Page 50 of Never Flirt with a Dragon

“Heat started less than twenty-four hours ago. You’re still in day one, Jas. Don’t sweat it; you’re supposed to be a mess on day one.”

“I suggested being a team. She thinks she has to muscle through all four weeks on her own,” I said. “What am I supposed to say to that? She thinks I’m a fucking problem. I solve problems. This is—it’s just—” I fought a snarl. “What am I supposed to do with her?”

“This isn’t what you want to hear, but she needs time. She’s not going to adjust to this in a day any more than you have.”

“We don’t have time, August.”

“Is she in the room?”

I hadn’t taken my eyes off the bathroom door, so I didn’t have to think about it. “No.”

“Then listen. No one survives heat without a mate bond. I survived it—and the connection between us was still too strong to walk away. This woman is your mate, Jasper. She just hasn’t accepted it yet. Give her time and space to accept it for a few days.”

“I can barely think straight. How am I supposed to stop myself from touching her?”

“You can’t stop yourself from touching her. Quit fighting it. She’ll be stubborn about it at first, but she needs your touch or she’s going to be in constant pain. Fighting heat is useless. If you want to resist it at all, you have to work with it.”

“I tried explaining that to her, but she won’t have it.”

“Elodie says she’ll explain it to Randa the next time they talk. For now, stop beating yourself up over losing control. No one is entirely sane during heat. Give it a few days and she’ll be just as crazy as you are.”

“Fine.”

There was a pause. “Elodie wants to know if she survived the dreams last night.”

“What dreams?”

“The demons in the prison give unmated humans in Mate Mountain sex dreams. I told you that.”

Shit.

I hadn’t even thought about it.

I hadn’t even been sane enough to think about it.

“She survived them. I’ll talk to her about it when she stops hiding from me.”

“There’s a good chance she won’t be able to sleep there,” August warned. “You might have to bring her back to Scale Ridge.”

The beast in me reared my head at the thought.

Not a chance in hell was I taking her back.

“I’ll figure something out.”

“Go easy on yourself, Jas.”

“Thanks.” I hung up before he could lecture me any more, then opened my messages.

There were a dozen from a number I didn’t recognize, but when I saw a recipe in the message, I knew exactly who it was from.

Scrolling through the messages revealed more recipes, and a text at the top.

Vi

DON’T LET MY SISTER STARVE, ASSHOLE

A harsh breath escaped me.

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