“Yeah, Brooke and Violet.” She hesitated and glanced between him and the trail. “We were hiking. I got a little ahead. Guess I wasn’t watching my footing.”
Jakob’s jaw tightened. “You should be more careful near the cliffs,” he said, softer now. “They’re unpredictable.”
Her cheeks flushed pink beneath the cold. “I’ll remember that.” She smiled and the sight of it hit him harder than the mountain wind.
The voices were closer now, crunching footsteps audible through the snow.
Mallory turned fully toward the trail this time, then paused and looked back at him. “Are you coming?”
He gestured with his head. “I’m heading that way.”
“I don’t even know your name.”
Jakob hesitated. Names had weight. Power.
“Jakob,” he said finally.
“I’m Mallory, again. I guess I already told you that.” She held his gaze a second longer and something unspoken passed between them. “Do you, uh, want to meet my friends?”
He shook his head. “Not to be rude, but I’m up here for a little peace and quiet.”
She tried to smile, but he could see the disappointment in her eyes. “I get that. Well, thank you again, Jakob. You saved my life.”
The dragon stirred, pleased and possessive.
Mine.
Jakob clenched his teeth. “Take care,” he said instead.
Her friends appeared around the bend moments later, relief written all over their faces. Mallory hurried toward them, answering questions and waving off concern. Once, just once, she glanced back over her shoulder but he had already walked off to put some distance between them.
Their eyes met and he felt a stir, unwelcome as it may be. His dragon, however, grunted with pleasure.
Then she was gone, swallowed by voices and distance as they took the winding trail down the mountain.
Jakob stood there long after the sound faded, until the cold finally seeped through his coat. He pressed a hand to his chest, where heat still thrummed, restless and alive.
The dragon rumbled deep inside him, satisfied.
Mine.
Jakob scowled at the empty trail. “No,” he muttered. “Absolutely not.”
But the spark in his heart only burned hotter, already certain of the truth.
CHAPTER 2
Mallory
She had survived falling off a cliff. She had not survived the man who saved her.
Mallory lay sprawled on the ridiculously soft hotel bed later that afternoon with one arm flung over her eyes while she stared at the faint outline of the ceiling beams through her lashes. Whoever had designed the mattress clearly believed in being extra. It felt like what she imagined it would be like to float on a cloud. Normally, she’d love it.
But today, her stomach kept doing somersaults.
“Oh my word,” Violet said from the doorway as she entered the room. “You look like someone just stole your ice cream.”
Mallory groaned and pressed her forearm harder against her face. “Please don’t talk to me.”
