by Eden Ashe
Her teeth caught at her bottom lip as she searched his eyes. “They’re your friends?”
“No. I don’t have friends.” He shrugged, his mouth lifting in a sneer before she could feel sorry for him. “We are stronger together than apart, especially when a Hunter is involved. I am their leader and you are my mate, so they will protect you with their last breath.”
For as unbalanced as he’d been since the hospital, she didn’t doubt he was in command every second of every day. It was in the way he moved. It was the way he spoke and his overwhelming presence. Moving in closer to him, her eyes searched his for something she couldn’t define. “What will happen to them if you tell them we’re breaking the bond?” she asked.
He shrugged, his face shutting down. “It doesn’t matter. I bonded to you without your consent or permission. I’ll find a way to undo it.”
“Yeah, well…” She made a face at him, even as she shifted her body in closer. “I haven’t exactly made your life easy since we met.”
He scooped the jewels out of her hand, set them on a table next to her, then took a step toward her, ducking his head so their faces were closer together. They were so close she could feel the heat of him through her clothes, warming her all over. It sent her pulse scattering, but she couldn’t find it in her to care. “Are you admitting to being a brat?”
She snorted, her arms crossing over her chest. “Never.”
“Really?” he asked, amusement sparking deep in his eyes. “So when I asked you earlier to trust me, you would have done it without my assistance?”
* * * *
Her teeth worried at her lip for a moment, before a wide smile bloomed over her mouth. His body went hot, rock hard, and he suddenly couldn’t remember why the hell he didn’t devour her. Shooting his hand into her hair, he hauled her against him. His mouth was starving as it closed over hers.
The soft sound she made was created to drive him to madness, he was sure of it. A raw sound tore out of him. He didn’t care about their audience. His hands slid to her hips, hitching her up. The fit of her body was perfect against his, as if created just for this, just for him.
“Daniel.” His name escaped her on a sigh. She leaned up, nipping gently at his bottom lip. “You asked me a question.”
He thought about ignoring her. He was drowning in the lust in her eyes, and he didn’t want to come up for air. He was so far beyond pretending he didn’t need her. He didn’t want to play it safe. He didn’t want to play it smart. He didn’t want to walk away. He wanted her.
But she was waiting for him to answer her. The beast inside of him growled quietly as he skimmed his mouth down her throat, nearly smiling when he felt her whole-body shiver. “Yes?”
“Daniel.” She laughed softly, her hands sliding into his chin-length hair. She tugged gently until he looked at her. “I’m serious.”
Temper flashed over his face, because damn it, he didn’t want to talk. He didn’t want to think. He just wanted to lose himself in her the way he’d never been able to do with anyone else.
She wanted to talk, though, so they would talk. If she wanted to run a marathon, they’d do that as well. He’d do whatever in the seven hells she wanted him to do, as long as he could be with her. “I’m listening,” he snapped, leaning back against one cave wall.
She smiled, and then went deadly serious. “You asked me if I would have trusted you earlier, but you didn’t give me a chance to answer.”
“Alright.” He carefully locked his emotions down. She had no reason to trust him, or even want him in her life after the hell he’d caused her. He knew this, but damn if he knew how to walk away from her, either. “I’m listening,” he repeated.
“Hey.” She tightened her hands in his hair, her eyes troubled as she studied him. “The answer is yes, Daniel. I would have trusted you. I’ve always trusted you.”
12
Shelby was still shaking, but she wasn’t sure it was from the adrenaline rush any longer. No, she was positive it was from being this close to Daniel, with him looking at her the way she’d thought she’d never, ever see again. Like she was every wish he’d ever had. Like he could drown in her. Unlike everyone else she talked to on a daily basis, it wasn’t because of who she was. It was because of her.
She’d forgotten what it felt like to be seen. Heard. The man had this incredible ability to make her feel like everything she said, every word coming out of her mouth was the only thing he wanted to hear.
She wasn’t special to Daniel because she was the highest-paid, most recognized actress in the world. She was special to him because he liked her.
“So.” Grinning, she took a small step closer to him. “Do you believe me that I trust you?”
“I don’t know.” He’d bent his head toward her, as if to make sure he didn’t miss a single word she said. He brushed a curl out of her face, gently tucking it behind her ear. “If I asked you to go flying with me again, would you?”
Her eyes lit up. “Really? We can go again?”
He let out a sound that was almost a chuckle. “Careful, princess, or I might start thinking you like me only for my dragon.”
Her laugh bubbled out. “I am pretty awed by the dragon, Daniel, but…” she shrugged, grinning.
His eye twitched. “But?”
The humor faded at the slight edge of vulnerability she glimpsed in his eyes. She moved in, wrapping her arms tight around his torso as she rested her cheek against the solid wall of his chest. He smelled like heaven, all dark male and exotic scents, and he felt perfect. He felt like home. He went still for a moment, before he hooked his arms around her neck. He hauled her in closer. “I like this,” she murmured. “I like talking to you. I like arguing with you. I like laughing with you.” She shrugged as she admitted out loud what she’d never even really allowed herself to think. “No one talks to me. If they do, they don’t expect any kind of intelligent answer. They talk at me, then rush to do whatever they think I want them to do. They laugh at my jokes because they think they have to, or because they want to make a good impression on me. I can’t remember the last time anyone except for you has raised their voice to me. I could call the director of whatever movie I’m working on, tell him I just don’t feel like showing up that day, costing him thousands of dollars while screwing up the entire schedule, but he’d just say no problem and tell me to enjoy my day off.” She let out a quiet string of curses as she dropped her gaze to his chest. She knew better than exposing vulnerabilities. “Damn it, Daniel, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to tell you this.”
“Hey.” His voice was quiet as he hooked his finger under her chin, forcing her to meet his eyes again. “Don’t hide from me, princess. I like the sound of your voice. I like you talking to me.”
She let out a slow breath and tightened her arms around his waist. “How do you do it?” she murmured. “How do you make it so easy for me to be me? I keep thinking I should be putting on this act, be the perfect mate in front of your friends, but then I forget to act.” She frowned at him. “You make me forget to act.”
“I don’t want an act.” As he slid both hands into her hair he leaned down, brushing his mouth gently over hers. “I want you. The annoying spoiled brat who likes to boss me around, for the right reasons.” When she narrowed her eyes at him, he winked, kissing her again. He was hungrier this time, leaving her shaking, ready for more. “Damn it, woman, tell me you forgive me enough to be with me again.”
She blushed down to her toes. “We have a cave full of people trying to help us and no bedroom walls.”
A dark, violent sound rumbled in his chest. “I can kick them out for an hour, or maybe ten.” He nodded, already shifting his attention. “Ten hours should be enough, at least to start with.”
She laughed, blushing as a deep thrill ran through her. “Hey, I’m not going anywhere.” Going up on her toes, she wound her arms around his neck. She leaned up to kiss his chin. “Daniel.”
She shivered at the dark intensity in his gorge
ous grey gaze. She’d seen men ogle her with lust and possession before, but it was always about owning her. With Daniel, she didn’t feel like a possession. She felt…wanted. She needed him to know she felt the same way about him.
Cupping his face in her hands, she held him still so he couldn’t look away from her, her voice quiet. Fierce. “There is nothing for me to forgive you for, alright? No way in hell do I regret that night. I was scared and confused, but I didn’t understand what happened. I never stopped trying to find you, just so I knew you were all right, that you’d escaped the ambulance alive.”
* * * *
“You say that,” he snorted, even as the pad of his thumb rubbed over her full bottom lip. “We both know the damage I did to your career the last time you let me into your life. Pretending it didn’t happen doesn’t make it so, Shel.”
She wrapped her fingers around his wrist and turned her face into his hand. “You think too much.” She slid her fingers up to wrap around his. “Yeah, the last year was hell. I’m not denying it, Daniel, but unless you set the whole thing up that night, including the intruder, it’s not your fault.”
He slid his hands into her hair and tilted her head back so he could press his lips to her forehead. He didn’t know how she did it, how she always saw the best in him no matter how much proof she had otherwise. While his life was one bleak, bloody battle after another, she was this brilliant light in the world. They didn’t fit together. He’d always known he was a bastard, but he couldn’t figure out what was wrong with her that she hadn’t gone screaming from him. He was sure Seren would have told him if he’d needed to watch for a concussion.
No. Letting her go was the only way he could fix his mistakes. He just had to find the strength to do it.
He brushed a chaste kiss over her waiting mouth. “We can talk about it later, alright? Right now, we need to start figuring out who would want you dead.”
She made a face as her whole body shivered. “I keep hoping that was a nightmare.”
“Me too.” He growled quietly, unable to keep the beast fully trapped inside its cage. He could feel the insanity starting to rear its head again the more he thought about her being shot. “But we need to find this fucker so I can rip his goddamn fucking heart out of his fucking chest.”
She wrapped a hand around the back of his neck. “Hey,” she murmured, pulling his face back to hers. “I’m here, thanks to you. You saved me, remember? We’ll fix this.” She was smiling as she went up on her toes to kiss him lightly, as if she thought he needed it. “I have faith in you. I’ve seen what you’re capable of doing when you put your mind to something. If you want to find this guy, you will.” She smiled. Moving in, she rested her head against his chest, her arms wrapping around his waist. “I know you will.”
He closed his eyes and held her tight. She always knew the right thing to say. He didn’t know how she didn’t hate him, but he couldn’t make himself question it.
Ryuu, he was crazy about her. She was the biggest pain in the ass he’d ever met, but she somehow made him feel like all the parts of him that no one else liked were okay.
13
“Shelby.” Broderick’s voice broke into Daniel’s spinning thoughts. “I need you to look at something.”
His gut tightened at the fear playing in her eyes, but instead of crumpling, she blew out a steadying breath and lifted her chin slightly.
She slipped her small hand into his, leading him toward the massive communication area set into the corner of the cave. Dallas and Broderick shifted from their spots in front of the computer screens to give her room.
She glanced up at Daniel before she moved in, her hand still wrapped around his. He grunted his approval, pleased at the way she needed him by her side.
“Okay.” She sent both dragons a smile, before she leaned in. “What am I looking at?”
To Daniel’s surprise, Dallas stepped between her and the screen, his arms crossed over his chest as Broderick glanced over his shoulder at him. “Stay close.”
Daniel scowled at them, a low growl rumbling in his chest as he automatically hooked his free arm around Shelby’s waist. The other hand still possessively held hers. He didn’t need to explain shit, and they knew better than to give him orders. “You have two seconds to explain what the hell is going on before I start knocking heads together for scaring her.”
While Dallas winced but didn’t move, Broderick spun in his chair so he was facing them. “I’ve compiled all the video footage of the shooting I could find, from every angle I could access.” He hesitated, his gaze finding Shelby’s. “I’m going to go frame by frame through this a couple of times. We’re going to start with the people you know, the people you recognize so we can start deleting them from the footage. From there, we’ll start narrowing down who doesn’t belong.”
Shelby nodded immediately. “Alright. Should I sit?”
“Yeah.” Broderick cleared his throat. Daniel watched as Dallas took the hint, moving out of the way, while offering Shelby the only other chair at the console. She smiled at him, but Daniel didn’t miss the way she warily watched all of them. For as little as she was, she had to feel like giants were overrunning her life.
* * * *
Shelby wasn’t naive enough to believe any of these mountain-sized dragon-men were harmless. They seemed nice enough, but the power they threw off was overwhelming. She could feel it in the air, a subtle shift whenever their moods changed. Daniel trusted them, though, and she trusted Daniel. If there was something she should be worried about, he’d have warned her by now.
So with a nod, she accepted the offered seat and looked expectantly at Broderick, a serene smile plastered on her face. “You have actual video footage of the shooting?”
“What the hell are you thinking, Broderick?” Daniel asked, quietly, the callused pad of his thumb rubbing lightly at the inside of her wrist, calming her. “She doesn’t need to see this shit.”
Broderick nodded once. “I edited that part out. I just want her checking out the crowd of people so we can start narrowing down suspects.”
“Daniel, it’s fine,” she murmured, lifting her head to see his darkened face. He looked close to violence. “I handled being shot. I can handle seeing it happen.”
“I don’t care.” He scowled at her, his feet planted in that stubborn, pain-in-the-ass way he had. “You don’t need to see it.”
She swiveled the chair so she could see him better without hurting her neck. His hand clamped down around hers. Though it wasn’t exactly hurting, his grip was tight enough to worry her. This was genuinely freaking him out.
“Hey.” She tugged on his fingers gently. “I’m not breakable, Daniel.”
He sneered. “Bullshit. Your body is still recovering, and you sure as hell don’t need to tax it anymore by being stressed out about this.”
“But I’m not stressed out,” she replied calmly, deciding not to mention the wound had completely healed over. She didn’t think it would matter.
His face was set like stone. “What good is going to come from watching the footage? If you can give me a solid reason, I’ll back off.”
Her nose wrinkled as she tried to think. Damn him, he would have to go logical on her. She couldn’t even come up with why she wanted to see the footage so badly. There was just a niggling suspicion it was important. “I don’t know,” she murmured honestly. “Maybe there’s something in it only I would be able to recognize?”
“Like what? We already know the shooter was in front of you.”
She pressed her free palm to her eye. This was too hard. If only she could remember…but she couldn’t. The information, the memory, whatever was gone. “I don’t know,” she repeated. “It could be important.”
He nodded once. “Then Broderick and I can go over it later. You don’t need to see it.”
“What about you?” she asked, as she shot to her feet and rounded on him. She pulled her hand free of his grip so she could plant her fists on her hips in an effo
rt to make herself seem bigger, more intimidating. “You didn’t get any rest last night to recover from all the energy you gave me, plus you flew us how many freaking miles? You need rest right now more than I do. You think watching this isn’t going to tax your body? Like you can handle going off into a rage at the moment.” Not that he couldn’t, she was sure he’d be fine, but the problem was she had no idea how they’d stop him if he did decide to do something about what he saw. If he was the king, she didn’t know how much more power it gave him over the others.
“Yeah, well.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “It’s different.”
“Really?” She snorted, mimicking his stance. “How?”
“I’m used to functioning under this much stress and energy loss, princess. You’re not.”
She didn’t reply. She couldn’t. She wasn’t sure she wouldn’t hurt him if she did.
“Uh, dude,” Bain cut in. “She’s twitching. You might want to back off a little.”
“No.” Shelby seethed the word out as she glared up at Daniel, before she let her temper out on a low growl. “He’s worried about me. I get it.” She sighed as her hand reached out, her fingers tangling with his. “But you need to understand I worry about you, too. So I won’t dismiss your fears if you don’t dismiss mine.”
Daniel’s grey gaze bored into hers. “So how do we solve this?”
She went on her toes to kiss his throat. Unless he was leaning toward her, it was the highest she could reach. “We find a way to compromise.” She looked at Broderick over her shoulder. “Can you blur me out of the footage, but keep everyone else in focus?”
He nodded once, already at work at the keyboard. “Yeah. No problem.”
She smiled at him, before turning her attention back to Daniel. “You know,” she murmured, quietly enough only he could hear her, “you make it really hard not to like you when you keep scowling at me all the time.”