Taste for Alphas: Paranormal Fantasy Shifter Romance
Page 18
Humans didn’t know much. The dragons kept such a low profile, it was near impossible for anyone to find them. Yet this woman had. And she worked for the United States government. If that wasn’t fucking wonderful.
That shit didn’t sit right with him. How much more did she know? And why did she care so much about helping them?
He showed the security guard one of his many IDs and watched the guy scramble all over himself once he saw his name. It was the same for most people who saw his name. Not that he cared. Tor had left the significance of his name behind. It didn’t matter, though.
Most Americans knew his last name as one that belonged to royalty. What they didn’t know was it was dragon royalty, not human. Tor and the others belonged to the Drachen family. The name alone meant power and wealth, but humans did not know much more than that. Still, it got him quick responses and guards stuttering as they tried to use the phone to let their bosses know he was there.
A different security guard guided him to an elevator. The ride up was slow and the guy next to him didn’t say shit. They were soon on the twentieth floor, his patience running very low. He might not survive this meeting.
The entire floor was so quiet, he could hear the security guy thinking. They reached a set of wood doors. After a few knocks, someone opened them and he was gestured in by an older woman.
He glanced around the plain office, looking for others, but realized she was alone.
“I thought the meeting started at eight p.m.,” he said; he’d glanced at his cell phone at least three times when they were in the elevator and knew he was on time.
“It does for us, Mr. Drachen. My name is Lara Polley. If you would have a seat, we can chat before the other person joining us shows up.”
He gave a sharp nod but stood by the meeting table. There was a file with his name on it. He made a grab for it, fully expecting her to stop him or tell him that wasn’t for him. Her soft laugh made him glance up.
“I see Jae was correct. You do like to stir things up.”
He frowned, opened the file and glanced at a photograph of a woman. She had long blond hair with a fringe and a pair of black-framed glasses. There was a hint of a smile as if she thought about being serious but couldn’t help herself.
“Who is this?”
“That is my daughter, Mr. Drachen,” she replied and took a seat across from where he stood. She raised her hand and waved at the chair next to him. “Please, have a seat.”
“Please, call me Tor. Jae said you wanted to talk to us about something important, helping us against Sayeh and the Noir Dragons.”
She nodded and waited for him to sit. He peeled the chair back, its wheels squeaking on the carpeted floor. “That’s right.”
He sat and stared at the woman. He didn’t get any kind of vibe from her so he wasn’t sure what to make of her. “Why?”
She nodded. “Fair question. I want to help you because I know you will help me.”
Of course. He should have known no human could do something selflessly. He had yet to meet one in all his existence. And being alive long enough to see a lot of history, he had met a lot of fucking people. Some he didn’t care to think about because he knew it wasn’t worth his time.
“What is it you need, lady?”
“My daughter,” she pointed at the photo on her desk. “Someone is going to try to kill her.”
He raised his brows. “They’re going to try or they’ve tried?”
“It hasn’t happened yet. Soon,” she said, her eyes glazing over and a faraway look taking over her face. “But she won’t allow anyone to take care of her, so I need you to protect her.”
“Ma’am, I’m not a babysitter.”
She smiled. “I know you’re not. But Morgan is going to get a Drachen mate mark soon.”
Tor sat straighter in the chair. “How do you know? Nobody knows when a mate is chosen. One hasn’t been found in many years. Every time there is one, the Noir get to her first.”
“Exactly. They will want to kill her. Her mate mark will show up and she needs protection. She won’t believe me if I try to explain it to her. She’ll assume I’m crazy.”
He met her gaze. “Lady, I’m thinking you’re pretty crazy myself.”
She nodded. “Let me fill you in on what I know, Tor. I had this conversation with Jae and he agrees you need to protect Morgan.”
“Tell me what you know and I’ll decide for myself,” he said, placing his elbows on the table. He shoved his black hair behind his ears.
She gave a slight bow of the head. “Your kind are rare. You have fire powers that I won’t get into. There are five of you left, that you are aware of. No females because whenever someone has gotten the mate mark, the Noir and Sayeh get to her and kill her before you can mate. Once your mate marks appear, you need to mate within one week or you both die. If you or she are killed before the mating, you both die.”
He narrowed his eyes at her. “So far, so good.”
“That means the ones left still have a chance at getting a mate. I know Morgan is a Drachen mate.”
“Whose?” he growled and stared her down.
“I’m afraid that information wasn’t made available to me. I only know what I see.”
He frowned. “You’re a psychic?”
She shook her head. “I’m what you would call precognitive or prescient.”
Now she really had his attention. He’d met someone like that once. Only she’d lied to him, told him she was his mate. That she’d never get a mate mark because she was special. That they would be mated for eternity. He soon found out all she wanted was to use him for whatever wealth she could gain.
“I know all about precognition. What did Jae tell you?” His brother hadn’t given much detail into what they were dealing with, only that Tor needed to handle it as the oldest.
“He said to speak with you. That you’d help me.” She cleared her throat and wiped a hand over her forehead. “I told my daughter she can help your kind by speaking with you today, but she doesn’t know she’s a Drachen mate. She feels the calling to help others, especially shifter kind, and will gladly do whatever she can to help your family.” She gave him a sad look. “I have not been the best of parents, so she doesn’t trust me.”
“What am I supposed to tell her then?”
She shoved the folder closer to him. “This is all her information. If you agree to letting her help you, we can find a reason to keep you near her and ensure nothing happens.”
He didn’t like this. Lies weren’t the way to go. “Maybe instead of making up a story, I should meet her first.”
She opened her mouth then someone knocked on the door.
Chapter Three
Morgan pushed the strands of blond hair that came loose from her bun behind her ear and smoothed the front of her outfit. She hadn’t gone home from the office and now hated that she still wore the damn skirt suit she disliked with a passion.
Her best friend Lexi had told her to stop wearing the damn things. She had her own practice and could wear whatever she wanted, but Morgan liked giving a professional impression to her young clients.
As a child therapist, she handled a lot of cases of children who didn’t have anyone they could talk to. She became that person. The one they knew would always listen. The adult. Of course, she didn’t believe for a second those suits were comfortable for her big hips and large curves. Nope. Not even a little. Her body wanted sweats and comfy T-shirts, but did she listen? No.
She knocked on her mother’s office door and waited for someone to let her in. She’d had an exhausting day and would rather skip the whole meeting thing, but she’d had a dream the previous night about a faceless man fighting to keep her alive. The man had shifted into a massive gray and white dragon. It was scary and fascinating to watch.
Most people would assume she had dreamt of a dragon from her conversation with her mother the previous day, but she knew better. This was something else and she needed to know what.
“Lara,” she said, knowing full well her mother had never cared for the term mom.
Lara opened the door wide and Morgan walked. She immediately saw him. A massive tree trunk of a man with black hair and a beard that could make any woman whimper. She met his gaze, her belly doing all kinds of flip flops.
“Welcome,” Lara said and showed her to the table. “Morgan, this is Tor Drachen. He’s joining us for a few minutes. Tor, this is my daughter, Morgan.”
Morgan’s gaze jerked to her mother. Lara didn’t like letting others know she was her daughter. As far as anyone, including Morgan, was concerned, she had no children.
“Hello,” he said in a too deep voice she couldn’t help but want to hear again.
“Hi, Mr. Drachen,” she smiled, “it’s a pleasure.”
“Please,” he said again with that fuck-me tone, “call me Tor.”
“Morgan.” She sat to her mother’s right, which placed her between the two. “Lara has given me some basic details about your kind.” She pulled out a notepad and pen from her giant carry-on. “Frankly, I am surprised you guys are still alive seeing as there are no females.”
He nodded and steepled his fingers, an air of authority clung to his shoulders. “We’re able to live a long time, waiting patiently for a mate. We are still hopeful our kind will not die out.”
Her chest hurt for him and his people. To see the last of their own and wonder what would happen to them must be devastating. “I’m hopeful, too.” She glanced at her mother. “Lara told me you can have human mates, but that’s as far as we got.”
He raised a brow, his gorgeous dark eyes rooting her to the spot. Boy, she felt hot all of a sudden, like the temperature in the room went up fifty degrees. His lips curved up. And wow were his lips attention grabbing. Full even under his beard. Then there were his eyes, dark and commanding.
His deep red and orange aura colors spoke volumes to her. Much more than any words. The deep red said he was grounded with a strong will, power, passionate, and was survival oriented. The orange gave insight into another part of him. Told her he had incredible courage and vitality and was a creative man with stamina.
She didn’t need him to speak to know he took protecting his family seriously. Nor did she need him to come closer to know he’d feel warm to the touch and would make goose bumps rise on her skin. He didn’t need to say a word and her heart galloped in her chest like a racehorse sprinting for the finish line.
He slipped calloused fingers through his hair, disheveling the strands, giving him a true rolled out of bed look. He didn’t fidget. She noticed him glance around the office a few times before finally holding her gaze captive. He spoke with his eyes, and wow. If what she saw was true, it might be hard to give up this man she lusted after to find his mate.
“Our human females have been killed in the past before they got a chance to mate. There are five of us. If we can find mates within the time our mark is present, and get her with child, our kind will live on.”
She nodded her understanding. That sucked so badly for them. That they had to be dependent on finding a woman to love and hope they could mate before they died or she got the chance to bear him children. She raised a hand and placed it over his and something really strange happened—warmth filled her chest. It took her a moment to realize they were staring at each other. She pulled the hand back and cleared her throat.
“I’m not sure if my mother told you, but I can sense things.” She glanced down at her hands on her lap. “I’d like to help if I can.”
“What kind of things can you sense?” He stared deeply into her eyes.
“I’m an empath. I can look at people’s energies and know things, and maybe I can be useful to help your people find their mates.”
He glanced at Lara. She nodded. “Fine, I can take you to meet the others and we can go from there.”
Chapter Four
Morgan padded up the driveway barefoot. She’d had enough of her heels. Perhaps she should listen to Lexi, but she wanted to give a professional impression at all times. Lexi’s car was already in her driveway and she knew her best friend and roommate was eating pizza without her.
She mumbled at her aching feet and made her way into the house. “If you ate all the chicken pizza, I’m going to hurt you.”
Lexi came out of the kitchen with a giant pizza box at that moment. “Hey! Great timing.” She laughed. Man, she looked comfortable in her pajama bottoms, oversized Pikachu T-shirt and pigtails.
“You look like you’ve been relaxing.” She dropped her shoes, glasses and bag on a chair and proceeded to fall onto the nearest sofa, lifting her feet to the arm rest and lying back.
“I had the day off from the shelter,” Lexi said and placed the pizza box on the coffee table before leaving for the kitchen again. “You don’t even know what happened at work yesterday,” she yelled.
“What?” Morgan asked, sitting up and wincing at the throbbing in her feet. They felt as if they had their own heartbeat.
Lexi returned with a bottle of red wine and two glasses. “Remember Jennifer Santos?”
Morgan thought back, and their conversation came to the front of her mind. “Yes, the new one that wouldn’t say anything against her husband but didn’t want to leave?”
“That’s the one. Her husband showed up yesterday to ‘pick her up,’ he said.”
Morgan’s eyes widened and she took the wine-filled glass from Lexi. “I have a bad feeling about this.”
Lexi grinned, showing a dimple on her dark cheek. “I told him he was getting a foot up his ass if he tried to put a hand on Jennifer or her kids.” She opened the pizza box, the steam still coming off the pie, filling the room with its delicious scent.
“Did Jennifer actually try to leave with him?”
Morgan knew too many women were under the mental conditioning of the abusers and had a hard time saying no. Even while under safe custody.
“No. I wouldn’t let her leave with him.” She sighed and sipped her wine. “I told her point blank, if she left, he was probably going to kill her next time.” Lexi’s shoulders slumped. “That seemed to get her attention.”
It would get Morgan’s attention for sure. Of course, a man that abusive deserved to be hung by his balls and publicly flogged.
“I’m sorry, Lexi. That sucks.” She raised her wine glass for a toast. “To Jennifer choosing safety for herself and her children.”
Lexi clinked glasses with her. “At least for another day. I don’t know when he will get to her. The kids talk to him and afterwards she is always frantic. I wish she’d stop allowing that, but I guess she feels extra guilty since he’s their father.”
Morgan nodded. “That’s typical. I have a case of a little girl who was physically abused, but still managed to feel bad when asked if her abuser deserved to be punished.” She drank more wine. “You know what she told me? That she wasn’t hurt all that bad. All the bruises and broken bones had healed and she didn’t want her aunt in jail.”
Lexi shook her head. “Man, we picked some fucked up jobs.”
Morgan laughed. “Oh! I wanted to get home to tell you about my meeting with the Drachen today.”
Lexi picked up a slice of pizza and took a bite. She chewed and swallowed before speaking. “Woman, stop waiting and talk.”
“I met the one Lara says is the oldest of their group. Tor.”
Lexi grinned, the corner of her mouth dotted with sauce. “Tor. He sounds big and sexy.”
Morgan rolled her eyes but smiled. “Yeah, okay. He’s big and sexy, but this guy is going to get a mate. I can’t get my hopes up.”
Lexi raised her brows and wiped her mouth. “Are your panties wet? Come on, Morgan! He’s probably the most dangerous man you’ll ever meet. Imagine all the dirty sexual stuff he can do to you.�
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“Believe me, I have. Once I was out of Lara’s office, all I could do was imagine. I don’t even think he’d live up to those daydreams.” She snorted.
“But is he single, that’s the question.”
“Technically, but that’s not the point. I’m supposed to help him and his family find mates. How is it that I’m going to slip into his bed and have my way with him?”
Lexi curled her feet under her on the sofa. “Easy. You say, ‘Hey, Tor. I need to lie down, preferably on top of something warm and solid and naked. Are you available?’”
Morgan giggled at the ridiculous idea. “Maybe I’ll skip that suggestion. Anyway, I have to help them. I don’t know why, but after my dream last night, I know I’m meant to.”
Lexi knew about Morgan’s extrasensory feelings. She had some of her own.
“Good luck. I’ll be happy if I can go another day without seeing Jennifer’s husband or you might have to bail my ass out of jail.”
“Aren’t you dating that cop? What’s his name?”
Lexi shook her head and ate more pizza. “His name is Blake, and I’m not dating him. He’s just a friend.”
“Right. A friend. Like my pocket rocket is just a friend with benefits,” she snickered.
Lexi choked on her pizza as she tried to laugh. “You’re evil. And I’ll have you know, my toys are definitely my friends. What is it guys say? Bros before hos?”
Morgan chuckled. “Yeah, but in our case it’s batteries before bros.”
Lexi picked up a second slice. “So exactly how are you helping these dragon shifters that almost nobody knows about?”
“I’m going to see if by staying with them a few days, I can sense or see anything. Hell, I’ll take a dream, something to give them clues. I’m not able to let this go.”
“Your mom did a number on you, and I’m not talking about sending you to boarding school at four years old.”
Morgan shrugged. “Yeah, but this is more. I can’t not help knowing they need me. Not just anyone. Me.”