Page 53 of Taming
Rime is shit at showing his emotions. But this feels … affectionate in a way. It’s as natural as breathing for these two.
“They’ve always been better at fighting one another than talking.” Kain doesn’t look to me as he comes to my side, keeping his gaze fixed on his friends who just wiped out the old wooden awning that covered over Agatha’s well. The wood crumbles beneath their massive paws before they carry on to the next space to destroy.
“They’re good at fighting.” My head tilts as Chaos swoops up high to dodge his friend’s roaring attack. Dark wings push hard, swirling the dirt around me as he lifts himself higher and higher.
“They’re so much better at fighting than anything else.” A pause drifts between his words for a moment. “They don’t have much experience with anything else, I guess. Neither of them knows the pain and reality of love. That excited fear that pounds through your heart isn’t even a thought inside their heads.” He isn’t angry with me like he was earlier. There’s a gentleness to his words. I can’t help but wonder if he heard my emotional outburst.
My lips part, and I realize Kain and I might have more in common than he’s letting on. The four of us are used to being defensive, but none of us are very good at simply talking about our feelings. I might have had a normal life at one time, but it’s been long forgotten. Friendship, and just normal conversation, isn’t my strong suit.
Not at all.
No matter how hard I try.
As insufferable as these assholes may be, I’m just like them.
Chapter Eighteen
Flaws and Fuck Ups
An orange hue of warm sunlight hits my golden skin as I wait for it to fade away into dusk. Rime sits next to me on the small steps, shirtless and in a pair of jeans that fit a little too snugly, watching Chaos’ dragon form doze in the dirt. There’s a silence to the man just like there always is, but he seems to be really staring at the dragon. Considering him in a way; making me wish I could understand all the things Rime never says.
Chaos’ dragon is enormous. From the tip of his snout all the way down to the curve of his tail, he’s larger than Aggie’s cottage. His face is bigger than my body. He could literally swallow me in one bite like a midday snack.
Why do I find myself wishing I could be his snack …
“You really should learn some defensive moves for yourself.” Kain’s statement pulls at my attention until I peer up at him. He leans against the door behind me, his pale eyes held on the sunset as the lighting casts across his smooth skin, warming it just slightly.
“What makes you think I don’t already know defensive moves?” My tone is confident even though I only know how to sucker punch someone, and that’s if they’re extremely close and directly in front of me.
For the most part, I just depend on my magic. Too bad I hide it away from the world.
“You won’t always have beasts to protect you.”
A low growl emits from somewhere beneath the bushes, and it seems that Grim would care to disagree with the shifter.
“You think you’re going to train me to be an expert fighter in a few hours?”
His thigh pushes against my shoulders and he passes me, looking back at me as he stalks into the middle of the dusty road.
“I could teach you a thing or two.” There’s almost humor in his words. It’s a flirting, tingling tone really.
It’s … weird.
Rime’s gaze shifts to me, but he keeps his heavy silence even as I stand. The ground is cool beneath my feet, and I take my time meeting him in the middle of the worn roadway.
The slow drag of his attention across my body makes me shift on my feet. I don’t know what’s changed between us. Since this morning, since my small breakdown, he seems to notice me now.
Almost too much.
“Ready?” His taunting tone makes my nerves prickle anxiously, and it’s hard for me to keep my carelessness as I raise my palms from my sides in a casual shrug.
He’s shit at protecting his left side.
My eyes widen. Chaos’ voice whispers through my mind. It distracts me and confuses me, but when I look to him, he seems to still be napping. His tail sweeps across the ground back and forth in a slow motion as if he’s not even aware of it at all.
Did I really just hear him in my thoughts?
I’ve studied all creatures, every beautiful one of them, but the information on rare beasts like dragons is limited. Our world doesn’t have the beautiful deadly creatures roaming the land like it once did. None of my books ever mentioned a telepathic trait between them and humans, and these men haven’t shown me anything like that the entire time they’ve been here.
