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G etting my mate home is the only thing that matters.

It’s paramount. Vital. Everything.

But gods help me, riding in the backseat with the whole fucking Crew stuffed into my truck is almost enough to test even my legendary patience.

Thank fuck I drive a beast.

Extended cab, third-row seating, the whole nine.

Still, I’ve got Dante and Kian wedged back there like two overgrown toddlers in a timeout, and the grumbling is nonstop.

“I can’t believe you didn’t eat him,” Kian mutters for the third time.

I roll my eyes. “I don’t eat junk food.”

“Um, I’m glad he didn’t,” Emmet pipes up from the front, sounding both nervous and relieved.

“I missed everything,” Dante gripes. “You couldn’t wait five more minutes to flambé the bastard?”

“Oh, sorry,” I snap, tone dripping with sarcasm. “Next time my mate is kidnapped, I’ll send out an Evite and make sure it’s more convenient for everyone’s fucking schedule.”

They all laugh.

Assholes.

But all their chatter? Their jokes, their griping, their noise?

It all fades the second Casey shifts against me, her cheek nuzzling my bare chest like she belongs there.

Because she does.

I wrap my arms around her, tightening my grip.

She’s got one of my extra sweatshirts on, oversized and soft, and I’m glad I remember to keep spare clothes in the back.

Not just for me anymore. For her.

Always for her.

Besides, I wouldn’t want to sit here with my boner flapping around in my lap the whole ride home just ‘cause my woman can’t help brushing up against me and lighting my Dragon on fire.

But what can I say?

I’m always hard for her.

“You okay?” I murmur, my lips grazing the top of her head, words meant only for her ears.

“Better than okay,” she whispers back, and damn if that warmth doesn’t flood through my chest like wildfire.

Her hand creeps up from my abs, her fingertips brushing higher and higher until she rests her palm over my Dragon’s Rose.

My mark. Our bond.

I rumble, deep and low, my beast purring beneath her touch.

“That’s yours,” I tell her. “All of it. Always.”

She smiles softly and nestles in deeper, her breath warm against my skin.

That’s when Max, bless his perfectly timed interruptions, turns in his seat and starts in.

“Hey, Zeke, don’t forget next week’s rodeo. You’re up.”

“Oh hell yeah,” Kian shouts from the back. “Zeke’s turn to ride! I’m putting fifty bucks on him eating dirt again.”

Casey’s head pops up. “Wait—what? You’re riding in the rodeo?”

Max grins. “Every other month. And the whole Crew participates. For publicity. It helps spread the word about our ranch especially with the summer harvest and Dolly’s Dairy Products hitting national supermarket chains.”

“We can’t win all the time because folks would get suspicious, being Shifters and all. So, we like to bet amongst ourselves how long we’ll last,” Dante adds.

“Spoiler: not long,” Kian shouts like the overgrown infant he is.

“Except for Zeke,” Emmet says, clapping me on the shoulder. “He actually wins more than most on account of his Dragon taming even the gnarliest bronc.”

Casey turns those big brown eyes on me, pure mischief in them now. “Are you gonna win me something?”

I shrug one shoulder and grin. “If you want me to, I’ll bring home a ribbon and a gold buckle just for you, Petals.”

“Damn straight you will,” she says, her smile brilliant.

Laughter erupts in the cab again, and this time, I don’t mind the noise. Not even a little.

Because my mate is in my arms.

She’s safe.

She’s smiling.

And we’re going home.

To our life.

Together.