Zander Masters had told them that his son was posting up in a cabin in the mountains, but he’d failed to mention that it was a luxury cabin. The damn building sprawled like a mansion, crouched under towering pine trees that cast shade over the ponds and…was that a pool?
Casey wanted to punch every window. He wanted to rip the front door off. He expected his beast to rage alongside him, but the creature was still distracted by the memory of the woman from the grocery store. Casey patted his pocket to make sure her card was still there, and then got out of the truck.
He thought Gavin would ignore them, or that the dragon was hiding deep beneath the earth. Then, the front door flew open. Gavin’s shoulders heaved. His eyes glowed red. He had to have been seconds from his beast breaking free of him.
Casey put a foot on the mailbox and kicked it over.
Gavin roared. He burst out of the doorway, wings unfurling around him as he grew into a massive red-scaled beast. Casey planted one foot behind him and laughed as his own beast spilled out of him. Teeth clashed with claws. Gavin slammed his tail into Casey’s side, but Casey savored the pain.
He would make Gavin feel it plus some. He would show Gavin how it felt to wake up alone. Casey had pledged his life to Gavin, supported his best friend while he trained to become the next clan leader. Then, Gavin left.
Without his best friend, Casey quickly realized that everyone he knew and loved had only paid attention to him because of Gavin. The red dragon was the clan’s prince. He would become the next leader, the next king.
“Calm the fuck down,” Erik grumbled.
Dillon sighed.
The fight raged on, but Casey twisted and threw Gavin away from the truck. If it got smashed, they’d never get Gavin home. This mission was to save him. Zander issued a warning. If they couldn’t bring him home, then Gavin’s life was forfeit.
As much as Casey wanted to hate Gavin for abandoning him, he didn’t want his friend to die, either. So, Casey would drag him home by the scruff of his neck, throw the man at his father’s feet, and then wipe his hands clean of both father and son.
“I’m heading inside,” Erik said while Casey and Gavin traded blows. “I’m fucking starving, and watching the two of you thrash about like livestock is only making me hungrier.”
Both Casey and Gavin stopped to stare at the back of Erik’s head. They shared a look, clearly confused. Gavin wrinkled his nose and snarled, but his form began to shrink. Red scales curled back into sun-kissed skin.
Casey also shifted back. He stormed over to his shredded shirt and frantically searched for the woman’s business card, praying that the shift and fight hadn’t destroyed it. He shouldn’t have cared, because he would likely never see her again, let alone take her up on the free tattoo offer, but relief flooded him when he found the little cardboard square.
He flipped it over in his hand.
Evangeline Abercrombie. Tattoo Artist.
His beast played her name on repeat. When he closed his eyes, he could see the soft pout of her pink lips.
Casey pinched the bridge of his nose. This was already going horribly. He’d met a girl he couldn’t stop thinking about. Erik might have threatened to eat them. Gavin was the same asshole as always.
Gavin stopped at his mailbox just long enough to slam it back into the ground and growl with frustration when it canted to the left. He flung out a finger at Casey.
“You’re going to pay for a new one.”
“You can eat my hairy ass,” Casey grumbled.
He shoved his feet into his boots and stomped, naked, into the cabin. The interior was austere. Casey had expected a feminine touch since Tiffany, Gavin’s mate, had disappeared the same time Gavin had. He didn’t see signs of a woman anywhere. There certainly weren’t enough throw pillows on the couch. Not even a blanket.
Casey shook off his wandering thoughts to focus on what was more important: delivering the news of Zander’s declaration and getting one of the hamburgers sizzling in the kitchen.
Erik had already laid out everything necessary to make bacon cheeseburgers. The air smelled of beef fat and bacon. It had a magical effect on the tension in the room, easing it away until three hungry shifters stared at the frying pan while Erik fended them off with a spatula.
“What the fuck is this all about, anyway?” Gavin asked, clearly irritated to have company even if company was making him lunch.
Casey wanted to ask if Erik really would have eaten another shifter, but he turned his attention to Gavin instead. “We’re a recovery crew. You have to come home.”
Gavin snorted.
“If you don’t, your father is coming to burn all this to the ground, including you.”
Gavin froze. It wasn’t fear that passed over his face, but surprise. Then, the expression settled into sorrowful acceptance, his gaze growing distant.
“Maybe that’s for the best, then.”
Casey shot out of his seat, but Dillon smacked Gavin in the back of the head first.
Gavin spun on Dillon, a snarl rippling through the room. To his credit, Dillon didn’t flinch or back down. The heavy weight shifter just gave Gavin the most disappointed look ever.
“Not a damn one of you gets to tell me how to live my life,” Gavin said before stalking away.
Erik called after him, “If you don’t come back, I’m going to eat your burger!”
“Like I fucking care!” Gavin howled from another room.
* * *
Isabella nervously twirled her hair around her finger. “Are you sure you’re not mad at me? For, you know, the whole Trevor thing. I swear I didn’t come on to him.”
Evangeline put the last pin in her messy bun before turning to her friend. “Fuck that guy. Trevor was a waste of my time.”
Isabella looked visibly relieved. Her soft smile widened into a grin with a radiance brighter than the sun. Evangeline pulled her best friend into a tight hug and held her close. When Evangeline asked Isabella to walk to work with her, Isabella hadn’t questioned her fear. She’d arrived with a coldbrew coffee in one hand and a chai latte in the other. Isabella was there for her, even when she thought Evangeline hated her.
Evangeline couldn’t have asked for a better friend.
She grabbed her leather jacket from the back of a nearby chair. “Wait until I tell you about this hunk I met yesterday. He totally saved me from a scene at the grocery store.”
Isabella hung onto Evangeline’s every word as she told her how the mystery guy had thrown a pomegranate at Trevor’s face and then threatened to throw him out on his ass. By the time she finished, Isabella’s cheeks were pink. She fanned herself as she grinned.
“How do you find hotties like this?”
Evangeline shrugged, her excitement flagging when she recalled how the hottie refused to give up his name. He wouldn’t be around for long. She doubted she would even run into him again. Even if she could get his name and number, he would probably disappoint her.
What was it about her that attracted the worst men? Before Trevor, she’d dated a guy ten years her senior. Young and dumb, she hadn’t seen the warning signs then. Not until the cops broke down his door and dragged him away. Watching his trial had been a painful wake-up call, but it clearly hadn’t been enough.
She paused outside the shop and regarded her reflection. Was it the silver hair? She could bleach it again and go platinum next time, but she couldn’t erase the flower garden that took up her left arm. She could take out her piercings and let them heal over, but she could never erase the part of her that loved this look.
It was a shame her winged eyeliner could only attract assholes.
Beside her, Isabella squeezed her hand. “Maybe your knight in armor will resurface. You could have a story-book romance, the kind you’ve always deserved.”
Evangeline gave her hopeful friend a tight smile, but the hope was only skin deep. If Evangeline didn’t swear off men altogether, she would end up in another horrible relationship. She needed to steer clea
r of men and not let her heart make stupid decisions.
What would her grandfather say if he were here? She reached for the bare spot on her chest where his ring should have hung. He’d most likely tell her to pick herself up, dye her hair, and keep her chin up.
She missed him.
“Take a look at them,” Isabella whispered, pointing past the darkened glass window.
Evangeline’s gaze focused. Her heart did a backflip.
Sunglasses and Block-head peered at the flash files to the far side of the shop. Beyond them, Blue-Eyed Hottie leaned against the back wall. He had his hands in his pockets as he scanned the room. His gaze stopped on her, and an electric jolt raced through her body.
“If I wasn’t a committed woman,” Isabella began, “I would happily make mistakes with them.”
In that moment, Evangeline realized all the similarities between her relationship with Trevor and Isabella’s current relationship. But the thought struck her and then vanished before she could say anything because she peered through the shop window and her mind blanked.
Normally, Evangeline would have given her friend some sharp side-eye, but her attention was stuck on the man across the room. What was he doing in her shop? Had he come to collect on her promise of a free tattoo? It would be a feat to keep her hands from shaking while she touched him.
Nellie, the third leg of their friendship and Evangeline’s business partner, beseeched them through the glass with a pleading grimace. Evangeline should have hopped into action, but what she saw had her rooted to the ground.
“Bel, that’s him.”
Isabella stopped gawking and gave Evangeline a wide-eyed look. “Him? The hunky savior?”
Before Evangeline could respond, Isabella put her hands on her friend’s shoulders and directed her inside. She gave Evangeline a gentle push and told her to go talk to him. Evangeline threw a hushed curse over her shoulder, but Isabella ignored her and blissfully waved good-bye to her and Nellie.
“Fancy meeting you here,” Evangeline said after approaching the nameless hottie. She laughed nervously.
Both brows crashed into a dark V on his forehead. “This is your shop. Isn’t it? You gave me your card.”
“Oh, yeah. You’re right. This is my shop.” Why was her pulse hammering in her throat? Why had her mouth gone dry?
Evangeline wanted to escape into the stock room, so she could gulp down air without his narrowed gaze on her. His presence made the air too warm. She craved a mouthful of chill winter air, even though the temperatures had finally given way to spring.
She shrugged out of her leather jacket and tossed it onto the back of a nearby chair. “Did you come to collect on that free tattoo? Because you’ll need to make an appointment.”
But when she turned, his attention focused on her arm. “He bruised you.”
She rubbed at her arm as Nellie, her friend and business partner, walked past. Behind the Blue-Eyed Hottie, Nellie turned and mouthed a question, making sure Evangeline was alright. Evangeline gave an almost imperceptible nod before Nellie eyed the guy up and down.
Evangeline wanted to yank him out of sight, away from Nellie’s appraising gaze. Where had that impulse come from? Evangeline had told herself to avoid men and focus on improving herself. Blue-Eyed Hottie was making that difficult.
Behind him, his friends argued over what tattoos they should get.
“Casey! Help us decide what matching tattoo we’re going to get to commemorate the road trip,” Sunglasses called out.
Considering that both Sunglasses and Block-head were watching the back of her new friend’s head, she figured he had to be Casey. It was such an easygoing name for a man who stared at her with that kind of intensity. Did he have an easygoing side? She couldn’t imagine that the man who threw fruit in her ex’s face would be this surly all the time.
“I’m not giving away multiple tattoos,” Evangeline said, trying to lighten up her tone. “While I appreciate what you did, your friends will have to pay.”
“That fucker bruised you, and I let him walk away,” Casey muttered.
Evangeline blinked. Her heart stuttered, and a flush raced to warm her cheeks. She waved him off. It was her fault for inviting Trevor to meet up. She should have known better. It would take a long time for him to simmer down.
“Is this shop run by all women?” Sunglasses asked, leaning against the counter. He flashed Nellie a wide grin that deepened his dimple.
Nellie stilled under Sunglasses’ attention. She kept her eyes downcast, but Evangeline could see the subtle rise and fall of Nellie’s shoulders that indicated a panic attack wasn’t far.
“Watch yourself,” Evangeline called out to Sunglasses. “Fuck with her, and she’ll make it so you won’t be able to remember your own name tomorrow.”
Nellie shot Evangeline a warning glare, but Sunglasses took it as an invitation.
“So, you’re that good, eh?”
Casey rolled his eyes. “I’ll take them elsewhere. Sorry about them.”
He grabbed Sunglasses by the back of his shirt and dragged him toward the door. Block-head followed, hands in his pockets like this was normal behavior. Both Evangeline and Nellie watched them leave.
While Nellie admonished Evangeline for nearly spilling her secret, Evangeline was captivated by Casey’s silhouette as he left.
* * *
Casey tossed Erik the moment they were away from the tattoo parlor.
“Can’t you behave yourself for five minutes?”
Erik threw his hands in the air. “It looked like you were trying to get some, so I decided to try my hand at it, too. There’s nothing wrong with that.”
Casey growled. “I’m not trying to get some. You were making that woman uncomfortable.”
Erik grinned. “I could have made her very comfortable.”
Tension rolled through Casey, pulling his fingers into tight fists. Dillon jumped between the two of them to stave off the incoming fight.
“Let’s head back and wreck some of Gavin’s woods. Alright?” Dillon looked between them.
Before Casey could answer, he caught a familiar scent on the air. He scanned the street and found the greaseball of a man heading right toward Evangeline’s shop.
“Be right back,” Casey growled before stalking away.
Erik called out to him, but Casey didn’t stop. He marched up to the greaseball, grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, and dragged him down the nearby alley, so they would be out of sight when he shoved the man against the brick wall.
The man kicked and scrambled to get his feet under him again, but every time he found balance, Casey lifted him off the ground. The sound the man made when Casey shoved him into the wall would have been comical had Casey not been blinded by rage.
His beast squirmed under his skin. It wanted to dig its claws into the man and make it so he could never bother Evangeline again. This guy hadn’t thought twice about leaving bruises on her. Casey barely knew her. He’d met her twice now, but his beast would already do anything for her. He knew this was a dangerous path to walk, but as long as he kept his distance from her, maybe he could get out of this.
That wouldn’t stop him from threatening the greaseball every time he ran into him, though.
“I thought I made myself clear,” Casey growled.
He let his beast creep closer to the surface, until his sight narrowed and sharpened. The blood drained from the man’s face at the sight of Casey’s lizard eyes. Heat filled Casey’s mouth. All he had to do was let the flames pour out, but he held it back. Instead, smoke curled from his lips.
“You’re some sort of demon!” The man panicked and began scratching at Casey’s grip.
“Sure, call me a demon. I don’t give a flying fuck.” Casey wanted one thing. “You leave that woman alone.”
He paused. Evangeline had mentioned needing something from this guy.
“Give me whatever you took from her,” he said, holding out his free hand. His nails had grown into poi
nted talons while he spoke.
The man whimpered. “I don’t have it on me. I’ll get it for you. Not now. Later.”
Casey didn’t believe the guy for a minute, but he figured he’d be in town for a while if Gavin’s behavior was any indication. Casey would get whatever this guy owed Evangeline, one way or another.
“Good,” he purred, leaning close so the guy could feel Casey’s fire. “I’ll be watching you. I’ll know every move you make. If you try to talk to her again, I’ll burn down your house with you inside it. Do we have an understanding?”
Casey wished he could find a backbone in this guy, but it seemed he didn’t have one. Casey let him go and watched him trip over his own two feet to get away.
Evangeline would never have to know that Casey was watching over her. He would keep his distance, because letting his dragon have her wasn’t an option. She had a whole life here in this little mountain town. Casey, on the other hand, had a mission and a clan to return to. He couldn’t mate this girl and drag her back with him when she had so many roots here.
Their lives would go on, in two separate directions.
This was for the best. No matter how much he hated it.
3
Evangeline had excused herself and gone to the back door so she could get some fresh air, but two familiar voices had stopped her. She’d pressed herself to the door and listened.
Casey and Trevor.
When had Trevor returned?
Casey must have caught him and diverted him. As she listened, Casey even tried to bargain for her missing ring. She didn’t know what she’d done to deserve the protection of a man like him, but her body warmed, and a tingle danced around her heart.
The voices stopped. She pulled back from the door, hand on the knob. Stuck, she couldn’t bring herself to open it and face Casey.
He was probably just being nice. He wasn’t interested in her. She was still just a stranger to him, as he was to her. If she could bring herself to open the door, then maybe they could get to know one another better, but she could also fall into the same trap as always.
Rogue Dragons Series: Box Set Books 1-5 Page 2
