“My stomach hurts,” she explained. “I’m not trying to be rude or difficult. It’s just that I feel a little upset and nervous about everything that happened today. I’m worried that if I try to eat something, I’m going to puke it right up.”
“Don’t force feed her, bro,” Christopher laughed and stood up. He stretched and looked around the room. “Let the girl rest if she wants to.”
“I agree,” Brian said. He, too, stood. “You two should go upstairs and get ready for the night. Christopher and I will sleep on the couches, and we’ll guard the door.”
“The door?” Zoa peered toward the trapdoor that led out of the treehouse and out into the wilderness. “Is guarding it something that needs to be done?” Then her eyes narrowed. “Are there monsters in the woods?”
“The only monsters you need to worry about are the three in front of you,” Declan told her. “Now let’s go.”
She stood up reluctantly and allowed Declan to lead her to the little ladder that went upstairs. She climbed, and he did his best not to stare at her ass wiggle in those cute little unicorn pajamas he’d given to her. It was ridiculous, really. Christopher had bought them for an ex-girlfriend who had hated them. She’d thrown them across the treehouse and then stormed out. Christopher had chased after her, and Declan had set the pajamas aside in case he ever met someone who could use them.
Now he had someone.
They looked perfect on Zoa, too. They were the kind of clothes that a woman like her was made to wear. They hugged every one of her soft curves, and it was so hard for him not to focus on the way she looked. He followed her upstairs and when they emerged on the second floor, Declan gestured to the bed.
“You can have the bed tonight,” he told her.
“What about you?” Zoa looked at him nervously. “Where are you going to sleep?”
So, she was worried about him, was she? How interesting. It had been a long time since anyone had worried about big ol’ Declan. He was used to people like his brothers teasing him. It was easy to make fun of the big, bad dragon because he was kind of a monster. In his daily life, he worked at the company and installed security systems. His own home had one that was state of the art. When his brothers joked about guarding the door, it had been just that: a joke.
Nobody needed to guard the door.
Declan would know immediately if anyone was within 200 yards of his treehouse. Nobody was getting close. Nothing was getting inside. This was one of the safest places on Sapphire Island. He wasn’t about to let Zoa get hurt.
“I can sleep on the floor.”
“Declan...”
“It’ll be fine, Zoa.”
“You can’t sleep on the floor.”
He raised an eyebrow and looked at the little human. Oh, she was cute when she got bossy. Her hair bounced a little, and she crossed her arms over her chest. He tried to ignore the way the gesture pushed her tits up even more. His cock didn’t get the message to be cool, though. Instead, it hardened as he watched her.
“I can’t sleep on the floor?”
Declan thought she would say something about propriety. He expected that she would say something like, “it’s not right.” Maybe she’d say, “It’s your room, so you should take the bed.” He thought that she’d offer a suggestion of a more appropriate sleeping arrangement. Maybe she’d even go all out and offer to take his place on the floor.
She didn’t.
Instead, Zoa hugged herself even tighter, and she licked her lips. She seemed to take a long time to think about how to verbalize what she wanted to say.
“Zoa, why can’t I sleep on the floor?” Declan asked her again.
This was her shot.
What would she say?
“Because I’ll get lonely in the bed,” she whispered. She looked up at him sharply, and her eyes were blazing. She wasn’t trying to show off her good manners at all, Declan realized. She was excited. She was turned on. She was hot and bothered and wound up, and it was all for him.
She wanted him.
She wanted him close, and she wanted him in bed with her, and who was he to deny her that? The appropriate thing to do would be to sleep on the floor. That would be the right choice, the safe choice. Well, Declan wasn’t a safe sort of dragon.
He took a step forward, and then another. His brothers were right downstairs, but he didn’t care. They were heavy sleepers, and besides, he’d be quiet. He could be quiet for her.
“Tell me what you’re saying,” he whispered. He needed to be sure.