “Blake, what is it?” she asked. “Whatever it is, I’m sure it’s not going to be as big of a deal as you think it is.”

“Well, the thing is, there are these stories about shifters bonding with their mates, a throwback to the days when the world was a much more dangerous place,” he said. “That bond is supposed to last a lifetime, and coupled with our magic, it can be both wonderful and horrible, warm and comforting when we’re together, heartbreaking and awful when we’re separated.”

The implications of what he was telling slowly sank in. “And you think we’re forming that bond?” she finally asked. “That we’re becoming connected in some way?”

“I don’t think we’re forming it, I think it’s already there,” he said, looking into her eyes. “I think it formed six years ago, and it’s never been broken. I’m not sure anything can break it.”

Her mind was whirling, all the long, lonely nights when she felt like her heart was being ripped out, all the days ofmissing him until it was a physical ache, the times she’d looked into her son’s eyes and felt a powerful longing for something she couldn’t have flooded her. Anger quickly followed the burst of feelings, and she could only stare at him for a second as it bubbled to the surface, choking her for a second, and she fought to drag in a breath.

“So, we’re trapped, stuck together whether we like it or not?” she demanded jumping to her feet, suddenly feeling like there wasn’t enough air, her secret about Theo so much bigger suddenly. “Blake, you should have warned me, you should have…”

Her words trailed off as a huge sob pushed its way up from the depth of her chest; Blake was instantly on his feet, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her closer. “I’m sorry, Wren, I really didn’t believe it back then,” he said. “I didn’t really believe it until I saw you again. I know this is a little scary, but I thought you wanted to be with me as much as I wanted to be with you. I love you, Wren. I’ve loved you since the moment I saw you standing on the bow of your father’s boat.”

It was more than she could take. Pushing him away, she ran for her bedroom, closed the door behind her, and threw herself down on the bed, sobbing out her anger and confusion. Her life wasn’t her own; it belonged to Blake, and if he couldn’t forgive her for keeping Theo a secret, she’d be miserable for the rest of her life.

CHAPTER 11

***BLAKE***

Blake sat motionless in the swing for several seconds, the sound of Wren’s sobs fading as she disappeared into the cabin, then jumped to his feet to follow her. He found her crying into her pillow and stood in the doorway, wanting to go to her, but afraid that would be a mistake. But the need to comfort her, even if he was the cause of her pain, was too great, and he finally walked over to the bed and carefully sat down next to her, then gently put his hand on her back.

She didn’t tell him to leave, didn’t tense at his touch; instead, to his surprise and delight, she turned, sat up, and threw herself into his arms. “I’m sorry, Wren, I didn’t know. You have to believe that,” he said. “I thought it was just a stupid legend. I didn’t think the bond was a real thing. I never meant to trap you, I was in love with you, and I still am.”

“You don’t understand…” she sobbed into his chest. “There’s something I haven’t told you, something that will change everything between us. You’re in love with the girl that I used to be, not the woman I am now. You bonded with someone who doesn’t exist anymore.”

He pulled back, Wren’s emotions pouring through him, the pain and heartache so powerful that it took him a second to find his voice. “Wren, look at me,” he said, tipping her chin up. “I love the old you, I love the new you, nothing is ever going to change that. The bond is only part of what we share, we’re meant for each other, no matter what happened while we were apart.”

She searched his face, tears still streaming down her cheeks. “I’m afraid that you’ll never forgive me, that you’ll never be able to see past what I’ve done,” she said, then sucked in a deep shuddering breath. “I don’t think I could survive losing you again.”

“You’re not going to lose me, Wren,” he said, reaching up to wipe the tears away with his thumbs. “The bond makes sure of that. It makes us work through our problems, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do, but I promise you right now, nothing you’ve done is going to make me love you any less.”

Wren’s eyes filled with hope. He could feel the love and longing slowly building up inside her, and he slowly lowered his mouth to hers, gently kissed her, and then pulled back. “Don’t give up on us, Wren,” he said. “What we have is too special to just walk away from. Fight for me, fight for us, fight for the life we could have together. I know the idea of being bonded to me is frightening, but I promise you’ll never be sorry, not for a single day of your life.”

“Losing you again is the only thing that scares me,” she said, then hesitated. “I don’t know how to tell you this…”

“Then don’t, it doesn’t matter, sweetheart, what matters is that we’re here together,” he said, then pulled her closer. “I want to make love to you, Wren. I want you so badly it hurts.I don’t want to talk anymore tonight. We have the rest of our lives to work everything out.”

She studied him for a moment, desire slowly replacing the fear and doubt in her eyes, and he felt a rush of warmth spread through him as the passion between them slowly came to life. His instincts slowly taking over, he lowered his mouth to hers, cutting off anything she might say, and kissed her deeply, hoping she could feel everything he was experiencing right that moment.

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