Page 29 of Stone Cold Alien

Instead, I released her wrist.

The faint red marks left by my fangs were already fading. I ran my thumb across them, reassuring myself that I had caused no lasting damage.

Robyn slowly removed her hand from my horn.

“Thank you,” she said.

“For stopping?”

“For asking.”

A strange warmth spread through me. It had nothing to do with her blood or the bond.

Pam’s voice drifted in from the kitchen. “Dinner is sorted! It should be here in about twenty minutes.”

Robyn moved away from me. Cold followed, but the petrification did not return. I could move freely.

The blood had worked.

I could have celebrated the freedom it gave me. Instead, I was disappointed that she no longer needed to sit quite so close.

Pam had ordered enough food to feed a small unit of gharrgoil warriors. Containers covered most of the dining table, filling the lodge with the scents of roasted meat, vegetables and spices I couldn’t identify.

Cairn and Georgie had returned while Robyn and I were still in the bedroom. Joseph was now sitting beside Pam, looking as if he wasn’t quite sure what he was still doing here. I wanted Pam and him to leave so I could spend time with Cairn. We had a lot to discuss that wasn’t supposed to be heard by strangers.

Cairn examined my hand before looking at my wing.

“It worked.”

“It did. Thanks to Robyn.”

“Can you move the wing?”

I opened it slowly. The joint remained tender, but the pain had dulled to a manageable ache. Robyn immediately moved closer, her attention fixed on it.

“Not too far,” she warned. “Healing doesn’t mean you’re ready to fly.”

“I was not planning to.”

She raised an eyebrow.

I sighed, not yet ready to admit she was right. “I learn from my mistakes.”

“That remains to be seen.”

Georgie patted the chair next to her and grinned at Robyn. “Sit down. How was it? Did it hurt?”

“At first, a little. But then…” Her cheeks reddened. “You’ll probably know.”

“Oh, trust me, I know. I keep telling Cairn that I support his little biting habit and will keep supporting it even if we find a cure.”

I expected Cairn to protest at her calling this sacred action a “little biting habit”, but he simply smiled at her as if she was the most precious being in the universe. And I supposed to him, she was. The bond between the two was so strong I could feel it.

I sat beside Robyn at the table. There was plenty of room elsewhere, but the pull between us eased when she was close. My tail curled around one of the chair legs before sliding across the floor towards her.

She looked under the table when it wrapped around her ankle. I waited for her to object.

Instead, she rested one foot lightly on the end of my tail. Possessive. Teasing.