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I blinked, then slowly, using my arms, pushed myself up to a seated position once more. “Is that why Veronica was yelling at Dad? She was saying something about trusting her, or something? I didn’t understand and I could barely think anyway by that point.”
Between the blood loss, the cold and the fact my mate had found me, I was delirious.
Two servants opened the door carrying silver platters of food and drinks. They moved things around with the tables so they could place the food within arm’s reach, then bowed and left.
“Thank you!” I called out to them as they walked away, reaching for a steaming hot bowl of soup.
I was starving, but shoving thick bread and heavy meat into my gut wasn’t smart. I’d start with the creamy pumpkin soup, and work up from there.
The first spoonful was pure bliss, as was the buttered roll my brother pushed my way.
I ate as much as I could, Dad and Anselm taking a thing or two, but they were obviously leaving most of it for me.
“Please. Eat,” I said, gesturing to the platters. “There’s enough for ten men here.”
Dad smiled and grabbed a roll while Anselm poured himself some wine. The fire crackled in the grate and my belly was finally sated. I sat back with a groan and a sigh. To think, only a few hours ago, I’d truly believed my time on this planet was done. How quickly things changed. Thanks mostly to Veronica.
“I really thought we’d lost you,” Anselm said, looking down on the food and not meeting my gaze.
“You weren’t far away from losing me, I can tell you,” I said. Then I glanced at Dad. “You still haven’t explained what happened with Veronica.”
“She got Anthony to hold her hands and search for you. We didn’t know how or why she would help at the time. Now, of course, we do.”
Anselm lifted his head, his eyes wide as realization hit him. “What... you mean... Veronica?”
I nodded and gulped down another swig of whiskey. “Yep. The dragon daughter is my mate. I’ve known for eight years.”
“And you didn’t tell me? Tell us?” Anselm demanded.
“What was I going to say?” I fired back. “That my fated mate was a fucking child? And at the time I thought she was our cousin.”
“She is,” Anselm said, his eyebrows furrowing. “Our second cousin.”
I glanced at Dad who said simply, “Cass isn’t my blood relative cousin. She was a family friend of the family, who I took in as my sister when her parents died. It never seemed like a title I needed to correct.”
I shrugged. “It’s fine.” But it hadn’t been for a long time.
“But you always seemed to hate her,” Anselm went on, sounding incredulous. “You...”
“I know.” I groaned, running a hand through my hair. “I was mean to her, taunted her. Pushed her away as much as I could.”
“But why?”
“Because I was disgusted with myself!” I yelled at them both. “Not that I was attracted to her, like that. I wasn’t. I was more, protective. Wanting to help her, shield her. But I knew what it was, the beginning of the bond. And I couldn’t do it. I didn’t want to feel like that.”
I’d never lusted after Veronica as a child. Never. But the happiness my dragon felt when she was nearby was a sure sign she was meant to be mine. So I’d run away, figuratively. Putting as much space between her and me as I could.
“Your love for her isn’t disgusting,” Dad said. “You never touched her, barely spoke to her when she was young.”
I made a strange choking noise, “No... I pushed her away. Hard.”
“Well, she’s nineteen now, almost twenty,” Anselm said, sounding strangely excited. “And she obviously knows about the bond, or she wouldn’t have demanded Anthony read her like a bloody crystal ball.”
I couldn’t help the smile that spread across my face at the image his words invoked. “She was pretty adamant, huh?”
“Adamant?” Dad repeated, snorting loudly. “She punched Anthony in the face.”
I gaped at him, “No...”
