Page 39 of Zachary

“I want the village to diversify,” Garrett says patiently. “That’s the reason I came here, remember? The cave isextra. A bonus. A means to the end that is a fully integrated communityhere in Hortplatz. It’s a long game, but that doesn’t mean I can’t stack the odds.”

I put the first pancakes on a serving plate and add more batter to the pan, then turn and hand the plate to Ronan, who somehow has come up beside me. “Could you put this on the table?” I ask. “Grab one for yourself first, before the savages get them.” There are no plates or condiments out, but hey, I cooked. They can set the table their own damn selves.

“Sure,” he says, taking the plate, but he doesn’t move. “Uh, I just wanted to say thanks. Again. For last night. I-I hope I can return the favor really soon and give you something you want.”

My mouth goes dry. Did he feel what I did when he kissed my cheek? Is this him hinting that he’d be okay with more than professional friendship? Or is he genuinely just grateful for my help and offering to do something nice for me?

I swallow. Until I’m sure… I can’t risk fucking up our relationship with the dragons. Not when we’re still recovering from the last disaster. “Thanks. Uh… I’m glad I could help.”

He smiles, and it’s less wary than usual. I’ve only seen this smile a few times. It makes me think he spends a lot of time holding back, and this is the real him peeking through.

As he turns away with the plate, I tune back in to the conversation the others are still having. “You know,” Micah’s saying, “I’m pretty sure when we did the original surveys for the village, we included that area.”

“Really?” Cam jumps forward to grab Micah’s arm and nearly knocks Ronan over.

“Careful!” I snap, then grimace. “Sorry. Are you both okay?”

Cam gives me his usual sunny grin, but Ronan’s smile is warmer. “Fine, thank you.”

“Micah, do you still have those surveys?” Garrett asks. “And would they even be relevant to the kind of excavation we can do these days?”

Micah shrugs. “For the kind of thing you’re talking about, they’d show if there was anything that would completely rule it out. If I remember right, we decided not to use it at the time because it was going to be a lot more expensive to build on that grade, and there was more than enough space for us on more level ground. But these days, with modern equipment, it would cost less to excavate—and if you’re planning to make profit from the result, it’s an investment, not an expense.”

“Do. You. Still. Have. Them?” Garrett grinds out.

I turn away from the stove, and my surprise is amplified when I see the expressions on his and his friends’ faces. For some reason, this is really important to them. Ronan looks like he’s holding his breath, his face more intense than I’ve ever seen it.

Micah’s completely taken aback. “Uh… maybe? They’re probably in the village council’s records. I might have a copy in my office. I can’t promise, though—when we switched to electronic record-keeping, we threw out a lot of stuff.”

“Did you scan the old stuff first?” Zoe asks. “Do you have the report in the cloud somewhere?”

He looks between them all, then turns a bewildered gaze on me and Asher. I shrug. Not getting involved with the rabid wolves.

“I can check?” he suggests.

They wait.

“Now. I’ll, um, go check now.”

Cam beams. “Aw, thank you. That’s so sweet.” He stands on tiptoe and kisses Micah smack on the mouth. “I’ll be waiting right here for you to bring it back with you.”

Micah leaves the kitchen, presumably to find his laptop, and I give all my attention to the pancakes. Whatever’s going on here, it’s got nothing to do with me.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Ronan

The waitfor Micah to come back is agonizing. Trust me, I’d know. I’ve had quite a few agonizing waits in my life.

The wait to meet my brother… and then the belief that he’d betrayed me.

The wait forhim—or anyone—to come back from battle. Followed by the realization that nobody was coming and I was now alone in a hostile world.

The wait for Brandt, for that incredible feeling of belonging, to come and see me in the prison cell. The wait for him to come back. The devastation of having everything I’d thought to be true crumble… and then the wait to finally meet my brother and begin a new life.

This should be nothing compared to all that, but somehow… it’s not. I can’t stop remembering Zac’s voice on the phone when he thought I was hurt. His face as he patiently helped me through my “meltdown.” The way he left his warm bed in the middle of a cold night to come to the aid of someone he doesn’t really know… and even when he discovered what a fool’s errand it was, stayed because he thought I needed him.

A man like that deserves everything he wants in life. If this ski resort is possible, there’s nothing I won’t do to make it happen for him.

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