by Amelia Jade
But then he smiled and the radiance of his grin blasted away the last of her reservations.
“I can return all of this, if you would like?” he joked.
“No refunds on altered products,” she recited by rote.
Heat burned its way across her cheeks as she realized what she’d just said and how silly it sounded.
“I’ll pick you up from the store,” he told her.
“What?” She began to panic. “No. I need to go home, to change. I mean, if you’re wearing that, than I need to—”
Riss froze like a statue as Zander placed a finger to her lips, quelling her protests instantly. Energy sizzled from the contact of his skin to hers, hardening her nipples under her shirt, despite her best efforts to keep calm.
One touch. All it had taken was one touch and he’d awoken desires in her that had been quiet for some time now.
Well, except for last night, in the bath, after he left.
Whoever Zander was, he certainly had awoken a need within her, one that she’d long ago learned to live with. Now she wasn’t so certain she could go on that way, as the gnawing ache slowly awoke deep inside of her.
“Your current outfit will be more than sufficient,” he told her, his eyes roving over the black pants and deep red of her blouse.
“Zander, I—”
“It will be sufficient,” he repeated, his voice like iron, firm and unyielding to her.
“Okay,” she said, giving in with a sigh that was mixed parts terror and excitement.
“I shall see you this evening,” he said, and with that, he snagged his other clothing and was gone.
“Unreal,” she muttered, heading back to the register to close his file.
It wasn’t until later that she realized he’d never even tried the other suit on.
Chapter Five
Riss
Once again she was out in the alleyway, fiddling with her key in the always not-quite-working-properly lock of Challer’s. Footsteps sounded behind her, and she realized it must be Zander, coming down from the street in front of the store.
The sound of fingers snapping echoed between the buildings.
“Did you just snap at me?” Riss asked, turning in disbelief.
“What? No,” he said, at a loss for words, looking around as if unsure why she was mad at him.
“Why are you snapping then?”
“I was trying to make enough noise so that you didn’t try to hit me with your little electricity gun. Again,” he said, as if to say, “Wasn’t that obvious?”
“Oh,” she said. “Sorry, I’ve just been really jumpy ever since I got mugged. Or, almost mugged. Whatever.”
“So, for any future occurrences like this, how shall I best approach this?” he asked cautiously.
“Hmm, well, try this one out,” she said, finishing up with the lock and walking toward him. “Hello Riss,” she called out. “Feel free to try that one,” she said, patting him on his extremely firm chest.
“I’ll try,” he replied dryly, before deftly snagging her arm and putting it between the crook of his elbow. “Now, if you’ll follow me?”
Riss tried to hide her grin, failed, and then decided not to bother. “You didn’t give me much of a choice, so lead on,” she said with a gallant wave of her left hand, the free one.
Somehow he’d managed to not only convince her to go out with him, but also to accept that her work clothing would be acceptable attire, and on top of that, she still had no idea where he was taking her.
A day ago she would have said such a thing would have been flat out impossible. She would never have agreed to let someone have such control over her. Yet she was already having a hard time imagining her life without Zander in it, as crazy as that seemed.
His chiseled jaw, still shaved smooth, and those locks of hair that fell over his forehead, like they were now before he pushed them away.
A sudden impulse surged through Riss as they walked slowly.
“You’re slacking,” she said and reached up to brush the hairs away for him.
Zander stiffened and his other hand came up automatically, grabbing her wrist before she could complete her action. It happened so swiftly she barely even noticed him move, before vise-like fingers tightened around her.
“Is everything okay?” she asked cautiously, trying not to make any sudden movements.
Then, just like that, his hand was gone as swiftly as it had come, falling back to his side. Her hand hung there for a moment, until he dipped his head into it.
“Sorry,” he murmured, his lips now dangerously close to her ear.
Warm breath washed over her skin as he did, sending goosebumps shivering their way down her back and along her arms. He was so close. All she would have to do was turn her head, and then his lips would be right there. It would be so easy.
Riss swallowed the lump in her throat as her fingers finished brushing his hair away. His head lingered nearby for a moment, then another. She twitched slightly, and then his head was back level once more.
“What was that all about?” she asked, trying to disguise her relief as the tension ebbed slightly.
It was still there, at a much higher level than before, but there was no instant decision that had to be made. She could walk, looking ahead without getting sucked into those brass-brown eyes once more. They were so different, even more so than her own misty-gray ones. The effect he had on her, with his woodsy smell tinged with just a bit of…something, was powerful enough to overwhelm her if she spent too much time close to it.
What if he does try to kiss me? Will I be able to kiss him back?
She noted in a remote corner of her mind that there was no question about whether she would let him kiss her or not. That was past. She would, if he made a move.
“Training,” he replied in his usual information-lacking way.
Riss elbowed him in the side.
“Right. Elaborate,” he said with a chuckle, showing her that he at least knew why she was elbowing him, even if he hadn’t corrected the underlying reason.
“Something something old dog, new tricks,” she muttered under her breath with a smile, knowing full well his dragon hearing would pick up on it.
“My mind was…elsewhere,” he started, his tone indicating he wasn’t going to discuss what he meant by that. “The motion startled me, as did your hand coming toward my face. It has been…some time, I suppose, since I last let anyone get that close to me, into my space. So, combine that with my distraction, and my reflexes just took over.”
He stopped walking and looked at her. “I am sorry, Riss. Truly. It won’t happen again. I did not mean to scare you.”
She smiled. “You startled me, big boy, but it takes a little more than grabbing my wrist to scare me.”
Especially because of the shock I got when you touched me, which may or may not have distracted me from any fear I should have been feeling.
“Good,” he continued, his voice like a boulder gathering speed down a mountain. “I promise, you will never need to feel fear with me around.”
Riss looked up at him, noting the sheer intensity of the look he was giving her. Whatever had happened, even though it wasn’t a big deal to her, had been one to him. She saw that now, and realized that joking around with him was not what was required right then. He felt like he’d offended her, and cheap quips weren’t what he was looking for.
“It’s okay, Zander Pierce,” she said softly, meeting his eyes unflinchingly. “You have my assurances on that. As you do that, so far, you have made me feel comfortable and safe more than you have anything else. I don’t know how, but you have.”
“Good.”
“But if you wish to make me feel even safer, there is a way,” she replied, shocked at her own forwardness.
Easy girl.
“How is that?” he asked, eager to do whatever she wished.
“Take this,” she told him, grabbing the arm that was linked through hers, “and put it here.” She draped hi
s arm over her shoulder, her grip lingering to the point of inappropriateness on his bicep.
His fingers wrapped around her and pulled her in tight, deep into his protective shell.
Riss had never felt happier.
***
Zander took her to dinner at the newly rebuilt and reopened Morrte’s Delicatessen. The owner, Morrte, had been the victim of that same shifter from Fenris who was to stand trial. The town as a whole had rallied together to help rebuild his shop after it came to light why it had been burnt down. Riss, as a human, hadn’t taken part, but she was proud and happy to know Morrte was back on his feet. Nobody deserved that sort of treatment in her books.
The food had been delicious, and because it hadn’t been a fancy restaurant, Zander had been right once again. Riss’s work clothing had been more than adequate. In fact, it was he who was overdressed, especially when they went to the ice cream parlor afterward.
That was one thing Riss had never understood about shifters. They loved ice cream. Like, obsessive levels of like. Cadia had, by best guesses, around ten thousand people combined between the town itself and the sprawling countryside around it. Most places of that size would have one, perhaps two ice cream joints at best.
There were fifteen in Cadia.
Fifteen.
It made no logical sense to her, but as an ice cream aficionada herself, it worked out just fine. Zander had taken her to Stubbe’s Ice Cream Parlor. It was, as far as she was concerned, the best one in town. While it wasn’t the fanciest, if one was there for the ice cream, and not to be seen, it was the place to be.
Riss had thought that she would be gazed upon like normal while out with Zander, and had prepared herself for the usual cavalcade of looks that came her way when she went out in public. A human in Cadia was a bit of a rarity, and many normally looked upon her with disdain.
Officially, Cadia was welcome to humans.
But she’d never heard a bigger crock of shit in her life. All too often she’d gone home in tears because of the casual bigotry directed her way. Many shifters were either indifferent, or even polite to her. But those that weren’t could be very vicious. Growing up in Cadia had given her a very tough skin, but even then, the barbs seemed to penetrate it.
Not tonight though. Not while she was on the arm of Zander. Shifters who would normally have looked down on her, or even outright sneered, nodded at the pair respectfully, or greeted them with warm smiles and handshakes.
There were plenty for whom the courtesies were not faked. But even those were friendlier than they would have been to her alone. Zander it seemed, was a bit of a big deal, more well-known than she had thought. By a large margin, she noted as yet another shifter walked by, dipping their head respectfully.
It wasn’t fair, because most of it was directed at her date—yes, she’d accepted that for the night at least, he was her date, not anyone else’s—but she didn’t care. All that mattered to her was that nobody was hissing at her, staring her down, or otherwise making her feel like she shouldn’t even exist.
“What is it?” Zander asked as he set his empty cup down, having finished the last of his ice cream with a flourish.
“I’m sorry?” she said, shaking her head slightly and focusing across the picnic table in the middle of the city park where they’d settled down to eat their treats.
“You had a little smile on your face while you stared off into nowhere. Something has you happy,” he said.
You.
But she couldn’t say that. Not yet at least. Riss was bold, and for the most part considered herself to be a strong woman. That was still a little too forward, even for her, however. Maybe after several more dates, when it would actually be appropriate for them to say such things. But not yet.
Before she could speak up, however, lightning lit up the sky, and a crack of thunder rolled over them almost immediately.
Seconds later, the first thick raindrops began to pelt them with cold water.
“Time to go!” he said with a laugh as they rose from the table simultaneously.
“Agreed!” she said with a giggle.
They deposited their refuse in the garbage and began to walk swiftly across the park, toward her house. It was perhaps a ten-minute walk at a casual pace. At their accelerated rate, she figured no more than five to seven minutes.
“The rain isn’t going to hold off,” Zander pronounced, at the exact same time she came to that conclusion.
“Nope, we’re going to get—”
The skies opened up and a torrent of water washed down the street and drenched them.
“Soaked,” she finished, her clothes sticking to her body, wrapping the light material around her curves.
“We can move swifter this way,” he said, and without waiting for her permission, Zander scooped her up into his arms.
Then he began to run.
“Holy shit!” she exclaimed as the buildings began to fly by. “Don’t wipe out in the water!”
“I will be fine,” he assured her, his arms not even wavering as he held her tight to his chest, helping absorb some of her motion from the bouncing.
It had been a long, long time since Riss had felt so small in someone’s arms as he held her aloft like she were nothing more than a feather. It…stirred something in her, a basic instinct, that she’d not known was a part of her.
She liked feeling helpless in his arms.
Well that’s a bit of a surprise. File that one away for later Riss, it might just come in handy.
Within minutes, they were at the foot of the stairs to her apartment. Zander set her down, and they climbed the stairs together, with her leading the way. She let her hips sway a little more than normal as she ascended, a wicked grin spreading over her face.
She reached the top and paused, just before reaching the overhang of her porch roof as a hand landed on her shoulder. The raindrops slowed as she turned, until they seemed to stand practically still in the air, frozen in time like everything else, except her and Zander.
Zander Pierce. Dragon shifter extraordinaire.
He stepped in close to her as she turned around. The hand that had been on her shoulder went to her face, and pulled her up onto her tiptoes as he bent down to her. He kissed her fully, without any more words, without anything. He simply pressed his lips to hers, the searing touch of them blasting away the chill the rain had been sinking into her bones, banishing it with a gust of warm air that seemed to heat the very marrow within.
Her own hands rose automatically. She pushed her fingers through his sandy-brown hair, the wet locks draping over her skin. Tightening her grip, she pulled him back to her as he made to part, letting him know he should continue, not stop. There would be time for air later.
Hungrily he parted her lips, exploring her mouth as they fenced back and forth, bodies soaked by rain yet pressed firmly together.
Hot desert breezes swam through her system as their kiss went on, and on. Riss felt her knees tremble, until one of Zander’s hands wrapped around the small of her back and held her up, so that she could once more focus on him.
Other things were happening in her body though, as they prepared for what would happen next.
If.
If it happened next.
Oh no, it was going to. If he made the moves, Riss knew she wouldn’t be able to say no. She wanted him too badly.
Then abruptly Zander was gone, his lips receding from hers as he stood upright, a look of confusion and something that closely resembled panic flashing through his eyes.
“I am sorry, Riss.” A shake of his massive head sent water flying everywhere. “I should not have been so blunt. Thank you for the wonderful evening,” he said, bringing one of her hands to his mouth, so he could kiss the back of it, sending heat surging up her arm once more.
A door slammed nearby.
And then, just like that, he was gone. He didn’t descend the stairs, but instead Zander hurled himself from them as she watched, clearing the story in a single bound
. He didn’t pause when he landed, but took off into the rain, his brand new suit flapping dejectedly behind him, just as soaked as her work clothes.
“What the hell just happened?” she said, standing out in the downpour for another handful of seconds, her lips still tingling from his kiss.
And wow, could he kiss. It was soft and tender, yet hard and passionate. Chaste and proper, and horny and aroused. Just the right tongue, without too much saliva. Her entire body was standing at the ready from that one kiss. Her nipples were hard nubs, pressing against her bra, and between her legs….
Well, she was going to need another bath tonight, that was for sure.
***
Zander
Annoyed at himself, he darted off into the rain. The suit was probably ruined, but that wasn’t what was bothering him. He could just get another. The cost was negligible in the grand scheme of things.
No, it was deeper than a bit of wasted money. Zander hadn’t meant to kiss Riss. He’d planned to court her, without diving too deep into the relationship. Once he introduced her to his mother and convinced her that Riss was his mate, then he could let her down gently. He liked the little human. She was fun, feisty and strong, all qualities he admired.
That alone was worthy of not hurting her any more than was absolutely necessary.
Or at least, it had been, hadn’t it?
He ran on, until he came to the first public building he could find. It would have what he was looking for. The gates around it were still open, and he proceeded inside. There, off to his left was what he wanted.
A paved walkway led from the cobblestone street up to the front of the building. But it wasn’t the building itself that concerned him. It was where the little pathway that branched off from the entryway led, that he needed. At its end, the walkway widened into a circle well over fifty feet in diameter.
The hardened stones, six inches thick at a minimum, were laid out in no discernable pattern. There were no runes or other markings on it. It was simply a heavy-duty circle formed out of the earth’s natural elements.
Zander moved to the center of it and brought his arms up in front of him, forearms pressed together in front of his face, and closed his eyes. Reaching deep inside his mind, he found the ball of fury contained within, the whirling mass of air that spun inside the spherical containment his mind had erected around it.