She rolled her eyes. "You should take your own advice, too, then."
"Right now isn't about me. This is about you." He cupped her cheek. "Tell me what happened."
As she described the fight, complete with her voice cracking a few times, Rhydian curled his free hand into a fist. Even though his female was clever, quick, and skilled, he didn't like hearing how Bedwyr had tried to frighten and attack her.
Or worse.
His dragon snarled. He'll be punished.
Yes, although we'll see if it's by us or the DDA.
We should be the ones to do it.
Except we need the DDA on our side. Giving them the last anti-human extremist would go a long way toward showing how much we want human female candidates sent here.
Delaney's voice prevented his dragon from replying. "Rhydian? Is everything okay?"
He was an idiot. His female deserved his attention right now, not the arsehole on the floor. "Fine, love." He stood and helped Delaney up. "But I do think I should take you home. Judging by the fatigue in your eyes, I think the adrenaline is wearing off."
She looked to the side. "I may need your help with that. I hurt my knee."
Careful not to jostle said knee, he gently scooped her into his arms. "Never be afraid to ask for my help, love. I'm always here."
She melted against him, as if the last bits of energy were leaving her body, and murmured, "I love you, Rhydian."
"And I love you, Delaney. Let me and my dragon take care of you for at least a little bit."
Delaney lifted her head again and searched his gaze. She looked even more tired, and all he wanted to do was hold her close and let her know she was safe.
She'd teased him about dragons hoarding treasure, and the female in his arms was one of his most prized possessions. She might not let him coddle her for long, but for the present, he fully intended to do so.
She finally sighed. "I suppose I can do that, for your dragon's sake."
His beast grunted. It's not just me.
Ignoring him, Rhydian nodded. "Of course." He leaned his head over and whispered, "Besides, since the operation with Stonefire is complete, I want to mate and kiss you as soon as possible. And to do that, you need to be healthy and able to handle me and my dragon."
Heat flashed in her eyes. "I'll be fine by tomorrow or maybe the day after that would be better. Not that I don't want to mate you as soon as possible, but an extra day will give us time to talk with Rian first."
They hadn't brought up the mating and ensuing child just yet. Both of them had wanted to spend as much time as possible focusing solely on Rian, letting him know he was their child, too.
He nodded. "Your hand needs to heal as well. "
Delaney shook her head. "Don't worry, I'll be okay. My hand will look worse than it truly is. Besides, if something hurts, I'll tell you. Honesty, remember?"
He quickly said to his dragon, Once the frenzy begins, you'd better listen and find a way to restrain yourself if necessary.
Of course. I would never hurt our mate. It may nearly kill me to stop or hold back, but I will do it for her.
Rhydian nodded. "Always honesty, love. Always."
He barely remembered barking orders at the Protectors to keep Bedwyr locked up before he carried Delaney out of the room and to their quarters. With the operation finished, the last anti-human troublemaker found, and Rian's dragon acting normal, Rhydian was on the cusp of having the peaceful, loving life he'd always dreamed about but never thought he'd have.
Chapter Fourteen
Delaney wished she could completely dismiss the purplish hue covering the majority of her right hand and instead focus on the upcoming mating ceremony. However, it clashed with the bright red color of her dress and she couldn't help but grimace.
The color was the official color of Snowridge—similar to the red on the Welsh flag—and she'd wanted to wear it. After all, the clan would be her new home going forward. Still, a small part of her wanted the day to be perfect. In less than ten minutes, she'd be mated to Rhydian and officially starting her new life. She'd just have to hide her hand for any pictures. That should make for a good story for Rian and her other children when they were older.