M O R G A N

I spent the rest of my shift in a bad mood. I was so unimpressed with Erik and Declan. How could two grown-ass men act like babies? Both men were bad as each other in my opinion.

 Erik shouldn't have lost his cool, and Declan shouldn't have wound Erik up.

Those two picking a fight with each other was the last thing that I needed to add to my growing list of 'Things Screwing Up Morgan's Life'. It was bad enough that I had to keep diving into the kitchen to check Poppy hadn't turned into a mindless flesh eating zombie.

My shift finished at three o'clock, and I was relieved to have the evening off. My last duty of the day was taking out the kitchen rubbish. I entered the kitchen and saw Poppy standing in the corner, staring into space.

Her fake tan was starting to look blotchy, but her cheap perfume was doing a good job at covering up the dead smell that clung to her.

"Are you okay, Poppy?" I asked.

She nodded her head slowly.

"I can hear their heartbeats so clearly," she replied.

"Their heartbeats?" I echoed.

"Yes, the heartbeats from the people sitting in the bar. But don't worry. I don't feel like eating anyone's brain yet," she smiled.

I didn't know if that was a positive sign or not. Poppy went back to staring into space, and I grabbed the black bags and headed out the back door to the dumpsters.

When I pushed open the front door, I nearly died of fright. Erik was waiting for me by the dumpster with a thunderous look of anger on his face.

"We need to talk," he said.

Great, I thought. This was just what I didn't need.

"Did you and Declan sort out your differences?" I asked, throwing the black bags into the dumpster.

Erik's face hardened at the mention of Declan's name. He folded his hands across his chest and snapped, "I couldn't care less about your ex-lover. What happened between you two is in the past. However, now that you are my mate, I expect you to act with some decorum."

I raised my eyebrow at his remark.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, trying to keep my voice even and calm.

"It means you are my mate, Morgan. You belong to me. No other man is allowed to touch you, not even for a hug. I'll rip out his throat if I see that peasant laying a finger on you," Erik spat.

"Wow," I replied with a humourless laugh. "Green does not look good on you."

"I'm not wearing green."

"I'm saying jealousy is not a good look on you."

"Me, jealous? I'm not jealous of the man who couldn't pleasure you," he scoffed.

"Could you not talk about that so loud," I said, lowering my voice.

"Why? Is it not true?" he asked.

He stared directly into my eyes, and I squirmed under the heat of his gaze. Okay, it was true. But I wasn't about to admit that behind the dumpster in the pub car park.

"This conversation is beneath the both of us. I'm going back inside," I replied, turning on my heel and heading back towards the pub.

"Morgan, wait," he said, grabbing my wrist, his voice suddenly filled with contrite.

"Forgive me. I do not wish to upset you. Dragons have strong feelings about their mates, and this was the first time I'd ever wanted to kill another man for touching you," he confessed.

"Erik, it sounds like you don't trust me," I replied.

He takes a sharp breath and rakes a hand through his dark hair.

"I trust you. I do. But I don't trust him," Erik replied.

"Declan will be heading back to university soon. He never stays for long. You really don't need to worry about him. We have much bigger things to worry about. " I replied, thinking about the shapeshifter and what Poppy had become.

Erik nodded his head reluctantly in agreement.

"I'll feel better once he is gone and we have found a way out of this shithole village," he replied.

"Hey, don't talk about the village like that," I snapped.

"Why not? It's not our real home, Morgan. Our home is back in the mountains, in my castle. I cannot wait to walk through its halls again, with my Queen and her brilliant, beautiful flame, by my side," he said, taking my hand and pressing a kiss against my palm.

I froze.

I'd never thought much about what would happen if Erik managed to find a way back home. Would I go back with him, or stay here?

I didn't want to leave my home and my family.

Erik nodded toward the pub.

"You should go back inside before you catch a cold. I'll stay out here and keep a lookout for the shapeshifter. We will talk more later," he said.

"Okay."

I went back inside and retreated to my room. I closed the door behind me and sat down on my bed. I didn't want to leave the village. I wanted to stay here with Charlie, India, and Poppy. The village was my home. I didn't want to be a Queen. I liked being a barmaid.

My phone vibrated, and a message from Declan flashed on the screen.

'I've snuck past your boyfriend, and I'm at the bar. Come and talk to me, beautiful x'

I stared down at the message and wondered what to do. I hadn't spoken to Declan since last summer and I really wanted to catch up. But I didn't want to piss off Erik.

I flopped back on my bed and dragged a pillow over my face. Why was life so complicated?

My phone vibrated again and I pulled the pillow off my face. There was another message from Declan.

'Don't make me come upstairs and get you, beautiful x'

A smile grew across my face. This was silly. I shouldn't have to stop seeing my friends because Erik couldn't control his temper. If Erik had a problem, then he'd have to get over it.

I left my phone on my bed and headed downstairs into the bar. Declan was sitting at the bar chatting to Charlie. When he saw me, his face lit up.

"Come sit with me," he yelled, pulling out the stool next to him.

I sat beside him and asked Charlie to pour me a rum and cola. Declan grinned at me.

"How are you, my love?" he asked.

"I've just had to calm Erik down. I don't appreciate you coming in here and winding him up," I said.

"My apologies. I didn't know that our King was such a sensitive daisy," he replied.

"Well, he's got a lot on his mind."

"Come on, Morgan. You don't believe that he is our King."

"Yes, I do think he is King."

"That would make you my Queen, not that I thought you were anything less than a Queen."

"Smooth. But I'd appreciate it if you kept your outrageously flirty ways to yourself. I don't think mummy and daddy would be pleased if they discovered you were trying to romance the barmaid," I said with a sting in my tongue.

Declan changed the subject and started telling me about his time in Barcelona. I sat and listened to his tales of student tomfoolery with a half-bored expression. I had forgotten how self-absorbed Declan could be. After listening to his chatter for twenty minutes solid, I began to zone out.

'Man, this guy like the sound of his voice.'

I stiffened in my chair upon hearing the strange disembodied voice in my head.

'Little blue flame, is that you?'

"Morgan?" Declan said. "Did you hear what I said?"

"Sorry, Declan. I thought someone was calling me from the kitchen. What were you saying," I said, leaning forward in my chair, pretending to listen intently.

'Erik is an alpha dragon. He won't appreciate his mate speaking to a man he perceives as a rival," the little blue flame explained.

'Why are you getting involved? You've not spoken a single word to me in four years, and then suddenly you decide to take an interest,' I fired back.

'I was asleep those four years. Only when you thought you were about to lose Poppy did your fear wake me up."

'So, has this always been a thing, having a weird little voice inside me head, talking to me?'

'No. We were one before the accident, but now, our mind is fractured, and our memories are shattered. I'm afraid we may never recover all of our memories,' the blue flame explained.

Perhaps that wasn't a bad thing. I didn't want to recall helping vampires in the slaughter of thousands of innocent dragons. I couldn't imagine anything I would want to remember about being the evil fox.

'Why are you talking to me now?' I asked.

'Although we have lost most of our memories, there are few that I've been able to piece together. Erik wants to leave this village and return to his world to continue the war with the vampires. I know we are mated to him, but whatever happens, you mustn't let Erik return to his world.'

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