A Mate to Believe In (Dragons of Mount Aterna Book 2)

by Riley Storm

  She looked up at him sharply. “You heard that? You were way over there.”

  Pace shrugged. “Um, I have really good hearing?”

  Carla sighed. Whatever, it didn’t really matter if Pace knew, she figured. Maybe it would be better to put it out there anyway.

  “Well, you know Dunbar didn’t want me looking into this case, right?” she said. “You heard him.

  “You mean back when you tried to arrest me?” He chuckled at the memory. “That vaguely rings a bell.”

  Carla blushed, then wondered why she was embarrassed about that. She’d just been doing her job after all.

  “Anyway,” she said, hurrying on. “I had to convince him to let me investigate. Which meant making some concessions.”

  “Like what?” Pace asked, concerned. “Why would you do that?”

  “Because it was the right thing to do, Pace. Something is going on here. I can feel it. There’s something being hidden beneath my very nose. I know you know more about it than you’re letting on too, but don’t worry, we’ll get to that.” She felt her nails digging into her palm and forcefully unclenched her fist. “Sorry.”

  Pace shrugged, but stayed quiet.

  “Anyway, to get him to let me investigate, I told him that if I can’t solve it, he can demote me. I’ll be back to basically a beat cop. At that point, as long as Dunbar is around, I’ll never make it to full Deputy.”

  “Demote you?” Pace gasped. “What the everloving fuck?”

  Carla swayed backward, stunned by the outburst of anger from Pace. He was usually far more calm and composed. The swearing and tone of voice were not at all like him.

  “Yeah,” she said. “I mean, it’s nothing new. He’s been stonewalling me since the beginning. The only reason I made it from Officer to Junior Deputy is because he had no choice with my seniority.”

  “I’ve been working with you for two days, and I can already tell you deserve to be promoted,” Pace growled. “Corporal, or Sergeant or whatever is next.”

  “We just have Officer, Junior Deputy, Senior or Full Deputy and then Sheriff here,” she said. “Too small for anything else. But don’t worry about it, Pace. This is my battle to fight.”

  The huge man was still staring daggers at Dunbar’s back though, despite her assurances. "I promise you, I will do everything within my power to help you solve this crime in time.”

  Carla smiled tightly. “Thanks. It will feel good to find this killer, bring him to justice.”

  Beside her, Pace shifted uncomfortably. “Uh, yeah. Definitely.” He looked away, refusing to meet her eyes.

  What’s that all about?

  “What’s next?” Pace asked, interrupting her before she could bring it up.

  Carla sighed. “I think we go home and regroup. I know it’s a little early, but I don’t have any further leads right now. Do you?”

  “No,” Pace said with a helpless shrug. “Sorry.”

  “Alright, let’s just call it then,” she said. “Thanks for your help today.”

  With that, she headed off to her car, ready to go home and just forget about her run-in with Dunbar. It took her several steps to realize Pace was still next to her.

  “Did I miss something?” she said, looking up at him in confusion.

  “What do you mean?”

  “We’re done for the day. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  Pace nodded. “I know. But my truck is at your place, remember?”

  “Oh. Right.”

  In the midst of it all, Carla had totally forgotten. Now she had to drive him home. To her place. Alone.

  Without having to get to work as an excuse to cut things short.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Pace

  He didn’t say much on the ride across town. It was obvious that, despite her attempts to brush it off, Carla was rattled by the threats from her boss. She’d even forgotten at first that he’d parked at her place that morning.

  Not that Pace had much to say either. He was trying hard to remain silent, not to make things awkward, but it was hard. Knowing that they were going back to her place. Alone. Without anyone around, without her work to interrupt them or prevent them from, well, whatever.

  What do you actually think is going to happen here? Yes, you kissed her, and she kissed back. That was it, and she hasn’t really given you any hints since that she wants more. Stop daydreaming scenarios where things happen. They won’t.

  The thoughts acted like a splash of cold water to the face, cooling his racing internal thoughts. Although there were no outward signs that something was going on between them, Pace could feel that things were different. Two days of working with Carla and it was now obvious to him that there was...something.

  He could feel it. Like it was a tangible thing, almost like a cord connecting the two of them together.

  That’s ridiculous. Stop it.

  “I bet Barton’s going to be happy you’re coming home a bit early,” he offered, trying to break the silence, to re-engage their conversation.

  He didn’t want Carla to get too down on herself. Dunbar was an asshole and he didn’t deserve someone like Carla working for him.

  To his surprise, Carla sighed at his comment. “Yeah, probably. He’s going to need to be walked though, and I am not up to that right now.”

  “I’ll do it,” he said, piping up before he’d had a chance to think it through.

  Carla looked over at him, her face open in surprise. It felt like he was looking into a mirror, because Pace knew his had to look similar.

  “No, no, it’s fine,” she said, waving him off. “He’s my silly mutt, I’ll take care of him Pace. There’s no need for that.”

  “Nonsense,” he said, pushing a little harder. “I can handle it. He’s a good boy. Besides, it’ll give us a chance to bond.”

  He didn’t have any good reason as to why they should need to bond, but it seemed like a reasonable excuse. Pace hoped it worked. Carla needed a break. It was obvious to him, as he could see her jaw clenched tighter than usual and the almost vacant stare in her eyes.

  It made sense. In a town like Five Peaks, something like this had to be very unusual. Natural death happened, but the cold-blooded execution of someone likely was very rare. It made him angry too, because Pace knew who was behind it.

  One of his kind had killed the hacker, there was no doubt about it in his mind. A dragon had killed a human, one of the people they were sworn to protect. When he finally found this jerk, Pace was going to remind him of that in the most painful, permanent way possible. The dragon clans were sworn to defend humanity. Not hurt them.

  “Are you sure?” Carla asked as they pulled onto her street. “You don’t have to, you know.”

  “I got this,” he said. “Go take a shower, relax, whatever it is you need to do.”

  “Yes sir,” she said tiredly, but with humor.

  “Much better.”

  They pulled into her driveway and he walked up with her to the house. Barton was waiting at the door and Pace bent down to wrestle playfully with the excited animal, giving him all the good rubs. After all, he was good boy.

  “Here you go,” Carla said, handing him a leash with plastic bags tied to the handle. “Thank you so much, Pace. I…I really appreciate this.”

  “That’s what partners are here for,” he said, giving her a wink as he clipped the lead onto Barton’s collar. “You wanna go for a walk, boy?”

  Bark!

  “I think that means yes,” he said with a laugh. “I’ll be back in a bit.”

  Carla nodded, leaning on the doorframe. Pace gestured down the driveway and Barton trotted along. He could feel Carla’s eyes on his back until he got out of sight of her front door.

  As soon as he felt confident that he was in the clear, his hand dove into his pocket and withdrew with his phone. He punched a number into it.

  “Hello?” a female voice answered on the other end.

  “Emma,” he said in a rush. “I need your help!”
>
  Emma was Asher’s mate, and the newest member of Clan Aterna. She had also become a sort of older-sister-type role model for Pace, and he was desperate for her advice just then. He didn’t know who else to turn to.

  “Okay, calm down,” she said. “What is it?”

  “I don’t know what I’m doing.”

  “What do you mean? What are you doing right now?” she asked, concerned.

  “Right now, I’m walking a dog,” he said, then cut her off when she tried to speak. “That’s not what I mean though. It’s not the dog, it’s the owner. Her. I mean, it’s Carla. I…”

  “You have feelings for her?” Emma asked dryly. “Is that what this is about, Pace? Are you calling me because you have a crush on a girl?”

  Despite the dry humor in her tone, Pace knew that Emma was excited for him.

  “I think so,” he said. “I mean, I kissed her already, and it was good, but—”

  “You kissed her and didn’t tell me about that?” Emma exclaimed excitedly. “What, when, how?”

  Pace sighed and gave a real quick version of the story. “That’s not what I’m calling about though. I’m walking her dog, and when I get back, I’m probably going to go inside. She’s not on duty right now, and then it’ll just be us, well us and the dog, and then once I’m in her house, what do I do? What if she wants to kiss me but I don’t know it? What if I don’t kiss her when I should? How do I know what to do?”

  He paused for breath, at which point Emma interjected again.

  “Okay. First things first. You need to breathe. Air to the brain is critical here.”

  “Right.” His chest inflated as he sucked in all the air he could, then let it out slowly. “Okay.”

  “Now, you need to just stay calm, Pace. Remember, if she’s into you, she’s thinking all these things as well. Which means that when you get back to her place, if she’s interested, there’s going to be some sort of sign. Something that she wouldn’t do if she wasn’t interested.”

  “Right.” He frowned. “Like what?”

  Emma sighed. “I don’t know, Pace. I’m not her. You’re going to have to think this through yourself. But know that if she’s not interested, there will be no openings for you to kiss her. None. She will make it very obvious. But if there are some, then it’s going to be up to you to take that chance.”

  “This is wonderfully non-specific advice,” he complained. “I thought you had the magic code here. You’re a woman.”

  Emma laughed. Then kept laughing.

  “What’s so funny?” he grumbled.

  “Nothing. Absolutely nothing. You can do this, Pace. I believe in you. You’re a good man.”

  “Thanks Em,” he said. “I appreciate it.”

  “No problem, little brother,” she teased. “Now go finish walking the dog and look for that opening. Good luck!”

  “Thanks,” he said, hanging up the phone.

  At that moment, Barton paused and looked back up at him.

  “What do you think, boy? Is she going to give me an opening?”

  Barton just wagged his tail.

  “Well you’re no help.”

  Bark!

  Chapter Nineteen

  Carla

  Looking longingly at the tub, Carla sighed and turned on the shower.

  A long, hot bath would be absolutely heavenly at the moment. Just lying back, maybe with some bubbles and soaking for an hour, adding hot water as needed. Now that would be fantastic.

  Except she had no idea how long Pace would be with Barton, and only a small part of her thought that being naked in the bath when he returned would be a good idea. That was a part of her that she was not going to listen to. Clothes were definitely the smarter idea right then, there was no doubt about that in her mind.

  Doesn’t mean I can’t run the shower up nice and hot!

  She stripped, pulled the braid out of her hair and quickly got in, the water sluicing off her skin immediately, turning the pale flesh red with ease. Carla hissed and then relaxed as her body grew accustomed to the temperature.

  Definitely going to feel better by the time Pace and Barton return.

  Carla frowned, head-down under the water, letting her hair get thoroughly soaked. Why had she agreed to let Pace take Barton for a walk anyway? It wasn’t like she or her dog knew him all that well. In fact, it was only the third time they’d met.

  Yet it hadn’t taken Barton any time at all to show that he was a fan of Pace. Which was incredibly unusual for her dog. Barton rarely liked anyone. With Pace though, it had been instant friendship between the two.

  What did that mean?

  Carla straightened, flinging her hair back from her face and letting the hot water splash over her for a moment before turning her back to the showerhead. She was spending far too much time thinking about Pace lately.

  How was she supposed to not, though? There was so much going on, so much that he had been a part of, in the past handful of days. From the wild scene on the security camera, to somehow saving her life in the warehouse, to their kiss. It was a lot.

  There was no denying that there was something different about Pace. It wasn’t just his absurdly ripped body, or even his rugged charm and big smile. It was that aura of mystery about him, Carla realized abruptly.

  I know him, or at least I’m getting to know him, but it’s so obvious that there’s something else about him that he’s not sharing. It’s right there, just below the surface, but I can’t seem to see it for some reason.

  She’d felt it though, when his lips had been pressed against hers, his arms wrapped around her, holding her tight. That intangible…something.

  All at once, Carla realized what path she was starting to go down. The warm tingles she was starting to feel were no longer entirely from the piercing heat of the jets of water splashing across her back.

  “No. No we are not doing this right now,” she ordered herself, hurriedly grabbing some body wash and cleaning herself off, focusing on that act, and nothing more.

  Once she was done, she killed the water and started to dry off. Her hair would take forever, but she wasn’t going anywhere. Maybe she would blow-dry it, maybe it would just towel dry for ages while she had some wine. Who knew?

  She’d just finished drying her body when there was a bark and the sound of a dog skittering across the floor. Moments later, Barton whined at the door and pawed at it. There was never any privacy with her dog around, she always had to leave the door open for him so he could ensure she didn’t drown.

  “I’m right here, boy,” she said calmly. “Just give me a second.”

  More whining and pawing.

  With a sigh she wrapped the towel around her chest and tucked it into her armpit before walking the two steps across the tile and pulling the door open.

  “Uh, hi,” Pace said looking up from where he was bent over, about to grab Barton. “I, um, was just going to distract him so he didn’t ruin your door.”

  Carla stood up straight at the same time Pace did, the two of them not sure what to say. Unfortunately, the action pulled at her towel, and the already haphazard job she’d done slipped a little loose, sliding down to expose some of her cleavage.

  This time, Pace’s eyes did dart downward. It was very quick, a fraction of a second’s worth, if that, but she saw it happen. He recovered quickly, but all at once things were awkward between them.

  What did she do? Should she pull it back up, retreat into the bathroom? What if he wanted more though, was she willing to let it happen? Paralyzed, she instead did nothing, letting the towel sit lower, while her eyes just stared at Pace, watching. Waiting.

  To her surprise, Pace took charge of the moment, something she hadn’t been certain he would do. After all, they were in her house, and she was the one in the vulnerable position. It would be all too easy for him to back down and assume it was all an accident.

  Isn’t it? I didn’t do this on purpose.

  Or had she? Carla had known that Pace would be outside,
and she had opened the door wide, not just the crack that would have been necessary for Barton to come through. So maybe she had left an opening for him.

  Either way, Pace took it. He stepped forward, easing his way around Barton until he towered over her. Tall as she was for a woman, Carla still felt small near him. Pace had six inches and a hundred plus pounds on her, most of it sheer muscle. Muscle that she knew from experience was very strong, and easily capable of picking her up.

  Or pinning her down.

  Heartbeats pounded against her chest as his hand came up to caress her jaw with one finger before dragging a nail down her neck and over her collarbone. Carla shivered at his touch, unable to control herself. It was a pure tease, and she was soaking it up.

  “Did you have a good shower?” Pace rumbled, lowering his mouth to her.

  “Yes,” she replied, tilting her head back.

  When he kissed her, Carla’s knees nearly gave out. Pace must have felt the tremble, because one hand slipped around her back, squeezing tight, pressing her towel-clad body against him.

  Carla practically melted into him. The confidence with which he’d made a move on her was so incredibly hot. Where her doubt in him to do such a thing had come from, she wasn’t entirely sure, but it was gone now, pushed aside. Just like her towel was about to be. The knot was coming undone as they kissed, and she knew it was only a matter of time before it fell away.

  Then Pace would have complete access to her body. Part of her longed to find out if he was as good at other things as he was with kissing. His fingers ran up her back and a soft moan escaped her lips. He was always so warm, like there was a fire raging just beneath the surface of his skin.

  Speaking of fires raging, she thought to herself, feeling the stiff bulge in his pants as he grew harder. Pace wasn’t bothering to try and hide it from her. Instead he was pressing it into her, teasing her with it, letting her know that she could have it, if she wanted.

  All Carla would have to do was let her hand slide down from his shoulder and between them. She could run her hand along his shaft, feel him react. A button and a zipper and she could set him free. He could be inside her…