by Riley Storm
“What you went through last night,” he explained. “That’s not exactly normal, you know. Not everyone experiences that in their lifetime. It’s only normal that it could leave you shaken up. Perhaps feeling a bit vulnerable. It was rather intense.”
Lilly got the door open at last and she ducked inside, barely remembering to hold the door for Trent. He followed her, pulling it closed while she made for the alarm, shutting it down.
“Maybe,” she admitted as the system sounds died out. “Maybe. But it’s not that rare,” she said. “I mean it happens to lots of people, right? At the time, sure, I felt a bit vulnerable, I guess. Who doesn’t in a situation like that, right? But you’re so reassuring, that it never lasted long. So maybe, yeah, I was, but now I’m just sure…”
Lilly’s voice died off as she caught the look on his face.
“You were talking about what happened here, at the shop, weren’t you?” she said monotone.
Trent nodded, trying not to laugh as Lilly looked pained to the point she probably wanted to curl up in a ball and die of embarrassment.
Silence dragged on between the two of them as they both just stood still in the middle of the store, neither speaking.
Trent had to do something about it. He had to spare her, somehow. He couldn’t expect her to be the one to address things.
“What do I say here to make this the least awkward that I can for you?” he asked.
Lilly withered, her face flushing an even deeper shade of red. “I don’t know,” she moaned. “Why is it awkward?”
Trent shrugged. “It’s not for me. Not in the slightest. We had sex. Pretty sure we both enjoyed it. We’re both adults, able to make our own decisions. Where’s the problem?”
There was another round of silence as Lilly thought that over. He let her. There was no point in rushing things now. It was out in the open. The topic had been broached. Better to get everything all said and wrapped up now so that they could begin to move on.
“It wasn’t a problem with the sex,” Lilly said at last, startling him with the sound of her voice in the quiet interior of her store.
“Okay,” he said, trying his best to conceal the pain he felt in his gut at those words.
Translation: The sex was fine, it’s you I have a problem with.
Whether she didn’t want him getting any ideas—too late for that—or if she simply wasn’t interested in anything happening again, Trent knew it meant she had an issue with him. Would she want him to leave?
The idea of going, of not being able to see Lilly again, left him feeling hollow. Empty. As if a piece of him would be missing if he were to just give up and go away. The hollowness was slowly filled by a dull ache.
Never being able to see her again. To hear her laugh or see that smile which lights up my world.
The dull ache rapidly became a sharp stabbing pain. Trent couldn’t bear the idea of not having Lilly in his life.
His knees nearly buckled as his dragon awoke to the realization of what his inner thoughts meant. Trent thought he’d felt it register its displeasure before, but that was nothing compared to the all-out mental assault it launched at him now, conveying one single concept.
Stay.
Leaving wasn’t an option. Trent had to find a way to keep her. It was more than just a general interest in her, he realized. She was important to him. Beyond important. She was—
“Holy shit,” he whispered, the words bringing her head around so that they could lock eyes.
Trent stared in wide-eyed wonder and amazement, his face splitting open in a grin.
“Is everything okay, Trent?” Lilly asked, trepidation coloring her tone.
“Fine,” he said, shaking his head in disbelief. “Better than fine, actually.”
“What do you mean?” she asked, the corners of her eyes crinkling up in confusion.
Trent grinned. “It’s you,” he said quietly.
Lilly nodded at him very slowly, exaggerating the motion. “Yes. It is me. I’m Lilly,” she said. “It’s been me all morning. What are you talking about?”
Licking his lips, Trent opened his mouth to tell her, to explain to her what he’d realized, what he’d found out. What she was. But the words didn’t come. Not easily. His nerves fled him for a moment, but a mental bellow from his dragon snapped him out of it.
“It’s what you are,” he said quietly. “What I just realized about you.”
“Trent, I don’t understand,” Lilly said, lifting her hands helplessly. “What do you mean?”
“You’re her,” he breathed. “My mate. The one woman fate has destined me to be with. Forever.”
Lilly’s mouth fell open.
Chapter Twenty
Lilly
“I’m what?” she yelped, staring at Trent, his features partially obscured by the lack of overhead lighting.
Still need to get the rest of those fixed. Can’t open the shop without proper lighting. People need to be able to see the products, to browse with decent light if they are expected to buy things.
Her mind was wandering, shying away from the jaw-dropping statement Trent had just made. Lilly wasn’t ready to accept what she’d just heard. Wasn’t ready to have this conversation.
It’s too soon. Way too soon. What are you doing?!
“You’re my mate,” Trent rumbled with a confidence born from somewhere deep inside him.
Lilly could see it writ on his face, the utter conviction that what he was saying was the indelible truth. That he spoke with no error. Usually, such confidence would make Lilly happy to see, but right now she was freaking out.
Trent reached out and took her hand as she stood still, her limbs trembling slightly, unsure of how she wanted to react. Lilly wasn’t even sure she understood him properly.
“Dragons are different to humans,” he said quietly. “To us, the word ‘soulmate’ is a very literal thing. There is only one. Only ever will be.”
“Uh-huhhhh,” she said, dragging out the last word, filling it with all the uncertainty she was feeling.
“We will only love that one person. Caring for many, but we will only experience love once with that one.” Trent looked down for a moment, suddenly sad.
Lilly felt her heart aching for him, in a way. Not just Trent, but for all his kind. Only experience love once? That utter, complete feeling of happiness that was only possible from being truly, completely in love with another human being? They could only experience that joy once?
There were other joys in life, other ways to be happy of course. Lilly wasn’t in love right now, but she wasn’t miserable. It’s just that the happiness that came with being in love with someone else who completed you so perfectly was unique.
And they will only ever know it once.
“And you think this mate person is me?” she asked, still trying to come to grips with that part of it all.
Trent shook his head vigorously. “No, Lilly. I know it’s you.”
She stared at him. “You do? How can you know that?”
Her heart was racing, blood flowing through her body, the warmth slowly starting to unfreeze her mind from the shock of his initial statement.
“My dragon,” he said. “It…it sensed you. The other half of itself.”
“Your dragon?” she questioned.
“It’s…not another person,” he explained, his mouth moving awkwardly as he searched for the words to explain it to her. “But it’s a part of me. Intelligent in its own way, distinct from me, but only on the inside. It can communicate in base emotions. Anyway, it made it very clear to me that you are the one.”
“Right,” she said. “But Trent, we just met. Like a few days ago.”
“Couple of weeks actually,” he pointed out.
“Doesn’t count,” she said, shaking her head, pulling her hand away from him. “I don’t understand how you can know something like that. I certainly can’t.”
Can I?
Trent seemed to deflate slightly, and that sent a stab o
f pain through her stomach, but Lilly had to stay strong. Had to look out for herself first.
“It’s not that I hate you,” she said, giving him a sad smile. “Okay? I want you to know that. I don’t even dislike you. You’re funny, smart, handsome, and sometimes even charming, when you aren’t being moody. You’re confident and strong, and handy too, which is great.”
“But,” he said softly, filling the silence that followed her last word.
“But we just met. I need you to understand that. I…spending the rest of my life with you? That’s moving too fast for me,” she said, running a hand over the crown of her head, trying to search for the words to explain it to him.
Trent nodded, though he didn’t speak.
“I mean, we just had sex for the first time less than what, twelve hours ago? Now you’re talking marriage? I can’t move on that timeline,” she said. “You’re going to want kids in a week. I have a shop I want to open, to run. I’m not ready for that life yet.”
Trent held up both hands, palms toward her. “Whoa. Hold on. No, I wasn’t talking marriage,” he said. “I’m saying that you’re my mate.”
Lilly gave him a flat look. “Yes, I got that. And happily ever after is what marriage is about.”
Trent frowned at her and then shook his head, as if picking up on her panicked feelings and notions.
“Okay,” he said. “Listen to me, Lilly. This is something I need you to understand. To truly understand, right down to the bottom of it, okay?”
Her lips pressed into a flat line, but she nodded anyway, wondering what he was going to tell her next.
“First off,” he started saying. “You are my mate. I know this, and that isn’t up for argument. You are the only woman I will ever be happy with.”
Lilly started to ask him what the odd emphasis on himself was, but Trent shook his head, cutting her off.
“Let me finish, please,” he said softly, without malice, just a simple request.
She shrugged, nodding at him to continue.
“But,” he said, continuing on his original line. “While I will do whatever I can to win you, to make you mine, that is about me. In the end, the decision of whether or not we will be together rests entirely on you.”
Lilly couldn’t stop her eyebrows from rising in surprise and then narrowing in confusion. She managed to hold her words still because Trent wasn’t done yet. He had more to say.
“Being a dragon, Fate has taken that decision away from me,” he said softly.
The way he said it, Lilly could hear the subtle usage. He’d used Fate as a noun. As if it were a real thing. Tangible, even.
“It hasn’t, however, taken that away from you. Nobody is going to force you into anything. Not me, not anyone. I need you to understand that.”
“Oh,” she said, not sure what else to say in response. This was a lot of heavy talking for an early morning before she’d finished her coffee.
“I’m not asking you to move in. Nor am I proposing. I’m not even expecting you to jump into an exclusive relationship with me,” he said.
Lilly shook her head. “I’m confused Trent. What are you asking of me? What is it you expect after laying all this on me?”
He grimaced. “I mean, I’d not planned to lay it on you, truthfully. The words just sort of came out on their own. But in an ideal world? We would keep getting together. Seeing each other and learning more about one another. Spending time together.”
Lilly sighed. “I don’t know, Trent. It might not be that easy,” she said quietly.
Trent’s broad shoulders slumped slightly at her words of denial. “Why not?” he said in the same soft voice.
“Because,” she told him, finally looking up into his eyes, trying to ignore the hope and excitement that he was desperately attempting to cover up. She couldn’t afford to let herself get caught up in that sentiment. “You can’t just spring this on a girl and not expect her to react.”
There was a flash of pain in his eyes, and Lilly was forced to look away. She couldn’t bear to see him like that. Regardless of what she was about to say, she’d be lying to herself if she said she harbored no interest in Trent whatsoever. It wasn’t that.
“I need some time,” she said quietly. “Some space.”
“But I—” he started to protest.
“No,” Lilly said firmly, perhaps a bit sharper than intended, but she needed to ensure he understood. “I need to be alone for a bit Trent. Please. Just…give me this? I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”
Trent licked his lips, and she thought for a moment he was going to resist, that he was going to try and convince her to let him stay.
“Of course,” he said, nodding abruptly. “Yeah, of course, Lilly. Not a problem. I understand. I kind of unloaded a lot on you there.”
“Yeah,” she said, not quite able to stop a ghost of a smile from crossing her face. “Just a bit.”
“Sorry,” he said. “Should have broken it to you in a different way.”
“No, it’s fine,” she said, waving a hand in dismissal of his apology. “You didn’t do it to try and overwhelm me. You were just as clearly caught off guard yourself. These things happen. I just need time to process everything you’ve told me. It’s all new to me, don’t forget. I haven’t had a lifetime expecting to find a ‘mate’, like you have.”
Trent nodded. “That’s true. Um. Okay.”
Lilly bit her lip, glancing toward the front door.
“Yeah, yeah of course. I’ll go,” he said, pulling himself up straight.
He glanced at her, and his body leaned her direction, but he visibly caught himself before he tried to hug her or anything.
“I guess I’ll see you later,” he said softly, and then he was gone.
The door jingled as it opened and then closed behind him. Once he was gone, Lilly walked unsteadily to her office and fell into the chair.
This was going to take a long time to process.
Chapter Twenty-One
Trent
He pulled to a halt in front of his cabin, killing the engine and hopping out of his truck.
Up on Mount Atrox, in the heart of his clan’s territory, he didn’t bother locking it. The only reason he put the windows up was because the extreme heat of the morning looked like it was bringing a storm with it.
Reaching into the back of the pickup’s bed, he grabbed a pair of thick paper bags. Bottles inside clinked against one another, the glass easily noticeable as he hauled the oversized load of alcohol into his wood cabin and set it next to the fridge, eyeing it judiciously.
Later, he thought to himself, grabbing a pair of shorts and an undershirt from the clean clothes pile on the couch and heading back outside. He passed several other cabins as he headed up the gravel pathway toward the giant opening in the side of the mountain.
The Atrox clan settlement was a cluster of small cabins spread out over three acres at the base of a nearly sheer cliff face. The cabins themselves were all residential settlements only, meant for sleeping, eating, and living, little more. All the clan-related areas were located underground, in the side of the mountain. That was where Trent was headed now.
To work off some emotion.
Mostly, it was anger. Anger at himself for not being smart enough to know better. For always making the same mistake: failing to see the signs and not knowing when to stop.
Idiot. How could you possibly think that telling Lilly she’s your mate would be a good idea? In what world would that ever make things better? It’s too new.
Correction. It was too new. Trent knew things between them weren’t entirely dead, but that could all change between now and the next time he talked to Lilly. Given time to think, there was a good chance she would tell him it was too much. That she couldn’t give him what he wanted and that she needed to be alone. Without him.
Alone.
Trent was used to it. Unlike some of the Atrox dragons who tried dating, who kept themselves out and among the population on the off chance
they might run into their mate, Trent had never had much interest in that. The only one who could capture his attention was his mate.
So when Lilly had come along, seemingly out of nowhere, it had caught him off guard. Unprepared. Truthfully, given his age, that he was only three years out from being forty, Trent had begun to lose hope about finding his mate. When he had found her, he’d been unable to keep quiet with her, and now he may have just pushed her away for good.
Yes, he definitely had some anger that needed working out.
So up the hill he climbed toward the Atrox caverns and, in particular, the workout gym where he hoped to find a partner to spar with. Someone who also needed to burn off some excess energy. He doubted he would have to look for long.
Trent was a handful of steps shy of the top of the hill and the cavernous opening when a familiar figure appeared.
“You have got to be kidding,” he muttered as Kladd’s eyes landed on him and the head of Trent’s former team began to glare.
Slowing, Trent waited for the inevitable. Trying to just walk past Kladd without responding wouldn’t stop the dragon, so they may as well get it over with without Trent acting like a petulant child. Despite how much he wanted to.
“What are you doing here?” Kladd asked as he neared. “I thought I told you—”
“You also removed me from the team,” Trent pointed out. “And since you aren’t the clan leader, that therefore means I no longer have to listen to you.”
Another dragon was exiting the cavern and heard Trent’s comments.
“Nobody is the clan leader, thanks to you,” he muttered.
Later, Trent would not be able to consciously remember lifting his hand or unleashing his power, but his next memory was of the snarky shifter taking the bolt in the shoulder and being flung thirty feet through the air to then bounce down the rocky side of the path.
Trent blew past the astonished Kladd and flung himself at the other dragon. In his fury, he couldn’t even remember the man’s name.
A blast of fire caught him in the chest as he descended, altering Trent’s trajectory so that he hit the ground itself, bouncing twice and rolling to his feet. Wind swept up, narrowly deflecting a bright yellow ball of fire away from his face and into the side of the mountain.