The Dragon’s Chance by Jessie Donovan

Chapter Twenty-One

Jake noticed the instant Sylvia paled and shuttered her gaze at Ashley's mention of mating.

Part of him wondered if she was afraid of taking another mate again. Or maybe she thought he would only mate her to protect his sister. She had so many reasons to want to say no.

Yet all he'd wanted to shout was yes, he wanted Sylvia as his own.

However, he held back. They had a rather unique relationship, one that had never really gone the usual way of things. And given his mistake in thinking someone had wanted to marry him before, only to betray him through dishonesty, Jake wanted to try to convince Sylvia of why he wanted to mate her more than anything. Lay out the truth for her and hope it was enough.

After all, he loved her, he loved their daughter, and after nearly a month without either, he knew with every bone in his body that he never wanted to be separated from his two dragon ladies ever again if he could help it.

Jake only needed to convince Sylvia of this. Which, of course, meant talking about Kim Gibbons—the woman he'd nearly married in his early twenties. That was the only way he could think of to argue how his love for Sylvia was different and special and more dear to him than his later realized infatuation with Kim.

Once they were inside the larger, nicer meeting room, he guided her to the small couch off to the side. He sat, and Sylvia did as well, removing her hand from his in the process.

And while he wanted to snatch it back, he resisted. Instead, he asked, "Talk to me, Sylvia, and tell me what's going on inside your head."

She met his gaze—he missed her flashing dragon eyes—but he couldn't read into her expression. "I want to say aye, I'll mate you. But…"

He raised his brows. "But?"

She sighed. "This is all happening so fast. It seems we come together, finally get into a routine, and then something happens to cause drama again." She bit her lip and he waited until she finally spoke again. "Not to mention things are still unsettled back in Scotland. And even if they weren't, and it's safe for you again, you'll have to give everything up if we live there. You know about my mum. I don't want that to happen to you too."

He did take her hand this time. "Honesty is what I want, and don't stop giving it to me. However, I hope you won't give up on us just yet."

She moved closer to him. "Of course not. I, well, just want some more time with you. To ensure it's what you truly want."

Reading between the lines, he wondered if it meant Sylvia did want to mate him.

Jake kissed her knuckles before replying, "And I completely understand that. I'm not going to pressure you. Although I do want to share a story with you, about how I can be more certain of you despite our short time together compared to the woman I dated for two years and had once thought to marry."

Her brows came together. "I vaguely remember you saying you were engaged before. But this is what I'm talking about, Jake. I should already know such an important part of your past."

Squeezing her hand, he smiled at her. "Well, then let's take one thing at a time and fix that, okay?" She nodded, and he reached up to tuck a section of hair behind her ear. "It was more than twenty years ago now…"

She tilted her head, waiting for him to continue, and Jake decided to just get it all out into the open. "Her name was Kimberly Gibbons. I met her at my first job after I finished culinary school. She helped her family with produce deliveries, and I saw her at least once a week and soon started dating her."

He'd once recalled Kim's face and figure perfectly. Now it was merely a blur. He went on, "We went out for two years and I thought I loved her. I couldn't seem to keep my hands off her, and I always tried to go out of my way to please her. In retrospect, I never noticed how she never said she loved me back. Nor did I really take seriously how she turned down my first two marriage proposals. However, I tried a third time on New Year's Eve when I was drunk, and she said yes."

He'd been so happy, even if the details had been hazy. Jake had never drunk as much as that fateful New Year's Eve.

Of course, if he'd been sober, he probably would've never asked Kim again in the first place. Mostly because he would've noticed her spending most of the party with someone else.

Pushing aside what he couldn't change, Jake continued, "She wanted a long engagement, which I didn't mind. We were both still young, after all, and we had to rely on ingenuity and hard work to put on the type of wedding she wanted.

"Then the day came." Even if it had been decades, Jake never forgot that day, or the humiliation that followed. "Even though Kim had never seemed quite as happy or enthusiastic about the wedding as me, I was still thrilled. I thought I was in love. I was finally going to start my own family and be as happy as my sisters were with their spouses. Except…"

Sylvia placed a hand on his thigh and squeezed. "Except what?"

He met her gaze again. "She never showed. Her friend gave me a letter, which said she'd run off with another man. It was later, once I could think again, that I learned her true aim. She'd had no intention of marrying me but had found someone else. However, she and this other guy decided that if she led me on, they could get a honeymoon for themselves, taking the one meant for me and Kim. Something they couldn't afford on their own."

Sylvia murmured something, but Jake carried on, needing to finish the tale. "To say I was devastated would be an understatement, not to mention the sting of betrayal. I had taken an extra job and extra shifts for nearly a year so I could pay for the wedding and the honeymoon. I would've done anything for her. And yet Kim apparently cared so little for me that she let me go on, not caring how exhausted I was, knowing full well she'd end up leaving and stealing from me." He grimaced. "Even though I'd been with her for years, I didn't know her at all. I decided shortly after being stood up that I was done with women. Without them, I could focus on my career, my dreams and never have to suffer another great disappointment again."

Jake cupped Sylvia's cheek and gazed deeply into her eyes. "But something about you was different, right from the beginning. You answered so forthrightly, even when your dragon's words clearly embarrassed you, and I couldn't help but wonder if maybe I'd found a woman who wouldn't try to lie and manipulate me."

She murmured, "And then I left you without a word in the night."

He stroked her skin. "Even that I could understand. We never promised anything between us, and you were a dragon-shifter and I was human, never an easy thing to begin with." He raised his other hand so he could take her face between them. "But don't you see, Sylvia? One day with you made more of an impression on me than nearly three years with the woman who betrayed me. To the point I had to find out why you left and to see if my gut instinct regarding women had improved over the last two decades." He leaned closer a fraction. "And it did. Talking with you is so easy. Even when you're afraid to share something that could paint you negatively, something you consider a dark part of your life, you still told me about it. You're more honest than most people I know." He laid his forehead against hers. "I know your history, some of your fears, your great love of your children, and how much you think of others' happiness. Not to mention how you show parts of yourself to me, such as the teasing, flirtatious woman, who rarely comes out for anyone else." He kissed her gently before whispering, "So even if the time has been short, I've never been more certain in my life of how much I love you, Sylvia. The question is—do you believe me?"

Jake had laid all his cards out on the table. Now all he could do was see how Sylvia reacted.

So his heart thumped and he held his breath, waiting for her answer.

* * *

Sylvia's hearthurt as Jake told her his tale. The thought of any female doing what they'd done to him, taking so clear advantage, made her want to find the female and wring out an apology.

And maybe growl and snap her teeth in her dragon form, just for good measure.

At the thought of protecting their male against someone who'd hurt him, her dragon stirred slightly but still didn't speak.

And then Jake had to go and lay out how much he knew of her, despite their short time together, melting away some of her fears.

By the time he said he loved her, Sylvia was doing her best not to cry. Not out of sadness, but a mixture of relief and happiness.

She, the female who fell in love too quickly by most standards, had somehow earned the love of her human.

So when he asked if she believed him, she nodded. "I do believe you. I tried to hold back, to keep myself from hoping for too much too quickly, but I've never been good at denying my feelings." She brushed some hair off his forehead, desperately needing to touch him, and smiled at her human. "And even if some would say it's too soon or that I'm vulnerable because of my silent dragon, they'd be wrong. I know with my whole heart that I love you, Jake Swift. I'd be a fool not to, given how sweet, funny, and loyal you are. Not to mention you can handle my children, which is no mean feat in and of itself."

He chuckled. "Your children are easy compared to your in-laws." He sobered a fraction before saying, "But even if our tale never went in the usual order of things up until now, I think maybe this once it'll be good to mate before we even think of another child, right?"

Her lips twitched. "Are you becoming all traditional now?"

He grinned. "Well, I don't want you running off, and a man's got to do what a man's got to do. Even if it means steering our relationship toward a more 'normal' path, I suppose."

He winked and she laughed. Jake cut it short by kissing her again, and she melted into him.

As his tongue stroked hers, his hand pulled her closer, his heat and scent wrapping around her, and Sylvia desperately wanted more than kissing, much more.

And yet somehow she remembered that even if they didn't have to worry about Sophie waking up or crying right this second, Jake's sister waited for them.

As if reading her thoughts, Jake broke the kiss and murmured, "You're thinking again, aren't you?"

She traced his bottom lip with her forefinger. "Aye, I can't help it. Although maybe once we finally have a somewhat boring, normal life, we can take a day or two away from Sophie to get all this pent-up lust out of our system with no distractions."

Jake's eyes turned heated. "I'll never get you out of my system, my dragon lady."

His words made her shiver in a good way. She heard the truth in them and believed him.

Sylvia traced his jaw, loving the feel of his short whiskers. "I doubt my dragon will tire of you, either."

He continued to rub her back, her shoulder, her arm, as if he needed to touch her or he'd die. "And yourself?"

The corner of her mouth ticked up. "We'll just have to see, aye? Dragon-shifters are a randy lot, after all."

"Oh, is that so?" He dragged her onto his lap and tickled her side. She giggled and tried to stop him. Eventually he did and merely held her close. "I want you, Sylvia, more than anything. I want to be your mate, father and stepfather to your children, and somehow find a place within your clan."

She looked up from where her head rested on his shoulder. "Are you sure about that, Jake? Scotland is a long way from San Francisco."

He squeezed her hip. "I know. But I've spent the last twenty-odd years building up my career, my restaurants, and I've reached a place where I can step back a little and learn to delegate. And there's nowhere I'd rather do that from than on Lochguard with you, Sophie, and all your children."

"Even Connor?"

He snorted. "I can handle Connor."

As she imagined her son trying to win against Jake, she smiled. But then she remembered how that required them all to be back in Scotland, and her smile faded. "If we can ever go home."

He held her tighter against his chest. "You told me before to trust Finn, right? So let's trust him. Besides, there's something else we should worry about first."

She frowned up at him. "What?"

"If we mate on PineRock, will it hold up in Scotland? I have no idea if dragon-style marriages work like human ones, across borders."

"I don't know, but we should talk with Ashley and find out." She bit her lip and then blurted, "Just as long as you're sure about this."

"Oh, I'm sure."

And then he kissed her possessively, exploring every inch of her mouth, letting her know with actions that he meant his words.

Well, for a few minutes, at least, before they both begrudgingly left the room and went to deal with Ashley and the next step toward their future.