Page 38 of The Ruby Dragon's Unconventional Mate

“I know, kiddo. You two are soul mates.”

“My Bea!” Grant opened his mouth, so Jake popped a doughnut piece into it.

“He adores her,” Lars stage-whispered to Bryant.

“Yeah. She’s a little scary.”

“Someone thought they heard doughnut,” Lachlan said, coming in, the twin girls clinging to him. “They would like doughnut in their mouths ah-ah.”

“Ah, hello, my loves,” Celeste said.

Grant blew out a sigh. “Babies.”

They all chuckled, and Bryant ate his doughnut finally. He was feeling…better about all this. The wing. Lars. Him fitting in.

Lachlan, who looked so damn happy. He hadn’t looked this good in years, even before the Incident, as Bryant thought of it.

No, he was having a ball with the kids and the other guardians and?—

Maybe he’d been too isolated for too long. Maybe instead of keeping Lachlan so protected, he should have let other people in…

Stop blaming yourself. It’s all about doing the best you can do.Lars bumped hips with him.It’s not your fault. You just need to remember that things happen like they do, and we just try our hardest.

Thank you, love. I appreciate it.

You’re very welcome.Lars leaned on him, and they watched the kids together, the doughnuts flowing freely. It was almost like Christmas, and he was glad to be a part of it.

Even if he was fairly sure that having kids was a bad idea if it almost lost someone their mate.

Chapter

Twelve

Lars thought that this whole thing with Bryant was a lot like being married.

They talked every night. They texted all the time. They got together over the kids. Not their kids, mind you, but everyone else’s. The girls adored Lachlan, so Lars was taking them over to Lach and Bryant’s house today to visit so that Dakota and the new babies could get some rest. Mari and Amber were helping the next day or so, helping to feed the boy twins, and the girls needed an outing.

“Okay, you two. To the car!” He’d packed all their diaper bags and snacks and detritus, and now he was ready to strap them in.

“Caaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.” Ari bounced in his arm, legs kicking, and he laughed as he damn near dropped her. But he managed to juggle them.

He got them in the car, then got them moving up the way to Lachlan’s. Lars couldn’t think of it as Bryan’s, because Bryant had been right. This house really wasn’t him at all.

He had a feeling this wasn’t like Lach at all anymore now.

They sang as they drove. Well, he sang, and the kids warbled.

The girls were adorable, dressed in their little denim overalls and the cutest little T-shirts. Mari’s was pink and said, “I love Daddy”. And Ari’s was a mint green and read, “Careful, I Bite.”

Yep. Adorable. Their red curls were just long enough to gather on the top of their heads with little teeny tiny bows. They were literally the cutest things he’d ever seen.

He thought it was funny as hell how Lachlan was so enamored of the twins—the girl twins. He should just start calling them the girls, instead the twins, given that there were more than one set.

They pulled up to the guardian house, which was transformed. Honestly, it was starting to resemble a castle.

How did that even happen?

He knew that magic was an amazing thing, but what had been modern and square and glass was becoming…stone and solid and?—

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