Page 99 of Red King
Steel stops mid-stride and turns; surprise flickers in his eyes. He smiles as he puts Paisley down. Then he holds up his hands and takes a step backward, followed by another one.
“Easy. She’s fine. I wouldn’t hurt her. I swear.”
“You don’t get to touch her.” I’m being completely irrational. It’s my dragon. With my emotions so out of whack, I can barely control him. I hate feeling this out of control.
“I’m fine.” Paisley walks up to me. “I was worried. I forced Steel to bring me here. I needed to see you.”
“Forced?” I look over at my friend, who smiles and lifts his brows, shrugging.
“You should learn to control your beast. You look scary as fuck,” he tells me.
I look down at myself, and my muscles are huge. There are scales…everywhere. I run my tongue over my teeth, and sure enough, they’re sharp. My eyes will be slitted, but Paisley doesn’t seem to mind at all. Then again, I suppose she’s used to seeing me like this.
She walks up to me. “I couldn’t stand the thought of you being alone. You look like you could use a friend.”
“I’m fine. I’m…just…I’m in a bad place right now. It would probably be best if you left.”
She frowns. “That’s the most idiotic thing I ever heard. It’s the very last thing you need, Arctic.”
“I told you,” Steel tells her, and I snarl at him, sounding like an animal.
He puts his hands back up. “Easy, Arctic. Easy, buddy.”
“Don’t do that.” Paisley wags a finger at me. “He’s your friend; that’s not very nice.”
“Human, you probably shouldn’t poke the bear,” he tells Paisley, keeping his eyes on me. “You should probably take a few steps away…better yet, get behind me.”
“Relax, he’s not going to hurt me,” she tells Steel.
“I shouldn’t have brought you here.” Steel shakes his head. “Arctic’s a mess. His dragon is strong and pissed and—”
I growl low. “Don’t talk about me like I’m not even here.”
“Look at you, Arctic. You’re halfway to a damned shift.” He looks at Paisley. “He’s angry. You don’t want to be around an angry dragon.”
Steel is right; I’m out of my head with rage. Right now, I’m angry at the world. I’m angry at the unfairness of it all. I’m angry that my mate was killed. Angry I have to choose a new one. Angry…
“He’s fine.” Paisley puts her hand on my chest, and something weird happens: my dragon purrs. He fucking purrs.
I purr.
I’ve never purred in my life. It’s deep, almost like a growl, but distinctly not. My scales pull back. I feel so much calmer. My head clears. My vision, too.
I put my hand over hers, my heart slowing to a more normal pace.
“Well, shit,” Steel mutters. He’s grinning when I look over at him. “I guess you’re staying after all,” Steel tells Paisley. Then he looks back at me. “Unless—”
“Paisley can stay.” I take her hand and lead her into my chamber.
“You have my number if you need me,” Steel shouts just before I close the door in his face.
“I’m sorry I had to barge in on you. I’m sorry I…” She stops talking. “No.” She shakes her head. “Actually, I’m not sorry.” She looks at me pointedly. “I was worried about you.” She grabs me and pulls me into a hug.
I put my arms around her and bury my head into the crook of her neck. For a while, we just stand there like that. My mind feels clear.
We pull apart, but I keep a hand on her hip, not wanting to let her go.
“I didn’t want you to be alone. I had hoped you were with Steel. I’m glad I checked. You must be a complete mess, and rightfully so. I can’t begin to imagine how you must be feeling. I should stop talking now. You wanted quiet, and you got blabbermouth instead.”
