And then I left you alone for many days to go and retrieve the arm-breaker human. Dakh’s eyes turn flat black again. I made you unhappy.

“You can’t be around me all day every day,” I tell him, reaching out and caressing his shoulder. “You have to hunt. I know this. And yeah, finding Tate probably wasn’t the best use of your time, but it came from a good place. I know I should learn to be more independent, but I like company. I can’t help it.”

There is nothing wrong with you. His eyes gleam a deep gold. You are perfect in every way.

I shiver at the wealth of emotion in his thoughts. It’s clear to me that he’s eager to have sex again. I am, too, but I’m also a little worried about it. Not for the same reasons, either—last night was so good there’s no way it can be that good again. Maybe it’s a fluke, and I’m worried I won’t be able to give him a repeat performance. I don’t want to get my hopes up only to have them dashed all over again.

So I’m stalling. But now, I have a really good reason why.

“I know you’re thinking about picnics right now,” I say, and his thoughts flare with lust. “But if Emma’s coming to visit, there’s so much we need to do.”

Do?

“Yes!” I beam at my dragon. “We’re having a barbecue, and we’ve got to get ready.”

27

DAKH

For the rest of the day, my sweet human mate obsesses over the fact that the other human we drove out will be coming to eat with us. At least, that is what I gather from Sasha’s scattered thoughts as she scribbles on things to compose her thoughts and takes stock of her food supplies. She’s even more excited when the note she left disappears the next morning. That tells her that the human got her message.

Now the only thing to do is to wait and see if this human will show. Sasha’s mind is a flurry of excitement. She wants everything to be “perfect,” she tells me, so I push the strange metal contraption called a “shopping cart” while she gathers things.

Her thoughts are focused on the human Emma, but I know much of it is a diversion. She is distracted by me and the mating we had last night. She has many confusing thoughts over it, and she does not want me to know that she is anxious. So I pretend that I do not notice and let her have her privacy for now.

My Sasha worries far too much.

I thought that by mating with her I could remove all her fears, but she has new ones. It will take time, I think, for my mate to become comfortable with her bond. It is new to her, and it does not sound like it is something humans share. So she will need time to adjust.

I will give her time. And if she wishes for the foul-smelling human to come and visit? I will endure the stench.

Sasha holds up a small, brightly colored packet. “Look! Strawberry lemonade! We’re totally going to make this! Emma will love it.” She adds it to the cart and then drums her fingers over her mouth, thinking. “Now we need sugar. And a pitcher.”

I pick up the packet and sniff it, curious. It smells…fruity. Familiar. Is this what you put on your hair when you wash?

Her eyes go wide, and then she giggles. “No! That’s shampoo. This is just a drink.”

There is a difference? I let her take it from my grip and say nothing as she continues to fill her cart with many items. I want to tell her that it is one human she is expecting, not a dozen, but I will not spoil my Sasha’s plans. If she wishes to fling gifts at this human, I will not say a word. Perhaps it is a human custom.

“There is definitely a difference,” she tells me, and then adds another thing to the cart. “I’m going to need you to go hunting first thing in the morning while I set up for our barbecue.”

Hunting? I am curious now.

“Yes, and you can’t eat it.”

Then why would I hunt?

“You’re going to bring it back so we can cook it over a fire. It’s called a barbecue, just like I wrote to Emma.” Her smile is brilliant—she is so excited over this.

It seems cruel to carry a live animal in my mouth only to roast it to death in front of her, but if this is what my mate wishes…

She blanches, picking up my thoughts. “God, no. Not like that! You can bring it back dead.” She puts a hand to her forehead. “Perhaps this barbecue isn’t a good idea.”

You can come hunting with me, I suggest. So I know what to get and what to do to it. It seems she is particular about how I should handle this food, and I do not wish to disappoint her in her curious human ritual.

Sasha wrinkles her nose. “Maybe that’s best. Or maybe we should just give up on this.”

She looks so disappointed that I ache for her. If you wish to have me bring back dead animals without eating them, I shall do so, I vow. I will bring you back a dozen.

A lovely smile spreads across her face. “That’s the sweetest thing you’ve ever said, Dakh. I think.” She shrugs and studies the shelving near us. “And we only need one dead animal. We really should eat some of this other stuff, too.” Sasha looks worried and then turns to me. “Do you think she’ll come, Dakh? What if she doesn’t want anything to do with us?”

The human female will come, I tell my mate. I will go and hunt her down if she does not.

SASHA

The next day, I sit nervously at a picnic table at the front of the store and wait. We’ve dragged a patio set from the much-overgrown garden center of the store out here into the parking lot, and a big green umbrella shades the table from the sunlight. I’ve made pink lemonade, though there’s no ice, and every bag of sugar I found was one hardened chunk. There are bags of chips and crackers, and I’ve even found a few bags of Oreo cookies that weren’t torn into. It wasn’t hard to figure out that Emma had a sweet tooth—the candy and cookie aisles of the store were nearly demolished. I’ve brought a few of the treats in the hopes of enticing her, along with the last canister of deer “spray” on the shelves.

Dakh waits in a nearby seat, scratching at the sweatpants I’m making him wear. I’ve got on a new dress, and my clean hair is braided into a little crown atop my head for this party. I feel fancy, ready to entertain and feed and just talk with another human being who knows the same situation I’ve been in.