Page 1 of Dragon's Revenge

ChapterOne

“Imissed you.” Delton hugged Duer just a little longer than he normally would have. “I’m so glad you could meet today.”

Delton let go, and Duer studied him, his eyes searching Delton’s face. “What’s wrong?”

Delton didn’t even bother pretending he was fine, that everything was fine. Everything was far from fine. In fact, it hadn’t been so unfine ever, which was maybe not the nicest thing to feel or say in this situation, but it was the truth. And at the end of the day, he’d choose the truth anytime over platitudes. “Everything.”

To his credit, Duer didn’t laugh at Delton’s overdramatization. “Talk to me.”

“Let’s walk.”

They headed for the forest, both silent until they’d found their usual trail, a loop that would take them about forty-five minutes. They’d had a heavy thunderstorm the evening before that had drenched the forest, and now the ground was damp, the tapestry of leaves and needles treacherously slippery. The heavy scent of wet soil filled Delton’s nose, grounding him as he breathed in deeply. Birds happily called out their song to each other and to the world, a chorus of various melodies that competed for attention. A rabbit sat on the trail, his nose nervously moving as he watched them come closer. A few seconds later, he darted off, his fluffy little tail bobbing as he hopped under a bush.

“I assume this has something to do with Adar and Oliver?” Duer asked.

“Tell me the truth, how much does everyone know? Because it feels like they’re all talking about me and feeling sorry for me.”

Duer was never one to answer impulsively—one of the many things Delton appreciated about him. The beta was thoughtful, perhaps the inevitable trait of a lawyer, although one could argue about the chicken and the egg in this case. Had Duer become deliberate with his words as a result of his legal training? Or had that consideration always been there and contributed to his decision to enter the legal profession? Not that it mattered, but Delton’s brain wanted to know anyway. The puzzle of human behavior was never solved for him.

“I wouldn’t say people feel sorry for you. That term implies… It has a negative connotation, and that’s not the truth. People, me included, want to see you happy.”

The implications of that statement were immediately obvious to Delton. “So they think I’m not happy?”

Duer shot him a sideways look, then bumped his shoulder. “You know you’re not. Hence my question about Adar and Oliver.”

Delton sighed. He was stalling, delaying the inevitable, but why? He could trust Duer. He did trust him, more than anyone else in the pack, probably. What had started as developing rapport with a client had grown into a close friendship, one he valued deeply. So why was he so reluctant to open up?

Maybe somewhere deep inside, he’d still clung to the power imbalance in their relationship, with Duer always being the one who leaned on Delton. Unhealthy as it was—and in his more introspective moments, Delton readily acknowledged that—he did get an identity boost from being the strong one, the helper. And now that the roles were reversed, it was uncomfortable.

“Did I ever tell you I thought Adar was my mate?”

“No, but I knew.”

Of course he did. “Sivney mentioned pretty much everyone knew.”

“Sorry, but you weren’t all that subtle about it. Whenever he was near, you literally couldn’t take your eyes off him.”

Delton couldn’t help but laugh at himself. “And here I thought I was being stealthy about it. Delusional, clearly.”

“I don’t think he ever noticed though. Which, I will admit, I do hold somewhat against him.”

That loyalty to Delton warmed his heart. “Thank you.”

“Do you hold that against him?”

Wow, that was a good question. Did he? “You know what? I think I do. It stings that he never even considered me as a partner until…” He sighed. “Let me back up a little. From the second I met Adar, I felt he was my mate. The connection was so instant and obvious to me, even though I knew next to nothing about fated mates at that point, that I never questioned it. Not even when he never noticed me. And then Oliver showed up.”

“That must’ve hurt deeply, seeing him fall so hard for Oliver.”

Delton would never stop being amazed by the power of words. Feeling seen and heard meant so much to people, him included. Duer simply acknowledging Delton’s pain made all the difference. “It broke my heart. Not to sound dramatic, but?—”

“It’s not dramatic. I can’t even imagine what that must’ve been like. Even more when he asked you to be present for Oliver’s heat.”

So everyone knew about that as well. Great. “Not my best day, no.”

“I hope you know that none of us were informed beforehand. If Fallon had even picked up on a rumor, he would’ve done his best to prevent it.”

“Adar didn’t tell anyone before he asked me. Even Sivney apologized and swore he would’ve stopped it had he known.”

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