Page 30 of Dragon’s Revenge (Irresistible Dragons #7)

Chapter Twenty-Nine

T hey were still trying to do daily classes for anyone who wanted to attend, and now that they had a whole group of new omegas, the meeting barn was once again packed. Delton loved sharing his knowledge with his pack mates. Knowing the traumas they carried with them, he always carefully chose his topics with the intent to give them practical tools that would help them.

This morning, he’d taught grounding techniques for staving off flashbacks and panic attacks, making them practice in small groups. As he’d walked around, making sure every group had understood the assignment, his heart was full of gratitude that he had the knowledge and expertise that could help them.

“That was so good,” Fallon told him after the class. “I realized cinnamon is a positive smell for me, so I’m gonna make some cinnamon pouches to carry with me.”

Delton put his hand on the omega’s shoulder. “I’m so glad to hear that. Oliver and I have made some for him with flower scents. Anything floral works for him.”

“Mr. Delton?”

Delton let go of Fallon and turned around. One of the new omegas had addressed him, a shy, frail dragon named Dominic, from the O’Connor clan. Delton had practiced until he knew all their names. “Just Delton is fine, Dominic. What can I do for you?”

Dominic bit his lip. “I had a question. Is that okay?”

Gods, it broke Delton’s heart how careful they all were, how completely conditioned to expect the worst. “Always.”

“If you have a bad memory associated with a scent, is it possible to replace it with a positive one?”

“Oh, that’s an excellent question.” Delton scratched his chin. “It should be possible, but you may need some pretty strong new positive associations. That may not be easy, depending on the scent. Are you okay to tell me what scent it is? Don’t say it if it will trigger you.”

Dominic swallowed. “Lemon,” he whispered. “From disinfecting wipes.”

Very slowly, Delton reached out, only continuing when he was certain Dominic was okay with being touched. He gently placed his hand on the omega’s shoulder. “I can think of a lot of good things that smell of lemon. Yitro’s lemon cookies, for example. They’re delicious. Or the shampoo Oliver uses. That’s also got lemon in it, and it always makes me smile. So yes, I think we could come up with some experiments to see if we can replace your bad association. Would you like us to try that?”

Before he even realized it, Dominic was hugging him. Not a quick, polite hug, but a full-on, wrap-his-arms-around-Delton, press-his-head-against-Delton’s-chest hug. After the initial shock, Delton recovered quickly and held him close. The dragon didn’t let go, and over his head, Delton’s eyes met Fallon’s, who’d grown teary-eyed.

Some people needed words, others needed to be left alone, and some, like Dominic, craved touch. Hugs could be so healing, and Delton never turned anyone away who needed to be held.

“I’m sorry,” Dominic whispered when he finally let go. “I didn’t mean to do that.”

Delton gently tilted Dominic’s chin with his finger. “It’s more than okay. I’m honored that you trust me enough for that.”

Dominic blinked slowly. “I was never… My daddy always hugged me when I was little, but ever since he died… I’ve had no one. We weren’t allowed to comfort each other.”

“I’m so sorry, honey. I’m a big hugger myself, so I can’t imagine how much you must’ve missed that.”

“Every day. Always.” Dominic wiped at his eyes, suddenly looking like a child. Then again, he couldn’t be more than twenty. “Anyway, thank you, Mr. Delton.”

He rushed off before Delton could say anything else. Fallon had left, but Oliver had stayed behind, waiting for Delton. He walked up to him, and Delton opened his arms to hold his mate close. “That breaks my heart,” he said softly. “To be deprived of something so deeply human. We’re made to be touched. We crave it. To deny that is pure cruelty.”

Oliver pressed his cheek against Delton’s shoulder. “It is.”

If it had been done deliberately—and Delton had every reason to assume it had been and probably hadn’t been just the O’Connor clan—he might need to address that specific need to help these omegas heal. Some form of hug therapy. He should be able to find trustworthy men willing to hold the omegas in a safe, protective manner to help them heal.

When he let go of Oliver, the dragon looked up at him with soft eyes. “You’re already thinking of how to help him, aren’t you?”

Delton smiled at him. “Yeah, some kind of hugging support group, maybe? I’ll need to think about the practicalities of it, of course, but it seems to me it would fulfill a need.”

“It would. You’re so empathetic. I love that about you.”

Oliver reached out and caressed Delton’s cheek, a gesture so uncommon that Delton froze. Oliver was generous with safe touches like a quick pat or a hug, but this was a more intimate caress, and he didn’t often engage in those.

“Thank you.”

Oliver’s touch continued, morphing into something else, something more…explorative. His fingers brushed Delton’s lips. “We haven’t kissed,” Oliver whispered.

Delton swallowed. “No.”

“Were you waiting for me?”

“Yes. I wasn’t sure if you were ready. If you wanted to.”

“Thank you.”

“Respecting your boundaries is never something you need to thank me for, baby.”

Oliver raised his head, offering his lips to Delton. “I’d love for you to kiss me.”

Cradling Oliver’s cheeks between his hands, Delton lowered his head until their lips met. Featherlight and soft, like a brush of wind, he slid his lips across Oliver’s. He didn’t bring out his tongue until Oliver did, opening his mouth and pressing his tongue against the seam of Delton’s lips. Only then did he open up and let him in.

The kiss was slow and careful, two people exploring each other’s mouths with thorough patience. Delton licked into Oliver’s mouth, which the omega seemed to like, judging by the little sound he made. Their bodies were pressed together now, and Delton grew hard. He didn’t realize it until Oliver froze, then broke off the kiss.

It only took Delton a second to figure out what had happened. “It’s okay. It doesn’t mean I’m expecting anything from you,” he said quickly.

“No?”

He pressed a kiss on Oliver’s forehead. “Never. It’s a physical reaction from my body to kissing you because I like it. It feels good. That response I can’t control, but that doesn’t mean I’m gonna act on it or expect you to do something about it.”

“You don’t think it’s…teasing?”

“Like being a cock-tease?” When Oliver nodded, Delton firmly shook his head. “Absolutely not. Aside from the fact that I hate that whole expression and even the concept, it’s not true. I know where you stand on sex, and I will always understand and respect that. Doesn’t mean you can’t kiss me. I won’t ever see that in itself as evidence that you changed your mind or that you’re being a tease.”

Oliver breathed out.

“Were you worried about that, little dragon?” Delton asked softly.

“Yeah.”

“Don’t ever be. My sexual needs are being met by my sex with Adar, but even if they weren’t, it would be okay. Blue balls aren’t gonna kill me, you know. I should know after being single for so long,” he added with a little roll of his eyes, a lame attempt at some humor.

Oliver still laughed, that cute little giggle Delton loved so much. “True. I bet your hand got quite the workout.”

Oh, that was quite the risque joke for Oliver. Delton loved it. “It did, especially when I could overhear my roommate having sex…”

“So now you’re getting revenge by making him listen to you and Adar?”

Delton chuckled. “Damn straight. Quico is quite loud when enjoying himself in bed, so I have zero regrets about returning the favor.”

That earned him another melodious giggle from Oliver. “You’re funny.”

Not particularly, but Delton would take the compliment. “Are you ready to go? I have an appointment in an hour and need to eat something before then.”

“I made club sandwiches for us. They’re already in my fridge. Sometimes these classes run late, and I wanted to make sure you had something to eat.”

Delton wrapped his arm around Oliver’s shoulders as they left the meeting barn. “Thank you. That was very thoughtful.”

Oliver beamed. “You’re welcome.”

“Adar is working, right?”

“Yeah.” Oliver made a face. “I don’t think he’s ready yet to return to full duties, but he was going stir-crazy, so I get why he went back to work.”

For all his usual patience, Adar had shown a remarkable intolerance for his slow pace of healing. As if by sheer force of will, he’d expected to be back to normal in a week. Alphas were something else sometimes. “I know. He’ll discover his physical limits soon enough.”

“I miss it. Miss him.”

Oliver said it so quietly that it took Delton a moment to register and then another to figure out what he meant. “Adar not shadowing you all day, you mean?”

“Yeah. I know it was the right thing to do, to put him back on general guard duties, but I miss him. He made me feel safe. Especially now that the dragon slayer is here. It’s a little scary, you know?”

They hadn’t considered that, not even Delton. They’d all agreed that Adar continuously protecting Oliver was over the top and unnecessary, but they hadn’t considered what it would do for Oliver’s sense of safety. Delton didn’t need protection from Duff Bás. The man wasn’t after wolves. But Oliver did.

Delton stopped them and half-turned to face Oliver. “If you need him there to feel safe, I’m sure we could get Sivney to agree.”

“Wouldn’t that be preferential treatment?”

“Maybe, but I don’t really care. If that’s what you need, we’ll make that happen.”

Oliver stepped into his embrace, putting his head against Delton’s shoulder. “Thank you.”

“Anytime, baby. Just say the word.”

Oliver didn’t say anything for a long time, and Delton just held him. “I think I want to continue without him for now, if only because he can’t shadow me indefinitely.”

“That’s valid, but if you change your mind, just tell us.”

“I will.”

Another long pause. “You’re a really good hugger.”

Delton smiled. “So are you, baby.”

“You’re also a great kisser.”

Aw, Delton grew all warm on the inside. “I loved kissing you.”

Oliver raised his head. “I loved it too. Think we can do it some more?”

They sure could. And if Delton was a little blue-balled after, well, Adar would be the beneficiary, so it wasn’t really a problem, now was it?