by Anna Lowe
She can’t stay here. No humans. We agreed.
Kai whirled to glare at the tiger.
I thought you distrusted humans as much as I do, Cruz’s yellow-tinted tiger eyes met his.
Kai caught the words, I do, on his tongue.
His dragon shrugged. We do distrust humans. Just not this one.
Silas shot him a sidelong glance. Why are you so bent on protecting this human?
It didn’t seem prudent to blurt, Because I think she’s my mate, so he just growled. A dragon threatened her. It’s our duty to set this straight.
Silas considered and finally nodded to Tessa. “It’s late. We have a guesthouse where you can stay — for now.” He gave Kai a pointed stare then softened when he turned back to Tessa. “You’ll be safe here. I give you my word. You’ll be safe.”
Tessa clutched at the fabric of the couch, and her fingers played over her necklace as she wavered. The stone pendant was a deep, rich green, exactly the color of her eyes.
Kai looked at her, begging for her attention, and she finally glanced his way.
You’ll be safe here, he promised, communicating with his eyes. His body. His soul. I give you my word, you’ll be safe.
The longer he looked into those incredible green eyes, the more time seemed to slow down. The room blurred away, as did the other men, and all sound muted but for the beating of his heart.
Mate, his dragon whispered. This is our mate.
He wanted to will the words into her mind, but she was human. How could she possibly hear? How could she understand about the eternal bond that united two shifters?
“Tessa,” Silas hissed, and bang — Kai snapped back to the world. Tessa blinked as if she, too, had drifted away.
“Yes. I mean, thank you,” she said, suddenly flustered. “I mean…”
Silas nodded wearily. “Boone, show her the way.”
Kai almost leaped to block the wolf, but Silas threw an arm in his way. You stay here. We need to talk.
“Right this way,” Boone said, leading Tessa out into the night.
She balked, looking at Kai, whose soul cried. He wanted to be the one to show her the way, to keep her safe. But Silas’s grip on his shirt was tight, and the look on his face said he meant business, so Kai turned to Tessa and promised her all over again. He nearly drifted off into that hypnotized, can’t drag my eyes off hers state again, too.
“Kai.” Silas yanked on his sleeve.
“Come on, Tessa,” Boone said at exactly the same time.
She looked at him once more, then stepped out into the night and slipped into the shadows with Boone.
Kai’s dragon roared inside. Not Boone! He can’t have her! He—
Kai did his best to ignore the voice. Boone was a good man he’d trust with his life.
Do you trust him with our mate? his dragon cried.
Kai gritted his teeth and turned slowly back to Silas. Hunter and Cruz slunk into the night, too, leaving Kai and his cousin alone. To fight? To talk? Kai wondered which it would be.
Silas paced behind the bar and poured himself a brandy. He didn’t offer Kai any. He just lifted the glass and pointed an accusing finger.
“Let me repeat the question. Why are you so interested in this human?”
Kai gnashed his teeth. How could he answer when he wasn’t entirely sure himself? So he lied. “Like I said. Another dragon threatened her. It’s our duty to set this straight.”
Silas glared, but the anger, Kai knew, wasn’t aimed at him. “Goddamn Damien Morgan. And if he’s still working for Drax…”
Kai froze as a cold, icy feeling tiptoed down his back. “Drax?”
Silas nodded and said it louder as if to prove he wasn’t afraid of the name. “Drax.”
“Are you sure?”
“I can’t be sure of anything when it comes to those bastards.”
Silas’s eyes flared, and Kai wondered again what had happened in the past. Silas was only older by a few years, but he’d left home much earlier than Kai. He’d come home scarred and tight-lipped. A short time later, he’d joined the army. When Kai’s guardian died, Kai had followed Silas into the service, not knowing what else to do. That was a good ten years ago, and now… He shook his head at himself. Now he was scarred and tight-lipped, too.
He glanced in the direction Tessa had gone, wondering at all the feelings she’d stirred up. Things he hadn’t felt for a long, long time.
He thumped his fist on the counter, because letting out anger was more acceptable than showing anything that made him soft. “Fucking Damien Morgan.”
They’d only crossed paths twice, but it was enough to convince Kai what an arrogant, selfish ass Morgan was. Some shifters hid from the human world entirely. Others did their best to fit in and even to serve, like Kai, Silas, and their brothers-in-arms had. A few, however, used their unique shifter abilities to consolidate power and wealth. Shifters like Damien Morgan, the real estate tycoon, and even worse, Drax, the most powerful dragon of all.
“Real estate tycoon, my ass,” Kai muttered, thinking of the land Morgan had cheated his family out of when they were at their most vulnerable — two decades earlier, when the older generation died and the up-and-comers were too young to resist. He took the brandy from Silas and poured himself two fingers. “We should have taken him out a long time ago. Both of them — Morgan and Drax.”
Silas let out a bitter chuckle. “I tried. Believe me, I tried.” He rubbed his right arm, where his sleeve hid the scars.
Kai put the bottle down with a thump. “How much are we going to let them get away with?”
“We don’t know if they’re working together on this.”
“But if they are?”
“I guess we’ll find out soon enough. We have a day — maximum two — before Morgan figures out Tessa’s real name and tracks her down.”
Kai bristled, and his dragon nearly let out a puff of fire. No one touches my mate.
“Let him come,” Kai said. “Let him fight.”
Silas shook his head. “Morgan, we might be able to take on. But if Drax is involved… I want to take down Drax as much as anyone, but we’re not ready yet. You know that.”
“How much more ready can we be?”
“Drax has more men, a hell of a lot more money, and dozens of spies.”
“We have spies, too,” Kai noted.
Silas raised his glass in a salute. “Thank goodness for Ella.”
Kai raised his glass, too. “To Ella, then.”
“To Ella,” Silas agreed, toasting the night.
“And to taking down Damien Morgan,” Kai added. “The first chance we get.”
Chapter Three
“Right this way,” Boone said, gesturing ahead.
Tessa hung back a little. Was she really going to follow a werewolf into the night? She glanced up at the moon, then at Boone’s broad back, and finally over her shoulder to the open-sided building they’d just left.
Kai. Something kept pulling her back to Kai. But, damn — he was a dragon, just like the one who’d attacked her.
Dragons are insanely possessive, Ella had warned her. Once they see something they want, they never give up.
Ella had been talking about Damien Morgan, of course, but surely that applied to Kai, too. Still, Tessa hesitated. Every instinct drew her toward Kai, just as every instinct had told her to keep away from Damien Morgan.
She forced one foot in front of the other and followed Boone, watching him closely. At that point, a werewolf seemed like the lesser of two evils — as long as he didn’t start howling at the moon.
Boone caught her upward glance and chuckled. “Don’t worry. The moon isn’t what makes us shift.”
Shift. She turned the word over in her head. He said it so casually, like any creature could transform from human to animal.
“What does make you shift, then?” she asked, following him warily down the footpath.
Boone ducked under a leaf the size of an umbrella and paused, holdi
ng it up for her to pass.
“We can control when we shift.” That made her feel slightly better — until he added, “Well, most of the time.”
“Most of the time?” She stopped in her tracks.
Boone just strode on like it was any other Sunday in Hawaii. But it wasn’t. It was midnight of the day she’d had her world turned upside down.
“You’re not so different, I bet,” he said as the sound of waves breaking over a coral-strewn shore grew louder.
“I’m pretty sure I’m very different. I’ve never sprouted fur or fangs.”
“I mean controlling it.” He stopped and looked at the moon. “Like when you’re mad. Most of the time, you control it, right? But every once in a while, something happens, and you snap.” His voice grew hushed. Regretful, almost.
Tessa looked up, too, trying to find a star that might orient her to this new place. It was so unlike Arizona — so alive, so green. So full of noises, like the swish of leaves against each other and the whisper of water over the beach.
Yes, she knew a thing or two about losing her temper. As a child, she’d had uncontrollable outbursts.
She’s fiery, like her hair, her mother used to say.
Fiery, like our ancestors, her grandmother would add, though her mother always scoffed at that.
“Every human has an animal side,” Boone said quietly. “Being a shifter just brings it to the surface.”
Tessa furrowed her brow. “Like Ella?”
“Desert fox.” Boone grinned. “Cunning as anything. Great legs, too.”
Tessa snorted, but Boone just laughed. “What can I say? I’m a wolf.”
The trail wound on, and Tessa wondered how big the estate was.
“What about dragons?” she asked when her thoughts drifted back to Kai.
“What about them?”
“Does something suddenly make them snap, too?”
Boone stopped and turned, scratching his brow. “Look, I know what you’re thinking…”
Tessa doubted that, because her mind kept flipping back to the moment she’d brushed shoulders with Kai. To the pop of electricity that had zipped around her body. The rush of warmth. The feeling of security.
“You can trust Kai and Silas. They have their rough spots, but hell, we all do.” He scratched his chest, looking rueful. “It’s guys like Damien Morgan you need to watch out for.”
Tessa laughed bitterly. “If only someone told me that before I went to his house.”
Boone shrugged. “Anyway, I’m guessing you’ve had enough to digest for one night. Time to catch some rest.”
He motioned ahead, and she followed in spite of herself. The foliage thinned gradually, and the sound of the sea grew louder, drawing her on. Then Boone turned a corner and—
“Wow,” she breathed when they stepped into the open.
A row of palms stood like so many flagpoles along the beach, their fronds swaying in the night breeze. Moonlight glittered over the ocean — not just in little glimpses but in a long, silver line drawn straight across the sea. The moonlight sparkled and danced over the water, casting everything in an indigo light.
“Beautiful,” she breathed.
“Welcome to Hawaii.” Boone grinned. “Now get some rest.”
He waved to the right, and her jaw dropped. “That’s the guesthouse?”
“Yep.”
“And I get to stay there?”
He laughed. “All yours.”
She took a step forward, then stopped again, staring at a vision from a travel magazine. The beach bungalow was tiny, but perfect. It started right where the beach ended, with a small step up to a low porch. A banana-colored kayak was pulled up beside the porch, inviting her to switch her inner clock to island time. The long, curved roof of palm fronds swept high in the middle and down at each end, sheltering a deep porch with two lounge chairs. The entire structure screamed time to relax.
Boone rolled a sliding door aside. His height made the place look even smaller and cozier.
“It’s like a hobbit hole with a thatched roof,” Tessa exclaimed.
He laughed and flicked the light switch, revealing a blue-and-yellow interior that soothed her nerves. “Don’t tell Silas that.”
She didn’t have the energy to wonder what he meant.
“Good night,” Boone murmured, turning back down the path.
“Wait — what about tomorrow?” she cried, gripping the doorframe.
He shrugged. “What about it?”
“I mean, what happens next?”
He tilted his head left and right. “I’m a wolf, not a soothsayer. But don’t worry. Everything will be all right.”
How did he know that? How could he be so sure?
“Aloha po. Good night,” Boone said and disappeared down the path.
Tessa hugged herself and gazed out over the sea. Was she really going to spend the night among perfect strangers who turned into wild beasts?
Did she have a choice?
Briefly, she considered the kayak. No one would notice if she hopped in and paddled away. She could make her way to someplace down the coast, hitch a ride back to town, check herself in to a hotel, and figure out what to do next.
The moonlight winked off the sea, reminding her of the real problem. Morgan. The evil dragon was out there, and if he was searching for her…
She backed away from the kayak, studying the shadows. Maybe staying was her best bet. If she left now, she might walk right into her true enemy.
A bauble hung in a window, glinting blue in the moonlight — a pure, clean blue, just like Kai’s eyes.
If you leave now, it seemed to say, you’ll never discover the mystery behind those amazing eyes, either.
Her whole soul warmed, and her cheeks flushed as if Kai were actually there asking for a goodnight kiss. A kiss her soul yearned for, even if her mind resisted.
He’s a dragon. He’s dangerous, just like Morgan, who thinks he can take what he wants.
He’s nothing like Morgan, a little voice in the back of her mind protested. You can trust him. You should trust him.
She took a deep breath, undecided. Then she checked the sky — no sign of dragons, thank goodness — and hurried inside, just in case.
Chapter Four
To her utter surprise, Tessa slept soundly from the moment she lay her head on the soft pillow of her queen-size bed to…to whatever time the scratch of a palm over the roof woke her up. She lay blinking at the thatched roof, amazed she’d slept free of nightmares. A few dreams had drifted through her mind, but they were all vague and blurry. She’d felt warm, relaxed, and protected, like a winter wanderer who’d stumbled into a cabin with a crackling fireplace. In place of winter, though, there’d been a tropical wonderland, and instead of being curled up in front of a fireplace, she’d been snuggled up in the nook of something leathery and safe. Something with a gentle curve to it, like a crescent-shaped couch.
Daylight bathed the bungalow, doing its best to creep in under the low edge of the roof. For a moment, it even felt as if Boone had spoken the truth — that everything would be all right.
But when Tessa studied her dreams more closely, her heart started pounding again. That wasn’t a couch she’d imagined nestling against. It was a slumbering dragon who’d kept his wing looped over her, forming a shelter.
She jumped out the bed and threw the front door open, suddenly desperate for fresh air.
The sun sparkled off the sea much as the moonlight had, and a shearwater flew past. Nothing to worry about, its graceful arc through the air seemed to say. Nothing to worry about here.
Tessa eyed the thick vegetation all around. Nothing to worry about? What if a tiger came wandering out of the underbrush with bloody prey in its mouth? Or if a bear came lumbering down the path, nose to the breeze? She glanced upward. A dragon could swoop overhead at any moment, throwing her world into shadow again.
She retreated into the little bungalow, wondering what to do.
Routine, her
grandmother used to tell her each time she had to shuttle between her parents’ homes. One week here, another week there. The most important thing is to maintain your routine. Then you’ll feel at home no matter where you are.
She doubted she’d ever feel at home in a place surrounded by shifters. But then again, she didn’t have to stay long. Just long enough to figure out how to evade Damien Morgan and get back to living her life.
There was instant coffee in the tiny kitchenette, and a shower off to the side with nice, fluffy towels rolled into tidy rows. Tessa touched them, then glanced around the neat-as-a-pin bungalow. Who did the housekeeping on this estate? More shifters? Humans? Fairies?
She pushed the thought out of her mind and concentrated on one thing at a time, starting with a shower. The airline had lost the luggage she’d packed in her hasty departure from Arizona, so she’d slept in her top and underwear. A quick perusal of the closet turned up a selection of plain T-shirts in various sizes, as well as sarongs, so at least there was that — not to mention a toothbrush by the sink, thank God.
The shower made her feel fresher and stronger, but the coffee only made her hungrier, so she gathered her nerves and stepped outside.
Koa Point, Ella had said. Koa means an elite class of warrior.
Tessa turned in a slow circle. The warrior part fit, for sure, but Koa might as well have meant heavenly place where the land meets the sea, judging by the breathtaking view.
She wandered slowly up the path Boone had brought her down the previous night. Trails branched off in every direction, and a corrugated roof showed to the right. There seemed to be a number of houses tucked away in their own private corners of the estate, and she wondered who lived where. Most of all, she wondered where Kai lived. Did all dragons live in high perches, like Damien Morgan? The estate extended from the seashore to… Well, she couldn’t tell how far. The property was plenty big, that was for sure.
The foliage opened briefly, and she glimpsed a helipad where a brown helicopter with yellow and red stripes stood on a square patch of cement. She pursed her lips and walked on. Whoever owned the estate really had it all.
