Page 22 of Into the Dawn
Listening to the two males who had suddenly appeared in her backyard made it clear that everything was really happening. They were from another planet and had traveled the stars to come save her.
The very idea of that seemed too fantastical to be real.
It was like a plotline straight out of one of the romance books she enjoyed reading. It really didn’t seem possible that anyone would travel across the universe simply to ensure that she lived, but they weren’t just anyone.
Ronan and Dominic Karos were her mates.
The concept of fated mates wasn’t something most humans believed in. Of course, a lot of people fantasized about having a soulmate. It was a little less lonely in the world to imagine thateveryone had a perfect match out there somewhere. While that romantic concept was appealing, Kylie wasn’t one to believe in fate. Too much bad shit happen in the world for it to make sense that it had been planned that way.
She couldn’t subscribe to the notion that losing her family long ago was part of some predetermined cosmic design. Or that her illness had happened at the height of her success for a reason. Added to that, she didn’t particularly like the idea of someone or something having more control over her life than she did.
Regardless of her skepticism, it was difficult for her not to reconsider believing in the power of destiny after the last few days. She still wasn’t sure of many things, but one thing held true.
Meeting her mates was the best thing that had ever happened to her.
The moment she saw Ronan and Dominic, Kylie had been instantly attracted to them. That wasn’t the least bit shocking since they were the physical embodiment of every fantasy she’d ever had. At the time, she hadn’t understood the intensity of the magnetic pull she’d felt. Part of that was because she was so sick, but another part was simply because humans didn’t understand the true nature of fated mates.
She’d always dreamed of finding a deep, abiding love like her parents had. They had been more than lovers, they had also been best friends and true partners. But a love like that was difficult to find. Even finding someone decent to date seemed impossible at times. And there was no guarantee feelings wouldn’t fade or change over time.
Now, she had the opportunity to have an epic, timeless love and an unbreakable bond that would transcend time, space, and even death.
Kylie just had to be brave enough to accept it.
Meeting intelligence beings from another planet wasn’t something that happened every day. Sure, she’d always believed that there were other lifeforms out there. The universe was too big for there not to be. But she never imagined two hot aliens would end up landing in her backyard one stormy night.
It was even harder to believe they belonged to her now.
Their initial meeting hadn’t exactly been ideal. Although they had somehow known she was ill, they’d had to be horrified of the condition they’d found her in. She’d felt extremely self-conscious about how she looked, especially when both of them were the epitome of masculine beauty.
They hadn’t interacted for more than a few minutes before it was lights out for her. The magical tonic they had given her worked, but it had come with a cost. Initially, it had seemed like she had simply fallen asleep, but it didn’t take long to realize it wasn’t a normal sleep cycle.
In fact, she wasn’t sure she could use the wordnormalabout anything anymore.
While she was technically unconscious, she was still aware of what was going on around her. Not all the time, but her mind drifted awake from time to time even though her body was on lockdown. Unfortunately, that wasn’t always a good thing. When the magical tonic had started healing her, she’d felt every excruciating second of it.
It had felt like she was being burned alive from the inside out. Feeling that type of agony while essentially being trapped in a motionless coffin was a certain type of hell, but thankfully, it hadn’t lasted long. That painful burning had slowly faded until she only felt pleasantly warm inside.
Unfortunately, the burning sensation returned each time they fed her more of the tonic, although not as intense. Every time the pain decreased, she took that as a good sign. And nowthat the tonic was almost finished, she hoped she would wake soon.
During her magical slumber, she was fascinated by what she’d heard from her mates. She couldn’t move, but she could listen and learn. Ronan and Dominic had been her constant companions ever since she’d fallen asleep. She loved listening to their deep voices telling her stories and sharing information about their home world.
The more they spoke, the easier it was for her to distinguish the subtle differences of their voices. She sometimes got lost in the deep cadence of their tones, unable to focus on the actual words they spoke. She also thought she heard a rumbling purr at times, and strangely, that sound comforted her more than a soothing lullaby.
The way they took care of her during her convalescence touched her heart. They made sure she was clean, fed, and went out of their way to ensure she was comfortable. Normally, all of that would have embarrassed her to the max. If she had been awake, she would have turned beet red if they had suggested helping her to the bathroom or taking a shower. But the respectful way they handled everything let her know they did it strictly for her care and comfort.
While it had only been a few days since they met, she had already gotten to know a lot about Ronan and Dominic through their words and stories. Although they were warriors who carried big ass swords and a slew of other weapons, they were kind and compassionate souls. Both of them were open and honest with very little pretense, which was a rarity in her world of celebrities and clout chasers.
They weren’t sure she could hear them, but they didn’t mind spending hours at a time simply sitting by her side and talking to her. She thought it was cute that it had taken them so long to work up the courage to sit next to her on the bed. Then, she’drealized they had been concerned about breaking the frame with their weight. Since her bed was made of solid wood, they didn’t have to worry.
She knew they held some information back for fear of freaking her out too much, even during their one-sided conversations. They figured she already had a lot to deal with, and they wanted her focused on healing before really trying to get her to accept them.
But she kept a secret from them as well.
They couldn’t hide anything from her since she could hear their thoughts.
Discovering that she had mates was amazing. However, learning that those mates were telepathic, magic-wielding, dragon shifting warriors from another planet was absolutely mind-boggling.
It might have been a good thing she was unconscious when she discovered that astonishing tidbit. That way, her internal freakout didn’t end up insulting them. It wasn’t that she was upset about the circumstances. She’d just had a really hard time believing everything was real.
