“I appreciate you doing this for me on such short notice. I hope you didn’t have any plans for tonight.” Holden welcomed Beau inside and closed the door behind him.

Beau ran a hand through his blonde hair, which was slicked back, and matched his short beard. “No, not really. I was just planning on spending time with Elliott, so Finn will be a welcome addition. What are you doing tonight, anyway?”

Holden picked up Finn’s bag and handed it to his friend. “I’ve got an appointment with a psychic.”

The blonde man put his tongue in his cheek as he thought. “You mean like the people who wave their hands over crystal balls and tell you the future?”

“The very same,” Holden said with a nod. “I’m hoping the experience might be something like the prophets we used to consult back home. Most of the ones I found only offered phone calls or online experiences, but I made special arrangements with a local psychic since I wanted to do it in person.”

“Still trying to find some semblance of Charok on this planet, huh? Good luck with that. You ought to just focus on how things are now, and not worry about it so much.”

“Maybe so, but this whole ordeal of finding my mate is driving me crazy. I don’t want Finn to be without a mother; it’s not right. There’s one woman I’ve met who might be the right one, but—”

“The one from the bar?” Beau grinned, his blue eyes sparkling. “I think I see what’s going on here.”

“Oh, really? Then why don’t you tell me?” Holden folded his arms in front of his chest, challenging his friend.

“I was there. I saw her. You think she’s hot, and you’re looking for a good excuse to bang her. I might not have been on this world or in this body for very long, but I’m starting to understand how humans work. You don’t need permission from some psychic, Holden, just go for it.”

“For your information, that’s not the whole story.” Holden had to admit that he wanted to see what Leah was like under her clothing—more than anything. She was the most tantalizing female he’d met since they’d made their escape to Earth, and everything about her was intriguing. But it wasn’t pure lust, and he knew it. “There’s something that happens to me every time I’m around her. I want to shift so badly, I can barely contain it. That’s what was going on when we first walked into The Parlor, except I didn’t know it yet. Once I was face-to-face with her, I thought I might sprout wings, snatch her up, and fly off with her. I had this incredible need to protect her, no matter what the cost.” His blood still boiled in his veins every time he thought of that greasy dirtbag trying to grab her.

Beau’s look grew serious. “Do you think that means she’s your mate?”

“I don’t know,” Holden admitted. “But I have to find out one way or another. I’m hoping the psychic can help.”

Picking up Finn, Beau looked down at the child and clucked his tongue against his teeth. “I wish I could tell you. The only thing I know is that this would all be a lot easier if we could just have stayed dragons.” He turned and headed out the door just as a woman was coming up the sidewalk.

Holden had been so busy talking to Beau that he hadn’t been paying attention when the new car had arrived. He cursed himself for it; that never would have happened if he had been in dragon form. But the psychic was there, and it was time to get started. He stepped onto the threshold to wave her inside, but stopped dead in his tracks as she came closer.

Leah.

It was impossible, but there was no mistaking that dark, curly hair or the way her mouth tipped up when she smiled. The smile faded when she noticed the child in Beau’s arms, and she was just about to say something when Beau pointed over his shoulder. “He’s in there.” Confused, Leah looked behind him at Holden.

His heartbeat sped up, thundering his blood through his veins and shoved the breath from his lungs. He clutched at the doorknob as he held it, feeling the metal heat up in his hand. For a moment, he wondered what she was doing there; she couldn’t have just tracked him down. But when he saw the dark blue velvet bag she carried, he knew there could be no other explanation.

Leah was the psychic he had hired.

She stopped on the edge of the porch, staring at him as if he were a monster. “Am I at the right address?”

At least she wasn’t running away this time. “You are. Come in.”

Leah hesitated and looked down at her feet as though expecting them to make the decision for her. One of them finally stepped forward, and she came in and turned to face him. “I have to tell you I had no idea you were my client.” Her throat worked up and down nervously.

“Aren’t you the psychic?” he asked with a smile. She didn’t see his humor, and he cleared his throat. Holden closed the door slowly, not wanting her to think he was trapping her in his house. He wanted to, if it might give him a chance to see where this was going. It was absurd to think they would just keep running into each other like this if it didn’t mean anything. “I can see how this must look, but I didn’t know it was you when I was making the call. I’m just looking for some answers.”

Her hands clutched at the handle of her bag, and she forced a smile. Even when it wasn’t genuine, it was beautiful. “I can help with that. Is there somewhere we can sit down?”

Holden could feel the nervous energy emanating from her skin as he moved past her to lead the way to his study. It vibrated against his bones and threatened to send his scales racing to the outside of his skin. “We should be able to make ourselves comfortable in here. Is there anything you require?”

“I should have everything.” She stepped into the study, her eyes widening for a moment as she took in the rows of bookshelves and the comfortable leather furniture. “I just need a place where I can sit across from you, and maybe a little bit of table space if we use tarot cards.”

“I can make that work.” Holden picked up the coffee table and moved it to the other side of the room, pushing two of the comfortable chairs closer together. “Like this?”

Leah blushed, realizing she’d been staring at his muscular frame, and nodded. Setting her bag down next to one of the chairs, she looked up at him with those wide, blue eyes. “I’ve been so rude. I haven’t even asked your name.”

He was so focused on her beauty that he almost didn’t hear. Her skin glowed with a dewy radiance that made him want to reach out and run his fingers down her cheek. Instead, he curled his fists at his sides. “Holden. Holden Reid. It’s nice to officially meet you.” He sat down across from her, feeling the way their bodies seemed to magnetize toward each other. Sitting back didn’t seem to counteract it at all, but made him want to pull her onto his lap and run his hands over her body. He’d never thought of the human form being so attractive, but she was proving him wrong.

“I’m Leah Watson, although I guess you at least knew the first part.” She blushed again, and the flame of color spread to the tips of her ears. “I have several different ways of doing readings, but the most effective way is by touch. There are residual energies on people and on their belongings that allow me to see into their lives. Whatever you’re comfortable with works for me, but the best way is if you give me your hand.”

Holden would have thought it was just a tactic to touch him if she hadn’t been so professional, but he didn’t mind either way. He gladly put his hand in hers, watching her face as she rested her fingertips on him and closed her eyes. Back home, he had always been attracted to dragons with the shiniest scales or the shapeliest wings, but it was different finding the beauty in a human. He studied the curve of her cheekbones and her neck, the way a lock of hair fell across her forehead, and the way she seemed to completely relax herself while she was doing her job.

“Can you tell me what kind of answers you’re looking for?” Her gentle voice broke the deep silence that had settled over the room. “I don’t want to just give you a bunch of random information.”

Clearing his throat uncomfortably, Holden realized just how awkward this was. He had asked a psychic to come to his house to help him make a decision about a woman, and she was that very same woman! “I have some decisions to make, very important ones about my future. I just need some advice on that.”

“Is it about your son? I can see that you love him very much.” Leah smiled, her eyes still closed.

He wanted to make her smile again, but he wasn’t sure how. “Sort of.”

“If you can ask a specific question, I may be able to do a better job of helping you find the answers.”

There was no way he could tell her the truth, not about anything. If she knew he thought she was destined to be his mate, she would think he was crazy. And she sure as hell didn’t need to know his true nature. “I can’t really disclose that.”

“That’s fine. I’ll just do my best.” She was silent again for another long minute, and the touch of her fingertips was a warm one. “You’ve been on a very long journey, but you’re trying to settle down. I can see that you have your family on the forefront of your mind, but you aren’t sure how to proceed.”

Holden leaned forward. She really was like the prophets back on Charok; maybe even better. He had always suspected they got their information on their clients well before their appointments, and there was no true information to be had on him here on Earth.

“And I also see…” Leah trailed off, her brow furrowing. Her muscles gave a quick spasm that lurched her ever so slightly backward in her chair, but she didn’t let go of his hand. “I’m sorry. I’m seeing some very strange things that don’t make sense. I’m trying to sort them out.”

“Just tell me,” he encouraged.

“I’m seeing…dragons. They must be symbolic of something, maybe a past that has come back to haunt you or fear of the future.”

“That could make sense.” Shit. He hadn’t thought this through, but he hadn’t needed to when he was expecting a stranger to show up at his door. If some random person he didn’t know saw dragons while doing a fortune-telling session, then he could easily laugh it off. But this was Leah, the woman who seemed to possess him without even knowing it. He didn’t want to lie to her.

Leah’s mouth tightened, her lips pursing together attractively. “There are a lot of dragons, and they’re in a massive cave. Some of them are dying. They’re—” She yanked her hands back and opened her eyes, breaking their connection. Tears glistened on her lashes, and she swiped at them quickly. “I’m sorry. I don’t understand what any of that was.”

“It’s alright.”

“No, it’s really not. I’ve been a little off lately. I’m not sure what the matter is. I would offer to give you a tarot reading instead, but I’m worried it would go just as badly. I’ve never seen anything like what I just saw, and I think it only proves that I need a break for a while. Again, I’m so sorry. No charge.” She snatched up her bag and shot to her feet.

Holden rose and reached for her arm as she turned away. “Wait!”

Leah paused, but she only turned her head partway over her shoulder so she wouldn’t have to look at him fully.

“Can you at least just tell me what it was you saw?”

She shrugged, but she didn’t try to pull her arm from his grasp. “It’s crazy.”

“I want to hear it anyway.”

Leah turned her head completely away from him, only allowing him to see the back of her curly head and fine contours of her neck against the dark violet tone of her dress. “There were a lot of dragons, beautiful ones with shining scales, spikey heads, and expansive wings. But some of them were sick, and I think they were dying. They lay on the floor of a cave, their chins resting in the dirt without the strength to hold up their heads any longer. Their wings were draped lifelessly over their bodies like old leather blankets, and their eyes were beginning to glaze over. They weren’t dead yet, but they would be soon. Even those who appeared to be healthy thought they would probably be next. I’m so sorry. I’ve never seen anything quite like that. I’m sure I sound like a complete nutjob to you.”

“Not at all.” He still had a hold of her wrist, and he could feel her heart thumping away gently under his thumb. “I think it might even have been helpful.”

Looking up at him now, she narrowed her eyes and studied his face. “Either you’re far too eager for some answers, or you’re just being really nice.”

“Can’t I be both?”

“Not if I gave you a poor reading. You came to me because you wanted to understand something about your life. I’ve let you down.”

“Not really.” If only she could know just what spending this time together had meant. His wings throbbed underneath his shoulder blades, begging to come out and show off.

What he understood now more than anything was that he wasn’t ready to let her go yet. His senses had been on fire all evening. He had no right to think of her as belonging to him, and yet the thought of her taking one step out of his house drove him crazy. His teeth sharpened in his mouth as his body tried to betray him once again. Holden bit down hard to keep them under control and didn’t speak until he was completely normal again. “May I ask you to stay for dinner?”

She turned to glance at the door, and then looked back up at him. “I wouldn’t want to impose.”

“It’s already made. It’s been in the slow-cooker all day.”

“And I thought I was supposed to be the psychic.”

“Is that a yes?”

Leah bit her lip, and Holden wanted to bite it for her. “I suppose,” she said slowly, “I could do that.”

“Good. Have a seat, and I’ll just run in the kitchen to check on things.” Holden’s body surged underneath his skin, and he forced himself to walk casually into the other room and lift the lid on the slow-cooker. He’d never made this particular roast recipe before. It might be absolutely awful, but there wasn’t much choice. Holden finally had her here in his house, and she wanted to stay. He could tell that she wouldn’t have if she didn’t want to. Leah was a smart woman, and she would have found an excuse. If she’d run away from him in the grocery store, then she could have run away from him here. He pulled two plates out of the cabinet, careful not to crush them in his grip.