Marked by Blood: Book 2 of The Marked Series Ford, Rinna (books to read fiction .TXT) 📖

care about my other half, but she seemed as interested in my caster side as I was. Any time I was trying to learn how to be a better caster, my dragon was at the forefront, learning along with me. She accepted all of me, and I didn’t anticipate that. Not with our rocky start at things.

Amos put his hands on the countertop and leaned forward, his brows furrowed. “How is that possible? I mean, I always assumed you were…”

“Deficient?” That was what everyone else thought. It was what they were told would happen if they mixed the races, not that anyone else has had luck procreating besides my parents.

“Not the word I was looking for, but yeah, I guess. So you’re saying you can do everything a caster can do and can transform into a full dragon?”

“Yup.”

He nodded his head, looking thoughtful.

“She’s gold.” I blurted out the words, then felt the need to clarify. “My dragon. She’s gold and the size of a house. Not this house, because that would be huge, but the size of my Uncle Devlin’s cabin.”

I pinched my lips together to get myself to shut up. My grandfather made me nervous and I didn’t like it. Deciding to do something, I sent the sandwiches, bags of chips, and water upstairs to where Camille was waiting.

He blinked his eyes in surprise at my use of magic then shook his head to clear the cobwebs.

“You shouldn’t have been able to do that,” he told me, referring to my use of higher level caster magic. I shrugged my shoulders, offering no explanation, not that I had one. “Gold? I’ve never seen a golden dragon before. Maybe…”

Feeling awkward, I took a step toward the kitchen door. “It was good talking to you, but I really need to go. My friend is waiting.”

He looked lost in thought. “What? Oh yeah. Okay, Emelia. I’ll see you later.”

I nodded and turned around, leaving my grandfather behind as I jogged up the stairs.

Camille was mid-bite when I walked into the conservatory. She looked up, finished chewing, and swallowed.

“Was it too heavy for you, princess?” she asked, referring to the fact I sent our lunches upstairs rather than carrying it up. She knew I was somehow able to get around Di’s wards on the house.

I rolled my eyes and grabbed my sandwich up off the table.

“I ran into Amos downstairs.”

“And you thought you’d show off a bit?”

“No. Well, maybe.” I sighed and deflated in my seat. I was showing off. “I guess I just wanted to prove I am interesting and worthy…”

“You’re an idiot,” Camille laughed. “And he’s an even bigger idiot if he doesn’t want to get to know you. Okay?”

I lightly laughed and took a bite of my sandwich. Yup. She’d do.

Chapter Eleven

Dinner was quiet. Much quieter than usual, but it didn’t bother me too much. I was still lost in my own head about the events that had occurred that day. Even Grayson was less talkative. He had come to be to Xan what Camille was to me, and the two of them were as thick as thieves.

Since Camille and I helped prepare dinner - I was only allowed to chop vegetables - I was excused from cleaning up. Thankful I didn’t have to wash another dish that day, I took my mate by the hand and led him outside toward the ocean.

The house sat about a hundred feet away from a rocky cliff that overlooked the sea. It was my favorite place on the property, just like Grayson said it would be on the first day we were here. I went there every chance I got, taking Xan with me whenever I could.

It was one of the only places on the property where I could find peace. Where I could just sit and just… be. Since everyone learned who and what I was, I felt as if I was questioned and judged everywhere I went. It was nerve wracking and so, so tiring.

Xander, my gorgeous, incredible mate, knew what I needed and led me to a large boulder that overlooked the crashing waves. I sat down, leaving room for Xander and he slipped in behind me, wrapping his arms and legs around me, holding me close to his chest. My whole body melted into his touch, leaving me utterly relaxed.

“So, your grandpa, huh?” Xan spoke in a low voice.

I sighed. “Yeah. I didn’t see that coming, but apparently my dad did.”

I closed my eyes at the thought. Maybe it was his way of proving to me everything he said would come to pass. Not an hour after I woke up, I met the man he hinted about in my dream. If that was true, then life would get so much more difficult.

“Ya know, I spoke to Amos today,” Xander continued. “He’s very interested in you, of course. Mind, he only asked a few questions, but he hung on every word when I answered him. He seems to be a proud man. He doesn’t want to need anyone in his life and I’m sure he got that way after your dad’s death. When things like that happen, people close themselves off. It makes it hard to open back up for fear of being exposed again.”

There was a pause as I thought about Xander’s words. I understood it because I lived it too. For the longest time, I felt loss like that too, but not because I remembered losing those closest to me. It was because I didn’t. And then when my memories returned, I felt the loss of both of my parents and my uncles. Sure, my mom was alive, but she abandoned me, and I could visit my dad in my dreams, but it wasn’t the same. They were both gone. Not knowing Dev and Ainsley’s fate was just as bad, if not worse. I felt loss on so many levels, so I understood what it felt like to want to close off the world.

“Give