Bridget crossed her arms. “Well, we can’t all look like we’ve just escaped from Azkaban, Valentine.”
His lips kicked up into a smirk. “My mistake. There it is. Welcome to the family.”
“Ah, thanks?” she replied as Valentine walked toward the gate.
What did he mean by that?No one wanted Bridget in their family, not even her own mother.
“He’s an acquired taste,” Bas said and opened the large red door for her. It also had a dragon knocker.
“What did he mean by you’re all dragons?” Bridget asked and toed off her boots. It definitely seemed like a house where you took off your shoes.
Bas smiled, an edge in his eyes that hadn’t been there before. “It’s a long story. The kitchen is this way. Have you eaten? I have a craving for cookies, so I’m going to talk and bake.”
“I always have room for cookies,” she replied, feeling a little dazzled. It wasn’t a bad feeling like she was getting overstimulated. It was an ‘I think I’ve stepped into a fairytale’ feeling because something was definitely up with the house. It felt… She couldn’t find the right words other thanhomeandmagic.
She followed Bas, resisting the urge to touch everything pretty she saw. The walls were lined with ancient family coat-of-arms banners, shields, and swords as well as interesting paintings she wanted to admire a little longer. Most of them showed dragons or other mythical creatures.
A door opened in front of them, and an older man with silver-shot dark hair came in, carrying a leather overnight bag in one hand.
“Dad! I didn’t expect you to be home so soon. What happened to Florence?” Bas asked. The man took off his scarf, a beautiful black silk one with a gold pattern.
“That damn Sforza woman beat me to the sale. I swear if she is anything like Caterina, her possible ancestor, I’m seeing why the Medicis had so much trouble with her…” the man stopped when he spotted Bridget. “Oh. My apologies, I didn’t see you there.”
“Bridget, this is Cosimo, my father. Dad meet Bridget,” Bas hurried to introduce.
“Nice to meet you, Bridget,” Cosimo said, giving her a warm smile. She could see exactly where the Greatdrake boys got their good looks.
“Hello.” Bridget tried and failed not to flinch back from his happy expression. She lectured herself this wasn’t the time to have a reaction to father figures. Not every father in the world was a fucking asshole, but she was wary of them nonetheless.
Bas and his father exchanged intense glances, invisible messages passing through them.
“Ah, well. I had best go and unpack,” Cosimo said, moving past them. “You’re safe here, Bridget, and very welcome.”
She only nodded, her insides a mess of emotions. She never felt welcome anywhere. What was up with this family?
“Yeah, you definitely need cookies,” Bas said, his voice and expression going soft. “Come on, Hawk Girl. We need sugar.”
10
Bas hadn’t meant to read Bridget’s thoughts and feelings. They had come flying at him like a freight train—pain, fear, the face of a man laying into her with fists and words before it all sucked back inside of her. Cosimo’s appearance had triggered it, and so Bas had quickly touched his father’s mind.
She’s freaking out, Dad. You need to leave, or she will.
Cosimo had taken the hint with a brief,Let me know if I can help your mystery girl.
Go talk to Val. He’ll explain who she is. She’s being hunted.
Bridget had visibly taken a breath when they were alone again. Something horrible had happened to his Hawk Girl, and Bas’s dragon wanted to rage and rend. To sink his fangs into something and watch it bleed.
She’s not ours, Bas tried to tell it. The dragon ignored him.
Bas led her into the kitchen, and she stared wide-eyed around her at the sheer size of it before slipping onto one of the pine stools at the breakfast bar. She took off her oversized leather jacket, revealing jeans and a long-sleeved T-shirt with Doctor Strange on it. He smiled; Doctor Strange was his favorite too. He tried not to stare at the breasts she kept hidden underthe shirt. She had soft curves and strong arms, and he had liked the feel of all of it pushed up against him in the garden. His inner dragon had wanted to pin her to the grass and make her surrender to him.
And that’s why you’re not in charge, Bas reminded it.
“Okay, I’m here. Tell me what’s going on?” Bridget asked, her eyes drifting to look at the stained-glass flower design on the windows.
Bas grabbed the manila folder off a side table and placed it in front of her. “Do you know who Kenna Ironwood is?”
