Sentinel of Darkness

by Katie Reus

  “Sort of. The obsession and possessiveness doesn’t exactly die down, but the snarling at other shifters does.” He paused and then added, “Sometimes.”

  Well that didn’t help any.

  Dragos Senior stepped inside then, looking so similar to his two sons it was clear they were family.

  “Any news?” Dagen asked, wanting to get right down to it. He didn’t like having Keva out of his line of sight, even if she was in the safest place possible right now. No one but family and known entities was allowed here today.

  “Camden tracked some credit card use of Richard’s to a few towns over. But I think it’s bullshit. The wolf has gone to ground and now all of a sudden gets stupid and starts using his credit card? Nah.” Conall shook his head.

  “I don’t buy it either,” Dagen said.

  “How’s she doing with everything?” Drake asked. The male had been trapped in Hell for almost fifteen hundred years, but he was still one of the most caring people Dagen had ever met.

  “Good, I think. Or, as good as can be expected. She’s strong,” he felt compelled to add. Because Keva might not be physically as strong as him, but she had a warrior’s heart. And she was smart too—continuing to make credit card charges on her dead ex’s card to avoid suspicion? Very smart.

  “Good. I’ve still got a crew watching her business and her home. No strange activity.”

  “So…why am I here?”

  “Just checking in with you. And I wanted to check on her. Does she know she’s your mate?”

  “No. She knows…I’m attracted to her.” He didn’t want to say any more than that. He’d mentioned mating to her, but she hadn’t seemed to realize the depth of what he meant.

  “She’s attracted to you as well,” Dragos said, speaking for the first time. The ancient male was gazing out one of the side windows, not looking at any of them. “But females are complicated, wonderful creatures.”

  True. He didn’t want to discuss Keva with anyone, however. Until she was his, until his dragon half was satisfied that she was completely claimed and marked, he wouldn’t be comfortable with any of this conversation.

  “Has Camden found anything new on Richard’s pack?” Dagen had done his own digging when Keva had been working, but Camden was a hacker and skilled at what he did.

  “No. They are what they appear to be. A bunch of asshole wolves with very few alliances. I reached out to the Alpha and he hasn’t responded at all. I have a feeling that if we kill Richard, he’ll simply say that he was acting on his own accord. Unless of course he’s fucking stupid and wants to go to war with us.” Conall shrugged, as if it was no big deal.

  “I plan to kill Richard,” Dagen said. That wolf had wanted to hurt Keva; it had been clear in his scent and body language. That male had gotten off on scaring her. And if he was anything like his dead brother, he needed to die.

  “I know. Go be with your female. We’ll—” Conall paused, glanced at his cell phone, then his expression went dark. “Grab Keva now. Someone set her workshop on fire.”

  * * *

  Twenty minutes later Keva stared at the destruction of the back half of her workshop, fighting back tears.

  “We managed to catch it in time. Could have been a lot worse,” the firefighter said, his tone apologetic and soothing. The man was human and had no idea that she’d arrived with dragons. “This wasn’t an accident though.”

  Yeah, she already knew that. “Yeah. I’m very particular about my workshop.” And Richard had to have known that damaging this place would hurt her. He was attacking her personally, attacking her livelihood. It had to have been him, or one of his packmates. She looked over her shoulder at Dagen standing with a handful of his clanmates on her back porch.

  The police were waiting to talk to her as well, though she’d already talked to one officer when she got here. Apparently they’d had to call a detective once the firefighters had deemed that it was arson.

  She was insured at least, but this attack didn’t hurt any less. She hadn’t done a full inventory yet of what she’d lost, but she’d have to. That bastard had destroyed her work, pieces she’d put a lot of sweat and time into. Resulting in lost revenue.

  Deep down, she knew that it was simply stuff, that she should be grateful she hadn’t been here and hadn’t been hurt, but…the personal nature of the attack made her rage inside.

  “We’ve done all we can. The police are going to take over for now… Is there anything else we can do for you?” the man asked her.

  “No, thank you for everything.” She rubbed a hand over her face, knowing that now she had to answer questions. Then she’d have to document everything and get it ready for her insurance company.

  She felt as if her life was spiraling out of control. It wasn’t, of course, but… She simply hated that Dagen was a witness to all of this. She hadn’t brought this on herself, knew she was a victim of all this bullshit, but it still sucked. She didn’t want this shit in her life—she wanted to stand on her own two feet. And that bastard Richard had done this on her day off, when she’d been enjoying herself for the first time in a long time, with her new friends. It was like pouring salt in a wound.

  Two hours later, she’d finished talking to the cops, made an official report and had taken a ton of pictures of the damage. The cops had too, and she’d use their report later when she filed a claim. She wasn’t going to catalogue everything tonight though.

  Because it was evening now and she was officially exhausted.

  “Here,” Dagen said, stepping up next to her like a ghost.

  She was getting used to his stealth, however. Glancing at him, she took the water bottle gratefully. Even if she hated that he was seeing her at her worst, it meant so much that he was here for her, a solid presence. “Now that the cops are gone…do we know how this happened? I mean, other than the obvious. It had to be Richard, right?”

  “We had sentinels patrolling your place from the sky. Someone—the wolves—snuck in and firebombed it. Wolves are fucking fast. They got in, did their damage, then got out. With all the smoke and accelerant, it was difficult to track them. My clanmates know what direction they went, but lost the scent trail. They were more concerned with calling the fire department and putting out what they could.”

  “I’m so glad they were able to extinguish the fire before the fire department got here. Otherwise it would have been a lot worse.” She took another sip of water, ready to collapse. “I’m going to need to make a list of all the damage but I’m too tired to do it tonight.”

  “Some of my clanmates are going to stay here tonight, keep an eye on everything. And we’ve got two more downtown watching your shop. Not that I think the wolves would be stupid enough to do anything now. But…I think you should stay at my place tonight. There’s no way anyone would be able to infiltrate our land and—”

  “Okay.”

  He blinked once. “Okay?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I thought I’d have to convince you.”

  She gave a tired smile. “Not tonight. I want to be back here early tomorrow. And I’ll need to call some of my employees, let them know they’ll be working without me tomorrow. But…I don’t want to be here tonight. If you’re sure you don’t mind me staying at your place?”

  He watched her for a long moment, those beautiful eyes of his intense. “I would give you my home if you asked. I don’t think you realize what you mean to me, Keva.”

  “Oh.” She seriously had no idea how to respond to that. This man was going to break down every wall she had. And she wasn’t sure that was a bad thing.

  She was just so afraid of giving in to her desires and then getting hurt. She knew that Dagen was nothing like her ex. The man was wonderful, giving and protective. So if he hurt her—emotionally—it would destroy her.

  Chapter 13

  Keva stared up at the ceiling as they entered Dagen’s house, her eyes wide. When she’d been at Arya’s place, she’d been aware of how big the female’s home w
as, but there had been so many people milling around everywhere it had seemed almost cozy. This was so different. It was just her and Dagen in his giant home. Without all the noise and people she was very aware of the massiveness of everything.

  She looked up at the stairs, wondering how high the ceiling of the second story was. A huge, gorgeous sparkly chandelier hung from the center of it, the moonlight from a skylight glinting off the crystal.

  “What is it?” he asked, holding her bags.

  “Nothing. Your home is beautiful. And so huge.”

  He laughed lightly. “Yeah. It’s definitely a dragon thing. A lot of us have what are basically launchpads in our backyard. It’s a giant space where we can shift and take to the sky.”

  “That’s pretty awesome,” she said, smiling. Like helipads, basically. But for dragons. Man, the things she was learning. And she would love to see Dagen fly.

  “We also have huge bedrooms and huge showers. I know you must be exhausted. You can shower in the guest bathroom or mine. And mine’s better. I’ve got a dozen different jets and plenty of space.”

  She knew he was just being kind but the thought of him joining her suddenly flooded her mind. She imagined him pressing her up against one of the walls and… Nope. She had to cut that thought off right then.

  But it was too late. Lust flooded her system, and that was when she realized that of course he could scent it.

  Damn shifter senses!

  She knew shifters had incredible sensory abilities, but it was easy to forget. When his eyes went pure dragon, she cleared her throat. “That would be great,” she rasped out, cursing herself that her voice was all uneven. It was becoming harder and harder to remember why she needed to resist this man. Because the thought of getting naked with him sounded pretty damn perfect right about now.

  He looked as if he wanted to say more but simply nodded toward the stairs. She followed him up the winding staircase, aware of how lush this place was.

  They’d had to drive through a private security gate just to get into…she wouldn’t call it a subdivision exactly, but it was a gated community for sure. Only dragons or other shifters were allowed in this territory, according to him. And they owned thousands and thousands of acres of land, including uninhabited mountain ranges. He’d told her that eventually they would sell it or basically transfer it to another entity to keep it in dragon hands. They had to move every so often to disguise from the humans the fact that they aged so slowly.

  “This is you,” he said, opening a huge door. It was definitely taller and wider than normal, likely custom made. He hadn’t been kidding about dragons liking space.

  She stepped inside and smiled at the fluffy, California king-size bed. “This is nice, especially for a guest room.”

  He lifted a shoulder. “Everything in the house is supersized.”

  For some insane reason, her gaze flicked downward—to his crotch. She was pretty sure that everything about him was supersized too. Feeling like a giant pervert, she looked away. But not before she heard him growl low in his throat. Damn it, she needed to keep her thoughts to herself or just not think about him in a sexual way at all.

  But that was impossible. “So—”

  Her words were cut off when she turned to face him and suddenly he was all up in her space, his lips crushing hers. Just like that, another rush of heat spread through her, scorching and all-consuming.

  Groaning, he pulled back. “I’m sorry—”

  Keva grabbed his shirt, pulling him right back to her. Hell no. If he was going to start something, she was going to finish it. Or at least get more than just a sad little taste. She had to, felt possessed with the need.

  Oh God, she should totally stop this, but instead she wrapped her arms around him, and just like that found herself pinned up against the nearest wall as he took her mouth with his, plundering and teasing. She was completely and utterly lost.

  Heat flooded between her legs as she arched up into him, moaning into his mouth. Why had she been resisting this? Resisting him?

  As she clung to him, he shoved his fingers through her hair as he pinned her in place. Everything about him was so much bigger than her and the way he was gripping her should have scared her, but she felt nothing other than protected.

  Wanted.

  And she wanted him right back. Hell, she’d never wanted anyone with the intensity that she desired him. She’d been trying to fight it since that adorable apology he’d given her in her shop, but it felt pointless now as her nipples beaded tightly against her bra. She was coming apart at the seams, desperate to feel his naked body pressed against her, to feel him pushing deep inside her.

  It was as if he’d woken something inside her. For years the idea of sex had repulsed her. Then when she’d gotten used to the idea again, she’d been too scared to make herself vulnerable with anyone. Especially a shifter. Now? She wanted everything with Dagen.

  He hoisted her up slightly so she automatically wrapped her legs around his waist as he continued teasing her tongue with his. The little growling sounds he made were turning her on even more.

  She nipped at his bottom lip, grinning when he moaned in that ridiculously sexy way. But she froze when, through her heavy-lidded gaze, she saw flames.

  Actual, silvery, ice-blue flames. Everywhere!

  “Dagen!” she cried.

  The odd-colored flames danced all around them, but they didn’t seem to be burning anything. And that was when she realized they covered him and her as well. Oh my God, she was on fire. Sort of.

  “I’m sorry. I should have warned you. I didn’t plan on kissing you though,” he muttered.

  The flames flickered down slightly but still covered every surface. It was beautiful, stunning, and the color of his eyes.

  “What is this?” she whispered. She’d thought she was ready for anything but this was totally new and a little scary.

  His jaw tightened once, but he answered. “When a dragon meets his mate, that realization can manifest in different ways. For my people—my bloodline—it manifests through fire. The only reason it hasn’t manifested until now is because we haven’t been physical. Once I officially mate with…” He cleared his throat. “With my mate, the manifestation goes away.”

  Holy crap, that was a lot of information. “What do you mean…mate?” It seemed pretty self-explanatory but she wanted to be certain she understood.

  “I think you know exactly what I mean.” His expression was intense, though he hadn’t let her go.

  “Are you saying I’m your mate?”

  “Yes.”

  “Feel like expanding on that a little bit?” she asked, her fingers digging into his shoulders. Because she got the sense that this was a whole lot different than a simple relationship. And she didn’t trust anything her ex had told her about matings or shifter relationships. She wanted the truth from Dagen.

  “I knew what you were to me when I met you. Or my dragon half sensed it anyway. Shifters don’t always know right away, but I did.”

  “So when you said you would just be friends with me, was that true?”

  “If that was all you ever offered, I would take it. But I want more. I’m always going to want more. I want to be with you. I want to be your mate.”

  She had some knowledge of shifter dynamics, but again, she wanted it all spelled out so there was no confusion. “That’s like being married, right?” Which, holy wow, that felt weird to say since they’d only met a few days ago.

  “Sort of. But it is truly for life. Mates don’t split up. Or if they do, it’s rare and I’ve never known a mated couple to split. And for dragons, mating is different than with other shifters.”

  She let her legs fall from around his waist as she took in all of his words. Her arousal was still simmering underneath the surface, but this was a lot to digest. “Different how?” She wondered if they had some sort of kinky ritual.

  “It’s a lot to explain and I would rather not right now.” His flames completely died then a
nd she wondered why.

  “Why? Is it because I’m human?”

  He blinked once. “No. I don’t want to tell you because you’ve just been through a lot. I don’t want to pile more on your plate. I don’t care that you’re human and not shifter, if that’s what you’re asking. I wouldn’t care if you were a wolf shifter. I’m simply not telling you right now because…maybe I’m not ready either.”

  “Ready for what?”

  “Ready for your complete rejection.”

  On instinct she reached for him, wrapping her arms around him. “Why are you so sure that I would reject you? Is it because… Do dragons mate in a kinky way or something?”

  He paused, his lips twitching once as he said, “No.” But then that serious expression was back. “You didn’t even want a relationship with me and now I’ve told you that you’re my mate.” He gently cupped her cheek. “Maybe I want to get to know you more before I lay everything on you.”

  Sighing, she leaned against his chest and listened to the steady beat of his heart, wishing they were skin to skin everywhere. “Maybe I’m an idiot and I want more than I said I did. I…want to be more than friends.”

  His body went impossibly still in that moment and she heard his heart rate kick up just a fraction. “You want something with me?”

  She pulled back slightly so she could look up into his eyes. “Yes. I don’t know precisely what I want yet, and this mating news is a whole lot to deal with. But…yes, I want to be with you.”

  “We will be exclusive,” he growled out.

  She’d learned to decipher his growls. And she loved the possessiveness in his expression and tone. “Obviously.”

  The way she said obviously seemed to ease something inside him because the tenseness in his shoulders loosened. “Okay, then.”

  “Okay, then?”

  He nodded, pulling her fully into his arms. The man was still completely hard too, his erection pressing against her. And those flames had started to dance over his skin and hers.