Page 22 of Purple Protector

“He did,” Palmer confirmed. “But luckily for him, he’s not concussed. It’s going to bruise and hurt for a few days, but he’ll be fine.”

Aaron gave Birch a small smile. Birch had to remind himself that the two of them weren’t together and that it wouldn’t be appropriate for him to take Aaron’s hand and hover by his side.

“Killian told me to stay with him until we find out what happened,” Birch told Marlin. “Do you know anything?”

“I just know that I heard screaming and kicked the door in. Aaron was in the bedroom fighting a dragon. When I got there, the dragon pushed him against the wall and jumped out the window.”

“You didn’t go after them?”

“I wanted to make sure that Aaron was okay.”

Birch was glad that Marlin had, but he wished they knew more about the dragon who’d attacked Aaron.

“They were a burnt orange,” Aaron murmured while Palmer gently touched his forehead. “They didn’t say anything. I don’t even know how they got in. I just heard a noise behind me, and when I turned, I was attacked.”

That wasn’t much to go on. Even knowing the color of the attacker wouldn’t help much. The clan wasn’t as big as the Ogorth clan, but it was big enough that Birch could think of several burnt orange dragons who’d have nothing to do with this off the top of his head.

“Since you’re staying with him, I’ll go update Killian,” Marlin said. “He’ll want to know what happened and to start working on it.”

“You’re leaving?” Aaron asked.

“I am, but Birch will stay with you.”

Birch tried his best to ignore the way his stomach churned. He was glad that Killian had asked him to stay with Aaron, but it wasn’t going to be easy. Birch wanted to grab Aaron and drag him into his nest, to growl at Palmer for hurting him even though he was doing what was necessary. He wanted to protect Aaron in a way he’d never wanted to protect anyone but Killian, and it was surprising to realize. Killian was his best friend and his king. Aaron was a human Birch barely knew.

“You can take him back to his room,” Palmer said eventually. “He’ll be fine.”

Aaron grimaced. “I don’t know if I want to go back. What if someone attacks me again?” He glanced at Birch. “Not that I don’t trust you to protect me, but I don’t know if I can sleep in that room. I think I’d keep expecting someone to come in.”

“You could stay with me,” Birch blurted out. He didn’t think about it. He didn’t even know what he was about to ask until he asked it.

Aaron blinked at him. “With you?”

“Killian asked me to protect you until we know more about what happened. You don’t want to go back to your room, which I would agree with. It’s clearly not a safe place for you. We could move you to another room, but since I have to stay with you anyway, you might as well move in with me.”

Aaron was still staring. Birch couldn’t tell what he was thinking, and he desperately wanted to know. Was Aaron about to say no? Birch was unsure what had possessed him to ask, but now that he had, he thought it was a good solution. He knew his rooms like the back of his hand. He would be able to tell if someone snuck in. They wouldn’t be getting past him.

Having Aaron stay with him would make it easier to protect him, but it wouldn’t protect Birch’s heart. Birch wasn’t sure what state it would be in by the time this was over, and while he was hopeful, he couldn’t deny that this attack might have changed things. Aaron had told Killian and Hedley that he wanted to stay, but would he change his mind now? Would he want to go home, where he wasn’t in danger of being attacked by unknown dragons?

Birch wouldn’t blame him if he did.

AARON DIDN’T KNOW WHAT to say. Had Birch really asked him to move in with him? That was what Birch had said, but Aaron wanted to be sure.

“You want me to move in with you?” he asked.

Birch rubbed the back of his neck. “At least until we find your attacker. You’ll be safer there.”

Aaron didn’t want to go back to his room—he wasn’t sure if he ever would after what had happened—but he couldn’t think of a reason that he would be better protected if he stayed with Birch. Birch still had to work and be with Killian, right? What was Aaron supposed to do while he did that? Wouldn’t someone be able to enter Birch’s room if Birch wasn’t there?

Aaron didn’t ask any of those questions. He didn’t actually want to know the answers to them. He didn’t want to go back to his room, and Birch was offering him an alternative. He wanted to spend more time with Birch, and Birch was giving him just that. He would be an idiot to say no.

“All right.”

Birch stared at him. “All right?”

“I’ll stay with you for now. Thank you for offering.”

“It’s my job.”

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