They hadn’t made it from the bed yet, but after another round of soul-satisfying sex, Bronwyn had demanded he go downstairs and get her phone. He rejoined her in bed, marveling at how beautiful she was naked. Watching and trying not to stare like a love-sick puppy, he took in her every move as she found a comfortable position to read her phone notifications.
Settled in a comfortable spot and looking at the face of the device, the light from the phone screen cast an eerie glow over her visage. Even with the phone’s lighting, her natural beauty overwhelmed him. He still couldn’t believe that she’d become his mate.
Maintaining silence to allow her time to finish up checking her messages he almost burst out laughing when embarrassment swept in. In the silence of their bedroom, the sound of her stomach growling was so loud and long, it caused Mac to stop and stare in appreciative amazement.
He finally did burst out laughing, falling over.
To his enjoyment, she followed.
“You’re a mean old Dragon,” she said, still laughing and licking her tongue out at him.
Caught up in the bliss of the moment, he wanted to give her the fucking world. If he could, he’d lasso the rings of Saturn and present them to her on a platter. For now, he was failing at the simple stuff. He had to make sure his mate ate. Although it felt great, they couldn’t subside on love alone.
Holding the Boy Scout honor sign, he assured her, “I promise on my family honor I’m going to feed you. I’m not a brute.”
“I know you will, baby. Just make sure it’s great food, and I’ll be meek and mild. Feed me crap and watch out.”
“Or what?”
She thought about it. “I guess not much, seeing as I just burned more calories being chased around this bed with you than I do in a week.”
“Yep, I told you, you’ll have to learn how to keep up. When you get done with that thing,” he said, pointing to the phone that was occupying a lot of her attention, “I could go for another quickie. You in?” He waggled his eyebrows and reached for the absurdly wobbly bun of hair that wobbled around as she moved.
“Hey!” she swatted his hand away. Boy, her reflexes were fast. “Venus Flytrap, remember? Feed me, Seymour, feed me!” She burst out into another round of giggles he loved to hear.
“Oh yeah, food. Must remember to feed mate if I want mate to stay nice to me.” Her laugh was a burst of joy as she made more faces and pointed to her tummy. Ideas of what to feed her started coming fast and furious. He wasn’t sure what was thawed out, but he’d get whatever she wanted to eat. “Do you want to go out for food, me to order in, or I cook? I can grill some steaks, shrimp, and chicken and have Danny bring by some fixings.”
“Huh? You cook too? Come to think of it, I haven’t eaten since…”
“Since too long, based on that hangry growl your stomach made. As for cooking, yes, I’m able to function and take care of myself. My parents were actually good at parenting. They made sure we’d survive this big, bad, world before kicking us out of the nest.”
“A Dragon in the big, bad, world, right.” The wink she gave him made his dick twitch.
Man, his thirst for her was growing faster than he’d thought. Mac adjusted to put his stiffening cock between his legs.
“Too late, I already saw. Let me finish up here, and then we can see about doing something about that,” she said, not looking up from the screen of the phone.
“What are you talking about?” He tried to play innocent.
“I’m talking about my mate’s thirst rising. Yes, your Dragon imparted a lot to me. Come here.” She smiled and returned her attention to the cell phone. Coming close to scoop her up into his lap, he saw that the screen showed she still had sixty-eight messages.
“How in the world did you manage to get so many messages so fast? I have companies around the world and don’t have that many.”
“You have a staff, I have me. You get way more than I do. Your staff makes sure you only see a small fraction of them. Besides, most of them are from one client freaking out over his girlfriend. It’s no big deal.”
Curiosity and something about this client had him pulling her over into his lap.
“Tell me more about this guy.”
“Why, I sense your hackles are up about something.”
“Wow you're amazing, you know that?”
“Yes, that’s why you picked me.”
“No, we picked each other. My Dragon was just clever enough to reach you sooner than later.”
“That’s so sweet and will get you everything, as soon as I clear out these messages.”
“So, what’s the guy’s deal?” For some reason, Mac couldn’t let it go.
“Oh, nothing much. The usual. He wants me to come by and help him get his girlfriend to go home.”
“Are you kidding me? Please tell me you haven’t done that for him?”
“Well?”
“Bronwyn, that’s going way past your boundaries. Are you a concierge or a third wheel in his fucked-up sense of relationships?” Hearing how strong and fast he’d jumped to this point, even Mac had to admit that he was getting a little too upset about the client. His Dragon was right there with him though. “Hey, I’m sorry. I promise I’m not that guy, getting upset about the least little thing. It’s just something about this guy that I don’t like when it comes to you. Has he ever tried anything with you?”
She looked at him like he had a sparkler coming out of his forehead. “No, he’s great. I don’t usually see him when I do errands.”
“Good. So, what are you going to tell him?” Mac tried to play nonchalant, but she saw right through him.
“I already told him my ankle and foot are broken and that I’ll be unable to provide his normal services for at least the next two weeks. That’s the standard reply I’ve sent up on an email blast to my list of all my clients. I just sent it to him and the others I had on my calendar for the next few days.” Looking over at him with warmth and assurance, she said, “I’m not going to let him guilt me into trying to do anything. Now that I’ve seen the little I have through our joining, life looks different. I’m done jumping through hoops for pennies. Plus, you’re right. I’m done being the girlfriend whisperer.”
“The what?”
“Girlfriend whisperer.”
“Bronwyn, what the hell sort of business are you running? I see why these guys flock to you. You’re like the mother they can pay and not have to spend Sunday dinner with.”
“Hey, that’s mean.”
Not wanting to come on strong about the way she was running her business, he decided to take a pause. “It’s the truth. My love, after we eat and do other things, how about you give me a list of things I can do to help you get through the next two weeks.”
She eyed him with a bit of suspicion. “What about your business? Don’t you have things to do with that?”
“Yes, but I have systems and processes in place.”
“Uh-huh. And, I’m running like a chicken with her head cut off then.”
“No, I didn’t say that.”
“But that’s what you meant.”
“Are we going to fight about this now? If so, let me get some food into you first.”
That must have been enough to make her realize where this was going.
“No, we’re not going to fight. I just don’t like having to face my failings. This is my first company. I’m acutely aware of a lot of things I’ve done that are coming back to bite me in the ass.”
“Have you considered starting over with a new company, using the things you learned from this one?”
“No, this is my baby.”
“An unruly baby that will only allow you and no one else to calm it down. That can’t be good, but hey,” he raised his hands in surrender, “like you said, it’s your company. I’ll be here if you want any help or advice. No matter what, I’m always going to offer my support, whatever you decide to do.”
The phone lit up again. From his vantage point, Mac saw
another client begging for her to please help him with his poker party and then he could allow her two weeks off. Before he could stop himself, he snatched the phone and read the message. Amazingly, she didn’t take the phone back. Taking the opening, he opened up the other text messages coming in. All of them were the same, ignoring her message and asking her to still run just this one errand before taking off. He didn’t have to see his face to know it was red with anger.
That was it.
“Bronwyn, this is unacceptable. You’re a service, not their damned mother.”
“I know, but if I don’t find a way to get these things done, my business and reputation will be toast.”
“No, they won’t, watch.” He started typing out a message and blocking her swinging arms as she tried in vain to retrieve her phone. “Let me finish up, you can read it before pressing send. Deal?”
Finished, he gave back the phone with the reply. As she read it, his mind ran through what they could eat for lunch.
“I like it.” Looking over at him with awe—he loved that—she blew him a kiss and added, “I’m copying…and pressing send to all of them.”
When the smile of successful completion brightened her features, he wanted to add more encouragement. “Doesn’t that feel good? When dealing with clients, you are always in a state or training or reinforcing boundaries. They’ll try you. Be firm, yet kind, and they’ll respect you and what you provide. The more you bend, the more they’ll push you into the floor. My love, you have a great heart. It shows in how much you do and your work, but that heart doesn’t need to be all over the place with your clients.”
Her phone’s face lit up again. He waited until her face screwed up in disbelief. Taking the phone out of her hands again, he read the most disturbing message from the local baseball player named Scott.
Text message:
Look you fat, black bitch, I pay you to do what I ask. Not give me excuses for why you can’t deliver. You’ve got exactly six hours before I come and find you if you don’t deliver on what I’ve told you to do. Don’t do it and I’ll sue your ass so fast and hard you’ll be trying to regroup into the next century.
The guy was sick, twisted, and his ass was Mac’s.
“Baby? Hold up, I’ve got this.” She tried to take the phone out of his hand, but it was too late.
Mac pressed send and the speaker button and waited as the jerk answered.
“Yeah, I thought so,” Scott said, his aggression in full force. “You better get over to my place in the next hour and take care of that bitch. She needs to be gone, the place cleaned and my cleaning hanging in the closet by the time I get there later today. I paid you. Hell, I pay you better than you’ll ever be able to get from any of your other broke-ass wanna-be customers. Without me, you wouldn’t have half the business you have coming your way. You better be glad I put you on with my dudes. Don’t fuck around with me, you owe me bitch,” Scott yelled into the phone.
“If you know what’s good for you, you’ll hang up, erase this number from your caller list and pray I don’t come for you.”
“Who the hell is this?” Scott was breathing hard like he suffered from a case of roid rage.
“This is MacMillan Kelnar, Bronwyn’s mate.
“Her what? She never let on that she had a guy. Where is she? Put her on the phone. My business is with her, not you, you son of a bitch.”
That was the exact opening he’d been looking for.
“Since you’ve invoked my honor to defend my mother, I think it’s time you learned your place and some manners. Take a moment to Google my name plus the board for your ball club. I’ll wait.”
“Look you douche’ I don’t care who in the hell you are. You’re poking your nose where it doesn’t belong. Put her on the phone and stay out of this. This is between her and me. We have a deal, and I expect her to deliver on it. Don’t do it, and I’ll sue.”
Mac looked over to see Bronwyn tearing up. This guy’s ass was his. No one would make his mate cry and get away with it.
“You’ll do nothing of the sort. I’m going to give you one last chance to apologize, hang up and save your ass from destruction.”
“Hah! Dude, you’re so freaking delusional it isn’t funny. Hey Bronwyn, your guy is trying to show off in front of you, but I mean what I say. Get over there now, or I’ll make your life a living hell and destroy you in this town. When I’m done, you won’t be able to hold a cup at a stop light to beg for change.”
“You just threatened my mate.” Mac fought back the acrid taste of nitrous bubbling in his stomach. If he’d been standing in front of him, Scott would have been incinerated to ashes by now. Over the line and too cocky to live, this guy must be clueless that he was going down.
“Mac, no baby, he’s not worth it,” Bronwyn said.
“Bronwyn! I knew you could hear me. I’m not playing with you,” Scott yelled over the phone’s speaker.
“Do not speak to my mate again,” Mac said, leaving the bed to put on clothes.
His Dragon was already homing in on where the guy lived, using his heartbeat signature to locate him. That was another gift he possessed, the ability to locate his prey by their heartbeat over vast distances. Mac held a lot of his traits close to his chest that he didn’t readily reveal. Human and Dragon alike, he was a predator who won. This was more than winning, this was about protecting his mate.
A vision of the guy’s location flashed in his inner eye, giving Mac the exact location where this Scott was. With a little maneuvering to fly above the clouds but out of the way of air traffic, he’d be there in less than ten minutes.
Eyes watched as he rummaged for jeans and a shirt. He could take of leave the shoes. His goal was to dress enough not to offend or break human laws if anyone saw him.
“Bronwyn, you hear me. Speak up, now,” Scott said again.
“That was the last time you spoke to my mate. See you soon, Scott.” Mac disconnected the call.
“Baby, baby,” she said, scrambling to get out of the bed. Bronwyn didn’t walk as well as she thought, favoring that foot in the soft cast. “Hold up, he’s not worth it. Scott’s just talking. Give him time to cool off, and everything will be fine. I’ve just never told him no before.”
Mac said nothing about Scott, placing a kiss on his mate’s forehead. “Going to take care of a few things, is all. Get back in bed. I’ll only be gone an hour at most. Do you think you can wait until I get back to eat? If not, I’ll get Danny to bring over some food and put it in the kitchen.”
“Mac, are you listening to me. I said, stand down. Leave Scott to me. I can take care of this.”
“But you don’t have to. We’re we now. That means he was talking to me as well. Oh, I know he was talking to me when he insulted my mother and threatened my heart’s treasure.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Never you mind. I promise not to kill him, but know that after I’m done, you’ll have your apology and no more arrogant asshole Scott to deal with.”
“Please, don’t do this,” she pleaded, eyes still moist from tears falling.
“Please, do this for me—go back to bed and rest your foot. I still sense low-grade pain. When I get back, I’m doing a healing session with you.” Giving her a quick kiss, he scooped her up and deposited her back on the bed. “Stay put, or your Dragon will be very unhappy.”
He left before she could make another plea that would tear at his heart. Less than a minute and he was out the back of the house and soaring high. Where he lived gave Mac enough time to gain altitude before running the risk of being seen. He was up, flying fast through the clouds. Eyeing a few aircraft overhead, he detoured a moment to hide in a patch of fluffy white clouds. Once clear, he increased his speed, headed north to where Scott, the asshole, lived.
Another seven minutes and he was pressing the guy’s front doorbell. His Dragon senses locked in on where he was inside. It didn’t take long for the door to open with the baseball player holding a metal bat i
n hand. Seeing Scott in person and unguarded it made sense. He knew exactly what Scott was.
Giving him another quick once over, the scent of sweet-smelling prey fear that wafted off the guy told him Scott knew what he was as well. Mac locked in, straightening to a battle stance. Scott knew without a shadow of a doubt the hell his mouth had thrust him into as well. Mac would make this quick. He had an injured mate to get back home to.
“Hello Scott, I’m MacMillan Kelnar. I’m here to finish our conversation.” For added effect, he smiled wide and open allowing his incisors to elongate for the guy’s benefit.
Scott’s eyes grew larger, taking in the site. Mac stood stark still, all six feet seven inches of him, humming with power and ready to pounce.
“Hey man, I was just, you know, blowing off some steam. I didn’t mean no harm, you know what I’m saying?”
Mac remained silent as he extended a hand, grabbed Scott by the collar of his t-shirt and lifted the guy up with ease.
“Let’s take this inside, shall we?” he said, stepping into Scott’s house, not bothering to lower Scott as the back of the fool’s head hit the top of the door sill.
17
Bronwyn
Time slowed down as if in stasis as she waited in bed, too stunned and wound up to move. Mac had left with no shoes on, and she could only hope that he’d changed his mind to go for a walk or run to cool off. As soon as the thought formed, her intuition dinged flooding her with the fact that he took a direct flight path in the middle of the day to take care of Scott. How had everything escalated so fast?
“Oh no, please no.”
To occupy herself with something to do, she thumbed through her messages viewing them differently than before. Mac had a point. Message after message ignored the fact that she had a broken foot, instead of pleading and in some cases demanding she continue to work. A hard truth hit her in the gut. Bronwyn was at fault, not her guys. Had she done better at managing her business and what she would and wouldn’t do, this situation wouldn’t be happening. Because of her inability to run a proper business, Mac might be out there about to commit assault on Scott.
Dragon's Curvy Concierge Page 12