Page 16 of The Dragon's Warlock

“I tried dating over the years, and it didn’t work out. Kayda took me to the bar we were taken from to try one more time to hook me up. She thought I should find a man before having a kid.”

“You should have.”

“You’re showing your age with that comment. Women don’t need a man at their side to have kids. Plenty of women have done it on their own. Don’t get me wrong. I know it would’ve been a lot of hard work, and my kid would’ve asked questions, but I don’t need a man to define me or help me.”

“I’m sorry,” he said. “You told Lucy you don’t want kids now.”

“How can I? Nobody seems to want to help me with this whole shifter thing. I don’t even know if I would lay an egg or have a kid the normal way.”

Gideon tilted his head to the side. “You could have a kid either way.”

The car swerved for a second. She’d said the egg thing as a joke. When she saw the smile on his face, she knew he was kidding. “Who knew you had a sense of humor?”

“Women dragons didn’t exist until you. There’re a few species that can lay eggs or give birth naturally. Since there has never been a female dragon, you would be better off giving birth naturally. The amount of time a pregnancy lasts can vary from shifter to shifter.”

Well, shit.“So nobody has a clue how a dragon pregnancy will go?”

“Correct, I only know a few things about dragons. They are very quiet with their secrets. A lot of shifters don’t even know dragons exist. They're rare, and that’s because of Kirin.”

Great. I’ll have to ask Kirin and his family for more help.

“I know you might’ve lost your house, and I’m sorry for that, but in the study, it was full of books. Were those shifter books or all kinds of books?”

“It’s just a house, and I have plenty more. The books were about magic. One thing I know is dragons like to collect things. Have you had the urge to collect and store?”

“Maybe.”

Her dragon wanted to collect anything shiny, but she was staying in a hotel. She had to know where to store the trinkets or shoes. The high-heel pink Jimmy Choo shoes she’d seen flashed through her mind. Even if she had somewhere to store them, her dragon needed to learn the concept of money.

“You need to collect,” Gideon said.

“What I need is to find my sister.”

“Denying your dragon its urge to collect can be dangerous. The human and animal need to create a give-and-take.”

“What will happen if I deny the urge too long?”

“Your dragon might take over and take what it wants.”

Well, fuck.That was not what she wanted to hear. “The dragon seems to want a lot of trinkets. She also wants to find a cave. It’s not like I can pull up Zillow and see if someone is selling a cave.”

Gideon chuckled, and she loved the sound even if he was laughing at her. “You’re right. They don’t sell caves on the open market. But I might have one I can give you.”

Taking Gideon up on his offer meant she needed to trust him. “How do I know that you won’t steal my trinkets?”

“You’re my mate,” Gideon replied as if that was the answer to the world’s problems.

“You need to explain this whole mate thing to me.” She sighed.

“We have time.”

“Not telling me is so frustrating.”

“Do you want to talk about it or get the present for the fairy?” Gideon pointed to the exit and a small shop off to the side. “That’s the place Kirin was talking about, but if you want to sit and talk, we can.” When Kirin had said the place would have treasures the fairy would like, Diem had expected a cute shop, maybe even with a fairy garden on the outside. Instead, the place looked like it was straight out of a horror film. Wind chimes hung from a massive oak tree in the front yard—not your everyday wind chimes. These were made of bone. A murder of crows flew over the car, adding to the scary vibe. The blinds were drawn back, and an elderly woman looked through the window.

Diem hadn’t turned off the car. “I’m sure we can find a mall on our way. Even a truck stop will have better items than this place.”

Gideon stared at the old building. “Things aren’t always as they seem. You wanted to learn more about the spiritual side. Now we’re going to have our first lesson. Tell me what you feel.”

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