by Anna Lowe
“Damn it,” she cursed then puffed them out in exasperation.
Her eyes followed the smoke as it meandered with faint air currents that had been invisible until then. Could dragons read air movements as light as those? She supposed they did, like birds.
Then she remembered Tessa wanted to see her about something, so she straightened and strode out of the library, ending another long day. Crickets chirped outside, and the sky was a rich indigo. Her steps slowed as she passed Silas’s study, and her pulse skipped.
Dragons are the most passionate, possessive lovers.
He was working his usual late night, and Cassandra paused at the doorway without realizing it. The view was amazing — at least, that was the excuse she used. A princely view of the moon glittering over the channel between Maui and Molokai. The house was so high up, the view might as well have been from a plane — or a dragon’s-eye view. Was that why Silas spent so much time there?
Keiki was there, winding around his legs. Silas reached down, petting the kitten absently. Was shifter healing fast enough for him to be fully recovered from the terrible burns? Or was he okay on the outside but messed up on the inside?
She frowned. That described Silas, for sure, and not just in terms of his arm. But really, what did she know? Even after reading and researching for days, she’d only come to understand how little she really knew of the supernatural world. All her failed attempts at spell-casting rushed back into her mind, and she frowned.
You just have to believe.
Maybe Eloise really was batty. Maybe all this was just a dream. Any minute now, she’d wake up to the sound of Brooklyn at night — rolling traffic, distant sirens, the voices of late-night revelers…
Her nostrils flared. Dreams didn’t smell of night-scented jasmine or heady plumeria or any of the other stunning tropical flowers that flourished all around. Flowers that seemed twice as fragrant after dark, like the huge angel’s trumpets she spotted outside.
She looked at Silas’s broad back. The man had shoulders an Olympic swimmer would die for — except, of course, all that muscle didn’t come from swimming. It came from flying. The man could turn into a dragon. Why didn’t that scare her to death?
Somehow, it didn’t. Not when it came to Silas, at least.
Silas scratched his arm as he scribbled on a notepad, so deep in thought, he hadn’t noticed her. Piles of paper cluttered his desk, some tall enough for Keiki to hide behind. Most of the office was neat as a pin, giving her the impression he’d recently been engulfed by an overwhelming new set of problems. And yes, even a man with the talents and power of Silas Llewellyn could be overwhelmed. She’d seen plenty of examples from behind the bar — successful businessmen or top athletes who took to hitting the hard stuff and confiding in her because they didn’t dare show any sign of weakness to their closest friends.
But weakness, she knew, could lie in failing to recognize one’s limits. Strength often meant asking for help.
One side of her mouth curled up in a half grin. That was true of humans. Did it apply to dragon shifters too?
“Hey,” she whispered before Silas caught her peeking.
He turned, flashing a weary smile. “Hey.”
Which just went to prove that the mysterious Mr. Llewellyn wasn’t as aloof or proper as he often seemed.
“You doing okay?” she asked, though she could guess what his answer would be.
“Fine.” His smile grew in size but not in sincerity. “And you?”
She laughed. The truth or not the truth? “I get these how-the-fuck-did-I-get-here and what-will-I-do-next moments—”
His grin was genuine, and he nodded as if he knew exactly what she meant.
“—but in between, I look around and think, hey, I can handle this.” She gestured out at the view.
She gulped and added, For now, at least.
Silas followed her hand. His chest rose on a deep inhale, and for one instant, his teeth caught his lips in a wistful expression. Then he smiled at her. “It is nice, isn’t it?”
She nodded, smiling brightly. Silas had his studly moments, but this — this vulnerable, titan side of him — was just as appealing. The real him?
Of course, Eloise had another warning about dragons, and it ghosted through Cassandra’s mind.
Be careful, my dear. Dragons have a way of seducing fair maidens.
She had snorted that off at the time, because she hardly qualified as fair or a maiden. But considering the way she was starting to feel about Silas…
She tapped the doorframe with her knuckles, reminding herself she’d better go.
“Goodnight, Silas.”
He was so formal, so careful to keep his distance at times. And now that he’d had a moment to collect himself, she half expected him to say Goodnight, Miss Nichols.
“Goodnight, Cassandra,” he whispered.
She smiled then forced herself to turn and pad down the stairs.
Chapter Nine
Silas sat in his office, looking out over the sea. Over a week had passed since his return to Maui — an exhausting week of long hours spent trying to track Drax’s movements and the diamond. A week brightened only by his encounters with Cassandra, even if she often mystified — and even defied — him.
“Spunky, huh?” Kai had commented after the dinner in which Cassandra had taken over the bar.
She was more than spunky. She was strong. Confident. Alluring. In short, dangerous in ways he’d never anticipated.
Still, he tapped his fingers on the huge oak desk, counting his problems.
Drax. The missing Spirit Stone. The death of his great-uncle, which had created a power vacuum in the dragon world. A vacuum Drax — and others — would be all too happy to fill. And on top of all that came the usual issues of being a shifter in a human-dominated world. Rumors were swirling around Maui about an anonymous investor intent on developing Koa Point and the adjacent property into yet another luxury resort.
The problem with rumors was that they often stemmed from the truth, and he genuinely worried for the future of Koa Point. Rumors also drew the attention of outsiders, and sooner — not later — he’d have to make some kind of public statement to dispel them. Not only that, but those rumors had reached the shifters of Koa Point, and while he hated keeping the truth from his friends, he was bound by oath to do so, at least for the time being.
He stared into the distance. His problems were like the whitecaps frothing up the surface of the Pacific — line after line of them, whipping in an angry wind.
Pacific. Peaceful. His dragon snorted. What fool came up with that name?
Magellan, he said. Or wait. Was it Balboa?
His dragon’s ears popped up, seizing the opportunity. We can go to the library and see.
Silas gripped the edge of his desk. No, he couldn’t, because Cassandra was there.
Right there, down the hall, his dragon murmured, tempting him.
He kept his eyes aimed steadfastly out over the view. Cassandra was the swell underlying the whitecaps, making them crash upon the shore. Yet another complication at the worst possible time.
My mate is not a complication, his dragon growled.
Silas clenched his jaw. Those very words defined complication. Now more than ever, he had to calculate every step carefully. Everything was at a tipping point, and one misstep — one distraction — could have terrible consequences. It was no time to allow emotion to cloud his judgment and lead him on detours he absolutely, positively couldn’t risk.
Yes, she was his mate. His dragon knew it, and his human side recognized that too. It was undeniable, the pull she had on him. A pull infinitely greater than the laughable influence Moira had once had over him. But he had to deny the attraction. Somehow. If he didn’t concentrate fully on Drax, he risked everything he loved — even Cassandra.
Love her, his dragon growled. Need her. Can’t live without her.
He made a face. He’d always figured he was doomed to a long and lonely life,
but maybe fate had put him down for short and lonely instead.
Keiki hopped into his lap. The kitten had a knack for finding him when he was at his most agitated and settling him down.
Cassandra does that too, his dragon pointed out.
She did, which was part of the problem. Having her nearby filled the emptiness that threatened to make him a bitter old man long before his time. But her proximity excited him too — and worse, his dragon.
She excites me, all right. His dragon grinned.
She’d spent the past days in the library, burying her nose in books, muttering to herself at times. Trying out spells?
He couldn’t help but feel a twinge of pride at the idea of Cassandra mastering new skills thanks in small part to him. But he could practically hear the tortured sounds of his ancestors rolling in their graves.
Why would you want a witch to increase her power? Who knows how she might abuse it?
“Just one-eighths witch,” he whispered to no one in particular. And judging by the way she banged her fist on the table at times, she wasn’t making much progress.
“Fuck!” Cassandra shouted, right on cue.
He chuckled in spite of himself. Delivered in her faint New York accent, her curses always made him grin. She could swear like a sailor — or a no-nonsense bartender, he supposed.
A second later, she threw out a quieter, “Sorry,” and his smile grew. She was just as aware of him down the hall as he was hyperaware of her. The question was, did she feel the undeniable attraction too?
Keiki purred, demanding more attention.
“You’ve been helping Hunter, I see,” he murmured, wiping a patch of grease from Keiki’s back.
She closed her eyes in a feline yes.
He looked down over the estate. So much at stake there. So much he had to protect.
His dragon murmured in agreement, not even swiveling its ears toward the secret cave where his modest treasure hoard lay hidden away. If he’d learned anything over the past years, it was that the most precious things had no monetary value at all.
He picked up a pen with his free hand and tapped at his long to-do list.
Eloise Vedma — contacts, background. He crossed that one out. His informants on the East Coast had sent him a dossier with everything they could find on the witch, which wasn’t much.
Call lawyer. He made a face, thinking of his uncle Filimore’s will — the parts he knew about, at least.
Prep for meeting with zoning committee. Although he’d been assured local zoning laws would prevent an underhanded investor from developing Koa Point, he wanted to triple-check for any loopholes that someone else might exploit. Someone like Drax.
Charity gala Saturday. Tux. Speech. Date.
The Tux and Speech were crossed out and ready to go, but Date still glared at him.
He’d rather avoid the event — and the attention it was sure to bring — but Maui was a relatively small island, and speculation was already rife about the inhabitants of Koa Point. Making occasional appearances at public events was the best means of keeping gossip mills satisfied with the kind of inconsequential tidbits they craved — who was wearing what, saying what, being seen with whom. That way, people had something to talk about but not too much to talk about.
Still, walking into those events felt like running a marathon across a minefield. And bringing a date — or not — was the biggest issue of them all.
He frowned, looking at the calendar. It was already Saturday, and he still hadn’t decided on whether to go with a date or alone. Appearing alone would advertise his status as an eligible bachelor and open the floodgates to every man-eater on Maui — and there were plenty of those, all looking for a fine catch.
Not an eligible bachelor, his dragon snarled. I found my mate.
Silas shut the thought away.
Appearing with a date — which would be easy to arrange, even this late in the game — had a way of focusing the attention on the woman. Who she was, what she was wearing, how heavily she was involved with him. Which had its advantages and disadvantages. The difficulty was finding a date who would be satisfied with one evening and nothing more — no candlelight dinner, no meaningless sex, no relationship. None of that had ever interested him.
Except now. Now, he could picture it perfectly — walking up a red carpet with Cassandra’s elbow hooked around his. Surprising her with dessert at one of Maui’s best restaurants afterward, where he would have called to arrange the best champagne and a rose-strewn tablecloth. Leading her up to his bedroom at the end of the night and never letting her go.
Never letting her go, his dragon murmured dreamily.
He grimaced. None of that was going to happen. He couldn’t let it.
Why not? We need a date, and Cassandra is perfect, his dragon said. We could take her.
Oh no, he couldn’t. No way.
Why not? his dragon shot back.
Because he was far too attracted to her, and they were getting dangerously closer every day.
Images flashed through his mind. Images of Cassandra’s fingers wrapped around his. Gripping tight at the height of sex. Soft and relaxed the morning after. Tickling him as he woke, telling him how good she felt.
My mate is perfect, his dragon insisted.
He snorted. Perfect. Right. So perfect, who knew what he might be capable of?
I’ll be a perfect gentleman, his dragon said, nodding eagerly.
That, he had to see.
What he really needed was Ella — the desert fox shifter who had been the only female member of his Special Forces unit. Ella was single, pretty, and best of all, there was absolutely nothing between him and her other than the mutual respect each member of their unit had always had for one another. She’d even flown in from Arizona a few times for that reason, joking that a boring night out with him was still worth the week she spent on the island afterward.
But he hadn’t thought far enough ahead, so he was still stuck.
Cassandra. Cass-an-dra, his dragon said, breaking her name into syllables to get the idea through his thick head. A woman we actually love. One dinner out would be perfect. She’ll get to know us better. To trust us.
Which made sense until he remembered he didn’t trust himself, not when it came to her.
He pushed himself out of his chair and started pacing down the hall. No matter how he played it, getting close to Cassandra wasn’t an option he could afford. It didn’t matter how the idea made his heart jump up and down, or that she put an achy lump in his throat every time he saw her. For her own sake, he had to resist his mate.
But we need her, his dragon pleaded.
Of course, he needed her. She was the only one who knew the whereabouts of the diamond.
What do we care about the diamond? the beast roared.
Truthfully, he didn’t. But keeping the Spirit Stone away from Drax was his duty. Only that would secure peace for the shifters of Koa Point — and for dragons everywhere. He had to keep the big picture in mind.
But all his dragon saw was a thousand pleasant pictures of him and Cassandra courting. Loving. Living happily ever after.
He kicked the floor as he walked. Wishful thinking. And oops — he nearly kicked poor Keiki. She had taken to following him and doing her best to mimic his moods. At the moment, that meant lashing her tail and glaring ferociously at everything in her path. Then she looked up at him, sweet as can be, as if to ask, Did I get it right?
His chest tightened. Some role model he made. He scooped her up and tried tenderness instead.
We could have kids, his dragon mused. With Cassandra. They would turn out great.
He steeled himself against the suggestion. Destiny was just testing his resolve, seeing if he had the backbone to be the dedicated leader the shifter world so sorely needed. And a strong leader made personal sacrifices for the greater good.
Fine, his dragon huffed. We still need a date for the dinner, though.
No, he didn’t. He could damn well go
alone. So what if that made him go all hollow inside?
The clock down the hall ticked, setting off a countdown.
And so it went for the rest of the miserable afternoon. He went through the motions of showering, shaving, and putting on his tux, trying to keep his mind blank. Then he walked down to the garage, mentally dragging his feet, if not actually scuffing his leather shoes. It was just like his father used to say: life was full of unpleasant business, and great men — and dragons — proved themselves by enduring such tests.
He avoided the meeting house where the others were ready to spend the evening in a much more pleasant way — at home, with people they knew and trusted, just being themselves and having a good time.
“Hey, Silas!” Tessa called. “Aren’t you forgetting something?”
He patted his pocket, wondering what she meant. His wallet was right where it should be, and the key to the car would be hanging in the garage. So what did she mean? He turned around, and—
His breath caught. Not at the sight of Tessa walking toward him, but at the woman at her side.
A woman with glossy brown hair done up in an intricate twist. The late afternoon sun glinted in her brown eyes, making them sparkle and shine. Her sleeveless chiffon dress hinted at every glorious curve without revealing much skin, because she was too classy for that. The fabric swayed in the breeze as if inviting him to dance. And damn — he nearly took her hand and did just that.
“Cassandra,” he murmured. Well, he did on the inside, even if he couldn’t actually push a sound past his lips.
Then he noticed the color of her dress and stopped short. It was black with a hint of red, exactly the color of his dragon.
Destiny, his inner beast breathed.
Her shoes were black, and the shawl thrown over her arm was ivory.
“We drew straws for who would have to go out with you tonight,” Tessa said with an exaggerated sigh. “Guess who lost?”
Cassandra’s eyes sparkled as if she’d won, and something inside him swelled.
“What do you think?” Tessa prompted. “Nice dress, huh?”