Page 3 of The Platinum Dragon's Courageous Mate

With that, Lachlan left him, and he felt like he could take a deep breath for a change. Which was funny because it was only since Lachlan had walked into his rooms that he felt like he could draw a full one.

There was something about that big platinum dragon that just sucked all the oxygen out of the space but then put it into his lungs. Which made no sense.

He turned back to Micah, who Lachlan had sat back down on the floor before he left. “Come on, sweet one, let’s get you changed and bathed and everything. That way when he comes back for coffee and dessert, I have all the time in the world.”

Chapter

Two

Lachlan really, really needed for Kieran to come out of his rooms and explore the whole house.

He felt awful that Kieran was just stuck away up there in his little apartment. He made sure it was comfortable and perfectly acceptable for one omega dragon and a baby who needed to feel safe, but he had all this stuff in his chest that felt like acid and nails and concrete all mixed together. Guilt. He had a lot of guilt.

He wanted Kieran to come out and experience life, not force him out of the house or anything. Lachlan understood how that was so scary, because he looked different from everyone else.

But unlike a great many dragon enclaves, or wings, Oro Escondido was full of dragons who just looked like dragons instead of like dragons pretending to be people. Only the public-facing dragons, the ones who worked out on the main road, had to be good at camouflage.

His phone buzzed, and he knew before he even looked that it was his brother, his twin, who texted before he called out in any kind of mental communication just to make sure Lachlan was in a place where he could talk.

Are you okay bro? I’m sensing some angst in the force

He smiled because his brother always knew. Bryant was such a good guy.

Instead of texting, he shot back some mental conversation.I’m okay. I’m just worried about Kieran.

Has something happened?

No, but he still hasn’t really come out of his rooms, and Micah is just now starting to walk a little bit, and it’s worrying me some. I feel like they’re stunted somehow, and it’s my fault.

Lach. It’s not your fault. It’s sad, and it sucks, but it’s not your fault.

Then whose is it? He was attacked in my name.

We’ve gone round and round about this.Bryant wasn’t going to hear it, and he knew it. Bryant didn’t think he had ever done anything wrong; Lachlan thought he knew better.

I know. I keep trying to coax him out, but he just keeps saying he’s not ready.

Hey, at least he lets you in. He trusts you. It’s everyone else he doesn’t trust.

I suppose that’s true. I’m not sure that makes me feel any better.

What can I do?

Bring over your mate and little Kaden? Spend some time with us.

Of course we can be there in about half an hour.

Thanks, bro.It meant a lot that Bryant was willing to just drop everything and show up. They’d both had a lot of issues for a little while, but they’d worked it out. All the guilt and worry and shame and everything the two of them had experienced hadpretty much dissipated. Now it was just a matter of working everything out with everyone else.

He checked the house to make sure it was nice and clean, and then he went to see what kind of baked goods were on offer. The cake last week had gone over really well with Kieran, so he tried to keep things interesting and had asked for maybe some kind of fruit pie.

As always, Alban had totally had his back.

It looked like there were two kinds. Cherry and something with pineapple and nuts that smelled faintly of lemon juice. Interesting.

Alban smiled at him, his keeper nodding, rainbow feathers fluttering madly. “I hear the family’s coming.”

“They are. Are they bringing Arthur then?” He winked at his keeper, the dragon who ran his home. Arthur and Alban were as close as he and Bryant were.