Page 70 of Dragon Keeper
“Sister,” Tyr chided. “Be gentle. We’ll discuss this later, after supper. Maybe down in the pool where we can all relax.”
Riley blinked. “Wait, you have a pool? What the hell?”
Brayden was the one who nodded. “Man, you should see it. Sloan made it. There are two pools, actually. There’s a cold one and a hot one. The hot pool is huge. The entire family could come and just hang out and swim.”
“So you really have made this place your own.” Tor’s tone was unreadable.
Sloan nodded, absolutely refusing to be intimidated. “I have. I was honored when Tyr invited me to share his home with him. Absolutely honored.”
Tyr took his hand, giving him a soft smile.
“Are they always so sickly sweet?” Tor asked, turning to Riley.
Of course, Riley nodded. “Oh my God, yes; it’s awful.”
Tyr stuck his tongue out at Riley. “I am in the business of sweet, you do realize.” The little comeback made them all stop for a second and then the laughter started, even Aleana joining in with it.
“Come, let’s get everyone a room. The house will be full. It’s a joy and a blessing. It’s a little bit overwhelming. Hopefully, we have enough blankets for everyone. I know there are enough beds.”
“It will be fine. If we have to, we’ll get some blankets from up at the mountain; you know there are tons there. The beds would be the important part, right?” Sloan soothed his worried mate, hand on his lower back. “Thankfully, there are spaces for everyone.”
Brayden had a room, of course. Riley came next. Then Tor. Fredda would stay with her mama, of course. And by the time that they got to their big room Tyr looked exhausted and near to crying.
“Come have a seat and talk to me.” Sloan patted the bed.
“We need to make sure that there’s enough for everyone.”
He didn’t remind Tyr that this home was magical like all of the other places in this entire world, and that every room they went into seemed adequate, if not well-appointed. Pillows, beds, bedding. While none of the rooms were large, they were cozy and more than comfortable. Fredda even had a teeny tiny bed that pulled out from beneath Aleana’s as a trundle. It was sweet as it could be.
And Sloan had no doubt that if their family was uncomfortable in any way, it had nothing to do with the rooms.
Tyr slumped down on the bed next to him. “I feel wrung out.”
“Of course you do.” Sloan scooted back up against their headboard before he opened his arms to his mate, beckoning him.
Tyr came to him right away, crawling up to sit between his legs and lean back against his chest.
Sloan stroked Tyr’s chest and then put a hand over his belly where the baby bump was evident if only to his fingers. “I know you’re not upset about the house,” he said. “Is it Tor? Is that why you’re so stressed?”
Tyr heaved a sigh, belly rising and falling against his hand. “I love my brother, but I worry.”
“Is there something off about this visit? Do I need to worry about him maybe not actually being your brother?”
That caused Tyr to break up laughing, the sound merry. “No, no that dragon is totally Tor, and I can tell you that both Aleana and I feel him here. What I worry about is what he wants.”
“I can see that. Is it bad that he’s here?”
Tor did seem like he didn’t really want to be here, and frankly, that made Sloan nervous. That false cheer was unnerving. Honestly, Tor seemed like a man walking into a situation that he dreaded completely.
“No, absolutely not.” Tyr pulled away from him and turned to put his head on Sloan’s shoulder, hand on Sloan’s chest so they could look at each other as they talked. “He’s just always been more ambitious than either me or Aleana, so when he left, we honestly never expected to see him again. The fact that he’s back leads me to believe that he knows something that we don’t, and it concerns me.”
“He’s very extra, love.”
Tyr snorted. “Yes, well thanks to you, I know what that means now, but you’re right. His magic is very over-the-top because it’s trained magic. It’s not just wild energy like all of us possess. You’ll definitely feel it when he’s near.”
“All right. How do we get him to tell him what he wants?” Sloan wasn’t above threats. He really wasn’t.
“He will tell me when he’s ready. You may well imagine he won’t tell Aleana. She is still very, very angry at him.”
