12. Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

Taran

I told Stuart to take us to a shopping centre in the city, knowing he’d pick one that fit my style, then sat back next to Maeve.

We didn’t speak a whole lot on the drive, but I was happy soaking up her aura, the pink and orange even more vibrant than usual.

The Malachite Lion Arcade lay on the outskirts of Redmane, one of Kirkmuir’s most expensive districts. It was a sprawling shopping centre, and if I remembered correctly, we owned at least a handful of its shops.

Stuart opened the doors for us .

“Will you be waiting here?” Maeve inquired with him.

“Yes, Miss Maeve.” He gave her his usual fatherly smile.

“Just Maeve, okay? Won’t you get bored?”

My driver chuckled. “Oh no, I’ll be fine waiting until you’re ready. It’s my job.”

“Okay, then. Uh, thank you,” she muttered.

“We’ll see you later, Stuart. I guess it will be in about three hours.” He’d either nap, read one of the historical crime novels he was addicted to, or treat himself to a cuppa.

“Is he really all right with this?” she asked as soon as we were out of earshot.

“Believe me, he is. You’ve never met a person who is as good at waiting as he is. He wouldn’t be here if he hated this job.”

“Why are you so sure? People stay in jobs they hate all the time.”

I stopped and steered her a little to the side. “Maeve, I am one hundred percent sure. Stuart is rich, and I offered to relieve him from his duty and retire him with more money than he would ever need.” Taking her hand in mine, I pulled it up to my mouth and kissed it. “He refused to go. Told me flat out that I could shove that offer where the sun doesn’t shine.” I huffed at the memory. “Stuart has been in my family’s employ for longer than I’ve existed. He’s bonded to my mother, and at this point he’s at least half a Dragon himself.”

“Bonded? How?” she asked me, her eyes wide with shock.

“There are two kinds of bonds my kind can enter into—a soul bond and heart bond. For you as a human the heart bond might be worth more. You pride yourself on it, and rightfully so. But to us,” I lowered my voice, “the soul bond is holy. We enter it only with our mate and the intention never to break it. We have, after all, only one soul.”

“And what about the heart bond?” she whispered.

“Dragons have two hearts. It’s easier to bind one of them to a person we love, but who isn’t our mate.”

“Hang on, two hearts?”

“Yes, here.” I pressed her palm to my chest, first over the heart on the right, then the one on the left of my body.

“You have two heartbeats!” she screamed, then cringed visibly. “Oh shit, sorry. You have two heartbeats?”

“We do. I believe it’s an old development, you know, from back when we all used to hunt each other. Even if you kill one of my hearts, my body can still live on. I’ve heard stories of some of us who have let a knight cut one heart out so they could prove they had killed the Dragon, and they split the treasure.” I pulled my face into a grimace. “Not the best idea if you ask me, ugh.”

“Oh God, sorry,” she snorted. “Shit, I’m really sorry, Scales. But the idea that you’d let…that’s messed up!”

“Some of us are really obsessed with treasures,” I muttered evasively. I can never show her my throne room.

“So Stuart is bonded to your mother, and he lives with you, but you two aren’t…?”

“Goddess, no.” Gross, sweetling. “I’ve never entered into a bond with anyone. Uh, shall we get going?” Without waiting for her reply, I marched into the arcade. I wasn’t prepared to answer questions about my bonding preferences, least of all about Dragon and human bonds .

Inside, I perused the floor plan for a few minutes until I found what I was looking for. Fox & Thyme was a shop I knew from their tasteful ads in FURVOR, the only magazine I religiously consumed.

“This way, boss.”

Maeve huffed but let me lead her towards an escalator, anyway. “I haven’t been in a shopping centre since I was a teenager,” she confessed when we were travelling smoothly towards the level below us.

“Do you prefer the high street?”

“Nope,” she told me, emphasising the ‘P’ with a pop. “I only buy second hand. I think this shirt and the shoes are actually the only two things in my wardrobe that I bought new.”

I tried very hard not to stare at the tangerine-coloured print stretching across her breasts, but focused on her trainers instead. “I like them.”

“Yeah, me too. They’re so comfy, I can work an entire shift in them and my feet don’t hurt at all. I don’t do that often. They’re the only pair of Beacons I have.” Her cheeks reddened a little. “And this.” Maeve pulled the crop shirt down, tightening it even more over her boobs. “I got this at Conall White’s show a few months ago.”

“It’s very pretty.” I cleared my throat, thankful that we were approaching Fox & Thyme and that I had an excuse not to discuss that tiny shirt any further.

A shop assistant approached us the instant we crossed the threshold.

“Good afternoon, madam, sir.” He bowed at both of us. “Welcome to Fox & Thyme. My name is Alex and if there is anything I can assist you with, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

“Thank you, Alex. We are looking for a dress for a party for my partner.” Better not make it too complicated. “I am thinking of a mid-length dress, maybe something flowery.” I met Maeve’s eyes and gave her a fleeting smile. “She always looks stunning in green. Why don’t we start there?”

“I think I have just the dress for you, ma’am. Please follow me.”

He led us deeper into the shop and up a staircase to a sparsely decorated, more private level. He walked purposefully towards one of the elegant racks that hung at intervals from the ceiling and pulled out a gorgeous dress. Green, as I’d said, with a deep, plunging neckline. It was made from silk and tulle, and embroidered with intricate wildflowers.

“Wow, that’s gorgeous,” Maeve sighed reverently.

“Just the dress for you, then. Try it on.”

Her eyes met mine again, assessing me for a moment, before she gave a tiny nod and followed Alex towards the changing rooms.

It took her a few minutes to put it on, and I waited with bated breath for the door to open.

“Wow,” I breathed on a heavy exhale when she eventually stepped out.

The dress fit her like a glove, the cinched waist emphasising her hourglass shape. A few purple strands curled out of her high bun, framing her beautiful face, and I knew there and then that if she had asked me to bind my soul to hers this very moment, I would have laid my entire being at her feet.

“Can you give us a moment, Alex?”

“Of course, sir.” The clerk bowed. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

I waited until he had left and stepped nearer to Maeve, who was inspecting herself in a mirror big enough to show all of me without having to duck .

“What do you say?” I asked her quietly when I stood right behind her, hands flexing at my sides with the urge to touch her, to pull her around and take her mouth in a soul-shattering kiss.

“It’s beautiful,” she murmured, searching for my gaze in the mirror.

“ You are beautiful, the dress merely drives the point home.”

Her cheeks reddened and she looked away to give herself another once-over in the mirror.

“I’ve never worn anything this expensive. It costs more than I pay for rent in a month.”

“We’ve already established that you’re not paying for it,” I reminded her and she gave me a shrug as if to say ‘Yeah, whatever.’

“It’s still a shit ton of money.”

“I’m not saying it isn’t. All I’m saying is that I would like to buy it for you. It’s the least I can do when you graciously offered to shield me with your life from all Kirkmuir’s money sharks. And,” I added because I could see the words forming on her tongue, “I am not trying to bribe you. This dress was made for you, and I want you to feel comfortable at this party.” Dipping my mouth to her cheek, I brushed a tiny kiss over her skin. “Let me buy this dress for you, boss.”

“God, you play dirty, Mr Atax.”

You have no idea.

“Mmm,” I hummed, making sure my breath brushed over her skin. “Another nickname? That’s number three, is it?”

Watching goosebumps erupt on her neck and race down her body was even more beautiful than the dress itself. Her nipples tightened against the raw silk and I could have sworn I heard her breath hitch in her throat as her aura flamed dark pink .

Goddess, help me.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt,” came the voice of our sales clerk from the staircase. Before he could turn away, I straightened up.

“Don’t worry, Alex. We’ll take it.”

“Taran, that’s too much money,” she hissed under her breath so the assistant wouldn’t hear her. “I really can’t accept that.”

“I want you to have it.” I shut down the argument with one last kiss on her cheek. “By the way, do you need shoes to go with this?”

She hesitated. “I don’t suppose I can wear my trainers or my pair of black flats. They’re pretty beat up from working.”

“Can you pack the dress for us? My driver will pick it up in an hour,” I instructed the shop assistant when Maeve was done changing back into her clothes, and handed him the hanger with the beautiful spring-green dress.

“Certainly, Mr Atax. We hope to see you and your mate back in our shop soon.” He half bowed, first at Maeve, then at me, and took her hand to administer a perfect hand kiss. Maeve’s face glowed like the setting sun as she stammered her thanks and goodbyes and followed me out of the shop.

I couldn’t help but smile. I liked that he’d called her that even though it was mainly wishful thinking on my part.

“Any shoe shop that catches your eye?” I asked her, waving my hand at the rest of the mall.

She hesitated, her eyes hanging briefly on an elegant shop front. “Let’s look around for a bit, okay? ”

“How about this one?” I asked, pointing my chin at the beautifully decorated window a few shops down to the left.

“One pair of these shoes costs almost as much as the dress.” Her voice sounded pained.

Making a mental note to check with my property manager, who was in charge of paying the staff, and giving her a long overdue raise, I reached out to take her hand. “Come on, let’s see if they have shoes that fit with your new dress,” I said lightly and pulled her in the direction of Dawn & Petal.

“Hello and welcome. Would you like to look around or can I help you with something?” one of the salespeople approached us, looking smart in her blouse and slacks.

“Some assistance would be great,” I told her with a smile. “We need a pair of shoes to go with a dress.” Describing it briefly, I pulled Maeve after her into the back of the shop and guided her to one of the padded benches.

“Wow, these are great,” Maeve told us when she’d slipped on a pair of nude, three-inch heels and got to her feet. They made her legs look extra long and made her stand in a way that emphasised her perfect curves.

“See? Now I’m not that tiny anymore.” She grinned, walking over to stand next to me.

Maeve was tall. 5’10'' at least, but still short next to me.

“Much better.” I smirked back. “Shall we take them? They look great on you.”

“Okay, yeah. They’ll be really handy because I can wear them on more occasions than I could the higher ones. ”

I waited until she sat, then knelt before her, taking hold of her ankle to open the little buckles and slip the heels off for her. Her pulse quickened at my touch, audible even over the shop’s background music and I kept her feet in my hands for a moment longer.

“There’s a section of Beacons over there.” Jutting my chin over at the wall, I set her feet back on the floor. “Pick a pair so you don’t have to wear these to work, okay?”

“What? Taran, that’s not necessary.”

“You can either be a good girl,” I muttered as I leaned in, “and pick them yourself or I’ll pick them for you. We are not leaving without them.”

These aren’t the last ones you’ll ever get from me, sweetling.

Eventually, she marched over and picked a pair of purple-and-white shoes.

Accompanied by a steady stream of stammered thanks, we left the shop with more parcels for Stuart to pick up. “Thanks, Taran. It’s way too expensive and there’s no need to spend all that money on me, but thank you.”

“I beg to disagree,” I told her lightly. There was every need to spoil her a little. “Would you grab a cup of coffee with me before we part ways?” Snatching her hand out of the air, I used it to point at a coffee shop we’d passed earlier.