Kal really didn’t care what she was going on about.
“Eadric, deal with her. I’m taking Maddie in . Let us know when we’re heading to the next spot.”
Ignoring the angry growls, he held tight to the only one who mattered to him. The only one that would have the power to calm the dragon within him. Right now, their soul ached to touch every inch of their mate. To ensure that she was okay. To explore her body like it was a map to his dreams.
He ducked under an exposed duct in the ship and headed down the hall.
“Where are we going?” she asked, her words terse.
He liked when she had a bit of fire to kiss away.
“To bed, mate. To bed.”
Crossing her arms over her chest, she smirked. At least she figured out he wasn’t letting her go. Not this soon.
“Don’t you dare distract me, Kal. I’m still mad about that comment. The one where you said I was more than you bargained for. What did you expect? A bunch of women all just waiting around for some dragon-alien thing to rescue them from their everyday lives?”
He thought for a moment. Yeah. That had pretty much been the point. Something in him said that wasn’t the answer his Maddie would appreciate though.
“If I say no, will you stop and let me show you just how much I love you?”
16
Maddie’s heart raced as she opened her eyes to a pitch black room. No windows. Sucking in the air, her heart threatened to jump out of her chest. Where was she?
A moment later a familiar touch reached for her.
“Maddie? Are you okay?”
The warmth of his chest pressed against her “You’re safe, mate. No one would dare hurt you.”
Right. She was safe. She was with Kal. On a spaceship. Right. So weird. Got it. This was home for now. She waited for doubt to hit and it didn’t. No. Anywhere Kal was would be home.
“Right. Sorry. Nightmare. Are we still in Roswell?”
An orange glow filled the room as Kal’s tattoos lit up.
“Yes, although not for much longer. I asked that you have a chance to say goodbye to your mother.”
A tear pricked her eye. Well, son of a crabapple. Mr. Muscles was sweet. She turned to him and smiled.
“You really are the man of my dreams and so much more.” Maddie leaned in and kissed him.
Pulling away, her eyes adjusted to the light.
“Can we go back to the house? Or is that too dangerous?”
He studied her for a moment.
“Deo has been monitoring the area, and it looks like they are looking about twenty miles west of here. No one has gone back to the house. If you promise to be quick, we should be able to. Do you think your mother wouldn’t find you here?”
She shook her head. “I honestly don’t know. I just wanted to grab something from there.”
Maddie ignored a burning in her arm. She’d been through so much that it was only fitting something would still hurt. Her head beat to an invisible drum of a hangover.
“Okay. Get dressed and we will set out soon. It’s almost night, better to get there and back without detection.”
She nodded. “How long have I been asleep?” Getting out of bed, she looked for her clothes. She needed to grab a few more clothes, and lucky for her she’d never unpacked. It felt like she’d been back in this stupid town for weeks and in reality it had only been what, a couple of days? God, if someone had told her she’d meet the man of her dreams and fall for him in a matter of days she’d never have believed them. Maddie barely believed her own eyes.
“It’s been a few hours. We moved the ship, but not far enough for my comfort. We’ll take one of my brothers as well. Better to have backup.”
Rolling her eyes, Maddie sat on the edge of the bed. When would she ever feel like herself again?
“Kal, I love you. But, remind me. Why am I so important? Why the backup? Why don’t they move the ship and then we can just come meet them.”
He shrugged into his shirt.
“Maddie. We came for our mates. Our mission is you. Or well, one for each of us. If one of us can’t find their mate, we will all search. The magic of our dragons is too much for our human forms to handle without our mates. Don’t you feel the power?”
She sat there quietly. She had felt it so many times in the last day but she hadn’t realized what it meant, really.
Closing her eyes she sat very still. Invisible tides swam through her, foreign magic exploring her. Her own magic sparked as if playing with a new friend. So crazy.
“Okay. Fine. So somehow I’m supposed to be what? An anchor? And, now that you found me. You won’t what? Die?”
Maddie grabbed at her chest. Oh, was that what he’d meant? They’d die without mates? Well, hell.
He grunted in response. As if he were one with her, Kal came over and planted a kiss on her forehead.
“No, mate. I will not die. You are my everything.”
Kal grabbed his jacket and Maddie couldn’t help but admire his thick chest as he zipped it up. Damn, he was hot. Maybe she should thank fate, right after she said goodbye to her mom.
It was hard to breathe all of a sudden. Shit. This wasn’t supposed to be the hard part. Mom had been dead for so long, yet it still seemed like yesterday.
“Ready?” Kal asked.
She nodded. Maddie couldn’t trust her own voice right now.
Kal pulled her along into the hallway. Her feet struggled to move today. At least, with a little rest her head seemed more clear, and she finally noticed the ship. They walked over a solid floor, not what she’d imagined. Grates or something, cold metal. When she’d imagined a spaceship, she thought of wires and duct work too. Sure, everything was metal, it was still simple, but it didn’t
