He planned their day out. He was going to show her his home and the surrounding land, introduce her to his family and members of his clan, show her his lab and his workshop, show her the beach and the cliffs where he spent his time as a dragon, and then take her to dinner.
It might sound boring to an outsider, but to him, it was a really big deal.
The next day, he arrived at her apartment at exactly noon. She was standing on the sidewalk waiting for him. He hoped that was a good sign.
He hopped out of the car and kissed her on the cheek. “Ava,” he said. “It’s so good to see you.”
Mate! his dragon insisted.
Yes, you’re right. Now we just have to show her how we feel.
20
Ava
Ava wasn’t sure what was going on. Eli’s mood had changed drastically in the last twenty-four hours.
Yesterday, she’d broken the news to him that she was leaving. It had not been an easy decision. But weeks had gone by, and he hadn’t said a word to her about dating. Yes, she’d asked for space, but she hadn’t meant a chasm.
And sure, she could have initiated a talk. But she was the one who’d spoken up about them dating in the first place. What if he didn’t feel as strongly about her as she did about him?
He’d probably just go along with it for a while, just to be nice. Because that was the kind of guy he was. Then he’d have to let her down easy, which would be problematic because he’d already told her she was going to be offered a job by the lab.
As much as she appreciated the job offer, she couldn’t keep working at the lab with him. Not even if it meant a slower initial start to her career.
So, she’d told him, but she hadn’t expected such a visceral reaction from him. He’d looked so angry and devastated all at the same time. At first, she’d thought he was angry that she was leaving the lab. But then it dawned on her that no, it was personal.
He didn’t want her to leave. Not because of the work, but because of him.
But she had to do something. She couldn’t go on in that limbo for another day. She wasn’t interested in offering him an ultimatum or forcing his hand, so she’d made the call to leave.
It shouldn’t have felt like running away, but it did.
As soon as he left the parking lot, she regretted it. But now, he was at her apartment. And he had just kissed her on the cheek. What was she supposed to make of that?
As usual, he opened the car door for her.
He was quiet at first as they drove. He put the radio on a classical station and let Mozart wash over them both.
“Where are we going?” she asked.
“I have a confession to make.”
She waited.
“I would like for today to be a date. It doesn’t have to be; we can spend time together as friends. But if you’re interested, I would like it to be more.”
Ava tucked her hands under her legs and held onto the seat as if it would help ground her. A date?
“I know you asked for space,” Eli said, “but yesterday, you seemed distressed. So, I want to make sure I’m not missing something.” He took his eyes off the road for just a second and looked over at her. “Just to make things clear on my side, I love you. I never stopped. And I want to be with you.”
“Why didn’t you say something earlier?”
“Because until yesterday, I was your boss.”
Right. She knew that was an issue for him. “I did want space. But only for a few days. I realize now it wasn’t fair of me to expect you to just know that. But the longer we were apart, the more I started to question myself.”
He put his hand on her shoulder briefly. “Thank you for telling me that. I’ve been driving myself crazy.”
“Me, too.” She moved her left hand so that she could hold his while he drove. She chewed on her lip. If he could say it, so could she. “I love you, too.”
He seemed to sag in relief. “You don’t know how glad I am to hear that.”
“I think I do.”
He chuckled. “Now that you’re on board, I can tell you what we’re doing today. First, we’re going to meet my family. Then, I’m going to show you my workshop and my lab. After that, I want to show you the cliffs and the ocean where I spend most of my time as a dragon. And then, after all that, we can go to dinner.”
She turned to look at him with wide eyes. “You’re really going to take me to meet your family? Your clan?”
“Yes. I should have done it as soon as we got back. I know this date sounds really boring and dull, but—”
She interrupted him. “No, it doesn’t. It sounds perfect.” He was going to include her in his world. She’d never be a shifter, but she was going to meet them, and it was his idea.
For the rest of the drive, she couldn’t take her eyes off of him. When they pulled onto a secluded street lined with large houses all nestled into the woods, he squeezed her hand. “Brace yourself. My family is intense.”
Moments later, she saw what he meant. His mother and father came running toward them. Both of them hugged her tight. Then, various other relatives came up. All of them wanted to hear about her encounter with the aliens in great detail.
Eli let it go on for about thirty minutes. Then, he pulled her away to meet his best friend Jackson
