Page 25 of The Dragons' Healing Mate

“Rowan!” she greeted me warmly. “Come eat.”

“I’m still pretty stuffed from the giant lunchyou made me eat, but I’ll have a nibble,” I assured her with a playful grin. If I didn’t have dinner, Ma would probably have an aneurysm.

I sat at the little table, and Ma presented me with a mound of pasta a moment later. Nina and Ma sat with me, and no sooner did I have my second bite in my mouth than Ma let the bomb drop.

“So… you went into town with Nix yesterday, hmm?”

I nearly choked, coughing as I managed to get the mouthful down while Ma eyed me, her brows raised and an evil, knowing smirk on her face. I was blushing. I knew I was by how damned hot my face was, but I still tried to play it off.

“Yup. Got some supplies and stuff. No biggie.”

Ma chuckled, gesturing at the massive industrial freezer in the corner. “Y’all took up three quarters of the space with ice cream.”

“Oops,” I replied sheepishly. “I guess we’re a bad pair to send out for food. We’ll just get sweets.”

“Sweets, you say?” I looked up at Ma, not knowing where she was going with this but worried all the same. “Yes, I do think I heard something quiteintriguingabout how ‘sweet’ it got.”

My stomach dropped through the floor, and I looked at my food, not saying a word, choosing to pretend all I had to do was clear my plate and get the hell out of there. After a few morebites, though, who should come into the kitchen but the dragon himself?

Nix. Seriously? Dammit.

Our eyes met, making my heartbeat skitter.

“Hey, Rowan.” Nix nodded at me with a sparkling grin, and I could barely look at him.

“Hi.”

Oh God, is that it? I’m such an idiot.

My cheeks were on fire as Nix headed to Ma, snagging a plate of food before sitting next to me. At this rate, I was liable to burst into literal flames. Ma didn’t miss a beat, of course, continuing her verbal torture as I stared wide-eyed into my pasta.

“Yes, I heard through the grapevine that you and Nix were getting alongverywell the other day in town.” Ma smirked.

Groaning, I gave up and laid my forehead on the table. Damned dragons were everywhere. One of them must’ve seen us when we were making out like damn teenagers against his truck.

Kill me now.

Nix beamed. “We had an excellent time,” he agreed.

Nix wrapped an arm around me, which only made my pulse flare higher, but that scent of his was a welcome one. The closeness didn’t disturb me, though. In fact, it felt right.

“There was a spy in town.” I raised my brows at him, unblinking as I tried to subtly clue him in. “It appears word made it back to Ma that we were?—”

“Necking?” Nina giggled to herself, which only made me glare at her while she laughed hard, waving her hand through the air. “Sorry, sorry. I couldn’t help it.”

“I see. Well, I hope whoever was there enjoyed the show. I know I did.” Nix grinned dopily.

Flames. I was just a ball of flames, but Nix pulled me against his side, kissing the top of my head. “Aahs” filled the air, and even as the embarrassment threatened to end me, I couldn’thelp but be a little thrilled by how open Nix was. He was happy to let everyone know he was into me. And that was damn flattering.

“All right, heathens. Eat your food.” I laughed, shaking my head while I soothed the mortification with some extremely delicious pasta.

And garlic bread, because you can never have enough garlic bread.

Greylen

Rowan sat across from me with an adorably baffled expression on her face.

“I still don’t understand how he spent so much money,” she said, exasperated, placing the tablet she’d been studying on the desk.