Page 115 of Heart of the High King
Chapter 45
The day progressed with surprising speed as shifter visitors came and went while the sorcerers in the house avoided the Cwylld stones lying around to help speed up the process of removing the magic from Rafe. As for the man himself, Aleksander couldn’t say he was surprised that he hadn’t simply lain around and relaxed. Every hour, he got up and walked around the room and though his gait was hampered by the significant inflammation, Rafe was beginning the process of rebuilding himself after a year of unthinkable atrocities.
To say Aleksander was in awe of him was an understatement, and he marveled at not only his courage but his unflappable spirit. And the fact that Rafe attributed his success in surviving to his desire to be at Aleksander’s side again was nothing short of miraculous. There was yet another knock on the door, and Aleksander rose to find Madeline on the other side.
“Where’s Rafe?” she asked. As usual, Madeline went straight to the point.
Aleksander stepped aside to allow her to enter their suite. “He’s walking around and has created his own personal circuit between this room and the living area.”
“Shouldn’t he be resting?”
“Yeah, you can tell him that.”
Rafe appeared, crossing the threshold of the French doors. “Hey,” he offered when he saw their guest.
“Now that you’re healed, we need to think long-term,” Madeline insisted, stalking to his side. “I made you an alert thing, so people don’t push any magic into you.”
“Wow, thanks.”
“Hold out your arm,” she instructed. “I made you a cuff out of Aleksander’s dragonskin. I was too afraid to have it enchanted, so when you get your dragon back, you’ll have to take it off when you shift. Thanks to our beasts, it’s waterproof so you can keep it on otherwise. Just tighten it when your swelling goes down. You like it?”
“I love it. Thanks again.”
Rafe let out a grunt when she released his wrist and hugged him. “Sure thing. You look great. Don’t overdo it.”
Aleksander embraced her and offered her his gratitude as well; then she sailed out. “Let’s see it.”
Dutifully Rafe shuffled to the bed where Aleksander had taken a seat and together, they admired the thick cuff with a wide swath of metal that informed everyone that he was magic intolerant.
“That was nice of her,” Rafe said, sitting next to Aleksander, who scooted so he could lean against the mound of pillows.
“Yep, I should’ve thought about that and asked her,” Aleksander responded, getting comfortable next to his mate.
“Why did she assume I’m going to be a dragon again? No one has ever lost their beast completely, let alone regained it.”
Aleksander kissed his nose. “Because that’s what heroes do. They accomplish the impossible.”
The scowl Aleksander loved appeared. “I’m no hero.”
“You’re my hero.”
“Why? Because I let two assholes beat the shit out of me for months?”
“Letthem? That’s a poor choice of words. You’re making it sound voluntary, which is bullshit. Why did you escape if you were allowing them to hurt you?”
“You look really pissed.”
“Because I am. I don’t want you to feel guilty for what happened, and when I think about what they did to you, it makes me want to tear out their throats.”
“I wonder what they’re going to do when they find out that we’re mated.”
“Are you afraid?”
Rafe shrugged. “Of them? No. There’s nothing they can do to me now. Plus, Brogan must tell me once a day that this is the safest spot on the planet.”
“He takes his job very seriously, and so does Sorcery D’Vaire. No one can get near you.”
“You think they’d help me try to figure out if I can have a dragon again?” Rafe asked. “I never got to have a real relationship with mine. I’d like to know what it feels like to be a shifter like you who loves sharing your soul with a dragon.”
