Nodding, Terra turned her head and leaned her cheek against Alex’s back. It must be bothersome to have your instincts lead you around like that. But then again, if his instincts had just saved them from some unknown danger, maybe they weren’t all bad.
Terra was more than ready to get off the bike when Alex finally pulled into the drive of a ranch-style home. “Can I get down now?” she asked.
A soft chuckle slipped from Alex as he held the motorcycle up. “Yes,” he said, amused.
Climbing off the bike, Terra pulled her helmet off and looked at this house. It was a really nice house. The outside was wrapped in brown clapboard siding and edged with river rocks. The huge yard was elegantly landscaped and well maintained. Very impressive. “So who lives here?”
Alex let out another soft laugh. “I do.” Having set the bike on its kickstand, he went up to the double-car garage and pushed one of the rolling doors up.
“Oh!” Terra said, feeling foolish. She propped the helmet on the back seat of the bike and followed Alex into the garage. “It’s very nice.” She paused to look around the man’s garage. It was very neatly organized. A dark green SUV took up one side of the spacious garage.
“Thank you,” he said as he unlocked the inside door. “It’s home.” He held the door open so Terra could enter.
Hurrying along, she stepped through the door and onto a rosy, wooden floor. She looked around for a second before heading down the short hall towards a living room. The place was nicely done in dark tones with wood accents. Terra paused just past a set of steps and glanced around the open floor plan. The room was very spacious. A comfy-looking couch face a large, stone fireplace on her right, while an amazing kitchen sprawled out to her left. The two areas were separated with a bar-height counter made of the same river stone as the fireplace.
Placing his hand on her lower back, Alex slipped past Terra into the kitchen space.
She stepped forwards out of his way before following him into the kitchen. “So, you got your memories back?”
Alex made an annoyed sound deep in his chest. “Mostly,” he answered as he pulled open the refrigerator.
Terra made a matching annoyed sound. Before they had stopped at The Dragon’s Wing, he had talked in complete sentences. Now that he was regaining his memories, he was being cryptic, and she didn’t like that one bit.
Alex must have felt or heard Terra’s irritation. He let out a deep sigh and shut the refrigerator door. “Yes, I have regained most of my memories.” He came over and took up Terra’s hands. “But there are still things I can’t remember. Important things.” Lifting her hands up, he laid a kiss on the back of them before holding them to his chest. “I just need a little more time to sort through the stuff in my head before I can decide what to do.” He shifted both of her hands to one of his and reached out to push a stray lock of hair away from her face. “Please, have a little patience with me as I work through this.”
Terra felt like a heel. Here she was, irritated that he wasn’t sharing his thoughts when he was still sorting through them. Of course it would take a little time to sift through a lifetime of memories. And it would be irritating that there were important pieces missing.
“I’m sorry.” She dropped her eyes away from his as she apologized. “I didn’t mean to push you.”
Reaching out, Alex pulled her in against him. “It’s all right,” he reassured her as he rested his cheek against her hair. “I haven’t been very attentive.” Wrapping his arms around her, he held Terra close.
A soft laugh slipped from her as she slid her arms up around his back and rested her head against him. “And I haven’t been very patient.” She sighed.
“It’s all right.” His voice held a hint of contentment. “Today hasn’t been easy on either of us.” He held her for a while longer before letting out a long sigh and loosening his hold on her. “Why don’t you make yourself at home, and I’ll make us something to eat?”
Terra smiled at him. “That sounds like a wonderful idea.” It had been several hours since they’d had breakfast.
They stood together for a moment longer before Alex pulled away. He placed a light kiss on Terra’s cheek before releasing her completely. “Is there anything special you would like?” he asked as he went back and opened the refrigerator.
“Whatever.’’ Terra shrugged and shifted uncomfortably. The morning had been long, and that ride on the bike hadn’t done her any good. “Can I borrow your bathroom?”
“It’s around the corner, under the steps.” Alex nodded back to the short hall that led to the garage.
It took Terra a moment to find the half bath tucked under the stairs. The wall was lined with knotty pine panels, and the door blended right in. Had it not been for the small loop handle, she would never have seen it. It was a very nice way to tuck the washroom out of the way. Pulling off Alex’s coat, she folded it over the sink and dropped the leather bag on the floor. She was actually surprised to find the thing still on her hip. It wasn’t very heavy, and she had totally forgotten that she had it.
Sitting down, she relaxed and let her mind wander over the morning. They had finally figured out who her mystery man was. Alexander Fied. A dragon with a job to do. And a very nice house. Terra glanced around the small room. It was painted the same rich browns as the rest of the house. And to think, he was worried about not having anything to offer a mate.
That thought gave her a moment’s pause. A dragon’s mate. What did that really mean? The way Alex had talked about it, Terra was sure it was something permanent, like marriage. Surprisingly, that idea didn’t scare Terra much. She hadn’t known him very long, but Alex seemed like the type of person her mother would approve of. Of course, they would have to start out by dating for a while first. Jumping straight into any relationship was a stupid idea, but she could see potential in the man. Alexander Fied. Eww. If she did stay with him, she would have to seriously think about taking his name. That would make her Terra Fied. Terrified. Yeah, that wasn’t going to happen.
And how would it work out, anyway? If the information she had learned was correct, dragons lived for hundreds of years. Alex’s own identification listed him as over one hundred and fifty years old, though he looked nowhere near that age. But what about her? She would only live to be eighty or ninety. And she would age, while he would not. Yeah, that wasn’t going to work in a relationship no matter how much you cared for someone. Terra drew in a deep breath and made her decision. It didn’t matter how much she liked the man or how good their chemistry was, they could never have a future together. Maybe a few good years until she started to age, but then what? No, it was better to let him go now before things got out of control.
Finishing her business, Terra washed her hands and glanced at herself in the mirror. The vision that greeted her was horrifying. Being shoved under a helmet hadn’t done anything for her hair. Digging in her bag, she pulled out a brush and set about doing something with the mess on her head. Once it was back in place, she dropped the brush back into her purse, slipped the strap of the leather bag back over her head, and pulled on Alex’s jacket so she didn’t have to carry it. When she returned to the kitchen, she would give him back his things and explain that she couldn’t be his mate. Terra gave herself one last nod in the mirror and opened the door to go face her dragon man.