Page 59 of Awaken the Dragon
It seemed to click into place at that moment. If that was the Dark One, it made sense that he would want her, if he knew that she was sent to stop his plan. Shola thought about how that knowledge made her feel. Confused. Angry. Anxious all over again.
She walked across the room to where she’d set a picture of her parents on the dresser, right next to the nine-loop bracelet she sometimes wore and her seven-day candle. Lifting the frame, she ran her fingers over the face of Joku and Ejaita, the two who’d raised and loved her. Neither of them knew of her connection to Oya or the dark task her birth had bestowed upon her. Yet, a piece of Shola was certain they would be proud. She was standing for what she believed and doing what she knew was necessary for her people. With that thought, she touched the pendant on her necklace, reaching out to Oya.
“My father just wanted my mother to live. That is why he made the bargain with the Dark One. He made a mistake,” she said quietly. “But how many people live their whole lives and avoid doing that?”
“I don’t know,” Theo replied. “My life is not like yours or theirs. My world is totally different.”
With those words, Shola turned to face him. She dropped her hand from her necklace and looked at Theo, the man. A light brown beard covered his strong jaw, and his shirt hung on muscled shoulders, pants wrapped around toned thighs. To the human eye, he was one of the sexiest men she’d ever seen, but as one who was more than human, magickal as he liked to call her, Theo was a born leader. He possessed a levelheadedness and calm demeanor combined with his ability to listen as well as dole out assignments with a tone that brokered no argument, and did not ruffle any feathers while doing so, that were attributes of someone in charge. He was more than a guard, and she had a feeling, much more than any other dragon on the Far Realm.
Tonight, however, he was troubled.
“I can help,” she said.
“You are helping,” he told her before dragging his hands down his face. “Now that we know about Hoan, it’ll be easier to figure out how to approach this. Getting to Camden is still a priority, and Ziva’s going to help with that. Bleu also found out some things about why Camden isn’t accepted in the Royal Blood, so we might be able to get some help from them in getting rid of him. But you’re a piece of this, Shola. A very big piece.”
He was standing near the leather couch that was situated ten feet from the end of her bed. The couch and two high-back chairs were situated across from a flat-screen TV embedded in the wall. There was a plush navy-blue-and-cranberry-colored rug in the center of that floor and a table at each end of the couch.
“I meant that I can help you right now.” She walked away from the dresser, stopping when she was in front of him.
He touched a finger to her chin and then up to her cheeks. “I’ve never seen a woman with sexy dimples before,” he told her. “I think about yours all the time.”
Shola reached up to take his hand. She kissed the back of it and smiled up at him. “Come with me.” In her mind, the words “my love” echoed at the end of her sentence.
Theo followed her around to the front of the couch while she pushed those words out of focus.
“Have a seat.”
He sat and Shola moved to her altar where she poured from her bottle of oil. She whispered a quick prayer and rubbed the oil lightly in the palm of her hand. Going back to the sitting area, she stood behind the couch and placed her oiled hands on Theo’s neck.
He sighed heavily the moment her skin touched his.
“Close your eyes,” she told him.
“Why? Do you have a big surprise for me?” he joked.
Shola smiled. It was odd how much she could still manage to smile considering their situation. But there was light here, in this moment. There was joy that had spread from the flopping of her stomach seconds after his entrance, to right this moment.
“I want to give you solace,” she whispered in a low, rhythmic tone. “Solace and blessings for one who carries so much.”
“I’m just a man.”
“No, Theo Masters, you could never be just a man.” Shola continued moving her hands over his neck, massaging the sacred oil deep into his skin. When her hands moved beneath the collar of his shirt to massage his shoulders there was a low moan from him and a soft smile on her lips.
“Ibùkùn.Ibùkùn. Ibùkùn.”
He grabbed each of her hands. “What are you saying?”
His tone was alarmed, but his grip on her hands gentle. So much on him, a weight much heavier than she thought she’d ever carried. It saddened her and opened her heart to him further.
“Blessings,” she said. “I’m praying for blessings upon you, Theo.”
“For what?”
“For everything. Whatever you need to go through and conquer. Whatever you feel or do not wish to feel. Blessings for it all.”
She didn’t expect him to pull her hands up to his lips and kiss each one of her fingers. Nor did she anticipate the shock of warmth that soared through her when he did. In the days that she’d been at the Office, Shola had grown accustomed to the cooler temperatures. So much so that she stopped wearing socks to bed at night. When she was in the cave where she had at first been very cold, the moment Theo’s dragon appeared she had warmed and her body had held that temperature even after leaving the cave.
He tugged on her arms until she pulled out of his hold and came around to the front of the sofa. She was about to sit down when he grabbed her by the hips and directed her so that she was sitting across his lap instead.
