Home > Dragon Dad's Mate (Dragon Dads Love Chronicles)(6)

Dragon Dad's Mate (Dragon Dads Love Chronicles)(6)
Author: Amelia Wilson

She had mentioned making dinner for Ashton tonight, perhaps he would instead. He and Ashton hadn’t eaten together in a while and the day was unusually slow. He could think about Marshall’s situation while he cooked.

First, he needed to go to the grocery store. He planned for grilled lemon parmesan chicken with oven roasted potatoes and vegetables. He picked up milk and coffee to replace Ashton’s juice boxes for himself.

Looking at everything arrayed on the counters he realized that he and Ashton needed more variety to their cupboards. He would need to make it a habit to shop more often. No wonder Nora thought badly of him

As he moved around the kitchen, he considered Marshall. Marshall was one of his best friends, possibly the oldest friend he had. Unfortunately, he had fallen in love of rather Marshall claimed to have found a girl he loved. He had been seeing her for a while, and declared she was his mate. They had connected with each other in the most intimate ways, and for once he could say his skin wasn’t on fire.

For dragon shifters, their skin was always hot. They often kept their thermostats low, and preferred as little physical contact as possible, to keep from adding to their natural body warmth and to keep people from becoming suspicious. If this girl created cool waves to wash over his skin, then that was definitely something for Marshall to consider.

It had almost been similar with Nora. When he touched her arm, it was a flash of heat, but as it had moved up his arm, it felt like being bathed in a cold shower. If it hadn’t freaked him out so much, he could have gone on touching her forever.

For Cain, it was a sign not to get too close, but it only made Marshall get closer with his girl. One day, she came to him claiming she was in trouble and terminated their relationship. Marshall came to Cain immediately, but Cain already saw that he couldn’t help.

Cain and his closest, most trusted friends, or allies at the very least, organized a private investigation secret service for shifters. On extreme occasions the government would ask for their expertise. However, one caveat was always enforced: if an agent became emotionally compromised by the mission, they were removed from it.

Marshall was asking for an exception, and Cain couldn’t offer that to him.

Now as he stood in Nora’s classroom offering to keep talking to her over dinner, he realized he was trying to deny himself and Ashton an emotional connection with anyone. As soon as either of them liked someone and tried to get close, Cain pulled back and made sure a relationship wasn’t formed.

Did he want to start changing that with Nora? It was clear that Ashton did. His face lit up anytime Nora spoke or looked at him.

The time it took her to reply to him seemed like an eternity, but she finally smiled and said okay, saying she needed to get her bag, first. He didn’t realize he had been holding his breath, hanging on her answer. He was relieved and excited to be able to share dinner with her.

They walked out of the building with Ashton in between them. Cain looked at Nora as she talked to Ashton about what homework they would focus on after dinner.

He took in the roundness of her cheek and the warm smile with which she encouraged Ashton. Her skin was soft-pink, and Cain had an urge to reach up and turn her face to him so he could gaze at her more fully. He gulped down the urge and looked ahead to the door.

The sun was shining warmly. Cain’s dragon rolled with delight and wanted to be let out to fly and bathe its scales in the light. Cain would have loved that too, but the sun was setting, and Nora was there.

“Miss Otwell?” A shy voice came from a place in the shade.

It surprised Cain and he almost stepped in front of Nora and Ashton. He stopped himself, only putting a hand on Ashton’s shoulder, keeping him at his side while Nora looked around.

Nora looked toward the voice. “Yes?” Her shoulders stiffened, and Cain almost pushed her behind him so that he could encounter the unknown for her.

She’s an adult who can take care of herself, he thought.

The person who stepped toward them was a young lady in, perhaps, her early twenties. She had a coat zipped up to her neck, and her hands were pressed into her pockets. “You probably don’t remember me from five years ago....”

“I do,” Nora said. “You’re June. How can I help you?”

Nora smiled softly, but it didn’t reach her eyes, and her shoulders never loosened. Cain had never seen someone act as nervously around an acquaintance as Nora was. He wondered if this June had done something to upset Nora in the past.

“Oh, so you haven’t gotten my letters then?” June looked down, and something passed over her face. It was a familiar pain that Cain saw; now he wanted nothing more than to grab Nora and Ashton and get them away from this June.

Just Ashton, Cain corrected himself. Nora is not mine to care for.

Correction. She is ours to care for, his dragon reared its head to speak.

“I’m sorry,” Nora said. “I haven’t received any letters lately.”

“Oh. Alright.”

June was turning to leave when Nora reached out and grabbed her arm. Nora rolled her shoulders back and said, “Maybe we can get bagels in the morning and talk?”

June’s face lit up much like Ashton’s did whenever Nora promised something. “I would love that.”

“I work tomorrow, as always,” Nora laughed, and it came out so easy that Cain wanted to relax into the situation just as Nora had, but he had seen the dejection that had flashed across June’s face. He wasn’t going to trust her until he knew more.

Cain shook himself. He kept making assumptions about Nora, and now this June girl, as if he had a reason to do so. This wasn’t some mission he was investigating.

If Cain was going to be concerned, it would be because Nora was important to Ashton, not because Cain had any hope or intentions towards her himself. She was going to be Ashton’s tutor and he was trying to adjust himself to her presence that would be around for a while. Again, not for himself, but for Ashton.

Cain sighed, realizing he would probably be reminding himself of that for a while.

Nora quickly finished making plans with June. “It’ll have to be early, around six thirty, but there’s a bagel place on Manchester that serves the perfect sesame bagels and blueberry coffee a girl could ever dream about.”

June’s face lifted with relief, and she said, “I’d love that.”

Then, June looked behind Nora and pointed at Cain and Ashton. She said, “Your family is so cute; I’ll let you get back to them.”

Without correcting her, Nora said thank you. When she came back to Cain and Ashton, she rested a hand on Ashton’s shoulder and looked at Cain expectantly. “Are we going?”

The car ride was quiet. The situation was so unusual no one said a word, leaving Cain to his thoughts. He was grateful to be driving so that he had a reason to keep his eyes fixed somewhere other than on Nora.

She kept her eyes directed out of the window, watching the trees and street signs pass by. The trees that populated the area were some of Cain’s favorite things about where he lived. By the peaceful face that Nora now had, he guessed that she enjoyed the wildlife as much as he did.

Today she was wearing black oversized pants that tied in the front over a flower printed blouse. The colors made her skin look like peach blossoms, and the pants, like the skirt, swayed around her calves like delicate willow branches.

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