"I don't want you getting hurt," Apollo insisted, a helpless feeling creeping up his throat.
"Is this your way of saying you care?" Lachlan asked, a slow grin spreading across his face. It stopped the panic threatening Apollo and made him hot instead.
"No. This is saying I'm scared of what Ciara will do to me if these blood mages hurt a hair on your pretty head."
Lachlan lazily stretched his arms out over the back of the couch. "There's nothing you can say or do to convince me to leave you when you are surrounded by enemies, Apollonius. Do you understand?"
Apollo's dragon surged forward, hungry and wanting. He growled softly before he cut himself off and rubbed at his eyes. "Sorry."
"Don't be. I love it when your eyes change like that," Lachlan said with a smile. "It's your dragon, right?"
"Yeah, it is. It's protective and chooses the wrong moments to make itself known."
Lachlan tilted his head to one side. "Bas said he had to reconcile both sides of himself and stop fighting it. Why are you fighting yours, Apollo?"
Because it wants to keep you forever.
Apollo cleared his throat. "It doesn't understand human boundaries, so it rattles off nonsense. I've always had trouble focusing, but it makes it worse when it tries talking to me mid-conversation."
"Yeah? What's it saying now?" Lachlan asked.
"It's saying that it wants to kick your stubborn ass for not going home where I know you will be safe," Apollo lied because he really didn't want to think about what the Sanguis Vitae would do to him if they ever captured him.
"I'm usually a top, but if you ask nice, your dragon is welcome to do whatever it likes to my ass," Lachlan said, his grin growing wider.
Apollo sighed. "I really walked into that one, didn't I?"
"Yeah, you did." Lachlan laughed, and the sound made Apollo grin. "It's made you smile, and that's what I was aiming for. The offer still stands, though." Lachlan winked, and heat bloomed in Apollo's stomach. He realized he was staring when Lachlan's expression shifted to concern.
"Seriously, though, Apollo. Can I do anything to help you feel better right now? I can make you some food when Val comes back or..."
"I would really like another hug without it being weird," Apollo said, moving closer to the couch.
Lachlan tapped the side of the couch next to him. "Then come here, golden boy."
Apollo silenced the voice in his head that told him all the ways cuddling on the couch would be a bad idea and sat down beside him. Lachlan's arm dropped around his shoulders and drew him close. Apollo melted into him and curled into his side. His face found the perfect groove to rest in.
"Thank you," Apollo whispered. The tight tension in him eased. He was affectionate, and Valentine wasn't the hugging brother—that was Bas. Apollo needed the touch to make him feel grounded and to stop him from spiralling. He had only ever had a few, but Lachlan gave the best hugs.
Mate, his dragon purred.
Don't remind me.He didn't need his dragon rubbing it in how right it felt to be tucked up against Lachlan. A warm blanket of safety was wrapping around him, and the terror that had gripped his mind was finally easing. He tried not to think about how there would never be a way to keep Lachlan permanently. Maybe it would be okay just to have him for this moment in time?
"I'm sorry I couldn't stop them from taking you, Apollo," Lachlan said, resting his cheek on top of Apollo's head. "I know we have unresolved shit between us, but please don't send me away. I need to feel like I can fix this, or I'm never going to stop having nightmares about them taking you away from me."
A hard lump rose in Apollo's throat, and he forced himself to swallow. He was all cried out and wouldn't embarrass himself by doing it again.
"It's not your fault. You tried to tell me I was in danger, but I didn't listen. If anyone is to blame, it's me." Apollo's fingers curled into the soft cotton of Lachlan's shirt. "When we crashed, I thought... I thought they had killed you. You were knocked out and bleeding, and all I could think of was that I couldn't handle losing you like I lost my mother. I was trapped, and I watched her die. I thought I was going to lose my fucking mind when you wouldn't wake up."
Lachlan's arm tightened around him. "I'm sorry you had to see her that way, baby. And that I put you in that mental place again. I lost my parents violently, and it was horrific, but Ciara…she hid me away, so I didn't have to witness it. I had someone to protect me from that, and you didn't. I hate that you were made to relive it."
Apollo pressed further into him. They had both been frightened kids when they had such a great loss. He couldn't let it happen again.
"The Sanguis Vitae won't stop coming for our family. We need to wipe these fuckers out," Apollo's dragon growled.
Lachlan rubbed his hand over Apollo's arm soothingly. "Agreed."
Valentine came back shortly after, carrying brown paper grocery bags. He didn't seem surprised that they were cuddled up. Valentine knew what Apollo needed, but he wasn't the cuddling type. He also knew that Lachlan was Apollo's mate, and nothing would comfort him more than his mate's arms.
