outside, away from her, he rejoiced in the feel of the rain, the cool breeze against his hot skin. Avery Tanglewood was an enigma, both a balm and a poison to his soul. There was no doubt in his mind that she’d been sent by the Mountain in answer to his prayer when he was Lachlan’s prisoner, but given the circumstances, he wondered if the goddess had a sense of humor.
“I canna believe ye let her speak to ye that way.” Glenna formed in front him, her wings sparkling in the rain.
He grunted. “How? Like ye talk ta me?”
She gasped. “That isn’t the same. She’s a mortal.”
“A mortal who holds ma heart,” he murmured.
Glenna’s face drooped with her wings. There was a long pause. “She’s a witch. Has to be. She’s ensnared ye with her feminine wiles.”
He grunted. “A happy prisoner I may be.”
“She is a witch, ye ken? She saw me when she shouldn’t ’ave been able ta.”
He furrowed his brow. “She saw ye like I see ye?”
“Aye.”
Xavier’s head began to ache as he thought about Avery. He rubbed it now as he considered Glenna. “Would ye do me a kindness?”
“Anything, ma laird.”
“Make us supper.”
“Ma pleasure. Anything particular ye might like, considering it may be yer last?”
He sighed. “Do your best with whatever you can gather. The brownie who lives here stocked the cupboards, but he can’t cook like ye. I want it ta be special before…” He looked down at a puddle forming near his feet.
“Before ye have ta say goodbye.”
“Aye.” He lifted his head to meet her eyes.
Glenna’s expression softened. “I’ll make ye something ta remember.”
She drifted toward the cabin, and Xavier returned to the stable and chores he’d left behind. An hour later with the cow milked and the brownie fed, Xavier returned to find the table set with a dinner only an oread was capable of. There was roast rabbit that she must have hunted herself, herbed root vegetables, boiled greens, and fresh bread.
Glenna was gone, but Avery was there, standing by the fire and dressed only in her shift. He had to force his mouth not to drop open.
Her deep blue eyes seemed to darken as she looked at him, as if he’d dived into the loch and was sinking into its depths.
“My dress was wet.” She ran her fingers through her curly hair, the drying coils falling loose around her shoulders.
“You are… truly lovely.” His throat turned hot and dry, as if he’d recently breathed fire. Oh, there was a blaze inside him, but it wasn’t in his throat. He tore his eyes away from the bewitching way the fire’s glow shone through her thin shift. “Are ye hungry?”
“Starving. I was just waiting for you.” She strode to the table, and he held out a chair before taking a seat across from her. “How is it you’re dry? You just came from outside.”
He grinned. “Body heat. I dry quickly.”
The light that came from her answering smile cut straight to his heart.
“I guess there are benefits to being a dragon.”
He watched her fill her plate and start to eat. The meal was delectable, but he picked at his food.
“I think ye’re wrong, Avery.”
“About what?”
“About not being a witch.”
She snorted. “We’ve talked about this before. There isn’t anything special about me.”
He shook his head slowly. How could a woman so beautiful and strong have absolutely no self-awareness of her many stunning attributes?
“I find ye utterly enchanting. Spellbinding, beyond explanation. You have bewitched me.”
She lowered the piece of bread she was holding to her plate and stared at him. “You’re the first one to think so.” Her voice held a breathless quality, and she tucked her hair behind her ear. He wished he had done it for her. He longed to stroke one of her curls between his fingers. “And,” she continued, “that doesn’t mean I’m a witch. It just means your dragon has a crush on me.”
He scratched his chin, studying her. “Nay. I think I may be seein’ ye clearly fur the very first time.”
She flashed him a demure smile. “Oh?”
“You told me our first day here that ye were the only one who could touch yer sister’s egg aside from her.”
“True.” She tilted her head.
“And ye walked away from the brownie the first time he tried ta lead ye here.”
“I was in a hurry. I needed to find you.”
“Aye. Only, most humans can’t resist such an invitation, or even see a brownie in order to feed him as ye did.”
Her expression became thoughtful