“Crap. That’s not what I meant! It’s just that Jannie is automatically more valuable to kidnappers because she’s a dragon.”
“And I’m not a kidnapper.” Titan slipped his hand under Mathlin’s shirt, covering his belly. “This pup here ismine.”
That possessiveness sent a jolt down Mathlin’s spine. It made his omega instincts perk up and pay attention.
It must have shown on his face. Titan crowded further into Mathlin’s space.
“Mine,” Titan rumbled, skimming his fingertips across Mathlin’s abdomen. “You smell like mine, too.”
Mathlin whimpered, tipping his head back to offer his neck. Titan’s pupils dilated. He growled loudly, stroking Mathlin’s throat to leave his scent there. Then he leaned in, rubbing his odd whiskers against Mathlin’s hair. “Mine. I’m loving the whiskers; they let me sense everything so much better. Including you.”
When he licked Mathlin, his tongue rasped against Mathlin’s skin like a cat’s tongue.
“Wow,” Mathlin squeaked. “Maybe we should—”
The bells jangled on the front door. Someone stepped into Twin Buns.
All of them turned, even Jannie who was chewing on Mathlin’s shirt.
It was Mr. Abercrombie again, wizened and old. His fuzzy eyebrows shot up when he saw Titan. “Titan, boy! What happened to your face?”
Titan opened his mouth.
Mathlin spoke first. “There was an accident! Three nights ago, Titan got into a fight with a sphinx that descended from the great Pharaohs of Egypt. The sphinx cursed him but also cured his arms.”
Somehow, Abercrombie’s eyebrows crawled higher. “A sphinx? Where is it now? Is it running wild around here?”
“We struck a deal with it,” Mathlin said gravely. “We traded Titan’s secret family recipe for his safety, and in return, it promised to heal him and leave the state.”
“It healed him?” Abercrombie said, surprised. He looked Titan over and gave an approving nod.
“It’s all thanks to Mathlin,” Titan said. “Because—”
“Because I told the sphinx just how amazing Titan’s brownies are. And Titan couldn’t bake if he couldn’t use his arms. But we had a pan of leftover brownies to share with the sphinx, so it could understand just what the world was missing. You should’ve seen the way its eyes lit up!”
“Those must be some special brownies,” Abercrombie said thoughtfully.
“Uh-huh. They’re pretty special. They relieve aches and pains. Here, try some.” Mathlin pulled away from Titan, hurrying over to grab their sample tray. He offered Abercrombie a bite of brownie in a cupcake liner.
Abercrombie popped it into his mouth. His face lit up. Mathlin cheered inwardly.
“Give it a couple moments to sink in,” Mathlin said. “It’s infused with herbs, and depending on how much you eat, it can relieve any aches and pains for a while.”
Abercrombie took another square and munched on it. Then his eyebrows shot up, and he stood taller. “My knees don’t hurt as bad anymore.”
Mathlin grinned. “Yeah! I’m glad it’s working for you.”
Abercrombie bought four squares, cradling them protectively against his chest. “I’m going to tell everyone about this.”
“We’d really appreciate that,” Mathlin said. “Oh! And you should see Titan wash his face.”
Titan shot him a look of absolute betrayal.
“He does it like a cat now,” Mathlin said with a grin. He curled his hands into loose fists and scrubbed his face. “Like this.”
He wasn’t sure how Titan would react, to be honest. Titan stared at him for another moment. Then the alpha mimicked Mathlin, clumsily wiping his face.
Abercrombie’s eyes almost fell out of his head.
