The air between them grew somber and quiet. Their playfulness fell away.
“I didn’t mean that,” she whispered. “I like you just fine. I’m not holding a grudge against you. What happened was my fault. I hope you know that.”
He sighed deeply. Frustration turned his words into a crackling mess that he had to hold back. When he fixed his eyes on her, she’d withdrawn again. Teagan’s grin had disappeared. She plucked at the fuzzballs on the couch, tossing them to the floor one by one.
Reece didn’t want to ride this merry-go-round of guilt, so he stood and brushed himself off. He retreated to the kitchen and grabbed the take-out menus again. No one delivered this far out of town, but a drive by himself might give him the time he needed to overcome the self-loathing trying to take ahold of him.
He flipped through pamphlet after pamphlet. The food on them turned to a blur as his focus drifted away. He wanted to make things right, but he was nothing but a fool fumbling through life. That was why he did his best to stay away from everyone else. He knew that involving himself in the mess between the Montoyas and Barnes would only make things worse.
He still hated the things he’d said about Baylee. He remembered the fury on Gale’s face and how it had cut Reece to the bone. That was what he got for calling Baylee an animal. Everything had been black and white up until then. Reece had known everything he’d needed to know. The old feud had been easy to pick up and apply to his life. Watching his cousin fall for a Barnes woman had changed everything.
Reece had to look back on all the awful things he’d ever said or done and know that he couldn’t take any of them back. He couldn’t change who he’d been up until now. The best he could do was change who he would become.
Teagan peered at him from over the back of the couch. She rose just enough so that the couch wouldn’t muffle her voice when she spoke. “Do you not know how to cook?”
He opened his mouth but came up short. Though Reece wanted to argue, the truth was that he’d never really bothered to learn. He spent so little time here that cooking had never been a priority. While at home or at work, he lived on noodle cups and hardboiled eggs. Other than that, he relied on take-out or the kindness of whoever had taken him home that night.
Teagan made a sound of mock long-suffering. She climbed over the back of the couch and scurried into the kitchen where she began opening the cabinets one by one. He watched her take in the contents, her soft grey eyes darting from container to container. She lifted her thumb to her lips and gripped the tip of it between her teeth.
His stomach clenched at the sight. All thoughts of food vanished from his mind. The only need he felt was for this woman. He wanted to taste her lips, her throat, and the soft place between her legs. He didn’t mind getting on his knees for a meal as sweet as that.
“Good gravy,” she grumbled. She rose onto her tiptoes to reach for a box high on the shelf. Her wiggling fingers came up short.
Reece stepped up behind her to grab the box. The heat of her body pulled him closer. He pressed himself against her back before he could even think to stop himself. Lowering his head, he breathed in the smell of her hair. To find his own scent already mingling with hers only made his blood hotter.
She made a small, whimpering sound in her throat but made no move to push him away. He dropped the box onto the counter and curled his arms around her. One hand went to the curve of her throat where he rested his palm lightly, his fingertips against the flutter of her pulse. His other hand drifted south.
He hesitated, waiting for her to push him away. The beast growled at the idea. It wasn’t ready to give her up, but Reece couldn’t hold her against her will. That was not how he would win this woman’s heart.
Her heart?
Reece stilled. That couldn’t be what he wanted. He’d given up on ever finding a mate. No woman wanted to give him their heart. He’d had to come to terms with that long ago. Women happily gave up their bodies and made empty promises in the night, but they never loved him.
Teagan wouldn’t either. She would protect herself against feelings for him. Callum Barnes already had one defiant daughter. He wouldn’t allow another. Reece had no chance with Teagan.
They could have a night. That was about all they could afford to risk.
Reece’s lips parted. He gripped the skin of her neck between his teeth and felt the need to press down nearly overpower his common sense. To make matters worse, Teagan tilted her head to expose her neck to him. Her submission tore him apart.
The beast growled through him. His skull reverberated with the beast’s intent.
But he couldn’t. Reece could not have this woman.
She wouldn’t love him the way he wanted. He wouldn’t get to make her smile each and every morning. Her soft sounds of pleasure wouldn’t belong to him for more than a single night.
The truth sent a pang of pain through his chest. He released her and backed away until the other counter stopped him. Teagan didn’t turn around. She gripped the counter in front of her, her shoulders rising and falling too quickly. She let her head fall back. A deep sigh drifted out of her.
The beast nearly launched Reece forward again. The sound on Teagan’s lips drove him wild. He needed to remember, though. Reece was afraid that if he gave in, he might yearn for more than he could have. That kind of longing broke men.
He understood why some men behaved the way they did. Men like Bastien or Quincy shut off their hearts so that they might become more powerful. All this yearning and desire turned a man inside out. It left him vulnerable.
Though that was what Reece wanted, now wasn’t the time. He couldn’t weaken himself for a taste of the impossible. His family was up to no good. He had to be on alert at all times if he was going to stop them from ruining everything.
“I’m sorry,” Reece whispered.
Teagan shuddered, but otherwise ignored everything that had just happened. She picked up the box from the counter, flipped it over, and stared at the directions on the back. Reece wondered if she was reading it or if she was using it as a distraction.
Teagan set the box down on the counter. He expected her to start pulling pots and pans from the cupboards, but she spun around and faced him. Her cheeks were bright pink, a sight that was more endearing than it should have been. He locked the image away in his mind so that he might be able to pull it out on some lonely night.
“Turns out you can make my knees weak after all.”
The corners of his mouth lifted. His beast sat up with pride. It silently promised to show her a better time. Reece wished he could follow through on that promise. He knew that, together, they could shake the snow from the trees outside.
But he didn’t pursue the matter. He jerked his chin toward the box on the counter. “What are you making?”
The blush on her cheeks began to fade. She presented the box for his inspection. It was a pasta kit that he had no recollection of purchasing. One of his sisters must have bought it after seeing the state of his cupboards.
He’d wanted the silence of his truck cab, but now he savored the sounds of Teagan preparing dinner for him. The soft clinks and sizzling filled the cabin with a gentle hush. He hopped onto the counter between the kitchen and the living room so that he didn’t have to go far to get out of her way.
She seasoned and seared the chicken breasts that had been in the fridge. He marveled at her proficiency with a chef’s knife as she sliced the chicken. The way she held the knife was like an extension of her own hand. When he wielded the damn thing, it always felt like he would accidentally stab someone. If Teagan did it, it would definitely be on purpose.
She pulled long, flat noodles from a pot of boiling water and twisted them into little mounds beside the sliced chicken breasts. The creamy white sauce had little specks of basil and dried tomatoes in it as she spooned it over the chicken and pasta. There was even a little packet of parmesan cheese that she sprinkled over everything.
In the end, their meal looked like somethi
ng straight out of a professional kitchen. He picked up the box and made a mental note to buy more of them.
Reece didn’t own a dinner table. Instead, he carried their plates out to the coffee table in the living room. He set piles of pillows onto the floor so they could sit near one another with the view of the valley outside ahead of them. While Teagan made herself comfortable, he grabbed two of the craft beers from the kitchen and a pair of wine glasses.
Teagan laughed as he poured them each a drink. “Beer? In a wine glass?”
He grinned devilishly. “Why not? I know women like to feel fancy. Beer might not be all that cool, but I bet you feel like a princess when you pick up a wine glass.”
She shook her head, suddenly quiet.
He paused and studied her. There were so many walls between them that he couldn’t quite understand what she was thinking. He knew that there was something on her mind that saddened her but had no idea what it might be. The only time their walls fell was when they flirted, and that never lasted long enough.
6
Teagan pulled in on herself when all she wanted was to throw herself into Reece’s lap. She yearned to feel his hands on her torso and his teeth on her neck again. The yearning nearly stole her appetite. If she didn’t at least eat a small portion of what she’d made, then he would get suspicious, and she might have to answer questions better left unasked.
Like why she didn’t want to leave. Though she told herself that it was Reece’s cabin or her fear of her father’s anger that kept her in place, she knew it was more than that. There was something about this man that she had come to crave. She wanted more of him.
Of all the people she could develop a crush on, she had to fall for the crown prince of the Montoya family. While Gale and Cash were Montoyas, they weren’t Alice’s precious boy. Everyone knew that Alice held her son above all others.
This was a recipe for disaster. She didn’t think she could guilt her father into behaving the same way that Ember did. Teagan didn’t have her sister’s deep well of bitterness. All Teagan had was a quiet kind of exhaustion.
Reece loudly slurped his pasta as if he couldn’t bear the silence a moment longer. She chuckled and watched a noodle slap him in the face. He flinched. The noodle left a trail of sauce along his cheek.
“One would have assumed your mother would have taught you manners. How did you escape the Montoya household without them?” She wiped at his cheek with her napkin.
“I snuck out,” he said, rather proudly. “Took everything I owned and brought it up here before Mom could drag me back.”
That sounded familiar. Her shoulders slumped. They were both shifters living in the shadows of their parents. While his sisters had escaped Alice’s expectations and settled into simple lives, Teagan feared that Reece wouldn’t want to do the same. A man raised as he was would crave the notoriety of a larger life. He would want fame and power.
That wasn’t the kind of man she should want. Teagan’s inner owl couldn’t stand beside a man like that. She would find herself caught in the way of his wings over and over. This wasn’t a good idea.
But she still couldn’t leave. The cozy cabin and the grinning fool beside her kept her rooted in place.
“All jokes aside,” Reece said, “I’m surprised you figured it out.”
She tilted her head. “I almost didn’t. My sister gave you away. I guess I didn’t want to face the truth on my own.”
He nodded. “I know the feeling.”
“I noticed you haven’t asked me my name. Does that mean you figured out my identity, too?”
He groaned. “Don’t we make the pair? Son of the inimitable Alice Montoya and daughter of the towering Callum Barnes?”
Teagan let out a barking laugh. “The difference is that you inherited your mother’s power. I don’t share a drop of blood with Dad. He’s…he’s my father in name alone.”
They both sighed and turned their attention to the world outside the window. Reece’s hand came to rest on her thigh. His touch was warm and comforting, melting the ice that had been growing around her heart. Thoughts of her father always made her feel cold.
Her hand hovered over his. She wanted to trace the lines of his hand, from the wrinkles on his broad knuckles to the veins pulsing beneath his skin. She couldn’t allow herself such a simple pleasure, though. To give in to her desire would be to court danger.
“I’m not afraid of him,” Reece said softly.
She groaned. “Don’t say that. Don’t tempt fate, or he’ll show up out of nowhere and ruin our dinner.”
Neither said anything for a long while. Their food grew cold and the bubbles in their beer drifted to the surface. Inside, Teagan struggled against the frantic flutter of her beast’s wings. The beast wanted. It wanted so badly that she couldn’t stomach her dinner.
Reece wasn’t anything like she’d assumed. He was smart and charming and, above all, surprisingly gentle. She’d made false assumptions based on who had raised him. She should have known better after meeting his sisters. Two of the triplets had been perfectly kind, if not a little passionate.
For a heartbeat, Teagan considered a future where she formed a mate bond with Reece. Her heart lifted. The furious flutter of feathers in her chest quieted. But she soon came crashing back down when she noticed something in the sky outside.
“Oh. Oh, no.” her stomach turned.
Reece’s brow furrowed. He followed her gaze. He didn’t see the dragon in the sky until the beast was much closer. Then, Reece let out a soft curse.
“I told you not to say anything. I swear he has some sort of sixth sense, like a biker Santa Claus.” Teagan fought the urge to hide under the table.
Her father was flying over Montoya territory. Her time was running out. If he didn’t find her today, he would keep looking. He would turn over every stone and knock down every door in his way until he found her.
“Huh,” Reece said. He leaned back, resting his weight on his hands. His relaxed demeanor didn’t sit well with her. “At least, we know he cares about you.”
She rolled her eyes.
“How is his scent tracking? Do you think he’ll be able to find your trail from up there? Or are you afraid he’ll see you?”
She could almost feel the walls dropping away. The giant window she’d loved so much now left her feeling exposed. “Dad won’t be able to smell me. This window will give me away, though.”
Reece stood and offered his hand down to her. He positioned himself between her and the window so that his manly frame blocked her from view. When he glanced back, he stiffened almost imperceptibly. It sent a flood of fear washing through her. But Reece gripped her hand reassuringly.
He led her into the bathroom. She gave him a dubious look, then realized that the window in here was narrow and facing in the other direction.
“You’re welcome to hide in the shower, but I thought we would sit in the tub and wait for him to leave.” Reece stepped into the massive soaking tub and offered his hand once again.
She laughed and let him help her in. He sank and brought her down with him. They readjusted themselves until her back was pressed against his. He wrapped his arms around her middle. When he spoke, his lips grazed her ear and sent chills down her spine.
“This isn’t how I planned to spend my evening, but I have to say I’m enjoying it.”
Teagan couldn’t find words. She was stunned. Instead of going outside and intercepting Callum with force, Reece chose to hide. No dragon man she’d ever met would have admitted to such a thing. The dragon shifters valued force and power so much that she never would have expected this of someone such as Reece.
She would have thought that his mother had taught him to never turn his back to an enemy. Alice Montoya seemed like the kind of woman to instill her son with classic dragon shifter values. Yet, Reece was unlike any man she’d ever met.
“Don’t think about him right now,” Reece said. “Tell me what I could have gotten you for Christmas this year.”
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She knew what he was doing. Christmas had passed a week ago. Reece wasn’t trying to get her to ask for anything. He was distracting her from the danger outside. If he wasn’t worried about his own safety, then she didn’t have to worry, either.
At least, that’s what he was trying to imply. She seriously doubted the truth of the matter.
Still, she relented. “If you want to get me the gift of my dreams, you can buy me my own bookstore.”
He pulled her tighter into the circle of his arms and nuzzled her neck. “Are you a bookish girl? Head always in stories?”
“Do you blame me?” she asked, even though he didn’t know why she hid away from her own life. She hadn’t told him about her mother, about how Ember had to raise her, about how she could barely stand Ember because they’d never been sisters at all.
It wasn’t that they didn’t share blood. No, Teagan loved Ember all the same. The schism between them was because of the roles they’d been forced to take. Ember never got to be her big sister. If anything had happened in Teagan’s life, she couldn’t go to Ember for help because Ember had to be the adult in the house. She had to scold Teagan instead of help her.
Teagan had been so lonely growing up. She’d turned to books as a way to feel a little less alone. Over time, she moved from fiction to poetry. She picked up non-fiction books and self-help books. She loved the smell of the paper and how almost any book could take her away from here.
Any book except for the self-help books. She’d burnt a lot of them in the end.
“I want my own store so I can help others find just the right book exactly when they need it.”
Reece didn’t say anything. He clutched her tighter and buried his face in the crook of her neck. She wondered if the angle of his head bothered him, but he seemed content. His breathing grew even. It made her wonder if he’d fallen asleep. There was no way he could have fallen asleep with Callum Barnes flying overhead.
Wings of Destiny (Great Plains Dragon Feud Book 5) Page 5
