Dragon His Heels: Bad Alpha Dads

by Tami Lund

Why is the colony cursed?

  Damn good question. Wait, no, it wasn’t. He didn’t care.

  Yes, you do.

  “Shut up.”

  “I didn’t say anything,” Ruby said.

  “Sorry, kid. Talking to my dragon. He’s kind of an asshole sometimes.”

  The dragon snorted, which reminded him of Talia. Damn it.

  “You aren’t supposed to use that word around kids,” Ruby announced.

  He gritted his teeth. “Talia tell you that?”

  She shook her head, pigtails swinging back and forth. “My nanny did.”

  He glanced down at the beacon of innocence at his side. “You had a nanny?” Guess things weren’t all that bad in the Rojo colony.

  Nodding, she said, “Her name was Kimberly. Whenever the adult dragons wanted to party, they took us to Kimberly and she kept all the kids until they returned.”

  Party. Code, undoubtedly, for getting high. That colony was bad news. A couple years before he’d become reeve, Gabe took a trip down to New Orleans for Mardi Gras and had run into a group of Rojo dragons. He’d gotten into a fight with one of the guys, a punk who was probably his same age. He’d soundly beaten the guy, even without the assistance of his fellow dragons who had been on the trip with him. It hadn’t helped that Gabe had done it in front of the guy’s brethren either. In truth, Gabe and his buddies had been outnumbered, but that dragon’s blood drug was some fucked up shit, and the Rojos with the guy had been too stoned to be of any use.

  “But then Kimberly started going out with the adults, and we had to take care of ourselves,” Ruby added.

  Halfway to the fire pit, Gabe stopped and turned to face his daughter. “You took care of yourselves?”

  She nodded.

  “For how long?”

  She looked up at the darkening sky. “Sometimes just one night. Sometimes more.”

  Holy fuck. “What did you do?” Gabe’s parents had abandoned him when he was a toddler and then Gabe had been passed from household to household to household in the colony, had probably been raised by half the families he now lorded over, but at least there’d been someone.

  “The older kids fed the babies and changed their diapers. Kids my age ate a lot of cereal.”

  Holding the steaks with his left hand, he crouched in front of her so they were eye level. “Never again,” he said. “No matter what happens, I will never let you go back to that place. Do you understand me?”

  She nodded. He pretended to spit on his hand and then held it out for her to shake. She giggled and slid her tiny hand into his. He gave it a squeeze and pumped twice.

  “Okay, our fates are sealed now. You are officially a Zilarra dragon. I mean, you were already because you’re my daughter, but the Rojos could have claimed you, if they’d wanted to, since you were living in their colony. But not anymore. We should probably thank Talia for figuring out where you were and rescuing you.”

  “It’s my pleasure,” Talia said from behind him, and he whipped around fast enough to see her swipe a tear from under her eye.

  He rolled his. “Quit being a sap.”

  She chuckled and waved at the platter of steaks. “Are you going to cook those any time soon?”

  He straightened and grabbed Ruby’s hand. “Yep.” And then he led her to the fire pit.

  Using the grilling fork he’d tossed onto the cookie sheet, he speared each steak and laid them out on the grates over the gently simmering white coals left over from when he’d crisped the potato chips earlier.

  It probably hadn’t been all that long since the fire pit was last used. During the summer months, the colony tended to spend a lot of evenings gathered around the flames, drinking, eating, laughing, chatting, enjoying the companionship only a dragon colony provided. Inevitably, as the night sky darkened, groups would break off, some to go fly, while couples would slip away to do what couples did in the dark.

  What he’d like to do with Talia.

  No, no he wouldn’t.

  Yes, you would.

  “Shut up.”

  Ruby glanced up at him. “Your dragon again?”

  He nodded and Talia arched her brows. “Told you he was a real a—jerk.” After a brief pause, he said. “Okay, let’s do this.” He handed the fork to Ruby. “I’m going to shift and blow fire on the steaks. It’ll only be for a minute. When I’m done, you gotta flip them over. And then I’ll blow fire on the other side. And then they’ll be done. Got it?”

  She nodded.

  “Can you do that? Can you flip them?”

  She shrugged. Talia stepped up behind her. “I’m here if she needs help.”

  At least his PR manager wasn’t chastising him for teaching Ruby to get so close to a fire. Which was surprising considering he’d almost fried her yesterday. But that had been an accident. Apparently, Talia realized that and was willing to give him a second chance. Hopefully he wouldn’t blow it.

  He didn’t. And the steaks were perfect, charred on the outside and pink on the inside. “Exactly the way they should be,” he declared after the first bite. “Damn, these are good.”

  Ruby shoved three pieces into her mouth and mumbled, “Better than hot dogs.”

  Gabe laughed. Yeah, this was fun.

  ***

  After dinner, Talia gave Ruby a bath and then Gabe tucked her into bed. As he flipped off the light, he considered slipping down the hall to his bedroom, to hide from any potential temptation Talia might present, except she was waiting outside the door when he tiptoed out of Ruby’s room.

  “You did great,” she whispered.

  “Yeah?” He didn’t normally care what anybody thought of him. He probably still didn’t—except Talia.

  “And she clearly adores you already.”

  He stuffed his hands into the front pockets of his shorts. “Yeah, well, you deserve a fair share of the credit.”

  She shook her head. “All I did was bring her here.”

  “How did you find her, anyway? How did you even know to look?”

  She glanced up and down the hall and then said, “I think I’m going to head to my bedroom, read a book, go to bed early. We should go see the headmistress first thing in the morning.”

  Well, if that wasn’t evading, Gabe would eat his own tail.

  “Nope,” he said, grasping her elbow and guiding her toward the stairs. “We’re going to have a little chat first.” His dragon roared his approval, so Gabe continued to hold her arm even though it wasn’t necessary. Although there was obvious reluctance in her stance, she headed downstairs with him.

  Once they were in the foyer, he waved at the wet bar built into a nook in the wall. “Drink?”

  “Definitely.”

  He loaded two lowball glasses with ice and poured whiskey into each and then handed one to her. There was a tremor in her hand as she lifted the rim to her lips. Talia wasn’t afraid of a damn thing, yet mentioning her discovery of Ruby had this effect on her?

  “So. Ruby. You. Figuring out where she was. Who she was.”

  She ran her hand through her hair, inadvertently tugging strands out of the braid. “I, um, know her mother.”

  “You hang out with strippers?” Well, wasn’t this a fascinating new discovery.

  “No,” she snapped. “Jasmine isn’t a stripper.”

  He took a slug, let the alcohol burn its way down into his stomach. “Let me see if I have this straight. You know Ruby’s mother. Who isn’t a stripper. Who I happened to have banged approximately six years ago. And you knew it, obviously, or else how would you know the kid she had was mine?”

  Talia stood still in the middle of the foyer while he walked in slow circles around her, a predator toying with his prey. It was incredibly arousing. He rarely felt dominant around her. She was tough as nails, bossed him around all the freaking time. If he weren’t so damn curious about her connection to Ruby’s mother, he’d be running away with his tail between his legs.

  Because seducing her was a bad, bad idea. He didn’t wan
t a gods’ damned mate.

  “Actually, I didn’t even know she’d had a baby until yesterday.”

  He passed in front of her again and arched his brow, taking a drink without saying a word. Her chest rose and fell with her deep breath, pressing her breasts against her shirt. The tops swelled over the scalloped edge of the neckline. His dragon craned its neck, encouraging Gabe to take a taste, to lean forward and flick out his tongue…

  He resumed walking in circles again.

  “She called yesterday, out of the blue,” Talia finally said. “I haven’t talked to her since she had Ruby. She left the colony, must have been shortly after you and she… We lost touch. And then she called and said she was in trouble. Told me about Ruby. Begged me to come get her.” Talia waved her hand at the staircase. “So I did.”

  “And where is her mother now?” He should care, should want to see the woman, the mother of his child. But that would complicate things further than they already were. The Elders might expect him to do right by her, and his dragon was vehemently against the idea because she wasn’t Talia.

  And he was vehemently against the idea even with Talia.

  The woman who apparently saved his child from some unknown fate stared into her drink. Was she trying to concoct a believable story or working up the courage to tell him the truth?

  “She was in bad shape,” Talia finally said, her voice pitched low. “Overdosed.” She closed her eyes; whatever she’d seen, it had shaken her. Gabe fought the urge to gather her into his arms, to offer comfort.

  “When I found them, they were in this horrible, old, decrepit building. A drug house. In this room at the end of a hall strewn with open garbage bags. Bugs and maggots everywhere.” She shuddered. “There wasn’t any furniture in the room. Not a rug, nothing. Jasmine was lying on the cement floor, unconscious, and Ruby was kneeling next to her, trying to rouse her.”

  Fuck it. He stopped circling her and pulled her into his arms. He needed the embrace too, and he was hearing the story secondhand.

  She stiffened for a moment and then melted against him, resting her head on his chest. Damp warmth spread on his shirt. It took him a minute to realize his badass PR manager was crying.

  Well, hell. While he stroked her hair, he lowered his face and breathed in the scent of the strands. Peaches. His dragon was doing fucking flips, but all Gabe wanted to do was hold her.

  Okay, maybe not all, but this was definitely not the time. And, besides, no matter how good she smelled, he did not want to mate with her.

  “I’m so sorry, baby.” The term of endearment slid off his tongue, as natural as walking or swimming or flying. “But at least Ruby’s safe now. We’ll make sure she never experiences anything half that bad for the rest of her damn life. Okay?”

  She nodded and sniffled, and when she tried to twist out of his grip, he let her go so she could walk over to the wet bar and grab a cocktail napkin to mop her face.

  “Sorry. I’m not usually so emotional. But seeing that… And I haven’t really dealt with it until now. I’ve been too busy trying to make sure Ruby is adjusting to her new life.”

  “And taking care of my sorry ass.” Crap. Now he felt like a heel for expecting her to do something as inconsequential as make sure his image wasn’t too tarnished. And who really cared, anyway? He was the reeve; the colony had to deal with his indiscretions, whether they approved or not. They didn’t have a choice. A dragon colony was a dictatorship, if one wanted to get technical about it. Sure, he let the Elders basically make and enforce the rules, but he had final say. About everything.

  Maybe he should have Talia manage something more important than his stupid personal life. Especially since, if he let her have her way, he wouldn’t have one for the foreseeable future.

  “If I didn’t want do to it, trust me, I wouldn’t.” She was right. Apparently he didn’t have final say over everything after all.

  “Let’s go fly.” Holy cripes, did those words come out of his mouth? He did not want a flying partner. He did not—

  “That’s a good idea. I always feel better, more free when I’m in the air, spreading my wings.”

  Great. Exactly what he wanted her to say.

  Not.

  Chapter 6

  Talia had never pressed to find out why Gave flew alone. Being a reeve, he was surrounded by dragons all the damn time, so flying was probably the only time he could truly be free of the constraints of his responsibilities, even if it wasn’t anything more than a brief respite.

  So yeah, she was blown away when he suggested they fly together. Especially after what happened last time. And they hadn’t technically flown together then. What would it be like, both of them in the air, drifting on the wind, darting in and out of the clouds? She shivered from the anticipation as he led her out onto the back porch; her momentary emotional breakdown shifted into the background, making way for more positive experiences.

  “Do you think Ruby will be okay?” he asked, pausing after leaping off the porch into the grass. He was already barefoot.

  “Was she asleep when you left her?”

  He nodded.

  “She’ll be fine. We won’t be gone long, right?”

  He glanced at the sky. It was clear, save a sliver of moon, shining like a beacon, practically begging them to join it up there. “We’ll be back before she wakes,” he said, and then he took off at a run. Magic flared, shimmering the atmosphere as it raced down his back, changing him from man to dragon in a matter of seconds. And then he was in the air, soaring toward the moon.

  Talia kicked off her shoes and followed, breaking into a run herself before shifting. Her dragon roared, thrilled to be set free. The wings that sprouted from her shoulders beat furiously, taking her higher and higher, chasing Gabe’s trail as he rose and fell and flew in circles, clearly enjoying his momentary freedom.

  I love it up here.

  That was Gabe’s voice, in her head. It drifted across her senses like she was wearing headphones. She glanced up sharply to find him hovering a few feet away, looking at her as expectantly as a dragon could.

  Yes, I can hear you, she admitted in her thoughts.

  It freaked me out at first, but you know what, this is kind of cool.

  Sure.

  You don’t sound convinced.

  It takes some getting used to, that’s all.

  And in truth, she wanted to know why. Unlike him, she flew with other dragons all the damn time. Never once had any of them ever been inside her head.

  He flew in circles and then dipped low, soaring underneath her and coming up behind her. Before she could turn around, he nipped at her hind leg.

  Hey! She belched a ball of fire, a warning.

  He laughed. Well, he laughed in her head. Dragons couldn’t actually laugh out loud.

  I like you like this, she thought.

  He hovered in front of her and blew a circle of smoke that enlarged as it drifted closer, until it floated past her body, seemingly engulfing her for a moment before dissipating. She shivered like he’d caressed her.

  Oh yeah? What’s different?

  Besides the obvious? Scaly skin, slits for eyes, wings?

  So you find dragons attractive?

  I didn’t say I was attracted to you.

  Hopefully there wasn’t too much indignation in her thoughts.

  Uh-huh. So, what’s different then?

  She lazily dropped low and then beat her wings to move back up to eye level with him again. You’re more you up here.

  He snorted, fire bursting from his nostrils and nearly singing hers. She let out a yelp and flew backwards a couple feet.

  You are, she thought when she was a safe distance away. You’re more…comfortable.

  I’ve never invited anyone to fly with me before.

  I know.

  He glanced at the ground. We should probably head back.

  She liked him a little bit more for the fact he was obviously worried about Ruby. Nodding, she aimed her snout toward th
e backyard and nosedived. She felt the whoosh of air when he flew past her, clearly determined to win this race she didn’t even know they were flying.

  As soon as she landed, shifted into human form, and magicked her clothes back onto her body, he grabbed her chin, held it while glaring down at her.

  “I need to get laid.” His voice was practically a growl, like the dragon was still in control.

  “O-okay.” With me? No, that wasn’t what she wanted. Was it?

  “I can’t take much more of this, and damn it, I’m not going to sleep with you.”

  “Uhhh…” What the hell was he talking about? She hadn’t asked, hadn’t given him any inclination she might be interested. Their relationship was strictly business, no matter what her dragon wanted.

  “So I’m going out. I will be discreet. And I will be home before she wakes. But I gotta get out of here.”

  He didn’t move. Just kept standing there, his fingers holding her chin, his eyes blazing into hers, still dragon-like, so hot she swore her skin was sizzling. And then he leaned forward and kissed her, pressed his lips against her. It was hard, almost like he was trying to punish her, or maybe give her a warning.

  But what the hell had she done?

  ***

  She heard his truck pull into the driveway, the sound of the door slamming, his shoes crunching on gravel as he made his way up to the house. The door creaked open and then closed, more gently than she expected. Next, he climbed the stairs.

  And then there was silence. A long, long bout of silence. She tried to hold her breath as she fancied he was debating whether to approach her bedroom door or his own. If he entered her room, he’d find her in bed, lying under the thin quilt, dressed in a camisole and pajama shorts. Her breasts grew heavy, her nipples pebbled, and her thighs became damp as she hoped for something she shouldn’t want. Didn’t want.

  He’d just come from tomcatting around. He’d probably picked up some skanky woman who might be only half a notch above Jasmine on the scale of bad choices in life. Hopefully, he used a condom this time.

  This was her reeve she was having erotic thoughts about. Yes, reeves were supposed to take mates and, yes, the Elders had chosen Gabe expecting he would do just that, but she knew him, and for some reason, that was the very last thing he had any interest in doing.