Page 20 of Scales and Seduction

Before I can respond, the door to the shop swings open, and I hear Gideon’s voice. “Ruby, have you found something?” His golden eyes immediately find me, but he pretends not to notice his own fiancée as she stands there with her taloned fingers near my face.

“Oh, you two know one another?” Her smile fades momentarily, but it’s quickly replaced. “I was just telling Ruby all about my perfume.”

Gideon stiffens beside me, but his expression remains carefully neutral. “Oh, the pixie piss?”

“It’s your favorite, isn’t it?” Avalon’s smile takes on a flirtatious edge. “Your friend here has excellent taste in clothing and perfumes.” She points to the hunter-green dress I was looking at. “Buy her that dress. She liked it, and be a dear and get her matching shoes too, because having her parade around in her own walk of shame…” She tsks at him and shakes her head before placing the hair behind my ear fully. “It’s really unsightly, Gideon. You know better.”

“She does have good taste.” His gaze flicks at me before briefly settling back on her. I’ve never seen him so unnervedbefore. “This isn’t your usual haunt for clothing; you usually go for a higher price point.”

Avalon smirks. “No, but I’m buying something for our family dinner tomorrow. You didn’t forget, did you?”

The cat woman who had been holding up the dress backs up twice before maneuvering through the racks of clothes as if she can’t get far enough away from the couple, and I wish I could follow her. There’s an energy between them that sizzles as if the two are sparring, and clearly Avalon is the one with the upper hand.

Gideon’s jaw tightens momentarily. “I didn’t forget; I’ve been a bit busy. I know your family wants things to be traditional, but I see no point in it.”

“Well, you know how old-fashioned our families can be.” Her tone changes to something closer to annoyance as her eyes nervously glance around, wondering how many people might overhear them. “Let’s talk later, Gid.” She glances at me, her smile softening. “Enjoy your time here in the Vale, little one. Don’t let this grump ruin your visit.”

With that, she turns and glides toward the door, leaving Gideon and me in uncomfortable silence for the remainder of our time in the store.

The front door creaks open, and before I can allow Ruby to fully step inside, a blur of brown darts past our feet. Noodles. The little fiend slips through the gap like an escape artist, his fluffy tail held high as he bounces down the steps and into the fading light of the evening.

“He’s so weird lately,” Ruby says with a sigh as she steps over the threshold. Her steps falter a moment as she glances over her shoulder at me, her lips curving into a smile that melts the building anxiety I’ve felt since the shop.

“What a long day,” she murmurs, tossing her bag onto the table beside the window.

I follow her in, shutting the door behind us with a click. Ruby moves to the couch, flopping onto it as if she’s exhausted, dropping the bags beside her. The tension from earlier still lingers between us. Avalon’s sharp, knowing gaze left a sour taste in my mouth, and I can’t shake the fear that she might have noticed that Ruby didn’t belong.

Ruby tilts her head back with half-lidded eyes. “You’re being so quiet,” she says softly. “Are you still in pain?”

“No, I’m alright.” When I slowly slip into the sofa beside her, the cushions dip under my weight. Ruby’s hair smells like soap from my bathroom, but on her, it makes my mind buzz.

She sighs, placing her hands on my scales, patting me as if she means to comfort me. “You don’t have to pretend.” Each second that passes with her hands there makes me aware of just how little space there is between us. She’s so close, the heat of her body radiates off her like her own tiny sun. “Should I be worried about you being sick? You’ve been stiff, and it looks like you’re in pain.”

A small smile tugs at my lips despite myself. “No, this is normal for me, Ruby. I have a medical condition.” I inhale as I unburden myself. “I have a lot of inflammation in my body. It causes issues with digestion and arthritis on top of other conditions. I often hide it and medicate it with Loran’s help.”

“Why wouldn’t you tell me? Gideon, I told you I would sleep on the couch last night.” Ruby’s eyes teem with concern, and my heart clenches. I hate seeing her look at me like that. I should take care of her, not her me.

“I’m alright, really,” I say. “What really worries me is what happened in the shop.” I lean my back against the cushions, and as her hands slowly try to leave my tail, I place my hand on top of hers.

“What happened in the shop worried you?” Her voice is soft and insistent. “It felt really weird, like uncomfortable, but nothing bad.”

I sigh, running my other hand along my face. “It’s Avalon… She’s perceptive. I was terrified she might sense Silas’s magic on you or see through it.”

“I worried about the same thing, but I think it was fine until she knew you and I were together.” Ruby’s eyes peer over me, and in them, I see hesitancy swirling. “You were being sort of rude to her, and everyone was looking at us.”

My voice grows quiet as my heart feels squeezed in a vise grip. “I wasn’t rude to her; she was sparring with me on purpose. We’ve always spoken to one another that way.” Avalon and I aren’t gentle or sweet with one another. We enjoy getting under one another’s skin. It’s always made our dynamic more enjoyable. Slowly, I peer into my mate’s rich brown eyes. I hold her hand tighter, dropping the subject of my fiancée entirely.

“Ruby, humans don’t belong here. Since you got here, I’ve had this urge to protect you. I feel your fear like it’s my own and other emotions more strongly too. Before I saw you in the park…I knew exactly where to find you. I could feel you, sense you, and I ran there to you.” I pause as my breathing takes on a panicked state. “It’s maddening. I’ve never felt this in tune with another before. Even last night—gods above, last night I felt your desire and knew you were in the hallway long before I let on.”

Ruby’s lip’s part, and I can see the questions forming on her tongue, but I press on, not ready to stop. “You make me question everything.” I turn to face her fully, reaching out to cradle her face gently in my trembling hands. Her skin is warm beneath my fingers, and for a moment, the weight falls away as her breathing hitches at the touch.

“Gideon,” her voice is barely audible, but I hear it all the same. The way she’s looking at me sends my filthy, cursed mind into overdrive. She is so soft, so tiny and mine. I want her more than I have wanted air to breathe.

“I know you have to go home,” I say, my voice cracking slightly at the strain of what those words mean. “But the thought of not knowing what it means to have you fully, and to protect you… I don’t know if I can do it.”

Her soft brown eyes search mine, and in them I see my own turmoil reflected. I lean in slowly, allowing every chance for her to pull away, but she doesn’t. Instead, her hands lift to rest gently on my forearms.

My breath ghosts along her lips as I press a chaste kiss there, but the moment my lips touch hers, there’s an electric surge of warmth. My heart races with exhilaration as it travels through my body and down to my tail. Ruby’s lips are soft, yielding against mine. They fit perfectly, as if they were made just for me.

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