Page 30 of Flame it Up

“Yeah, look. I got sidetracked, okay?” Pyrus shook his head. “As far as I know, everything’s great. We’ve been getting on really well. Mazie didn’t want to fool around too much on the boat, which I get. But then we went back to her tent and talked for hours.”

He paused, giving Gerri a very serious look.

“It’s really real, Gerri. I love her.”

“Yes, you do,” Gerri said. It was as if she could see straight through to his soul. “That’s obvious, Pyrus. I can see it all over you. So, if everything’s so great, what’s the problem?”

“The problem is I have to claim her,” he said. The words rushed out of him in a hasty whisper. “My dragon is insistent, and to be honest, so am I. I know we’re meant to be. I’m trying to respect her perspective, but I’m frustrated by how slowly humans have to do things.”

He sighed, feeling the weight of his frustration as a solid presence in his chest.

“I just need her,” he said simply. “I was worried about this, but now, it’s the final day at the sanctuary, the Peace Corps is moving on, and I don’t know what’s going to happen next!”

“Oh, Pyrus,” Gerri said. “You always were so very impatient and impulsive.”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you realize you have only known Mazie for a couple of days?”

Pyrus frowned. “Yes, of course. What does that have to do with it? We’re mates. We’re going to be together forever. I need to know what she intends to do. I can’t just drop everything in my life and follow her around the world.”

Gerri laughed, throwing her head back. She reached out and gave Pyrus’s arm a squeeze.

“Slow down, dear heart! Oh, my stars, but you really don’t understand, do you? You poor, sweet boy.”

Pyrus’s frown deepened. He bridled a bit at her tone, but since he didn’t know exactly how old Gerri was, he couldn’t berate her for treating him like a youngster.

Wait. Was she old even when I was young?

“No, I don’t understand,” he admitted. He was completely lost.

“You need to take this one step at a time,” Gerri said. “A strong foundation is built brick by brick. To Mazie, you’re still a stranger. I think it’s absolutely splendid that you fell into bed with each other so soon, even if you didn’t go all the way. It means this is a very strong match.”

“But wait, what?” Pyrus said, shaking his head. “We’re strangers? I don’t get it. She’s my fated mate.”

Gerri sighed, rolling her eyes. “Typical male. I’m going to have to spell it out. Try to imagine, just for five seconds, what it would be like if you didn’t have the fated mate’s sense.”

Pyrus stared at Gerri, trying to imagine it.

“Don’t you think it would be hard to trust a stranger?” Gerri said. “Think about it, Pyrus. You have only known each other for a few days, and poor Mazie doesn’t have that same instinct that you do. You’ve also lived a very long time, dear one. You know how it feels when it’snotthe one.”

Gerri shrugged, taking a step back as she finished her coffee. “If you really didn’t have the fated mate’s sense of fate, imagine how hard it would be to trust a new person. Especially after all the hell that went down with Richard.”

Pyrus hadn’t been aware that Gerri knew about Richard, but Gerri seemed to know a great many things … at times, she seemed to know absolutely everything.

“Mazie’s a lot hotter than Richard,” he said wryly. “I don’t think I’d have much trouble trusting her, even if my dragon didn’t roar like a beast every time she came near.”

Gerri smiled, nodding. “It’s easy to say from this side of the fence, but give the girl a break. It’s a whole new experience for her, a massive shakeup from the world she’s come to know. She’s probably not thinking too far ahead right now. I suggest you do the same.”

“She really isn’t comfortable in my world,” Pyrus said. “Something happened last night. I’m hoping that it doesn’t scare her away.”

“Did you say she was unwell on the yacht?”

“Yes. Kind of. A couple of girls said some nasty things to her, then tried to convince me that she was using me.”

“Oh,” Gerri said, scowling. “That’s unfortunate.”

“As I said, I think the night ended well, but there definitely wasn’t as much closeness by the time we got back to her tent.”

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