“I was coming to see if you wanted to join me for a drink,” he said, trying not to feel nervous about it. He was a dragon. She would be lucky to accompany him, yet… she was the only human he’d ever met whose opinion mattered to him.
Odd.
She gave him a wary smile. “I told Robbie I would clean up a bit.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Did she tell you to?”
“No,” she admitted with a grin. “But I just—”
“We have someone that comes in to clean,” he said, leaning on one hip. “You’re taking away their job.”
She looked down at the vacuum and seemed to realize how tired she was. “I guess I can’t get over trying to earn my place here.”
“You deserve to be here as much as anyone,” he said. “More, in my opinion, since you’re the only one who has done anything for me since I’ve been here.”
“Yeah,” she said. “Why is that?” She was winding the vacuum cord back up. He wondered if he should help, but he’d never used one of the things.
“You can just leave that there,” he said. “You deserve a moment to relax.”
“I guess I could use one,” she said. “You said there were drinks involved?”
He nodded.
She raised an eyebrow. “Should you be drinking with a head injury?”
Hm. She might have a point there. “I have an extraordinarily hard head.”
“I see. All right, then.” She laughed and walked over to him, and he opened the doors to the club room for her.
“You’ll like the view in here I think,” he said. “At night, everything is just so lit up and peaceful.”
She followed him in, looking around at the furnishings that looked wholly different cast in moonlight and semi-darkness. “It’s beautiful,” she said. “Then again, this whole building is so much nicer than anything I’ve seen that I hardly know what to do with it.”
“What do you mean?” he asked, picking up the scotch and pouring her a drink. She took it, and he led her over to two oversized chairs he’d set by the window earlier when he’d thought of her joining him.
She sat hesitantly, holding her glass tightly in one hand and looking out the window. “I just… There are a lot of people out there who barely have enough to eat. Somewhere to sleep. But I’m enjoying something so nice. It’s not like I deserve it more.”
He shrugged. “It doesn’t bother me. It shouldn’t bother you. We are where we are, whether we like it or not. We have to deal with it, and so do they.”
“You’re awfully cavalier about your privileges,” she said, taking a sip of the scotch.
He watched in amusement as she coughed and looked at the liquid in shock. “Strong,” she croaked out.
“Yes,” he said. “High quality. Drink it carefully. Or would you prefer I get you something else? We have an entire cabinet over there.”
“No,” she said, wrapping her hands around the glass. “I like this. It’s warm.”
“Yes,” he said. “With luck, you won’t have to worry about being cold ever again. Did I mention I’m sorry for chasing you away last night?”
“Did I mention I’m sorry you had to get your ass kicked for me?” she asked.
“Did I mention I’m grateful for what you did to that lady for me?”
“Did I mention that I’m grateful you saved my life?” she retorted.
Damn. She had him there.
“You’re welcome,” he said quietly, looking out at the window and resisting the urge to stare at the beautiful lines of her face.
When she was honest and open with him, she was almost too beautiful to see.
Thunder cracked overhead, and rain began to fall, making soft pattering noises as it landed on the glass at a slanted angle. It dripped down in long, sparkly lines, and he enjoyed watching the buildings and street become glossy and wet all around them.
“It really is peaceful here,” she said, leaning back and crossing her legs, keeping the scotch in one hand.
He studied the lines of her body. As he’d suspected, wonderful breasts and generous hips. A sturdy build that was still unmistakably feminine. To his pleasure, he noted she had a slight belly. He’d always seen that as a particular luxurious asset on a female, suggesting wealth and ease.
She’d had neither, but she was shaped pleasingly nonetheless.
And he was beginning to realize wealth didn’t matter as much as he’d always thought it did. After all, the woman today had been wealthy, and the woman who had stood up for him had little to nothing.
“Where were you before you came here?” he asked.