Page 53 of The Ruby Dragon's Unconventional Mate

“Yeah. Boom crash.” Dakota giggled, and he had to laugh. But inside, there was a kernel of worry. What if?—

“Stop.” Samuel poked his arm. “I should know. All this worry does you no good. You or Bryant.”

“When should I tell him? Should I tell him?”

“Eventually he’s going to notice…” Dakota was a little wide-eyed. “You do know that, right?”

“I—” He bit his lip. “Yes. Yes, I should just be honest. We’re doing that. Being honest now. Not avoiding things because we’re freaking out.”

“There. See?” Samuel nodded, grabbing his garlic toast. “Eat your noodles.”

“Hush. I will, but I want the cheesecake, dammit.”

“Then have cheesecake.” Dakota got up to cut him a slice. “Start now on being a diva. You’ll need the practice when you can’t see your feet.”

“Right on.” And if Bryant wasn’t going to be able to live with him? Well, he’d count on his friends to be there when Bryant couldn’t be. It wasn’t the end of the world.

“Here, honey.” Dakota put the cheesecake in front of him. “Does it smell good?”

Lars whimpered. “Yes. Oh my god.”

“Oh, yeah.” Samuel cackled like a big bird. “So preggers.”

“Shut up.”

He was going to have to deal with it. He was most surely pregnant. But right now? He just wanted his friends and his cheesecake.

The rest, he would deal with when Bryant came back to spend the night.

Chapter

Seventeen

Bryant could tell something was off the moment he walked into Lars’s house. Which he was thinking of as home, but couldn’t quite call it that yet. Not until he had someone to be with Lachlan.

But the house was…super quiet. Like, very very.

He closed the door, seeing the dishes from ‘omega night’ all done and in the dish drainer. There was a half-finished bottle of wine on the counter, and a note—“Cheesecake in the fridge.”

He blinked at that, then went looking for his Lars. Where the heck was he hiding? Was he in the bath again? Because that would be a lovely surprise.

He found Lars in the bedroom, curled up around his pillow, a frown on his face.

“Baby. Are you okay?”

Lars lifted his head. “I left you cheesecake.”

“I saw that.” He sat on the bed and put a hand on Lars’s back. “What’s wrong?”

“Oh, I just don’t feel so lovely.” Lars gave him a wan smile but wouldn’t quite meet his eyes.

“What is it?” He stroked Lars’s neck, then his hair, loving on him. “Do you need some soup or something?”

“No. I ate half the cheesecake,” Lars wailed. “I’m not hungry.”

Lars tried to scramble away from him, but Bryant grabbed him. “Love. What is it? Did something happen? Was—Did I do something?”

“No. No, I mean, you didn’t do anything.” Lars hiccupped. “I’m just freaking out.”

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