Page 23 of Grumpy Dragon Christmas

“I start tomorrow,” she adds.

“Plenty of time for you to get settled in,” Qrow says.

I put my hand on his face and push him away.

“If you would like to come with me.” I offer her my arm. When she takes it, my skin is on fire at her touch.

My hips flip, and I growl at Qrow’s grinning face as we exit the square and walk along a main thoroughfare in the direction of Jade’s new home. It’s positioned in the perfect spot where she will get the best of the main sunlight.

The mayor has picked the ideal place for my mate. I couldn’t have chosen better myself, and I wish I had. I want it to be as stunning as she is. At least I was allowed to see it before she did, to make some last-minute tweaks and choices I think she’ll like.

I might have only known my Jade for a few turns, but already it seems like I’ve known her forever.

“How did you end up on Kitchik?” Jade asks as we walk toward the large dwelling, square rather than the round ones the other inhabitants prefer, with an entrance flanked by columns.

“I crashed.” I usher her towards the building. “And I’ve been trying to fix my ship ever since.”

“You don’t want to stay?”

I look down at her as we walk to the door which opens noiselessly at her DNA signature. She is so perfect, I could almost forget I’m stuck here.

“I was never meant to be here, so I never meant to stay,” I reply.

JADE

Amuscle in Drekkan’s jaw twitches when he speaks about his crash. Given the Sarkarnii I’ve known had very little in the way of pride and most of them seemed to revel in how much destruction they caused, it seems odd he might be upset or embarrassed about his accident.

But then we step into the space which is to be my new home and I gasp out loud.

“Do you like it?” Drekkan queries.

“Like it?” I find I’ve clasped my hands together like some sort of cartoon princess, but I can’t help it. “I love it!”

The place is amazing, with a capital A. We’re in a large hallway which leads out into an open air atrium. I jog a few paces, so I can reach it and check outside. There is a courtyard filled with plants which are scented.

From the courtyard, I find there are a number of other rooms, two bedrooms, a living area which looks out over the settlement and towards the spaceport, and a large food preparation area which has a kitchen island. All in all there is a familiarity to the place I appreciate, along with a size I adore.

Having dashed from room to room, I end up back in the courtyard, breathing in the sweet scents of the flowers.

“Is this place really for me?” I ask Drekkan, who has dutifully trailed me through every room. “I don’t understand why the mayor has let me have it.” A thought strikes me, and my heart tumbles in my chest. “What if I can’t afford it? I have some credits, but until I get my first payment from my job, I probably can’t afford it.”

Drekkan is immediately behind me. He wraps his arms around my shoulders, and I’m infused with his warmth.

“You will never be made to leave here. Not you, not your youngling. It is yours for as long as you want it,” he says, his voice rumbling through me like thunder in the distance.

“You promise?” I twist to look up at him, his handsome face in half shadow.

“You have my bond, little snack,” Drekkan says, smoke curling from one nostril and a wicked, wicked smile on his face.

He has relaxed since our earlier conversation.

“And also, I kept the best until last,” he adds with a flash of fang.

“Oh, you did, did you?” I say with far too much of a tease in my voice.

Being dressed up to the nines and feeling fabulous must be rubbing off on me somewhere. Also having the most gorgeous house guest in the most gorgeous house helps too.

Drekkan spins on his heel, and his tail nearly bowls me over as he strides out of the courtyard and back into the hall. Before he exits, he turns a sharp right and beckons to me.

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