Page 32 of Been There Dragon That
His sinful mouth curved into a smirk that made her insides warm. “But you are my mate, Rylee Florence. Your soul glows for me. You are meant for me, and I am meant for you. What else would I call you?”
More warmth climbed into Rylee’s cheeks. In fact, it was spreading over her entire body. In all the years she spent with Jeff, she couldn’t remember him ever making her feel as special as this stranger had managed to do in less than eight hours.
She wiped her watering eyes with the back of her hand. This man was being so open and vulnerable and genuine with her. And because of her past, she refused to trust what her mind and heart were telling her. What Naomi had told her.
Wrath wasn’t a bad choice.
But she wasn’t in a place to make a choice right now. She had baggage, and her brain was messed up because of Jeff and the accident. This man didn’t deserve her mess, and she wasn’t going to saddle him with it.
“Are you okay on your own for a minute? I’m going to get the stove lit so the cabin won’t be so cold for you.” Wrath straightened, rising to his full height and reminding her how much bigger he was.
She wasn’t tiny, but he was huge. At least six and a half feet tall. Maybe taller. And his body was cut and carved from muscles that would make ancient Greek sculptors green with envy.
“I’m good.” She glanced around the semidark, very empty living room. “Is there … are we…” How was she supposed to ask the man if he had a bed for her to sleep in?
He gestured for her to follow him. He flipped on a hall light and opened a door into a large bedroom with an even larger bed centered and facing another wall of floor to ceiling windows.
She rubbed her arms and stepped into the bedroom behind him.
His bedroom.
With one bed.
“There are extra pillows and blankets in the trunk at the foot. I’ll be back after I light the stove.” He set the bag of clothes Naomi had given her down on the trunk and then left her alone.
She plopped her butt down on the trunk next to the bag and stared out into the dark forest highlighted with white snow and ice and shadows.
Was she about to sleep in the same bed with this man that local women fought over? He was treating her like he’d snapped his fingers and fallen in love. It wasn’t normal. Or possible.
And was it real?
Was it an act?
If he really hadn’t been interested in thatperfectBarbie-looking woman from the grocery store, why the hell would he look at her? With her My Little Pony purple, pink, and blue streaked hair. Baggy sweatpants. No makeup.
She could clean up nice, but he hadn’t seen that. He’d seen her crying and scared to death. He’d seen her tell him he was crazy. He’d seen her hurt, and she’d sent him away.
And he kept coming back.
He kept saying the same thing.
That he would prove her doubts wrong. That they were fated for each other. Which wasn’t a thing.Right?
That table had been full of people who believed it was athing.And he’d said that wasn’t even the whole tribe. That two of the couples were out of town right now. They all believed. They all accepted that he’d brought her to dinner because she washis. That he’dfoundher.
Fuck.
Either she had been surrounded at dinner by extremely happy brainwashed women and beautiful giant dominant men, or whateverfatething they were talking about had at least a little bit of merit.
Nope.She wasn’t prepared to believe that yet. She had too much on her plate right now. Mystery, Alaska was supposed to have been a hideaway while she recuperated and rested.
No people. No men. Just her and a comfy couch and some really good books.
Which she didn’t have. Cause her phone was back at the house and so were the paperback books she’d brought. It wasn’t that she didn’t like the idea offateandmeant-to-beromance. She read plenty of it. But it was a fantasy. Like the wolf and dragon shifters she read about in her books sweeping their mates off their feet.
If a Fae prince waltzed into this cabin and stole her away to a world where she was his fated mate, would she go? Would she even believe him or give him the time of day? Would she dismiss him like she was dismissing Wrath?
Heavy footsteps came from her right. Wrath walked into the bedroom and paused when he met her gaze.
