After dinner, they were all playing a game of something called Scrabble (where they kept correcting Dante for using words that didn’t exist) when there was a knock on the door.

Ella, still distracted by a long word she’d put on a triple word spot, whatever that was, didn’t even look up as Ron went to answer it.

Melanie was pouting on the couch, filing her nails, which were more like talons, and Ben was nowhere to be seen. He’d probably bailed in anger after his fiancée had thrown him under the bus.

He heard male voices at the door, and Grace raised her head as Ella tensed beside him.

“Cliff, is that you?” Melanie asked, standing.

Dante was focused on the fact that Ella had gone rigid. She kept her head lowered, her shoulders hunched. What the hell was going on? One moment ago, she’d been her sparkling, sharp, ass-kicking self. Now she was shrinking like flowers in frost.

He stood to see whoever was at the door. He hated to leave Ella, but he had to get a look at whoever was coming in.

The so-called “Cliff” was shaking Ron’s hand, and he was smiling at them. Even at a glance, Dante could tell this was Ben’s brother.

He looked at Ella, who was shaking, then back at Cliff, and it clicked.

She wasn’t afraid of Ben. She was afraid of Cliff and had frozen before Ben because they looked similar and she’d been reminded of him. A multitude of horrible options of what had happened came to his mind, but instead, he just wanted to take care of Ella.

“Is Ella here?” Cliff asked, stepping inside with an easy smile on his face.

Dante looked at his frozen mate and made a snap decision. This would probably look rude, but he didn’t care. He walked to her, swept her up in his arms, gave the man at the door a hard glare, and jogged up the stairs with her in tow.

The primal urge to protect her overrode everything else. It had nothing to do with being her hired date. It had everything to do with getting her out of even the same room as someone who could make her feel that way.

He set her on the bed, and she pushed him away as she tried to get up.

“I should be down there. I’m an adult now. I don’t need him to push me around. I don’t need to run.”

Dante caught her by the arms. Her curls were coming loose from her bun, and when she looked up at him, there were tears in her eyes.

“Why am I crying?” she asked. “I don’t feel sad.”

Wordlessly, he pulled her in against him.

“You aren’t paid for this,” she murmured, sinking her tears into his shirt.

“Damn straight,” he replied. “It’s my honor.”

He held her against him and let her cry silently as long as she wanted. Had the man dumped her? Hurt her? Stalked her? If he thought too much about it, the homicidal rage inside him would be too much to bear. And until he knew the truth, there was no point in getting angry.

But the dragon inside him was roaring, ready to breathe fire, and for once, he was glad for the ring that contained him.

The small town of Heber wasn’t ready for a dragon.

She finally sighed and pushed away from him, sitting on the bed with a huff. “I’m sorry. I don’t know how he can still affect me.”

He sat next to her, letting their thighs touch. “I’m here if you want to talk about it.”

She shook her head. “I don’t.”

There was a long silence as he looked at the dark night closing in outside the window. A sinking feeling came over him as he realized he was going to be spending the night in this room, with his sexy mate, having to totally control himself.

That would be hard, especially right now with his possessiveness raging. All he wanted to do was hold her, reassure her, make her feel safe. But right now, more than anything, he sensed she needed his humor.

“Best hit the sack. I mean the floor,” he said with a laugh. “Unless my manly display has made you change your mind about my sleeping arrangements.”

She let out a snort, and he was glad to see her coming back to her usual snappy self. “As if, dragon.”

He felt a small shudder go through him. It felt good to hear her say that, even if she couldn’t possibly know it was the truth.

And when would he ever be able to tell her?

Patience, Dante.

He ran his hand through his hair. “I guess I better go ask your mom for spare sheets, then.”

“No,” she said, standing. “They’re here in the closet.”

He got them, and she helped him make a bed on the floor. After they both got ready for bed, sharing the bathroom, they turned off the light and got under their respective covers.

The noise was calming downstairs, and hopefully Cliff’s visit had been a short one. Dante realized he was probably the best man and tried not to clench his hands. If he did, he’d never unclench them.

He’d figure out what was bothering his mate, solve it for her, and win her in the process. But first, he needed to win her trust.

“So what’s on the schedule tomorrow?” he asked.

“I think we’re all going to the fair,” she said.

“The what?”

“The state fair. Lots of stuff to do there. My family usually goes, and they’re happy I can tag along this year.”

“I see,” he said.

“Good night, Dante. And thanks for today. You really are a pretty good guy.”

He felt himself flush and shifted his weight uncomfortably. He was used to giving compliments, not so much getting them. Admiration, yes. Gaping, yes. Quiet, sincere approbation? No.

“Thanks for bringing me,” he replied. “We’ll have fun at the fair.”

And then he heard his mate turn over, and he just enjoyed the feel of being there in the darkness, alone yet together.

* * *

Dante was surprised by the odd contraptions littering the grounds at the state fair. They looked extremely odd and ill-built, yet people were riding in them, letting themselves be carried high into the sky by some flimsy mechanical beams welded together sloppily.

Ella didn’t seem bothered and told him they were going to ride some of the rides, like it or not.

To his disappointment, she hadn’t yet decided to wear clothing that was a little more formfitting, but she had let her hair down in a low ponytail, and that was something.

The soft, sumptuous, slightly frizzy curls tempted him to twist his hand in them. She was beautiful today, even with a boxy windbreaker jacket and track pants hiding her assets.

His imagination was going wild trying to fill in the blanks anyway, and that was kind of fun.

He looked up again at one of the contraptions, a huge circle with little floating cars attached where people could sit, and noticed many of the couples in the cars were cuddling.

If they did a ride, he wanted to do that one.

“What are you looking at?” she asked. “The Ferris wheel?”

He nodded.

“We can ride that one if you want.” Mountain air whooshed by, lifting her curls, accentuating her wild beauty. Those wide, brown eyes and lush lashes, that sumptuous mouth and curved lips. The little dimple in her chin.

She was eating a candy apple he’d insisted on buying her when he saw her looking at them longingly, and she had a little piece of caramel stuck to her lip.

He reached out to get it and then stopped, pulling his hand back. “You have something on your face.”

She reached up, felt the caramel, and grinned in embarrassment. “Whoops. Thanks.”

Dammit, he really wanted to touch her. It was getting harder to pretend that he didn’t. He shoved his hands in his pockets impatiently. Today he was wearing khakis and a dress shirt, feeling overdressed. Perhaps he would visit one of the shops in town and get a more appropriate outfit.

Ella didn’t seem to mind, though. She grabbed him through the arm. “Come on. I want to play the fish game.”

“Fish game?”

“You try and catch one, and if you do, you get to keep it.”

He raised an eyebrow. He wanted to see this… fish game.

She pulled him eagerly through the crowds to a booth where there were many bowls of water. They were given a little net and told the rules, and in seconds, Ella had won her fish. A tiny orange and silver thing, Dante didn’t see what was so exciting about it.

But as she held up the bag and cooed at it, her tanned skin flushed with pleasure, he had to stand back and smile. She was so cute sometimes and didn’t even realize it.

“Anything else you want to do?” he asked, looking around them as they left the booth.

“Not really,” she said. “I’m sure my family is all over the place, and we don’t have to stay as long as they do.” She eyed his shirt. “That color is nice on you.”

“Why thank you,” he said, grinning. “You look nice yourself. Though I’m looking forward to the day you don’t wear the equivalent of a stiff sack to cover yourself.”

“Dream on,” she said. “I don’t base my value in my body, so why should I show it off?”

Somehow, he thought it was more than that.

They walked past a booth with stuffed animals, some sort of game where you threw a ball and knocked over metal bottles that were stacked together.

“Ooh,” she said. “So cute!” She pointed at a stuffed dragon hanging above them. “Too bad they’re impossible to win.” She looked at her fish. “At least these guys are achievable.” She scrunched up her little nose and her ponytail bobbed as she cooed at the fish.

Dante looked up at the large, green dragon. Not the right color, but still… a good sign that she wanted one.

He stepped up to the booth, pulling out his wallet. “How do I win the dragon?”

Ella stepped forward. “Wait, you don’t have to—”

He gave her a stymying look. “I’m doing it. You want the dragon, I’m getting you the dragon.”

“I don’t know why you’re so nice to me,” she said under her breath.

His brows shot up, but he didn’t have time to address it. He needed to win a dragon.

“Three total knockdowns in a row,” the guy running the booth said. He wore the shit-eating grin of someone who liked taking advantage of people. Dante instantly disliked him. The guy running the fish booth had been much nicer.

“Three knockdowns.” Dante agreed.

The man smacked his gum and folded his arms smugly. “Not gonna happen, though.”

“Aren’t you a good salesman,” Dante muttered.

“What?” the guy asked.

“Nothing.” Dante put his money down and picked up the first of the three balls he’d purchased. He narrowed his eyes at the bottles. He should probably hold back on his strength, as the ring only constrained him from taking dragon form, but didn’t make him much weaker. If he aimed at the bottom of the bottles, it should be fine if he did a light toss.

He wound up and tried to lightly toss the ball at his target, the middle of the three bottles on the bottom of the stack.

Despite his attempt at restraint, the ball was lighter than he thought and shot forward like a rocket. It plowed right through the bottles with a huge crash and then straight through the back of the tent with a loud ripping sound. The booth began to wobble, and Dante felt his face go pale as Ella slowly looked up at him in shock.

“Damn you, look what you did to my booth!” the man shouted, looking at the hole.

Dante just stared at him blankly until Ella stepped forward with her wallet. “I’m sorry,” she said. “He doesn’t know his own strength. Is this enough?” She set money down.

Dante slowly snapped out of his panic at the fact that he could have given himself away as a dragon. “I can pay.”

“Shush,” she said, taking his arm and pulling him with her away from the booth as the man counted his money and glared darkly. “That was worth it just to watch his face. He probably actually profited, considering how cheap that booth was and the fact that he spends all day ripping people off.”

“I’m glad you think so, although I failed to get you the dragon.”

She waved a hand. “It’s fine. Thanks for trying.” She stopped in the middle of the walkway, letting the crowd flow around them. “What was that back there? I mean, how hard did you throw it?”

He rubbed the back of his head nervously. “Not hard.”

“You must be really strong,” she said. “I thought you were just a pretty boy. I guess there’s more to you after all.”

He snorted. “These arms aren’t full of water. What did you think?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know what I thought. You keep surprising me. I still don’t know anything about you, either. We ought to change that…” She trailed off as her eyes fixed on something ahead of her.

“What is it?” he asked.

She clutched her fish in one hand and her candy apple in the other and stepped back against him, bumping into his chest.

He looked to see a group of men coming forward, about Ella’s age.

What was it about the men in this town that turned his confident, sharp-witted mate into this nervous, scared creature that seemed to always be waiting for the hammer to fall?

The guy at the head of the group looked her way and stopped, a grin lighting his face. He cocked his head and walked forward, and Dante stepped in front of her protectively.

“Ella!” the guy said. “Long time no see.”

The man was as tall and as muscular as a shifter male, and Dante didn’t at all like the look in his eyes. Like Ben and Cliff, he had dark hair, but that was where the comparisons stopped. He had nicer features.

“John,” Ella said nervously, stepping forward to stand beside Dante and steeling herself.

“Wow,” he said, coming closer. His eyes moved to Dante. “And you brought a dude. That’s a shock.”

Dante’s eyes narrowed. “Watch it. That’s my woman you’re talking about.”

“And you are…?”

“None of your business,” he said sharply.

“What is he even wearing?” John asked to titters from his friends. “You going to some business meeting? Aren’t you afraid to get cow dung on your duds?”

Dante resisted the urge to punch the fool. “Come on, Ella. Let’s go.”

“Hey, wait,” John said, turning to follow them as they tried to pass. “We haven’t gotten to catch up for old time’s sake.” He reached for her, but Dante stepped in front of him with a snarl.

“Woah, “John said, putting up his hands. “Easy. Geez, Ella. This guy is out of control.”

“Only when dealing with jerkwads,” she snapped back at him.

John’s gray eyes went dark. “I don’t need to hear that from you, fatty.”

Dante felt his fist go through the other man’s face before he’d made a conscious decision to do it. John was knocked back off his feet and rolled a few times before coming to a stop.

Dante stayed where he was in front of Ella. As far as he was concerned, John had gotten the least he deserved for insulting his mate.

John wiped his mouth indignantly, but as Dante challenged him wordlessly to stand, he stayed down.

“That’s what I thought,” Dante said, putting his arm around Ella.

“That’s right. Walk away, fatty,” John said.

Dante let out a roar and was about to go back to him, but Ella’s soft hands reached up to catch his face, and he felt himself jerked down by surprisingly strong fingers into a kiss.

She was standing on her tiptoes to reach him, and for a moment, he tried to pull back, the need to go end that guy surging through him uncontrollably.

Then it hit him. Ella was kissing him. Ella was kissing him. Ella was…

He melted into her, curving an arm around her waist, pulling her in tight as their lips melded together. He didn’t need to open her mouth; he just wanted to stay there like that, joined with her, softly touching as the dragon inside him slowly calmed.

When she pulled back, he was sure his shock showed on his face.

“Thanks for that,” he said.

“No problem,” she said, putting a hand in his to lead him to the Ferris wheel. “Let’s get airborne before we cause more trouble.”

Fine by him. Maybe snuggling would be involved.

After they gave their tickets to the attendant and stepped into the little car together, putting the guardrail down, Dante gasped as they were lifted off the ground and up in the air in a smooth circle. The view around him was amazing. The view beside him? Sublime.

“Thank you,” she said, putting a hand over his. “No one has ever stood up for me.”

He froze. “What?”

“I know,” she said. “I was bullied all through high school by John and guys like him. I guess I always dreamed of having a prince to stand up for me. Now I have one, even if he is just doing it as part of his job.”

But I’m not, he wanted to say.

“I noticed other couples were cuddling,” he said. “Maybe since you’re so grateful for what I did, you’d be into that?”

“Don’t push your luck, dragon,” she said. But she leaned into his chest.

As her curvy form fit in against him, he felt all his fantasies confirmed. Her soft breasts pressed up against his arm, making his whole body tighten.

“Are you okay?” she asked, looking up at him innocently.

“Sure,” he said, not knowing how he was going to hide the huge “problem” that was going to result from this. But hey, she’d know he was sincere in his attraction.

Luckily, she seemed focused on the view.

“I’ll always stand up for you,” he said quietly.

“Sure,” she responded. “Until the contract ends.”

He didn’t say anything, just quietly put a hand over hers and enjoyed the ride.