“Woman. You mean woman.”
“No,” His brow wrinkles. “A female. A human female is a woman, but a Fae female is just that — a female. In the same way a Fae male is a Male. Like me.”
I stare at him, mouth agape. I’m sure I look like a fish.
Fae. He said Fae. He… he said that he… thatI… thatwe…
I can’t seem to breathe. If he’s not some delusional serial killer, then the man sitting next to me, studying me with growing concern is, in fact, the Fae warrior from my story.
My last thought before the world goes black isAnd he thinks I’m pretty.
CHAPTER SEVEN
When I open my eyes, I’m looking at the ceiling of Wanderlust, blinking at the stars that twinkle there. I make a mental note that I need to dust up there because I can see the filth. For a moment, I don’t remember why the hell I’m lying here. Did I decide to take a nap at the store? That doesn’t make sense.
A movement on my chest alerts me to the weightthere, startling me. Lifting my head, I see two silver eyes staring back at me.
“I told you she’d be fine.” Flint says.
I turn my head to look at him. He’s sitting on a reading chair, one foot propped on a knee, watching me. It’s then, I realize, that I’m stretched out on the sofa and a throw has been tucked around me. Thankfully, not the same throw he used to put out the fire. Thank Gods for Bits and her unshakable belief in infinite comfort items.
Fuck. There was a fire. I still have to clean up that mess andthentry to explain to Betsy how there even came to be a fire. I also have to chide her for not having the fire extinguisher serviced in forever, while also thanking her for neglecting to have a working sprinkler system.
‘You did not know,’a young voice says.
I look around, confused. Did he let a child in here while I was passed out? Maybe heisa raging psycho. Who would let a kid into the shop,todayof all days? Nothing has gone right, and the smell of smoke and burning bestsellers is still lingering in the air. It’s probably a health hazard.
Wait. If I’m on the sofa… that means that he picked me up and carried me here. Or did he levitate me? I mean, when I wrote about him, he didn’t have any levitating powers that I knew of, but given how this day has been going, I wouldn’t be surprised.
Assuming he didn’t levitate me onto the couch, he must have touched me and I was unconscious for it.
Damn it!
‘You hoped, which is not at all the same thing. Luckily, she was already sitting on the floor, so she didn’t have far to fall. Her head should be fine.’
I’m still looking around as best I can without displacing the purring dragon who is staring holes into me.
“Did you let someone in? Is there a customer? I cannot be laying here with a dragon if there’s some Karen wandering the stacks!” Nothing scares me like an angry bitch with a bob.
Flint looks confused. “No, it’s just the three of us.”
The three of…. “What?”
He gestures at Calida with an inked hand. “I told you. She can talk to her chosen and those that she likes. I guess in the moment when you were waking, you were okay with making the connection. So, now she can speak to you.”
He’s saying this like it’s a totally normal thing to hear a dragon speak. Or to believe that dragons can speak. Or to believe infucking dragons.
‘Maybe she is broken. She is not speaking back.’
At this point, I realize I’m not hearing the girl’s voice in my ears. It’s coming from inside my head. It’s sweet, high and almost musical.
Looking back down at Calida, I say, “Holy shit.”
She bares her teeth at me in what I think is an attempt at a smile. Given that hers are very pointy and appear to be very sharp, it doesn’t do a whole lot to make me feel better.
‘He’s sort of an idiot, but he’s right.’
Flint looks unamused. I bite my lip and try not to laugh. Of course my chosen dragon would be a smart ass.
