by Emma Nichols
“Did you just hit her?” Blaise sounded controlled but furious. “There will be no exchange for damaged goods. Think about that.” Then the phone went dead.
Tears trickled down my cheeks. I sniffled. When I looked up, Joel’s mouth was gaping open. I looked at Sterling as proudly as I could manage. “Can I go to the bathroom now?”
“No.” He shook with rage. “If you’ve cost me this deal…”
“You’ll what?” My brow rose. Humiliation had been replaced with rage. My throbbing cheek wasn’t helping matters. I reached up, swiped at what I thought to be lingering tears, only to find my cheek was bleeding. When I glanced at his hand, I realized he was wearing a big silver pinky ring. “You cut me,” I noted. “You’d better be glad I mean nothing to Mr. Draco. If he cared about me and saw this, you’d be sorry.”
Sterling leaned in, until his nose nearly touched mine. “You want to know why he doesn’t care about you, why no man will ever care about you?”
I braced. This was going to get ugly. “It’s not true.” I shook my head.
“Which part? The part where you let your mother die? Or the part where you’ll never allow yourself to love or be loved because of it?” He leaned back slightly.
Digging deep, I somehow managed to keep my chin up, but my lower lip quivered. “That isn’t why he doesn’t care about me.”
“Are you sure about that?” He leaned closer again. “When I think about what you did, I’m thinking you might be my perfect match. What do you say?” He waggled his brows at me.
Completely revolted, I looked away, but he grabbed my chin and forced me to meet his gaze. “If you were the last man on earth, you still wouldn’t have a shot with me.”
Sterling glared, but then grabbed the back of my neck and I knew he was going to try to kiss me. Without considering the consequences, I reared back and made sure the top of my forehead connected with the bridge of his nose. He stood, screaming in pain, holding his nose with one hand. This time, his free hand formed a fist. “You vicious bitch!” Then he punched me, but since I was expecting it, his fist only glanced off my other cheek.
I glared at him, so angry I’d almost forgotten how badly I had to pee. Then on the back side of the building, there was a roar, and the sound of breaking glass. My heart pounded in my chest. He was here. Somehow, Blaise had found me.
A second later, my dragon burst through the back wall and spit a line of fire that had the men scrambling for the front door. No one even gave me a second thought. Only, when they pulled open the sliding doors at the front of the building, they found a second dragon standing there. Instead of having red and black scales like Blaise, this one was black and purple. My head tilted. Who the hell was that?
The men rushed away from the door as he lazily entered the room, his eyes fixed on his prey. They couldn’t evade both dragons. Ira tripped and landed hard on his knee. “Help me, boss!” he shouted. I laughed. I knew what would happen. Men like Sterling only helped themselves.
Sure enough, the billionaire hesitated for a split second before he bolted for the steps that would take him to the catwalk and eventually the roof. I watched as Blaise shifted, landing on the catwalk in a crouch. “Girard.” He spoke in a low angry voice.
“You!” Sterling was scared for a second before he puffed out his chest. “I have you breathing fire on film. Let me go, or I’ll ruin your business and end your career.”
Blaise chuckled. “You saw me turn into a dragon and you still think you can threaten me? You’re a special kind of stupid, Sterling.” He leaned close and hissed, “It’ll be harder to threaten me when you’re dead.” The man’s eyes widened. “Yes. I could kill you for what you did to Maggie.”
“No!” Sterling bolted toward the open window. There was a good five feet between the metal catwalk and his escape plan. He struggled to climb over the railing.
“Don’t do it,” Blaise warned. “You’ll never make it.”
“Of course I will. And when I do, I’m going to broadcast your secret all over the news.” He gestured to Blaise’s naked body. “They’ll have to blur much of this out, of course, but I’m sure Joel has been recording everything.”
I glanced around for Joel, who I’d all but forgotten during the confusion. He was cowering behind me. “Get away from me, you rat bastard.” Then I realized he wasn’t holding a phone or his computer. When I scanned the table, I realized they had both been a casualty of Blaise’s firestorm. I laughed and jerked my head to the burned pile.
Blaise smirked. “Apparently not.”
Sterling’s smile faltered. “It doesn’t matter. I’ll tell them everything and they’ll believe me.”
“And what’s to stop me from turning you into a shish kabob while you sleep?” Blaise whispered.
His eyes widened with fear, and then he turned and made a daring leap for the window, which fell hopelessly short. I watched as he clawed at the air, falling so quickly Blaise couldn’t save him, and the other dragon didn’t try. He was too busy breathing over Ira. I looked away, afraid of what I’d see. Instead, I offered Blaise a pleading look. He shook his head and I knew Sterling had perished. I didn’t know what to do.
Apparently, Ira didn’t either. When he saw his partner in crime fall and land with a resounding thud, he winced. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a pistol and stared at me. The dragon seemed to think the guy was going to shoot me and moved in between us. I knew better. Ira was a coward, not a killer. “I’m not going down for all this,” he said simply before holding the gun to his temple and pulling the trigger.
The shot rang out and reverberated through the huge empty building. I closed my eyes and winced. Then I felt familiar hands on my skin, and in my hair. I felt puffs of warm breath against my cheek as he pressed his lips to my temple. My tension melted. Opening my eyes, I whispered, “I thought I’d never see you again.”
“You wish,” Blaise teased. “Let’s get you out of here. You feel okay?”
I shook my head and my eyes watered.
“No?” He ran his hands over my limbs.
“It’s not that.” I swallowed hard and felt my cheeks heat. “I really have to pee.”
15
Blaise
“Better?” I asked when we climbed into the car.
Maggie stared into the building. The bodies were still inside. “What happens now?”
“You mean with the crime scene?” I asked quietly.
She nodded. “Yeah.”
I inhaled sharply. “Well, we wait for the police to arrive. I expect a lecture for going in to retrieve you without police backup, but I think we both know why that wasn’t possible.”
“Why wasn’t that possible?” Malcom chirped from the backseat. “That would’ve been smarter.”
With a smirk, Maggie turned to her father. “Go back to sleep, Daddy.”
He huffed and crossed his arms over his chest. “I can’t believe I slept through every bit of it.”
“You did?” She gave me the side-eye.
Malcolm nodded. “I fell asleep so fast and hard, I’d swear I was drugged.”
I coughed a few times. “I’m sure you were just overtired from all the excitement. Happens to the best of us.” I winked at Maggie.
With a yawn, he murmured, “Maybe I will rest my eyes for a minute.” It seemed within seconds, he was asleep again.
“So, you drugged my father.” Maggie giggled and shook her head. “Very resourceful.” Then she grew serious. “What happens now…with us?” She stared down at my hand and reached out to lace her fingers through mine.
“That’s entirely up to you,” I murmured. I leaned in to kiss her cheek, but then I saw her cut and swollen skin and couldn’t bear to cause her further pain, so I smoothed her hair back instead.
“How much of the conversation did you hear?” Maggie squeezed my hand extra tight.
“All of it. I have excellent hearing.” I watched her face fall. “None of that matters. Tell me the story, principessa.” I r
eached out and gently lifted her chin with my free hand.
Her eyes watered. “I can’t.”
“You have to. It’s the only way you’ll ever be free.” I nodded then planted a kiss on her forehead. “You must know by now, but in case you have any lingering doubt, there’s nothing you can do or say that will ever change the way I feel about you.”
“I find that hard to believe.” Maggie sniffled.
“Try me.” I studied her face. She was unmoved. “Trust me.” She visibly winced. “Let me love you, mi tesoro.”
Sucking in a breath, Maggie finally met my gaze. “She was dying. She had been dying for so long.” Her lids lowered and she blew out a ragged breath. “I cared for her while my father was at work, then when he was hiding in his office, and pretty much through all the darkest nights.” Her head tilted and she studied me a moment. “Did you know nights are the worst?”
I shook my head. “No, I didn’t.”
“They are. They last roughly fifty-seven hours. And the pain meds only lasted about four, if she was lucky.” While she curled up in the seat, she held my hand in between both of hers, and held it against her heart. “I noticed at one point that for roughly ten days, she was in complete agony. I had mentioned it to the doctor by phone. And the doctor said something that struck me: ‘if she’s taking her meds, there’s no way she should be in this much pain.’”
Suddenly, I guessed where this story was going. In an effort to comfort her, I took her hands, brought them to my lips, and kissed each knuckle individually. At first, she watched me, completely enthralled, but then she inhaled and continued her story.
“So, when she was asleep one afternoon…because she barely slept at night…I decided to investigate. I checked her bedding. I felt under her mattress. Finally, I opened the little table she used as a nightstand and found my old tooth fairy pillow. No teeth, mind you, but completely stuffed with pain pills.” Maggie glanced out the windshield and tried to inconspicuously wipe away her tears. “See, I knew she was going to do it. There’s no euthanasia policy here, no way to die humanely. She had endured so much suffering. I’d watched it for years while she tried to hang on for us, tried to survive, back when we still had hope.” She shook her head. “By the time she decided to die, hope had been extinguished long ago. I let my mother kill herself. I didn’t stop her when I could’ve, maybe should’ve. It’s why I take care of my father.” Maggie looked at me with red-rimmed eyes. “I took away his wife. I don’t deserve love and happiness. See?”
Before I could say a word and offer her the comfort she deserved, her father piped up from the backseat. “Maggie, I can’t believe you’ve been punishing yourself all these years.”
She gasped and whipped around in her seat. Fresh tears spilled down her face and a sob escaped her lips before any words could. “Daddy, I’m so sorry.”
“No, I’m sorry.” Malcolm leaned forward and rested his hand on her shoulder. “Do you think I didn’t know what she was doing? I knew. I buried myself and my shame in work because I was too weak to help end her suffering like she requested.” He sighed. “I’ve buried myself in work ever since.” Malcolm looked at me, his nose turning red from emotion. “Do you think you can love my little girl, give her the life she deserves?”
I grinned. “I do. And there’s nothing I’d like more in this world than an opportunity to prove it to you, both of you.” Lifting Maggie’s hands, I kissed one, then the other. “What do you say, principessa?”
She tilted her head and studied me a moment. “Did you mean it when you said I can choose where and how we live?”
“Absolutely.” I nodded fervently. My flutter quieted and I suspected when we were finally mated, it would be silenced altogether.
Maggie smiled shyly. “Well, then I guess we should make it official.”
“You mean it?” My eyes widened.
“As soon as possible.” She winked.
I pressed my lips to hers and savored the feeling of our closeness. This woman had the power to completely melt me.
Maggie
“I half expected you to throw me over your shoulder and rush to your bedroom with me when we finally returned,” I teased while we relaxed in the hot tub after a late dinner. The water and jets had helped me unwind some, but I’d never learned how to truly relax.
Blaise wrapped his arms around me. “No need for that. We have all the time in the world. This love, this life, you’ll find it’s a marathon in all the very best of ways.”
“So, not the part where I want to die, but where it goes on and on, huh?” I winked.
He chuckled. “More like the longevity, but also much more than I can ever explain. Luckily, we get to experience everything together from now on.” His butler walked onto the patio and nodded at us. My brows rose, but Blaise grinned. “Thank you, Fredo.” Then he stood and tugged on my hands until I stood.
“What’s up?” I smiled coyly. Then I decided to get serious. “I think I mentioned I don’t have a lot of experience in this department.” He started to open his mouth to speak, but I stopped him. “Please don’t tell me about the experiences you’ve accumulated through the centuries. I think it would break me. I think I’d be so hurt I might not be able to go through with this.” I bit my cheek while staring up into his glorious sapphire eyes.
After cupping my cheek, Blaise murmured, “It’s nothing like you think. Aside from a brief period during puberty, dragon shifters don’t really have much interest in sex until we find our mate. So, all these years of women throwing themselves at me have been for naught.” He leaned down and pressed his forehead to mine. “I’ve pretty much been holding out for you, mi amore.”
I inhaled sharply. “That’s really beautiful and terrifying.” My chin fell, but I peeked up at him through my lashes. “I don’t want to disappoint you. There has to have been a lot of build-up to this moment. The pressure is absolutely crippling.”
“Maggie, we have a lifetime to improve. The mating is a joining of hearts, minds, and bodies. It’s my way of gifting you with some of my abilities.” His fingers knotted in my hair and he pulled my head back until my neck was exposed. Then he scraped his teeth down my skin until he reached my clavicle, where he finally licked and nibbled.
“I have no gifts for you,” I whispered sadly.
Immediately, Blaise pulled back and shook his head. “Not true. In this moment, you become my anchor to reality, my partner in every sense, the guardian of our line.”
“Our line?” My brow furrowed.
Nodding, he continued. “Yes, our line: yours and mine. The best gift you’ll ever give me will be our sons.” The last words he spoke quietly in my ear, causing tingles down my spine.
I froze. “Wait. Sons?”
“Yes. There have never been any female dragon shifters. Ever.” He shrugged. “There haven’t even been any female offspring.”
“And this didn’t seem strange to anyone?” I laughed. When he simply stared at me blankly, I sighed. “Never mind.” I ran my hands over his chest, examining his perfect pecs. My hands pressed flat against his skin, moved upwards, and around his broad shoulders while admiring this marvel, the man who would become everything to me for hundreds of years. “We’re going to have an amazing life together, won’t we?”
“Never doubt it, Mags. We’ll see the world. We’ll make beautiful memories wherever we go.” Blaise scooped me up into his arms. “Starting tonight.” He carried me to the lounge chair where we’d left our towels and set me on my feet just long enough to wrap my towel around me, then tucked his around his hips. Leaning down, he pressed his lips to mine so lovingly, so tenderly, tears sprang to my eyes while he hefted me into his arms again. My flutter had become an ache of longing. “What are you thinking?”
I shook my head as my cheeks warmed. “Let’s talk in your room.” I blew out a breath. “Or better still, let’s not talk in your room.” Staring into his eyes, I wrapped an arm around the back of his neck and then laid my free hand over his heart.
To my satisfaction, it was racing as much as mine. This made me feel better. This made me downright happy, which apparently, Blaise noticed as we finally entered his room.
“What has you smiling, principessa?” he asked as he set me on my feet.
“You. Everything about you. And…us.” My smile widened.
He laid his hands on my shoulders and turned me around to see the room. Though all the lights were out, the room shone with what seemed like roughly a hundred candles. There were candelabras ablaze everywhere. Between them and the glow from the fireplace, the room had a warm feel and a lovely aromatic scent. I heard the door shut behind me, then music began to play from his sound system.
“I’m going to make a complete fool of myself over you, aren’t I?” I sighed. There were feelings stirring in me that I never expected to feel, let alone feel so soon.
“We’ll be fools together,” Blaise murmured as he stood behind me and began to kiss my shoulder.
“So, I guess we get on the bed?” I shrugged. Behind me, I heard him chuckle and I whirled around to face him. “Listen, I don’t know how to do this. I don’t know how to be anything other than me. I’m stubborn, and sarcastic.”
“Those are wonderful qualities.” He laughed. “After hundreds of years dealing with passive women, I finally found someone to fight with.”
My mouth gaped open. I snapped my jaw shut and shook my head. “I don’t get you. Shouldn’t I, if we’re to be mated?”
“Are you trying to talk yourself out of this, or me?” He reached down, took my hand and walked me out to the balcony.
I thought he’d say more, but obviously, he genuinely wanted a response. My shoulders drooped. “You. We’ve known each other a matter of days and you think you want me forever. You must be crazy. You have me wondering if I understand love and relationships at all.”
“That you are questioning this tells me you do. This matters to you. So, let me ask you a few questions. Indulge me, principessa.” Then he gestured for me to sit in the cushioned chair. Once I did, he began his line of questioning. “Do you care about me?”
