Carlyle’s death didn’t change the fact that the dragons were their mages’ shields.For now, they lived peacefully and happily, but that might not hold true for the rest of their lives.The dragons needed to know how to protect their mages, and they were training hard to make sure that they could.
They weren’t the only ones.Emory was in the courtyard, too, joking with Winter.The way he bumped their shoulders together as he laughed made Graham feel a little weird, and not in a good way.He looked away, but it didn’t last for long.Like always, when Emory was around, Graham’s attention went right back to him.
How could it not?Emory was a gorgeous man and a gorgeous dragon.Even though he’d been through a lot and had lost his dragon for so long, it was as if it had never happened.Emory shifted as naturally as the other dragons, pulling his wings tight against his body so he wouldn’t hit Winter in the face.Winter didn’t have such problems.He bumped into Emory again, pushing him against the wall, making him huff a plume of smoke.Graham didn’t think that Emory was angry, though.No, he looked more amused, and it made Graham smile.
He’d never seen dragons before.He’d heard all about them from Carlyle, but he’d realized quickly that half of what Carlyle had said were lies.The dragons weren’t the selfish monsters Carlyle had described.They were protectors.They cared.
Emory had beenCarlyle’sprotector, and Carlyle had hurt him.He’d taken his dragon, and for decades, Emory had been unable to shift or truly be himself.It was good to see that was over.Graham hadn’t done anything to help solve that mess, but that was just one more thing for him to feel guilty about.
Emory was reclaiming his life.With Carlyle gone, he could do that.He was reclaiming everything Carlyle had stolen from him, from his dragon to his future, to his home.It was beautiful to watch, even though Graham felt like an intruder.Hewasan intruder.His time here was coming to an end, though, and he’d never get to see anything like this again once he left.
That was the only reason he allowed himself to watch Emory shift back and forth between his human and dragon forms.It was why he didn’t look away, even though he should.It was why he allowed himself this one moment.Emory would never know, and that was what Graham wanted.
For a little while, he could convince himself that his life wasn’t as messed up as it was.He could imagine that he was one of these people, that he truly belonged.All of that was a lie, but he didn’t have to think about that for now.No, for now, he didn’t have to think about anything but scales and wings and how happy Emory looked.
* * * *
THE ONLY REASON EMORYnoticed Graham watching them was that he had to twist his neck to avoid getting hit in the face by Winter’s wing.Movement at one of the windows caught his attention, but it took him a few seconds to realize that it was Graham.He shouldn’t be surprised.Even though Graham was avoiding most of the people who lived in the castle—if not all of them—Emory could tell that he yearned to stop doing it.It was obvious he wanted to be one of them.
It was also obvious that he wouldn’t let himself do that.
Emory had complicated feelings about the situation.On the one hand, Graham had saved his life, and Emory wanted him to be okay and maybe even happy.He felt sorry for the man because he’d lost his brother, and from the little Emory knew about Graham, Simon had been his only family.He hadn’t left the castle since he’d arrived here, which, to Emory, pointed to the fact that he didn’t have anyone else.If he’d only had his brother and he’d lost him, that meant he was alone in the world, which was a feeling Emory understood.He knew exactly what it was like to know that no one would be worried if something happened to you.It was a very lonely feeling, and often, it had made him feel like he didn’t matter.Hehadn’tmattered, not until recently.
At the same time, though, he understood why the mages were giving Graham a wide berth.They didn’t know what to make of him or how to handle his grief.They were probably somewhat happy that Simon had died, but Simon had been Graham’s brother.No matter what the man had done, Graham had lost an important part of his life.He’d probably lost to theonly personhe’d had in his life.
There was also the fact that Graham had worked for Carlyle.He might not have wanted to once he’d realized what it meant, and he might have been scared, but still.He’d been part of that, and it was hard to forgive him for it, if not impossible.There was definitely no way that Tyne would ever forget what Graham had done, which made Emory a little sad.
What made him even sadder was knowing that Graham was watching them and felt like he couldn’t join them.The dragons weren’t the only ones in the courtyard today.A few of the mages had joined them and were cheering them on, watching them as they shifted back and forth.More than training, they were playing around, which was okay because right now, they didn’t have enemies.The only enemy the mages and their dragons had had was Carlyle, and he was gone.
Something whacked Emory on the side of the head, and he blinked at Bennett, who gave him the most innocent expression one had ever seen on a dragon’s face.He blinked like an idiot, and Emory huffed and pushed his shoulder against Bennett’s.He knew the dragon had done it on purpose, but that was okay.It was better for him to be distracted than to be obsessing over Graham and what was going on in the man’s head.
But he was still thinking about that by the time they were done.Meyer asked him if he wanted to join them to watch a movie, but Emory refused with a smile.He didn’t have anything in mind, but he needed a little space to breathe.
So of course, he crossed paths with Graham as soon as he set foot inside the castle.
The man had been walking past the door that led outside, and he froze when Emory opened it.For a moment, they stared at each other.Emory expected Graham to scurry away without saying anything, but he didn’t.He stayed still as if hoping that if he did, Emory wouldn’t see him.
Emory huffed out a laugh.“I’m not a T-Rex in one of those movies.I can see you even if you’re not moving.”
“I didn’t know you watched movies.”
“I suspect there’s a lot you don’t know about me, but why wouldn’t I watch movies?”
Graham shrugged.“You feel like you have an old soul.”
Emory barked out a laugh.“Are you telling me I’m old?”
Graham quickly shook his head.“That’s not what I meant.Youaremuch older than me, though.”
“I am.”And Emory had spent most of his life on his own.After Carlyle had taken his dragon from him, he’d isolated himself.He’d needed it at the time, so he didn’t regret it, but that didn’t mean he’d ignored everything that was happening in the world around him.“Well, I watch movies,” he informed Graham.“And I can see you.”
Graham’s shoulders slumped.“I’m aware.”
They both fell silent.Graham shuffled his feet, looking both like he wanted to talk to Emory and like he wanted to run away.Emory wasn’t sure which one would win.He wasn’t sure which one hewantedto win.
“I saw you shift earlier,” Graham eventually blurted out.“I’m really sorry you lost your dragon for so long.”
That wasn’t what Emory had expected.“Why are you apologizing for something you had nothing to do with?You weren’t even born when I lost my dragon.”