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She thought he might be going to close his eyes, but then he leaned forward once more.
“Was I hallucinating from the blood loss, or did Rafe turn into a dragon just then?” Tally asked softly.
“He turned into a dragon,” Jade confirmed, trying to hide her smile.
“Awesome,” Tally smiled, leaning back and looking very content.
“Bleeding has stopped,” Nanee-12 announced. “No infection detected. Highest priority action now is transport to the nearest medical unit.”
Tally’s wounds would heal.
Now she just had to worry about her own.
21
RAFE
The next day, Rafe stood by Jade’s door, wondering whether she would even look at him when she emerged.
What she had revealed yesterday had cut him to the core. Emotions rolled over him to the point that he had needed to walk away from her to process them.
He was afraid that if she saw his fury, it would terrify her.
Even the dragon was in agony, fighting to free itself and seek vengeance for the abuse its mate had suffered.
And he was also deeply ashamed.
He had visited the pleasure ships as a young man. He remembered the females as receptive and eager. But he had quickly abandoned the ships and sought his own conquests when the excitement wore off.
But had he known, deep down, that something wasn’t right?
And now, the woman he adored had suffered there so terribly that she couldn’t take a mate.
The moment he thought back to their conversation about the bond, it all made sense. She had asked about the lust they felt, asked him if it would diminish over time.
Like a fool, he had told her that their need for each other would grow, without also telling her that trust would grow, too, and that his whole reason to live would be keeping her safe and content.
Now she feared him enough that she had darted into her room to sleep alone with Gus.
Which was saying something, since she hadn’t even feared the dragon.
The night he had spent watching over her door was enough time for him to come to terms with the fact that the kindest thing he could do for her would be to leave. He would feel her loss in every moment of every day for the rest of his time alive.
But it was better than knowing the bond would only cause her fear and pain.
The door opened and he held his breath.
But her scent curled into him anyway, tugging at his very soul.
“Good morning,” Jade said softly, without looking at him.
“Good morning,” he told her miserably. “We should go down to breakfast. I have a message in to the sheriff to meet with us about what we found yesterday, and the possibility of looking into Tag as a suspect.”
She nodded, and they headed down the hallway of the inn.
They had come straight here last night, hoping the doctor who resided at the inn full-time would see to Tally.
By the time the doc had given Tally a fresh bandage and a clean bill of health, it was late, so they decided to stay on for the night. The stag was already fed, and the inn would be a good meeting place to chat with the sheriff.
