Guardian of His Heart [Guardian 2] (Siren Publishing Classic ManLove) Read Online Free Page A

wear something impossibly tighter.
    Kelley’s music? Not even in the same hemisphere with what the king would listen to.
    Kelley didn’t understand why he should read books when he could watch the movie. Were books even made of paper anymore? All those poor dead trees. The list of their differences kept growing by leaps and bounds.
    It became easier for Saber to keep a scorecard of what the king and Kelley did have in common, rather than what they didn’t.
    Saber tried ever so hard not to lose his own temper when the two men fought over what to have for lunch. Saber might as well have waved a red flag in front of them.
    The fight raged on for three solid weeks, only stopping when the opponents needed to recharge their batteries.
    The adversaries at last went to their respective corners. It was a good thing, as everyone on the ranch, especially Saber, was pulling their hair out. The chickens even stopped laying eggs.
    Saber didn’t think he had ever seen such relieved bodyguards, when at last they were advised the king was going home. Sans mate.
    Only one of the royal guards appeared to hesitate when it came time to leave. One of the lady guards, Tymara, it seemed had taken up with one of the gentlemen on the ranch by the name of Crusty.
    Frederico and Kelley went their separate ways, and Kelley could have sworn he heard everyone on the ranch sigh in relief. Four weeks went by with Frederico still wanting his mate by his side. The king and son were having almost daily talks on the phone about the pros and cons of male mates. Saber, of course, provided some much-needed instruction, just in case.
    Kelley and Frederico were also speaking, if that’s what fighting on the phone daily was called. Kelley was still being much too difficult in the area of cooperation with the king’s idea of how a consort should behave.
    The mating dreams weren’t helping, either. They were becoming almost nightly. The king would never have thought it possible to argue with someone in a dream!
    Frederico was enjoying himself immensely, at last having a worthy opponent for the first time in centuries. He and his mate may not get along, but Frederico felt young and alive again!
    The king, however, found that he couldn’t concentrate on anything but missing his mate. He finally decided perhaps he would bend a little, maybe an eighth of an inch. He would not give any further than that. He knew from experience it was never wise to give one’s opponent too much wiggle room. Perhaps he would dig out and dust off that olive branch his mother always said to try first.
    After all, he was still sleeping alone. He had returned to Saibina, only being able to stay away for so long. He stood, walked over to a window, and looked out. He did so wish to show his mate their beautiful country. He now considered Kelley his, even if they didn’t see quite eye to eye. This was not how he saw his mating progressing, and his dragon was whining, wanting their mate. Maybe being as old as he was, he had become inflexible and set in his ways. Frederico yearned for his mate, so he decided he would learn to bend and find a way to make it work between them.

Chapter Five
     
    One evening, two months after Kelley returned to his own apartment from his eventful trip to his brother’s, he jogged up to his complex. There on his doorstep stood the king with wildflowers in hand. Kelley accepted them, inviting Frederico in. “Come on in. What brings you here?” Kelley asked, trying to be civil.
    “I was in the neighborhood.”
    Kelley laughed, getting Frederico something to drink. “Care for a beer?” he asked.
    “That would be nice, thank you.”
    Kelley almost laughed. The two men were trying so hard to get along they didn’t have a clue what to say to each other.
    He would never know what made him do it, but Frederico walked over to Kelley and took his beer, placing both on a table. Looking into Kelley’s eyes, he bent down, picked Kelley up, and kissed him into the