7. Adrian

SEVEN

Good morning.

Adrian had thought the words before he said them, observing the perfectly still, sleeping face of his Chloe.

Sunlight poured gracefully through the thick velvet drapes partly covering the library window. The stream felt warm across Adrian's face but not nearly as much as the contented human draped over him.

He sighed quietly, not wishing to wake Chloe just yet.

He wanted to soak in her beauty a little longer … Her tousled hair stuck in strands to her lips, eye makeup smeared across her cheeks. Every supposed imperfection made his heart race with adoration.

Chloe, really and truly, was his fated mate.

Pity we couldn't consummate the bond last night, though, Adrian thought before shrugging it off.

Adrian was a very old dragon with plenty of experience in developing patience. He knew he had plenty of time to win over Chloe and convince her that their bond was real.

Adrian closed his eyes and leaned his head back, letting that last thought linger in his mind. Then his eyes shot back open, his rational brain apparently waking for the first time in well over twelve hours.

"Shit," he whispered through gritted teeth.

A flurry of questions rushed through his head.

What am I doing?

What the hell is wrong with me?

He'd been so taken by nature's call he'd forgotten the promise he had made to himself. His vow to not get attached to a new mate didn't end on fate's accord. In fact, nothing had changed.

His mate would still be just as vulnerable. Even more so as she was merely a human and not a shifter. Adrian was likely to outlive anybody he committed to, but especially Chloe.

He could feel his inner dragon disagreeing with him, telling him to have a little more faith. It told him his way of doing things would only make him miserable and that he couldn't avoid loss by foregoing attachment. There was no point in ignoring fate. He needed to listen to his soul.

But he disagreed.

He could feel Chloe's heartbeat, feel her breathing on his chest. She was vulnerable. In his hands, she was fragile and delicate … Something he knew he needed to protect but couldn't.

She was a human, and he was a dragon. They had been cut from different cloth with different lifespans. Any conflict she was thrust into against a dragon, she was sure to lose, and her death would be his fault.

But she's your mate.

His dragon countered him, speaking to sentimentality rather than logic. It was the same refrain, never more convincing than the last time he felt it.

She could die in the midst of a political conflict, or she could slip in the shower. Either way, he remembered that getting attached to Chloe was a bad idea.

There might have been one way to make her his mate, but she wouldn't go for it. When she had spent a good part of the night refusing him, it was far better to just give up on this before it started. He needed to remember his convictions.

Chloe took in a long breath and held it in as she stretched herself awake. Adrian could almost feel himself forgetting his resolve.

Maybe for now, it's all right, he told himself.

The two halves of his mind clashed with each other, both screaming to be heard.

"Morning," she said groggily.

On one hand, fate worked in strange ways. He had no way of knowing what the world had planned for them, and he should have more faith in the natural order. Beyond that, so what if it didn't last forever? Fear of what might come shouldn't stop him from living in the moment, appreciating this beautiful girl lying on top of him.

On the other hand, it felt like if he acknowledged the bond, he'd be committing her to death, possibly premature. He led a very dangerous life.

Just live in the moment, his inner dragon argued. Where has your way of living gotten you, really? You know how unhappy you've been.

Adrian leaned down to give his sleepy mate a kiss.

His heart dropped as he felt the palm of her hand on his lips, gently pushing him away. The disappointment was cloying as she sat up and grabbed her purse. Was she really running away from him already?

He nearly shut down when she turned back around and waved a little plastic case at him. Chloe popped it open and dropped two little white mints into her palm.

"Sorry, I just have wicked awful morning breath," she said, speaking around the mints she chewed. "Didn't want to expose you to that horror."

She slipped the case into her purse and crawled back to Adrian, settling herself against his chest.

"Now, where were we?"

Adrian placed a finger under her chin and lifted her face to meet his.

As their lips met, he wondered how this kiss could feel as electric and incredible as the first one. It started with just a gentle brushing, barely any contact. But Chloe urged him further, parting her lips just for him.

Internally, he screamed at himself, urging himself to pull away before he got hurt.

He moved his hand to the nape of her neck, pulling her closer as his tongue slipped into her mouth.

She met him there, moving together until one of the mints was in his mouth. She pulled back and smiled a wicked grin at him.

Adrian would've done anything to take things further.

Unfortunately, he could hear noise coming from the other side of the door. The last thing he wanted was a repeat of the previous night, driving Chloe further into embarrassment.

The specific set of sounds reminded him that they were very close to the kitchen. The post-party breakfast feast would be held there. It was a fun, casual little moment for hungover stragglers who fell asleep in a pile of flesh to nurse their hangovers without the expectation of decorum or manners.

"Are you hungry?" Adrian asked her.

Then, realizing that question could be taken as a double entendre in their current situation, he clarified. "For breakfast?"

"God, yes, please!" Chloe replied. "Are we eating here, or …"

"Yes," Adrian said as he stood from the couch and stretched. "A very informal breakfast in the kitchen but no less decadent. It"s a tradition to attend if you stay the night."

Chloe's cheeks flushed a little red.

"Well …"

She stammered, pausing to think.

He had to assume she was considering whether their impromptu audience from the previous night might be in attendance.

But her stomach grumbled as if arguing with her anxiety.

"I guess that"s a yes," she said finally. "I'm just going to duck into one of those bathrooms I saw and clean up real quick."

Chloe grabbed her purse and rushed out of the library, taking a left down the hall.

Adrian followed, turning right to where he knew another bathroom waited. He stood in front of the mirror and stared at himself, splashing some water on his face.

"Snap out of it," Adrian seethed at his reflection.

He let himself ruminate on all the different ways a human could meet an early and terrible end … car accident, lightning strike, too much alcohol, not enough water …

Chloe was a librarian. What if a bookshelf just randomly fell on her one day? They looked heavy. She'd be crushed instantly.

He couldn't bear building a future with her only to have it unceremoniously torn away from him.

A knock came at the door, and before he could respond, it opened.

Dan walked in, a towel hung over his arm. He seemed to be wearing the exact same suit as last night, though his tie was a different color.

Adrian considered that by now, Dan had probably been awake and at work for the last five hours.

"Good morning, Mr. Dracos. Did you have a good time last night?" He reached out his pristine white towel to Adrian, who took it.

Adrian sighed. "Yeah," he said shortly while drying his face.

Of course, he did. He had the most amazing time of his life, and his heart was dancing with the promise of even more to come.

That was the problem!

Dan smiled knowingly. He'd worked for Callum a long time. He'd probably seen this exact scenario play out dozens, maybe even hundreds, of times before.

"Please let me know if there's anything I can do to … assist, Mr. Dracos." Dan gave a short bow, took the towel back, and excused himself from the bathroom.

Adrian turned back to the mirror one more time and frowned.

"This is over. Immediately."

He was going to have breakfast with Chloe and remain polite but detached. He was going to say goodbye when it was over and leave, never to see her again.

Then, he would contact Callum and inform him that there was a human intruder at his party and insist she be banned from all further functions.

He even started compiling a mental list of excuses for why this was a huge breach of trust for shifters simply trying to get their rocks off in peace. Maybe recommend him to a better security company for the next full moon.

He nodded. That was the plan.

It was ironclad, and as long as he kept his head on straight and followed it to the letter, he'd be fine. He was sure of it.

Adrian straightened his clothing, ran his fingers through his hair, and left the bathroom to enjoy a final meal with his fated mate.