“You can’t go by yourself. It’s not safe. I’ll go with you.”
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because I can’t think when you’re around. All I think about is making love with you and I really just need to clear my head. Just for tonight. Okay, Bennett?”
His mate scowled. “I don’t understand you, at all.”
Lucas smiled. “I know. I’m sorry. I don’t really understand it either. I just know I need a little space.”
“You’ll come back in the morning?”
“Yes.”
“And you’ll bring your stuff? Live here?”
Lucas smiled again and pressed his cheek to Bennett’s chest, taking in his scent. “Okay.”
“Okay, you can go. But you have to take Forrest with you.”
“Gee, thanks for giving me my freedom.”
Bennett pulled him away, far enough to look into Lucas’ eyes. “This isn’t our way, Lucas. We’re newly bonded and you’re asking me to spend a night away from you.” Bennett’s green eyes pleaded with him to reconsider.
Shit, he had hurt his mate’s feelings.
Chapter Thirteen
Lucas stared at the ceiling of his small one room cabin. He could hear the water lapping at the shore and the frogs chirping outside the screen door. And he had to admit that it felt wrong to be here. His little cabin didn’t feel like home anymore, not the way Bennett’s house did. He thought he had needed time to wrap his head around the fact he’d basically gotten married with one single bite. No engagement. No yearlong planning session. Not even a goddamned cake. One bite wasn’t exactly how humans did things. He supposed the big ball of light leaving his body every few days established the fact that he wasn’t human, at least not as human as he thought he was. Nor did the itching or being able to hear Bennett through his mind scream human in any way.
Lucas’ resolve had slipped every time Bennett smiled or touched him softly. In the end, he held firm and went back home with Forrest. It had been difficult when Bennett had looked at Lucas as if he’d stolen the last cookie. Bennett had stood in his driveway in those gray, bluecoveralls, watching Lucas leave in Forrest’s car. It broke his heart just thinking about it.
He had made a mistake. He should have stayed. He felt completely awful and wanted to be with Bennett in his bed.
It was clear Lucas wasn’t going to be able to sleep. He sighed and sat up. He missed Bennett already. It was the craziest thing and so incredibly ridiculous. How could he miss someone he barely knew, mated or not?
Lucas scratched his chest again. He sucked in a breath, pulling his hand away when he saw black scales on his own chest, as if he was turning into Bennett’s dragon. He wasn’t sure why Bennett’s dragon was appearing on his body. He knew instinct ruled the dragon. Maybe it was the dragon’s way of staking his claim on Lucas. Or maybe by mating with Bennett he took on some of the dragon’s traits. Whatever the reason, the scales itched like a bitch.
He took a deep breath and willed himself to calm down. Think through the problem.
Was it even that big of an issue? So he was turning into a dragon. If Bennett could handle it than so could Lucas. Right? Right!
Problem solved. Sort of. What would it be like to fly? And does shifting hurt?
Lucas slipped Bennett’s dragon T-shirt on over his head. He had stolen it from Bennett’s closet a few days ago. Bennett’s scent covered the shirt still. He held it up to his nose and took a big breath. God, it smelled like his own personal version of heaven and it made his dick hard.
He put the shirt back into place and walked over to the door. He had remembered to lock it the second he got in, leaving the outer door open. Somehow, that cinnamon smell was stronger the nearer he got to the screen and he thought it might be the breeze blowing the scentaround on the shirt he wore. Or maybe Bennett had checked on him at some point.
He smiled at the protective gesture.
Lucas’ attitude had changed since meeting Bennett. Knowing shifters made up more than half the town and Bennett was one of them, made him feel safe.
He figured his comfort had a lot to do with Bennett being his mate. He might have wanted to take things slowly, for several different reasons, but even he couldn’t deny the fact that he had wanted the man with every single fiber of his being the very first moment he saw him.
Lucas unlocked the door and started to open it, but movement to his left made him stop. He sucked in a breath and put a hand to his chest as if he had to hold in his heart, which was pounding away at the scare Bennett had given him.
“You scared the crap out of me, Bennett. God,” Lucas said and stepped out of his little house. He let the door close behind him. Bennett snaked an arm around his waist and drew him in, pulling him down into his lap.
