Page 27 of The Mating Magic
Gone was the hard expression, replaced by a deep, thoughtful look. Drust closed his eyes, cocked his head and appeared to be listening to something. When he opened his eyes, they were filled withsympathy.
“I am sorry you lost her,” he said quietly. “But you are wrong. I was there. You pleaded with me to save her. She pleaded with me to die. I honored herwishes.”
Lacey stared at him, her rising grief checked by incredulity. “She told youthat?”
Drust nodded, his expression gentle. “She asked me to be released to the afterworld. Her pain was… tremendous. Her passing was easy and she did not suffer, not when shedied.”
She didn’t want to believe it. Her mother had everything to live for, fight for, and she knew Lacey was trying everything in her power to concoct a cure. To discover she’d simply let go and let Drust takeher…
“I escorted her myself to Tir Na-nog. She is happy, Lacey, winging forever in the skies, chasing theclouds.”
If that was supposed to make her feel better it did not. But she could not allow Drust to witness her sheer grief, her personal and private pain. “Whatever. What’s done isdone.”
The wizard cocked his head again, as if listening to a faraway voice. “You never allowed yourself time to grieve. Nor did you shed a single tear over her death. It is not natural, Lacey. You cannot move forward until youdo.”
Natural? Nothing was natural when you lost your mother. Not when you were a dragon, pretending to be a human and had to spend every minute trying to hold yourselftogether.
Some days the grief had been so terrible, she’d gone into the back yard, shifted into her dragon form and bellowed flames at the sky. Anger was far better thantears.
“My life is my business, wizard. Not yours. Stay out ofit.”
That remark should have earned her a stinging blow of coldfire, but instead, Drust seemed intent on looking out the window. Men. They were all the same, never paying attention when youspoke…
“Your dog is outside,” he saidmildly.
Lacey whipped around to look through the window. Lucky stood in the middle of thestreet.
Terror iced her veins, making her run faster as she unlocked and flung open the door and ran onto the sidewalk. Not Lucky, damnit, she’d already lost so much, she wasn’t going to lose the dog aswell…
A medium-sized moving van barreled toward the dog, who sniffed a scrap of food in the street. Lacey yelled, but that damn dog never listened, he would behit…
Ignoring the danger, Lacey dashed into the road to pick up the dog. Something body slammed her. Lacey tumbled to the ground, rolled, clutching the howling dog. She squeezed her eyesshut.
Did I die and go to Tir Na-nog?
She opened her eyes and rolled to one side, looking skyward.No, but damn, this looks likeheaven.
Drust lay atop her, his blue eyes blazing, his mouth tight as he wrapped his arms around her. She inhaled his pleasing scent of spice and forest, and licked her lips. His muscled weight atop her felt comforting. Sexy even. It brought to mind images of satin sheets, hot summer nights, veils billowing in the wind, and their sweat-slicked naked bodies tangling together in purepassion…
I’ve nearly been killed by a truck and all I can think about is sex? Girlfriend, get your prioritiesstraight.
“You can get off me now, wizard,” she managed tosay.
He did, standing up and eyeing the street. Laceygasped.
“Yourlegs!”
Drust turned one calf and looked down at the tire mark clearly indenting his trousers. “Damn. I just had these laundered,too.”
The twinkle in his blue eyes did not reassure her. “The truck didn’t miss me,” sheguessed.
He shook hishead.
“You grabbed me, and it ran over your legs as you shielded me with your body.” Lacey gripped Lucky harder, until he whined. “Why?”
“I may not have been able to save your mother, Lacey, but I am able to keep you from harm.” He patted Lucky’s head as she released the dog. “You are a quite fortunatedog.”
“Go Lucky, back inside the store,” sheordered.
