“Uh-huh,” he said, unable to look away.
Next to me, Orsen was speechless as well, which was actually something. As much as I could tell that he was enjoying the unobstructed view of my chest, there was no mistaking the way his eyes dropped to the scars. But unlike everyone else’s pity, anger burned like dim embers behind his eyes.
And something about that was kind of nice. It was anI’ll make whoever did that payinstead of pity, and I had to admit I appreciated the change in pace. But I shook my head, refocusing on Nix.
“Shirt?” I asked pointedly, nodding at Nix’s chest.
“Oh, sure!”
Nix leaped into action, pulling his shirt over his head in a flash and standing to help me put it on, which, of course, I didn’t need, but the action was undeniably adorable. I didn’t miss that I was taking Nix’s shirt easily, where I’d rejected Bastian’s, and that knowledge made me grin all the more as Nix’s tee came over my head, surrounding me in his woodsy scent.
With it on, the room very abruptly went back to what it was doing. I looked across the hall at the door to the kitchen. Bastian stood there, definitely having seen everything. I gave him a curt smile and then sat down next to Nix.
“Thirsty?”
I glanced across the table at Orsen, who held up a can of soda, wearing a smile that I could only describe as proud. Rolling my eyes, I took the can, cracking it open and taking a long swig.
Nix and Orsen chuckled to themselves, but I didn’t care. Despite Bastian’s move,I’dbeen the one to come out the other side having maintained my autonomy. It felt damn good, if I was honest with myself. I hadn’t yielded to him or let him push me around, and even his clanmates were silently cheering me on.
Ha, take that, grumpy butt.
I relaxed increasingly with each passing second and enjoyed my drink with Orsen and Nix. Both regarded me with nods, the corners of their mouths turned slightly up. They were impressed with me,proud, and I reveled in that feeling for as long as I could.
“Rowan! Causing chaos?” Griffin asked as he sank into the seat next to Orsen.
“Yes, but she’s being a badass while doing it.” Orsen smirked.
Griff pursed his lips. “Sounds about right.” The pair smiled at each other.
“You two are being awfully buddy-buddy, considering recent events,” I pointed out with a raised brow.
“Eh.” Griff waved off my concern. “We’re dragons. Possessive fucks. We also forgive and forget.”
Orsen snorted. “To a degree. You’re getting plenty of apology gifts.”
A dazzling smile took over Griff’s face as he stole my soda, taking a swig despite my protests. “Oh yeah, my new cabin is going to be amazing.”
I looked between the two of them, and it dawned on me that both of these dragons were honestly okay with their situation. Griffin didn’t seem to be holding a grudge. Usually, I would insist I had enough bitterness in my heart to hold a grudge for both of us, but that resolve was starting to wane.
“Well, I haven’t forgiven you yet,” I said primly, making everyone at the table laugh at just how insincere my words sounded.
Nix threw his arm around me. “Give us time, Rowan. But if you want to take your top off again to piss off Bastian, I am totallyokay with that.” He nodded enthusiastically. Orsen even hummed in agreement.
“Pigs.” I shoved him lightly, unable to stop the bubble of laughter escaping me.
Just like that, our bickering was forgotten, and for the rest of the meal, we fell into easy conversation over good food.
Bastian, the grump, was nowhere to be seen, probably off sulking somewhere.
Rowan
Ihad decided to take an afternoon nap, after spending most of the morning organizing my herbs and mixing the poultices I had used up. I had been getting through my medications so darn fast. After the gardeners had noticed me going through them, they had decided to give me everything that might be useful. Healing had never exhausted me so much—even when I was helping a horde with no resident healer, I had fewer patients. It seemed highly plausible that half the issues I was being presented with were because of how Jenkins chose to heal.
It was obvious I had my work cut out for me.
Between the influx of fresh greenery and the dried herbs in the old healer’s clinic, I had a lot to go through. I wasn’t going to complain, though—having plentiful herbs was a godsend.
There was a good chance I was going to need some of those plants to helpme sleep if I don’t get any rest soon.
