Dragonlands(241)

Tressa took a deep breath and puckered her lips. If he could hear when someone directly whispered into the hole in the side of his head, then all was not lost. Jarrett wouldn't have to push her away. She mustered up the courage to say what she was thinking. "I love you."

Jarrett lay still, not responding. Tressa wondered if he had heard her. Maybe the last time was pure luck.

He rolled on his side, looking her in the eyes. "I love you, too." Jarrett kissed her, his lips hungry. His hands roamed her body, resting just below her breasts. "But I've lost my ears. Aren't you disgusted by my appearance?"

Tressa tilted Jarrett's head so she could see the wounded part of his head. No, it wasn't beautiful. Part of her felt a bit of revulsion, but that was only a reaction to the horror of what had been done to him. Soon she knew she wouldn't even notice a difference. He was Jarrett, and she loved him for more than his looks. "I could turn into a dragon at any moment. I'm as uncontrollable as Henry was. You could be kissing me, and the next thing you know, I could be a giant reptile with a forked tongue."

"Sexy," Jarrett said, winking. He leaned in, kissing her again, this time with a fervor. Her arms wrapped around his trunk and her hands slowly made their way down to the waist of his pants. One hand dipped, squeezing that beautiful arse she'd seen through the bushes all that time ago when she'd spied on him after he bathed in the pond with the other men from the Black Guard. Before he knew she was a woman.

Despite their time apart, despite all they'd been through, Tressa knew she'd been right to tell Jarrett she loved him. This was real. It had the potential to last. She could almost picture them older, surrounded by grandchildren, living in a modest cottage on the outskirts of the forest.

Tressa laid her head on Jarrett's shoulder, her lips close to where his ear had been. "There are mages in the Black who might be able to help you with this magic surrounding you. We'll go there tomorrow."

Jarrett nodded. "Tomorrow," he said. "Our future begins then."

"No," she said, "it began long ago, when we entered a battlefield, determined to win a spot in the Black Guard. The same man trained us. Your father helped us both gain entry by teaching us all he knew." Tressa's heart ached for Leo, the man she'd met by chance in a pub. He'd seen through her disguise as a simple barmaid and helped her craft a far more deadly one as a male warrior. She'd loved him fast and hard, more than she'd ever loved another father figure.

"It almost sounds like you think we were meant to be," Jarrett said, his finger tracing a squiggly line on her abdomen.

"I was drawn to your father,” Tressa said. “It is no surprise I was drawn to you too. You are so much like him, Jarrett. Leo was brave and honorable. Handsome and forthright. He was kind to your uncle—”

Jarrett sprang up. "Uncle? What do you mean, uncle?" He looked hard at Tressa, then turned his head so he could hear her.

"Your uncle. That's how I met your father. I was working in your uncle's tavern and inn."

Jarrett looked back at her again. "I have an uncle? Here? In Ashoom? I didn't know." He rested his head in his hands. "I wouldn't want to meet him looking like this."

Tressa thought of Ira. His messy appearance. His overwhelming frustration with life. She doubted Ira would care much whether Jarrett had two ears, one ear, or no ears. His wife, however, would be a pleasure to see again. Tressa had instantly liked her.

Tressa tapped Jarrett's shoulder. He looked up at her, then cocked his head. "After we get this spell on you sorted out, we will visit your uncle. Though I want to warn you, don't expect him to be enthusiastic about meeting you. He's not like your father. Life has beaten him down."

Jarrett nodded. "Yes, after I'm better." He smiled, genuine and true. The same smile Tressa had seen so many other times.

"Now," Tressa said, kissing Jarrett's shoulder, "you must be hungry. I know I'm famished. Should I hunt down some food for us?"

Jarrett rubbed his stomach. "I am hungry, now that you mention it." He climbed out of bed.

Tressa touched Jarrett’s hand to get his attention. "There are two guards outside your door, and you must stay here until we are sure you are no longer under the thrall of whatever captured you on that island."

Jarrett's eyes were sad but understanding. "I can still feel something back there. It's quiet, but it's there."

"And there's one other thing," Tressa said. "Connor wants to kill you."

"Why?" Jarrett asked. "I remember being at camp with them, but the rest is a blur until you rescued me from the island. What did I do?"