by Amelia Jade
The awkwardness landed at home on her face even as he felt it blossom in him, and he stood up straight. “Uhh.”
“Ummm.” Kim fidgeted with her uniform. It didn’t fit quite right, built for someone a little smaller through the shoulders and the hips.
“I’ll take you home now, I guess,” he said, hating himself for the stilted way the words came out.
“Yeah. Okay.” She smiled, licking her lips again. “Thank you for dinner, Pyne. And for the dance.”
“It truly was my pleasure,” he said with a slight bow.
Now how do I get this to happen again?
Chapter Eight
Kim
This time she wasn’t already awake when the knocks started on her door.
“One second!” she called, bouncing on one foot as she tried to stick the other through the leg of the green uniform Pyne had found for her. It wasn’t as easy as she’d hoped.
By the time she was decent her brain was starting to remind her of where she was, and what had happened last night.
She’d kissed Pyne. Well, he’d kissed her, to be exact, but she’d accepted it without hesitation. Splashing some water over her face, she ignored the next set of knocks, forcing herself to focus.
Things were getting out of hand. Although they’d walked back to her place hand in hand, it had been very perfunctory and proper, with not even a chaste press of his lips on her cheek to end the night—just a warm hug. It surprised her that he hadn’t tried to come in, but maybe Pyne had sensed she wouldn’t have been okay with that. He seemed to be overly perceptive where she was concerned.
What left her confused, however, was her complete and total comfort with it. Kissing Pyne hadn’t just been good, it had felt right. That left her feeling good, but also completely and totally terrified. How could something so new and unexpected feel so natural?
Looking at herself in the bathroom mirror, she pulled her hair up into the customary ponytail and pronounced herself ready to at least receive visitors.
Not that it’s likely to be anyone but Pyne.
She keyed the door button and the two panels slid apart, revealing to no surprise at all, Pyne.
“Hi,” he said with a grin from cheek to cheek.
“You’re certainly looking excited this morning. What’s going on that’s got you in such a good mood?”
“Get dressed,” he said, pointing at the clothes on the floor. The only clothes she owned.
“I am dressed,” she countered.
“Not good. Wear that, don’t complain, and let’s go.”
Before she could counter his orders he stepped back out of the doorway and let them close, giving her the privacy to change.
“Grrrr.”
“I can hear that.”
“Good!” she called back through the door. But she got changed anyway, thankful she’d chosen to wash them in the shower the day before.
Pyne didn’t say anything when she returned, just nodded and gestured down the hallway. “Where are we going?” she asked as they emerged onto the surface and headed for a parking lot. He pulled open the door to a large silver SUV and waited until she got in.
“We,” he said, climbing into the driver’s seat, “are executing my plan.”
“Your plan. You don’t have a plan.”
“I do now.” He didn’t elaborate.
Kim sat back in her chair and tried to puzzle it out. “Are we driving around or going somewhere?”
“We’re going to Barton City.”
She sat up. “Great. That’s great! We can alert the police forces there, track him down, and finally apprehend this guy. With whatever resources you can bring to bear, the local police and maybe even the news, Morgan is going to be caught in a hurry.”
Suspiciously Pyne didn’t say anything, guiding them out onto a road and heading toward the distant town she’d flown into what felt like so long ago now. Kim fell silent, trying to puzzle out just what it was they were going to do. Her earlier hope about local law enforcement seemed the most likely bet, and relief filled her system.
“What is this?” she asked as they stopped outside a shopping mall. “Why are we here?”
“It’s all part of the plan,” he said secretively. “Come on.”
“Pyne, we need to go to the police and get them in on this.”
He came around the SUV and waited outside her door for her to exit. “We’re not going to do that,” he explained, motioning for her to get out.
Kim finally did, but she stood there and crossed her arms. “Why not? As a federal agent you must have some level of pull here, don’t you? Tell them who you are and let’s treat this case properly!”
“I can’t, Kim.” He refused to look at her.
“Why the hell not? You’re not pulling rank, you’re just asking an ally for assistance! What’s so wrong about that? I don’t understand.” She was getting quite confused now.
He didn’t answer.
“Pyne? What aren’t you telling me?”
Air rushed out of his lungs as he spoke quickly. “Because I’m not actually a federal agent. There!” he flung his hands in the air. “Are you happy?”
She frowned. “You’re not? When did you leave the service? I thought you still worked for them…”
He grimaced unhappily. “I never worked for them, Kim. Not even when you first met me.”
“You lied to me?” She took a step back, confused by the sudden revelation.
“Sort of,” he admitted.
“What were you? And what are you now?”
If Pyne’s face could look any more uncomfortable it would. His beautiful features were all scrunched up, his cheeks were red, and his eyes looked everywhere but at her.
“You need to tell me, Pyne. Now.”
“It’s complicated,” he admitted. “I do work for the government, in a way. Just…not in any capacity you would ever suspect. I—” he shook his head. “I’m sorry, I can’t reveal any more.”
Despite her desire to beat him upside the head for lying to her, Kim was in the military now. One thing she’d come across more often than she wished was the term “operational security.” She understood it, and understood why that meant he couldn’t reveal everything to her.
“What’s your clearance level?” she asked quietly. That was something he could reveal, and it would tell her just how far above her paygrade things were going.
“D1” he said after a brief pause.
She whistled in surprise. “I am so out of my league.”
D1 clearance was basically a myth as far as she was aware. Nobody she knew had ever met anyone with D1 clearance, let alone knew of someone. It was said not even the head of government had that high a clearance level, due to it being an elected position.
“No you aren’t,” he tried to assure her. “I just want you to know that I’m not willingly concealing things from you.”
She nodded nervously. “Okay. Um. Do you mean me any harm with any of this?”
“Absolutely not,” he stated.
His reply came so swiftly, so strongly, that she took a step back in surprise.
“I would lay down my life to protect you.” Pyne’s eyes, previously worried and frantic, were now locked on to her, unwavering.
“I believe you,” she whispered. “But…why the mall? She wanted to talk about something else. Anything else. Everything had become so serious all of a sudden, and she couldn’t handle it.
Pyne grinned. “You flew here in the clothes you were wearing.”
“I’m aware of that,” she ground out. “Thank you for making me even more self-conscious.
He laughed. “Well now you have your answer, don’t you? Come on, it’s time to get you some outfits and necessities.”
“Pyne,” she said, not following after him very quickly. “I appreciate it, but I can’t afford much on my salary. Certainly not a new wardrobe.”
He shook his head. “You�
��re not picking up the tab. Now move it, young lady.”
She tried not to giggle, failed, and kept trying anyway. Walking briskly, she caught up with him, though his reminder of her lack of clean clothes kept her slightly apart. She didn’t want him to smell her.
“How does this have anything to do with your plan?” she asked after a few stops in various stores, starting to get curious. “And seriously, this is enough. I don’t want you spending money on me like this, Pyne. It’s unnecessary.”
“The clothes are necessary though. As is us spending time out here.”
The way he spoke the second part told her he was answering her question. Why then, would it be important for them to spend time outside? What could possibly be gained from them being so exposed and—Oh shit.
“You’re using me as bait,” she accused.
“Correction, I’m using us as bait. Especially if your theory about him being after me is correct. In that case, I’m using myself as bait really.”
“Except for the part that, if he really wanted to get to you, the best way would be to use me. Which means I’m in danger.” She shuffled the bags she held into her left hand, freeing up the right for whatever followed.
To her dismay Pyne took that as an opportunity to snag her hand. With bags in the other she couldn’t even swat him away. “What are you doing?” she asked instead as he pulled her along, motioning to yet another store. “I don’t need this much stuff.”
“Sure you do, come on.”
His attitude was infectious and she had a hard time resisting his eagerness. After all, new clothes were new clothes, even if she felt horribly guilty for letting him pay for all of them.
They were almost in the store when she felt a persistent buzzing in her pocket.
“Wait, Pyne. Hold on.” She let go of his hand and put the bags down, reaching into the front breast pocket of the green utilities she couldn’t wait to change out of. The number on her phone wasn’t one she recognized. It wasn’t from home, that was certain.
“That’s a local number,” Pyne said, peering over her shoulder.
“Odd.” She hit the green button and pushed it to her ear. “Hello?”
There was a crackle and then a long silence. She was about to hang up when a voice spoke over the phone.
“Hello, Kim. It’s been a long time.”
Chapter Nine
Pyne
He dropped the bags he was carrying and went on instant alert as the blood drained from his mate’s face. Eyes sharper than an eagle’s scanned nearby walkways, shops, and the second-floor railing. If there was a single person or thing that didn’t belong, he would have detected it.
But there was nothing. Whoever it was, they weren’t in visual range of the pair. He strained to hear what was being said over the phone but she had it held up to her far ear, making it difficult for even him to hear. The volume must have been turned down low.
“What do you want?” Kim tried to sound sure of herself, but he could hear the slight quaver.
It was Morgan. It had to be. Nobody else would leave her fearful. If it was back home, the number would be different, and she’d be nervous about being in trouble, but not scared. No, he was right. Pyne could feel it.
A moment later she shakily handed the cell phone to him. “He wants to talk to you.”
Using both hands, he took both the phone and her hand, holding it tight and giving her what he hoped was a reassuring squeeze. If only he could tell her why she wasn’t in any danger around him! It would make things so much easier on his mate. But he couldn’t, unfortunately. Not yet. She needed to fall more in love with him first.
“What do you want?” he snarled into the phone, his eyes once more roving the nearby shoppers, the two-person staff of one of those annoying kiosks that always interrupt your shopping to ask if you want their shoddy product, and anything else that moved.
Even his nose couldn’t pick out Morgan’s scent, though it would have been tough in such a populated location.
“What do I want?” Morgan laughed. “You know what I want.”
Pyne’s growl sent shoppers and store staff alike scurrying for cover as it bubbled forth from his throat, rattling nearby windows. In half a second there was a thirty-foot space cleared around the two of them. He glanced around, pulling Kim tight to him, trying to keep her calm.
She’s feeding off you. The calmer you stay, the calmer she’ll stay. Relax, Pyne. You need to relax. He’s not here; he can’t harm her.
“I have no time for games.”
“No, you don’t, do you? In fact, you’re almost all out of time as it is.”
Pyne frowned. That didn’t seem like an immediate threat, the way he’d said it. There was no need to worry about danger in the mall. And yet… “Speak clearly.”
“I want money, Pyne. All of it.”
The dragon shifter laughed. The few people that had dared to come close again, whether to pass or enter nearby stores, immediately scattered, and this time they didn’t come back. The booming laughter rang out through the mall, and eyes turned to look at them from far away. Pyne didn’t care; he let his scowl run over each person in turn until they looked away.
No human could scare him.
“You must be delusional, Morgan. There is no way in hell I’m going to give it to you. Get bent.” He almost hung up the phone, but something in the way Morgan chuckled maniacally in response froze his heart.
“Oh, but this is the best part, Pyne. You’re not going to give it to me. You’re going to beg me to take it,” Morgan hissed. “Beg me, do you understand?”
“Now I know you’re delusional.”
“I’m anything but. Here, look.”
The phone buzzed against his ear abruptly, startling Pyne. He pulled it away, realizing that the same number that was calling him had just sent him a text message. Nervously he pulled it up. It was a picture of Kim at the Barton City airport. Another one followed. It was from a high-powered lens, but she was clearly visible talking to soldiers in uniform at Fort Banner.
“So it’s a picture of her. That’s not enough to make me beg. Not even close. You must have forgotten who you’re dealing with. You’ve spent too long in hiding.”
Morgan laughed freely. He had something up his sleeve; there was no way he was this confident otherwise. What was his plan with the pictures? It’s not like they were nudes he could threaten to post online. They were just pictures.
“You’re right, Pyne. They are pictures. Of Kim. Kimberly Phrasier, formerly a police detective, and now a member of the National Guard. A federal organization, Pyne. How do you think they would react to see pictures of her, here, talking to members of a foreign military, without authorization or forewarning of her superiors? How do you think that would look? Is she a spy, Pyne? Because that’s what they’re going to think.”
Pyne growled, unable to utter an actual word he was so overwhelmed with anger. That rat bastard! How dare he threaten to frame his mate like that.
“When I find you—” he began, but Morgan cut him off with three loud tsks.
“Now now, Pyne. Remember what I said. The money.”
“What money?”
“Oh you remember. All the money you made that day because you disagreed with me. That money. You’re going to sign it over to me. All of it.”
“Fuck you, Morgan.”
Laughter blasted through the tiny speaker, so loud he had to pull the phone away from his ear. Pyne winced, waited, and then put it closer again as Morgan quieted.
“You have seventy-two hours to call me back at this number to arrange the transfer. If you don’t, the pictures go to her superiors, and the media here and back home, along with my version of why she’s here. Do you understand me?”
Pyne stared at the mannequins in the window nearest him, wishing that he could wreck something. Wreck everything. He briefly contemplated shifting into his dragon form and leveling the mall, but that would solve n
othing other than to complicate matters even more.
But it would feel so good.
“Let me hear you say it,” Morgan ordered with an icy calmness that made it clear he was done listening.
“I understand,” he grated out through clenched teeth.
“You understand what, Pyne?”
Anger clouded his vision, turning it a literal shade of red as blood filled his face. Pyne knew his temples had to be bulging as he sought to rein himself in. Kim stayed near him, knowing she wasn’t the target of his wrath, but anyone else with a sense of self-preservation was long gone from around him. Even mall security was maintaining a respectable hundred-foot or so distance, only looking over at him briefly.
“I understand that I have seventy-two hours to call you back to set up a meeting.”
“And what will happen if you don’t? Let me hear you say it.”
Morgan was enjoying this. He had complete control of the situation and he knew it. Pyne had to dance to his tune, and he was exploiting that ruthlessly. Enjoy it while it lasts, Morgan. Because before this is over I’m going to rip your head off. This I promise you.
“If I don’t, you will take those pictures and send them to Kim’s superiors.”
His left arm was curled around his mate, and when he spoke those words she went immediately still, the implications likely registering with her without delay.
“Precisely. What’s the charge for that called again? Going AWOL? Dereliction of duty? Something bad I’m sure. It won’t be good. She’ll know. Ask her, she’s not as stupid as you.”
The line went dead. He let his arm drop, careful not to break the phone. They needed the number that was on it.
When Kim finally spoke her voice was very, very small. “Pyne? What exactly is he threatening?”
He tried to pretend he hadn’t heard the question. That it wasn’t real, that she wasn’t leaning against him, both arms wrapped around his waist. Such closeness should have been comforting and enjoyable. Instead they were both so preoccupied with something else they couldn’t realize they’d broken another barrier between them.
