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Brynn smacked him on the arm.
“I would if I could, but it’s not an option. She would be in too much pain without me here. That knowledge would drive me to insanity—and the past has proven that mental change irreversible. The thunder would have to kill me afterward.”
“Has anyone tried painkillers before?” Bash asked.
Brynn shot him a look. He tugged her closer, squeezing her hip lightly, and she leaned against him more.
“Many times. They’re all useless against heat’s magic. In the past, some dragons have paid witches to try to keep their mates out of pain, too, but it never helped.”
“Well, that sucks,” Brynn said.
“Yup.” I closed my eyes, forcing myself to breathe through a wave of magic driving me back to the bathroom. To her side. “Did you find her bag?”
“Yeah, my manager had already grabbed it. One of my baristas is driving it over as we speak. She should be here soon. Someone recorded the whole exchange between us, and everyone in the shop was watching, but there was no sound. We should be fine. Zander’s working on taking the videos down right now, just to be safe, too.”
Zander was one of Bash’s brothers. The three of them ran a group of demons and humans who took out vampires that hurt humans. Most vampires were decent, but some were violent. And those bastards didn’t deserve to keep living.
Dragons were supposed to be neutral toward other supernaturals. We weren’t supposed to take sides.
Which was one of the reasons the thunder didn’t want me leading them.
I couldn’t say I was broken-hearted about it. I’d only taken the leadership role when my father passed on because he asked me to. I’d given it everything I had, and it had been clear for years that I wasn’t a good fit for them.
Though I originally hung on for my dad’s sake, it felt like a weight off my shoulders when they finally asked my brother to take over.
Jasper would do a hell of a lot better than I had.
“Thanks. She was worried about that.”
“I know. Did you ask her what she was studying?”
“No. Did you?”
“Nope.” Brynn leaned her head against Bash’s shoulder, studying me. “You need to get to know her over the next few weeks. If she’s stuck here, in pain, being friendly is the least you can do.”
“Getting to know her is a bad idea. If I let myself get attached to her, walking away will become an impossibility.”
And if I couldn’t walk away, I’d end up dragging her pretty little ass to prison with me.
Which I couldn’t allow to happen, for many reasons.
“Bash thought that when he first met me, too,” Brynn countered. “You could survive the next few weeks, and come back to find her after you get out of?—”
The bathroom door opened behind us, and she cut herself off.
I couldn’t stop myself from looking over my shoulder to watch her leave the bedroom.
Her black hair was a mess, falling in tangled strands around her face and over her shoulders. It was long enough to hit the middle of her back—long enough that I itched to wrap my hands in it.
My clothes nearly swallowed her whole, so she had rolled the boxers a few times, exposing most of those sexy, soft legs. She’d tied the t-shirt in a messy knot at her hip, too. I could see the points of her nipples through the thin, black fabric, and it made my cock throb painfully.
Fuck me, she was gorgeous.
And her scent…
I could already smell it in the air.
My entire body clenched as I fought the urge—the need—to go to her side and take her in my arms.
