by Julia Mills
Of all the things that bothered her, the fact that one of Rayne’s brothers was staying at Kyndel’s apartment was at the top of the list. It was silly, but it still bothered her. Not only did her bestie trust the guy she married in less than a week, she also trusted his family? With her home? And her plants? That was a lot of trust in a small amount of time for a person that didn’t ever trust easily. It was just such a complete turnaround from the Kyndel she had known for all these years. She had always heard that love changed a person, but this was way over the top.
To add insult to injury was the fact that when she stopped to check the plants and pick up the mail, this brother was nowhere to be found. Grace knew for sure he had been there. He left the most intoxicating scent in his wake. It was all she could do to not get lost in the rich, masculine scent of the woods after a snowfall, the air crisp and fresh with a sweet woodsy undertone, every time she smelled it. She found herself taking long deep breaths, immersing herself in the intoxicating aroma, wanting to carry it with her. She was ashamed to admit she had started inventing reasons to stop by more often just to inhale that scent. Riiiiigggghhhhttttt, Grace. That’s why you are going over there. Just to smell that man. Face it girlie, you are hoping to get a glance of the man whose scent makes you light-headed.
Shut the hell up Grace, you don’t know what you are talking about!
Having conversations with herself was probably a sign she was losing her mind and something she should stop, but no matter how much she denied it, her inner voice was right. All she really wanted was to get a look at the guy that made her pulse race and nipples bead, just from the way he smelled. He entered her thoughts more and more. She wondered what he looked like, what his hands would feel like against her skin, and what he looked like first thing in the morning. Her imagination had gotten the best of her so many times that even sitting in her office, supposedly working, could not stop her eyes from sliding shut at the mere thought of him. She felt his lips on her neck, kissing the sweet little spot behind her ear, and his hands moving under her silk blouse, up her ribs, palming her already hard and tender nipples. She scooted farther down in her chair and shivered from the feel of her lace panties rubbing against her aroused flesh. Oh God, that felt good. “Grace? Are you still here?” Alice, her assistant, called from the other room.
Grace jerked herself upright so quickly she barely grabbed the desk in time to keep from landing face first in a pile of paperwork. “Yes! I’m in here,” she called through the open door, sounding way more breathy than she should have and praying Alice didn’t notice. Oh shit! She really needed to keep her mind on business and off the mystery man sending her libido into overdrive. She had enough to worry about with trying to convict a kidnapping, lying, asshole and now Kyndel’s pregnancy, without dreaming about a guy that she had never seen and probably never would. With her luck he was probably the bum of the bunch any way.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Three days spent tracking down leads that went absolutely nowhere, added to the six months since the brother he had thought dead decided to “pull a Lazarus” with a plot to kill their entire Force starting with his Commander’s mate, and Aidan was as frustrated as he had ever been in all of his 100 years combined. Whatever black magic Andrew had learned, absorbed, or whatever from the wizards that had held him captive, gave him the power to hide all but the faintest bit of his scent, and if that was not enough, he stayed in populated areas to hide whatever residual signs there might be, making tracking him almost impossible. Aidan had to depend on the Intel he received from other clans and their supernatural allies, which for him was like flying blind. Andrew seemed to depend a little too heavily on his new magical abilities and that was the crutch Aidan would use to catch him. Unfortunately, he was still about a half step behind his asshole brother, and that was just unacceptable for the formidable warrior.
He had spent the better part of six years mourning the death of his younger brother and dealing with a shitload of guilt that had nearly eaten him alive. His obsession started months earlier, when the dreams of a raven haired beauty with curves that begged to be explored and a scent that set him on fire had begun to haunt his nights. Then, the night before that fated evening when her scent had enveloped him on a routine flyover, it had been more than he and his dragon could stand. She was his, the one that would calm the dragon within, his mate, so close and a confirmation of every story he had ever been told about the one the Universe had created for him alone. As spectacular as all of that was, nothing excused what he had let happen that fateful night.
It had been his duty as the older brother and Guardsman to lead and protect Andrew. Instead, he had been so intent on getting a glimpse of the woman whose scent had nearly driven him mad that he had flown off half cocked, brother in tow, ignoring all their protocols. He had been so engrossed in his search for her that he and his younger brother were taken by surprise. They were overpowered by black magic combined with the blood of the mage that had created the dragon shifters, and Andrew had been hidden away while Aidan lay a few yards away, unconscious; a fact he now knew from Andrew’s reappearance. He had awakened disoriented, and watched what he thought was Andrew’s head thrown into a fire surrounded by wizards, chanting and swaying.
He now knew that had all been subterfuge on the part of the wizards. It was the head of a farmer they had sacrificed for their ritual that was thrown into that fire, not his brother’s. From the information he continued to gather, he learned the wizards had spent most of their black magic knocking him and Andrew out of the sky and subsequently subduing and hiding his brother, while keeping Aidan in a weakened state. They’d had to perform their rite to amass more black magic so they could virtually disappear, while he struggled to get back to the lair for help to take out the zealots he believed had murdered his brother. At least he had learned one very important fact; the use of black magic was limited and needed ‘recharging’ so to speak. Now all he had to do was figure out what kind of spell or ritual it took for them to replenish their magical stores. He was not a magical practitioner at all, but as he thought, he really hoped the direction his thoughts were taking him were wrong.
He had relived every gory detail of that fateful night for every day of his dreary existence, until the moment Andrew was unmasked on that hillside six months ago. The shock had left him mute and dumbfounded during most of the altercation that had injured his Commander’s mate. When he finally got his shit together, Aaron, his twin, had their younger brother wrapped in silver chains and Rayne was in dragon form, preparing to carry his bleeding, unconscious mate to the healer of their clan.
The anger at what his younger brother had done was all-consuming. To think someone that shared his blood, a man he had helped raise and had trained for admittance into their Force of the Dragon Guard, had sided with their ultimate enemy, the hunters; the one group in the entire world determined to destroy all dragon kin. It was unfathomable and completely unacceptable. Aidan had tried to reason it out, tried to find a way to excuse his brother’s actions, but the fact still remained that Andrew had ultimately betrayed them all. He had escaped the wizards, killed all in that coven, and set out on his own, choosing not to come back to the clan. He instead blamed his family, his Force, and the Dragon Guard for what had happened to him. Most of all, he blamed Aidan. In his warped and broken mind, he decided his only course was revenge, and decided he would get it by joining the hunters and leading them against the Dragon Guard.
The black magic he had acquired mixed with his dragon magic somehow enabled Andrew to hide not only his scent, but his true nature; his dragon. He appeared as only a magical human to all of their heightened dragon senses, nothing more. Fortunately, after all these months of searching and analyzing all the information he had collected from every source available, Aidan had learned several things he was going to use to his advantage to trap the traitor. Apparently making the choice to hide his dragon for so long had left Andrew unable to call him forth at all. It made sense that i
f he still possessed the ability, he would have done so when he was falling to the ground after escaping Aaron’s talon. Andrew also could not mind speak with any of his brethren. In a few of his weaker moments, Aidan had called out to his brother, using their specific link, but felt absolutely nothing, not even a spark, through their connection. He had no clue how any of it was possible, but knew that it was definitely happening. Hell, no one knew, not even the Elders. The oldest among them had never heard of a case where a bond as strong as theirs, one of a blood relation, children of the same parents, and the blood bond shared by all Dragon Guard, had been subdued or broken. The bond Aidan shared with his brothers, Aaron and Andrew, was so strong that even when they shielded their thoughts from one another or were great distances apart, there was still a buzz, almost like a cell phone vibrating in a pants pocket. But since the night that he believed Andrew had been lost forever, there had been nothing at all. That reason and that reason alone had been why Aidan had been so sure his brother was dead. Even when he “reappeared” into their lives, it was like that bond had never existed, not something that should have been possible, especially for he and his baby brother.
He could remember back those many years, to the day his younger brother was born. He and his twin, Aaron, had been ten years old. They were out gathering wood for the fire and playing in the forest. Everything he and his twin did was an adventure. On that specific excursion, Aidan was the commander and, Aaron, his faithful second. They were scouting the area for scavengers that would pillage and loot their clan. They used long sticks as swords and swung at every branch and bush. It was the best of times for the brothers. He was parrying with a particularly evil, low hanging vine when a buzzing began in his head. He immediately recognized it as another of their blood; it was so like the connection he shared with his twin, only a bit different at the same time.
His new brother, fresh from their mother’s womb, was unable to form words or sentences, but was reaching out to his older sibling, sending feelings and foggy pictures of his new surroundings. Aidan could feel his happiness, combined with contentment and the feeling of being incredibly loved. He told his twin their new brother had arrived and the race to get home began. Their journey had been filled with tales of all the things they would teach him and the pranks they would play on the other unsuspecting children of their clan now that there were three of them. When they arrived home, every member of their clan had lined up to pay tribute to his father, mother, and new brother. It took over an hour for the twins to make their way into the family home. As the eldest, having been born two minutes before Aidan, Aaron went forward first and paid his respects to their parents and the new baby.
When it was Aiden’s turn, he walked slowly toward the bed that held his mother and baby brother. He knew in his soul that the new addition to their family would irrevocably change his life. He knelt beside the bed, placed a kiss on his mother’s cheek, and glanced at the bundle lying against her bosom. He was the tiniest thing Aidan had ever seen. The smile that spread across his face was pure joy as he reached down to move the blanket for a better look at the baby’s face. Baby Andrew grabbed his finger, meeting his gaze straight on, with one piercing blue and one amber eye. This amazing gift to their family had the mark of a Special One and Aidan was the first to experience the wonder and awe of that stare. The connection between the brothers was immediate, one that only grew stronger until that fateful day six years ago.
Aidan had felt like the most blessed dragon shifter in the Universe; not only did he have a twin with a connection that could only come from sharing a womb, but he also had a bond with his younger brother that was forged only a few hours after the young one’s birth. Unfortunately, that had all been blown to hell six years ago. No matter the years and the bond, he would do whatever he had to do to catch his brother and deliver him to the Elders for the Tribunal. The personal cost he would pay did not matter. Andrew had to answer for the plots against dragon kin and the mate of his Commander. The day he believed his brother dead had changed him, inside and out. He knew more changes were coming now that Andrew was back, but none of that mattered. He had to be caught. Years of training had taught Aidan to channel his pain and anger into the fight. He was a dragon shifter, part of the most elite Force within the Dragon Guard, and this would not beat him. It would drive him to be stronger, fiercer, and to never again have regrets. He found solace in the fact that his parents had long since gone to the heavens and were not here to witness their youngest son’s betrayal of all they held dear. He would succeed at bringing the traitor back to the clan. Failure was not an option.
He shook himself back to reality, knowing he should get a shower, something to eat, and then some rest. The hunt for the traitor had to continue. Not to mention, Lance and Royce would be arriving early the day after tomorrow to accompany him to his meeting with the local werepanther pack. He hoped they had information that would prove useful in his search. The big cats were able get into places he and his kin could not. Max and his pride had been valuable allies over the years and he hoped their natural curiosity paid off as well this time as it had in the past. He really needed to put this whole crappy mess behind him. HA! Like that would ever happen. But he knew there were answers to be found when he could actually talk to Andrew, answers that could help them eliminate the threat to all dragon kin once and for all. His biggest fear was that he would not get to his brother in time and there would be more needless suffering. After witnessing the depravity of the one he once knew as well as he knew himself, he feared for all he held dear. His clan and lair were his first priority, but he could not ignore the fact that there were others out there that needed protection from the lunatic as well.
He thought of his home and everything it meant to him. The last time he had visited the lair, Rayne and Kyndel had announced they were pregnant. If possible, the couple looked even happier, and his Commander had become even more protective of his mate. He had to laugh out loud at the way Kyndel would not stand for Rayne’s overbearing attitude about her safety. She cocked her eyebrow, smacked his arm, and told him she would do whatever she wanted. The last he had seen of them, Kyndel was over Rayne’s shoulder, giving him hell, as they headed to their home. They were definitely made for each other; the Universe did not make mistakes. A shudder ran up his spine as he thought of protecting a mate and child. He completely understood Rayne’s attitude. If someone dared to threaten what was his, he would lose his mind. There was only one in the entire world that could complete him and his dragon, and he would do whatever it took to protect her and any children they were blessed enough to conceive. His mate would be his world.
His mate? His thoughts stopped dead. Yes, he knew she was out there. Had known she was close by for the last six years, but could do nothing about it. He had learned in the last six months that she was the best friend of his Commander’s mate, and still there was nothing he could do to meet her. He had family business to attend to first. Andrew had been right about one thing on that hillside six months ago; he accused Aidan of going off half-cocked the night they were ambushed and that was the absolute truth. He had been looking for his mate. He knew she was young, barely of legal human age at the time, and that she was studying some kind of law. He had heard bits and pieces of her conversation with another student while they were walking back to their dorm the night everything went to hell. He had lost touch with her after Andrew’s “death” until the day he walked into this very apartment and her scent hit him like a ton of bricks. The apartment of his Commander’s mate that they had graciously let him use while he was leading the search for Andrew.
He leaned his head onto the back of the big overstuffed couch in Kyndel’s apartment and closed his eyes, bringing the picture of his beautiful mate immediately to his mind. He knew she had been in the apartment while he had been away. He deeply inhaled the lingering scent of vanilla and honey floating on a spring breeze. He knew from the hundreds of incredibly vivid dreams starring his beautiful mate, that when she
was aroused, it was as if her tantalizing aroma had been warmed by the sun. If he concentrated, he could taste it on his lips.
He dreamt of running his hands through the long black waterfall of hair that hung almost to her waist; knew it would feel like heavy silk sliding through his fingers. He wanted to gaze into her eyes, bluer than the sky he used to soar across on a clear summer day, and have her grace him with a smile that lit up his entire world. His hands itched to explore her womanly figure, exploring every curve and inch of silken skin. As he thought of her amazingly round ass and her long shapely legs wrapped around his waist while he drove into her, his hand rubbed against his erection as it pushed against the zipper of his jeans.
He was lost to his daydreams of the woman meant to be his, unable to stop his mouth from watering at the thought of tasting the nipples that tipped her full perky breasts and knowing they would be a beautiful shade of deep rose when aroused. He knew one taste would never be enough and he had plans to spend a lifetime worshipping her, body and soul. She was everything sweet and fresh in the world to him. He unbuttoned his pants and lowered his zipper. His fully erect cock sprang free and his fist automatically wrapped around his hard length and began to pump harder and faster the longer he thought of her…Grace. Even her name was perfect.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Good Lord she was tired. It was 10pm and she needed to be back at the office by 6:30 tomorrow morning. She was mentally and physically exhausted, not sure that she had the energy to drive the forty-five minutes to her house. One thing for sure, she was absolutely not sleeping on that damn couch in her office another night. She’d had her assistant run out to pick up her dry cleaning at lunch. She hated asking Alice to run her errands, but the wonderful woman said she didn’t mind, said she had clothes to pick up as well, so Grace had paid for her cleaning to ease her guilty conscience. Now she was beyond tired and wanted nothing more than some food, a shower, and a bed in any order she could get them. She thought about Kyndel’s apartment sitting there empty, only ten minutes from her office. She had stopped by yesterday when she escaped work for a few minutes and Rayne’s mysterious brother had not been there, but his unmistakable scent had her aroused within minutes of opening the door. She wondered if he was there now. Maybe she should just go to her house. How would she explain to him that she was “stopping” by in the middle of the night?