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The dragon inside me stirred with approval, sensing the potential strength in this alliance. My alpha instincts told me the loyalty and camaraderie here would serve us well.
Jax's expression flashed with surprise, followed by a quick smile and a glint of determination in his eye: to prove himself, to make up for any past mistakes, and to protect those he cared about—a sentiment I understood all too well.
“And I’ve got your back, too, Evan. We'll face any danger and come out on top.”
Chapter 6
Mariah
I’d thought my body just needed some sleep. Jax coming back and learning Tomas really was after my blood, piled on top of my raging hormones, certainly threw me for a loop. Surely rest should have done the trick. But when I woke up the next morning, I felt just as restless, every muscle tense, and my skin feeling as if it were stretched too tight.
But that wasn’t the worst of it.
Worse was how my emotions churned: fear, confusion, jealousy, anger. I gasped for air as my throat constricted with their intensity. My belly yawned like a gaping maw, pulse racing as a ravenous hunger clawed at my insides. I dug my fingers into the blankets as I tried to process what was happening to me, why I felt so wildly out of control.
The realization finally hit that this wasn't just any random bout of anxiety. It wasn’t just pregnancy, being turned into a shifter, or the potent combination of both. It was more than my emotions.
My dragon had her own feelings, and they vied for dominance, amplifying what I felt and causing me to react without thinking. I closed my eyes. This was the true aftermath of what Tomas had done. I’d become a stranger in my own body, never fully alone. Living with this presence inside of me while also pretending it wasn’t there.
“Mariah, are you okay?” Evan's voice cut through, and I turned my head to see him sitting up next to me. His hand rested on my shoulder.
I shook my head as I shoved down the wild emotions. It was becoming a near constant battle, but it'd never been this intense before.
“I’ll be fine.” I gave him as good a smile as I could muster. “Just dealing with it all without giving into the overwhelm.”
Evan pulled me into his arms, his hard chest a solid presence against my cheek. “You’re doing amazing,” he murmured into my hair, and I immediately felt more at ease. “It’s more than anyone expects you to take on. I’ve told you before… if you want to take a break from your classes?”
I shook my head, pulling back to meet his eyes. “You know I don’t want that.”
“I do,” he said. “But you're going through a lot of changes, and no one would blame you if you needed to step back from anything.”
I wondered if this man had forgotten who he was talking to. I might be on the very edge of sanity these days, but I wasn’t one to give up so easily.
Evan laughed and raised his hands defensively. “Okay, okay, I’m done. And honestly, I’m relieved. Now that Jax is back, there are some things we need to take care of. The sooner the better if you’re up for it.”
I’d fallen asleep as soon as I’d gone upstairs last night. Evan had come to bed later, and I knew he’d been up discussing things with Lucas and Jax, getting additional security into place immediately. I wouldn’t be surprised if personal guards now surrounded the house.
“Of course I am.” I tried to shake off the lingering maelstrom of emotions that weren’t my own, but I still didn’t feel like myself. “What things?”
“Your registration as a dragon shifter, to start. Are you sure you feel like it? We can wait—”
“No, it’s not that. I just feel…” I shrugged. “I don’t know how to explain it. My dragon just seems on edge. My emotions are too big, and I don’t know how to separate what’s mine and what’s happening to me because of this new…presence inside.”
Evan moved his hands to my hips, lifting me and shifting our positions so I was straddling his lap. We were now eye to eye while he cupped my face.
“Tell me what you’re feeling.” He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.
“I can’t,” I said, exasperated. “I don’t even understand it myself.”
“Well, you know what I like to do when my dragon seems to be taking up too much space.” The corner of his mouth curved, and his eyes darkened. “I know a way to take the edge off.”
He rocked his hips against mine for emphasis, and a different heat bloomed.
I bit my lip, threading my hands through the strands of his hair as I pressed my body against his. “I thought we had things to take care of. The sooner the better, you said.”
He growled, his fingers digging into my sides. “Exactly.”
Evan caught my bottom lip between his teeth as I slid my tongue over his mouth. My core pulsed with a sharp, aching need, and it felt as if my dragon practically purred, all the previous roiling emotions fading into a thrum of desire. Okay, I could get behind this method.
