Vael lowered his head as he approached. His growl died away, replaced by a soft crooning note. He lifted his wings high and arched them around her, creating a semi-enclosed tent over her huddled form. The light from the streetlamps filtered in through the thin membrane of his wings to cast dark red and gold shapes on the crown of her head.
Desperate to be close, to inspect her for injuries he couldn’t immediately see, Vael brought his snout down to ruffle her hair. His breath, icy cold,whuffedout. She smelled like rain and fresh, tart strawberries. There was no blood, but elves were capable of so much more than cuts. What if her date hadn’t just abandoned her? What if he touched her without consent? What if he bruised her?
Vael’s pupils contracted into quivering lines so thin, they were barely discernible against the dark green of his irises. Rage and fear for his mate made his huge body shake.
Only Hele’s sudden movement stopped him from lifting his snout to the sky to let out a roar that would have shattered eardrums — a warning to the bastard that a dragon was coming for him.
Without lifting her head, Hele snaked her arms around his neck. Her palms settled in the sensitive spots behind his horns. Breathing heavily, she rested her temple against the curve of his jaw and whispered, “I just wanted to go on a date. I don’t understand what I did wrong. He didn’texplain.”
Motherfucker!
Vael vividly remembered her early days when she demanded an explanation for everything, when her most used words werewhyandhow. His Hele hated feeling like she didn’t know what to do or why people acted the way they did. Asking questions was her way of taking control of a situation. When people didn’t bother to explain things to her or brushed her aside, he’d seen her shrink into herself, self-conscious. To know that she’d beenstood upand then insulted in the way that stung her the most…
I’m going to fucking kill him.
His wings flexed as the hunting instinct bore down on him. Instinct screamed. It narrowed his focus to a pinprick, a dark tunnel with only one focus—
Hele sniffled.
And just like that, Vael’s violent rage melted into a new shape:protectiveness.
He couldn’t communicate with her in this form — not verbally, at least — but he could take care of her. He had to, seeing as he didn’t quite have the control necessary to shift back yet. He wouldn’t until he had her sequestered,safe.
Forcefully shaking off the bloody rage that consumed him, Vael made another soft noise in the back of his throat and very gently nuzzled the side of her head. He felt the silk of her hair sliding against his tough dragon hide and thought,This is my fault.
Regret burned like bile up the back of his throat. If he hadn’t been so bullheaded, he could have saved her this pain. She would never have run off to experience something with another man. He could have given her the best first date imaginable. He could have doneso muchfor her, but he was so wrapped up in what he thought she needed that he pushed her into seeking out someone else.
And now she was hurt.Because of me.
It was unbearable.
Instinct demanded he take her back to their nest and see to her care. He had to make things right between them. He had to make sure she knew that there would never be a need to find another. There would be no more dates with elves. No more of this awful pain. No more sitting on a curb alone, waiting for some asshole, while the world stared.
Skinning the elf alive and then cooking him like second rate chuck roast would have to wait.
Extending one clawed foreleg, Vael oh-so-carefully nudged her into a more upright sitting position. Hele leaned back to give him a view of her tear-streaked face and wobbling chin.
My fucking heart,he thought, gasping for breath like it could ease the guilt, the anger that choked him. His tail — huge, muscled, and lined with deadly spikes — thrashed over the gritty asphalt. Somewhere behind him a trash can toppled over and rolled away.
“What?” she asked, brows bunching together.
Vael couldn’t help but lower his head to trace her cheek with the tip of his nose. His tongue snaked out, quick as Hele’s lightning, to lick away her tears. She sputtered and her arms fell away from his neck. He took the opportunity to nod toward the night sky.
Fly,he tried to tell her.Fly with me.
He held his breath as he waited for her response. Hele scrubbed at her face with her palms. A little bit of spark returned to her hair when she muttered, “No. I won’t go with you. I like this dress. I don’t want to lose it.”
He let out an exasperated huff and nodded again, more insistent this time.
“Are you going to try and escort me back to my family’s nest?” Her expression darkened. Crossing her arms, she informed him, “I don’t need you to rescue meortake me back to my parents. I’m fine. Alex will come get me soon.”
Vael disagreed with that assessment very much, but he knew that stubborn thrust of her chin well. Of course, she didn’t know that Alex would not be coming to get her. Not just because he’d destroyed her phone, either.
She’d rightfully given him shit for what happened with Hele, but when it came tothis,she was still a dragon — and every dragon knew not to step between mates. If she came between them now, Vael wasn’t entirely sure that he would be able to keep his instinct to protect his mate in check. Luckily, she knew better.
Since he knew Alex wouldn’t be coming, he nudged his mate again.
“No.” Her chin jutted in that way he loved. Unfortunately, it also signaled that she’d dug her heels in. Hele had made up her mind and would not be following him anywhere.
