A hundred years ago, it had been radium.
A man in an expensive suit had crossed an ocean to find me. Because Clara had trusted someone she shouldn’t. Radium had been worth fortunes then. More precious than gold in some circles. I'd never cared about the money, but other people had. Clara had paid the price for that.
Decades after her death, the interest in radium had faded. New technologies had replaced old obsessions, and I’d convinced myself the danger had passed.
Now I wasn't so sure.
Dragonsteel ore changed everything.
For centuries no one had known it even existed. The rare metal was almost impossible to locate, buried in thin veins so deep and scattered that conventional surveys missed it entirely. Yet a single deposit could be worth billions. Aerospace companies would want it. Defense contractors would crave it. Governments would kill for it.
And forge dragons could find it.
I knew there were other forge dragons, but their existence was hidden and remote. I’d hidden in plain sight for years.
Odin Clark wasn't moving to Denver because it was good for business.
He was moving because someone had finally connected the dots.
A forge dragon. Dragonsteel ore. Billions of dollars in military contracts.
The same greed that had killed Clara a century ago had simply found a new name.
“It’s not illegal,” I said carefully. “But it’s complicated. There are... aspects of my life that I can’t explain right now without putting you at risk. I need you to trust me. Please. Just a little longer, until I can figure out how to keep you safe.” Until I couldspeak to Ignatius. I’d determined at the rink I was going to tell him everything, but was I being fair putting that on him?
He stared at me for a long moment, and I watched him process what I wasn’t saying. Watched him try to reconcile the man sitting in front of him with the vague threat I was describing.
“This is about your eyes,” he said finally. “The copper. The way you threw Odin across my apartment like he weighed nothing. There’s something you’re not telling me about who you are.”
My heart stuttered. He was too perceptive, too intelligent. Of course he’d noticed. “Yes.”
“And you’re not ready to tell me what that something is.”
“It’s not about being ready. It’s about keeping you safe until I know how to protect you from the consequences of knowing, and how to manage a forbidden relationship between a coach and his player.”
He was quiet for another moment, his thumb tracing circles on the back of my hand. Then he shifted closer, his free hand coming up to cup my face. “Okay.”
“Okay?”
“I trust you.” His eyes were steady on mine. “I don’t understand what’s happening, and I’m not going to pretend I’m not curious about what you’re hiding. But I trust that you’re trying to protect me. So I’ll wait. Until you’re ready to tell me.”
The relief that went through me was profound. “Thank you.”
“But,” he said, and there was something in his voice that made my pulse quicken. “That doesn’t mean I’m going to let you keep pushing me away. You said you were attracted to me, and I know that’s true. You brought me here. You told me your wife died because you got involved with her, knowing it was dangerous.” His hand slid from my face down to my chest. “So either you’re going to make the same choice you made with her or you’re going to send me home. But you don’t get to do both. You don’t get to keep me at arm’s length while telling me I matter to you.”
He was right. I’d been trying to have it both ways—keeping him close enough to protect but far enough away to deny what was between us. And it wasn’t fair to either of us.
“I’m terrified,” I admitted. “Of losing you the way I lost her. Of being the reason you get hurt.”
“I know.” He leaned in, his lips brushing mine in a kiss so gentle it made my chest ache. “But I’m here anyway. I’m choosing this. Choosing you. Even with the danger you won’t explain and the secrets you’re keeping.”
His hand slid lower on my chest, and I caught his wrist before he could go further. “Dante—"
“Do you want me?” he asked, his voice low and intense. “Not as your player. Not as someone you’re trying to protect. Just... me. Do you want me?”
“Yes.” The word came out rough, honest. “God, yes. But if the league found out, then—”
“Then stop talking about all the reasons we shouldn’t do this,” he said, and pulled his wrist free from my grip. “And just... be with me. Please.”
