Chapter Five – Lydia
Lydia's arm ached as she whisked the whipping cream to stiff peaks. She'd lost track of how long she had been going at it, but even the blasting music and the spread of ingredients ready on the table for her cake did nothing to cool the raging fires in her blood and the steady stream of dialogue in her head as she replayed the events leading up to the kiss over and over again. And, of course, every time she thought of the kiss, it left her breathless. She had never been kissed like that before.
"Why did I have to be like that?" she moaned. "Couldn’t I have left it alone? That horse was dead but I still had to beat it, didn't I? It's not like he could have known about Amber's past. But there I was, jumping to conclusions."
And then jumping all over him.
"It wasn't even that good of a kiss!"
Wow, now she was lying to herself. Yeah, it wasn't that good of a kiss…
Which was why her body was still craving his and the taste of his lips was burned onto her own. Lydia groaned. Just her luck. He wasn't interested in her, and if he was going to switch his attentions to her five seconds after propositioning Amber, then she didn't want anything to do with him, anyway.
But there was still something to be admired about a man who hated humans for what they did to him but still protected them.
"Because he has to!" Lydia threw cocoa powder and sugar into the bowl and folded it into the whipped cream. "So what if he lost his family and I lost my family. That's not enough to build a relationship upon. And who said anything about a relationship? Nobody, that's who. At most, he wants a brood mare to pop out babies. How does a human give birth to a dragon, anyway? Would I lay an egg?"
Whoa, why the sudden first-person pronouns? Her face flared up as she mixed the chocolatey cream into the rest of the batter and poured it into the pan. Even baking wasn't getting her head back on straight. If she didn't get herself in order soon, she was going to be screwed.
Amber hurried into the kitchen, glancing over her shoulder as she did so. Lydia tensed. Was Ian harassing her again?
"Did he approach you again?" she snarled, headed for the door. "I'll punch his lights out."
"No," Amber said. "I haven't seen him since… but I can't sleep. I just… I hate it here. It's so huge and empty and it's only you, me, and him here. He could do anything and we couldn’t stop him. And his talk about mates… What if—"
Lydia grasped her hands. "No. Don't think like that, Amber. It's not going to happen."
Amber shuddered. "But you heard him. He hates humans. I don't even know why he saved us. And the restaurant would have had two bodies in it. What if he set it up so that he could have us declared dead? Nobody is looking for us, so we're going to be his prisoners forever."
"No, that's not what is going to happen." Lydia hugged her friend, trying to reassure her. "We haven't seen anything about the restaurant on the news, and something like that should be front page. That means he must have had it cleaned up. Maria is going to be furious that we aren't at work, 'kay? She's looking for us."
A quick glance at Amber's face showed that her words didn't mean anything. Lydia sighed. Usually, it was Amber calming her down about whatever sticky situation they found themselves into. Why Lydia was so calm about being held by Ian in his mansion was a mystery. Maybe it was because she didn't feel like a prisoner. There were no bars on the windows or deadbolts that they couldn't get past. Even the forbidden area upstairs was open via a staircase. They could just waltz out if they wanted to.
"So, I was thinking that maybe we can get an initial investment for our restaurant from Ian," Lydia said, trying to distract her friend. "It's the least he can do for us after all this."
"You think he would do that?" Amber frowned. "Assuming that he's not going to keep us here forever."
Lydia repressed another sigh. She slid her cake into the oven and set the timer. "You know what? Why don't you cook up something? You always say that cooking helps you relax. I've had a look around the kitchen, it has everything you need. So why don't you whip up some steak or something? You haven't eaten much since we ended up here."
"And what are you going to do?"
"I will be back to take the cake out of the oven. In the meantime, I'm going to go talk to Ian. I'm sure he'll let us use his phone now… Maybe I can convince him to put us up in a hotel instead of being here."
Amber's brow furrowed, but she nodded silently. Nerves turned in Lydia's stomach, but she managed another smile before she left the kitchen. Now, where to find Ian? She looked in a few rooms before finding him in the library. He was watching a video about a wildlife rehab center where a woman was tenderly cleaning up a bobcat kitten with diarrhea.
"Hey," she greeted him as she came closer. Her cheeks flushed as she remembered the kiss, but she was determined not to think about that. At least, not right now. Maybe later, when she was in bed… Wow. No. She wasn't going to think about it. She focused on his computer. "I didn't peg you as a kitten video kind of guy."
Ian glanced at her and shrugged. "Sometimes I just need to remind myself that there is good in the world. Good among humans. I forget and let myself fester in my grief… I'm sorry for shouting at you earlier."
"Me, too. I think I may have overreacted. That doesn't mean you're not an asshole, though."
Ian offered her a wan smile. "Good to know. Apparently, I have a reputation to uphold. But I'm sorry for frightening your friend. I should know better than to act like I've been acting."
Lydia slid into a chair next to him. "How old are you?"
"Three hundred, give or take a few years. I know I don't look it."
"So Dragons age differently than humans?"
"Yeah. Up until eighteen or nineteen, we age the same way, then we just slow down and only age according to the grief we experience. My parents were both nearly a thousand, and they looked hardly older than I do now." He swallowed hard, ducking his head. "I've been on my own for a long time. I'm tired of being alone. And you're right, I am an asshole. I need to work on that."
Lydia snorted. "You mean being a bigger one?"
"Yes." He rolled his eyes but laughed, surprising her. "So what brought you here, anyway?"
"I want to use your phone. Amber and I want to make sure our friends know we're okay. Also, Amber is worried that you're trying to keep us as prisoners. I thought maybe tomorrow we could go out or something. Get a hotel room? She's just so scared and I don't know how to reassure her."
"But you're not? Scared, I mean."
Lydia shrugged. "I should be. I shouldn't trust you. But for some reason… I kinda do. It's not like I trust trust you. You won't be getting any more smooches from me." Was it just her imagination or did a flash of disappointment cross his face? "But I don't think you're out to hurt us. I think you are trying to protect us. And that's worth something."
"I see." Ian closed out the web page and shut down the computer. He pulled his phone from his pocket and handed it to her. "No hotel."
Lydia narrowed her eyes.
Ian gave her a wry smile. "Look, I get it. She's scared, and if she were around other people, it would be reassuring. But you're a Paladin. It could be that the demons won't come after her if you part, but they might. I can't risk it."
"I wasn't saying send her to a hotel. Both of us."
"Staying in the same hotel room won’t help." Ian put his hand over hers. "We can't be separated. And if we are at a hotel when the demons attack, other people might get hurt. That's kind of against the oath I took to protect the planet. But I will get you both phones so you don't have to feel so isolated."
"Thank you." Lydia wasn't sure if that was going to be enough for Amber, but it was a start. She found herself leaning in, breathing in Ian's scent, and pulled herself back before he could get the wrong idea. Or she could start kissing him. "I mean it. Thank you. Have you figured out what the demons are up to?"
He shook his head.
Lydia hesitated for a moment. Maybe if he wasn't such an aloof, intimidating figure, Amber would feel more at ease. "Want to join us for supper? Amber's cooking us up some steaks. Just for her and me, but I'm sure I can convince her to add another to the mix. I know you like your meat almost raw."
"I… Sure. That sounds good." He smiled.
She smiled back but waved a warning finger in his face. "But you can only join us on one condition. Praise every single bite you eat and don't you dare try to send it back."