She had to be a dragon-heart. She had to be.
After a few seconds in the fire, she raised her head slowly, her curls waving as she locked eyes with him. Well, he wasn’t visible, so she stared in the direction the blue fire came from.
The fact that Drake was participating in this, in showing a human something that was forbidden unless they were a potential mate, meant perhaps Drake was willing to go along with his plan.
Her gorgeous light-brown eyes glowed in the midst of the fire, and she stared at him for a long moment before looking down at the ground, flying by far beneath him.
Then she let out a little shriek, startling Drake, who dropped her. Before she could fall far, he caught her again, sending Quill a long-suffering glare that said he’d had enough for today.
Quill nodded and started for home, motioning for Drake to follow. Drake hesitated, flapping his large wings, but then finally rolled his dragon eyes and followed.
They could fight about it when they got home. It was all they did anymore.
But Quill was hoping the right mate could change that.
2
Tara looked down at her feet, flying over the ground below her. She still felt shock and panic running through her, could still feel the water that had almost drowned her, but she wasn’t going to scream. That had already gotten her dropped once.
She couldn’t see the creature carrying her; it was just a mass of shimmery air moving the clouds around them.
She was really in the clouds.
She was probably dead. The last thing she remembered was relief at saving the boy and then hopelessness as she’d been swept away in the current. She remembered drawing in water as she sank, things slowly going black and hurting so much. She remembered not wanting to die and then a slow peace coming over her as a light got brighter in the distance. I’m coming, Mom, she’d thought.
She’d been alone since her mom died years before. Her strong, sassy single mother had raised her to be tough and independent.
She would be proud of Tara for rescuing the little boy from drowning. Perhaps whatever was carrying her was taking her to heaven?
It was certainly beautiful up here in the clouds. She didn’t know what had happened. One moment, blackness and the next, blue fire everywhere, which she realized must just be the sky or an optical illusion from being so high. When she squinted in the direction it was coming from, she couldn’t see anything.
Regardless, she was really tired and still felt like she’d nearly died, so she decided to relax in the grip holding her and just wait to see what happened.
What else could she do?
She closed her eyes and felt her body relax. After all the stress, a nap couldn’t hurt. Keeping her eyes open was more than she could comprehend anyway.
When she opened her eyes again, she was in a beautiful apartment decorated with lavish furnishings and deep burgundy carpet. Whoever lived here had a flair for design and loved color, particularly reds and blues. She was on a soft chaise, and when she sat up, she saw it was dark outside. She could see the night skyline from the window next to her.
“Ahem.”
Tara turned her head toward the direction of the throat clearing and froze as she looked at the most beautiful man she’d ever seen in her life.
He had to be the one who decorated this place, because he was just as beautiful and stylish and unique as it was. His hair was long and straight, tapering to just below his shoulders, in a shade of black that shimmered with hints of royal blue. His dark eyebrows arched over eyes in a deep shade of violet blue, rimmed with long lashes. He had high cheekbones, pale skin, and full, curving lips. A strong jaw lead to a stubborn, pointed chin.
His eye twitched as she studied him, as if it made him uncomfortable, and then he walked forward. He was wearing a blue sweater that hung loosely over his tight, muscled form and tight jeans that accentuated long, lean legs.
But his face, with its exotic beauty, was really the main attraction.
She was completely tongue tied, and then another man entered the room, leaning against the doorframe and staring at her like she was the source of all possible problems in his world.
He had tousled blond hair, thick and sticking in all directions but short, especially on the sides. He had a square face with classically masculine features, straight nose, square jaw, and prominent brows. Tanned skin. And beautiful turquoise eyes that glared at her, burning the same color as the flames she’d seen in the sky.
And he was huge. Tall and muscular like something from a super hero fantasy.
“Where am I?” she asked stupidly, rubbing her head. “Last I remember…”
“Last you remember, you jumped into a river like a stupid idiot and my partner had to rescue you,” the large blond said, stepping forward out of the shadows. He was even bigger than she’d initially thought, and her eyes widened as she looked up at him.
The black-haired man stepped between them and knelt in front of her. He gently touched her chin and looked in her eyes, first one and then the other, before standing, satisfied, and brushing off his hands. “Drake is being humble. He’s the one who rescued you and brought you out of the water. I’m the one who gave you mouth to mouth.”
She bit her lip and tried to talk over the stuttering of her heart in her chest. This kind of thing just didn’t happen to her. She had an ordered way of doing things; she had a schedule. Whatever was happening here, she didn’t have time for it.
She started to stand.
“Well, I’m happy for your help, but I don’t really understand why you had to bring me back here instead of putting me in an ambulance.” She paused, looking around the room. “Maybe I am dead. I thought I was being carried to heaven, but maybe…” She sighed, toeing the red carpet with her foot. “Maybe I went the other way.”
The blond man let out a loud, startling laugh that earned him a glare from the dark-haired one.
“I’m Quill and this is Drake, my partner,” he said, stepping forward to take her hand.
She pulled back, not letting him. She still didn’t understand why she was here. Had she been kidnapped? She edged toward the door.
“So much for being a dragon-heart,” Drake said, snickering meanly. “She’s already running for the door. Look at her.”
Her temper snapped to flaring life and she pounded across the carpet to jab her finger into his chest as he looked down in shock and offense.
“You would run too if you woke up in a strange apartment with two weird men. I don’t know what the hell you’re pulling, but I wouldn’t laugh if I were you, because the minute I tell the police about you—”
She was cut off by Drake’s hands on her shoulders, holding her carefully. His handsome mouth twisted into a sneer. “Who said I’d let you go to the police?”
She heard a frustrated sigh from Quill. “You’re already messing it all up,” he said, striding forward to pull Drake’s hands off.
Then he picked her up easily, deceptively strong for such a lean man, because Tara wasn’t a small girl. Still, she kicked and fought until he placed her on the chaise. When she made as if to stand, he put a hand out. “Just wait. Just give us a moment, okay? We did save your life. I can pretty much guarantee you would have died without us. So I promise we mean you no harm.”
Her heart beat wildly, but he made sense, so she tried to stay calm.
Quill reached for her hand with a shushing movement, and she started to pull away. But something in his beautiful violet eyes was reassuring, and she let him touch her. He rested his hand on hers and stroked it lightly.
She took a deep breath as something warm and calming moved through her, just at his touch.
She’d never known a male touch to be soothing, let alone arousing. She hadn’t felt safe in a long time.
But despite not knowing them or what was going on, here in this apartment with them, with Quill gently stroking her, she felt utterly, inexplicably safe.
From the world. From her ex. From her grie
f.
It was all far below this little kingdom in the sky where beautiful men brought women back to their apartment.
When she finally opened her eyes, much calmer, Drake was still standing with folded arms, studying her darkly.
“I don’t know, Quill,” he said. “I’m not sure I need another one of you running amuck, trying to save everything. What she did was reckless, not brave.”
“It was both,” Quill said, still lightly touching her hand. He really was beautiful, and now that she felt safe, she could start to sense the effect he had on her body.
“She likes you,” Drake muttered. “Of course she does.”
“If you were a little more gentle, maybe she’d like you too.”
Drake harrumphed and left the room.
“What’s his problem?” she asked. “I didn’t choose to come here.”
“No, but I chose to bring you,” he said. “And Drake and I tend to disagree on a lot of things. You could say we’re not the greatest partnership.” He scratched the back of his neck self-consciously.
Tara sat up straighter, pulling her hand back so she could clear her mind and stop thinking of all the things she’d love Quill to do to her. “Partners? Wait, what kind of partners? Life partners?”
Quill laughed. “Not romantically. Not really. More like how cops or FBI agents have partners—but a little more intense.”
“How so?” she asked.
“Well, we’re something special,” he said, taking her hand again. She didn’t resist. She had a feeling that whatever he was about to say, it was going to be something she needed to be calm for. Her heart thudded dully.
“What do you mean special?”
“As in, we’re something that does the jobs no one else can do. We piss a lot of people off, and they hunt us. We’re supposed to always stay in pairs so we can watch each other’s back. We share everything. Even our mate, when we take one.” He blinked slowly and then pinned her with that night-sky gaze as she caught a scent of something like icy wind over a mountain stream.
She blinked, trying to process that. “Mate?” She tried to stand. “Look, I don’t get where this is going, but I have to get back to my car. I have an order I need to deliver at the next trade show.”
“You have a job?” Quill asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Of course,” she said. “How else does one survive?”
He muttered something that sounded like, “Acquiring treasure,” but she wasn’t really sure. She hopped over his arm and started for the door again, but he was there in a second, blocking her.
“Hold on for just a moment,” he said. “We can’t let you go yet. It’s not safe. Besides, we might just be able to offer you something no one else in the world can.”
She folded her arms and stared at him. “Oh yeah? What’s that?”
His eyes were serious and deep and cosmic. “Immortality.”
Her mouth fell open. Now she knew this was all officially too weird to handle. Whether they had saved her or not, it was time to go.
She was going to have to fight him for the door.
* * *
Drake watched with rising irritation as the little woman struggled to push Quill out of the way of the door. It didn’t sit well with him when anyone laid hands on his partner, but he knew Quill wasn’t at any risk with this little pipsqueak.
Well, she was also lusciously curved with tremendous breasts and an ass that didn’t quit.
But Drake could find that anywhere.
What he couldn’t find was someone that would jump into a river to save a kid who should have died.
He knew Quill had a point about her, and he hated that. He hated being wrong.
Besides, a human, while the only option for a mate, was a fragile creature. Another person to protect, which he would be more confident of if she didn’t remind him of Quill, who was also willing to completely disregard his own safety if it meant running off to save someone else.
He put a palm over his face and sighed.
“What?” she asked. “What’s your problem? You aren’t the one being kidnapped.”
“And you’d rather be dead?” he snapped, a little louder than he’d meant to, losing his temper. He strode toward her. He’d had it with the little human. He’d show her who was in charge here and who was lucky to be alive.
He stopped right in front of her, trapping her between him and Quill, and she looked up at him with frightened, angry eyes. She had beautiful skin, darker than his or Quill’s, with a smooth brown tone to it that made her light-brown eyes nearly glow. Her dark curls were wild and shiny and looked touchable as hell. Yes, she made his mouth water.
He’d just take a bite, show her exactly what being a dragon mate meant, as far as benefits.
Without warning, he slipped an arm around her waist to lift her up for a kiss.
“Ouch!” he yelled as a hard kick connected with his shin. He dropped her instantly, and she stumbled back against Quill. She glared at him angrily. He was expecting her to run, but then she lunged toward him with a fairly capable left hook, aiming for his head.
He laughed. She was hopelessly out of reach. He caught her around the waist and carried her under one arm toward the bedroom. Tiny mate.
“Drake!” Quill shouted, running after them. “You can’t do that. Put her down.”
“I’ll put her down when I’m good and ready,” Drake said. “We can’t let her go until we make sure she’s safe. You know that.” He glared at her as he chucked her in the middle of the giant bed they shared so they could guard each other’s back during the night.
“Look, I’m not sure why, but my partner wants you.” Drake scented the air and grinned. “And I’m not averse to it, but would you stop being a brat for one freaking second so we can explain?”
Her eyes narrowed to a hard glare, and then she once again made an escape attempt, scurrying off the bed and trying to run past him. Drake sighed and reached for one of his robes, pulling the soft belt from the waist of it. Then he came onto the bed, grabbing her hands and starting to tie them behind her. He didn’t have any choice at this point.
“No!” she shouted, suddenly fighting like a banshee.
He blinked in shock at her reaction and immediately dropped the belt, leaving her hands loose. She whimpered, eyes blinking widely at something that wasn’t there, and Quill jumped onto the bed quickly, sending Drake an angry glare as he stepped back with hands raised.
He hadn’t meant to upset her. She was acting foolishly and rashly, trying to run out into NYC alone, and he only meant to make her stop until Quill could calm her and they could explain.
He’d had many women enjoy being tied by him. He’d known it might make her a little angry, but he hadn’t expected the teary-eyed hate she hissed at him now.
“I want to go home,” she said. “I want to go home now.”
Quill sighed and reached for her, and she winced, not going to him.
“No,” she said, pointing at Drake. “That crazy person just threw me in here and tried to tie me up.”
Quill sighed. “He’s controlling; that’s for sure. But he cares. He went in that river for you, knowing he could go into the meat grinder, so I promise he’s better than he’s coming off right now.”
Drake blinked. Quill was the last person he expected to defend him to the human. Goodness knows he’d complained about him enough in the past.
She calmed slightly, touching her wrists where the belt had almost been.
“I didn’t mean to scare you. That was thoughtless,” Drake said. “If I’d known…”
“You should always know not to tie someone up unless they ask for it!” she snapped angrily, taking a deep breath as she sat back.
“Have you been tied before when you didn’t want to be?” Drake asked, anger burning through him at the thought of anyone touching her, scaring her.
The truth was he was already starting to think of her as his. The first woman to ever stand up to him like that. He hated he
’d hurt her, but he wanted to know why.
She didn’t answer his question, but he could feel the fear and anger radiating from her.
“Who was it? Where do they live?” He cracked his knuckles, and she stared at him wild-eyed for a moment and then threw back her head in a laugh.
Her curls bounced in a pleasing way.
“What is it?” he asked, folding his arms and sharing a confused look with Quill.
“I just… It’s so ridiculous,” she said, wiping tears from her eyes. “The whole thing. Fine, you’re right. I was panicked, and I don’t even know where I am, so I can’t really run.” She looked between them. “And you two don’t seem like you’re trying to hurt me.”
“The opposite,” Drake said. “Trying to protect you.”
She sighed. “Funny way of doing it.”
“Excuse me?” he snapped.
She grinned slightly. She challenged him like no one else ever had. For some reason, he liked it. Plus, her luscious body had felt great in his arms, and he liked her sassy attitude. Yes, she’d do.
He nodded. “You’ll make a good mate candidate.”
She blinked. “Wait, what?”
“Mate candidate. For us.” He gestured between him and Quill. “We’ll spend a week together and see if it works. If it does, we’ll bond with you forever.”
Her mouth fell open, and he waited as she processed it. “You’re kidding.”
“I’m not,” he said. “And there’s more. Remember flying in the air with us?”
“That was real?” she asked. “It felt like a dream.”
“No,” he said, taking a step forward, crowding her back on the bed. “You heard of werewolves? Well, we’re were-dragons. Men who can change form.”
She said nothing. He waited for her to faint, but she simply stared at him like a person might stare at an oncoming train.
Quill had his hand over his face. “You’re doing this all wrong. I can’t even think how you could mess this up better.”
Desired by Dragons: BBW Paranormal Romance (Dragons of New York Book 2) Page 2
