Page 47 of The Dragon's Captured Heart
Vicek shook his head slowly. “No, not really. He could be on any of the isles by now or even back among the humans. I’m sorry, Cal, I truly am. There’s nothing else we can do at this point.”
It was a dead end.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Madison
My regrets about agreeing to go to a family function of Callum’s had started the second my sex-addled brain had agreed, and they hadn’t stopped. If anything, with every passing hour, they grew worse.
I’d barely slept the night before, tossing and turning, trying to figure out a way out that wouldn’t be obvious or rude. I couldn’t just tell him I didn’t want to go because I didn’t want anyone to think I was with him. That would be mean. Besides, what if he’d only meant it in a friendly manner and that made him think I thought we were together?
My brain just hurt thinking about it. It was a disaster, and I needed to avoid it.
“Callum,” I said as he stepped out of the bathroom.
The words died on my lips as I stared at his naked upper torso. God damn, the man was perfection to look at. He had adrool-worthy body with just the right amount of chest hair for me to play with and to remind me he was aman.
Stop. You’ve had sex once, and that was a mistake. It’s not happening again. That’s final!
“Yes?”
“We need to talk,” I said, tearing my eyes away from his abs as they rippled while he walked.
“About what?”
I knew he was in a bad mood. The news that the guard was missing and had likely fled, taking all clues about Noa’s death with him, had taken away any semblance of happiness for the time being. And now I was about to add to it.
“Is this … I mean, I don’t want to intrude,” I said awkwardly. “It’s your family. I don’t know any of them. It would just be weird, don’t you think?”
“Not at all,” he said, smiling, trying to put on a happy face. “They’re very welcoming.”
I grimaced and prepared to try again.
“Besides, my mother would flip if I didn’t bring you. She already assumes we’re madly in love and blah blah, blah,” he said, making motions with his hand to mimic talking. “Maybe if she meets you, it’ll put that to rest.”
He didn’t want anyone to think we were in love either. That was good. That was very good. Right?
So, why was I sad?
“I’m serious, Callum. I don’t know about this.”
“It’ll befine,” he said. “And besides, the food is just …” He pantomimed kissing his fingers and throwing them in the air. “You don’t wanna miss this. The neighbors will be there, too. You won’t be the only non-family.”
“Just the only human,” I said.
He sighed, shaking out his wet hair. I stared impolitely at his body as he did.
“You’re going to have to get used to that eventually,” he said. “You’re on an island of dragons. You’re outnumbered. Don’t use it as a crutch.”
Then he was gone, disappearing into his room to get ready.
I guess I’m going after all.
Accepting it then was the easy part, but once we left the house and I climbed on his back for the flight to one of the smaller isles—there were four in addition to the Big Isle with the palace and most of the population—things began to get real. The knots in my stomach tightened, nausea coming with it. I was bordering on sweating through my baggy purple knit shirt.
It wasn’t good. In fact, it would be terrible. I knew it in my gut.
We landed on the open grassy field next to a single-story country house. It was a good size, but it was no manor estate. Just a large house with white siding beginning to fade in the sunlight and a handbuilt wooden porch wrapping around two sides.
