“In the report.”
Now my laugh came out with a nervous edge. “The truth. That you are well-mannered. You don’t make trouble. You are kind. You don’t complain.”
“Is that what you’re thinking?”
“Yes.”
“Okay.”
What was he getting at? Everything I said was a compliment. But what Tanekan just thought, well, I couldn’t burst right out with that. The word “ours” was improper anyway. I didn’t think of Kirion as an object to be owned even though I did own him.
“If I was going to write a report to my father about you, which I’m not, but if I did, I would say the same. That you are well-mannered and kind. That I’m lucky to be here.”
“Really.”
“Yes. And one other thing.”
“Tell me.”
“That I feel safe with you.”
I took a large gulp of my coffee, nearly burning all the skin off the roof of my mouth. I winced, then set down my mug. “That’s quite a statement. A compliment.”
“It’s a big deal. For omegas, I mean. At least, where I come from. Not all alphas are like you. It’s not just their size and strength, but they are unpredictable, and among wolves are raised to be not only dominant but controlling. It makes omegas feel small and powerless and that stirs the alphas up more. Their aggressive side comes out. It’s all hormonal, though I didn’t pay a huge lot of attention in biology classes. But there are words for all those hormone factors and adjustments.”
“Dragons aren’t that different,” I confessed.
“But you are.”
Malin would have disagreed. He would have said I took Rupert for granted and didn’t spend my time with the two of them as I should have. He would say my alpha took over andcontrolled the bankroll and treated family like I did the house as only a place to rest when I needed it. He was wrong. I had been doing my best. I needed my family. I loved them. I didn’t control Rupert. And obviously I had failed to control my son.
“I’m glad to hear that you feel safe with me.”
I would never compromise him. Never. I had lines I wouldn’t cross personally or in business. Not like many other alphas I knew.
But one thing I’d been wanting to ask him, but wasn’t sure how, was about his heats. His file included personal things about him, things I wouldn’t want others to know. But he didn’t get to choose. One thing it contained was a heat schedule. Kirion had heats only twice a year. Winter and summer. The winter one was coming up.
I had no idea how to broach the subject. But I had questions. Did he prefer to go somewhere alone? Were there certain foods that should be stocked? If he needed personal items, he could order those. But what if he wanted to be put up in a hotel for the duration? Would he ask me? I could do that. I would do anything for him to feel comfortable and secure.
What if he knew I now also wanted him? Like Tanekan wanted him. For mine alone. Would he no longer feel safe? Would he then want to run?
The last thing I wanted was to scare him away.
He smiled up at me. His eyes sparkled. Or maybe it was only my imagination.
17
Kirion
I’d been called dazzling, smart and told I have a sense of humor. What about me was not to like?
Tane didn’t seem to pick up on the clues I was giving him.
In the garden, it felt good when he had held and rubbed my cold hands. Even though the wind was cold and the temperature had abruptly dropped, something sizzled between us as we ran inside to hot drinks by the fire.
I was telling the truth when I said if I was the one writing a report to my father I would say I felt safe with Tane. Trust was the most important commodity for me. From the moment I was designated a set there was no one I could trust. I lived without that word in my vocabulary, in my life. People who had trust might not realize what a big void it created to have it missing.
At first when I had arrived the days had gone by agonizingly slow. But after Malin left for the last time, Tane and I began to spend a few days together each week. After a couple of weeks, it turned into every day. The more time I spent with him, the moreI wanted. I would go to bed alone each night wishing I could just have one more hour watching TV with him or playing a game or having a midnight snack.
