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“Come home, Gravor,” I whispered. “Please.” This was his home for as long as he wanted it.
Maybe he didn’t feel the same.
When my belly growled, I didn’t give up. I’d never give up, a thought that startled me more than it should. But Gravor had meant a lot to me five years ago, and when he returned, he’d stepped right back into the hole he’d left in my heart as if he’d never left me.
Inside the kitchen, I heated a slice of quiche and sat at the island, staring down at it. How could I eat when I didn’t know if he was safe?
A thud rang out in my backyard, and I got up and went to the kitchen door, peering through the glass, into the dark. I couldn’t see a damn thing. Fear started coiling in my belly, but I had a gun. I’d locked up the house. I had no reason to be afraid.
When a face appeared in the window, I yelped.
Gravor gave me a sheepish look, his gaze searching mine.
I scrambled to unlock the door and fling it open. I burst outside, latching onto him and pulling him close to give him a hug. He’d come back. He appeared unharmed. He was naked, but I wasn’t going to complain one bit about that.
“I’m sorry,” he said, rubbing his hand up and down my back. “I shouldn’t have taken off like that. I just . . .”
“You were shocked.” Leaning back in his arms, I looked up at him, taking in the sorrow creasing his face, his eyes dark with more emotions than I could define.
“I was stunned, but that’s still no excuse for bailing on you like that.” He sucked in a breath, and it whistled through his teeth. “It was more than that. I was mad.”
“At me?” I asked in a tiny voice. “I would’ve told you about him if I could find you. I looked. But I didn’t have your number. I didn’t even know your name. Talk about doing something foolish right there. I had no way to reach you, but I wanted to. You had the right to know, but—”
“Mazie,” he said softly. “It’s okay. I’m not mad at you. I was pissed off at the guys at the commune. They not only hurt me, tortured me, but they also stole everything I should’ve had over the past five years. I had to reconcile that in my mind.”
“I understand.”
“I owe you so much.”
“You don’t owe me anything.”
“Sure, I do. I owe Asher too. I want a new beginning. I need one. It’s time for me to put what happened behind me, though once I get my life straightened out, I’m going to get counseling if I can find someone who’s also a shifter. I can’t share my dragon with just anyone.”
“They’d think you were out of your mind.”
His low laugh rang out. “Until I shifted in their office. When I crushed their couch and stabbed my wings through their windows, they’d believe.”
“And call the government who’d steal you from me forever. No one can ever know.”
“That’s been our vow since shifters came to this world.”
“I’d love to hear that story. Maybe tomorrow?” I peered around him, grateful not to see lights on at my neighbor’s. But I was standing outside with a naked man. They wouldn’t take kindly to that. Mostly, though, we didn’t need anyone talking about Gravor in town. I hadn’t completely shoved aside the idea that the man was looking for him.
Taking his hand, I tugged him into my kitchen. I chuckled as I handed him a frilly apron to cover up his delectable body. “We need to buy you paper clothing. Disposable stuff from Furry and Fabulous if such a place like that exists.”
“I’m sorry for that too. I haven’t even reimbursed you for the stuff I was wearing.”
“It’s a good thing I bought more than one outfit. No worries about it. I can buy more. We’ll get pants and other things online and pay for express shipping. Then it won’t be obvious in town that I’m outfitting a shifter.”
“Betty might notice.”
“That’s the thing. I don’t believe she’d tell a soul. Her eyes . . .” I shook my head, letting go of the thought for now. “It doesn’t matter, but I suspect she’s a shifter too.”
“Hmm.” He tugged me into his arms and held me.
My eyes stung with tears again, but these were tears of relief. I was so happy he was back, that he was okay.
“I still owe you, mate, and I’m going to make it up to you,” he said.
