Page 61 of Silent Jay

“No.” Rehan spat on the sand. “The deal was eight.”

“Ten.” I crossed my arms over my chest and grinned. “She’ll be hungry and too tired from training for the flight to water territory.”

“If you’re changing the deal.” Rehan pulled her into his chest. “She won’t go at all.”

I lifted my phone from the thick chain dangling around my neck. “Should we see what Tukaqu has to say about that?”

Rehan sucked in a frustrated breath.

Wiggles wiggled out of Rehan’s possessive hold with a scowl. She pulled her phone out of her back pocket, and I glared to see the red case replaced with a plain blue one. My phone chimed, as did Rehan’s. I shot him a scowl before glancing down.

Wiggles:Eight. Stop antagonizing Rehan. If you want more time with me, earn it.

I took a small step back and looked at her with wide eyes. “Earn it? A prince of fire does not need to earn anything, especially not from a human.”

Anger flashed in her gaze, and I grinned, loving the fire my words lit. Except I wouldn’t have the chance to fan the flames and see how far I could push my mate.

“Eight.” I spat. “For today, I’ll have my people call your people, and we’ll see about tomorrow.”

Rehan spun her to face him and kissed her hard before flinching away, holding his groin. I grinned—payback’s a bitch—and held my hand for my mate. She took a deep, resigned breath before crossing the border.

I gently tugged her into my embrace where she should’ve been all along. She stiffened. I fecking hated it. My mom used to rub my arms when I was upset, and I released her and did the same. Only Wiggles got tenser. The memory of me forcing my mate mark onto her hit me hard.

I had to fix this.

“I won’t hurt you, relax,” I whispered. “You enjoyed our last flight. This one will be just as good.”

She pursed her lips, and I turned to one of my guards. “Go ahead, let them know we’re running late.”

My guard saluted and ran down the beach before shifting and vaulting into the air.

I prepared to carry Wiggles as a dragon, hence my phone on a chain that I could wrap around my dragon wrist once transformed. Dragon flight was the fastest way to travel. But if this was all the time I had, I wanted to feel her against my human chest. Maybe if she could hear my heartbeat, she could feel how much she meant to me.

I swung her into a bridal carry, and she let out a surprised squeak, crossing her arms over her chest. Despite her serious expression, excitement filled her eyes. I unfolded my wings from my back and beat hard to get the weight of two off the ground. A salty breeze off the ocean curled under us, and I soared up,making sure to glare at Rehan a final time before leaving his arse in the sand.

Eventually, Wiggles relaxed in my grip. Goosebumps pebbled her flesh, and she shivered. I cuddled her closer to my chest, cursing Rehan for putting out my fire again.

“I forget how much cooler it is up here,” I said. “I’ll bring you a sweater for the flight back.”

She didn’t respond.

I bristled. I was being nice! She could at least acknowledge me, except she couldn’t talk. I wrinkled my nose. Doctor Raba hadn’t found anything wrong with her, and he should know. The human warlock had been living on our island for the last thirty years, studying shifters and the birth issues plaguing our race. He wasn’t just magical; he had a human medical degree and worked with Scalehive.

A dark thought popped into my brain. Did Wiggles and the Doctor know each other? Was all of this a setup to trap me?

Anger flared in my chest.

What were the chances she was faking her inability to speak as well?

I pressed her into my chest and caught another updraft, beating my wings to climb. I rarely flew to the top of our shield. This close, our magic, twisting and distorting the pure energy from the Ley Line, made the hairs on my arms rise. Fortunately, my focus stayed on Wiggles and her racing heart. Before I could overthink it, I dropped her.

For a split second, she just fell, then she screamed–the sound impossibly high as whatever kept her from speaking scrambled her voice.

Feck. She wasn’t faking.

What was I doing?

Folding my wings flat to my back, I dove for her. The wind whistled past my ears. Adrenaline made my heart race.

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