We need to protect this one, Basset, Cosimo touched his mind from out in the hall where he was eavesdropping.Offer her a guest room. We can’t, in good conscience, let her leave.
Thanks, Dad. I’ll try to get her to stay, but she has trauma. I have to tread carefully. Now go away.Amusement bloomed through the connection before he felt Cosimo break it off and move away.
“Okay, what about if you make me like an amulet or something to wear?” Bridget asked, pulling him back to the conversation in front of him.
“It got a hook in you that my dreaming ward didn’t remove. An amulet wouldn’t work.”
Bridget frowned. “You can’t be with me every minute.”
“I can if you stay here where there’s no way it can get to you.”
“I don’t need a babysitter,” she growled.
“I wouldn’t be one. You would stay here as a guest and help me kill this thing. That’s the only way you’ll be safe.” Bas could see the fear in her eyes, but he didn’t know if it was the shadow creature or the offer to stay that was causing it. He smiled, trying to defuse the tension. “Besides, there are bonuses to staying. You haven’t even tasted my cookies yet.”
Bridget’s mouth twitched. “You think they are good enough to convince me to stay in a house with a bunch of dudes I don’t know?”
“No one will ever cause you harm in this house,” Bas said, willing her to believe him. “And my cookies are the best you’ll ever taste.”
Bridget’s mind was so loud, he couldn’t stop the words bombarding him.Is he still talking about cookies? Hesmells way too good. Oh my god, stop staring at his lips. Look at the articles, Bridget.
The timer on the oven went off, making them both startle, and Bas quickly got the trays out to let them cool. Bridget focused back on the pages before her and didn’t look up until Bas placed tea and cookies in front of her.
Are dream monsters real? I need data. I need to check my books.
Bas grinned, seeing his opportunity. “We can eat these, and then, if you like, I can show you the library.”
“Library? You guys have a library too?” Bridget asked, her whole face lighting up.
“We are an ancient family of magicians, Bridget. Of course, there is a library. A big one.”
Bridget grinned. “Okay, but cookies first.”
The dragon inside Bas that had been prowling and irritable relaxed as she took her first bite. It wanted to feed and coddle her, which was ridiculous. Bridget’s eyes went wide as she chewed, and Bas smirked.
He couldn’t resist asking, “What do you think of my cookie?”
Bridget’s brown cheeks flushed a dusky rose as she licked the chocolate off her thumb. God, he really didn’t need that visual, but fuck, his whole body was now yearning to grab her hand and lick her fingers.
“I’m going to need more time to decide,” Bridget said, reaching for another. “But I’m very interested in eating more.”
11
Bridget’s mind was racing. Bas was right about her needing sugar. She was going to need to eat the whole batch of chocolate chip deliciousness just to keep her brain working.
She was fixated on the idea of a creature waking up and hunting dreamers. She could feel the threads of obsession wrapping around her. And it wasn’t just about the monsters.
Watching Bas bake for her had unlocked a kink she didn’t know she had. She had run her mouth about cookies and didn’t know if she had been flirting or not. If she had been, he had flirted back, so she guessed it was reciprocated.
If she had thought he was hot before—and she had—then it was nothing compared to the slow heat that was starting to burn through her now.
She wanted to blame it on how good he smelled and how he enticed her with baked treats and magic. They contributed, but it was more than that. For the first time, she felt like maybe another person would understand half the crazy shit that went through her mind on a daily basis.
The house was ridiculously huge, so when Bas offered her a guest suite, she knew it would be an actual suite.
She was also trying really hard not to show how freaked out she was about the idea of some mythical creature hunting her. Bas was right that she didn’t know how to deal with that. She hated it, but she would be foolish to pass up his offer of help. Bridget wasn’t foolish. She just didn’t want to say yes right away.
“You want to tell me about the dragon thing now?” Bridget asked as she followed Bas up a staircase. Really, his ass was a work of art.
