Page 28 of The Mating Magic
As the dog bounded onto the sidewalk and vanished down the alley toward the back door, Lacey rubbed her cheek, which had met the ground hard. Drust reached out and thumbed the scrape. The brief burningvanished.
“Thank you.” She didn’t get it. “Why did you saveme?”
The wizard sighed. “I knew you would risk your life for the dog and I could not allow you to getstruck.”
“You could have frozen me in time and let Lucky gethit.”
“And you would have been heartbroken. Another loss, a preventable one, would crush your spirit. You have a fighting soul, Lacey McGuire. You intrigueme.”
Drust perplexed her. Just when she thought she’d figured him for a cold-hearted machine, he did somethingaltruistic.
“You’re right. It would have killed me to lose the dog. Not that you really understand because you’re a powerful immortal. You don’t know what it’s like to lose someone you love so deeply,” shewhispered.
“Alas, I do. I may be centuries old and now immortal, but I am well acquainted with grief, young one.” He stretched out ahand.
Dazed, she took it, let him lead her back toward the shop. The truck had driven off without a backward glance. The street was oddly deserted as well, even though it was barely past two in theafternoon.
Suspicion overcame her. “Did you cause thataccident?”
His expression turned guarded. “No. Something else did. It is of no matter at this time. Comeinside.”
When the door shut behind him, Lacey sat on the stool by the counter, her legs incapable of holding her upright. She pushed a hand through her bangs, and noticed itshook.
Calm down.Focus.
Drust snapped his fingers and his cobalt blue tunic and trousers looked neat and clean once more. She gave a wansmile.
“Cool trick. Want to head to my house and do my laundrynext?”
He did not return the smile. “The potion. You were telling me where it was. I will not be distracted,Lacey.”
Time to pay the piper. Lacey glanced out the window at the gathering storm clouds. Though it was the dry season in Florida, the promise of violent rain lingered in theair.
Or perhaps it was Drust, losing his patience and histemper.
“All right.” She folded her arms across her chest and locked gazes with him. No longer fearing him, for if he’d wanted her dead, he’d have let the truck turn her into roadkill.
“It’sgone.”
Drust went preternaturallystill.
“I used it. Made it into dragonspice, an elixir for Evie. It was still too powerful and raw, and I needed water lilies to diffuse it.” Guilt tightened her throat. “Chase found the vial in my storeroom and tripped. He got some on his skin and it…changedhim.”
For a moment he said nothing, the only indication of his anger a tensing of his jaw beneath his blackbeard.
“Why did you dothis?”
“For Evie,” she said simply. “Evie can’t fly long because her wing never fully formed. Because of this, she feels inadequate and prefers to hide away from other dragons. When she met Chase, he brought out the confidence in her. But when his cousins threw her out of his parents’ ball, she regressed to where she’d been. I had hoped… to fix her wing and make her feel confident and proud of her dragonlineage.”
Drust’s eyes glowed radiant blue. “A noble gesture, but an ill excuse. No potion will be a magick cure for all someone’s ills, Lacey McGuire. No matter how potent itis.”
Before she could protest, he held up an impervious hand. Gone was the geniality and kindness ofearlier.
“What happened to Chase after he absorbed thedragonspice?”
All her earlier bravado fled. “It changed him. He thinks he’s as invincible as you are. And I’m afraid… he may beright.”
“He must be stopped. Chase lacks the discipline and knowledge of the Brehon, and the years of wisdom I have accumulated. He will let the power get to his head…before it burns him up from the insideout.”
