Why hadn't Nolan said anything, though? Surely, if we were mates, he knew. He was a dragon, and nothing slipped past those ancient creatures.
Unless this was me seeing something in nothing. Maybe his kindness had lowered my guard, and I'd turned it into something more than it was.
That had to be it because the alternative would be that Nolan knew, and didn't want me.
Nolan
After breakfast, I grabbed the dogs' leads, and we headed outside, walking down the sunlit streets toward the Sanctuary. We passed by the bar, which would be closed until four in the evening, when Sofia and Hugo, our chef, would arrive and start setting up for the evening. We didn't offer a lot of food, just enough fried things to keep the patrons drinking longer than they would on an empty stomach.
People bustled past, phones pressed to ears, takeaway cups in hand. Avoiding people and connections had never been easier than today, and I'd somehow still ended up letting my mate in.
I'd promised myself I was done, but when I found Zamir curled up amid my fur-children, I realized I was already too late. Somehow, despite my best efforts, Zamir had weaseled his way in.
My plan had been to remain alone until I felt ready again, until my heart had healed enough that I could imagine giving it to someone without breaking into a cold sweat. I supposed I should've remembered what they said about the best-laid plans...
"Sanctum is closed," Zamir murmured, pulling my gaze to him. His frown was directed at Sanctum of Geeks, a storefront I'd passed many times when walking the dogs, though I'd never gone inside. I enjoyed the odd comic books, but I'd never been the type of enthusiast who collected every volume.
"Do you go there often?"
"Not really. The owner, Liam, lives at the Sanctuary too. It makes me think the door isn't working for anyone."
"You think they're locked in as well?" I asked, thinking about what that implied. If everyone was sealed inside the Sanctuary, this was far more serious than I'd assumed.
"Maybe. Or Liam's running late. It's possible," Zamir said as Clip tugged him toward a bush, while Muffin, never to be left behind, picked a bush right next to Clip's.
"Huh. They're pee buddies," Zamir said, and I snorted.
"Just wait," I said, and Zamir cracked up when they squatted with a foot between them, facing away from each other as they did their business.
"First the Murder Triplets, now the Poo Buds. Where do you find them?"
"The Murder what?" I asked, and he grinned.
"I told you your chickens wanted to kill me. They followed me everywhere, and I could feel their eyes on me in my sleep," he explained, waving his free hand to emphasize his point.
"I feel like you might be exaggerating."
"Nuh-uh."
"A fine argument," I conceded, making him laugh. He had a wonderful laugh. He didn't just laugh with his mouth. His whole face expressed his delight: his curls bounced with every chuckle, his dark eyes sparkled, their corners creased, his nose wrinkled. While he was guarded in some aspects—like the flash of something I'd seen when I'd made that unfortunate joke last night—he was also so very free with his joy, and I found it, foundhimcaptivating.
I scooped up the dog poops into their designated plastic bag, then threw it into a dumpster before we continued walking. Zamir started up a one-sided conversation with the dogs, telling them about some of the people at the Sanctuary who would love to meet them.
I had to tell him the truth, tell him what we meant to each other. The longer I'd been around him, the more sure I'd beenthat he didn't know. A... a frailness clung to him that I couldn't make sense of. Supes exuded an aura of magic that made it easy for other supes to recognize them. It was how any supe who came close to me would instantly recognize me as a dragon. The distance depended on both the supes' strengths. It took me no effort to recognize any supe who entered my bar, no matter how far they were from me.
While Zamir exuded enough of an aura that I'd recognized him as a shtriga, it was flimsy. I suspected a weaker supe could easily mistake him for a human, and I wondered why that was. Had he not fed in a while, or was he weak by nature?
The Sanctuary was home to supes who wouldn't or couldn't live in the human world, so it was possible he was the latter.
I didn't care that he was weak. In fact, it'd helped me, in a way. If we'd both discovered we were mates at the same time, I'd have rejected him outright. I never would've invited him to my place, and I certainly wouldn't have changed my mind.
I was still afraid, terrified, to be honest, but I couldn't... I couldn't let Zamir disappear from my life. Who knew when our paths would cross again once Zamir returned to his home? The Sanctuary had been anchored here for years now, and I suspected they didn't stay in one place for too long, lest the locals get suspicious.
My fear wasn't gone, but I would deal with it, because despite all my grief, I'd never regretted any of the friendships I'd had over the years, and I knew I would regret letting Zamir go. And weak or not, he was a supe, and once our bond was complete, he wouldn't be as easy to lose.
"Here we are," Zamir said as we stopped in front of the Sanctuary once more, and this time, I climbed the steps with him. Muffin pressed against my leg as Clip whined, and I wondered if they could sense something.
I could still feel the tendrils of sorcerer magic clinging to the door, so the connection between it and the pocket realm hadn't been severed.
