by Dena Christy
The best thing to do was act like it was a normal day and she walked down the stairs to her shop to do that. It didn’t feel like it, but she had to pretend that nothing had changed. She was unsure why the feeling of knowing him was there, but the best way for her to figure it out was to go about her usual routine. Any time she had a problem she let her subconscious mull it over until she came up with a solution.
She moved about the shop with an efficiency that spoke of long experience, doing the tasks to open for the day. Who he was and what he’d been doing in the alley, bleeding from a wound in his back? He’d been very closed mouthed about it all. When she’d asked him, she’d been alarmed when he refused to speak about it, saying to do so would bring danger to her. Once he’d assured her that no harm would come to her, she’d allowed the moment to pass without further question.
With a shake of her head, she shoved those thoughts aside. Perhaps she would never know what had brought him into her life, and maybe it would be better if she didn’t know. If he was correct, that it would bring danger to her if she knew what had happened to him, then she should keep her nose out of it. Frankly, it was a little too spy vs spy for her liking.
She finished all her tasks, unlocked the front door and flipped the sign to open. The sun shone on the street outside, and she breathed a sigh as she watched the world outside her door go about its daily routine. The night before was taking on an edge of fantasy, and she closed her eyes and rubbed her fingers across them. The disruption to her sleep was catching up with her and in the cold light of day the night before seemed even stranger.
She opened her eyes and let out a startled noise when she saw a man standing on the other side of the glass, staring at her. The sound of her tiny scream faded as she squinted her eyes.
She blinked several times when she realized why he looked so familiar. Gabriel Nash was standing on the other side of the door as if he’d appeared out of thin air. He was an old friend of both her and Ian, who had gradually faded out of their lives once she and Ian had married. If it had not been for him, she would not have met Ian at all, since he had been the one to introduce them.
She yanked the door open as a broad grin spread across her face. “Gabriel, what are you doing here?”
“Elle, it’s great to see you.” He stepped into the shop and pulled her close to him. He hugged her tight and held on to her a little longer than was necessary. It reminded her why she’d not tried too hard to keep her friendship with him alive once she and Ian had settled into married life. She’d always known Gabriel wanted to be more than just friends with her, and sometimes the way he looked at her made her feel uncomfortable. As much as he’d said he was content to be her friend, she never quite believed him.
She moved back and he let her go. His eyes drifted up and down her body, and there was a hungry spark in his eyes. The look was like the one that Gregor had been giving her last night, but unlike when she was with the man sleeping upstairs, there was no answering response inside her when Gabriel looked at her.
“It’s been a long time. What can I do for you?” She noticed that he hadn’t answered her first inquiry into what he was doing here.
“I’d like to look around your shop if you don’t mind.” He pushed past her and walked around the shop. She shut the door and turned to watch him. He wondered around the shop, his fingers lightly touching the books on the occult she had on display. “This is quite the place you have. Does Ian help you run it?”
His back was to her, so he could not see the effect his words had on her. A dull pain went through her when she realized that he would not know Ian was gone.
“Actually, I opened this place a year after Ian passed away.”
Gabriel stiffened and carefully set the book he’d been holding down on the counter. He didn’t turn to face her, and when he spoke his voice was rougher and lower than it had been.
“I’m sorry for your loss. Was he ill?”
If only it had been illness that had claimed Ian. Perhaps then she might have been able to make sense of it. “No, he wasn’t ill. Someone murdered him. The police think it was a mugging gone wrong.”
And remembering this now gave her a clue into why she would have let an injured stranger into her home. If only her husband had been as fortunate as Gregor and had someone around to offer him aid. Perhaps he would have lived.
She walked around the counter to where he stood and he looked up at her.
“God, Elle. That must have been terrible for you. I wish you’d reached out to me. I would have helped in any way I could.” His words sounded right, but they didn’t quite match the cool look in his eyes. She brushed the notion aside. He’d been dealt a shock, and people reacted differently to horrible news like the one she’d delivered.
“I didn’t know how to reach you.” And she doubted that she would have called him had she known. She’d forgotten her old friend Gabriel by the time Ian had died, and if he hadn’t shown up at the door of her shop, he would still be the person farthest from her mind.
“Well, I’ll remedy that so it’s not a problem in the future.” He pulled out his cell phone and looked at her expectantly. “Well, what’s your number?”
After a moment’s hesitation, she gave him her cell number, and he punched it into his phone. Her own phone vibrated in her pocket, and she pulled it out to see that he’d sent her a text. Because he was watching her so closely, she added him to her contacts. She didn’t expect that there would be any reason she would need to call him after today.
“How did you find me, anyway?” That was the curious thing in all this. How had he’d found her in the town she’d moved to start a new life once her husband had passed away?
“I wasn’t looking for you. I saw you standing in the doorway and thought I’d pop in to say hi. Aren’t you at least a little glad to see me?”
“I am.” She pushed a smile on her face just as the sound of footsteps from the room upstairs sounded above their heads, and his eyes moved up to the ceiling. She had to get him out of the shop, especially now that her late night visitor had awoken. Something told her she didn’t want these two men to meet although for the life of her she couldn’t explain why.
His eyes dropped to hers, and a ghost of a smile crossed his lips but did not reach his cool blue eyes. “I should get going, but not until you agree to see me again. I’d love to take you out to dinner and we can catch up on old times.”
“Sure. Just text me and let me know when.” She came around the counter with an urgency she hoped didn’t show. There was a scuffling sound at the top of the stairs leading to the apartment, and she knew Gregor would come into the shop at any moment. “Let me get the door for you.”
She rushed to the door as Gabriel casually sauntered behind her. She opened the door and held it for him. He stopped when he came abreast of her and there was a smirk on his face she couldn’t interpret.
“See you soon, Elle.” He walked past her and out the door.
She closed the shop door behind him and resisted the urge to twist the deadbolt. Her eyes followed him as he walked away and crossed the street. There were two other men standing on the sidewalk and Gabriel joined them. She didn’t know what he said to them, but their eyes went to her shop for a second before they turned as a group and walked out of sight.
“Friend of yours?”
Elle turned with a gasp as Gregor’s voice boomed behind her. She should have expected his arrival since it was the reason she’d hustled Gabriel out of the shop. The sight of Gabriel conferring with his colleagues across the street had distracted her enough that she hadn’t paid attention to the noise behind her.
He loomed near the door that led to her apartment, and there was a dark look in his eyes she hadn’t seen before. It sent a shiver down her spine, and for the first time since she’d let him into her home she felt a small trickle of fear. She shoved it aside. He’d proven that he didn’t intend to harm her so why would he do so now? It was the meeting with Gabriel that had uns
ettled her.
“Not exactly.” She walked away from the door and went to stand in front of him. “Did you sleep well?”
She didn’t want to talk about Gabriel, not to him. He was a part of the past, one she’d moved on from. She would go out to dinner with him, as she’d promised, but that would be the end of her encounters with him. An instinct buried deep inside her told her that the man in front of her was a part of her future, and she didn’t want the memories of the past that Gabriel brought with him to intrude on that.
“I did.” His eyes went to the door one last time and his lips tightened for a second. She thought for a moment he would press her with more questions, but his face cleared when he looked back at her. “I wanted to thank you again for your help. It is time for me to take my leave of you.”
Disappointment flashed through her, but she dismissed it. What did she think would happen? That he would want to stay in her apartment a little longer?
“I’m glad I could be there for you when you needed me. Good bye, Gregor.” She held out her hand, and he took it in his much bigger one. “I suppose there is no need for us to see each other again.”
He squeezed her hand for a moment and raised it to his mouth, kissing the back. Goosebumps sprang up on her arm at his old world gesture and she held her breath for a moment as she waited for what he would say.
“Goodbye Elle.” And with those words, he dropped her hand and walked out the door.
Elle’s shoulder’s sagged as she watched him go. Had she read things wrong last night? She could have sworn the attraction between them had been mutual, but his abrupt goodbye told her she must have been mistaken. She turned away from the door and something caught her eye.
On the floor, near where he’d been standing, was a crumpled piece of paper. It hadn’t been there when she’d come into the shop earlier, since she always made sure the place was neat and tidy before she opened. She went over to it and stooped to pick it up. Curiosity made her smooth it out, and there in a bold masculine writing was Gregor’s name and a phone number.
Elle carefully folded the piece of paper and put it into her pocket. She didn’t know if she would ever use it, but having his number sent a warm shot of happiness through her. He’d taken the time to write his name and number out for her. Why he hadn’t just handed it to her, she would never know, but he’d given her a way to see him again if she wanted to. And she had to admit that seeing Gregor again was something she wanted, very much.
4
“What is all this nonsense about destiny?” Andor, Gregor’s younger brother, didn’t wait for his feet to clear the threshold of their home before he bombarded him with that question. Impatience had plagued the younger dragon in the past, and Gregor could see that time had not lessened that flaw inside him.
Iszak, the youngest of them all, stood not too far behind. Both of his brothers looked at him with the same expressions on their faces they’d worn when looking at him when he’d first emerged from stone a month ago. Their faces said they were in anticipation of the moment he went mad. From what he’d seen in their eyes when they met his, it was not a question of if, but when.
Where they right? He felt foolish for a moment as he remembered the text message he’d sent last night. The one where he’d told Rickman he’d met his destiny. He’d been so sure that meeting Elle was a sign that his curse would break.
“I really don’t want to get into this right now. There are more pressing matters than the content of my text message last night. I will speak with you both once I’ve changed out of these clothes.” There was a firm edge of command in his voice he was certain his brothers would obey. He was the oldest, and that made him a more powerful dragon than either of them. There would be no further questions from them until he was ready to talk.
He turned away and allowed his brothers to see the ragged hole in the back of his shirt. It hadn’t felt right to leave Elle’s home with the shirt she had given him, so he had retrieved his shirt from the rag bag she’d put it in. The blood had dried, but his brothers should be able to see it for what it was. The fabric had a crispy feel at the back and it made his skin itch. All he wanted to do now was peel it away and get rid of it. And he wanted to do that before he told his brothers about the threat they now faced.
“Why didn’t you say you were wounded when Rickman sent you the message? We would have come to your aid.” A hand reached out to grasp his upper arm and Iszak spun him around to face him. So much for his notion that his brothers would not question him further until he was ready to speak of the events of last night.
“As you can see, no lasting harm has been done, and I didn’t need you to aid me. By the time I received the message from Rickman, I had all the aid I needed. I shall speak with you both in the sitting room once I’ve cleaned up.”
He trudged up the stairs toward his room. He was finally becoming used to the world he’d woken in, and how things had changed from the days when he and his brothers had dwelt in caves. The caverns they’d lived in so long ago were as fine as any lord’s castle, but they were caves.
What would Elle think of this place? Would she find it too opulent, too grand for her tastes? He had no idea, and he supposed it didn’t matter. He would not be seeing Elle again. He’d forgotten in his elation at seeing her last night exactly what had happened in the past, but now he remembered and he would not risk a repeat of the events that had taken her from him.
With a shake of his head, he reached the top of the stairs and turned left to go to the bedroom he’d taken for himself. Despite his belief that he was free of the events of the past it was not so. Then as now, hunters were inextricably intertwined between him and Elle. In the past it had been a hunter name Archer, who had dogged Elle’s every step and had made it difficult for Gregor to find time alone with her. And now there were hunters in Waldron Valley and they knew enough about him to have followed him on his nightly walk. If that wasn’t a big enough problem, one of their number, their ring leader Nash was known to Elle.
The muscle across his jaw tightened as he walked into his bedroom and shut the door with a little more force than necessary. He’d been busy writing his name and number on a piece of paper when he’d heard her cry out below in her shop and it had roused him instantly. Fortunately, when no further cries of alarm had come, and there had been no sounds of violence, he’d been smart enough to exercise caution and had tried to listen to what was going on in the shop. A chill chased down his spine when he’d heard the voice of the hunter who had shot him talking to Elle.
The only thing that had prevented him from bursting into the shop to deal with him at that moment was that the hunter didn’t appear to be interrogating her. There was no malice in Nash’s voice when he spoke to her and so he had listened. She had known him well, and the present was unfolding a little too close to the past for his liking. He’d felt like a fool for writing his number down for her, and so had crumpled it in his hand and dropped it to the floor before she’d turned around to talk to him.
With thoughts of the hunter’s involvement with Elle shoved aside for the moment, he walked into the bathroom attached to his bedroom and stripped his soiled shirt from his body. The bandage Elle had made for him was still intact, and it stung a little from the dried blood adhering to his skin when he peeled it away. The wound was no longer open and oozing blood. It had formed a jagged red line, and he knew in another day or two the redness would go away and it would appear to be a much older wound. Thankfully, his quick action of ripping the bolt from his body had prevented more lasting damage.
He did not linger over his shower, and while he wished to sleep more, he knew Andor and Iszak waited. His brothers’ patience was finite and would not last long enough for him to take a nap. After a quick change of clothes and his hair still damp, he went back downstairs toward the sitting room where his brothers waited for him.
His eyes scanned the room as he stepped over the threshold and they were all there. His brothers, Rickman and the two wo
men who now lived in the house all turned impatient eyes toward him. His eyes zeroed in on the mates his brothers had taken, Lyssa and Julia.
He had hope to speak with Andor and Iszak alone since he was unsure of what they should share with the two ladies. Particularly Julia, the one mated to Iszak. She was from a dragon hunting clan and Gregor was reluctant to trust her. In the past, women from such families were used as bait to aid in the slaughter of his kind. While Iszak was willing to put his faith in her, Gregor did not know her well enough to do the same. That he had not tried get to know her after his awakening was not even a consideration.
“Are you going to tell us what this is all about?” The sharp edge of impatience in Andor’s voice cut through the silence, and Gregor turned his attention to him as he took a seat in the lone chair across from the group. There was a barking command in his brother’s voice, one he had not heard from him before. He could see now he could no longer treat either of his brothers like the fledglings they’d been when he’d gone into slumber. They were now dragons in their prime, fully mated and at the height of their strength and power. “You left a cryptic message for Rickman and come home injured. I think as your family we have a right to know what is going on, and if there is a danger to any of us, we need to prepare for it.”
“At the time I left the message for Rickman I was not in a position to go into details, so you will forgive me for being cryptic. As I’m sure you’ve already concluded by my injury, there are hunters active in Waldron Valley.”
He made certain to keep his eye on Andor, and to avoid looking at where his brother Iszak sat with his woman Julia tucked up against his side. He had no way of knowing if the hunters were here because of her or not. He was positive that if he looked at her with any hint of accusation in his eyes, Iszak would have him by the throat in a matter of moments. Even he could see that his brother’s love for his mate was absolute, and because of that Gregor was prepared to give her the benefit of the doubt for the moment. Besides, fighting amongst themselves would not be helpful.