He takes a step back, his jaw tight, his eyes flashing crimson. ‘You’re missing the point.’
I appreciate that it would have been better to involve him from the beginning, but surely that’s easily resolved now. ‘I’m sorry I didn’t discuss it with you first. I’m just trying to keep you safe.’
‘That’s exactly the problem!’ His hands move so rapidly that I struggle to follow what he’s saying. ‘Did it ever occur to you that as a dragon, having other people provide for me like Milo has had to, having someone worry about me like you’re doing, needing to be rescued by the task force, is incredibly degrading?’
My tiger snarls and my body tenses, my heart rate spiking. ‘That’s how people show they care, you giant hypocrite! You know how I know that? Because no one ever did those things for me when I was a child. Nannies did what they were paid to do, my parents treated me like an object to show off at formal functions, and I certainly never had anyone who’d look after me when I was scared or injured. The whole reason I joined the army was to protect others. So excuse me for doing everything I can to safeguard my boyfriend!’
I turn away, my chest heaving, my eyes welling up. I probably got half those signs wrong. My tiger growls, as irritated with me for making our dragon unhappy as with Bryn for acting likewanting to protect him is wrong. I shouldn’t have snapped like that, but I’d have given anything as a child to have someone care enough to worry about me, and although life has changed a lot since then, him getting annoyed about something I used to long for set me off.
Bryn lightly touches my elbow, encouraging me to turn around, then searches my damp eyes, his scent much calmer than before. ‘We’re boyfriends?’
Ah, fuck. I did sign that, didn’t I? Of course, it’s going to come across as something else I’ve decided without talking to him first. Am I ever going to stop messing up relationships?
I lift my hands hesitantly, hoping I can salvage this. ‘I’d like to be.’
He sighs and puts on the most ridiculous pout. ‘But I had a whole romantic date planned where I was going to ask you. The only reason I’ve been waiting is because of the investigation.’
The tightness in my chest eases and I tap his jutting lower lip. ‘Put that away. I would love a romantic date when this is over. We just don’t need to wait until then to agree to an exclusive relationship.’
The delighted smile that takes over his face brightens his eyes and gives me a ridiculous fluttering in my stomach, dispelling all my frustration from before. I can’t help smiling back as he pulls me into his arms and kisses me tenderly.
Eventually I ease back barely far enough to sign, because before we celebrate making our relationship official we need to resolve this friction between us—and I’m not talking about his hardening cock currently pressing against me.
‘I’m sorry I made you feel like I don’t see you as capable,’ I sign softly. ‘That was never my intention.’
His shoulders sag. ‘You were right to call me a hypocrite. I’m sorry. I guess I have a few issues to work through.’
Any lingering tension evaporates. ‘That’s understandable. I’mhere any time you want to share about that or anything else, okay?’
He hesitates, head tilted, then takes my hand and leads me to the sofa. He doesn’t let go straight away after we sit down, instead brushing his thumb over the back of my hand.
He eventually disentangles our fingers, presses a kiss to my palm, then releases me. ‘It’s not a big deal, really. It’s just that my life now is nothing like the way it was before. I still have a lot to be thankful for, especially meeting you, but sometimes certain things trigger all this anger and frustration I try to keep locked inside.’
My heart aches for him. I need to be more respectful of the invisible scars he’s carrying after everything he’s been through.
‘It’s always okay to have feelings. You don’t have to keep them bottled up or minimise them.’ He doesn’t look convinced, so I sign more emphatically. ‘I’m serious. Look, I know it’s not the same situation at all, but when we first left the armed forces we were all constantly snapping at each other. Adjusting to civilian life wasn’t easy, and the smallest thing could set one of us off, so I get where you’re coming from. I can handle the occasional flare of temper. I promise.’
He shakes his head. ‘You shouldn’t have to.’
‘Fuck that.’ This dragon, seriously. ‘I mean it. Be yourself with me.’
He snorts, an adorable puff of smoke escaping his nostrils. ‘I’ll at least try to calm down with how crazily overprotective I get.’
My lips twitch. ‘I don’t mind that so much. I like that I’m precious to you.’
His brow furrows slightly. ‘You are, although I hope you know that I don’t call you treasure because I see you as some sort of object to show off. I’m not like your parents.’
My heart warms at the sincerity in his eyes. ‘I know. We’re equals, Bryn, and I’ll make sure I do better at acting accordingly.’
Now that I understand where he’s coming from, I’ll be a lotmore careful. Doing something on his behalf without talking to him first was out of line.
His expression softens. ‘I’d appreciate that. And in future I’ll try to see your worry as an indication of how much you care. In fact…’ His hands hover, and he searches my eyes before continuing. ‘I have a theory about why we’re behaving this way with one another.’
My stomach dips for reasons I can’t explain. ‘Oh?’
He takes a deep breath before exhaling slowly, his hand movements more cautious than usual. ‘Dragons tend to know quickly if someone is our fated mate.’
I suck in a sharp breath. My tiger perks up, attention fully locked on Bryn.
