Dragon Rage

by Kelly Armenta

  He flashed a smile and stroked the water again. “You are a difficult woman to find alone. A very busy woman.”

  I bit the inside of my cheek and stared back at him. “I am difficult, period,” I warned.

  He chuckled and nodded his head. “Any woman of interest usually is,” he agreed. Then he gave me a curious look. “I am not certain how to address you,” he told me. “The others call you, Mistress, My Lady, Princess…what shall I call you?”

  I frowned at the question. While it was true that the titles my men used for me were a show of respect, I’d come to think of them more as endearments than strictly titles, and the thought of Alan calling me any of them was disconcerting. “Just call me Lexi.”

  “And so I shall, Lexi. It is a beautiful name for a beautiful woman,” he replied.

  “So what can I do for you, Alan? While I’m naturally flattered to have you visit, I’d hate to have your untimely death on my conscience due to your misplaced sense of adventure.”

  “Sense of Adventure? Oh no, I think it’s something much more than that,” he assured me.

  “Well whatever it is or isn’t, and whatever you may think of me, I’m not in the habit of entertaining strange men in my bathtub. Do you think you might get to the point soon?” I asked. It wasn’t that I actually cared. It was more that the bubbles were evaporating and I didn’t know him well enough to be giving him a free show. Besides I didn’t normally reward bad behavior and entering my bedroom uninvited was very bad indeed.

  “That’s an interesting talent you have.”

  “Thank you. Would you like to schedule an appointment to compare notes?” I asked sweetly.

  “Most definitely,” he whispered and smiled, causing me to wonder if I was going to be in trouble here soon. He hadn’t used his voice on me yet, for which I was grateful. But naked and alone wasn’t really going to be a good combination if he started in on me. “And if I asked to join you?” he offered, his fingers dipping into the water so that there was no confusing his intent.

  “I would have to respectfully decline. Not that you aren’t an attractive man or posses your own interesting talents. It’s more that my current lovers would be hurt by my willy-nilly adding to their ranks. And I care too much for them to want to cause unnecessary pain.”

  “And yet… there is the matter of the Red Dragon. If I’m not mistaken you’ve already claimed him,” he remarked, his eyes watching my face as he added, “He is very young. I suspect it will be like dropping a small child into a pond filled with piranhas.”

  I sighed and replied, “You are undoubtedly correct.”

  “And yet…” he added, one corner of his mouth lifting slightly.

  I gave him a nod. “And yet…one has little choice. It is some small matter of honor. One I’m afraid I can not ignore.”

  “Then if I cannot tempt you to me. Perhaps I can interest you in a bargain?”

  Never cut off your whiskers to spite your face. That was what Mi used to tell me. “And what do you offer to bargain with?” I asked, forcing myself to remain still in the water.

  “Normally I would say myself. But since you have already turned me down,” he replied with a lopsided smile. “Perhaps it is information you would trade for.”

  “For what?” I asked wanting to be clear.

  “A night.”

  “And what information do you have that might cause me to change the course of my life?” I asked, knowing full well that one night with this man would change either or both of us in some small way, and not wanting to minimize the damage that could do.

  His eyes told me he caught my odd phrasing and understood my meaning. He seemed pleased. “Valentine’s hold over him.”

  I lifted a knee and placed my elbow on it while I looked at him and considered his offer. “And what makes you think I don’t already know?”

  He smiled at me and if he had fangs, they would have been showing. “I think if you knew you would have done something about it last night. Or wasn’t that the reason you healed him?” he asked.

  I pressed my lips together and captured some bubbles in my palm and watched as they burst. “That was different,” I informed him. “He should have been able to heal himself during shift. It… bothered me.”

  “Hmmm,” he replied. “And yet the female, you let bleed all over the carpet.”

  I pulled air into my lungs and narrowed my eyes at him. “Belinda’s life was mine to choose. I let her live, I believe I was more than gracious.”

  “Yes you were gracious. Let us hope it doesn’t get us all killed,” he replied and swirled his fingers in the water again. “Dragons aren’t the only beings Valentine has been collecting,” he informed me tightly. “There is some small concern that he will turn his eyes to the rest of us after he has gathered… your associates.”

  “And do you speak for the others?” I asked, tilting my head to the side considering his words.

  “Let me just say that I won the coin toss,” he told me with a smile.

  “Hmmm. And you tell me this because you hope to… what?”

  He sighed and his dark eyes lifted to mine. “Save us all,” he informed me. “Within these walls are men that were once mine to call. Giving oath does not sever all bonds. There have been whispers…”

  “Define a night?” I hedged, changing the subject abruptly as my heart skipped a beat at his words. I could only imagine what he’d heard and struggled to remain calm. He smiled and my eyes were drawn to the small cleft in his chin. Never trust a thief, Mi had also taught me that.

  “Shall I spell it out for you?” he asked, his dark eyes dancing.

  “Actually I’d prefer it in writing, if you don’t mind, so that I might consider it in exact detail.”

  He sighed and dipped his finger into the water again. “That is hardly the romantic answer I was hoping for.”

  “I did warn you I was difficult. And apparently you failed to do your homework on me,” I told him crisply. “Harvard Business Degree,” I offered when he raised an eyebrow inquiringly.

  “Hmmm… I suppose it could be worse, you might have said Law Degree,” he teased with a smile. “Lawyers are so tedious. But suddenly I’m extremely happy I keep several on retainer.”

  “Yes well, I imagine in your line of work….”

  He purred deep in his throat and gave me a look that set the hair on my nape to waving in the wind. “In my line of work, I have never accepted an offer I couldn’t deliver on.”

  “I’ve heard that about you,” I told him, then watched him for several seconds while I decided. “Have the contract delivered to me and I will review it, then give you my decision. I should warn you that I have obligations and may be away for a few days.”

  He straightened slightly and his eyes were curious. “I’ll have the papers drafted and in your hands by tomorrow night. I assume you will be attending your own party, thrown by our illustrious Mayor?” he asked.

  I winced but nodded, “You may assume so.”

  “Lexi, be very careful,” he warned me. “I don’t think this party was his idea. And know this,” he added, “for what it is worth, you have my protection.”

  I pulled air into my lungs and stared at him in surprise. “And why would you do that for me?” I breathed.

  “For the Hell you put me through this day, and the promise of more to come,” he replied with a sexy smile. “For a chance at us, I would offer nearly anything.”

  “Then perhaps I should reconsider our bargain and ask for more,” I told him and smiled when his look turned to one of mock dismay.

  “Yes, I can see that you will be difficult,” he teased. “I will try to think of something else to sweeten… the kitty.”

  “Alan,” I told him seriously. “Time to go.”

  He sighed and ran his finger through the water once more. “One could wish your bubbles were not so long lasting,” he grouched. “May I have a kiss to seal our agreement?”

  “We have no agreement and I don’t think it’
s any surprise that I don’t trust you,” I told him baldly.

  “On the hand, Lexi?” he urged, still refraining from using his voice on me.

  “If I give you my hand, will you try to take my arm?” suddenly remembering what Kit had done to me earlier in the day.

  “If I promise to restrain myself to just your hand and wrist?”

  Perhaps it was foolish of me, but I finally nodded and eased toward him keeping myself below the water. My hair fanned out behind me and drew his eyes. “Your hair is like spun gold shot through with flames. I have never seen anything like it. The length is…” He drew a breath and shook his head, reaching for my hand and sliding off the edge of the tub so he could get lower. His fingers caressed the back of my hand, sliding down over my wrist and fingering the chain of miniature dragons. I knelt at the edge of the tub while he turned the links around and glanced curiously at each. He made an ‘ah ha’ noise over the green and blue, but when he reached Marcus he hesitated, turning him over slowly. He had a similar reaction to Kit and his brows drew together in a frown. When he came to Goldy, he ran his finger down the spine and over the tail. Then his hand closed over my wrist and his eyes met mine. He looked into my eyes for several seconds while I wondered if I was going to regret my decision.

  “May I have your other hand?” he asked, and I frowned up at him and dropped the one he was holding back into the water, offering him my other so he could slide his fingers around it. He smiled tightly as his eyes were drawn to the ring Jace and Gareth had given me the previous night. It was gold and had miniature replicas of them in dragon form, encircling a large red-orange multi-faceted cut stone. Their eyes were emerald and sapphire. “An interesting ring, very fine craftsmanship. This green and blue are different than the others,” he informed me.

  “Yes they are. And thank you.”

  His brow cleared and he leaned forward, his lips brushing the back of my knuckles. When I would have pulled away he made a sound in his throat and placed his lips against my wrist. “Until tomorrow night,” he whispered and then he was gone.

  “Remind me to kill him tomorrow.”

  “You’ll have to stand in line,” Gareth replied.

  I bit my lip and eased back across the tub and onto the seat.

  “What was he doing here?” Jace demanded.

  “Isn’t it obvious?

  “No I mean, how did he get in?”

  They were leaning against the doorway with their arms crossed over their chests and neither looked happy. “Hey, I didn’t invite him,” I told them, and then squirmed where I sat as they continued to look at me like I’d been at the cookie jar.

  “And I suppose that little show you gave him wasn’t an invitation?”

  “Oh you felt that?” I asked. That wasn’t good. I was pretty sure I’d kept it confined to the bathroom. “I was trying to flush him out,” I offered.

  “We know. You weren’t shielded,” Gareth supplied.

  Oh well, so that meant they’d heard the entire conversation. Had everyone?

  “What do you think?”

  “Where’s Kit?” I asked, my voice sounding tense.

  “I believe Owen is restraining him in the other room. Don’t ask me how.”

  I stood up abruptly and reached for a towel. This was not good.

  Gareth shook his head and glanced at Jace. “If I was her, I might be little less concerned about the Demon and a little more concerned about the Dragons.”

  I paused, halfway out of the bathtub and felt my face go pale as I looked at the two of them and realized they weren’t just unhappy, they were very angry. “I didn’t do anything,” I told them.

  “Which is the only reason he’s still breathing,” Jace assured me tightly. “A decision we were seriously rethinking as he was slobbering all over your hands.”

  “You can’t kill him, he has information we may need.”

  “He invaded our den and is attempting to seduce our woman. I think he’s made his intensions fairly clear. It’s yours we are concerned with.”

  I took a breath and eased all the way out of the tub, flipped the stopper and wrapped a towel around me. “I intend to keep both of you from becoming Valentine’s new play toys” I told them calmly.

  “I believe I am offended,” Jace replied sarcastically.

  “The vanity of youth,” Gareth added, his voice barely above a growl.

  Jace narrowed his eyes while I frowned at the two of them. “So what? I’m supposed to ignore the problem and hope it will go away? You do realize I’ve now been warned by at least four different people that I’m in danger because of this? And you expect me to bury my head in the sand and pretend nothing is wrong?”

  “I didn’t realize she knew that many fortune tellers,” Jace muttered.

  “I don’t know why she doesn’t trust us.”

  “It’s emasculating.”

  “It’s damn irritating is what it is!” Gareth hissed.

  “I think we need to do something about this.”

  “I still can’t believe he waltzed right into our den.”

  “Almost like he wanted to get caught.”

  “He must be desperate.”

  I stiffened and stood straighter. Well thanks a lot! I thought and frowned at the two of them when they both glared back at me.

  “Did you know he could move around like that?” Jace asked, his eyes pinning me to the floor.

  “No I did not know. But it doesn’t really surprise me since he’s got Demon in him and it might explain why he’s so good at what he does.”

  “Ah, is that what this is all about?” Gareth muttered his eyes narrowing, and if he had hackles on his neck they would have been standing at attention.

  “That wasn’t in his dossier!”

  “Like I said, he must be desperate. Why else would he tip his hand? He has to know she’d tell us.”

  “Probably counting on it…”

  “He won the coin toss, and we…need to go out.”

  Jace just nodded and the irritation on his face faded as he became more thoughtful. “Think we should take Owen?”

  “No, I think he should stay here…” Gareth replied, his eyes sliding over me. “The others are… distressed. He’s a calming influence. Besides if we take him they will all expect to go.”

  “We could leave her here with her Father… and that cat.”

  Gareth nodded thoughtfully while my gaze swung between the two of them. “Maybe it would be best. Give them time to calm down.” I wasn’t certain if I should be annoyed or offended that they thought I needed protection. And where did they get off leaving me here anyway? If they were going out to gather information, I was going too.

  “No.”

  “Absolutely not.”

  I crossed my arms over my chest and glared back at them.

  “Don’t look at us like that. You stay here or your new little friend’s next visit from his solicitor will be to read his last will and testament over his closed casket.”

  “Fine,” I muttered. “Areth, I need clothing,” I yelled as I pushed past them where they still stood in the doorway. Neither had come farther into the room and I suspected it was to keep them from doing serious bodily harm to my person.

  I marched to the bed, then nearly cried when an old pair of sweats and oversized raggedy t-shirt from my apartment appeared. Obviously Areth agreed with Jace and Gareth and didn’t think I should be going anywhere. I picked up the sweatpants, noticing the unattractive underwear lying beneath them on the bed, and nearly screamed out loud from frustration. Ignoring the granny panties, I yanked on the sweats but wrapped the bra around me and snapped it on before shoving my t-shirt down over my head.

  I bent over to pull on the ugly mismatched fuzzy slippers and when I stood up again, Jace wrapped his arms around me and bent me backwards over the bed while his lips crashed down on mine. I had to remind myself I was angry at him for leaving me here but it didn’t seem to help, and it wasn’t long before I was soft and pliable in hi
s arms. When my pulse was racing to his satisfaction, he pulled back and kissed my temple. “That’s for sending him away,” he growled, then he was gone and I was blinking up into Gareth’s face.

  “And this is for wanting to protect us.” And he pulled me gently into his arms and scattered my thoughts like so many petals on the wind with his kisses. When he left me, I flopped backwards and tried to remember how my body parts were supposed to work.

  Chapter 10

  The rooms were all empty when I pulled myself off the bed and wandered down the hall. It had been nearly a week since I’d been completely alone and it felt odd. I rambled around a while and finally found myself in the library poking through Jace’s collection of Demon books. Most of them looked like they contained conjuring spells and all manner of rites. I put the tome I was glancing through back on the shelf and backed carefully away. It was not a good idea to be dabbling with something so potentially dangerous without either Kit or Jace there. I wasn’t quite that mad at them for leaving me here alone.

  I was hungry but didn’t feel like eating. I suppose I could have gone up to the training room but didn’t feel like that either. I wandered into the kitchen and read the clock on the stove. It wasn’t even eight yet. With everyone gone, my parents obviously busy, and Nick left to open the club, there wasn’t much to do. I’d already spent more time in the water than normal so that wasn’t an option. I was restless and bored and had a sudden urge to get out and do something, smell the fresh air, see the sky, maybe go shopping although there wasn’t anything I needed. My purse was back in my room on the floor in the closet where I’d put it days ago. I went to check to make sure before I called for Areth. It took some convincing but in the end she provided me with a long Chinese style dress with matching short jacket. The dress was strapless and black and had little dragons in various colors embroidered down the front. The jacket had a stand up mandarin collar and the sleeves were bell shaped to match the dress’ hemline. It hugged my body to my knees where it flared to the floor to allow me room to walk. I’d have to be careful not to eat too much. The dress didn’t leave a lot of room for anything besides breathing and showing off my curves.