Chapter 6

Two hours after he’d left for his own sanity, Rhys returned to the mansion with no new information and a strange sort of anxiety buzzing through him at the need to see Dallas again. What the hell was wrong with him?

He rolled his shoulders as he quietly slipped in through the front door. He needed to get his shit together, needed to stop thinking about Dallas. Although that was going to be pretty damn difficult, considering he’d been ordered to be her shadow the next couple weeks.

As he started to head up the stairs, he paused as he heard voices trailing from somewhere in the house. A very distinctive male voice—Axel’s—followed by Dallas’s laughter. Rhys straightened and instead of heading upstairs to his bedroom where he should be going, he hurried as casually as possible through the house to where the voices were coming from.

“I swear, you are magic,” Axel said, practically purring.

Damn lion.

“I’m just glad the tea worked,” Dallas murmured.

Rhys stepped into the kitchen to find the two of them sitting across from each other at the white granite center island, Axel holding a mug of tea that smelled like peppermint and something else Rhys couldn’t quite figure out. Only the small pendant light over the sink and some of the under-cabinet lights were on, giving the whole room a sort of…romantic feel. Rhys didn’t like this at all.

“Rhys, my man.” Axel smiled in that genial way of his, as if he didn’t have a care in the world. “Dallas here is a goddess. Whatever she gave me, I feel a hundred times better.”

Rhys clenched his jaw and actually had to bite back a growl at this male praising her. It was clear that Axel wasn’t hitting on her, just complimenting her. But his dragon wanted to rip Axel’s face off nonetheless. Then burn him to a crisp. And maybe eat him for a midnight snack.

Whatever expression was on his face, it made Axel frown at him. “Everything all right?”

He cleared his throat and realized that Dallas was watching him warily as well. “Yeah, I just had an unsuccessful night, that’s all.” And he did not want to care about the witch in front of him. Or the fact that he was beyond annoyed that Axel seemed so enamored by her.

Axel pushed up from his chair and took his mug to the sink. “Maybe if you ask nicely, Dallas will make you some tea as well.” Then the big lion kissed her on top of her head and said, “Welcome to the house. If you need anything, my bedroom is on the second floor.”

Rhys couldn’t tell if the male was flirting with her or just trying to be helpful, but he felt his dragon in his eyes so he turned away until he was able to get himself under control.

Dallas murmured a generic thanks as the lion strode from the room. Then she smiled at Rhys. “I’m sorry you had a bad night. Did you want some tea?” Her voice was like sunshine, bathing him in its warmth. “He’s had like two pots of this stuff.”

“I don’t want you to go to any trouble.” He didn’t want any tea, but he also didn’t want to go to bed. He just wanted to be around Dallas for a few more minutes, to extend their time together as long as possible. Something about her presence soothed something deep inside him. Which made no sense.

“It’s really no trouble,” she said, glancing out the kitchen window. “Poor Willow, she can’t seem to get settled. I was hoping she would calm down a little bit as it got later.” Moving around the kitchen with ease, she pulled out another mug. “Oh, it looks like there’s enough, so I don’t even have to make any more,” she said as she poured him a full mug.

“Thank you.” He took it, careful not to brush his fingers against hers. Then he motioned that he was going outside.

She followed after him and he could see what she’d meant because Willow was pacing, her little wings flapping up and down as she tried to get settled on a soft patch of grass next to the open French doors that must lead to Dallas’s room.

Willow let out a little snort of happiness when she saw Dallas and nearly stumbled over a lawn chair in her quest to get to her.

I understand the feeling, he thought.

“Hey, sweet girl,” Dallas said as Willow met her halfway on the lawn. The dragonling put her face against Dallas and Dallas kissed her cheek.

The little dragon made another snuffling sound that was a mix between a sneeze and a cough before she looked over at him and made a happy chirping greeting as she raced toward him.

His heart thawed a bit as she practically headbutted him in her attempt to get close. Laughing despite his mood, he petted her head, right behind her ear where she seemed to like it, if her purrs were any indication. “I can sleep out here with her.” The words were out before Rhys realized what he’d been about to say.

Dallas stared at him in surprise, her pale gray eyes wide. “What?”

“I’ll just stay out here in my dragon form. I like sleeping that way anyway. I can stretch my wings and it should settle her.” The dragonling was far from home and needed some comfort. He understood that on a bone-deep level. And who was he kidding? He simply felt protective of her. And Dallas.

“Seriously?”

“Yeah, it’s a nice night.” It was chilly and overcast since the clouds had moved over the bright moon, but he didn’t care.

“They put me right over here.” She pointed to the already open French doors on the east side of the house and strode toward them, Willow right on her heels.

He’d been in the room before and it was an office/library, but they’d set a little foldout bed in there for her.

“I was just thinking that Willow could stick her head in here while I sleep. I don’t plan on being here too long, so I think she’ll be okay for a week or two.”

Some part of him didn’t like the thought of Dallas sleeping with the doors open, even with Willow as a guard and with the security cameras and sensors—and two shifters on patrol. It seemed too exposed. His dragon wanted to guard her.

He lifted a big shoulder, as if he didn’t care one way or another, even as his dragon insisted they protect her. “Look, I’m going to sleep out here no matter what.”

“Okay then…would you mind hanging out here with her for a little bit while I get changed?”

“Of course not.” He wasn’t going anywhere.

Even though Dallas stepped inside and shut the door behind her, Willow didn’t whine. Instead, she butted her head up against Rhys’s hand and he realized that she wanted to be petted again. Laughing, he set the tea down on the ground and rubbed her head with both hands.

She closed her eyes and snuggled up against him, perfectly at peace.

As she started to calm down and finally curl up into a little ball, he quickly stripped and put some distance between them so he could shift. Once he was in his dragon form, she slowly inched her way toward him until she crawled up right under his chest. She let out a sigh of happiness, curled back up and fell into a fast sleep.

Oh sweet goddess, this dragon was too much.

He heard the French doors open, and then a little gasp of surprise from Dallas. When he looked over, she had on yellow lounge pants and a formfitting T-shirt that outlined every curve of her very full breasts. He shouldn’t be noticing, but his beast called him a fool for trying to ignore her.

She lifted a hand as if checking in with him.

He simply lifted one of his wings, which seemed to satisfy Dallas. For Willow’s part, she hadn’t even moved. She stayed tight against him, breathing in and out in a steady rhythm.

Closing his own eyes, he wrapped his wings around her and tried to get some sleep.

And tried not to think about the sexy female a few yards away from him.