Page 64 of Heartflame

“Yeah,” he replied and pushed the doors open.

The space was larger than most of the classrooms back at Widdershins. It had floor-to-ceiling windows that looked out over grounds that seemed to stretch on forever, and the manicured gardens giving way to forests in the distance. A massive four-poster bed dominated one wall, and there was a sitting area with plush furniture arranged around a fireplace. Everything screamed wealth and power in a way that made my upbringing feel suddenly very small.

“Holy shit,” I said, not bothering to hide my reaction. “This is a lot.”

“I know,” Aeron replied, wrapping his arms around me from behind. “But you’ll get used to it. This is your home now too, if you want it to be.”

The words sent a complicated flutter through my chest. This could be my home. When Aeron called me his mate, I imagined us going on dates, being together, and having sex a lot. I didn’t think about the fact that this was for life, that it only made sense for us to move in together, that I would have to leave my old life behind. It felt like missing that last step on the stairs, my whole world reeling at once.

“What are you thinking?” Aeron asked softly, his chin resting on my shoulder.

“That I don’t belong here,” I admitted. “That I’m completely out of my depth.”

“You belong wherever I am,” he said with such absolute certainty that I almost believed him. “And you’re not out of your depth, Red. You’re just in a new situation. One I hope you’ll enjoy. You won’t want for anything with me.”

I turned in his arms to face him, looking up into those golden eyes that had become so familiar in such a short time. “I’m scared,” I said quietly.

Aeron’s expression softened, and he brought one hand up to cup my face. “It’s okay to be scared,” he said simply. “I’m scared too. This is just as new to me as it is for you.”

“What about my parents?” I asked. “And the potion shop? I was supposed to take over for them, to keep the family business running.”

“None of you have to work anymore if you don’t want to. Life is easy now, for all of you.”

I opened my mouth and then closed it without saying a word. I pressed myself against Aeron’s chest, burying my face in his shirt. There was no way to express to him the sudden disappointment I felt because suddenly there was nothing to work for anymore. Aeron’s family fortune would easily erase all my struggles, which was nice. I wasn’t complaining about that. But it also took away all reason to try to become something. I used to wake up determined to succeed because I needed to, because I wanted to help myself and my family.

But now every morning I’d wake up with nothing to achieve that money couldn’t just buy. It was almost… disheartening. But I felt like I had no right to complain about it. After all, how many people out there struggled every single day just to survive? Meanwhile I was being handed a luxurious life on a silver platter and feeling bad about it.

“You’re thinking really loud again,” Aeron murmured, his chin resting on the top of my head. “You want to talk about it?”

I let out a long sigh. “I… I’m not sure how to say it but⁠—”

A loud boom echoed through the mansion, shaking the floor beneath our feet.

I jerked my head up, my heart hammering against my ribs. Another boom followed, this one hard enough to rattle the windows in their frames. Dust drifted down from the ornate ceiling plasterwork.

“What the hell?” I breathed, pulling back from Aeron.

His entire body had gone rigid, his arms dropping from around me as his senses seemed to sharpen. I watched as his eyes shifted to that reptilian gold, his pupils slitting into vertical lines. When he spoke, his voice carried that undertone of draconic rumble that meant he was starting to shift.

“That’s not possible,” he said, moving toward the windows. “The wards should⁠—”

Another impact, closer this time. Close enough that I heard the actual crack of something breaking. My stomach lurched.

“Aeron?” I reached for him, my voice sounding small and frightened even to my own ears. “What’s happening?”

He ran to the window, throwing the curtains back. I watched him go stiff as he looked down onto the grounds. Stepping up beside him, I looked out, heart racing.

The wards were fully intact and visible, untouched by anyone or anything.

“The wards are fine…” I whispered. “So where is that coming from⁠—”

BOOM.

The sound was coming from inside the mansion.

My blood went cold. “Aeron⁠—”

“Stay here,” he commanded, already moving toward the door. His form was shifting more fully now, scales rippling across his skin as he prepared for a fight.