Page 37 of Dragon's Revenge

“Scared?” Not the answer Delton had expected. “Can you tell me why?”

Another long pause. “What if you change your mind again?”

Again? When had he…? Oh. He had been wishy-washy about the whole thing, hadn’t he? At least, from Oliver’s perspective, it sure had to look that way. “You mean like when I said I would try and then decided I didn’t want that after all…and then still spent time with you both?”

“Yeah. Not that I blame you… We hurt you, and…” He dropped his shoulders. “I hurt you, and you had every right to walk away.”

Ouch. That was the problem with someone holding up a mirror, wasn’t it? As necessary as it was, it also meant facing uncomfortable truths. “That caused you pain.”

Oliver stole a sideways glance at him. “But is it fair to be upset about that?”

Delton shrugged. “Your feelings don’t care about fair or not. They just are. You can’t help what you feel. The only thing you have control over is how you respond to those feelings. In your case, you can’t help being upset, but you do have a choice on how to deal with that.”

“It feels wrong to feel hurt.”

“The feeling itself is not wrong. If I put myself in your shoes, I can imagine that my walking away and thus rejecting you caused you pain.”

“I’m scared you’ll do it again…”

Oliver sounded so fragile when he said it that Delton’s heart clenched. He might now be certain they were mates, but that didn’t mean everything was peachy-perfect all of a sudden. They still had a lot of issues to work through, not least of all Oliver being emotionally vulnerable. Delton couldn’t protect him from everything, but he could offer reassurance where possible.

“Look at me, baby,” he said softly, waiting until Oliver had lifted his eyes. “I can’t promise that you’ll never get hurt again by me or by Adar or even both of us. Unfortunately, life doesn’t come with guarantees like that, and I may not have a lot of experience with relationships, but I do know they come with a lot of challenges. But what I can promise is that I’ll never walk away from you and Adar ever again. I’m staying. I may be upset, I may cry or need some distance from you for a little bit…but I won’t walk out again. I’m in this now. You’re my mates, and I will never leave you.”

Oliver’s eyes filled with tears, and then he all but launched himself at Delton, who suddenly had his arms full of a dragon omega who didn’t want to let go. So he held him on his lap and hugged him, breathing him in until their heartbeats synchronized.

And then they waited for their mate to return.

ChapterFifteen

He couldn’t think about his mates. Adar wanted nothing more than to let his mind wander and dream about a future for Delton, Oliver, and him, but he couldn’t afford to be distracted. He needed to be focused because even a second of not paying attention could cost him. The Murphys were formidable opponents, even in their current weakened state…even if, technically, they were no longer the Murphy clan.

Their alpha group was eleven strong. Blair was the visual lead as the Commander of the Doyles, with Jermon and Adar flanking him. Erwan was right behind them as the king, protected from all sides as he had his brothers Valdis and Nadiv on either side, plus Wilmer and Isam. Fallon was on Erwan’s heels as the only omega in that group, with Ori and Maz—in case someone got hurt.

Erwan looked bad. He’d lost weight, and his eyes were sunken in a pale face. Adar wasn’t sure what was wrong with the dragon, but he suspected it was the fated mate bond. Being separated from his mate had to affect him, and the longer it took, the worse it would get. All they could do was hope Rhene would somehow find his way back. But for now, they had to concentrate on this mission.

Their group was impressive, with plenty of muscle to deter the Murphys from trying anything and enough magic to prevent them from attempting any funny business. But the real threat wasn’t in the group of alphas, which was, for lack of a better word, mostly for show. Sure, Fallon was a powerful dragon when it came to magic, but everyone else had been picked because they were alphas, not because they had specific skills—with only a few exceptions, Adar being one of them.

They were the distraction, the decoy. They were what the Murphys would expect, a display of brute alpha strength. The real force was the group of omegas plus two betas who would sneak their way in while the alphas caused a stir. Finlay, Gael, Martin, and Zack were tasked with finding the omegas, with Crowell joining them as the only omega fighter and Jorah and Frick as healers in case the prisoners needed to be healed before being able to travel. With them were Palani and Kean, who had volunteered to provide support, probably because they were going crazy with worry over their brother. Plus, Palani could talk himself out of pretty much any situation, which was a classic Hightower trait all three brothers shared.

The Murphys had been easy enough to find with a little magic, courtesy of Fallon, boosted by Finlay. They’d moved into a former hotel in the mountains on the other side of the capital, an area that had once been a popular travel destination. The small towns were mostly deserted now, with only a few original inhabitants remaining, so it made sense as a hiding place for a group of dragons.

They’d bought the hotel—Palani had found the deed—and were living there now, though minus King Ennis and Tynan, who had disappeared. Smart move, as some Murphys might otherwise be tempted to take revenge. It was about an hour’s drive, and with plenty of cars and trucks, this was no big deal.

The alpha group had parked on the outskirts of town so they could enter the town as a group, while the omegas had parked much farther away and hiked in, keeping themselves hidden from sight. Since they hadn’t seen anyone stir, it seemed their mission had been successful so far.

“Omegas are in place,” Blair announced, who was in contact with Zack through discreet earpieces. “We’re good to go.”

“Showtime,” Jermon whispered. “Let’s give them the show of a lifetime.”

They all straightened and made themselves broad, and Adar repressed a smile. They were giving a performance, but hopefully, it would be enough to fool the Murphys.

The town was full of decaying and broken structures, their paint peeling and roofs sagging under the weight of time. Abandoned storefronts and dilapidated houses stood as silent witnesses to the slow crumbling of this once-thriving community. Weeds had overtaken sidewalks, and what had to have been a bustling main street now had only scattered traces of human existence.

And gods, it was eerily silent, with only the occasional creak of a rusty sign swinging in the wind. A mix of damp wood, decaying vegetation, and that dusty, moldy scent of neglect filled the air. No fresh mountain air here. What a sorry sight.

The hotel itself wasn’t much to look at either. It hadn’t seen a fresh coat of paint in at least three decades, and the front porch looked like it could collapse at any moment. If the Murphys were planning on renovating this, they’d better bring a boatload of cash. On the plus side, that might mean they’d be very open to the deal they were about to propose.

When they walked up to the hotel, Alistair and Kerry were waiting for them. “We knew you were coming,” Kerry sneered.

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