by Abigail Owen
An hour later, Finn came out of the office only to be immediately hit with mouthwatering scents in the air. Rivin and Keighan were up to cook tonight, and no way did they make smells like that. Which could only mean one thing…
Scowling as he entered the kitchen, Finn glanced around. The second he discovered Delaney behind the stove stirring a pot, he swung his ire over to the two men seated at the table.
Before he could berate them for making her cook, he pulled up short.
Rivin and Keighan were there, but so were all the others, except Kanta and Hall who were watching Sera. Most of them gathered around the table playing cards. Even Titus was in there, standing beside her at the stove…helping?
Aidan glanced over. “Did you talk to Fallon?”
That’s what they assumed he’d been doing? With everything that had happened, he hadn’t had a chance to share his conversation yesterday. They didn’t need to know that he’d been hiding, though, so he didn’t correct them. “Fallon thinks he’s found—” He glanced toward Delaney who’d turned from the stove, listening with interest. “Maddie,” he finished lamely.
Every man in the room sat up straighter, the shift in the air should’ve been subtle enough that it went over Delaney’s head, but she still glanced around from face to face. “Fallon’s your brother, right?” she asked.
“Yeah.” Finn knew keeping his distance was the smarter move, but he walked over to her anyway. He peeked over her shoulder at what she had going on in the pot. “Spaghetti.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Not gourmet or anything, but I needed to keep busy.”
“It’ll be a vast improvement over whatever Shaggy and Scooby over there could come up with.” He hitched a thumb at the two men sitting at the island.
“Shaggy and Scooby?” Rivin mused. “Is that supposed to be an insult?”
“Ruh-roh Raggy. I think they’re onto us.” Keighan grinned. “I’ve always thought of us more like Sam and Dean from Supernatural.”
Levi guffawed. “You wish. Those guys are way cooler. You two are more like Ren and Stimpy.”
“Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble,” Aidan supplied with a rare grin.
“In front of our guest?” Rivin put a hand over his heart. “We’re insulted. See if we save your asses next time there’s a fire.”
“Yeah. No appreciation.” Keighan shook his head.
Finn snorted. “Who saved whose ass last time?”
Keighan and Rivin exchanged a glance and both shrugged. “Don’t remember,” they said in unison.
Finn turned from the shenanigans to find Delaney watching it all with wide, bemused eyes. “They don’t mean anything by it.”
She blinked, and he realized how British he’d suddenly sounded. It came out sometimes, though very rarely these days. The guys who’d come here from the clans almost always lost their accents, especially those who’d been here for a while. Three hundred years and counting had pretty much made Finn an American.
But the clan mark on his hand, between his thumb and forefinger, showed his allegiance remained with the Blue Clan in Scotland and Thanatos, his king.
Delaney must’ve followed his gaze, because she reached out and traced the tattoo on his hand. Finn sucked in air at the contact. “I wondered what this was about…and the one here.” She pointed to the back of his neck, though she didn’t touch that one.
Humans often asked about the tattoos. All dragons had them. The one on the hand was the mark of the house of their king. The one on the neck was the symbol of a dragon’s family.
But Finn couldn’t tell her any of that, so he went with the story they told all other humans who asked. “It’s a hotshot crew thing.”
Most knew better than to ask more questions. Apparently not Delaney. “But they’re all different.”
Damn, she paid attention more than most humans. “True.”
She glanced around. Finn didn’t need to look to know all the men were listening closely, even if they pretended not to.
“Is it a secret?” she asked slowly.
“Something like that.” He hated lying to her. That alone should be his signal to leave. Lying to humans had never bothered him before this.
“Then that’s all you had to say.” She gave him a challenging glare, then turned back to her pots on the stove. “Men,” she grumbled.
Finn exchanged an amused smile with Titus as the tension level in the room lowered a few degrees. Having a human around 24/7 was going to be tricky. They’d have to watch themselves more, difficult in a place where they usually relaxed and were able to be completely open.
Finn found himself staring at Delaney’s back, fisting his hands to keep from touching a golden strand of her hair.
Damn tricky.
To keep from giving in, he joined the group playing cards at the table. She had Titus for help if she needed it. He even managed to convince himself that he’d relaxed and wasn’t listening to everything she said. Until a small gasp reached him a beat before a loud clatter.
Finn spun to see Delaney backing away from the sink, where the large pot of noodles now sat overturned, her gaze on the small window directly over it. No words coming out, she pointed frantically outside.
Before he made the conscious decision to move, he was at her side, practically pushing Titus out of the way. Vaguely, he was aware of Levi and Drake running outside. Finn put himself bodily between her and whatever had scared her so badly. Taking her face in his hands, he tried to project a calm he was far from feeling himself. “Look at me.”
Her wide eyes took a second to focus.
“There you go,” he breathed. “I’m here. You’re safe.”
Tears welled in those big gray eyes, reminding him of rainy skies on drizzly days. She shook her head as she stepped back, forcing him to drop his hands. “No, I’m not.”
Her words dropped into the room like grenades.
Helpless was not a sensation Finn had ever wanted to experience again, but here he was. Worse, she was pulling away from him when he didn’t want her to, and he hated that. He forced himself to stand still. “Why aren’t you safe?”
She tipped up her chin in that damned false bravery of hers. “Graff was standing right outside the window. I saw—” Her voice broke and she shook her head, visibly collecting herself. “I saw him.”
Fuck.
Delaney was shaking now. “With all of you in here, he still didn’t care. He’s not going to stop, Finn.”
Unable to do anything else, he pulled her into his arms, twining a hand through her hair to cup the back of her head. Thankfully, she didn’t struggle or resist. “He’ll never get close enough to get to you. I promise.”
“Can you promise that?” she demanded into his shoulder.
Honestly…no. He wanted to be that guy for her, but he couldn’t. Not when he needed to be putting a fuck-ton of space between him and Delaney. Not when this asshole kept getting past their defenses.
Levi and Drake came back into the house. He asked a silent question and Levi shook his head. They’d found no trace.
Damn, this guy was getting bolder, and they still had nothing.
…
“Delaney.”
The deep male voice whispered through the dark, penetrating the fog of sleep that still wrapped around her.
“Delaney. Wake up.”
Someone grabbed her shoulder. Someone was in her room. Even half asleep, fear still slammed through her and her self-defense training took over. Without hesitation, Delaney brought her knee up, hard, despite being hampered by her sheets, and made contact.
The man hovering over her grunted. “Fuck.”
Panic still gripping her with its icy talons, she struggled to get out from under the covers, but the second she got her arms free, two male hands grabbed her wrists. Again, using her training, she managed to slap him away a few times, but he still grappled with her, tugging her hands over her head and pinning her body to the bed with his weight as he lay on top of her.
/> “Fuck, Delaney. It’s me.”
The fog of sleep and panic cleared in an instant. Delaney sucked in a breath as Finn’s face came into focus in the half-light of dawn filtering in through the blinds.
The fight went out of her and she sagged beneath him, her breath coming in pants, but slowing as fear seeped out of her system. “Oh God. I’m sorry.”
His grip on her wrists loosened up, but he didn’t release her. “It’s okay. You missed the important bits.”
Delaney huffed a laugh but stilled as her gaze connected with his. Amusement twinkled back at her in a way that had her swimming in awareness, filling her with a different kind of tension. One she didn’t know what to do with after several days of both of them keeping their distance. She mock-scowled. “Don’t you know better than to scare the bejesus out of a woman who’s been dealing with a stalker?”
Those blue eyes explored her face, lingering on her lips, and his hands around her wrists softened as he brushed a thumb over her pulse point there, something she felt to her very core.
His lips kicked up. “My mistake. I definitely won’t try that again.”
“Better not.” Her voice came out all husky.
He didn’t reply, but he also didn’t move.
His gaze dropped lower, making Delaney horribly aware of how her loose pajama top had slipped to the side in her struggles, exposing the upper swell of her breasts, which now pressed against his hard chest.
“Did you need something?” she asked, desperation driving the question.
His attention returned to her lips, and she held her breath.
Watching.
Waiting.
She shifted underneath him, and his eyes drifted shut as he adjusted his position over her, the hard evidence of his need angling just right, upping her own. A small whimper escaped her, and he opened his eyes, pinning her with a look of raw wanting.
But instead of giving her what they both clearly desired, he held himself above her as she waited in agony, wanting his kiss, wondering if he’d ever make that move.
She shifted against him again, allowing her legs to slide open, just the slightest bit, which moved him against that aching part of her. He felt so damn good against her, and she just wanted… “More,” the whispered word slipped past her lips.
Finn groaned and dropped his head, eyes shut so she couldn’t see them. “You’re killing me.”
“Then do something about it,” she urged, her voice husky with need.
She shifted against him again and drew another groan from him.
He slowly lifted his head, eyes no longer hot, but filled with resolute regret. “I can’t.”
Disappointment seeped through her, doing nothing to help the clamoring ache of her body after that slow build to…nothing, apparently. Carefully, Finn levered off her and stepped back, putting several feet of distance between them. Delaney silently released a long breath as anticipation deflated inside her like a lonely little wrinkled balloon.
Walls were firmly back up between them, maybe even higher than before. Me and my big mouth. Talk about a letdown.
Finn ran a hand around the back of his neck. “You wanted me to wake you up.”
Seriously? He’d just had his body all over her, like he couldn’t get enough, and now…back to the mundane business of life?
Shit. She really needed to stop wanting him. Clearly her own walls were not high enough.
She clamped her mouth shut and took a moment to gain some control of herself. “Thanks.”
She should’ve just gotten up on her own. None of the guys used alarm clocks in this house and had grumbled when she used the one on her phone, so she’d stopped. All of them were apparently ninjas when it came to waking up, because she never heard a damn thing. So she’d asked them to wake her in time for work.
Except Finn wasn’t in the room when she asked. Finn was never in the room. For the days she’d been here, she’d been surrounded by the other eight members of his team on and off in shifts, but not Finn. The most she saw of him was at meals, which he sat through in silence. Even so, she could feel his gaze on her, and a few times, she’d glance up and catch him watching before he’d shut down again. She’d drown in a certain look in those blue eyes.
Need.
Why wasn’t he letting himself give in to that? God knew she wanted him to.
Delaney sighed. She had to admit she sort of loved this group of guys who’d been nothing but nice to her. Not that she’d forgotten why they were around so much. Graff hadn’t done anything more since the first night, but she knew from previous experience that he was patient.
The constant shadow of his presence was something she’d grown used to. Not complacent, but used to. He should be the biggest worry for her right now, not this inexplicable thing she had for a man who avoided her.
She eyed that very man standing beside her bunk, his jaw hard like the mountains they lived in and a heavy silence in the room. What did he want?
No. Forget that. She didn’t want to know. “Where are the others?”
“Outside training. We’ve been up for over an hour.”
Right. She’d learned that mornings were when they took care of business, disappearing to get things done, leaving only one or two to stay with her. When she’d ask where they were it was always a different answer. Chores. Physical training. Going through their gear to test it all and have it ready if they were called. Training on new techniques. Meetings. Even dealing with one or two small fires, though they only sent a few men at a time to do that.
All this lead her to the obvious conclusion that her presence and her problems were interrupting their work. They were putting their lives and plans on hold while they figured out her shit. They’d assured her that the worst of the fire season had passed, but still, one more thing she was bringing down on them.
“Right. Well…thanks again. Feel free to leave.”
Finn seemed to pause but nodded and left her to it. As soon as the door closed behind him, Delaney pulled the cover up over her head and groaned. That’s what she got for having sexy dreams about the guy all night long—in between awful ones involving Graff finding her or holding her prisoner or lighting her on fire.
“Delaney, I—” Finn must’ve come back.
Delaney froze midgroan. Seriously? Could this day start on a more awkward foot? “What?” she snapped as she lowered the sheet. She was so over the tension.
Finn watched her with brooding interest. “I wanted to let you know I’d already cooked breakfast.”
That was it?
She tried to not let disappointment slap her in the face. “Um…okay.”
He opened his mouth like he wanted to say more but shut it again. Then turned without a word and left again, closing the door behind him with a soft click.
This time, she didn’t make the mistake of venting into the sheet again.
Chapter Eleven
The clock at the bottom of his computer screen moved with the agonizing slowness of a fucking sloth. Every clock in the place had been doing that for several long-ass days.
Delaney was at the winery right now, helping Sera with contractors for rebuilding and with other stuff. He, in the meantime, was hiding out in the war room, taking extra rotations and doing his best to stay alone. If he snapped at his men one more time, they might mutiny. What could he say, though? Balls aching like a son of a bitch for days on end put a man on edge.
Something he’d have to hide when he talked to Fallon in a bit. He hoped to hell his brother had good news.
Finn settled back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest. In front of him, an entire wall of virtual screens glowed in blue and black displays in the darkened room, allowing his team to monitor the North and South American continents for dragon activity. Though they focused on their territory of the western third of North America, they watched all of it. He paid particular attention to the Andes mountain range. A few blips had popped up these last few days only to quickly disappear
.
Best guess? Rune was embedded in those mountains. But what the blips were about, he wasn’t sure. Training perhaps. However, they flared hotter than most initial dragon fire—the color indicator of heat glowing bright fuchsia, when most dragon fires only got to white and human fires stayed more in the yellows—but the spark always disappeared before he could study it closer.
A bright spot of white closer to home snagged his attention. He zoomed in to find it located in Inyo National Forest near the eastern border of California, south of Yosemite. Finn zoomed in, studying it closer, waiting to see if it would go out on its own. Sometimes, dragons who lit the fires sucked them up before they could get worse.
Come on, he urged. But no, that white glow only increased in size. It was still a relatively small burn, but his team should check it out anyway. They always went in pairs in case the dragons who started it were waiting.
With a flick, he turned on the PA system, setting it to only work inside the cave portion of their home. “Hall, Titus you’re up.”
In short order the two arrived in the war room. It took less than five minutes to brief them and send them out to deal with the situation. Hopefully not too many fires popped up. With two of his team watching the winery, and two on patrol here at all times, plus one in the war room, that left the team stretched damn thin.
Flying over two-hundred miles would take a little time. Most dragons needed a break around that distance. That limitation kept dragons from crossing oceans, except up by Alaska and into Russia. However, he and his team were physically trained to go farther, push their bodies harder. His men would make it there, deal with the fire, and come back by tonight. But they’d sleep long and hard after that.
Finn would make sure the situation was closely monitored until they reported in that they’d arrived. Luckily, that region had some rain, leaving it not as dry as it could be, and current weather conditions were in their favor. If the blaze got too big, he’d need to call on the local group of dragons who lived closer and send them in. They weren’t trained, couldn’t investigate the cause or deal with the dragons who set it, but they could get the blaze under control until Hall and Titus got there.
