Eyebrows high, he rushed to reassure her. “Adara, I’m not here for you or your kids. I mean none of you any harm. You’re a shifter, so you can hear the truth in my voice. I just have some questions, but like I said on the phone, they have nothing to do with you, your family, or your life here.”
“Yes, I can hear that’s the truth. Just know the threat still stands, in case you decide to change your mind. Okay, follow me.”
Turning, she walked toward a hallway to the left, and he followed behind her. She’d threatened him with a pleasant expression on her face, a smile affixed to her lips the whole time, but the look in her eyes said she was deadly serious. His respect for her, as well as her mate, kicked up a few notches.
They walked into a living room, and she gestured for him to sit. He did so, clasping his hands together and staring at them, suddenly unsure where to start. She waited patiently for him to gather his thoughts, and he finally looked up and met her light blue eyes.
“I guess I’ll start with how I knew where you were. I had some unfortunate dealings with a dragon, Ivan. No, to be honest, I was spying on him. He was the cause of my sister’s death, and I was looking for a weakness, something I could use to my advantage to exact vengeance. I heard him ranting one day about how he found a female dragon before my sister. He said she’d been taking something to suppress her dragon, and her uncle sold her whereabouts to him. But when he got there, to Louisiana where she lived, she was already gone.”
Adara held up a trembling hand, her eyes a silvery blue with sapphire diamonds, like a night sky, and full dragon. “Wait. This has to be me you’re talking about. When was this? When was he looking for me?”
“I overheard him about four months ago, but don’t worry. I think you’re safe.”
“You think?” she asked in disbelief, voice a few octaves higher than normal. “This is my children’s safety we’re talking about. I need more than ‘think’.”
“No, you misunderstand. I didn’t answer that well. I overheard him talking four months ago, but this happened years ago. I’ll be honest, he tracked you here, but when he found out you were already mated, he turned his sights elsewhere. He has another female dragon in mind.”
“Oh, thank God,” she said, slumping in her seat. “That sounded horrible. I’m not happy about him finding another female dragon, but you have to understand. I have twin girls,” she said, giving him a meaningful look.
It took him a second, but her meaning became clear. “Both dragons?” he asked in surprise.
She nodded her head in confirmation. “Both dragons. They’re young yet, only two, but it’s never too early to start worrying about things like that.”
“No, it’s definitely not,” he replied, thinking back to his parents’ instant fear when their daughter revealed dragon pupils only hours after birth.
“You’re different than the male dragons I was warned about my whole life. I knew my uncle lied about many things during my life, or overexaggerated at the very least, but I didn’t think he stretched the truth about the males of our species.”
“He didn’t,” he said earnestly. “I’m a rarity for our kind, not the norm. My parents raised me differently than most males are brought up. So don’t underestimate how brutal the men can be, and don’t relax your guard with your daughters. I’m not sure there are many as persistent as Ivan, who have the means of getting what they want, but you never know. My sister and I… our parents did everything they could to keep her safe, but even though we took precautions, she and I still relaxed our guards, and she was killed because of it. Don’t raise them to fear their own shadows, but make sure they understand how vitally important this is.”
Adara opened her mouth to reply, but she paused as two tiny shrieks, and the sound of running feet came from beyond the closed door.
“You two little imps get back here. Stop fighting over that toy, you both have plenty,” came Jared’s exasperated voice. A masculine shout sounded, and booted feet were the next to pound past the doorway. “Ava Chelsea Montgomery, what have I told you about using your fire in the house? You’re in big trouble, missy.”
A faint giggle reached their ears, and eyes dancing, Adara looked at him with a laugh. “Does that sound like children who are afraid of their own shadows? And trust me, we pound into them how important it is to tell no one what they are. I can’t see them ever losing the spark they have, and I pray they never do.” Sobering, she said softly, “I’m so sorry about your sister. And I hope this Ivan guy never finds who he’s looking for.”
“Thanks,” he replied, after clearing his tight throat. “Daria will always be missed. And though he’s looking for his newest find, he hasn’t found her yet. I was his tech guy and hacker, so I know that for sure. At least, he hadn’t found her when I left around five weeks ago. But who he’s looking for… well, it’s Cammie.”
She gasped, eyes wide. “Cammie? Cammie with the fighters?”
“Yes,” he confirmed grimly. “And she’s my mate. That’s why I need as much information as I can get, so I have a better chance at protecting her.”
“Of course. I’ll help in any way I can.”
“In order to get close to Ivan, I had to pretend to be human, and I took the same suppressants you did to make sure my eyes didn’t give me away. My last dose was about seven weeks ago, but I just started really becoming aware of my dragon not even two full days ago. How long was it until you had full use of your dragon after your last dose?”
“It took over three months before I felt her stirring in me again, longer than that until I could shift.” She saw the alarm on his face, and rushed to reassure him. “Don’t freak out. I was on them for around nineteen years, give or take. I was forced to take more and more of them because I was starting to develop immunity, so there was a ton in my system. It took a while for them to wear off. If you can feel your dragon already, you’re in much better shape than I was in.”
“I’m not so sure of that,” he replied with a heavy exhale. “I had amnesia. I haven’t ever heard of a shifter who had that. And I saw how I looked when I woke up after the wreck. My head had a huge lump on it, and that was a week after I wrecked. Hell, I didn’t even realize I was a shifter at all until two days ago. I knew about shifters instinctively somehow, but I had none of the traits. I worry I screwed my animal up by taking it.”
“The suppressants do that. When they suppress the animal, they suppress everything the animal gives to us. I had hardly any shifter traits. No enhanced vision, strength, speed. I couldn’t hear lies clearly, and my healing was much slower than that of a normal shifter. It was still accelerated to a degree, but it was just a notch or two above a human’s. The only thing I retained was my gift. I’m gonna guess you probably took more damage to your head in the wreck than you thought you did, or maybe you hit it the wrong way. It’s possible you might not even have survived if you hadn’t been a shifter.”
Frowning thoughtfully, he nodded slowly. “My gift has been present from almost the beginning, as well, though I didn’t realize what it was. And I guess that’s possible. I didn’t think I took much of the damage in the wreck, but I know Hannah almost died. I haven’t even seen the car since it happened.”
“From what I’ve been able to gather from other shifters, taking the suppressants after a lifetime of having the advantages your animal gives you can leave you even more vulnerable than a human. And head wounds can be tricky, so less vehicle damage doesn’t necessarily mean you walked away less unscathed than she did. But I can call Frank, the sheriff, and ask him where the car is so you can go check it out.”
“Really? That would be amazing,” he told her gratefully. “Wait, I can’t be found here. I created a fake identity to use with Ivan’s human lackey when I was hired, but my car is in my name, and you can never be too careful when it comes to him. I don’t want to be what leads him to Eagle Creek.”
“Don’t worry, Frank’s discreet. He’s human, but he knows about us, and understands the need for
secrecy. It’s because of him that you’ll find no record of your wreck anywhere. Give me just a second and I’ll get you the info,” she said, pulling out her cell phone and dialing a number. She spoke for a few moments before grabbing a notepad and pen, writing something down. “Here you go. That’s the address where your car is. It’s not damaged too much, but it’s at the junkyard. He thought that would be less conspicuous than leaving it at the impound. He said to tell the person at the desk you’re a friend of his, and they’ll show you where it’s at.”
Reaching out, he took the paper from Adara and looked at the address. “Thanks for taking the time to talk to me, Adara. I really appreciate it.”
“Is there anything else you need, or do you have any other questions?”
He stood, shaking his head. “That was basically it. I just wanted to be here in person when I asked, so you could see for yourself I don’t have bad intentions for the info. And I wanted to warn you about making sure you keep to yourself. I don’t see Ivan coming after you, since you’re mated and he has new quarry, but you can never be too careful.”
Adara walked him to the door. “I really appreciate the warning. Like I said before, I’m not too worried about myself. It’s my girls who need the most protection. Good luck with everything.”
“You, too. Thanks again.”
He walked outside, heading to Seth’s bright orange ’68 Charger. It was a little flashy for his tastes, but it was a beautiful car, and drove like a dream. He looked at the slip of paper Adara wrote the address down on, and decided to go there now. It would give him an excuse for leaving Rocky River tonight, if nothing else.
Starting the car and driving toward town, he prayed Cammie could accept the excuse. He was struggling to act like everything was okay, to not give anything away until he figured out how to tell her the truth, but he knew he was failing miserably. She was becoming more concerned, and more suspicious, with every passing moment, he could tell. No, no more stalling. His time for figuring things out was at an end. He knew it all now, so no more excuses. Tonight when he got back to Rocky River, he was sucking it up and coming clean. He had to. He couldn’t keep lying to her, and he had to tell her before she figured it out on her own.
But more importantly, she needed to know Ivan was looking for her. Alex would take no chances with her safety. And if he could claim her, it might stop this altogether. Ivan left Adara alone when he learned she was mated to a shifter, and he prayed he would do the same if Cammie was mated. As long as she let it happen. She might be too hurt to stay with him at all, much less agree to them claiming each other, mates or not.
Blowing out a breath, Alex tried to steady his nerves. This was going to be the hardest thing he ever did, because he knew he’d probably lose her. But he had no other choice. So this was it. He was telling her all tonight, baring his heart and soul to her, sink or swim. It was go time.
Chapter Twelve
A soft knock sounded on Cammie’s door, and she stared at it for a moment before grudgingly opening it. Glaring at Alex, she tapped her foot, arching her eyebrow.
“Can I come in?” he asked wearily.
Frowning over how tired and beat down he looked, some of her frustration and anger faded away. She gestured him in, watching as he collapsed to a sitting position on the side of her bed. His head was hanging, his shoulders slumped, and despite herself, she felt herself softening, concern over his appearance washing her ire away. Chiding herself for turning into such a softy and losing some of her tough edge, she walked over and sat down next to him, pulling her leg up and planting her foot on the bed.
“Are you okay?”
He glanced at her in surprise. “I thought for sure you’d be too mad to even let me in the door, and here you are, asking me if I’m okay.”
“Don’t get me wrong, I’m still pissed. Kind of. But you look like you just lost your best friend. I’ve never seen you look like this before.”
He took her hand and gave it a squeeze, holding it tightly and rubbing his thumb over her knuckles. “It was just a long day. A long two days, really.”
“Where did you take off to tonight? You worried me.”
Shaking his head, he closed his eyes tightly for a moment. “I’m so sorry, Cammie. I didn’t mean to worry you. I just had a lot of questions I didn’t have answers to, and I wanted to take a drive, try to find some answers. Oh, and,” he reached into his pocket, pulling out a set of keys, “I found out where my car was, and stopped by to check it out.”
“You have it back?” she asked.
“Yeah. Well, kind of. I have the keys and can get it any time. I couldn’t drive it back since I was driving Seth’s.”
“It’s a little much, isn’t it? Flamboyant, and an attention getter.”
“My car?” he asked in surprise. “It’s a black Toyota sedan.”
“No,” she said with a laugh. “Seth’s Charger.”
“Oh. Yeah, it’s a little much for me, but it’s a nice car. And it practically screams Seth,” he said with a chuckle.
“That it does,” she replied, smile fading as she looked at him closely, taking in the strain around his eyes. “Did you find the answers to your questions?”
“Not the most important ones,” he said with a heavy exhale.
If anything, he looked more beat down than he had when he knocked on her door, and she squeezed his hand. “Give it time. They’ll come.”
He glanced at her and a flash of guilt passed through his gray eyes, there and gone so fast she was left wondering if she saw it at all.
“You’re too good to me,” he said fervently, raising her hand to his lips and placing a soft kiss on her knuckles.
Laughing, she replied, “You’ll get no argument from me there.”
His eyes softened as they searched hers, before dropping to her lips. She wet them reflexively, and his eyes darkened with heat as he leaned in and kissed her slowly. He kept it light for a long moment, just brushing his lips across hers, and then he opened his mouth slightly. She did the same, but he didn’t immediately push his tongue inside, instead giving her long, open mouthed kisses.
Turning to her more fully, he eased her down on the bed, and she left her knee up as she lifted her hand to his jaw, wanting to feel it working as he kissed her. Eventually, he passed his tongue over her lips, and she opened further for him, her tongue meeting his. He kept the kiss gentle as their tongues tangled together, but desire was still racing through her body, warming her blood quickly.
It felt like ages they stayed like that, just kissing and nothing more, but eventually his hand moved to her bare knee, and he slowly slid it up her thigh. Her breath caught in her chest as his touch left tingles in its wake. He paused when he reached her thigh, but despite her urging, he wouldn’t move it higher.
He pulled away from her, searching her eyes. Trying to swallow her frustration down, she asked, “What? Why did you stop?”
“Cammie, we need to talk first. I have to tell you some—”
Quickly shaking her head, she put her hand over his mouth. “Not now. I want to make love with you. We’ll talk after.”
Hesitating more, he gazed into her eyes as she removed her hand. “Are you sure? I think—”
Not caring to hear what he thought, sure it would be more of him wanting to talk, she leaned up and sealed her mouth to his. She didn’t want to talk right now. She wanted to make love with him. Not only for her, though she felt like she’d expire on the spot if he didn’t get inside her soon, but for him, as well. He looked so dejected, so weary, like the weight of the world was on his shoulders. She hated seeing him like this, and she wanted to help take away whatever was troubling him, even if it was only for this moment in time.
Even with her kissing him, she could still feel him pausing, still hesitating. So she plunged her tongue into his mouth, arching her pelvis into his, and it wasn’t long before she felt him giving in, kissing her back with the same intensity she was kissing him with.
His hand
went to her knee again, and this time he slid it all the way up her thigh, delving under her shirt to cup her breast. Moaning into his mouth, she arched her back, pushing herself more firmly into his hand. His fingers found her nipple, and they twisted, tugged and pinched, until she was writhing on the bed under him.
Sliding her hand between their bodies, she found his hard shaft and squeezed, but she wanted more. Popping the button of his jeans open, she eased the zipper down, smiling to herself at the way he held himself still, his fingers absentmindedly rubbing over her nipple. His focus wasn’t on driving her crazy, it was on what she was doing to him. And that’s exactly how she wanted it.
She pushed on his jeans, and he helped her push them down. As soon as there was enough room, she took him in her hand. His velvety hardness was thick, and her fingers didn’t meet around him, but she tried anyway, taking him in a firm grip and gliding her hand up and down, adding a twist of her hand when she reached the head.
“Fuuuuuuck,” he breathed out, bucking his hips in time with her slow pumps.
Cammie squirmed on the bed, already feeling the moisture gathering between her thighs. Alex surged forward and covered her mouth with his as his hand slid back down her chest, straight to her center. As she continued her slow glide on his cock, he ran his fingers up her folds, the sensation intense even through her panties. Gasping, she couldn’t stop her hips from undulating as her entire being focused on his fingers. Moving her panties out of the way, he slid a finger past her folds, going straight for her clit.
It didn’t take much of that before she was letting him go and pushing him away. “Clothes off,” she panted, sitting up and pulling her shirt and panties off.
“Thought you’d never ask,” he replied, voice gravelly, kicking his boots off and shoving his jeans down. He looked at her for a moment, drinking her in, before he said, voice commanding, “On your hands and knees, sweetheart. Now.”
Heart of a Fighter: A Paranormal Shifter Romance (Rocky River Fighters Book 1) Page 11
