She turned and looked at me. “I really like the new hair.”
I hadn’t had much of a choice where my locks were concerned. After a particularly nasty run-in with a gang of dragons, my ends weren’t split; they were singed. I’d made a quick trip to Beverly Hills to visit my favorite hair god, Sir David. He’d turned my black hair blonde and given it a funky, rocker chic cut that I ended up loving. In fact, I’d designed a whole new wardrobe around it. This was the first time I’d ever been a blonde, and I kind of liked it.
After putting the weapons away in the steel cases and locking them, I went to change. My sisters and I had residences around the world, but we all still kept rooms here at the main house as well. This was Caruthers central, and since we were all close, we came home a lot. We’d been here even more often since Mom started traveling so much. It wasn’t that we didn’t love her. Life was just easier when she was busy and not in our business.
The great thing about being able to teleport anywhere in the world in a few seconds was that we could always be there for one another.
A quick shower and change of clothes was all it took to revive me. I don’t need more than about three hours’ sleep a night, which is how I’m able to run my businesses and take care of any dragon situations that arise. And—crap—plan weddings.
Please, God. Tell me that was a horrible nightmare. I checked my phone. There were seventeen text messages from Aspen. Gah. High-maintenance didn’t begin to describe the woman.
I squinted my eyes as I opened the first one, almost afraid to read it. She had sent links to different sites with ideas for what she wanted. From what I could gather, she wanted a small (only fifteen hundred people) English garden-type wedding at the castle.
Right after that was a text that said it might be too cold in England for an outdoor wedding, so better plan something for the big ballroom at the castle.
In the next e-mail she thought maybe for the other wedding they would get married on the beach. She wanted an unusual color scheme. “Pucci-esque” she called it. I happened to love Pucci but the bright, swirling colors weren’t exactly designed for a winter wedding. Each consecutive e-mail contained a completely different idea and plan, each one more outrageous than the last.
I looked to the heavens with a silent prayer. God, please save me from this insanity.
My phone rang, and I checked to make sure it wasn’t Aspen. It was security.
“Miss Caruthers, this is Gerald in Security One. We have a call from Xerxes. The warrior Ginjin has requested a meeting.”
Careful what you wish for, chica. “Thanks. I’ll be down in a minute.”
It made me laugh that Gerald had used the term “requested.” Ginjin never asked anyone for anything; he only demanded. The dragon warrior and I had an uneasy truce these days, though he still hadn’t forgiven me for saving his life. At first I thought he was mad because I had denied him a hero’s death, but now I wasn’t so sure.
Pulling my arms above my head, I stretched. At the closet I grabbed a pair of steel-toed boots to go with my jeans and switched my Theory blouse for a long-sleeved T-shirt. I hated it when dragons misbehaved and singed my clothes. I’d learned long ago to wear fire-resistant cotton, which gave my cooling power time to kick in.
I’m not sure how it works biologically, but I think Cold, and I can drop my body temperature down to subzero, which keeps burn damage from the fiery ones to a minimum and slows my heart rate. That last part is important, since the big beasts don’t just get fiery. There are acid- and poison-spitting dragons, which are equally dangerous.
The control room was several stories underneath the main house, which aboveground looked like the large Gothic mansion it was. Underneath was a world of secrets with several floors of everything from magical healers to workout spaces to security and weapons makers. The Caruthers complex had been designed to be the center of magical control for us. Anything we could need or want was at the ready, and if not, someone would make it for us.
In the weapons room I picked up a small crossbow designed by my brother. It fit well in a harness on my back but didn’t restrict movement like many of the larger weapons did. I also grabbed one of the new guns he’d made that could blow up most anything within thirty feet and put it in another holster at my waist.
“I heard you’re headed to Xerxes.” Jake’s voice was calm, and he seemed more like his old self.
“Yes. Ginjin needs something.” The warrior had the unenviable job of trying to keep the peace on his planet while a new government was formed. Their world had been temporarily taken over by the evil pervading the universe the month before. Ginjin and his warriors, along with powerful mages, were able to push the evil out, but not before thousands of dragons had killed each other. Most of the government officials had been wiped off the planet, so the council had put together a provisional government to keep the place from imploding. A government temporarily headed by their most powerful warrior, and until recently, the guy most likely to want me dead: Ginjin.
“Doesn’t he always need something?” Jake handed me the bowie knife, and I slipped it into the other side holster. I didn’t miss his sarcasm.
“You don’t like him very much, do you?” I turned to face him. Something in those eyes of his was indefinable. What are you thinking, Jake? Claire’s words came back to me: “I think he might be crushing on you.” Did Jake have a thing for me? Part of me liked the idea, but the other part refused to even contemplate it. I definitely had a thing for him.
“Do you? Like him, that is?” Jake watched me like I was some kind of leper. Claire’s crazy. This guy thinks I’m so desperate I’d sleep with a murderous dragon.
Ginjin had tried to kill me more than once. We’d never been exactly what one would call close. And while he was kind of cute in a weird way, I didn’t do dragon. Killed them, but I had no desire to date one.
I shrugged. “Not really, but it’s my job to be the liaison. If he wants a meeting, I have to go. End of story. Why all the sudden interest? It’s not like I don’t do this every day of my life.” I raised an eyebrow and stared right back at him.
He glanced down at the floor and then back at me. “True. I’m sorry I lost my temper earlier. Maybe, in the future, before you move into an unknown area, you could use the comm to let us know. It helps me do the job you hired me to do.”
I smiled. “Fair enough.”
He handed me the watch designed to open portals between worlds. It focused our powers so that we could land on the other side unharmed. Before the portals, Guardians sometimes ended up floating around the universe instead of arriving where they wanted to go. Sometimes they ended up dead. Portals, though hard on the body, made landing in the right spot much easier.
Beings from other worlds used different types of devices, though many, including my sister Gilly’s boyfriend, Arath, didn’t need any sort of gadget at all and could use magic to travel from one world to the next.
“Later.” I gave him a wave.
Just as the whoosh of air opened the bluish portal in front of me, I thought I heard him say something, but when I turned to ask him what he’d said, he was gone. Great, now I’m hearing things.
When I stepped through the haze, it felt like I was pulled apart in a million tiny pieces. It didn’t hurt, but it did make my stomach turn. Before I could think much about it, though, I had arrived in Ginjin’s lair, a large cave carved out of the side of a mountain. I’d wanted to land just outside his front door, but instead I’d ended up in his living room.
“What took you so long?” he roared. His long, silvery hair flung around his shoulders as he turned to look at me. In human form, he was quite a sight. Well over six foot three with rippling muscles, give him a patch on his eye and he could be one of the pirates on the covers of my not-so-secret stash of romance novels. My sisters ragged on me about them all the time, but I wasn’t about to give them up. Those novels kept me sane on the really bad days.
I turned my attention back to Ginj
in. His nostrils were flared, and he was most definitely angry. What is it with men and dragons tonight? Everyone was in severe grump mode. It was enough to make a girl want to draw a crossbow and put an arrow through a dragon’s eye (which was one of the best ways to kill the tough-scaled buggers when they were in scaly form). “What can I do for you, Ginjin?” It wouldn’t pay to get angry with him. He didn’t respond well to females screaming at him. I had a scar on my back from his claws to prove it.
He just stared at me.
“Maybe we should begin again. Ginjin, how can I help you?”
His scowl reminded me of Jake, and I bit down on my lip to keep from smiling. Men. Whatever.
“I must find a mate. I choose you.”
CHAPTER 4
The idea of mating with the dragon warrior was repulsive and hilarious. I snorted, and laughter bubbled out, only it didn’t do anything to cool down the situation. In fact, Ginjin turned a light shade of pink, which happened right before he went scaly.
“This is not a humorous situation. You told me a few weeks ago if I needed anything, you would be there for me. I need a wife.”
Be nice. I waved a hand toward him. “Well, as romantic as that proposal may be, Ginjin . . .” I paused to collect my thoughts. It was important to get my point across without antagonizing him more. “I’m afraid I can’t help you with that particular problem. Maybe you’ve forgotten that you hate me and have tried to kill me on more than one occasion?”
I used my fingers to tick off reasons. “We happen to be from different species. We live on different worlds. And I’m not really ready to get married to you or anyone else, even though you’ve asked so nicely.” I tried hard to smile, but I had a feeling it looked more like a grimace. “Oh, and I really don’t like you—at all.”
I should have left that last part off, but I have this problem with my mouth. Gets me in trouble all the time. I don’t like it when people try to push me around, and I don’t take orders or ultimatums well.
My sister Gilly was the diplomat of the family. She had a temper but kept it in check. I never seemed to have that talent. I’m also darn good at holding a grudge.
“You must marry me.” He paced back and forth. “There are no other options.”
“Once again, very romantic. A girl really enjoys being told she’s the last choice. But I beg to differ on the options. There are thousands of Ahi chicks who would love to be your mate. There are probably a couple flying right outside your door.”
“You don’t understand. I must have an important wife tomorrow, or I am to be wed to Jene of the Lincsire Lair.”
I held up two hands. “Wait, all of this is because of some kind of arranged marriage? And what the hell do you mean by important?”
He continued to stomp around his living room. The furniture seemed to have been made out of some kind of animal. But it wasn’t scaly, so clearly no dragons had been harmed in the making of it.
“Maybe you should take me back to the beginning. I gather you’re supposed to marry this Jene because it was determined the day you were born.” To keep the gene pool clean, arranged marriages were the norm here. “You are of age and must take a wife. Right?”
“Yes. But I have a world to protect, and I can’t do that and be the mate of Jene.”
“Is she ugly or something?” I didn’t understand. This was the way his society had been for as long as it had existed.
“No!” He roared again and smoke came out of his mouth. My body temperature dropped in response.
I held up a hand. “I’m just trying to understand what it is about her you don’t like.”
“She is a distraction I don’t need right now. Jene is beautiful. I cannot keep up with her . . . demands, and do what must be done to protect Xerxes.”
I leaned against the large wooden table by the sofa. “What do you mean by demands? And if you mean sexually, I really, really don’t want to know the answer. If she’s halfway intelligent, she must understand your responsibilities.”
He stared up at the ceiling. “I do not wish to explain to you her demands, but it has nothing to do with sex. But if I marry you, then I will not have to deal with the situation.”
“You know, if you keep flattering me like this, I might just give in. Ginjin, I’m not some kind of escape clause to get you out of marrying this chick. She’s beautiful; I can tell by the way you talk about her that you respect her. So she’s a little demanding. You’re a big bad dragon. You can handle it. Sounds to me like you guys were made for one another.” In human form, he was a glorious being, but I’d seen him go full-out dragon with the silvery scales and fiery breath—again, glorious, but not my type.
“You must.” It was as close to a whine as I’d ever heard from the great warrior, a being that chose to live high above the clouds rather than in the castle he’d been given on the land below because he felt he could protect his world better while living above it. “I cannot trust that Jene won’t kill me.”
“Wow!” I shook my head. “That’s probably a big con on the getting married thing. She must really hate you. What did you do to her?”
He snarled. “I did nothing. She’s a female who enjoys power, sometimes too much. That is something I respect in a way, but if she found herself in a position where she could take over my world, I have a feeling she would.”
I clicked my tongue. “Ambitious, is she? Well, I’m sorry, but I still can’t help you.” A picture of Jake flashed in my head. I don’t know why, but his image gave me a brilliant idea. “I have a boyfriend at home, and I don’t think he’d understand.” It was a lie, but I needed all the ammunition I could get.
“He is your mate?”
I smirked. “Not in the way you understand the word, but yes, we are close.”
“I will fight him for you.” He gave me a determined look.
“Uh, no. Not going to happen. Look. Man up, or dragon up in your case, and handle the situation. You’re running a world. Just tell them the wedding is going to have to wait until the new government is installed. Any reasonable person will understand.” It dawned on me that dragons were about the least reasonable creatures that existed in our universe.
“You will not marry me?” He suddenly looked defeated.
“Hey, you’re a good-looking guy and all, but I’m going to marry for love. Or something close to it.” I wasn’t sure I believed in happily ever after. My relationship history was rocky at best. The last two romances I had been in were miserable toward the end, and I was beginning to wonder if maybe there was something wrong with me. But I wasn’t so desperate that I’d marry a dragon. And honestly, while I admired his muscle-toned body and beautiful silver hair in an aesthetic way, Ginjin didn’t do a damn thing for me otherwise. And if I were to marry someone, I had to at least be attracted to them sexually. “So that answer would be no.”
“I wish you to leave now.”
I shrugged. “Okay.”
“I will speak to your mother. Perhaps she can reason with you.”
My head snapped up. “What? No. I told you, I have someone.” Besides, my mother would never go along with it. Would she? God, she was always about the greater good and keeping the peace. No, no. Even she wouldn’t wish a dragon on me. Dread formed in the pit of my stomach.
If she even tried, I’d pull in my sisters and brother. They wouldn’t let it happen. What the hell was I saying? I wouldn’t let it happen. Stop being an idiot.
“Ginjin. It’s a waste of time. I will not marry you for any reason. I’m outta here. Oh, and by the way. One of your dragons was trying to steal something out of a church in Montreal. I killed him. But his body was picked up by a large group of your people. Dragons that didn’t show up on our radar until after the fact. Maybe instead of trying to ruin my life, you could check into that.”
I pushed the button on the watch and stepped through the portal, but not before I heard him say, “We will see, Guardian.”
“He said what?” My sister Gillian howled with laught
er. “That’s the funniest thing I’ve heard in weeks.” She dabbed a tear with her napkin. She’d set up a tea tray with strudel for her and our sister Mira in the TV room. A big screen on the far wall played Practical Magic, which meant one of them had had a bad day. It was their favorite film. I liked it but preferred more violent old movies like Wanted. That movie is like one big adrenaline rush for me, and it didn’t hurt that James McAvoy was hot.
Gillian was in charge of demons. Though she has a slight conflict of interest since she started dating their king, Arath. A nice enough guy, but I wasn’t sure how I felt about all that. We’d discovered he was more mage than demon, but I didn’t trust him, even though he’d saved Gilly’s life more than once.
Mira had to deal with fairies. And I’m not talkin’ the Tinker Bell variety. There were all kinds of fairies, and she had some of the nastiest.
“I know. It’s like the most ridiculous thing ever.” I sighed. “Wouldn’t you know the one guy who is serious about marrying me has tried to kill me more than once? What does that say about my karma?”
Gillian had to put down her cup before she spilled her tea. “Your karma is just fine, Al. No one does more good for the universe—well, except for maybe us.” She started laughing again, and I rolled my eyes.
“Thanks for the sisterly support. I haven’t told you the best part. Since I told him absolutely not, he’s going to Mom.”
Mira’s cup clattered against her saucer. “What? No. She wouldn’t.” Mira eyes widened, and she and Gillian looked at each other.
Gillian shook her head. “No. No.” She said it as if she were trying to convince herself. “Even Mom wouldn’t wish a marriage of convenience on you. You know how she loved Dad. She barely approves of me dating Arath, and I love him. She would never agree to something like that.”
“Whatever happens, I need to make sure you have my back,” I begged them.
“You will marry a dragon over our dead bodies,” Mira chimed in. “I don’t even know why we are discussing this. It’s absolutely ridiculous. Mom will probably laugh. Okay, well, she won’t laugh, but she’ll get how crazy it is. You aren’t marrying Ginjin.”
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