They only want what's best for me. This made me cringe. A lot. This seems like the same kind of thought pattern that keeps people in abusive relationships. I don't like that at all. Maybe it's a... dragon thing... and it's just translating poorly. Right...? :/

The guardian was not entirely sure[...] or if it actually was his ulterior motive. I think having a friend is a perfectly acceptable ulterior motive! And there's lots of good friendships (and more!) that have been built around a love of things like books, or music. I wonder what the books she had for him are...