Estelle stared at him, caught between suspicion and a gratitude so sharp it made her throat tighten. No one had brought her groceries in... well, ever. She had always been the one to provide, to make sure there was food and shelter and safety.
And dinner. Warm dinner, ready to eat, as if he had somehow known she had not thought beyond getting Adara settled and safe.
“You didn’t have to do that,” she managed.
“I know.” His eyes crinkled slightly at the corners. “But I wanted to.”
Let him in,her dragon urged.He’s no threat to us.
He’s a threat to my sanity,Estelle muttered, but she stepped back and opened the door wider.
And to our heart,her dragon practically swooned.
Estelle ignored her other side and said, “Thank you. That’s... very thoughtful.”
Leo stepped inside, careful not to brush against her as he passed. He set the bags on the kitchen counter and began unpacking them—bread, eggs, milk, fresh fruit, a few staples. Then he lifted out two containers of soup, a loaf of breadwrapped in brown paper, a small container of roast chicken, and a couple of other food containers that smelled delicious.
“I was passing the general store and thought of you,” he explained as he arranged the groceries on the counter. “I figured after the drive and unpacking, grocery shopping was probably the last thing you wanted to deal with.” He touched one of the food containers. “The soup just needs warming. I thought it might save you some trouble.”
Estelle leaned against the doorframe, watching him. His movements were calm and unhurried. It struck her that he was deliberately making himself nonthreatening, showing her he could be in her space without crowding it.
“You’re right about that,” she admitted. Then, because manners still mattered to her even when her world felt shaky, she added, “Would you like some tea? It’s about all I have right now.”
“Tea would be great,” he said, smiling in a way that warmed something cold inside her.
As she filled the kettle and set it on the stove, a strange domesticity settled over the kitchen. It should have felt awkward—this near-stranger in her home, this unasked-for kindness—but instead it felt... right.
Her dragon sighed.It feels good.
Dangerous,Estelle reminded herself.This feeling is dangerous.
There’s nothing dangerous about our mate,her dragon said.At least he’s no danger to Adara or us. You know that.
She did. She knew it as an irrefutable truth.
By the time the tea was ready, Leo had found bowls and plates, and together they put the simple meal on the table. Estelle had not meant to let him stay. She certainly had notmeant to sit down with him and break bread as though this were ordinary. But Adara was asleep upstairs, the cottage was quiet, and the warm scent of soup and fresh bread made the place feel more lived in than it had an hour before.
They sat at the small kitchen table with steaming mugs and half-filled bowls, the silence between them surprisingly easy. Estelle wrapped her hands around her tea, letting the warmth seep into her fingers.
“Adara settled in okay?” Leo asked after a while.
“Yes. She adapts quickly.” Estelle tore off a piece of bread. “Too quickly, sometimes.”
“That worries you.”
It was not a question, and Estelle appreciated that he didn’t pretendnotto see what was obvious. “Children shouldn’t have to be so adaptable. They should have... consistency.”
“And you want to give her that.” Again, not a question.
“More than anything,” Estelle whispered, then caught herself. She was revealing too much, too quickly. This man was still, in so many ways, a stranger, mate bond or not.
Leo seemed to sense her retreat. He changed the subject, telling her about the town—the best places to get fresh produce, the library’s story hour for children, the small park near the center of town with swings Adara might enjoy.
Ordinary information. Useful information. Nothing probing or personal.
As he spoke, Estelle found herself easing by degrees, the day’s tension slowly loosening from her shoulders. His voice was deep and steady, a counterpoint to the chaos in her own mind.
“Do you know much about Fiona?” she asked suddenly, interrupting his description of the town’s small but excellent bakery. “Is she always so... intrusive?”
