Derek's POV:

I drove lily home before going back to the lake house. Saying I was furious was an understatement. As soon as I got home I went to look for Kellen but couldn't find him. He's always been there for me and I was grateful, but tonight he ruined everything. I know he was trying to protect my secret but he could have waited until she left to discuss such discreet matters.

After searching the whole house I gave up letting out a growl and went to my room slamming the door shut hard. I was about to tell her everything, to explain to her and maybe show her...even though I knew her reaction might not be thrilling but I would have worked it out, which seemed kind of impossible right now.

I lay in bed but my eyes couldn't find sleep or rest. I felt bad for hurting her, I couldn't sleep while my mate was confused and probably hating me. That thought kept coming to my mind even though I pushed it away every time. The thought of Lily hating me was shattering my heart in pieces. No dragon could accept their mate's hatred for them.

Deciding to do something about it, I got on my feet and opened my windows, I'll deal with Kellen later, I thought as I let my dragon take over and jumped out while shifting in midair before flying in the dark night sky. I reached her house in less time than I should have, I was too eager to see my mate.

Landing swiftly and noiselessly on her roof, I shifted back to my human form and sneaked to her window. I saw her curled up in a ball while crying on her bed and felt a pang in my heart.

It killed me to see her like that and hurt me more to know I was the reason behind those tears. She was hurt, even though I couldn't still figure out what she was angry about. I waited until she fell asleep and sneaked in closing the windows behind me I laid next to her, grateful for my discreetness, I run my fingers through her braided hair messing it a bit and down her tear-streaked cheek.

Feeling how restless her sleep was I rested my hand on her forehead, closing my eyes, and jumped into her mind, into her dreams. She was having a nightmare about an assassination she had witnessed, in her dream, lily was sitting in a dark corner wrapped around herself and screaming trying not to look but couldn't divert her gaze from the man being slaughtered in front of her. I was trying to change the scenery of her dream when she actually pushed me out of her dream. I opened my eyes frowning but then a smile tugged on the sides of my lips; she was different from any other human.

She was strong and fought me off as well as our bond, but that didn't stop me. In fact, it encouraged me more to help her. It was easy to change her dream state into a better one that I could manipulate easily even though she was trying to fight me off again. When she was peacefully sleeping I left her house leaving the windows open.

"Where have you been?" Kellen was sitting in my room waiting for me. The way he talked to me was irritating but I shrugged off the feeling, I would always respect him.

"I was out"

He chuckled "I can tell. But out where?"

"I dropped her off and couldn't sleep when I got back"

"So you went back to her?" he frowned looking at me suspiciously.

"yes, but it wasn't until I landed on her rooftop that I knew where I was going" I put on some sweatpants, even though I was used to shifting back to human form in front of him it still felt weird to walk around naked.

"So...This girl..."

"Lily" I interrupted him not liking the way he was referring to her. She wasn't any girl; she was my girl, my mate.

"Yeah...Lily." he paused for a moment and gave me one serious look which I knew well. I sat on my bed facing him and waited for him to speak again.

"Is she really your mate?"

"Yes, Kellen...She is. The moment I entered that classroom and saw her there, I just knew it. My stone started glowing in a way it never did before and I had to hide it for a while. It was like it leads me to her...it's hard to explain but I know she is mine I'm sure of it." I looked at him hoping he would understand.

"I know what you mean...I understand. You should have told me the second you knew." he stood up and was ready to leave when he looked back at me "Don't worry, she'll come around. But give her some space, she needs it."

I'm not sure when I finally fell asleep last night, but I knew that getting up in the morning would feel like hell. Kellen was at my door yelling wanting me to get up.

"Can we not train today?" I asked knowing I had no chance.

"Get up Lazy but! And you know the answer to that. I want you in the clearing in 5 minutes!" he snapped and left.

I groaned as I looked at him facing me just a few feet away, we were going to work on my combat skills but before that, he wanted me to run around the field for half an hour. Usually, that wouldn't be so hard on me, unlike humans, I had a great speed and inhuman strength that helped my body keep up but right now, I was still tired from fighting Lily's mind last night but couldn't tell him about it. He would flip if he knew that I used a skill that I haven't mastered yet.

I've been training and only training throughout the weekend not even going toward town because I didn't want to see my mate. I hadn't visited her even as a Dragon, I knew if I did, I would end up shifting and telling her everything and she obviously wasn't ready for that. I was going to give her space just as Kellen advised me.

It was Monday afternoon and I was still in my car in the school's parking lot when I saw Lily walking out with some guy. She had been avoiding me all day not letting me go near her. I felt anger starting to build up within my system and I knew that wasn't a good sign. I climbed out of the car and made my way to them, the guy was obviously asking her out and she was shifting on her feet not knowing what to say when I interrupted them.

"We need to talk," I said calmly grabbing her hand trying hard to be gentle making sure not to hurt her again. Pulling her toward my car I was surprised she didn't protest and willingly got in the car.

"Where's your stone?" I asked cocking an eyebrow hoping she hadn't thrown it.

"You mean your stone? It's somewhere in my room, I'll make sure to bring it back to you tomorrow."

Her gaze was so cold and distant frustrating me so much that I hit the steering wheel with such force she pulled back and held the door handle ready to leave.

"Sorry" I heard myself saying before shaking my head "it's your stone. You promised to keep it on you" I said rather gently but my face was an emotionless mask.

"Yeah I did... but turns out I'm good at breaking promises." She wasn't a good liar and I could tell she was just trying to make me feel bad.

"Anyway, thank you for saving me from Ryan; I'm not used to dating. I thought I could give it a try but..." She let out a sigh "Dating really isn't my thing so you saved me from hurting the boy's feelings."

Without even looking at me, she left leaving me in a daze, how could she be like that? No person should treat his mate the way she treated me. I was so angry and could feel my dragon wanting to take over, I pushed him back down and drove home.

Parking my car in the garage, I headed inside looking for Kellen. I needed his advice on this. Being a dragon far longer than I have, and already having a mate, he surely has some ideas on how I should handle this situation he put me in with Lily.

"Kellen!" I shout out his name from the hall a few times not getting a response. I ran my hand through my hair and looked out the window to check if he's training but the field is empty.

"You're never around when I need you" I shout again even though I know he's not home, and I also know that's totally a lie. Being an orphan wasn't always easy, losing both parents isn't something light on anyone, let alone a five-year-old kid who has no idea about the real cruel world he lives in. I would forever be grateful for Kellen being my legal guardian. He was always a big brother, a friend, and a dad to me depending on my needs. Sure we would banter a lot, but deep down, we both held a great amount of respect and love for each other. I smiled thinking about him, loving that he was actually always there for me, and one day I'll be able to do the same for him if he ever needs me.

Grabbing an apple from the kitchen counter, I head outside to the training field needing some fresh air. My dragon was restless and tried to push through my mind and take control of everything. I wouldn't let it through. Throwing what was left of my apple in the bin, I pulled off my sweater and started running around the field wanting to let out some steam and regain some control.

A couple of hours later, I'm freshly showered and feeling more relaxed as I walk through the woods in the hope to find Lily. Not to sound like a stalker, I couldn't stay away from her for too long. Our mating bond was too strong to fight it.

Maybe one day she'll be able to see reason and accept our bond.

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