Reawakening the Dragon: Part Two (2 page)

Kai glared. “I can be persuasive without revealing I’m a dragon-shifter.”

Jane shook her head. “I’m going. Now, stay here.”

Before he could reach out a hand to stop her, Jane exited the SUV and headed toward Jeff’s flat.

Nikki’s amused voice filled the car. “She’s not one of your soldiers, Kai. You should try a different approach with her.”

A human male opened his door and smiled at Jane. Even from his position in the SUV, Kai could see the male giving Jane a once-over.

As if the human was worthy of someone like Jane Hartley.

Kai leaned closer to the car window. “We know nothing about Jeff. If not me, then at least you should have accompanied her.”

Nikki sighed. “Jane’s survived thirty-plus years on her own. I think she can handle ten more minutes.”

As Kai watched Jeff and Jane walk from his apartment to the footpath, Kai uncrossed and re-crossed his arms. The human male named Jeff had just touched Jane’s shoulder.

After snarling, his beast spoke up,
She shouldn’t be alone with the human male. We know nothing about him.

She wouldn’t let me vet him first. I tried.

But not hard enough.

She is stubborn.

His beast huffed.
We are more so.

I’m not so sure about that. She’s as bad as any dragon-shifter. She’d take on the hunters by herself if she had to.

His dragon growled.
We will help her.

And if she sneaks away?

We will track her down.

His beast’s words worried him a little. Kai knew Jane wasn’t a true mate since he’d kissed her and hadn’t gone into a mate-claim frenzy, but his dragon was acting as if she were theirs to claim. His beast hadn’t acted that way around anyone since Maggie.

Nikki’s voice interrupted his thoughts. “Worrying won’t help anything, boss. Trust Jane. She knows how to take care of herself.”

He glanced at Nikki. “She’s human and fragile with no formal training.”

Nikki raised an eyebrow. “Considering how you’ve taken every precaution to avoid Jane Hartley since her first interview on Stonefire, I’m curious why the sudden interest now.”

“If she screws up, the clan could suffer.”

Nikki studied him a second before replying, “What happened between you two whilst I was on the phone? It’s as if you won’t look at each other longer than absolutely necessary. I would say it’s because you’re afraid to let your desire show.”

Kai grunted. “Ridiculous.”

“You two also smelled of each other.”

Kai’s dragon chimed in,
Why won’t you declare the human ours? We should be kissing her again, right now.

Ignoring his beast, Kai watched Jane laugh at the human male’s words. When the male touched her arm again, Kai dug his fingers into his thigh. He was close to exiting the car and tugging Jane out of reach. The time she spent flirting with the human took time away from them chasing down the dragon hunters. This operation was time sensitive and Jane knew it.

Yes, saving time and finding the hunters was the only reason he wanted to rip her away from the male’s arm now around Jane’s waist. It had nothing to do with Kai’s dragon wanting to stake a claim on her.

Liar
, his dragon stated.

Thankfully, Nikki’s voice prevented his dragon from saying anything else. “It’s okay to want her, Kai. Because of Melanie’s persistence, the rules have temporarily changed for Stonefire, for a trial period. Dragon males are allowed to take human mates of their own choosing, provided they apply with the DDA. Besides, considering all that Jane’s done for our clan, Bram would welcome her if she accepted you.”

Glancing at Nikki, he asked, “Why are you saying this?”

“Because I once watched a human male just like you’re watching Jane. If it wasn’t against the law, I would’ve gone after him. You don’t have that worry and you deserve someone. You’re one of the best males I know.”

Studying the younger dragonwoman, Kai saw more than a soldier or a kidnapping victim. Nikki had been denied a love, just like Kai had. On top of that, she had wanted a human.

Since female dragon-shifters were much rarer than males, they still weren’t allowed to mate outside the dragon clans, not even on Stonefire, who had the public’s good graces.
 

Or, at least, that was how things stood so far.

Clearing his throat, Kai answered, “Mention your predicament to Melanie and Evie. Given how stubborn they are, they’ll find a way to change things for you.”

Nikki shook her head. “I’m over the male now. But maybe you could mention it for the future and then that way, I wouldn’t have to put up with Mel and Evie’s scrutiny.”

Kai nodded. “Once the hunters are no longer a threat, I’ll talk with the females.”

The car fell into a comfortable silence. Well, for about thirty seconds and then Nikki smiled. “This is nice.”

He raised an eyebrow. “What is?”

“You actually talking about something other than work.”

With a grunt, Kai looked back out of the car window. The talking had helped him forget about Jane, but as the human male named Jeff moved his hand to Jane’s lower back and guided her down the footpath, Kai couldn’t prevent growling.

Before Nikki could stop him, he exited the car and walked toward the humans.

~~~

Jane was going to kill her brother, Rafe.

Even if Jeff was as trustworthy as Rafe had declared, the man was a huge flirt and kept touching her. It was taking twice as long as it should to simply walk to the man’s car.

Still, Jane kept a smile on her face. If she offended Jeff and he walked away before she secured the car, then they would lose precious time trying to find another nondescript vehicle. While the bus or Metro would take them to some parts of Gateshead, they needed the car to reach the farms.

And Jane had learned the hard way that hiring a car was too easy to trace back to the person who signed for it. Since she didn’t condone stealing vehicles, Jeff was her best bet.

The man in question rubbed her lower back in slow circles as they walked. Jane forced her voice to remain light. “Which one is yours?”

Jeff waved toward a blue economy car that looked a few years old. “She’s gotten me out of a scrape or two.” Since Jane was about six inches taller, Jeff looked up at her. “I don’t care if I owe Rafe a favor or not. If you don’t bring her back in one piece, you’ll owe me.”

Jane knew where this was going. “I’ll bring her back safe, don’t worry.”

Jeff leaned close. “If you don’t, then you’ll owe me a date.”

Jane opened her mouth to reply when Kai appeared in front of her and Jeff, blocking their path. Kai crossed his arms and met her gaze. “Is this man bothering you?”

Well, at least he didn’t say human.
The jumper hid Kai’s tattoos, but dragon-shifters had some unique phrasings that often gave them away. “You were supposed to wait in the car.”

Kai shrugged. “You’re taking too long.”

Jeff looked between Kai and Jane. “Is he your boyfriend?”

Jane had an idea of how to speed things along. Moving away from Jeff, she leaned against Kai’s side. “Yes. He’s a former colleague of Rafe’s.”

Jeff eyed the snug material around Kai’s bulging biceps and his face went neutral. “Then maybe your boyfriend can find you a car.”

“You owe Rafe your life.”

As Jeff stared at them, Kai wrapped an arm around Jane’s waist and encased her in his marvelous heat. She would never go cold with a dragonman at her side.

Not that she would ever have a dragonman of her own.

Jeff finally held up his keys. “Take them. But if you damage her, then you’re paying to repair it.”

“Fair enough.” Jane swiped the keys. “We’ll even bring it back with a full tank of petrol.”

Before Jeff could reply, Kai turned them around and moved toward the car. She half expected Kai to let go of her waist and move around to the driver’s side. Instead, Kai squeezed her tighter against him.

She really should protest. But the feel of his hard body next to her made her belly clench. She could only imagine what would happen if Kai brushed his fingers against her bare skin.

Kai growled. “Stop doing that.”

Frowning, she looked over at his profile. “Doing what?”

“Wanting me so much I can smell it.”

Jane’s cheeks flushed, but she quickly recovered. “Sorry if my scent offends you.”

He glanced at her. “It doesn’t.”

She blinked. “Then why bring it up? It’s not like I can control how attractive you are.”

They stopped in front of the car and Kai turned her to face him. There was approval in his eyes. Maybe she should’ve lied about him being hot, but if she lied, then it provided an excuse for Kai to do it, too. The easiest way to write her story was to keep the dragonman honest.

Kai lowered his head and her mind went blank as his firm lips moved closer to hers. Stopping just short of kissing her, he murmured, “Because your scent drives me crazy and tempts me to do something I shouldn’t.”

He moved a hand to her back and pressed her close. Between his heat and the desire in his eyes, Jane’s heart rate kicked up. Even to her own ears her voice was strangled. “What do you want to do?”

Kai nuzzled her cheek, the roughness of his almost-whiskers sending a thrill through her body that ended between her legs.
 

Shit.
The dragoman would take her arousal as encouragement.
 

Kai’s husky voice caressed her as he answered, “I want to kiss you again.” He pulled back to meet her eye. “Although, if I’m playing the role of your boyfriend, I probably
should
kiss you. It will make the ruse more convincing.”

Her heart thumped harder. “Not all couples kiss in public.”

Kai’s voice was husky as he replied, “Maybe for humans.”

As Kai’s pupils turned to slits and stayed that way, Jane stopped breathing. Did the change mean his dragon was in charge? And if so, what would he do?

In that second, she forgot all about the dragon hunters or her quest for a good story. She wanted to find out more about the dragon-half of the man in front of her.

And foolish as it was, she then wanted him to kiss her. To keep up their ruse, of course. Nothing more.

Maybe if she said the lie enough, she’d actually believe it.

Determined not to lose her nerve, Jane leaned into Kai’s touch and asked, “What is your dragon saying to you right now?”

~~~

Kai’s dragon growled.
Tell her I want to lick every inch of her body. Then bend her over a table and brand her pussy with our dick.

That will scare her away.

His dragon paused a beat.
Are you finally admitting that you want her?

Rather than admit his dragon had been right earlier, he merely replied,
Any straight male would want her.

Then tell her we want her.

I won’t equate attraction with more. She may get the wrong idea.

Jane’s voice interrupted his conversation with his dragon. “Answer me, Kai, or I’ll walk away and leave you panting after me.”

He frowned. “I don’t pant.”

A playful twinkle filled Jane’s eyes. “Does that mean sex is as efficient as everything else you do?”

His dragon hissed.
Definitely not.

Kai pressed Jane’s body closer. When the human drew in a breath, Kai murmured, “With a dragon in charge, you will tire long before I do.”

Jane’s heart rate kicked up and he nearly smiled.
 

The female cleared her throat before replying, “You still haven’t told me what your dragon has been saying. I have a feeling it’s about me.” She raised her chin. “I have a right to know.”

Moving a hand to Jane’s face, Kai traced her cheek bone. The human’s skin was so soft. “As equals, I should tell you.”

“I sense a ‘but.’”

“But you didn’t win against my dragon. He wants another form of payment.”

Jane tilted her head. “Let me guess, he wants sex in a car?”

Kai’s dragon grunted.
Cars are too small. I want her in a field. There are several nearby.

Blinking, Kai forced his voice to work. “Is it a secret fantasy of yours to have sex in a car?”

Jane grinned. “Not necessarily. I just like confusing you. I need to do it more often.”

Kai growled. “Enough teasing. My dragon wants a kiss.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Does he, now?”

He moved a hand to her right arse cheek and squeezed. “Yes.”

Jane’s scent grew stronger and he wished he could strip off her jeans and taste the honey that kept tempting his nose.

The human stared at him for a few seconds. Uncertainty filled her eyes, but she finally nodded. “Okay, but not in view of Jeff.”

“I don’t like his name on your lips.”

She slapped his chest lightly. “Don’t get any ideas about telling me what I can or cannot say. I’m not a thing to be controlled.”

His dragon chimed in.
Stop wasting time. She agreed. Find a place to kiss her properly.

Reluctantly, Kai released his grip on Jane. Taking her hand, he tugged her toward a nearby alley. “No more talking.”

For once, Jane didn’t fight him. Judging by her strides, she was as anxious as he to kiss again.

He liked the fact Jane wasn’t hiding or blushing. It was the opposite of what he’d had with Maggie.

His beast spoke up.
Don’t bring up the other one. I want to only think of Jane.

Kai wished he could turn off his memories as easily as his dragon. But the image of him trying to coax a kiss from Maggie and her turning her head and asking him to chase her flooded into his mind. For all that Kai’s dragon had wanted Maggie, Kai had never had the chance to kiss her. She’d been afraid of the mate-claim frenzy, and at the first sign of hardship, Maggie had run to another.

He glanced at Jane. Nikki’s words from earlier had made him believe he could at least have a chance with the female. He wondered if kissing the human was a mistake; it would only make both man and beast want her more.

Given his track record, Jane might even abandon him at the first sign of trouble.

His dragon sighed.
It’s just a kiss. Enjoy it and worry about the future later.