Page 65 of Cruel Daddy Dragon

I grin back.

“No.”

He sits down right next to me. I feel that little twinge of attraction through my stomach. He turns to me and says:

“Sarah, I just want to say I’m sorry.”

Is he about to say he regrets saying he loves me?The thoughts hit me with a jolt of horror.

“Sorry for what?” I ask

“I’m sorry for arguing with you earlier,” he says, “I didn’t need to raise my voice at you. There’s no excuse for it.”

“Oh,” I utter in surprise. I think for a moment and then answer back, “I shouldn’t have shouted back either. That wasn’t great of me.”

He links his hands, resting his elbows on his knees. He then leans his chin on his linked fingers and stares out into the darkness.

“It’s no excuse,” he says, not meeting my eyes, “but I really care about you. I’d do anything to keep you safe, and it really,reallyscares me to have you out there in the middle of the action.”

His jade eyes meet mine, and I can see the seriousness in his gaze.

“It scares me,” he says grimly.

That’s the most honest look I think I have ever seen in his eyes. I feel like the mask’s been ripped off—this isn’t him being sarcastic or playing games. For once, he’s being earnest.

He's trying to talkproperlythis time.

“Why?” I ask breathlessly.

He looks down at his hands.

“I…” He trails off and then starts again, “You aren’t the first woman I’ve been in a relationship with.”

He says it like it’s a confession.

“Okay?” I say, slightly baffled.

“Her name was Celeste, and she was another dragon in Soleilus,” he murmurs, “And she… she was amazing. She was a warrior there, and she wassostrong…”

“Right?” I ask.

I’m not sure why he’s telling me about this random woman, but I have a sinking feeling in my gut about it.

Rufus swallows hard and continues:

“Soleilus was attacked. It was a long time ago, but I think it was Eclipse that attacked us—they have been at our throats for a long,longtime. All of us warriors were called out, and Celeste said she was going to stick by my side.”

He sucks in another shaky breath, and I put a hand on his. He looks over and smiles a little bit before he keeps going:

“We were fighting together, and… we fought well together,” he chokes. “She was very fast, and I was stronger, so we matched perfectly. We tag-teamed on the same enemies, andwe had each other’s backs. I feltinvinciblewhen I had Celeste with me.”

Rufus swallows hard. He closes his eyes.

“So I was right there when she got killed,” he says grimly, “In fact, she leaped between me and another dragon. It was… it was just so fast, Sarah… I couldn’t do anything for her. She’d bled out inseconds;I—I couldn’t even say goodbye, andI was right there.”

“Oh, god,” I murmur, “I’m sorry.”

Rufus rakes his hands through his long ginger hair. Then he looks up and smiles sadly at me.

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