by Julie Wetzel
“Yes,” the man said as he shook his head no.
The waitress pulled her hand back and stared at him in confusion.
“He’s had a long day,” Terra said, breaking into the building tension.
She looked up at her mystery man. Alex. That name fit him well. At the moment, he looked rather pale. Terra turned her attention back to the waitress.
“Could we possibly have someplace to sit down and get some water?”
The question startled the woman back into her job. “Yes. Of course. This way.” She turned and led them deeper into the pub.
Reaching out, Terra laid her hand on Alex’s arm. “Come on.” She drew him into the main room and pushed him after the waitress with a hand on his back.
Alex nodded and went where she directed him.
There weren’t very many people in the pub, but every eye was on them as Terra pushed Alex through the tables. She glanced around at the faces. Hadn’t they ever seen someone in pain before? Or maybe he wasn’t one to accept help. Terra thought back to the way the waitress had stopped before she touched him. Terra rubbed her fingers in the soft material at the small of his back. Could it be the fact that she was touching him? Maybe her dragon man wasn’t the touchy-feely type. Terra looked up at him. That couldn’t be. Her dragon man had never had any qualms about touching her. He seemed to like it. She definitely did.
Seeing where her thoughts were leading, Terra shook her head slightly. There were more important things to think about right now. Like figuring out who her dragon man was. Terra gave her head another soft shake. She had to stop thinking of him as ‘her dragon man’. Now that she knew it, she really needed to think of him using his name. Yes. He’s Alex now.
***
Closing his eyes, Alex trusted Terra’s soft touch to guide him through the pub. He needed a moment to collect himself after the young woman had stirred his memories. A rush of images had overwhelmed him as a mess of things came back to him at once. They jumbled over one another, all demanding to be seen. A hushed conversation in a secluded corner table. The rush of air over wings. The breaking of glass. A sense of dread. The tingle of electricity over scales. Each more important than the last, and each just a ghost of what the full memory should have been.
“Hey.”
Terra’s soft voice and the feel of her hand on his back pulled Alex out of his thoughts. He opened his eyes to look at the booth where the waitress had led them. It was familiar. He had been here. Many times. A flash of memory hit, and he reached out and grabbed onto the tabletop. Terra’s hand gripped him as he swayed on his feet.
“Let me go get you that water.” The young woman leading them turned to hurry off but stopped and looked back. “Or would you rather have the usual?”
The usual? With random memories churning through his brain, Alex couldn’t recall what his usual was. “Please,” he answered. Just trying to think of what he usually got made him want the unknown substance.
“Make it two,” Terra called to the waitress.
The young woman nodded and left.
“Come on.” Terra tried to pull Alex over and put him into one of the bench seats, but he shook his head.
Wrapping his arm around the woman helping him, Alex ushered her into the bench seat ahead of him. “Please sit.”
Terra paused for a moment before sliding into the seat. She scooted over against the wall as he slid into the seat next to her.
Dropping his head to the table, Alex cushioned it on his hands to sort through the images flashing through his head. They raced around so fast that he couldn’t make heads or tails of them. The only thing he could understand was a sense of loss and urgency, but there was no context as to what he had lost or what was so urgent. Alex opened his eyes for a moment as he felt Terra’s fingers start to rub the tension from the back of his neck and shoulders. Closing them again, he relaxed as she worked.
“Are you all right?” she asked softly.
Alex drew in a long breath. The feel of her fingers working into his tight muscles calmed the swirling memories, but not enough for him to recognize any of them. He let the air out slowly before opening his eyes and sitting up. “Not really,” he answered honesty. “But it’s getting better.”
Terra slid her arm over and around his back. She leaned into his side, holding him to her. “We’ll figure it out.”
A soft chuckle slipped out of Alex. Yes, they would figure it out. He finally knew who he was again. Alex. That name fit him much better than the ‘Lex’ the waitress had called him. But even Lex fit him better than Cookie. And if he were lucky, the young woman bringing the drinks would be able to fill in some other missing information.
“Alex!” a deep, male voice called to him.
Alex turned to look at the stout man carrying two mugs in one hand and a leather jacket in the other.
“Michele said you were here.” The man set the two mugs on the table and hooked a chair from another table nearby. He swung it around and plopped down into it backwards. The chair creaked under the man’s weight.
The smell of dragon musk hit Alex, driving a rumble from his chest. Something about the man was very familiar, but the instinct to protect his mate from the new suitor drove him to lean forwards, blocking the man’s view of Terra.
Alex’s protective move raised the man’s eyebrows in surprise.
Pulling back her arm, Terra smacked Alex in the shoulder, grabbing his attention. “Stop being rude,” she scolded him.
Alex twisted to stare at Terra, surprised by her actions. Didn’t she know that he was protecting her? He studied the cross look on her face before closing his eyes to concentrate. No, she didn’t realize he was protecting her. All she saw was him hiding her away from someone new. He had to get himself under control. Struggling with his instincts, Alex leaned back in the booth so the new man could see Terra.
“Sorry about that,” Terra said. “We’ve had a long day.”
Alex listened closely to the warm note in her voice while trying to hold back his instinct to hide her away from the unknown person.
The man laughed. “Don’t worry about it, love. Brooding dragons have a tendency to be a little overprotective. Although, I’m surprised to see this one brooding over anyone.”
Alex cracked his eyes and watched as the man held his hand out to Terra.
“I’m Alister Stewert, but the men call me Brigs.”
“Terra Watson.” Terra reached out and took his hand.
A soft growl rumbled up from Alex’s chest.
Pulling her hand back, Terra shot Alex an offended look.
Alex shook his head slightly and forced the sound to stop. Yes, his dragon was trying to claim her, but he needed to get it under control. She still wasn’t his mate, and this man, whomever he was, wasn’t out to steal her away from him. Humans didn’t understand instincts the same way dragons did, and if he didn’t cool it, he could easily drive a wedge between them.
To settle the irritation riding him, Alex reached over and pulled one of the cups towards him. It was hot, and the soft aroma of flowers drifted up with the steam. Blowing on the frothy top, he sipped at the pale liquid inside. Sweetened milk flavored with tea rolled across his tongue and soothed his frayed nerves. He remembered this drink. It was relaxing and helped to slow his thoughts so he could process them.
Taking the hot mug with him, he leaned back in the booth and rested the cup against his chest, where he could breathe in the pleasant aroma. Alex listened to Terra and Brigs chat as he let things process through his mind. This had been exactly what he needed to get his memory back. This and a little time.
10
Terra stared at Alex for a moment. She vaguely remembered him mentioning that dragons were protective over their mates, but did that mean they were possessive of them, too? She shook the thought away and turned her attention back to the new man. Smiling at Brigs, she ignored Alex as he pulled his cup over to himself. Maybe his drink would chill him out.
“How did you
get a name like Brigs from Alister?”
Brigs dropped the leather jacket on the table and folded his arms over the back of the chair. “It comes from the time I spent in the army.”
“You were in the army?” Terra glanced over the man. He was a touch on the stout side with neatly trimmed, brown hair and a thin mustache. His voice held a hint of an accent to it, but Terra couldn’t place it.
“Aye. But that’s a long story.” Brigs grinned at her and changed the subject. “So how did you end up with a curmudgeon like Alex here?”
“Curmudgeon?” Terra said as she looked at the man in the booth next to her. He had relaxed back on the bench so he was almost lying down. His cup was cradled on his chest and his eyes were closed. If she didn’t know better, she would have sworn he’d fallen asleep. She considered him for a moment. He didn’t seem like a surly person.
Brigs shrugged a bit. “Well, maybe not a complete curmudgeon, but he does tend to be a bit antisocial. It’s been a while since I’ve seen him show up anywhere with a lovely lady by his side, let alone brooding. So how’d you manage to catch his attention?”
She glanced between Brigs and Alex, not sure how to take this news. He didn’t seem very antisocial to her. In fact, he had been great company. Well, for the hours that he’d been awake, at least. She studied him for a moment, trying to see him as Brigs had suggested, but she couldn’t.
“That’s also a long story.” Terra kept her answer vague, unsure how much information she should give Brigs. They had, after all, been chased out of her home at gunpoint.
“I crashed in her backyard,” Alex answered.
Terra stared at him, surprised. “You remember?”
“Bits.” Alex sighed and sipped at his drink. “It’s coming back.”
“Remember?” Brigs asked. His voice held a note of concern.
“He hit his head,” Terra said, feeling a little guilty. “He’s been having some problems with his memory.”
Alex made an irritated noise but didn’t say anything else.
“Ah.” Brigs shifted in his seat. “And a brooding on top of that certainly wouldn’t make things easy.”
Alex made another soft noise and sipped at his drink.
“But the tea should help.” Brigs chuckled. “It always helps.”
“Tea?” Terra asked glancing at the mug Alex clutched to his chest. What was in his tea? Reaching out, she pulled her matching cup over and looked into it. White foam covered the top, preventing her from seeing the actual liquid, but there was a thin chain attached to the side of the cup. Picking it up, she sipped at the drink and found it rather pleasant.
“It’s a Lo—” Brigs started.
“London Fog,” Alex supplied, cutting off Brigs’ answer.
Brigs grinned again. “One of the few drinks that will relax an uptight dragon.”
“Not uptight,” Alex grumbled, but he didn’t move.
Brigs laughed again. “Alex, you are one of the most tightly wound dragons I know. But that’s what makes you so good at your job.”
Another irritated noise came from the man relaxing in the booth, but he didn’t move or protest.
Turning his attention back to Terra, Brigs smiled again. “He can get a little caught up in the details, but he’s very good at solving problems once you get a cup or two of tea in him.”
“Tea?” Terra asked again as she glanced into the cup. It was definitely some form of milk tea, but it had a floral taste to it that she couldn’t place. Very tasty.
“Well, not the tea.” Brigs shrugged.
“Lavender,” Alex supplied the answer.
Terra stared down into her cup. Now that she knew what that floral taste was, she recognized it. “Lavender?” She looked back up to the men.
“Aye. It’s one of the few things that will affect a dragon,” Brigs explained, nodding towards the relaxed man in the booth. “For Alex, it opens his mind.”
“Catnip for dragons,” Alex muttered as he took another sip.
Brigs laughed again. “It has been called that.” He turned his attention back to Terra. “But you have to be careful with it. A little can help you relax, but a lot can wind you up. And some dragons are more sensitive to it than others.”
Alex made a confirming noise in his throat before taking another sip.
“But most know their limits,” Brigs added.
Interesting. Terra sipped at the warm tea. “What happens if they get too much?” she asked, glancing over at the way Alex was resting in the booth.
Brigs grinned. “Get three cups in him, and you’ll find out.” His voice held a hint of mischief to it. “But make sure you don’t have anything planned for the rest of the night.”
The suggestion in the man’s tone surprised Terra. She glanced at Alex again. Did Brigs just imply that lavender would increase a dragon’s desires? If that was the case, maybe she should take the cup of tea away from Alex. After that kiss in the elevator and his confession at breakfast, she wasn’t sure what would happen if he continued to drink that stuff.
“Alex.” The serious tone Brigs took washed all thought out of Terra. “Can you tell me what happened with Melanie yesterday?”
Terra tensed up, waiting to see how Alex answered. Obviously, his crashing in her backyard had something to do with this woman.
Alex sat quietly for a moment before answering. “Not right now.”
Brigs shot Terra a glance before nodding. “Do you need me to call Sanders? He’s been blowing up everyone’s phones looking for you.”
An annoyed noise came for Alex. “No. I’ll deal with it.”
“Well then,” Brigs thumped the table gently, “I’ll leave you to your tea.” He stood up and spun the chair back to the table where it had come from. “Let me know if there is anything I can do.”
Alex made another soft noise in agreement, and Brigs turned to leave.
“Oh.” The man stopped and turned back. “Since the weather’s been bad, we moved your bike to the barn.” With that, he turned and left.
Terra watched as Alex raised his hand in acknowledgement. He dropped it back to the seat and sat there, quietly sipping on his tea. She tried not to fidget in her seat as her curiosity grew. It was obvious he remembered something, but she had no idea how much until he decided to say something. And he didn’t seem like he was going to say anything at the moment.
“Well?” Terra pushed when she couldn’t stand the suspense anymore. “Is it coming back?”
Alex let out a long breath and sat up. “Yes.” He set his cup on the table and reached for the leather jacket Brigs had left. “But not fast enough.” Digging in the pockets of the coat, he pulled out a phone and a wallet. “Let’s see what we can find here.” Concern crossed his face when he looked at the phone. “I think this is going to take me a minute. Why don’t you look through this?”
Surprise hit Terra as Alex held his wallet out to her. Reluctantly, she took it. “Are you sure?” she asked, holding the folded leather. It didn’t feel right digging through his wallet.
“Mmm,” he answered as he scrolled through the missed calls and messages on his phone.
Terra glanced at the screen. Someone was really trying to get ahold of him. There were a lot of missed calls. Turning her attention back to the wallet, she looked at it, considering her options. Why the hell not? He’d given it to her for just that reason.
Flipping the leather open, she searched in it and found his driver’s license tucked into a slot in the front. A card stuck to the back as she pulled the thin plastic free. It fluttered to the table and landed faced down. Terra set the wallet down and picked up the fallen card. On the front was the same symbol from Alex’s bag and a number, but nothing else. Setting it on the wallet, Terra turned to study Alex’s ID.
Alexander Fied. Born 1856. Holy hell! The man was over a hundred and fifty years old! Terra sat, shocked by the information. There was no way that could be true. He didn’t seem anywhere near that old.
“Mmm.”
>
The noise that came out of Alex shook Terra out of her shock. He reached over and carefully took his ID out of her fingers. “Alexander Fied.” The tone of his voice told Terra that he accepted this information as his.
“I told you I was at least as old as that woman.” He turned the card so Terra could see it again. “Well, at least we have a place to start.” He picked up the card on his wallet and stared at it for a moment before tucking both it and the identification back into the billfold. Pulling out a ten, he dropped it on the table and stuck everything back into the pockets of the jacket. “Come on.”
Terra looked up when he patted her on the leg and slid from the booth. She watched him stand up and slip into the soft leather jacket. It settled around him like it was supposed to be there. Yes. She may not know much about the man, but that was definitely his coat. Dread crept into her heart as she slid from the booth.
“So, what now?” she asked, not knowing if she wanted the answer. Terra wanted to smack him when he made another one of those contemplative noises. Didn’t the man know how to give a proper answer?
Alex led her through a door in the corner and up a ramp. “I need to find out what happened yesterday,” he finally answered.
A sigh slipped from Terra. Of course, he needed to find out what had happened. And now that they had found out who he was, he didn’t need her help anymore.
“Well then, if you don’t need me anymore, I’ll just…” her words trailed off. She couldn’t finish that sentence. If she left now, she knew she would never see him again. The men that had broken into her house were only a passing thought compared to the heart-deep pain she was feeling. How could she have grown so attached to this man in the very short time she had known him?
“No,” Alex said as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her into his side. “You can’t leave yet. It’s not safe for you to go home.”
A mix of emotions washed the pain away. It was nice that he thought about her safety, but it was disappointing that that was his only protest. Had that tea brought him to his senses about the whole mating thing? She shook off that thought and shifted away from him. She needed to get a grip on herself. Obviously, Alex had a job to do, and she needed to let him do it.