by Jodi Redford
She sucked in a lungful of air and prepared to release it in a blistering scream. A flurry of motion came from the left and the next thing she knew, Calvin was hurtled into one of the dumpsters. Pretty damn mind-boggling considering the dumpsters were parked twenty feet away. Blinking, she dragged her focus from Calvin, who was attempting to wobble to his feet and looking as dazed as she felt. She gaped at the man who suddenly filled her line of vision.
Aiden’s jaw was rigid enough to crack open a coconut. “Are you okay?”
“Wha—?” She shook her head, trying to rattle the words free from the roof of her mouth.
“Did that son of a bitch hurt you?” Aiden’s fiery gaze returned to Calvin, spearing him in place.
Jace stepped into view, his expression equally lethal. “Say the word and I’ll pulverize the dick-for-brains myself.”
A hysterical bubble of laughter popped from Dana’s throat. “All right, I give up. Where are the hidden cameras?”
Aiden and Jace gave her a look that was usually reserved for the folks about to be locked in shiny, padded cells. She stepped forward and her shaky knees threatened to topple her in an embarrassing sprawl. Aiden easily caught her, his strong arms a steadying presence. Feeling like a clumsy doofus, she leaned into his rock-solid chest. His fingertips quested along her right arm and stopped at the angry red marks left behind from Calvin’s manhandling.
A low, dangerous growl rumbled from Aiden. “He did hurt you.”
“I’m all right.” She peered into the blazing intensity of Aiden’s stare. “Th-thank you for coming to my rescue.”
“Does this mean you don’t want me to kick the dude’s ass nine ways to Sunday?” Jace sounded more than a little disappointed.
She quickly glanced at Calvin, who was still cowering on top of the garbage piled high in the dumpster. “I think he’s learned his lesson.” Hopefully.
His wary stare panning between Aiden and Jace, Calvin tumbled from the dumpster and sprinted across the parking lot. After some fumbling, he wrenched open the door to his Bonneville, jumped in and sped off. It’d probably take him weeks to rid his car of the stench from last night’s Curry Surprise.
Aiden’s deliciously distracting caresses along her inner arm managed to recapture her attention. The voice of logic intruded, reminding her that she was supposed to be tending tables, not plastered against Aiden’s hot, yummy body. “Why don’t you and Jace come inside? Your dinner is on me.” It was the least she owed them for scaring off Calvin.
Aiden’s palms stopped coasting along her tingling skin. Absurd as it was, the loss of his touch left her with an empty ache. He stepped back, his expression tight. “Let’s cut to the chase. What exactly is waiting for us in there? Assault rifles and snare nets? Or are they going old school with steel swords?”
Dana’s mouth fell open. “Uh…no. Just Raul’s duck sausage gumbo and the prime rib special.”
A disbelieving snort came from Jace. “Yeah, my ass.” He scooted to her other side, locking her in the middle of a Jace and Aiden sandwich.
Oh hell no. I did not just think that.
“You didn’t have to sic them on us, darlin’.” Leaning in close, Jace pressed his mouth against her ear. An exhalation of warm breath fanned her cheek. “Honest, we’re not the big, bad beasties everyone makes us out to be.” His deep baritone dripped with teasing sexiness.
She gaped at Aiden and noticed the nerve twitching in his clenched jaw. For a brief, crazy moment, she swore his fierce countenance had something to do with Jace snuggling against her neck.
Aiden met her gaze and the fire flickering in his eyes mellowed. “Jace is right. We’re not savage beasts.”
Considering how he’d looked ready to bludgeon his own brother a second ago, she found that a tad hard to believe. She pried herself from Jace’s seductive hold and rubbed her arms. The area where Calvin’s fingers dug into her was still tender but she ignored the twinge of pain.
“Look, I have no idea why you think I sicced anyone on you. For Pete’s sake, you just saved me from my lunatic ex. If you don’t want to accept my goodwill offering, fine. You don’t have to make up weird stories about rifles, swords and nets.” Jeez, if this wouldn’t prove to Haddie that fate sent her nothing but whack-a-doodles, nothing would.
Aiden’s arm swept toward the doorway behind them. “There are at least nine Drakoni hunters inside that restaurant. Are you telling me it’s a coincidence?”
“Yes. Because I have no freakin’ idea what a Drakoni hunter is.”
His eyes narrowing, Aiden stalked toward her. “Don’t lie to me. I’m too cranky and tired to deal with it right now.”
She planted her hands on her hips. “You’re cranky and tired? Hell, welcome to my world. I’m willing to bet you don’t have blisters on the back of your heels and a migraine the size of Texas pounding behind your skull.”
“You have a headache?” Concern softened the rugged, masculine planes of Aiden’s face. “Do you want me to get you some aspirin?”
His change of temperament was enough to give her whiplash. “Who are you?”
Aiden and Jace exchanged a glance. Ooh, she was getting beyond ticked with the way they constantly did that. She tapped her foot. “You know, it’s majorly annoying being the only one standing here without a damn idea what’s going on.”
“You truly don’t know who we are?” Aiden demanded. “Or why we’re here?”
She knuckled her temples. “You said something about commissioning a painting, but I—”
“I lied. We never commissioned anything.”
Glaring at Aiden, she dropped her fists. “Oh, so it’s all right for you to go all big bad wolf on me when you suspect I’m lying.”
Jace barked out a laugh. She and Aiden swung a hard look at him and he held up his hands. “Sorry, but wolf? Damn, that’s some funny shit.”
“I don’t have time for this.” Gritting her teeth, she stomped toward the rear entrance. Aiden slipped between her and the doorway. Jeez, he really was freakishly faster than Flash Gordon.
“Dana, we’re Drakoni. Dragons, to use a familiar term.” Cupping her cheek in his large palm, he imprisoned her within his penetrating stare. “And you’re our sacrifice.”
Chapter Five
“Oh yeah, great job of not dropping the bomb on her, dude.”
Aiden tuned out Jace and kept his focus centered on Dana. It hadn’t been his intention to spill everything out in a clumsy mess, but he’d needed to know if she was telling the truth. He harbored no doubts now. No one could fake the stunned expression staring back at him.
“Why?” she whispered.
He stroked her cheek soothingly, the softness of her skin a landscape he longed to explore. Hell, he’d give his left nut to peel away the layers of her clothing and lick her from head to toe, lavishing extra attention to all those delicious erogenous zones in the middle. “You mean why are you our sacrifice?”
“No. I mean why couldn’t you have been normal? God, it would have been a nice change of pace.”
Her grumpy tone prodded a smile from him. “I know this is all hard to digest, much less believe, but I swear to you it’s the truth.” A pointed cough intruded from the doorway behind them. Aiden reluctantly released Dana and turned to find a petite brunette dressed in tan corduroys and a festive, autumn-themed sweater.
“Don’t mind me. I was just wondering where my niece had gotten herself to. Now that I see, I don’t blame her for ignoring her customers.”
Dana groaned. “Sorry, Emmaline, I’m heading there now.”
Before he could stop her, Dana rushed past her aunt and into the restaurant. He met Emmaline’s fixed stare and knew he wasn’t getting out of there without an explanation for why he’d been caught red-handed groping her niece. “What you just walked in on, I swear it wasn’t—”
“Relax, Dana’s a big girl. I have no say in her personal life anymore.” Emmaline reached out and patted his arm. “Now why don’t you come inside so I can buy you a beer and p
roperly grill you?”
Jace poked his head around the doorway. “Did someone mention beer?”
Emmaline’s eyes doubled in size. “I didn’t realize…” Her face suddenly flamed scarlet and she chuckled. “The dating scene has certainly changed since I was young and adventurous. Well, I suppose I’ll have to foot the bill for a couple of beers, won’t I?”
Grinning, Jace stepped inside the hall. Aiden butted his elbow against his brother, blocking him from venturing too far beyond the entryway. “Aren’t you forgetting the trouble waiting for us in there?”
Jace’s shoulders slumped. “Ah shit. And here I was looking forward to that beer.”
“Trouble?” Emmaline’s eyebrows slashed into a V. “Who’s giving you boys trouble? I won’t put up with any of that nonsense in my restaurant.”
The fury riding her face proved she meant it. So why the hell did she stock glasses with the Drakoni hunter emblem on them? Or allow the vile hunters to patronize her bar?
There was only one way to find out. He just hoped to hell he wasn’t about to throw himself on a live grenade in the process. “Those people in the bar—the hunters—are you one of them?”
This time, Emmaline’s eyes tripled in size. “Lord no. And how do you know about them?” Her lips pinched tight. “You’re not one, are you? I’ve tried my damnedest keeping Dana away from that scene. I’d prefer you didn’t drag her into any of it.”
The idea of him being a Drakoni hunter was enough to make Aiden bust a rib laughing. Clutching his side, he wiped his watering eyes. “Uh, no. I’m definitely not one of them.”
Emmaline gave a brisk nod. “Good. Because they’re crazy as all get out. I should know. My brother used to be one.”
That information immediately sobered Aiden. He braced a hand against the wall, trepidation coiling like a snake in the pit of his gut. “Your brother…he isn’t Dana’s father, is he?” Let her say no. Please God, let her say—
“Yes.”
Her answer punched Aiden squarely in the solar plexus.
“Holy fu—” Jace stopped himself before finishing the obscenity.
Emmaline tossed a quick look over her shoulder before shuffling closer. “I’d appreciate you boys not repeating any of this to Dana. The poor girl’s been through enough as it is. She doesn’t need to have any taint on her father’s memory to add to her hardship.”
Aiden frowned. “Wait, are you saying Dana’s father is deceased?”
“Twelve years now. A heart attack took him shortly after Dana turned fifteen. Seeing how her mother died in childbirth, I’m the only real family that girl’s got left anymore.” Emmaline readjusted her tortoise-frame glasses. “Didn’t Dana fill you in on any of this stuff?”
“Ah…”
Emmaline held up a hand. “Say no more. My niece can be mule-headedly close-lipped at times.”
Confusion instantly morphed into suspicion as Aiden processed the information Emmaline just provided. None of it had been included in the contract.
Why?
Sure, he and Jace were the first Drakoni called upon to honor a contract in the last two hundred years, and the council had relied on ancient texts to draw up the blasted thing. But even those old relics had documented every personal detail of the parties involved, right down to whether the sacrifice preferred their coffee black or with cream. In an age where anything could be dug up through the internet, discovering the chosen sacrifice came from a family of slayers should have been easy enough for the council to find.
Unless they—or more likely someone—had uncovered Dana’s background and decided to keep the information to themselves in hopes of he and Jace walking into an ambush.
Aiden relaxed his fist against the wall. The last thing he needed was to forget where he was and take his frustration out on the interior of Emmaline’s restaurant. “I get that you couldn’t do much about Dana’s father being a hunter, but why in God’s name are a bunch of them sitting around in your bar? Drinking from glasses that feature their emblem?”
Emmaline huffed out a sigh. “Leo, my bartender, sprang those glasses on me as a surprise gift when I remodeled this place. The sweet man was so excited, I couldn’t tell him no.”
“Sweet man?” Jace snorted. “Hate to break it to you, but sweet and hunter don’t belong in the same sentence.”
“Now wait a minute.” Emmaline slammed her hands on her hips in a way that instantly reminded Aiden of Dana. “Just because most of them are nuttier than a Snickers bar doesn’t mean they aren’t decent folk.”
Jace mimicked Emmaline’s posture. “Show me one hunter who doesn’t deserve a fireball aimed at their ass.” If the threat weren’t damning enough, the reptilian shift in Jace’s eyes sealed the deal.
Aiden’s groan didn’t quite muffle Emmaline’s gasp.
“You’re a…a…” Emmaline tottered, her pupils rolling up to reveal the whites of her eyes. Aiden lunged to catch her before she took a header onto the tiled floor.
“I don’t know what’s taking the kitchen so long today.” Plastering on an apologetic smile, Dana plunked a fresh iced tea in front of Jen. “Let me go see what’s up with Raul. Maybe he got a run in his fishnets or something.”
Wiping her damp fingers on the hem of her polo, she hustled toward the rear hallway. She rounded the corner in time to see Aiden dragging a limp Emmaline through an opened doorway. Breaking into a run, Dana barreled down the corridor and skidded into her aunt’s small office. Her heart thundering, she gaped at Aiden and Jace while they gently settled Emmaline onto the raggedy tweed loveseat wedged in the corner. “What happened?”
Aiden grunted. “My dumbass brother showed your aunt his inner beastie.”
Dana glared at Jace. “That better not be code for you waving your Johnson.”
Jace sputtered a laugh. “No.”
A low groan floated from Emmaline and her eyelashes fluttered. Dana rushed to the sofa. She dropped to her knees on the cushion, prompting the broken spring in the frame to give an indignant woongg. Emmaline gave her a blank stare. “I think I fainted. How quaint and embarrassing.”
Relieved almost to tears that her aunt was apparently okay, Dana grinned. “You always were a bit of a drama queen.”
“No, hon. You have me confused with Raul.” Emmaline shifted her head and yelped when she spotted Aiden and Jace. Her face went whiter than Raul’s homemade Alfredo sauce.
Dana shot Jace a fierce look. “Are you certain you didn’t show her your dick?” A hum of warning came from her aunt and Dana rolled her eyes. “Sorry, I mean penis.”
Emmaline struggled to the edge of the cushion. “Don’t antagonize them. Dragons have a fiery temper.”
“Oh my God. I can’t believe you guys told her that kooky story!” Dana jumped up and slashed her hand in the direction of the door. “Get out. Now.”
Emmaline tugged the hem of Dana’s polo shirt. “Hon, fireballs. That’s all I’m saying.”
One corner of Aiden’s mouth tipped upward. “Don’t worry. We have no intention of flambéing your niece.”
“Arrgh. Would you stop it? And you…” Dana shook a finger at Emmaline. “Don’t encourage their lunacy.”
“Sweetheart, listen to me.” Emmaline grabbed Dana’s extended hand and tugged her onto the loveseat. “They really are dragons. Drakoni. I saw it with my own eyes.” She sent a pleading look toward Aiden and Jace. “Show her.”
Both men stood stubbornly mute.
“Oh no you don’t.” Displaying her typical spunk, Emmaline pushed onto her feet and stormed toward the brothers, her orthopedic sneakers squeaking. The crown of her permed hair barely reached the middle of Jace’s broad chest. The huge discrepancy in their sizes didn’t stop her from yapping at him like an enraged Pekinese. “You’re not getting away with making me look like a blabbering fool. I’m giving you two seconds to flash her some lizard eyes or I’m telling those hunters out there exactly what you are.”
Aiden’s nostrils flared. “You wouldn’t.�
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Crossing her arms over her chest, Emmaline tapped a foot. “Try me.”
“Damn it.” Aiden plowed his fingers through his hair, leaving it in messy spikes. “We didn’t want to throw everything at Dana before she’s ready.”
“Ah, screw it.” Jace stalked toward the sofa and leaned over Dana. He blinked and his blue irises glimmered, shifting into brilliant amber. Quicker than she could fathom it, his pupils elongated into distinctively reptilian-like slits.
Her chin plummeting, Dana slumped, banging her head on the loveseat’s tall back. Jace turned to face Emmaline. “Happy now?”
“Wh-what was that?” Wincing at the screechiness of her voice, Dana scrambled from the cushions and whirled in front of Jace. His eyes had returned to normal. For a brief moment, she wondered if she’d imagined the whole thing. No, that didn’t make sense. She wasn’t prone to hallucinations. Okay, there’d been that freaky incident involving cold medicine and a talking Ficus tree, but that was a long time ago.
“It was a brief glimpse of my Drakoni form. I’d have shown you more, but I didn’t want to scare you. Not to mention your aunt would have been pissed if I tore through her roof.”
Emmaline sniffed. “You can bet your cute dragon buns on that.”
Dana sank onto the arm of the loveseat and scrubbed a hand across her face. “You know you guys are only supposed to exist in fairy tales and low budget sci-fi movies, right?”
Aiden’s dark, penetrating gaze ensnared her. “And your paintings. Let’s not forget those.”
His husky voice provoked unbidden images of her fantasy dragon—the decadent beast that starred in her most bizarre and X-rated dreams. The same beast that ultimately earned a depiction in her most erotic creation. Heat spiraled from the core of her sex all the way to her nipples. Just thinking about her nocturnal dragon almost made her orgasm. Jeez, thank God she didn’t. How embarrassing would that have been? “Let’s pretend for a second that my head isn’t ready to explode. Mind explaining how you’re able to walk around in a man suit?”
Aiden’s eyebrows winged upward. “Man suit? Interesting term. I’ll have to remember it.” His expansive shoulders hitched in the faintest shrug. “The abridged version is we’re shifters. Our human form was built into our genetic code to enable us to blend in with society.”