21. Chapter Twenty-One

"Sit down," Toby said. "You're driving me crazy."

He was leaning back against the couch, flipping through movies on some streaming channel. I hadn't stopped pacing since Dorran left the mountain. The drowning feeling that my stepmother wouldn't step off gnawed at me.

I knew her better than Dorran. She was ruthless, cruel, and would do anything to get what she wanted, and she did not want me to be happy.

Perching on the edge of the couch, I bounced my knees up and down, my fingers dancing against my thighs. Toby snorted. "Dorran is not going to give you up, Amara. Don't worry. He'll find a way to stick it to your stepmom. Chill out. You're gonna give yourself a stroke."

Sliding my hands down my thighs, I leaned back and closed my eyes. Toby was right. I was safe up here on the mountain, tucked away in a cabin with my mate.

My stepmother couldn't reach me but could take the restaurant and burn it if she wanted to. Nerves sprinkled down my spine as the front door opened.

I jolted to my feet.

Toby groaned as he stood up. "Thank God, Dorran. She's about to have a stroke. Can I leave?"

Dorran waved him away. I tried to read Dorran's face with no luck. His shoulders were tense, and his hands shoved down into his jeans pockets. "How did it go?"

He stopped a few inches from me and cupped my face in his hands. "Your stepmother is a nasty cunt."

"This I know," I said.

Dorran rubbed the corner of my mouth with his thumb. "She's adamant that you can't live without a guardian. She also doesn't want to give you the restaurant or the house if you don't stay. I think she's lying about the medication to keep you as a live-in maid."

A knife twisted in my stomach. I hadn't expected her to but hearing it out loud hurt. I'd grown up in that house. My parents and I lived there back before they passed. Would she sell it? There was so much of my mother that still lived there. My room was once her sewing room.

I couldn't let Helena touch it.

Dorran wiped away a stray tear from my cheek. "Don't cry, Little Mouse. I won't let her take a damn thing. The first thing we need to do is get you evaluated and prove that you don't need her guardianship. The second thing we're going to do is run her out of the kingdom. I've asked my father for help."

"And he agreed?"

Dorran sighed and ran his fingers into his ebony locks. "Yes, but there is a catch."

I shifted nervously. "What's that?"

"He wants us to come to dinner tonight."

As if my stomach wasn't already in knots. I had no intention of meeting his family right now. His mother had clearly shown her distaste for me. I didn't want to go eat with them.

"Dorran, your mother hates me. I don't want to go—,"

"Neither do I," he said. "But I need my father's help to get Helena out of the kingdom. I can't do it without him. He knows the laws, he makes them, and he can show me how to get her out. We need him on our side."

Dorran must have sensed my anxiety because he slid his large palms down my neck to my shoulders. "I will never let anyone hurt you, my family included. I'd rather saw off my dick than go eat with them and The East Kingdom."

"We don't want that, you may need it."

Dorran's dragon skimmed the surface, a shiver raced down his skin and his eyes danced a dangerous color. "Oh, I'll need it all right. Now, I'm fighting my dragon to keep my hands to myself. I know you're sore. I want to give you time to heal, and then I'll take you on any inch of this mountain you want."

Flames licked at my insides. White-hot lust raced through me. He was right, we needed to wait, but my body felt ready for rounds two and three.

Dorran chuckled. "We need to prepare for our dinner tonight, Little Mouse. And didn't you need to answer emails?"

Reality smacked me. I'd neglected my work since Dorran came into my life. My focus turned to him and everything I thought I would never have. "Yes."

Dorran walked toward a desk in the corner of the den and brought out a laptop. "I can have Toby get yours tonight, but this one is newer, and probably faster."

"Thank you," I said, running my palm over the smooth top. "What am I going to wear tonight? I don't have anything that"s dinner at the castle worthy."

Dorran stretched his arms above his head, which made his biceps look huge. "I'm sure we can come up with something. Why don't you do some work, and we'll head down to the kingdom for lunch, and then we'll grab you something to wear."

I'd never been stared at so much in my life. I knew being with Dorran would toss me into a life unlike my own, but I never expected this kind of attention.

Dorran opened the door to our restaurant, and I nearly choked at the madhouse. Sarah, the new server, was scrambling around like a lunatic with a coffee pot in one hand, and an empty plate in the other.

Frankie was drenched in sweat, his brows pulled down in that crazed look he gave me when he was pissed.

His attention drew to the door, and he halted, the spatula falling to the floor. "Amara," he said, his gaze lifted to Dorran who seemed interested in our conversation. "Can you come to the back, please?"

I took a step and Dorran towered over me.

"I'll be right back. Grab us a table."

Dorran looked unbothered and did as I asked. Frankie grabbed my forearm and jerked me into the kitchen. "Where in the hell have you been? You get your little mate and disappear? No nothing? Helena has been in here all day, and I swear I'm gonna go to jail for murder if she doesn't back off me."

I chuckled, knowing Frankie well enough to know that he wouldn't, but I felt that in my bones.

His gaze averted toward the kitchen window.

Dorran leaned against the tiled counter, unbothered by the hot lamp. "How much?"

Frankie cleared his throat. "How much what?"

"To knock off Helena?"

Frankie's brows lifted and he chuckled. "Cheaper than you think. I'm Frankie."

"Dorran," he said, offering him a handshake. "It looks like you're understaffed. I'll see about getting some help in here until you can hire someone."

Frankie perked up. "That would be great. Thank you. What can I get you two to eat?"

"Biggest burger you have, with fries," he said.

"Chicken strips," I said. "Onion rings."

"You got it."

Frankie turned around to put in the order. I walked out into the sitting area and slid into the booth he picked out.

Dorran wrapped an arm around me and pulled me closer to him. "This place is going to go under if we don't help it. As badly as I want to let Helena sink, I don't want you to go down with her."

"Thank you for your help."

Dorran tucked a piece of hair behind my ear and lowered his voice. "You don't have to thank me, Amara. That's what I'm here for, Baby Girl."

That name lit me on fire like a teenager. There was no hiding it. My blood warmed, and pressure ached between my thighs. It was silly and juvenile, but I couldn't help it.

The corner of Dorran's mouth lifted into a smile. "Do you like that?" he whispered.

I nodded. "Maybe a little."

Dorran's palm curled around my thigh, and he squeezed me in his grip. "Maybe I'll take you back to the alley like before, but this time I'll strip you out of your clothes, and screw you into the brick—,"

Sarah stopped at our table. "Sorry guys. What can I get you to drink?"

Dorran sat up straight. "I'll have a glass of tea, please."

Sarah scribbled it down and glanced over at me. "Amara?"

I sputtered around for a moment and finally found my ground. "Water, please."

Dorran kept his distance most of lunch, other than a few glances and sucking his straw in a way that made me weak.

When we got to the dress shop, the entire store went silent as we entered. "Hello, Dorran," an older woman walked over, her arms outstretched in a welcoming gesture. "It's so nice to see you. How can we help you today?"

"Hey Vivian," Dorran said. "I'm looking for a dress for Amara here. We're having dinner with my family, and she needs something new."

Her eyes beamed with joy. "Absolutely. Come with me."

Dorran walked over toward a sitting area surrounded by mirrors. "I like red," he shouted our way.

Vivian chuckled. "Red it is."

Vivian began plucking dresses off racks and slinging them over her shoulder. I watched in amazement. She wanted me to try all of those on. Dear God.

Vivian swiped back a piece of silver hair and smiled at me. "You're just a Doll. I can't wait to fix you up. Come on this way."

Vivian shoved me into a dressing room and slung the dresses over the top. Tugging the first one down, my eyes widened at the price tag. Three hundred dollars for this?

Reluctantly, I took off my clothes and slipped into one. The neckline was low, showcasing the curve of my breasts, and the dip of my hips. I couldn't go to the castle dressed like this.

I pulled down the next one, and it was shorter, showing too much leg. Someone knocked on the door before it opened from the outside. I yelped because the lock snapped.

Dorran stopped with the door halfway open. "Sorry, Vivian. I'll pay for it." Dorran stepped into the room with me, his body taking up most of the space, and his gaze dropped to my breasts.

His dragon flashed in his eyes, and he shut the door behind him. "Can I help you?" I asked, fingering the end of my dress.

Dorran bent down, picked me up by the back of my thighs, and held me against the wall. "I hope so," he whispered in a gravelly voice. "I can't let you wear that tonight, Baby. I won't make it through dinner."

"Thank God," I mumbled. "I hate it. It's too low. I need something with more fabric."

"Vivian," he said, keeping his gaze on mine. "Get us something that doesn't show too much skin."

"You got it! I'm gonna go look in the back. Be back in a few."

Her heels clanked on the tile, and once she was far enough away, Dorran began to slide my panties to the side.

My eyes widened in a mixture of fear and shock. "Dorran, no—,"

He smiled wickedly and it brought back that pressure between my thighs. "You're gonna deny your mate, Amara? My dragon is whining, and I need to make you cum."

The dirty talk on his tongue slid over me like velvet. It made me warm and uncomfortable in the best way. "No—,"

"What was that?" he grinned. "Don't stop?"

A chuckle broke from me, and I covered my mouth with my palm. "Dorran. We aren't doing that in this dressing room."

"No, we aren't," he said, sliding his fingers closer to my heat. "But, if you want it, I'll give you something to tide you over until we're back at the cabin."

I began to shake my head when something strange came over me. Something bone-deep and chaotic. It was lust. A crazy desire that made me not care that Vivian would come back.

Dorran noticed the shift, and grinned, sliding his fingers into me, I closed my eyes and dug my fingertips into his shoulder. "Ooooo," I mumbled, hoping she couldn't hear me.

"She likes it," he whispered against the shell of my ear. He quickened his pace, holding me with one arm, his fingers lured me closer and closer to an orgasm.

My body heated as the door dinged, and someone walked into the shop.

"Be right with you," Vivian said, tossing another dress over the top. "There you go. Try this."

"Thank you, Vivian," Dorran said, an evil smile on his lips.

Tears brimmed my eyes from the need to release. Dorran sensed everything I needed. Always. He pressed his thumb against my most sensitive spot, and I hissed, riding his hand like a woman unhinged.

The closer I came, the harder it became to keep my mouth closed. So Dorran did it for me, silencing me with his tongue.

Seconds later, I came on his fingers, my body slumped against him as he sat me down on the seat and sucked my juices from his fingertips. "Much better," he said, handing me the new dress. "Now, let's see what Vivian picked out."

I laughed half-heartedly and swiped my sweaty hair from my forehead. With shaky legs, I unzipped my dress and stepped into the other.

It was ... perfect. The sleeves were a tight lacy fabric. The top came up in a choker-style neck, with a fitted waist and a sleek skirt that almost hit my knee.

"I like it."

Dorran chuckled. "She likes it, Vivian."

"Toss it over and I'll ring it up. Do we need any shoes?"

I shook my head, but Dorran answered, "Yes."

"I don't need any shoes, Dorran."

He grabbed the door handle. "I want you to have them. You can have new shoes every time we go out if you continue to make those sounds when I'm inside of you. Plus, you need some sensible shoes for tonight. I have a feeling we'll be running for our lives before the end."

I watched Dorran walk outside, and a giddy laugh escaped me. I couldn't believe we just did that. I'd never felt so exhilarated in my life.

Unzipping the dress, I tossed it over for Vivian and looked at myself in the mirror with red cheeks and a heaving chest.

The old Amara was slowly fading, and for the first time in my life, I was excited to see how the new Amara would cope.