Page 68 of Saving Her Dragon

It didn't matter anymore.

3:42 was just a number.

Sydney's lips brushed softly against his forehead.

“Sweet dreams, Dragon Man.”

Garrett heard her from somewhere between waking and sleep.

As the dark finally took him under, he realized the ultimate truth of his recovery. For the first time since his rescue, sleep didn't feel like a tactical surrender to a hostile force. It didn't feel like an entry point for a monster.

It felt like trust.

Garrett let himself drift deeper into the quiet. There was no shadow waiting to steal his time. There was no door, and no Demon Lord was lurking in the blind spots of his recovery. There was only the steady, beautiful hammer of Sydney's heartbeat beneath his palm, and Han's warm, ancient presence settled safely inside his soul.

For the first time in longer than he could remember, Garrett wasn't falling helplessly into the dark. He was going willingly, walking into Dreamland with the love of his Mate to keep him safe.

Epilogue

The Road Home

Sydney stood on the gravel path outside the cottage, her hands tucked loosely into the pockets of her jacket as she watched her Mate. The bright morning sun of the Texas hill country beat down on the Homestead, painting the landscape in vivid shades of green and gold. Garrett was at the back of the SUV, effortlessly hefting their heavy canvas luggage into the trunk. He moved with a smooth, unhurried grace, completely devoid of the tense, hyper-vigilant stiffness that had governed his shoulders for weeks.

And he was humming.

It wasn't a profound battle hymn or a solemn piece of Clan history. The giant, lethal Dragon Guardsman was casually lifting a suitcase while humming some ridiculous, uptempo country song he’d probably heard on Ginnie’s kitchen radio. Sydney just stood there, a soft, content smile spreading across her lips as she took in the sight.

“You're staring, my girl,” Kara's golden, heavily amused voice echoed within her consciousness.

“I know,” Sydney thought back, her eyes never leaving the broad line of Garrett's back.

“He'll notice.”

“I know.”

“Then why are you still staring?”

* * *

Sydney let out a soft, silent breath, a wave of profound gratitude passing through the Mating Bond.

“Because I can.”

A week had passed since the explosive collapse of the psychic architecture inside Garrett's mind, and the difference was unmistakable. It hadn't been a fluke. Garrett had slept straight through every single night, his consciousness resting in a deep, beautiful, and completely undisturbed peace. There was no missing time. No suffocating void at exactly 3:42 AM. No stolen objects appeared on the floorboards, no mysterious ink entries showed up in his notebook, and no strange neurological episodes stole him away.

Han was whole, his Dragon King presence purring like a massive furnace within Garrett’s chest, completely synchronized with his mortal partner. Garrett still woke up occasionally in the dead of night, his eyes scanning the dark bedroom out of pure, survivalist habit, because real healing was a process, not amnesia. Still, every morning, the routine got a little lighter. Last night, he had slept so deeply that when the clock struck 8:11 AM, Sydney had literally been forced to shove his massive shoulder to get him out of bed because he was hogging the entire expanse of the duvet. That simple, mundane domestic struggle proved he was truly free, far better than any diagnostic paragraph from Dr. Darcy Thorntree ever could, and that meant it was time to go home.

Carrick had given them the official order to stand down, and for the first time in years, they were actually following a tactical retreat. But as Sydney looked out over the open pasture, her mind drifted to the weight of that word: Home. The Golden Fire Clan territory. The family she had left years ago to pursue her training with Shavon, the Ancients, and the Elders.

The people who had watched her grow up. Garrett’s brother, Grey. Her adopted parents, Lance and Sam. The veteran Guardsmen who were essentially uncles, and their fierce, protective Mates who functioned as aunts.

And, of course, their upcoming Mating Ceremony.

“At last,” Kara murmured within her head, her tone turning downright smug as she stretched her golden wings. “The official Mating Ceremony and Marking is long overdue.”

“We've been a little busy saving a kingdom and breaking Demonic Curses, Kara,” Sydney countered playfully.

“Excuses.”