“Oh God,” Adalyn murmured, reading over his shoulder. Her warm breath drifted across the side of his neck, sending a little shiver through him, and he frowned. “You are serious.”
Christian laughed, setting the file down. “And this is the mission that’s supposed to get me my wings back?” he scoffed. “If so, prepare to have that counter-spell ready by tomorrow. I’ll have the babe back here safe and sound before you know it.”
“Don’t take this mission lightly,” Delilah warned, her expression serious now. “There are several dragon shifter clans who have had their eye on Drako Moonstone these last few years, waiting for his father to die so that they could take his place. Right now Mason’s older cousin, Talon, is acting as the AlphaRegent until Mason is old enough to take the throne, but even though he is plenty strong enough to defend the title on his own, his position is tenuous. If any of these rival clans get to the baby first and kill him, they will be named clan Alphaby default, and there will be nothing anyone can do about it.”
“Well shit,” Christian muttered, sobering. He looked down at the cherubic face of the baby smiling up at him in the photograph. “That’s pretty fucking cold, killing a baby for the sake of power.”
“He’s so cute,” Adalyn cooed over his shoulder, reaching out to touch the photograph. Her arm brushed against his shoulder, sending another tingle through him. “Who could do such a thing?”
Delilah arched a brow at them both. “Well that explains why neither of you have risen to the tops of your respective food chains,” she said.
Christian only shrugged – he’d be the first to admit he wasn’t particularly ambitious - but Adalyn stiffened beside him. “And just what is that supposed to mean?”
Delilah rolled her eyes. “Don’t get your pretty panties in a twist, honey. I just mean that these people, unlike yourselves, aren’t content with the status quo. They’re full of cold ambition and will do whatever it takes in order to get what they want.” Her red lips twisted into a grimace. “Even if they have to kill an infant to do it.”
“That’s horrible,” Adalyn said, and Christian knew that he should agree. But he was still stuck on the ‘pretty panties’ part of Delilah’s speech. How the hell did she know whether or not Adalyn’s panties were pretty? Had the two of them slept together?
Normally he would have sat back and grinned, as fantasies of the two rolling around in the sheets naked together played through his mind. But instead, he felt jealous, which surprised him. What on earth had he to be jealous about? It’s not as if Adalyn belonged to him.
Yet.
He frowned. Where the hell had that thought come from? He wasn’t planning on making any dragon female his, never mind one he’d only met yesterday. The idea of settling down with someone had never occurred to him, and he wasn’t about to start now.
“Christian, would you care to tune in again?” Delilah asked.
Christian sat up straight in his chair and blinked at her. “What?”
Delilah sighed, then pushed a small money envelope across the table toward him. “This should be enough to cover your travel and expenses,” she said testily. “You’ll find all the information you need to know in that file. I’d say for you to call me if you have any trouble… but I’d really rather you not have any trouble at all, so if I have to answer the phone it better be because of an emergency.” She gave him a gimlet stare. “Have I made myself clear?”
Christian swallowed, suddenly aware of how much was on the line here. He had a feeling that this mission could either give him back his freedom, or have it taken away permanently if he screwed it up. “Crystal clear.”
“Good. Now go bring me that baby.”
Chapter Five
“Are you sure that’s wise?” Adalyn protested, watching as Christian opened up the case file and set it on the table top. They were in a small, retro diner, waiting for their breakfast because Christian had insisted on sitting down instead of just grabbing something to go.
Not that Adalyn was complaining too much. She did need some time to process this, after all.
“What are you talking about?” Christian arched a brow as he lifted his coffee cup to his lips. Adalyn winced as a drop of the hot, dark liquid splashed from the lip of his cup onto the file, staining one of the pages. Unable to handle it, she snatched the file from his grasp and tucked it in her lap beneath the table.
“Hey!” Christian scowled, setting his coffee cup down. “What was that for?”
“You’re getting coffee on the file!” she exclaimed, indignant. “And besides, you shouldn’t just have that sitting around here openly where anyone can see it.”
She expected Christian to see her point of view and be contrite, but instead he just shook his head and laughed at her. “Sweetheart, I picked this corner spot specifically so that no one would be able to look over our shoulder. The file is perfectly safe. Now hand it over.” He extended his hand across the table, clearly expecting her to pass the file back to him.
Embarrassment washed through Adalyn as she realized that he was right – they were tucked into a corner booth near the back, far from the entrance, so it was doubtful anyone would be able to see the file. But still, she was reluctant to hand it over – from what she’d seen of him so far, he was immature and untrustworthy, and the information was too important to lose or damage.
“You spilled coffee on it.”
He arched an eyebrow. “So?”
“So maybe I don’t want you ruining the file.” Adalyn crossed her arms.
He rolled his eyes. “Sweetheart, I wasn’t born yesterday. I have no plans to dump my cup of coffee on the file.” He leaned forward, his green eyes intent on Adalyn’s. “Now hand it over… or I’ll have to take it from you.”
“And just how are you going to do that?” Adalyn scoffed.
He slid a hand beneath her chin, stroking her jaw with his thumb. “I think I can find a way to convince you to relinquish it.”
Adalyn’s breath caught at the gleam of lust in Christian’s eye, and against her will she felt her body warm in response. Her mind raced with all the possibilities of how Christian was going to get her to ‘relinquish’ the file. Was he going to kiss her? Touch her? Or…
She squeaked as the file was suddenly yanked from her lap, and grabbed for it – but too late, it was gone. Christian chuckled as he pulled it out from under the table, to her amazement.
“That was way too easy.” He waggled his eyebrows, then opened the file back up and laid it on the table.
Adalyn glanced under the table, then noticed his left foot was bare, his toes wiggling. “Did… did you seriously just grab the file from me with your foot?”
“I did indeed.” He grinned. “Impressed by my mad skills yet?”
Adalyn laughed – she couldn’t help it. “You’re certainly something else, that’s for sure.”
The waitress arrived with their food, then – stacks of pancakes, bacon, eggs and fruit – and Christian neatly slipped the file out of sight as she laid it out on the table. They both dug in happily, and were silent for several long moments as they inhaled their food.
Eventually, though, Adalyn’s gaze began to stray from her disappearing plate of pancakes and to Christian’s handsome face. He didn’t seem to notice her as she studied him, too intent on his food, which was fine because she didn’t want him to know that she was staring at him, trying to figure him out.
How could someone so charming and good looking also be such a reprobate? In theory, she knew guys like this existed everywhere, and that the proper term for them was ‘bad boy’, but it just didn’t seem fair that she had to be attracted to one. Adalyn was a good girl, someone who had no trouble coloring within the lines and staying out of trouble, and she always steered clear of guys like Christian. It had to be a cruel trick of fate that she was stuck here with him now, on a mission for the next few days.
“There something on my face?” Christian asked conversationally as he reached for the syrup.
>
“Hmm?”
“I can’t help but notice that you’ve been staring at me.” He grinned at her as he doused his second stack of pancakes with syrup. “So either something’s on my face, or you just find me so irresistible you can’t look away.”
Adalyn crossed her arms over her chest, not willing to give his ego another boost. “Actually, I’ve been waiting for you to stop eating long enough so you can tell me what our next step is.”
“Oh, well that’s easy.” Christian shoved a forkful of syrup-drenched pancake in his mouth. “We head over to dragon baby country.”
Adalyn rolled her eyes as she popped a grape from the fruit bowl into her mouth. “And just where is that, exactly?”
“According to the file, Chicago.”
Her eyes widened. “Chicago? Just how the hell are we getting there?” They couldn’t fly the traditional way, not without their ability to shift. “I sure as hell am not taking a plane. I don’t trust those metal contraptions. They’re not natural.”
“Oh we’re definitely not taking a plane.” Christian nudged the duffle bag full of weapons that sat on the ground between them, with his foot. “We’d never get these babies past the NSA. We’re going to rent a car.”
Adalyn blinked. “A car? Isn’t that going to be a little expensive, with the gas and all?”
Christian grinned, then pulled out the money envelope and slapped it against his open palm. “That’s why the Order is footing the bill, sweetheart.”
Adalyn sighed. “I do have a name, you know. You don’t have to keep calling me sweetheart.”
“Umm, yeah, of course you do.” Christian suddenly looked uncomfortable. “Listen, why don’t we – ”
“Oh my God.” Adalyn’s jaw dropped. “You don’t remember my name, do you?”
Christian shifted guiltily in his seat. “It’s been on the tip of my tongue, but – ”
Adalyn laughed, shaking her head. She wasn’t sure if she was offended or not. “You are totally unbelievable,” she said. “You slept with me last night, and are about to embark on a dangerous mission with me, and you don’t know my name?”
“Hey, I was drunk last night!” Christian protested. “And I knew you would get all offended if I asked, so I was holding off as long as I could.”
Adalyn rolled her eyes. “I bet you’re one of those guys who doesn’t ask for directions either, until you’ve ended up thirty miles out in the middle of nowhere and there’s no one to ask, aren’t you?” She tossed her napkin down on the table, then stood up. “I’m going to the bathroom while you pay the tab. Maybe you’ll remember my name by the time you come back.”
She sauntered off, leaving Christian muttering at the table behind her.
Chapter Six
“Are you sure you know how to drive this thing?”
Christian gritted his teeth as he idled at the edge of the rental car parking lot, waiting for an opportunity to slide into traffic. Since Delilah had given him a hefty sum of cash, he’d decided to rent a shiny silver BMW, which was the hottest looking car on the lot. After all, he was going on a dangerous mission with a beautiful woman. Shouldn’t he have the James Bond car too?
“Of course I know how to drive this thing,” he said, gripping the stick shift. “I wouldn’t have rented it if I didn’t.”
He shifted into first gear, then eased off the clutch and fed the engine gas. Unfortunately he didn’t time it right, because first the engine roared and the car didn’t do anything, and then suddenly they shot into traffic so fast they nearly rear ended another car. Adalyn’s shriek reverberated through the air as he slammed on the brakes, and they both flew forward in their seats.
“Oh my God,” she gasped, clutching the dash. She turned to him with a ferocious glare. “You are not driving this car!”
“It’ll be fine!” Christian insisted as traffic began to move forward. As usual, the streets of New York City were jammed with bumper-to-bumper traffic. He tried to inch forward with the rest of them, but this time he didn’t give the car enough gas, and it stalled in the middle of the intersection.
The driver behind him leaned on the horn of his truck, and Christian gave him the one-fingered salute. “Alright, alright!” he shouted as he started the car. “I’m going! Just give me a minute!”
He managed to get the car going again, but the next three blocks were just as bumpy – the stop and go was hell on him. “Maybe I shouldn’t have gotten a stick shift,” he muttered.
“What was that?” Adalyn asked, and damn if her tone wasn’t a little smug. “Did you just admit to a mistake?”
“Not at all,” Christian said. He shifted the car into first gear, then, and began moving forward again. “Would you stop being a side-seat driver already? We’re going to make it to Chicago just fine.”
“When was the last time you drove a car, anyway?” Adalyn asked, frowning.
Christian cleared his throat uncomfortably. “Maybe two years ago? When I was living in Boston.”
“Well that explains a lot,” she said dryly, shaking her head as he stalled again.
“Hey, I don’t see you driving this thing,” he snapped.
“That’s because I wouldn’t have picked it!”
“Hey listen, sweethear – I mean Adalyn,” he corrected hastily as she glared at him. He’d texted Delilah for her name while she was in the bathroom so that he wouldn’t make that mistake again. “I’m the modern-world MacGuyver, okay? If anyone can learn how to figure this baby out, it’s me.”
He managed to make it to the freeway without any other incident, gradually growing more comfortable with shifting. But as he was merging onto the highway, traffic started to slow, and he cursed, shifting the car back down into fourth gear.
Or so he thought.
The transmission protested with a loud crunch, and then something in the car just died. Sheer terror raced through Christian’s veins, and he abruptly jerked the steering wheel to the left, driving the car onto the shoulder before they got into an accident, and then slammed on the brakes.
Horrified, Christian and Adalyn looked down at the gear shift at the same time, then back up at each other.
“You shifted into reverse!”
* * *
Two hours later, Adalyn was standing outside the car rental place, fuming. Christian was inside taking care of the last of the paperwork, and she’d decided to leave him to it – no way was she getting involved with this mess. He’d created it himself, and he was going to have to deal with the consequences.
Just like everything else in his life.
Sighing, Adalyn shoved a hand through her mass of curly red hair and stared up at the sky. It was pale blue and dotted with thick, round cumulous clouds – perfect for diving in and out of. Why, oh why couldn’t she be up there, soaring amongst the clouds, instead of down here in this concrete jungle with the most irresponsible dragon shifter in the known Universe?
The door opened beside her, and she didn’t have to turn to know it was Christian – his scent, a combination of musk and cologne, teased her nostrils. As he came to stand beside her, her cheeks reddened a little as she realized her scent was still on him from last night – he must not have showered.
And strangely, he didn’t smell bad at all. In fact, part of her wanted to lean into him and inhale more of his scent.
Stop it.
“Hey.” Christian shoved his hands into his pockets as he looked down at her. To his credit, he actually looked apologetic – there was no hint of the easy-going, cocksure man he’d always presented to her. “I’m really sorry about earlier. I should have listened to you.”
Adalyn scoffed. “You’re just saying that because you’ve got no other choice.” She pushed off of the wall so she could put some distance between them. “As soon as we’re back on the road again, you’re going to be doing whatever the hell you want and refusing to listen to me all over again.”
Christian caught her by the wrist as she tried to turn away. “Adalyn, please.”
He stared down at her with his big, green eyes, looking so forlorn that her heart softened against his will. “Don’t go. We need to work together if we want to get our wings back.”
I snatched my hand back as anger sparked in my chest again. “The keyword being ‘together’.” I lifted my chin, challenging him to disagree. “Are you really willing to do that?”
“I swear to you that I will run all decisions by you, and not do anything you don’t agree with.” He clasped her hand in his, his eyes full of sincerity. “I know that I’ve been a real jerk all morning, and I want to make it up to you. Please.”
Adalyn wasn’t sure if he really meant what he was saying, or if he was just saying it because he knew that without her, he was never going to get his wings back. Unfortunately, the same went for her, so she was just going to have to try and make the best of it.
“Well, you weren’t a jerk the entire morning,” she relented with a small smile. “Just most of it.”
“Oh, thank you, thank you so much.” He swept her up into his arms and, to her shock, kissed her full on the mouth.
He’d probably intended for it to be a quick kiss, nothing special, but warmth unfolded in her chest, and she instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed her back. His scent enveloped her as he deepened the kiss, sliding his tongue into her mouth and stroking it against her own, and the rest of her annoyance evaporated, replaced with simmering pleasure and a burning need for more.
“Hey, would you two get a room?” the manager stuck his head out the door to glare at them. “I’m running a car rental business here, not a motel!”
They broke apart, Adalyn blushing furiously. “Sorry,” Christian said with a grin as he looked down at her, and she wasn’t sure whether or not she was talking to the manager or Adalyn. He held out an arm to her, and she blinked. “Let’s be on our way, shall we?”
Narrowing her eyes, she took his arm in hers. “Where are we going?” she asked as he led her to the street.
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