Page 11 of Mates for the Rejected Wolf

RODDRUR

Isoar in the sky, watching Fern give another boat tour. I’m up high enough that I don’t think anyone will be able to see me. Hopefully the photos taken of me the last time I was out aren’t enough for other dragons to be able to locate me. If anything, I want it to be good for the boat tour business.

Keeping Fern safe is my top priority. Griffin and I need to make sure she is okay and isn’t targeted because of what we’re doing. That’s why I’m up here and he’s down there in the boat with her. Sitting a little too close to her for my liking. And flirting with her like crazy. I might have been stuck in the cave for a very long time, but I do know what Griffin looks like when he’s flirting.

Jealousy coils painfully in me, making me feel sick to my stomach. I shouldn’t be jealous, because we both know Fern is an Iron Mountain wolf shifter and not someone we should evenconsideras a romantic prospect. But I can’t stop my feelings. I can’t help how drawn I am to Fern. If she were a dragon, IknowI would be falling for her and it would feel amazing.

It seems like Griffin isn’t worrying too much about our differences, though. He’s not holding back because Fern is a wolf. He’s having a great time, and it is killing me. I’ve never been happy about my Andredes blood because it’s never brought me anything good, but now I really hate it. If I wasn’t in hiding, I’d be able to be down there with her, to see what the sizzle between us really is.

You’re just addicted to her because she’s the first person that’s caught your eye in years.

I don’t truly believe that. There’s a reason she’s gotten under my skin, and why I haven’t been able to stop thinking about her. Fern is special. Really special.

I want to claim her, I want to have her as my own. I want to wake up in the morning knowing that she is in my bed and that I get to see her beautiful face every single day. I want to love her, to show her how wonderful life can be with me. But I don’t know how.

That dejected feeling stays with me all day long. It’s like I have a dagger in my heart that I can’t take out.

When Griffin finally returns, my instinct is to yell at him, to blame him for this shitty feeling deep in my gut, but I know he hasn’t even done anything wrong.Iam the one with the issue here.

“So?” I ask him glumly instead. “What happened today? What was it like?”

Griffin can’t wipe the giant smile off of his face, which only aggravates me further. Of course he’s grinning like an idiot; he’s the one who got to be with Fern all day. To bask in her intoxicatingly warm aura.

“It was good. Fern seems to be more relaxed now. I can see that she is feeling safer, which is really great because some Nightshade Hunter asshole tried to get her to take some drugs last night. Then when she refused, he tried to drag her off to have a drink with him. Pretty shady if you ask me.”

My whole body freezes. “How can you say something like that as if it’s just fine? She was attacked last night?” Now I feel even worse. How could I not have known that? And why doesn’t Griffin sound upset or scared about it?

“A wolf from her pack saved the day,” he replied with a shrug. “And the guy who attacked her was still there in the morning. Passed out drunk, probably no clue about anything that happened.”

His blasé attitude doesn’t makemefeel any better about the whole thing. “We need to get her here. I think it’ll be better if Fern is here at night so we can make sure nothing happens to her. Don’t you? We can keep her safe.”

After a brief pause, Griffin replies, “I don’t know if Fern will like that. She’s a very independent woman. I know the attack scared her, but—”

I’m too frustrated with him to listen to him finish that sentence. “I can’t deal with you right now, Griffin. I don’t think you understand how serious this is.”

I shake my head as I exit the cave. He can sit in the boat with Fern and flirt with her all day long, but he can’t show her the right level of concern when things are really dangerous. Thank goodness I’m here to pick up his slack. I’m even endangering myself for this, stepping out of the cave with the potential that the wrong person could see me at any moment, but for Fern it’s worth it. Plus, this is the sort of excitement my life has been missing out on.

I slide my eyes closed and stretch my arms wide as my dragon bursts out of my skin. I fly high, enjoying the brief sense of freedom. Of course, I can’t go far, but it’s something.

I head across the lake to Fern’s office. Anticipation fizzes through me as I wait for her to exit.

Something catches my eye in the parking lot area, not too far away from the office, but far enough away not to be seen by anyone inside the building. I twist around and see a man looking around a small yellow car I’m pretty sure belongs to Fern. Is this the guy from last night? I probably should have asked Griffin what happened to him, but I got too irritated with him and stormed off.

I lower myself down, careful not to be seen. I need to know for sure that nothing bad is happening. I move slowly, narrowing my vision in on this man. My heart skips a beat when I notice there’s a knife in his hand. I can’t let him get that blade anywhere near Fern.

But he slams it into her car tire. What the hell is he doing that for? Why is he trying to damage Fern’s car? This doesn’t make any sense at all, but it does make me worry.

I react instinctively as the man starts to run towards the woodlands nearby. I can’t just let him get away. I’m low enough to burn a ring of fire around him so he can’t go anywhere. I blast it wide around him so I don’t hurt him. He’s trapped in a prison of my making.

“Oh my God, what the hell?” Fern shrieks, pulling my attention away from the culprit for a moment. She must have seen her flat tire.

She shifts quickly, revealing a side of her that should probably put me off, but doesn’t. The black fur sprouting from her, matching the color of her hair, intrigues me.

The guy shifts justas Fern tries to knock him off his human feet. She attacks, and he’s unable to find his footing. Instead of getting up and fighting, he turns and runs. I’m glad that Fern doesn’t bother to chase him.

“Oh my God,” Fern exclaims as she shifts back and sees me, in the process of shifting back myself. “Was that you, Roddrur? Did you trap him in that ring of fire? Because that was awesome.”

A small smile spreads across my face. I can see why Griffin was in such a good mood when he got back today. She really is sunshine, and it’s impossible to be upset around her when she has that smile, that sense of caring, that ability to light up the whole damn world.

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