Alec nodded.
“Are you people cursed?” Lucy closed her eyes against the whisk of scissors on her shoulder.
“Cursed?” The doctor paused and glanced at Alec. “No, that’s just the way it is.”
“Look. You two. Trust me. I am a Ph.D. I’ve studied ancient cultures all over the world. I know my mythology, and this has ‘curse’ written all over it.” Lucy didn’t, in fact, know anything about dragons, but she was suddenly enjoying herself. Her brain was light and airy, the throbbing in her shoulder was distant and oh, so much better. “It could be the witches casting an anti-love spell on you.”
“An anti-love spell?” The doctor cleared his throat. “I think you’re ready for me to close your wound now.”
…
Alec held Lucy still while the doctor cleaned out her shoulder. It wasn’t really necessary—judging by her continuous chatter, she was feeling no pain.
“Trust me, Alec.” She gave him a sincere nod. “There has to be a witch somewhere that wants to kill off your dragons. You just need to find her. Maybe she is working with the vampires…” This last bit she whispered and seemed to nod off.
Abruptly, she opened her eyes. “I’ve decided I believe you about being a dragon.”
Alec brushed her snarled hair back from her face. “That’s good.”
“You’re so amazing.” She grabbed his fingers with her free hand. “Why, why, why did you have to be a dragon cult leader?”
Aggravation filled Alec, but he kept his voice steady. “We’re not a cult. Every dragon is here by his or her own choice. It’s your choice to stay or go.” It hurt his heart to say the words, but if she really wanted to leave, deny their bond, he would let her.
She was his mate. He loved her that much.
“I can’t, I have my brother…” Lucy sighed. “He’s always in trouble. We stick together. We only have each other.” A single tear spilled on the blue pillowcase.
“Lucy, nothing has to change in your life if you stay with me. I’ll see to your brother.”
“Good luck.” She snorted and then gave him a suspicious look. “You would still let me fly around the world and consult on gems?”
“I would fly you myself.”
Lucy smiled a dreamy smile. “What’s it like to fly?”
The doctor smiled and picked up a needle to start the stitches. “It’s magical. You’ll love it.”
Lucy glanced back and forth between the two men. “The doctor has not found his mate,” she whispered to Alec, as if the doctor couldn’t hear her.
Alec frowned. “Lucy, among dragons, saying such a thing is like saying someone is so bad that the Fates don’t favor him. It’s very rude.”
“Oh.” She turned her head to the doctor. “You need to change your ringtone.”
“What?” The doctor pulled through his stitch. “On my phone?”
“Yes. It’s too outdated.” Lucy shrugged her good shoulder. “And it’s just…” She searched for the word. “Offensive.”
“Offensive?”
“I know you’re probably trying to send the message that you love all women, even the fat-bottomed ones, but it just makes you seem like a horndog, like you’d have sex with anyone. That you wouldn’t be faithful.”
The doctor frowned. “I’m a very loyal person.”
Lucy patted his sewing hand. “I’m sure you are, but your ringtone says you are not. These days, ringtones are a person’s mantra, his personal credo. Women pay attention to them.”
“So, I need a song that says what, exactly?” The doctor pulled through another stitch.
“Well, something old-fashioned is fine. But you need to say you’re passionate and loyal. A bring-home-the-bacon, fry-it-up-in-the-pan, kind of guy.”
The doctor cleared his throat and tied off his last stitch. “I’ll see what I can find.” He gathered up his supplies. “She needs to take these every four hours.” He handed Alec a prescription bottle. “I’ll check on her tomorrow after the ceremony.” He gave a short bow to both of them and left the room.
“I didn’t mean to be rude,” Lucy said.
“He’ll survive.” Alec surveyed the doctor’s work. The gash was sewn shut with ten tiny black stitches. “You’ll probably have a scar.”
Lucy glanced at her shoulder. “It looks like I was bitten by a dragon.” She closed her eyes. “I can’t think. My brain is fluffy. Could I have some new clothes? I’d like to get up and walk around a bit. Maybe look at the jewels in your vault again.”
Alex raised his brows. “You sure you are up to it?”
When Lucy nodded, he picked up the house phone and asked Jane to bring up some comfortable clothing.
“I really want to see the Padma sapphire again.” Lucy seemed to be focusing on her speech, making it sound clipped and precise.
“The sapphire?” Alec returned to sit by her, picked up her hand, and kissed the knuckles.
“Yes.”
“Hmm. Maybe later when you’re feeling better.”
“Why not now?”
“Well, for one, I don’t think you can walk. For two, I believe you have a small bit of magic that surfaces around gems. It is best to explore something like that when you’re completely well.” At Lucy’s disappointed look, he added, “If you want, we can go together tomorrow, after the ceremony.”
“You think the sapphire might hurt me? More than your dragons?”
Alec fought down his aggravation at her continued refusal to accept the dragons. “Not hurt, exactly. It’s just unpredictable how you might react to it now that you’re coming into your magic.” Alec kissed her slowly, trying to convey to her that she was cherished and safe. He rested his forehead on hers. “If you give us a chance, we can be very happy together.”
Lucy wiggled out from under him. “What will happen to you if I leave?”
“Leave?” Dragon fire flashed through Alec, and his hands tightened on her arms. Deliberately, he let her go. “It doesn’t matter. It’s your choice whether you stay or not.”
Lucy chewed on her lip. “I just don’t know anymore…”
“Do you remember, before, when I told you about my black opal? How I feel a melding when I touch it?”
“Yes.”
“I feel the same way when I touch you.” Alec brushed his palm down her hip. Sensation shot from his fingers to his groin. “I know you feel it, too.”
Lucy looked away from him, denying the connection with her silence.
Alec fisted his hand and reminded himself that the Fates were never wrong when they brought two souls together. Lucy was stubborn. She would need to come to the decision on her own. He didn’t want her to feel like she had no choice, like Mei and Darius.
Besides, he knew the power of the ceremony. Lucy wouldn’t be able to deny him any more than he would be able to deny her.
“The choice is yours,” he said with a confident smile.
Chapter Sixteen
Lucy paused to examine the painting of St. George and the Dragon in Alec’s entry. Alec had said she could leave, and then left himself, as if he needed some space from her decision-making. Even though she was alone in his penthouse, she knew there were guards in the hall outside the door. Guarding or restraining, their presence was still up for interpretation.
After a few hours sleep, her mind was still fuzzy but clearer on her priorities. There was no way Alec-the-dragon was sane. No way could he mean to have a life with her, a human. She was just a passing frivolity, something for the Dragon King of Las Vegas to play with. She was a shiny new object for his vast collection.
But her heart hurt when she considered leaving Alec-the-man. Their physical connection was otherworldly, a transformation and melding of two people into one. She was as changed with him as the solder she used to form a jewel setting. The gold coil wasn’t much sitting on her shelf, but when she fashioned it around a priceless jewel, it was a foil and a protector. An object of beauty in its own right.