Valeriya nodded. “Yeah, you could say that. Do you have any water? I’m parched.”
Impatience ate at him, but he held his peace. He got a bottle of water from the refrigerator and placed it in front of her. She unscrewed the cap and took a long swallow.
He turned back to the fridge and pulled out eggs and bacon. They were quick and easy. He grabbed a couple of steaks, too. He was ravenous again.
Thankfully, he’d just resupplied. He usually shopped in bulk and had freezers filled with meat in a utility room, as well as shelves of canned goods. Sometimes he had groceries delivered to the cabin. He always left the money on the front step and waited until the delivery van was gone before he collected his food. He wouldn’t be able to rely on that method for the foreseeable future. Not until this situation resolved itself. But they wouldn’t starve.
“Your sister,” he reminded her when she set the bottle down in front of her.
She rolled the plastic bottle between her hands. “Our parents groomed Karina from the time she was born to be a member of the Knights.”
“But not you?” Tarrant found that hard to believe. He kept his doubts to himself and began cracking eggs into a bowl. There were eight left in the carton, so he did them all.
Valeriya shook her head and hooked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. “No. I was quiet, more sensitive. I know I was a disappointment to them. I spent a lot of time with my grandparents.”
He’d already known that from his research. He kept his silence and began frying bacon.
“I liked to draw and paint. Karina learned hand-to-hand combat and how to handle guns.” Valeriya shivered. “My parents insisted on some of the same training for me until they discovered I wasn’t very good at it.” Her smile was sad, and he had to fight the urge to comfort her. “Karina took martial arts, and I was in dance class.”
She took another swig of water. “We were as different as night and day. People would come to our home to speak with our father and mother. I was quiet and sometimes people would forget I was in the room.”
He couldn’t imagine anyone forgetting about Valeriya, but he believed her. He could picture a small, dark-haired girl curled up behind a chair listening to the adults. “And what did they talk about?”
“Dragons.” She shivered and wrapped her arms around herself. “I thought it was all a fairytale, a make-believe story. Then I heard them talk about capturing one.” She met his gaze. “I didn’t think it was real.”
He nodded, sensing she needed his agreement. He removed the fried bacon and placed more uncooked strips in the pan. “You were just a child.”
“Yes.” She gazed into the distance as though seeing a memory. “Just a child.” She looked back at him. “But my parents and the others weren’t. They knew better, but they didn’t care.”
“What did they do?” Tarrant knew, but he wanted to hear her story.
“They imprisoned the dragon, and one man spoke of drinking his blood.”
“What man?” Tarrant needed all the names he could get.
Valeriya’s face scrunched as she thought hard. “Temple. I think his name was Temple.”
“Herman Temple?”
She shook her head. “Maybe. I don’t know. That’s all I can remember. There was a man named Dent and a woman with the last name Picton. They’re the only names I can recall.”
“What happened then?” Tarrant finished with the bacon and started on the steaks. The meat sizzled when it hit the hot grill pan.
“After the people left, I went to my father and asked him about the dragon.” She shuddered. “He was furious at me for listening. He told me that dragons were treacherous creatures that needed to be controlled.” Her hand went to her cheek.
Something dangerous welled up inside Tarrant. He knew what her answer would be before he voiced the question, but still he asked. “He hit you, didn’t he?”
Valeriya nodded, her gaze on the counter and not on him. “He was very angry. I never asked him about it again, but I asked my grandparents, my father’s parents. They told me everything they knew about the Knights, which wasn’t a lot. They wanted no part of them, either. My mother was the one who brought my father into the Knights. Her side of the family had been a part of the group since its inception.”
Tarrant didn’t push her any further. She seemed exhausted. Since the steaks were almost done, he threw the eggs into a large skillet. When they were scrambled, he dumped all the food onto a couple of large platters and set both of them on the island in front of her. “Eat something.”
He set out some plates and then made a pot of coffee. When he glanced at her, she was staring at the mounds of food he’d made. He grinned at her shocked expression.
“Is all this for us?”
“I have a big appetite.” He couldn’t quite keep the heat from his voice. Her cheeks flushed, but Valeriya didn’t comment. “Coffee?” he asked.
She shook her head. “Do you have any tea?”
He dug through the cabinet until he found a small unopened box of tea. It was plain, old-fashioned tea. Nothing special. “This okay?”
She nodded as she scooped some eggs onto her plate. “Perfect.”
Tarrant filled the kettle and set it to boil. He opened the box and shoved one of the teabags into a mug. He should have known she’d want tea. That’s what she’d been drinking most of the day. “Don’t you like coffee?”
“It’s okay.” She picked up a piece of bacon in her fingers and took a bite. “I prefer tea.”
Tarrant was momentarily taken aback. In times past, most people preferred tea, but the modern era was fueled by coffee.
Valeriya grinned, and heat exploded inside him. “Most people find me odd.”
He chuckled. “Means there’s more coffee for me.” When the kettle boiled, he filled the mug with hot water and set it in front of her. Then he piled a thick steak, a dozen pieces of bacon and a mound of eggs onto his plate.
Valeriya was staring at him. “What?” he asked.
“Aren’t you worried about your cholesterol?”
It took everything in him not to laugh, but he couldn’t stop himself from smiling. “Not particularly.”
“It’s your body.” She managed to eat about one egg and a couple of pieces of bacon, but she didn’t touch the steak.
“You not hungry?” He didn’t like the idea of her not eating.
“Not really.” She sighed and sipped her tea. “Being kidnapped puts a damper on the appetite.”
Tarrant ignored her comment. “Tell me about your grandparents.”
Her smile was soft and warm. “They were the best. I don’t think I’d have made it if it weren’t for them. Especially after Mom and Dad were killed and Karina became my guardian. She changed then. Got harder. More focused.”
“She’s a high-ranking member of the Knights?”
Valeriya’s expression grew bleak. “You could say that. Karina Azarov is the head of the Knights of the Dragon.”
…
He’d kill her now for sure. Valeriya didn’t know why she hadn’t kept her mouth shut, except that she was tired of all the secrets. If Tarrant was opposing the Knights, he needed all the information and help she could give him. If he wasn’t what he seemed and was with the Knights, then he already knew about her sister.
Her dreams of going home, of being able to put this all behind her were gone. By taking her, Tarrant had put her squarely in the game with the Knights. It didn’t matter who was behind his actions or what was motivating him.
He slowly put down his fork and stared at her. “She’s what?”
The little food she’d eaten sat like a lump in the pit of her stomach. “She’s the head of the Knights. Just like my mother was before her.”
“Your mother?”
She saw the confusion on his face and clarified. “The leader of the Knights is always a woman from my family line.”
“Why?”
She shrugged. “That, I don’t know. Only Karina knows
that.” When he looked skeptical, she tried to explain. “Because I didn’t take an active role in the Knights, I’ve always been kept in the dark about most of what goes on. I made no secret of the fact I wanted nothing to do with hurting people.”
When Tarrant only raised a questioning eyebrow, she continued. She had to look away from the intensity of his gaze. “My grandparents told me what the Knights do. They also told me how powerful the group is. So, I did what they’d told me to do, and I focused on building my own life. And when my grandparents left me their apartment, I had a home of my own.”
That was the short, sad story of her life.
“Yet you write about dragons.” Tarrant was on the opposite side of the counter, but he loomed large and fierce. Much like a dragon. She didn’t think he’d appreciate the comparison. “Why is that?”
“I know the difference between a dragon and a drakon. A dragon’s base form is the animal, yet it can shift into human form for a short time. It’s cold and calculating. A drakon is half human and half dragon. Its base form is that of a human, but it can shift into a dragon for as long as it wishes. It has a human heart.”
She sensed his impatience and hurried on with her story. “I couldn’t exactly write about drakons, so I wrote about a sad little dragon named Damian.” She lifted her tea and took a sip.
“I’ve read your books.”
Valeriya was startled and almost dropped the mug. That was the last thing she’d expected him to say. “You have?” She set the mug carefully down on the stone countertop. “Why?”
“I wanted to know more about you.” He brushed it off as though it didn’t matter.
“My sister has never read them,” she blurted.
“No?”
“She thinks they’re stupid and childish.” And that had always hurt. As much as she and her sister didn’t get along, Karina was the only family she had left in the world.
“They’re meant for children, but the themes are universal—acceptance, friendship, honesty,” Tarrant pointed out.
Tears pricked her eyes and she blinked them back. “Yes. That’s exactly right.” This big, powerful man had read her stories about a lost little dragon. On one hand, she was touched he’d read them. On the other, it meant he’d really researched her life. That was scary.
“What’s going to happen to me?” She had to know.
Tarrant sighed and walked around the counter until he was standing beside her. He cupped her face in his hands. “I honestly don’t know.” Then he kissed her.
Unlike the last time, she was ready for him. But the heat and power of the caress still took her off guard. If she’d been standing, her knees would have buckled. The warmth of his hands soaked into her skin. His lips were firm, yet supple.
“Tarrant.” She whispered his name this time. Last time, she hadn’t even known it. She still didn’t know his last name. Not that it truly mattered.
His tongue touched hers, and she leaned inward, wanting more. It was crazy to be drawn to her captor. He might have been kind and held her while she’d cried. He might have cooked her food and made her tea. But she could never forget he’d taken her for reasons of his own. And she had no idea what those reasons were.
She tried to focus on her gift, but it wasn’t easy. Not when he was kissing her. There was no sense of danger, only a knowing that she was where she was supposed to be. It didn’t make any sense. None of this situation did. Maybe her intuition was faulty, but she honestly didn’t think so. It had served her well her entire life.
So maybe, just maybe, it was telling her the truth. Tarrant wasn’t a threat to her. Yes, he was big and dangerous and obviously skilled, since he’d managed to take her without her knowing. She should be terrified of him. But she wasn’t. If anything, she yearned to get closer to him.
Maybe she was the one who was crazy.
They had to stop. She didn’t want to, but she had to. Everything was happening so fast. She needed time to think.
“Tarrant.” She pulled away and sucked in a deep breath. This was wrong. It had to be. No matter how right it felt.
Desperation filled her, and she spun away and ran for the only door in the room. She grabbed the handle and pulled. It wouldn’t open. She suddenly felt as though the walls were closing in around her. “Let me out.” She banged her fists against the door, ignoring the pain that shot up her arms.
Valeriya sensed Tarrant behind her. She whirled around and confronted him. “Open the door,” she demanded.
He slowly shook his head. “No.”
All her anger coalesced at once. She was angry at the Knights for simply existing, at her sister for choosing them over her, at circumstance for forcing her to take a side in the war between the drakons and the Knights. All she’d wanted was to have her career and a family. Now it appeared as if she would never get to return to her life. And that hadn’t been her plan when she’d left.
If she didn’t have her books and her apartment, she had nothing.
Then there was Tarrant. He’d taken her from the cabin without her even knowing. She had no idea what his motivation was or what he planned to do with her. The only thing she knew for sure was that he wanted her.
And damn her, but she wanted him, too.
It wasn’t fair. But then no one ever said life would be.
She flew at him, beating her fists against his chest, needing to vent her fury. The shock that had kept her calm burned away under the flames of her anger. “I want to go home.”
He let her hit him over and over. He didn’t flinch, didn’t seem to even notice when her fists made contact.
Tears leaked from the corners of her eyes. “I don’t want to be a part of this.” She’d never asked to be a part of this world, of this war.
“I know.” His easy agreement simply angered her even more.
She screamed and tried to turn back to the door, but he simply pulled her into is arms. She didn’t want to be comforted by him, didn’t want to nestle against the heat of his strong chest. She fought him, but he continued to hug her, to offer silent comfort.
“I want to go home.” She sounded pitiful, like a child who was lost. She honestly had no idea where she would even go if she left here. Her grandparents’ apartment, which was now her home, was no longer safe, no longer the haven it had been her entire life.
Tarrant scooped her into his arms and carried her down the hall. She had no idea where he was taking her and didn’t care. Valeriya felt empty inside. There was no way she could escape this place, no way to escape Tarrant. If he didn’t let her go, she’d probably die here.
And if he did let her go, she was probably dead, too. Those men knew she’d been at the cabin, and they’d tell whoever they were working for that she’d disappeared. If they worked for her sister, Karina would not be pleased. At this point, she no longer knew her sister, had no idea what she would do.
Valeriya had held on to a childish hope that Karina would change. That there was enough goodness inside her that she would walk away from the Knights. It had been a fool’s dream. She realized that now. Karina could have walked away when she’d taken over the running of their parents’ estate. Instead, she’d fought to keep the leadership of the Knights of the Dragon. Valeriya had often wondered what she’d had to do to retain the title when there’d been a small group of men and women who coveted the position.
And if another member of the Knights found her, they’d most likely use their knowledge of what she’d done to hurt her sister before they killed her.
Tarrant carried her into the bedroom where she’d awoken, and laid her on the bed. “Rest. You’re safe.”
There was no such thing as safety, only the illusion. She rolled over and gave him her back.
Her sleeping bag settled over her. She refused to thank him. She felt him hovering behind her for several seconds before he turned and left. He closed the door behind him, leaving her in darkness but for the baseboard lights.
Peering into the dark, she ignored the tear
s trickling down her cheek. She was mentally, emotionally, and physically spent. She’d rest. Surely things would look better when she woke.
She laughed, but the sound was anything but pleasant. Her life was a mess and she didn’t think there was any way to make it better again.
…
Tarrant was not happy. Neither was his dragon half. His arousal had died as soon as he’d seen the panic on Valeriya’s face, felt her desperation.
It almost made him wish he could go back in time and leave her in the cabin. But he knew he wouldn’t change what he’d done. That would have left her vulnerable. She might not realize it yet, but he’d done her a favour.
He snorted. “Yeah, best to keep that to yourself.” He didn’t think she’d appreciate his logic.
And speaking of logic, he hadn’t checked her luggage yet. Best to do it now while she was resting. He went to his room and lifted the bag onto the bed. As soon as he unzipped it, he caught a hint of her scent. He inhaled deeply, unable to stop himself. His body reacted immediately, every muscle hardening, his cock throbbing.
Swearing, he forced himself to search through her things, checking the bag for any kind of tracking device. There was nothing suspicious, nothing that would tie her to the Knights.
He touched the band of a pair of her underwear before stuffing everything back into the case and zipping it back up. It was bad enough he was invading her privacy. He wouldn’t apologize for that. It was necessary. But fondling her underwear was over the line. He dragged his fingers through his hair and huffed out a deep breath.
Not knowing what else to do, he decided to fall back on what he always did in times of stress. He’d work.
He left his bedroom and glanced at the closed door to Valeriya’s room. He forced himself to walk to the end of the hall and go through the security protocols to open the door to the elevator. Once he was in his computer lab, he brought up the camera in her room. She was huddled on the bed, her eyes closed.
The urge to go to her, not to make love, but to simply hold her in his arms, was almost overwhelming. He needed to care for her. He was in deep trouble. He was acting around Valeriya the same way his brother had around Sarah.
Drakon's Prey (Blood of the Drakon) Page 8