Page 57 of The Dragon's Mate Proposal

“There,” I said over my shoulder. “Are you happy now? You know the truth about me and who I am and why I left. I hope you feel better about it.”

I was taking out some of my anger on her, and she didn’t deserve it, but I needed the conversation to be over. Before she tried to pry deeper and ask me what happened to them.

Some things I wasn’t ready to talk about.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Cade

Bacon sizzled anew as I turned it in the pan, the scent filling the kitchen. Eggs cracked and then sizzled as they were dropped into another pan. I rotated the toast above the open flame—an oven was something yet to be delivered—before stepping back to ensure everything was as it should be.

It had to be perfect. Samantha deserved that much from me after my silence had dragged on for days. It wasn’t fair to her. I knew it, and so did she, but that didn’t stop the conversations between us from being anything but tense.

Today, however, my dragon and I were on the same page: We needed to make it up to her. Things could not continue the way they’ve been going. Hence the breakfast and the note. I’d been up all night, trying to get the words right. To express to her the things going on in my mind. It wasn’t easy. I wasn’t used to speaking of my emotions.

But I had to try. Otherwise, I would continue to lose her.

And as I was learning, that wasn’t something I was willing to do. The implications of that realization had yet to truly sink in, but they would in time. For now, I had to focus on making things right.

Scooping the eggs from the pan before they overcooked, I arranged them on a plate, adding the toast and then the bacon—after I taste tested it. To make sure it was properly crispy without being too crunchy, of course.

Sam would understand.

Taking the plate, I walked over to the table she’d so painstakingly cleaned and restored and set it down next to the mug of piping hot coffee, with two milk and one sugar, just how she liked. It was all set. I just needed to go get her. I hoped the bacon scent wafting through the house had already awakened her.

I smiled.

She was goi—

Movement out of the back window flickered in my peripheral. Spinning, I tried to catch whatever I’d seen, but it was gone, out of sight.

I crept toward the stanchion between windows, moving as light on my toes as I could. Had I missed Samantha getting up? Was she trying to surprise me by sneaking up on me? Given we’d said only the bare minimum to one another since my outburst at her birthday picnic, I didn’t see how it was possible. That would be too out of character.

My eyes darted to the trees in the distance. Their branches hung down, barely moving. There wasn’t much of a breeze either, which ruled out any debris being blown past the house.

Which left something living. A wild animal, perhaps? My mind went instantly to the bear. But I hadn’t scented it anywhere nearby since our encounter. The beast and its cub had evidently decided it was time to move on, that something bigger and badder had kicked it out.

So, either it was a bird …

My lips pulled back as I spied a boot print in the dirt outside.

… Or it was someone trying to sneak up on me.

Given nobody knew where I was currently living, I had a hard time seeing anything but a threat from whoever was out there. My dragon snorted its agreement. Someone was trespassing.

They were also putting Samantha in danger, and that could not be allowed to stand. Protective fury tightened my fingers into fists as I took the stairs two at a time, doing my best to move fast without disturbing Samantha from her sleep. It would be best if I handled it without her knowing.

I needed her to feel safe there.

Slipping out the door that led to the roof access, I looked around cautiously. It was empty, so I padded softly to the edge, peering down to the back garden.

Whoever it was that had left the boot print was no longer there. Wings sprouting from my back, I followed the direction it had been heading. Whoever was there, they would pay for their intrusion.

A slight breeze brought the scent of dragons to my nose. The boot print maker had friends. At least three of them. Gritting my teeth, I peeked over the edge.

There, hidden by some bushes I’d yet to trim back, were a trio of forms sneaking up on a side door. Fury at the trespass onto my property colored my vision red as I dropped from the air among them.

I landed hard on the middle figure while my wings snapped out, battering the others aside. Reaching down, I slammed a fist into my victim’s face, stunning him. Then I gathered myself and leaped, wings propelling me high into the sky and onto the roof.

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