“No telling. Ryper and I are half oni and we don’t have horns.”
“You have one,” she reminded him.
He laughed, then pulled her hand down to a certain part of his anatomy. “Two whenever you’re near me.”
She rolled her eyes at his jest while she cupped him and watched the pleasure she gave him play across those handsome features.
A sudden tapping on the window interrupted them.
Dash growled as he realized it was either Ronan or Chrys. “That just put me in a foul mood.”
She laughed at his awful pun.
Getting up from the bed, he manifested a robe and went to the window to find Ronan there. “What?”
“Sorry for interrupting.”
“No, you’re not.”
He didn’t know how Ronan managed it in his hawk form, but he actually grinned. “No, I’m not. Mostly because I’m freezing my bird sac off while you’re lounging around in comfort.”
“I am your king, you know?”
“I know. But I’m too valuable for you to kill... for now.”
Dash let out an irritated sigh. “Is there a point to your visit?”
“There is. I found Xaydin.”
That filled him with more joy than it should have. “Is he after theaþaswere?”
“He is, indeed. I’ve never seen him giddy before. It actually scared me.”
“Yeah. He’s not a fan.”
“Any idea why?”
Dash shrugged. “Killing them is his calling.”
Ronan shivered. “Anyway, he said he’d send the head to you once he found and executed the rightaþaswere.”
“Good. Thank you, Ronan.”
“My pleasure.” He started away, then paused. “By the way, I came across an old man while I was tracking down Xaydin.”
“And?”
“Told me to tell you ‘thank you’ for making him human.”
Stunned, Dash stared at him. “What?”
“His name was Thomas Drake. Said he’d made a deal with you back when he was a gryphon, and you tried to talk him out of it. He wanted you to know that he had no regrets.”
Huh. That was the last thing Dash had ever expected to hear. For reasons unknown, it did make him feel good to know that Drake wasn’t out there, holding a grudge.
“Let me know if you need anything.” This time, Ronan took off.
Still amazed, Dash turned to find Tanis standing a few feet away.
