If only every day could be like this. She yearned to be waited on, to have someone pay attention to her needs. She would have happily settled for a week like this, though deep inside she yearned to be cared for like that for the rest of her life.
Daphne had to shake herself before she gave in to delusions that would lead her nowhere. Ford didn’t want a lover, let alone a mate. He had been kind to her, but that wasn’t an invitation for her to fall for him.
* * *
Ford watched her stare into space and wondered where her mind had gone. The look of pure bliss that she’d worn while eating had given him more pleasure than he’d felt in a long time. Perhaps that was a weird side-effect of being alone for as long as he’d been.
Maybe Daphne reminded him of his wife.
That wasn’t fair of him. He couldn’t put the ghost of his past on Daphne’s shoulders. She already carried too much. To ask her to take the life of her brother’s mate into her hands was unforgivable. Ford wanted to march up to that cabin and knock down the door so he could give that man a piece of his mind.
Ford had sworn off involving himself in that clan’s lives ever again. He’d helped with the recent shifter problem, largely because he’d been pulled into it by chance. Never again, though. The clan could do whatever they wanted as long as they left Ford alone.
If Ford didn’t keep his distance, they would inevitably find out about what he’d done. Then Daphne would, too. He didn’t know if she would be able to forgive him if she knew he’d killed his clan leader.
For now, he would make sure Daphne survived this vacation of hers. He would feed her and listen to her and keep his beast from trying to lay claim to her. Daphne deserved that much, at the very least. He couldn’t do much more without crossing into territory better left alone, both with the clan on the mountain and with his heart.
“Glad to see that you liked the pasta,” Ford said. “I’ve been working on that recipe for a bit. If you say it’s ready, I’ll have them put it on the menu.”
“That was the best thing I’ve ever tasted.” Her eyes rolled back for dramatic effect.
A warm pulse shot from Ford’s chest to his groin, making blood pool in his lower regions. His beast laughed at him as he moved to hide his growing erection behind the bar. The beast told him he could make her eyes roll back in other ways too. It filled his mind with images of Daphne, in every compromising position, the hem of her summer dress pushed up, her feet spread apart, his name on her lips.
He couldn’t spend another minute with her. Not tonight. Ford had hit his limit. Any longer, and he would betray the boundaries he’d set for himself. He watched her lips meet the delicate rim of her wineglass, and his heart stuttered again.
When she set the glass down, she asked, “How much do I owe you for the private dinner?”
“Serving you is payment enough. It was my pleasure,” he said, meeting her eyes.
He could have sworn electricity darted between them when their gazes connected. Daphne shuddered and the scent of desire floated in the air around her. His beast lashed out, greedy and prepared to throw away every rule Ford kept.
Her eyes flashed from brown to a buttery shade of gold as she leaned toward him. Only the wooden counter separated them.
“What’s for dessert then?” Her gaze travelled down his neck, down his chest, and lingered low like she could see his erection even though he knew the counter covered him. “I prefer my desserts savory.”
He’d never met a more forward or daring woman in his life. Daphne was a wrecking ball, crashing through every carefully constructed barrier he put up. Just when he thought he had a sufficient wall, she batted her lashes at him, and it crumbled.
She wouldn’t stick around if she knew. Ford didn’t want to ruin the little time he had with her, so he kept his history to himself. She would leave. Her life would go on, and he would be able to look back on this time with fondness. He would hold onto the memory of Daphne and the knowledge that she still lived like it was his own treasure hoard.
“No dessert tonight, sunshine. You should be getting home before your brother brings his pack of fools down here to rescue you.” Ford took her empty plate and wineglass.
Doing some dishes would help him bank the flames burning in his soul. There was nothing like mundane chores to bore a horny beast to death.
“Casey isn’t going to take one step away from his mate tonight. Dillon and Erik have mates now, too. The only one who doesn’t seem bothered that his mate is across the country is Gavin, and I’ve seen about as much of him as I’d like. And that’s to say that I saw him for five minutes the other day, and that was enough.” She rested her elbow on the bar and let her chin fall into her palm.
Ford paused. He should have vanished behind the stainless-steel door to wash those damn dishes, but her misery seemed to almost darken the air around her.
“Is home any better?”
Her lips parted, but after hanging open for a moment, she sighed and closed them. “It’s me. I’m the reason why everything sucks.”
Ford set the dishes down on the end of the bar and stepped around it to go to her. He gently took her by the chin and made her look at him. “You aren’t the problem. You just can’t work and work and work all the time. It will start to taint the other parts of your life if you let it.”
Her eyes watered. His heart twisted, a wrenching pain filling his chest. He released her chin and gently dragged his knuckles along her jaw. Her eyes drifted shut and she leaned into him. Her trust in him boggled his mind.
She barely knew him, and yet she was content in this vulnerable position. He could wrap his hand around her throat, could push her off her stool and throw her back against the bar. Yet, as he watched, her lips parted again. This close, she smelled like beeswax and mint.
“When did you put on lip balm?” he asked.
The corners of her mouth lifted. “I needed to make sure my lips were soft in case you decided to finally kiss me.”
“Finally? We’ve met all of three times and you think that’s waiting too long to kiss you?” He was astonished by her directness.
“Am I the only one here that wants it?” Her voice dropped, the low purr of her beast joining her words.
She wasn’t, but he couldn’t just tell her that. Not if he wanted to keep this from leading down paths he didn’t dare tread again. His heart had been closed for years. It would never open again. Not for anyone, not for this woman near tears in his hands.
“Looks like you are.” The words hurt to say. They dragged along his throat like thorns, leaving him bleeding on the inside.
He forced himself to release her and turn his back to her. She didn’t make a sound behind him, but he knew from the mirror behind the bar that she wore her devastation openly. He wished he’d never invited her inside. His promise to take care of her while she was in town had to be broken.
His beast thrashed and clawed at him. Enraged, the creature filled him with fire. Every ounce of his being burned and ached, but he couldn’t turn back to her. He couldn’t love another woman the way he’d loved his wife, because he would just fail her in the end.
54
Daphne should have been relieved that Evangeline woke the next day. Instead, her thoughts were filled with the man who’d left her hanging the night before. Daphne wanted to both curse Ford and fuck him. The two feelings weren’t mutually exclusive, but she knew the moment she got the hate fuck out of her system that she would go back to longing for him.
So, she distracted herself by getting Evangeline ready. A permanent sour grimace had graced Evangeline’s face since she’d woken. The new dragon shifter seemed distant. Daphne knew that Evangeline was meeting her beast for the first time, but apprehension hugged her lungs, like she was waiting for disaster to strike.
Nothing happened while they worked their way through stacks and stacks of pancakes. With two new dragon shifters and a pregnant woman on the premises, there wasn’t enough food to go around. After the gia
nt mixing bowls were broken out and every utensil in the kitchen had been dirtied, the feast was over.
“You don’t have to do anything you’re not ready for,” Daphne assured Evangeline in her softest voice. “But you should come with Bree and me. We’ll be in a big, open area where you’ll have all the room in the world to figure things out. In this stage of things, there’s really no such thing as a mistake. It’s all just part of the learning process.”
Bree snorted. “I almost started a forest fire shortly after my change.”
Evangeline’s upper lip curled. She glanced around the kitchen, her pale hair fanning out around her. “Where’s Casey?”
The slight growl in Evangeline’s words worried Daphne. It meant Evangeline’s beast was pushing for control already. As Evangeline’s eyes widened until they could see the whites all the way around, Daphne sucked in a steadying breath.
She stood, approached Evangeline, and grabbed her by the jaw. The gesture mimicked the way Ford had held her the night before, though it was far more forceful. Here, Daphne had to be the dominant. She had to make sure Evangeline’s beast knew not to fuck with her. So long as the new beast understood this rule, then it wouldn’t make any attempts to escape before Evangeline was ready.
“Pay attention when I’m talking to you,” Daphne snarled.
Evangeline’s lips drew back from her teeth in defiance. This was going to be a long day. Daphne wanted nothing more than to curl up in bed and beg someone to take care of her. Instead, she had to babysit two new dragons. The newest was well on her way to being a problem child.
If Evangeline couldn’t find balance with her beast, then she would always be a liability. She wouldn’t be able to go back to her tattoo parlor, she wouldn’t even be able to go shopping. Her life would be over.
As badly as Daphne wanted to drag Evangeline out to the field, she knew that if she denied the new shifter time with her mate, then things might only get worse. She hated indulging this behavior, but no situation was ever perfect.
“Go, find Casey. Let him help you calm your beast. Do not forget that we’re leaving in twenty minutes, though.” Daphne let go of Evangeline.
Slowly, without breaking eye contact, Evangeline stood and pushed past Daphne.
Bree whistled. “Today is going to be a long day.”
Evangeline took more time than Daphne wanted, but they made it to the field before the day was completely wasted. Daphne and Bree tried to convince Evangeline to shift, but Evangeline wound her arms around her middle and shook her head. Bree was understanding and commiserated, saying her first shift had been the hardest.
Bree ended up being the only one to shift. She wanted to learn how to fly finally, and Daphne knew that being a flight instructor required human communication. She could show Bree how to do it, but more often than not verbal cues made the process a hundred times easier.
Every so often, Daphne’s mind slipped back to the man she’d been spending her evenings with. She missed him and what they could have had the night before. She wasn’t asking for the kind of forever the others had. Even without that kind of pressure, Ford still wouldn’t give her a chance. All she wanted was a single night.
Just one.
With him.
Evangeline shouted. Daphne’s attention snapped to the moon-colored dragon wobbling in the air above. Bree would plummet if she couldn’t stabilize herself. Daphne cupped her hands around her mouth to tell her what to do, keeping her tone stern and commanding even though she knew it was her fault for being distracted.
She should have been issuing directions, not thinking about boning a man she barely knew.
“What’s wrong with you?” Evangeline spat. “Bree could have fallen, and you weren’t even paying attention! She could have gotten hurt, and it would have been your fault.”
When Daphne spun on her, she found Evangeline’s eyes glowing with her beast’s light. She should have known this outburst had been caused by the beast. Because the last thing Evangeline remembered was Daphne’s beast running toward her, Evangeline’s beast must have been born with distrust for Daphne.
“Dragons can fall from surprising heights without sustaining much damage,” Daphne said, trying to remain calm when she really wanted to fight. She’d never given in to the urge before. Her beast’s bloodlust had never gotten the best of her.
“I’m not sure you really care about us.” Evangeline’s words were laced with venom, the kind that made blood boil. “We’re in danger, and you’re out here pretending like there’s nothing wrong. We counted on you to make us better, but you’re just Zander’s pawn sent to make things worse.”
Daphne sucked in a breath through her nose and pushed back the urge to punch her brother’s mate.
“You’re loyal to Zander. Your brother would be ashamed to know what you’re doing.”
A roar filled Daphne’s throat. Her beast thrashed, but she closed her eyes and rode the wave of rage until it banked. When she opened them again, she found Evangeline bent double. Panic spiked through Daphne, leaving a spear of cold where her fire had been. She rushed over to Evangeline.
“We’re never going to be safe,” Evangeline whispered.
She had her eyes pressed tight and a tremble shuddered over her body. When she lurched from one side to the other on unsteady feet, Daphne knew what would happen. The first shift had come during a moment of fear. This would be the hardest shift Evangeline ever had to endure, and it would likely taint the process for her until she could move past it.
Daphne had discounted this clan’s relationship with Zander. She’d accused the men of being focused on their anger and making up signs of betrayal, but Evangeline’s fear couldn’t be explained away. No amount of other excuses would make up for the direct connection between this and Zander.
Daphne helped Evangeline to her knees so she wouldn’t fall. She coaxed Evangeline’s arms over her head to help her remove her shirt to keep it from being shredded. In the distance, Daphne heard a dull thud and a chorus of cracks.
Bree must have crashed.
This day was not going as planned. Daphne did what she could to walk Evangeline through the shift, but she could tell that everything hurt. By the time it was over, a beast with scales like an oil slick hyperventilated in the grass. Even the dragon’s eyes were wide.
“No one here is going to hurt you,” Daphne said, thinking that her earlier attempts at being dominant might have backfired. “I am Casey’s sister first and foremost. I would never do anything to hurt him or the people he loves. You are always going to be safe with me.”
Daphne removed her sundress and summoned her beast. After shifting, she carefully approached Evangeline’s beast the same way she might approach a scared dog. When Evangeline didn’t lash out, Daphne slowly curled herself around Evangeline’s heaving form. A few minutes later, Bree limped along to join them. She took Evangeline’s other side and settled down against her.
As both Evangeline and Bree fell asleep, Daphne lay awake. Every step she’d taken had backfired in one way or another. Though she thought she was good at her job, this stood as a testament that she would never have everything right. Daphne told herself that indulging in her own desires had led her away from what Evangeline needed, but a small voice asked her when she would be able to have what she wanted if she always had to serve others.
She didn’t have an answer for that. So long as she kept helping others, her clan would find value in her and she would be able to keep her position.
For the first time, it occurred to her that she could just…leave. She didn’t have to stick around and fight for social standing in Zander’s giant clan. Instead, she could choose to stay here, with her brother. She could stay where Ford was and keep visiting him every night.
Daphne scolded herself for even considering giving up. Living in Zander’s clan afforded her protection. She didn’t have to worry about stray shifters entering Zander’s territory or about wars between clans. If she left, then she would lose every
thing she’d worked for, too.
No, she couldn’t give up. She would do what needed to be done here and then head back and lay low for a few days to recharge. Maybe she would join a dating app and meet some guys who might make her forget about the sexy chef who’d made a meal just for her.
Peering over at Evangeline, Daphne knew that she would have to make another phone call to Zander. He wouldn’t like what she had to say, but she needed an extension. Daphne would not make Evangeline tame her terrified beast on her own. They could work through this together so long as Daphne had more time.
When she roused the two sleeping dragons and helped Evangeline shift back, they made for the cabin. Casey informed her that they wouldn’t be sticking around, that he and Evangeline would head back to their apartment in town so Evangeline could sleep in a familiar place.
She cringed.
“What is it?” Casey asked, his defensive walls rising.
Before Daphne could explain, Evangeline fell into a chair and answered for her. “I had a total breakdown earlier. I now know how it feels to be Erik, and let me tell you, his existence must royally suck.”
Casey shot Evangeline and Daphne a concerned look. “I thought you said we were good to go through with this. If Evangeline wasn’t ready and you rushed it…”
Daphne’s nose wrinkled. Her teeth pressed against one another as her rage made them sharpen and lengthen. She could barely contain herself, her usual control nowhere to be found.
“Don’t fight!” Evangeline shouted.
They spun and found her pressing the heels of her palms to her temples. When she opened her eyes, they glowed again. Daphne knew the night ahead would be long.
“I pushed this,” Evangeline said. “I did this. Not her. Your sister has been nothing but kind to me, even when I accused her of being a double agent. Cut her a break.”
Daphne didn’t expect Evangeline to defend her. Stunned, she could find nothing to say.
Rogue Dragons Series: Box Set Books 1-5 Page 44
