Page 76 of Stealing the Dragon's Heart (Dragon Lords 3)

While Aidan shifted back, she handed the egg to the registrar. He muttered humorously, “I’ll know it when I see it, huh?”

She smiled at him. “I hope we didn’t traumatize that poor bird.”

“You’re sweet, but it will be fine once its egg is returned.”

Onnika realized the egg was the bird’s offspring and wasn’t sure how she felt about it being used in such a way.

Coming up behind her, Aidan placed his palms on her waist. “You throw yourself off a cliff without a thought, but you’re worried for the creature that dropped a man to his death and would have happily done the same to you?”

“Well, you can’t really blame the bird. We stole its baby!”

His gaze snapped to the registrar. “That’s arealegg?”

The registrar answered. “Yes, and several months from now, it will hatch.”

“You’re not afraid it will get dropped and shatter during this event?”

He knocked on the shell with his knuckles. “It’s harder than a diamond. When the time comes, the mother will drop this from a very great height to help her baby break through the thick shell. We collect the pieces and use them to cut other hard material such as stone and glass.”

“Amazing,” Onnika marveled.

“Thrilling,” Aidan said flatly, having already lost interest. “Where are our vouchers?”

“Here you are.” He presented them with two vouchers, and Aidan snatched them out of his grasp. “Enjoy the rest of the festivities.”

As they strolled toward where the others were seated, she asked, “Are you angry with me?”

“No. Yes. Not exactly,” he stumbled.

“Then what, exactly?” she asked. “It looked to me like you were enjoying yourself before we landed.”

“I was,” he admitted, though, strangely, he didn’t sound happy about it. “In fact, that was the most fun I've had in a very long time…until you launched yourself over a ledge without warning.”

“I whistled.”

“And what if I couldn’t catch you?”

“Then I would have fallen.”

He rolled his eyes. “It was unnecessarily reckless.”

“I didn’t want you to have to fight that bird. What if it hurt you?”

“You were worried for the bird’s safety and for my safety, but not your own?”

She shrugged. “I knew you’d catch me.”

“And how did you know that?”

Her eyes glinted mischievously. “Because youwuuuvme.”

Aidan pinched the bridge of his nose. “Do not tease me right now. My blood pressure is still off the charts.”

Grabbing his hand, she pulled him to a halt and then folded her arms around his torso. “Thanks for not yelling at me.”

He sighed and glanced down at her. “The only reason I’m not is…gods, you amaze me.”

She pulled back to look up at him, a little surprised by the admission.

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