Page 20 of Taming
I might never tell the others, but Rime is breathtaking in his dragon form. In his human form as well, I suppose. The coarse scales catch the light of the sliver of moon and the stars, and they almost shine with their own cosmic beauty. My palm rises to him, and those calculating eyes watch the movement. When I reach up to him, his head lowers just a fraction, as if he didn’t want to, but he can’t help but bow to me. My fingers trace across the hard edge of his jaw and that delicious purring sound emits from him. It sinks right into me.
There’s this tension between him and me when he’s human.
That pressured feeling doesn’t exist when he’s in his beast form. His dragon seems to want me to want him.
To care for him.
To love him.
“Be careful.” It’s whispered words that make his features soften, and I suddenly realize I’m becoming too attached to these creatures. I push the sweetness from my tone. “Be careful because I still owe you to the Prince, and I can’t really afford to lose that investment, you know.” I pull my hand away, keeping my features smooth as he shakes his dragon head at me.
I can’t show all my emotions to these assholes.
Goddess knows what they’d do with my little fragile heart if I ever showed it.
Warm fingers slip through mine, toying with my palm before tugging me back.
“Come on. It’s getting late.” Chaos keeps his hand in mine for a short amount of time as we walk a few feet before pulling away from me.
We trail through the night in silence. The glinting stars through the tangle of tree limbs hold my attention, catching all my hopes and dreams and random thoughts. While Chaos’ attention shifts hard over the shadows.
“How long have you lived here?”
His question almost makes me stagger. He’s … making small talk. As if we’re friends.
It feels uncomfortable.
“Just a year. I moved around a lot before that.” I don’t add my sob story about the bad break up and the best friend I lost because of it, or the years I spent trying to adjust. Because we’re not friends. Not at all.
He nods, his attention still sifting through the shadows of the thick trees.
“Where were you guys before this?” It can only benefit me to know more about the men I’m sharing my quiet days with now.
“Uh, it’s hard to tell you really. We got into some trouble a few months back. We traveled a lot before that, packing up before life gets too mundane.” He tilts his head to me for only a moment, but during that moment his gaze travels the length of my body, making me warm from the small amount of attention.
“That sounds really nice actually. I always wanted to see more of the world.” That’s what got me in my shitty relationship to begin with. Kreedence offered me a chance to see so much more. Sometimes, more isn’t always what you need.
His gaze slowly wanders to the dirt between us.
“You should. Don’t settle for what you have. Never settle for less than everything. Life’s too short to think you deserve less than all of your dreams and desires.”
I cock a brow at his romantic words.
This is the guy they were calling Dickless less than an hour ago …
Silence settles back in, but his words replay on repeat in my mind. I wish it were that easy. To just accept the things I want and not overthink all the things I need.
Like survival.
Sometimes, the past is too present to really think about the future.
Finally, my home sweet home comes into view. Another board has fallen off the broken window that adorns the front, and it looks like Grim has trampled over the wild flowers that were just starting to grow again.
Speaking of Grim.
Crimson eyes blink into the night. They roam over every inch of the darkness before settling on me like a compass seeking true north. My favorite little demon spawn emits a growl into the night, making hot embers glow as his teeth bare to us.
“It’s okay, baby,” I whisper as we make our way closer.
