Page 6 of Dragon Compelled
Mag is distracted, scouring the worlds for Hoc.
Aries is doing a job he never asked for.
Bingo is barely sleeping, constantly on alert.
And I’m stuck trying to decide which books are dangerous enough to need our protection while this supposed council that I’m not even sure actually exists anymore is MIA.
Looking up at the ceiling, I shake my head. “You made a mistake,” I tell the library. “And if you have the ability to, you need to summon the council here so they can help us fix it.”
The only answer is deafening silence.
“Fine.” I add two more books to the library, decline a third, and then switch back to my research on the council.
Why haven’t they shown up yet?
Is it possible that Constantine got to them, too? But even as I think it, I shove that thought aside. If he had gotten to them, the library would have simply chosen three new members, and they would have arrived already. That much I can see from Hoc’s memories.
My computer dings, letting me know that another request has come in.
But before I can even click on it, the door opens again. Agitation creeps up my spine until my gaze lands on my dragon king. Accidentally freeing Aries from his book was a mistake of the highest order according to the library’s rules, but it’s also the best thing I ever did because it brought me a love I only ever thought possible in fiction. Besides, if Athenaeum was pissed about it, she had her chance to tell me. The fact that she never mentioned it has made me bolder where he’s concerned. Ten days ago, I made him an honorary keeper, and he’s been working here ever since.
My pulse quickens at the sight of him dressed in dark jeans, a tight white t-shirt, and an open leather jacket. Thanks to Mag and his shopping obsession, my dragon has been outfitted head to toe, finally wearing something more than the sweats I made him when he first arrived a few weeks ago.
Not that I minded the sweat pants.
“You look stressed,” he says, his deep baritone washing over me like a warm blanket.
“Gee. Thanks. You look great, too.”
“Not what I meant.” Aries closes the door softly and comes around the desk where he kneels and turns my chair to face him. His large hand cups mine, his sharp blue gaze not missing anything. “You are always beautiful, but I can see your stress, Paige.”
“I’m not trying to hide it.” I lean back in the chair. “Did you find anything?”
“No,” he replies, and a part of me that hasn’t quite lost hope yet is deflated just a bit more. I’m not even sure how I still manage to be disappointed when he and Mag come back empty-handed from their daily searches. It’s been two weeks since Hoc disappeared through that portal with Constantine. Fourteen days of hoping to fill a troll-sized hole in my heart. “I’m sorry, Paige,” he says as he strokes my cheek. “I long to bring you good news.”
I open my eyes and stare back at him with a half-smile on my face. “I know you do, and I appreciate it. But wanting something doesn’t make it happen.”
Aries’s lips flatten into a tight line. I expect him to give me some words of wisdom. Words that a king would speak when trying to motivate his people. But my dragon royal doesn’t say a word. He simply pushes to his feet and pulls me up with him, lifting and setting me on the desk before I can utter a single protest.
He steps between my legs and cups my cheeks then presses his lips to mine. The fire in my soul ignites at the contact between us, a pull I don’t know that I will ever understand, nor can I possibly live without it now that I’ve found him. The stubble on his jaw scrapes deliciously against my skin as he releases my lips and trails his mouth up to press a kiss to my forehead. There, he rests his head against mine.
“Come and let us rest tonight. We can watch one of those romantic movies you are always speaking of. Have dinner. Let me love your worries away, Paige.”
The offer is tempting. Especially since Aries could use the rest as much as I. Before Hoc disappeared, Aries was poisoned by a basilisk and almost died. He claims he’s fully recovered, but I still worry with him going out hunting every day with Mag.
If I were to lose him, too, I don’t know that I would survive it.
No, IknowI wouldn’t.
Unfortunately, I know I can’t let myself rest until Hoc is home and this library is back in the hands of someone capable of ensuring its safety. I push back against his chest, seeing the disappointment in his gaze even before I speak the words. “I’m sorry, Aries, I can’t.”
“Paige—”
“No.” I shove him back another step and hop down. “This library is my responsibility. It’s my kingdom,” I add, hoping to put it in terms he’ll understand. “I have to make sure it runs smoothly, and I’m already so far behind.”
“You won’t catch up by driving yourself into the ground,” he retorts. “Which is exactly what you’re doing. You barely sleep, hardly ever eat, and I haven’t seen a smile on your face since—”
“Since my surrogate father was ripped through a portal by a man capable of heinous, unpredictable evil?” I interrupt. “An enemy who was right in front of my nose and yet I couldn’t sense the betrayal?”
