could carry him. But that’s what Dian’s afraid of, he reminded himself. Besides, how bad can a troll or similar creature be? And after hearing a yell like that, Kee was pretty much convinced that’s what his mate was.
Here goes nothing. Praying the door didn’t squeak, Kee slowly turned the door handle and pushed. The door opened easily and Kee tiptoed inside and closed the door gently behind him. Still tiptoeing, he crept along the short length of the entrance hall and peered around a large arched doorway. What he saw broke his heart and he had to cover his mouth with his hand to stop from gasping out loud.
It was obvious Dian didn’t know he was there. No one would willingly look so defeated, so broken in front of someone else. But while Dian was still unaware, Kee looked, taking in every detail of the one deemed perfect for him by the Fates. Huge boulder like shoulders, topped by a thick neck. Abs carved as if from granite… Kee didn’t let himself look any further down or he’d never have a chance to say anything.
He lifted his eyes to the face Dian claimed was ugly enough to make people scream. Dian wasn’t pretty, but then Kee didn’t expect him to be. The thick ridges across his eyebrows and the smashed, almost flat nose were all Kee could see thanks to the downward slant of Dian’s head. The skin tone might be off putting to some too – a form of mottled black and brown, as well as the lack of hair. The wings were a bonus Kee hadn’t considered. No, not pretty, but I’m damned if I would ever run away from him.
Inhaling slowly, Kee stood up straight, folding his arms across his chest. Stepping into the doorway, he said in a quiet but firm voice, “So, this is your secret. You’re an amazing and extremely rare gargoyle who has wings big enough to fly us around with, but you’ve decided that’s not enough, and you want to be pretty too? What look were you hoping for exactly? An angel statue, maybe?”
Chapter Seven
Dian’s heart stuttered to a stop. He didn’t dare look up. Just the sound of Kee’s voice sent shivers through his wings. “You shouldn’t be here,” he muttered wishing he could hunch into something so much smaller. A little gnome form would be better – something small and cute that could hide under the scraps of the table he’d broken.
“I shouldn’t be here?” Kee repeated. “Oh, I see, Mr. Tall, Dark, and Grumpy, well, let me tell you something. This is exactly where I should be. You assumed without asking, that I can’t handle your shifted form. You had the audacity to tell me no when I laid my future love life on the line and asked if you wanted to be with me. And what if I’d accepted your no? What would happen then?”
He had to look - Dian didn’t have any choice - and what he saw took his breath away. Kee in clothes was beautiful enough, but standing proud, in a short robe that barely covered his ass, with long legs and a tattoo wrapped around his upper thigh, he was sex incarnate. “I fucked up,” he said, his voice hoarse. “I didn’t mean to say the word no first. I was trying to explain…”
“Yes, yes,” Kee interrupted him, which was good because even in his gargoyle form, Dian was sure he’d start drooling if he opened his mouth again. “You wanted to explain ad nauseum that your form sends people screaming, and it would crush that stone cold heart of yours if I did something similar. But you’re missing the point.”
Actually, based on experience, Dian thought he had a damn good point, and he knew he didn’t have a stone-cold heart. It was because his heart beat like everyone else’s that he got hurt. But Kee’s forceful nature gave him a warm glow. He wants me.
“Are you listening to me?”
“Every word.” Dian nodded.
“You ignored my needs as a shifter.” Kee took a few steps forward. “You ignored the very foundation of matings – that the partners involved are equals – and made decisions for us based on your own insecurities and concerns. I’m not saying your concerns aren’t valid. I’m saying my needs are just as important as yours.”
Dian shrugged, and then because that action could be perceived as being too casual for what the situation he demanded, he followed it up quickly