Her lips parted, and then she shook her head quickly. “Oh, Cody, no. That’s not it. I’m so ready. I love that you’re my mate. I think I just hesitated because I know your animal doesn’t talk to you. I didn’t know when to tell you, since I thought it was more than likely that he hadn’t.”
Oxygen came easier to him as he heard the sincerity in her words. Taking her hands, he held them tightly as he gazed into her captivating moss green eyes. “Remember when I said I was startled because my gorilla talked to me?” He waited for her nod before he continued. “That’s when he told me. The only time he’s spoken in the past thirteen years was to tell me that you’re my mate.”
She sucked in a breath, her dragon eyes shining through. “You knew?” she whispered. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
His smile turned wry. “Because I didn’t know how you’d feel about it. Whether it would scare you or not. I didn’t want to rush you, or make you run. Hell, sweetheart. I didn’t want to lose you.”
Huffing a laugh, she shook her head. “We’re a pair, aren’t we? Both keeping our truths in because we worried what the other would think. We need to work on our communication.”
Nodding, he inhaled deeply. “I agree. And in the interest of that, there’s something else I need to tell you. I love you, Olivia. I think I have from the moment I met you. You’re everything to me, and I can’t imagine life without you. I don’t even want to try.”
Her eyes filled with tears, and she sniffed, trying to blink them back. “God, Cody, I love you, too. So damned much. I didn’t think a future like this was possible for me. I never thought I could ever trust enough to let it. But then you crashed into my life and suddenly, everything I thought was impossible was within my reach. As life without you would be the worst sort of hell.”
He swore his soul sighed with relief at her words. A tear slipped down her cheek, and he used his thumb to brush it away before kissing her, pouring everything he was feeling into the glide of his lips against hers.
She’d given him everything he never thought he’d have. A mate, someone who could calm his animal with a touch, the love of a lifetime… and he’d spend the rest of his life devoted to making her happy.
He’d die before he ever saw her come to regret her love for him.
Breaking the kiss, she smiled up at him, her eyes full dragon. “My dragon wants to claim her mate. What do you say?”
His smile started off crooked, slowly growing until it stretched wide. “I say hell fucking yes, so long as I can return the honor.”
Barely waiting for her nod, he swept her up into his arms. He took off upstairs as her laughter peeled around them, ready to start the rest of their forever.
Epilogue
Olivia
Olivia gazed out at the mountains, more at peace than she could ever remember being. Turning to look behind her, she touched her fingers gently to Cody’s claiming mark just as their eyes met. He winked at her, knowing exactly what she was doing, and she smiled in return.
The last time she stood in this spot, gazing at the mountains, she’d been filled with fear and uncertainty. She thought her future had been stolen from her, and she hadn’t believed she’d ever be happy, or even content, again. She’d just been focused on trying to accept that new reality.
And then she met Cody, and everything changed. Her heart was full, her fear—though still there to an extent—much diminished, and she was happier than she’d ever been before.
She had a mate, and he just happened to be the man she was madly in love with.
There were still things up in the air, and a threat continued to loom over his—their—troop. And the other four dragons still had a lot of healing to do.
But the one certainty in her life was Cody, and the way they felt for each other.
Watching as he carried more lumber into the house, she felt her heart swell, threatening to burst with her love for him.
His troop had accepted her position as their Silverback’s mate—though there had been much shock about their people being able to find true mates, and over the fact that she was a dragon. And soon, she’d put him out of his misery and agree to move in with him.
Not just yet, though. She was going to stay with the dragons until the reno was finished. Hopefully, the threat would be over by then, and things could go back to normal—well, as normal as they could get after what they’d been through.
And maybe—just maybe—she’d get lucky enough to see her friends heal firsthand.
Maybe, like her, they just needed the right person to help teach them how to find the best version of themselves they could be.
All Olivia had needed to set her on the right path was finding faith. Maybe each of them just needed a push from someone special to help them find what they needed to heal.
Just like Cody had given her.
When he walked back out of the house, she couldn’t resist. Taking off at a run, she didn’t slow down until she was leaping into his arms.
Right where she’d stay until the end of forever.
Coming Soon
Finding Courage
Book two in the Return of the Dragons series
Other Books by Grace Brennan
Rogue Enforcers
Colton
Mountain Mermaids: Sapphire Lake
Under the Sea
Kiss the Girl
Blood & Bone Enforcers MC
Control
Thief
Iced
Shield
Ghost
Burned
War Cats
Zane
Karis
Jameson
Vynn
Kian
Rocky River Fighters
Heart of a Fighter
Fighting for Keeps
Fight Song
Fighting to Win
Red Moon Shifters
Unexpected Mates
Temporary Mates
Forever Mates
Bear Claw Shifters
Starry Night Sky
One Sunny Day
Misty Autumn Morning
About Grace Brennan
Grace has been writing all her life, but never imagined she’d ever let anyone read her work. Her eyes only, for years and years, even though being a published author had been her dream since she was in fourth grade. Then, she had a story in her head that wouldn’t stop taking over her every waking moment, and characters who wouldn’t shut up, demanding to have their story told. She decided when she sat down to write that this time, she was going to do it right and go all the way—and thus Starry Night Sky was born.
Publishing it and letting others into her head, heart, and soul, was one of the hardest, and most terrifying, things she’s ever done, but it was incredibly worth it. She writes paranormal shifter romances because it’s her favorite genre as a reader, but she’s begun branching out into contemporary, publishing her first book, Finding Their One, book one in the Three Hearts Trilogy, under the pen name Khloe Thomas.
She’s lived all over, but she calls Texas home at the moment. She has an adorable little boy, two dogs, and addictions to Gilmore Girls—watching it every night isn’t a bad thing, is it?—coffee, and tattoos.
You can follow and reach her at the links above—she welcomes it!—or email her at [email protected].
Connect with Grace
Sign up for Grace’s newsletter and be the first to learn about new releases and upcoming projects. No spam, just info on her books!
Grace Brennan Newsletter:
http://eepurl.com/dvH545
To stay up to date, you can also follow Grace on Facebook:
Grace Brennan’s Shifter Haven (reader group)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/gracebrennanshifterhaven/
Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/gracebrennanauthor
Other ways to follow Grace
Instagram: @gracebrennanauthor
BookBub: @GraceBrennan
Grace Brennan, Finding Faith (Return 0f The Dragons Book 1)
Finding Faith (Return 0f The Dragons Book 1) Page 21