by Lola Gabriel
Until then.
“I’m just saying that I could have had this crap shipped or bought you new furniture,” Cass said, and Brooklyn swallowed a smile.
She’s driving him as nuts as she drives me, she thought. It’s endearing.
“No one told you that you had to come,” Audrey retorted as they piled into the house. “I have a lot of memories in this place, and so does Brooklyn, don’t you?”
Brooklyn raised her arms in pretend surrender. “I am only here because you asked me to come with you.”
“And I’m only here because I have business in San Francisco,” Cass added. “I’ll be back in a couple hours.”
Brooklyn rushed toward him, throwing her arms around his neck, and his attractive face broke into an easy smile. No matter how much they bantered and barked at each other, Brooklyn knew that Cass was sincerely happy with their arrangement. He regarded Audrey as a pain in the ass sister-in-law. The annoyance often outweighed the affection, but there was a lot of love for her nonetheless.
“I love you,” Brooklyn whispered, brushing her lips against his. “Hurry back.”
“I’ll be back soon,” he promised. “Maybe we can go for dinner at La Tortuga tonight. Have you been there?”
Brooklyn stepped back and gawked at him, his golden-brown eyes shimmering mischievously.
“You did remember me that night!” she gasped, heat coloring her face. “You jerk!” Cass laughed and ducked back into the town car, leaving Brooklyn to gape after him.
She should’ve known. Had he followed her to the club from the restaurant that night? Brooklyn shook her head and joined Audrey in the almost empty house. She had a feeling she would never know for certain. Besides, it didn’t really matter now.
I am so grateful he wants me, she thought, a shiver of happiness sliding down her backbone.
“That smile is beginning to get on my nerves,” Audrey snapped as Brooklyn found her in the kitchen.
“Does my happiness upset you?” Brooklyn asked sarcastically.
“No,” she retorted. “It makes me jealous as hell. You get a rich, sexy, dragon prince and I am your nanny.”
“You are not my nanny!” Brooklyn snapped hotly, but she instantly saw the evil glint in Audrey’s eyes. “Why do you insist on pushing my buttons?”
“Because you always take the bait,” she replied, laughing. “Anyway, I’m serious. Get your man in line to find me a good dragon of my own. He promised.”
“Maybe he’s worried you will eat his brothers alive,” Brooklyn said dryly, opening the cupboards to ensure they were empty.
“I wouldn’t mind the opportunity,” Audrey agreed, and they both laughed.
Brooklyn felt a pang of loss. She had opted to leave Audren with Kirra, but she was starting to regret it. She felt like she was missing a limb.
“Hello?”
The front door opened, and the women eyed each other curiously. A tingle of apprehension shot through Brooklyn’s body.
I know that voice, she thought, hurrying toward the front door with Audrey. Standing at the entrance of the house was the one person Brooklyn never wanted to see again.
“What are you doing in my house?” Audrey roared. “Get out of here right now before I call the cops!”
“I am the cops!” Ryan spat back, entering the house in his uniform. “I just need to talk to Brooklyn.”
Brooklyn felt a newly familiar sensation crawling through her body.
“What are you doing here, Ryan?” she demanded.
“I’ve had people watching out for you, and one of the guys told me that they saw you in town this morning,” Ryan replied with a shrug.
“You had me followed?” Brooklyn asked.
“Yes! I want to see my son!” he snapped. “Where is he?”
“He’s not your son,” Brooklyn replied evenly, willing herself to be calm. “I have nothing to say to you. Get out of here.”
“You can’t withhold my kid because you’re jealous and spiteful!” Ryan yelled. “You disappeared with my boy. I should have you arrested for custodial interference! You don’t want to mess with the LAPD, Brooklyn!”
She felt a smidgen of fear course through her.
“Are you deaf?” Audrey screeched. “He isn’t yours!”
“This isn’t about you!” Ryan screamed, advancing towards them. His face was red with fury. “So help me God, Brooklyn, I will—”
“Get away from her.”
The words were flat but chilling nonetheless, and Brooklyn exhaled as Cass strode into the room.
Ryan looked at him in shock.
“Mr. Williams!” he cried, his face contorting in confusion. “What are you—did you buy this house?”
Brooklyn could see Ryan trying to reconcile what the real estate mogul was doing in Audrey’s living room, and it gave her a spark of pleasure.
“I thought I recognized you pulling onto the street, so I turned around,” Cass replied, slipping closer to Brooklyn.
“You remember me? From the restaurant in San Francisco?” Ryan asked, and Brooklyn found herself confused by the conversation.
“Oh, yes,” Cass answered casually. “Didn’t I spill wine on you and your fiancée?”
Brooklyn and Audrey exchanged a look, and they both held back their laughter as Ryan continued to struggle with what was happening.
“Uh, yeah,” Ryan murmured.
“I see you’ve met my fiancée,” Cass said, “but I believe you already know her. Brooklyn, you know Ryan, right?” Brooklyn’s body melted into a puddle of relief, and she sank against him.
Ryan’s eyes finally widened as he gaped at them.
“You—you—” he sputtered, looking from Cass to Brooklyn and back again. “You’re engaged?”
“I told you the kid isn’t yours!” Audrey yelled. “Now get out of my house!”
Ryan shook his head, appearing dazed as he slowly backed out of the front room. He turned and fled without another word, and when the front door closed, Audrey began to howl.
“I wish I had a video recording of his face!” she chortled, but Brooklyn barely heard her as she looked at Cass.
“You spilled wine on him and Elena?” she asked. “How did that happen?”
Cass widened his eyes with feigned innocence.
“It was an accident,” he replied in a voice that clearly told Brooklyn he was lying. She cocked her head to the side and stared up at him.
“You knew right away too, didn’t you?” she whispered, and he smiled.
“Didn’t you?” he replied. “So, what do you say?”
She furrowed her brow in confusion. “About what?”
Cass kissed her sweetly on the lips. “Will you be my fiancée? I would hate for Ryan to think I was lying to him.”
Brooklyn’s face turned red, her heart furiously pumping blood through her body. “Is that why you’re proposing? Because you don’t want to appear dishonest?”
“I’m proposing because I want to spend eternity with you,” he said, his eyes boring into hers.
Brooklyn’s head grew light as her beautiful features erupted into a smile.
“Then of course my answer is yes,” she responded, and as their lips met again, she could not think of anything she wanted more than to wander the earth with Cassius Williams forever.
Dragon’s Choice
Misty Woods Dragons
Text Copyright © 2018 by Juniper Hart
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictionally. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or to actual events or locales is entirely coincidental.
First printing, 2017
Publisher
Secret Woods Books
s
[email protected]
www.SecretWoodsBooks.com
1
Georges hopped from the front seat and hurried to open the door for Marcus as he strutted off the Lear jet toward the waiting limousine, dark sunglasses obstructing the light of the morning sun.
“Good morning, Mr. Williams. I trust you had a pleasant flight,” Georges said.
Marcus eyed the driver, a half-smile on his full mouth as he thought of what he had left behind on the private plane: a half-naked and exhausted air hostess with his name on her lips.
“It was good, yes,” Marcus replied smoothly, slipping onto the cool leather seats where Melissa sat, her mouth pursed into a fine line of concentration. “Thank you for asking. Hello, Missy.”
“Your flight was late,” she said without preamble, annoyance tinging her words as she thrust an itinerary onto his lap. “For the third time this month. This pilot is incompetent.”
“He can’t control the weather, darling,” Marcus reminded her. “You must cut him some slack.”
Melissa vehemently shook her tightly coifed head, and Marcus marveled at the way not one dark strand moved with the motion. “The last one was never late. He got you home from Bogota in a hurricane, remember?”
Marcus’ grin widened, his vivid blue eyes sparkling mischievously. “Some of us are just better in a storm, Missy. Some of us err on the side of caution. Which type are you again?”
As Georges closed the door, he slid across the seat to press his solid form against her thin frame. His assistant’s mouth became a scowl once she realized he was gently mocking her.
If there was one thing Marcus knew, it was that Missy did not appreciate being teased, but he couldn’t resist. She made it so easy with her uptight attitude and humorless smile. He felt as if it was his personal duty to put her at ease. It was the least he could do. After all, she ran his life so efficiently.
“You seem unusually tense today, Missy,” he told her, his strong hands reaching to caress her shoulders. “Let me help you.”
Melissa scowled and shrugged him off, ice in her fierce brown eyes. “This is no time for games, Marcus! You’re late to for your meeting, and you know these guys take these slights very personally. Rodney is still seething from having to smooth things over from your last fiasco!”
Marcus sat back, winking at her.
“I rescheduled that meeting from the plane,” he told her. “You and Rodney can exhale now.”
“You what?” Melissa screeched, throwing up her hands in disgust. “Why didn’t you tell me? I’ve been panicking for the last half an hour!”
Marcus patted her knee, and she sighed heavily.
“It’s so much more fun this way, don’t you think?” he jested, and she grunted in frustration.
“You’re going to be the death of me one day,” she complained, pulling off her reading glasses and falling back against the seat.
“I guess the rest of my day just opened up,” he said smoothly, his hand squeezing her knee.
“What am I going to do with you, Marcus?” Melissa asked in mild exasperation, a tired smile on her face. “I am doing my best to keep your life running without incident. You can’t just keep pulling stuff like this.”
“Why not?” Marcus challenged, turning his body toward her, his eyes boring into hers as he licked his lips. “It keeps things exciting.”
“Marcus…”
“Hmm?” His lips found the curve of her chin, and he gently nibbled on her jawline, his palm inching up her thigh as she slowly relaxed against him. Melissa’s legs parted to allow him access, and Marcus chuckled.
“Isn’t that much nicer?” he asked soothingly as the car slipped onto highway 427 and headed into the downtown core. His mouth closed around the soft skin of her throat, and Melissa sighed, her head falling back to permit him a better spot. Marcus’ hand traveled upward, scooping her tiny buttocks into one meaty palm. Melissa squealed as the movement landed her vertically along the leather, her skirt raising over her slender hips while his mouth met hers.
“Oh, I missed you,” she purred, her hips bucking upward to encourage his hand. “I wish you would take me with you on more of your trips.”
Slowly, Marcus rubbed the soft fabric of her panties, his lips falling to taste the skin of her cheeks. She moaned, and Marcus felt a rush of warmth on his open palm. He smiled to himself.
“There’s my girl,” he murmured, pulling away to stare into her face. “That’s better, isn’t it?” He sat up and straightened his burgundy tie, leaving Melissa to stare at him, dumbfounded.
“Why did you stop?” she asked, her voice taking on a whine of complaint. She reached out to pull him back, but Marcus slid his powerful form away, reclaiming his original seat across from her, and reached toward the bar.
“You seem more at ease now,” he replied nonchalantly as he poured two fingers of whiskey into a crystal tumbler. He took a sip and winked at her while she sat up, a slightly dazed look in her eye.
“Marcus!” Melissa moaned. “I haven’t seen you in a week!”
“Then you can wait a few more hours,” he replied, pressing the button to lower the partition. “Georges, take me to the Queen Street apartment,” he instructed.
A look of understanding crossed over Melissa’s face and she nodded, reaching for her tablet without another word.
“Yes, Mr. Williams,” Georges said.
As the limo steered onto the Gardiner Express Way, Marcus turned to watch the impending Toronto skyline, his mind on six different things.
The meeting in Dubai had gone better than he had expected, his deal closing at less than he had bid. Stopping in Misty Woods had been more trying than usual, but his father was known for being difficult. No matter how many hundreds of years passed by, he would never grow accustomed to dealing with the slowly deteriorating old dragon.
But now I am home, and I have the women that need my attention, he thought, watching as Georges exited on Yonge Street and stopped at a red light. There truly is no rest for the wicked.
Idly, Marcus glanced back at Melissa, who seemed enthralled at whatever she was reading on her device. He wondered what she was really thinking. Even after centuries, it seemed bizarre that the women in his life accepted their complacency so freely.
Once upon a time, they were tied to a prince, their hopes likely intertwined with the prospect of marriage, but in the modern day, he could not understand precisely why they so easily fell into line. Perhaps it was still the same mentality.
After all, Marcus was the CEO and president of a world-renowned conglomerate, a company whose tentacles extended to the far reaches of every avenue of business. He was one of the richest men in the world, sweeping his conquests into a life of luxury when they captured his attention: elegant apartments, driving expensive cars, and draped in the finest clothes. They wanted for nothing but his undivided attention, and yet no one dared to ask him for it as if they knew the outcome of such a brazen request.
Not that Marcus was complaining; any one of them could and would be easily replaced. As much as he liked them all, he loved none. Commitment and marriage to one woman were a waste of a man’s prowess and energy. With the divorce rate being what it was, why would he jeopardize his finances and time when the result was inevitable?
It didn’t matter that Marcus’ net worth could fund generations of divorce. That was beside the point.
Something tickled the back of his mind: an uneasiness as he thought about someone who might make him reconsider his staunch views on monogamy. Just as quickly as it surfaced, though, the thought disappeared, as if it had never been there in the first place.
“Five minutes, Mr. Williams,” Georges announced, shooting his boss a quick look in the rear-view mirror.
“Thank you, Georges. You may take Melissa back to the office and return to pick me up.”
“I can wait,” Melissa called out quickly, her dark eyes darting up, and a wry smile touched Marcus’ lips.
“Aren’t you
a little sadist?” he said coyly, and her cheeks blushed crimson.
“No,” she protested. “I just don’t see the point of Georges making two trips if you are returning to the office.”
“Who said I am returning to the office?” Marcus demanded, his smile freezing on his lips as he studied her face.
Embarrassment colored Melissa’s olive complexion as she realized her mistake.
“I forgot you had canceled the meeting for this afternoon,” she said quickly.
Marcus knew she had forgotten no such thing, but he had to admire her quick thinking. It was easier than admitting she was questioning his actions.
The car pulled up to the quaint refurbished condos on Queen Street, Georges blocking traffic as he exited the driver’s seat.
“Marcus?” Melissa called tentatively.
“Yes?” he replied, ready to step from his seat.
“Will I see you tonight?”
Marcus felt his back tense, and he lazily looked at her. “You are full of questions today, aren’t you, Missy?” Melissa swallowed nervously, and his eyes bored into hers until she shifted her eyes away.
“Never mind,” she muttered, and Marcus chuckled, the door opening beside him.
Oh, give her something, he chided himself. She looks a little bit like a lost puppy right now with those big brown eyes. Impulsively, he darted to cover the space between them, placing a sweet kiss on her cheek, his fingers sliding up her skirt once more.
She jumped at the unexpectedness of the gesture, a hot red staining her cheeks.
“Marcus!” she gasped, realizing that Georges had seen the entire exchange.
Marcus laughed and slid gracefully out of the car, spinning to cast her another wink.
“Keep your phone nearby,” he told her as the car door slammed in the wake of his words. He turned to Georges again, reaching into his pockets for a set of keys. “Take her back to the office and come back immediately. I won’t be long here,” he said.