and bit down to stop from going on.
Creed squeezed her leg gently and chuckled. “Gia, I swear, it’ll be fine.”
“Yeah, but he’s immortal right? Aren’t dragons immortal?”
“Only him.”
“So he’s eons old, and it’s really intimidating to meet someone who was around since the dinosaurs.”
Creed’s eyes tightened in the corners. “I don’t know if he’s quite that old.”
“What if he eats me?”
“Where did you hear that from?”
“Matt said to hurry back to the trailer park and not to get eaten…” Her voice trailed off as the scenery in front of Creed’s truck changed abruptly. “Wow,” she said on a shocked breath. Out the front window towered a glass mansion that had been built into the side of a jagged stone cliff. She’d never seen anything like it.
Creed parked next to a black Town Car and led her to the front door. Oh God, she was really going into a dragon’s lair. The hairs rose on her arms. Please don’t eat me!
Creed rested his hand on Gia’s belly. “Calm down,” he murmured against her ear. “I wouldn’t bring you here if I thought you or our baby would be in danger. Just breathe. I’ve got you.”
Gia inhaled deeply and held onto the crook of Creed’s arm. Everything in her trusted him.
“You ready?” he asked.
She nodded, feeling a little steadier now.
A man named Mason answered the door and led them down a white marble hallway capped with sprawling chandeliers and edged with Greek statues. Her sneakers squeaked loudly with each step, and she deeply regretted her decision to stay in the clothes she was going to travel to Minden in. She should’ve worn a dress to meet Damon. This was important to Creed, and she was showing up unprepared.
Mason opened a set of great wooden double doors and gestured for them to enter first. “Mr. Daye, Creed Barnett and Gia Cromwell.”
Wait, how did Mason know her name? She hadn’t told him. Perhaps Creed had talked about her on the phone or something. But the surprised look on Creed’s face said Mason had got his information from elsewhere.
“I was wondering when you would introduce me to your new mate,” a man said from behind a gigantic mahogany desk. He was trim and straight-backed. His hair was dark like Creed’s, but there was a hint of silver at his temples. His face was smooth and handsome with dark eyebrows over lightened silver eyes.
A rush of familiarity blasted through her, but was gone in a moment. For a split-second, Damon Daye looked like Creed. Surely the sense of deja vu was a trick of her mind. Still, she had to ask. “Have we met before?”
A slow, controlled smile spread his lips, revealing two dimples. “Your mate is very observant.”
“Oh, I’m not his—”
“What do you mean?” Creed asked Damon.
“Please, sit.” He offered his palm formally, gesturing to a pair of leather chairs in front of his desk. He watched Creed settle into a chair, then said, “I’ve been waiting for a special occasion to tell you where you came from. When I found you, I’d missed nineteen years of your life.” Damon’s smile faded, and the corner of his lip twitched. “I have three sons and one daughter now, but I’ve had many over my lifetime. Dragons used to be plentiful before we killed each other off. My oldest son, Arden, is cold and distant toward his offspring, a trait I’m afraid he inherited from me. And though I’ve changed in recent years, Arden isn’t capable.” A flash of sadness washed through Damon’s bright eyes. “If I had known that Arden had produced a child, it wouldn’t have mattered that you were dragon or grizzly, I would’ve taken care of you long before your mother tried to kill you.”
Drawing to the edge of his seat, Creed shook his head slowly back and forth. “I don’t understand.”
“I have no one left who is a full-blooded dragon, Creed. I’ve bred with bear shifters over the past few centuries because I have a fondness for them—a deep respect for
Creed squeezed her leg gently and chuckled. “Gia, I swear, it’ll be fine.”
“Yeah, but he’s immortal right? Aren’t dragons immortal?”
“Only him.”
“So he’s eons old, and it’s really intimidating to meet someone who was around since the dinosaurs.”
Creed’s eyes tightened in the corners. “I don’t know if he’s quite that old.”
“What if he eats me?”
“Where did you hear that from?”
“Matt said to hurry back to the trailer park and not to get eaten…” Her voice trailed off as the scenery in front of Creed’s truck changed abruptly. “Wow,” she said on a shocked breath. Out the front window towered a glass mansion that had been built into the side of a jagged stone cliff. She’d never seen anything like it.
Creed parked next to a black Town Car and led her to the front door. Oh God, she was really going into a dragon’s lair. The hairs rose on her arms. Please don’t eat me!
Creed rested his hand on Gia’s belly. “Calm down,” he murmured against her ear. “I wouldn’t bring you here if I thought you or our baby would be in danger. Just breathe. I’ve got you.”
Gia inhaled deeply and held onto the crook of Creed’s arm. Everything in her trusted him.
“You ready?” he asked.
She nodded, feeling a little steadier now.
A man named Mason answered the door and led them down a white marble hallway capped with sprawling chandeliers and edged with Greek statues. Her sneakers squeaked loudly with each step, and she deeply regretted her decision to stay in the clothes she was going to travel to Minden in. She should’ve worn a dress to meet Damon. This was important to Creed, and she was showing up unprepared.
Mason opened a set of great wooden double doors and gestured for them to enter first. “Mr. Daye, Creed Barnett and Gia Cromwell.”
Wait, how did Mason know her name? She hadn’t told him. Perhaps Creed had talked about her on the phone or something. But the surprised look on Creed’s face said Mason had got his information from elsewhere.
“I was wondering when you would introduce me to your new mate,” a man said from behind a gigantic mahogany desk. He was trim and straight-backed. His hair was dark like Creed’s, but there was a hint of silver at his temples. His face was smooth and handsome with dark eyebrows over lightened silver eyes.
A rush of familiarity blasted through her, but was gone in a moment. For a split-second, Damon Daye looked like Creed. Surely the sense of deja vu was a trick of her mind. Still, she had to ask. “Have we met before?”
A slow, controlled smile spread his lips, revealing two dimples. “Your mate is very observant.”
“Oh, I’m not his—”
“What do you mean?” Creed asked Damon.
“Please, sit.” He offered his palm formally, gesturing to a pair of leather chairs in front of his desk. He watched Creed settle into a chair, then said, “I’ve been waiting for a special occasion to tell you where you came from. When I found you, I’d missed nineteen years of your life.” Damon’s smile faded, and the corner of his lip twitched. “I have three sons and one daughter now, but I’ve had many over my lifetime. Dragons used to be plentiful before we killed each other off. My oldest son, Arden, is cold and distant toward his offspring, a trait I’m afraid he inherited from me. And though I’ve changed in recent years, Arden isn’t capable.” A flash of sadness washed through Damon’s bright eyes. “If I had known that Arden had produced a child, it wouldn’t have mattered that you were dragon or grizzly, I would’ve taken care of you long before your mother tried to kill you.”
Drawing to the edge of his seat, Creed shook his head slowly back and forth. “I don’t understand.”
“I have no one left who is a full-blooded dragon, Creed. I’ve bred with bear shifters over the past few centuries because I have a fondness for them—a deep respect for
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