Maribelle, who had been standing off to the side with Roan, stepped over and handed Darius a microphone.
What was she doing?Didn’t everyone know I was trying to get through this performance?I glanced at Rick at the piano, and he grinned.He was in on this too?
The next time I reached the chorus, Darius joined me—he actually joined me, and sang, “All I Want for Christmas is You.”
My panther squealed with joy.He came.Our mate came for us!
My mouth fell open and I almost dropped the mic.His voice vibrated through me—rich, smoky, achingly perfect—and I forgot to sing the next line.But with Darius now joining me on stage, no one would notice.
Holy shit—my dragon could sing.
His voice was low and deep, smooth like his rum, a perfect baritone to pair with mine.
Never would I have thought that my cool, suave, collected dragon, who stuck to the back of the lounge, would ever stand on a stage, singing in front of an audience.But here he was, singing not to them, but to me.
All I Want for Christmas is You…
I snapped myself back into focus and sang with him as if we’d practiced this duet a thousand times before.
The energy was electric and the crowd caught it, bellowing enthusiastic cheers and applause as we finished the song.
While the audience’s noise would cover my voice, I lowered the mic and leaned closer to him, momentarily distracted by his alluring rum-spiced scent.
My panther purred.Mate.
I leaned over to him and whispered, “What are you doing here?”
He gazed at me, amber eyes flickering with gold, and lowered his mic.“I came to tell you what I should have said before.”His voice sounded raw, and he appeared so vulnerable in his sincerity.“That none of this was pretend.It was real for me from the first night we met.”His hand trembled slightly where it held the mic, and my heart clenched.“You’re my mate, Bria—my true mate—and I’ve fallen in love with you.”
In my shock, I almost didn’t believe this was real.I must have fallen asleep and dreamed it.But the noise of the cheering crowd jolted me.They’d clearly heard the entire thing with their supernatural hearing.
I tried to make sense of his words.My heart stuttered as I stood reeling.I stammered, “I don’t know what to say,” and my trembling hand fluttered to my chest.
My panther groaned.Tell him you love him too!
He took my hand and took a deep breath.“You mean more to me than anything else.Nothing—not my business, not any deal—none of it matters if I don’t have you.”He swallowed and rubbed my palm.“I’ll do whatever it takes if you give me a chance to show you.”
For two deep heartbeats, I stood there, drinking in his words, relishing how they filled me with such warmth.
Darius remained statue still, watching me with a tenderness in his eyes that nearly undid me.
Then I remembered where we were, on a stage, where he’d teamed up with others to put this little surprise together.An act.That was something I could do and something I could play with.
I crossed my arms, arching a brow.“So…let me get this straight, dragon.Your grand plan to win my heart was to woo me with this declaration?”
His eyes flickered with wariness.He nodded slowly.“Yes.”
“Because you know how I love to perform in front of an audience?”
His gaze flickered to Maribelle and across to Kylie behind the bar, as if wondering if he’d made a mistake.He brought his eyes back to meet mine.“I was thinking it was a grand gesture, to show you how I really feel.”
“Now that I’ve heard your voice, I think we can make it even grander.”I smiled and pulled at his green tie.Then I glanced at Rick and nodded.Turning to the crowd, I said, “How about one more song?”
Enthusiastic cheers followed.Darius looked worried.
I mouthed, “You’ve got this.”Then I began to sing, “Jingle Spell Rock,” with a sassy shake of my hips, a call back to when I’d sang “Jingle Spells” the night we’d met.
Darius’s mouth spread wide as he caught on to my plan.He lifted the mic and sang along.
