Page 50 of Burned

Alrick bites his bottom lip. “Are your parents affectionate?”

“My mother is. She’s very doting, as is the norm for a dragon mother. My father is warm and caring, but more stoic.”

“Like you.”

I chuckle. “It’s been said I take after him a great deal.”

We pause when the knock on the door comes. Alrick is up before I have a chance, grabbing a towel to cover his nudity and hurrying to answer the door. Several attendants wheel in carts packed with food from appetizers to desserts, and a final cart filled with a variety of beverages. While they set things up, I also cover myself and get my wallet to give a hefty tip to each server. Alrick watches me with pure awe etched across his features when I launch into French, conversing with the staff about the food options and praising them for the beauty of it all. Once they leave, Alrick crosses the space between us. I tilt my head as he searches my eyes.

“You’re so sexy, Lord. You fascinate me.”

“Because I speak French?”

He shakes his head. “All of it. Even the way you treated them like equals.”

“They are.”

“Not in my family. I’m ashamed of how I was raised. My dad looks down on people he perceives as beneath us. He has so many ideas of whodeservesto live and die.”

“But that’s not who you are.” I cup his face. “Your heart is good, your soul pure. I see it. You’re not like your father.”

He shakes his head. “I’m not. That’s the problem.” He twists away, focusing on the food, so I give him a moment to process what he’s feeling.

“Choose whatever you like first. I’m not picky.”

He looks over the options and chooses a burger topped with foie gras. I select the steak frites, stuffed mushrooms, and lobster bites. Alrick grins, choosing two more dishes—bacon-wrapped shrimp and braised short ribs with polenta. We sit at the table with our meals between us.

“I’ve never seen so much at once. We eat simple meals at the compound.”

“Like?”

“Steak. Venison. Bread. Nothing fancy. Do you eat like this often?”

“Not to this extent, but I enjoy my meals. I’m a dragon. We seek pleasure in everything we do.”

He nods, chewing on a piece of shrimp. “Have you been in love before?”

His question catches me off guard. “No. I was too busy to look for love. I’ve had my share of bed partners for a time, but not in recent memory.”

“Why?”

“Busy. My brothers required a lot of oversight in our youth. I was more fulfilled by taking care of them.”

“Who takes care of you, Lord?”

I pop a mushroom into my mouth to avoid the question, but Alrick doesn’t break his sensual, inquisitive gaze.

“I suppose no one,” I finally admit. “I don’t need it though.”

“Everyone needs it. We just convince ourselves we don’t. Some of us like to be the caretaker, but even the strongest people need a soft place to land sometimes.”

A quiet pining I thought was long suppressed bubbles softly in my chest. My dragon purrs, and Alrick—oh, this beautiful man—he moans softly.

“I knew it,” he whispers. “You want that too.”

“I stopped wanting it decades ago when it seemed too elusive. I focused my energy on building an incredible life for me and my brothers, and it’s been amazing.”

“But?”

---