Page 26 of Her Enemy Dragon Captor (Dream Team Shifters #5)

Jane stood in the doorway of what would soon be the nursery, watching as Alex carefully applied a coat of pale gold paint to the wall. Three months had passed since the battle on New Dawn, and the transformation in Greenrock—and in her life—still amazed her daily.

"A little higher on the left," she suggested, suppressing a smile as Alex reached up, muscles flexing under his paint-splattered t-shirt. "You missed a spot."

He gave her a knowing look over his shoulder. "You just want to watch me stretch."

"Can you blame me?" Jane rested a hand on her still-flat stomach. The pregnancy was new—barely six weeks along—but her dragon had known instantly, filling her with a fierce, protective joy that had only grown as the reality sank in. "I'm growing your baby. The least you can do is provide me with some entertainment."

Alex set down his roller and crossed the room, careful to avoid dripping paint on the drop cloth beneath them. His hands found her waist, thumbs gently stroking over her middle. "How are my two favorite dragons today?"

"Hungry. Again." Jane leaned into his embrace, inhaling his scent. "I swear, this little one is going to have your appetite."

"But your stubbornness," Alex murmured against her hair.

"Speaking of stubborn, have you heard from Lester? I think he and Jessa are still arguing over where to begin with their new lab."

Alex laughed. "You would think they would just be overjoyed to suddenly have basically unlimited funding to study not only the ancient portal network between the planets but even the remnants of all the long lost technologies on each.”

“Not to mention studying the common genomes between all us – shifters and ‘humans’ alike.

“I am just waiting for them to announce the wedding.”

“I think everyone is.”

The past three months had seen Greenrock transform from a sleepy town into what many would just have considered a model for small town revitalization. Of course, little did those same people know that the investment was literally all part of a massive interplanetary diplomatic mission. Abandoned buildings had been renovated, the warehouse had been expanded, and a new complex of housing had sprung up to accommodate the steady stream of new arrivals from the various planets.

"We should probably get moving," Jane said reluctantly. "Didn't you say Jack and Sierra would be waiting?"

Alex nodded, wiping his hands on a cloth. "The portal ceremony starts in an hour. Jack will never let me hear the end of it if we're late."

Today marked the official opening of a permanent diplomatic portal between Earth and New Dawn—a symbol of the new relationship being forged between the former enemies. Jane's father would be there, representing Earth's governments, alongside representatives from all five shifter planets.

"I still can't believe my dad is now the official human liaison to the interplanetary alliance," Jane said as they left the nursery.

“Right place, right time, I guess you could say,” Alex quipped.

“And the perfect excuse to ‘retire’ it seems. It’s the perfect cover. I still can’t believe though, that my by-the-book father is totally onboard with all this. I mean he is already working on negotiating trade agreements with the different shifter planets. It’s crazy."

"He's adapted remarkably well," Alex agreed. "Better than some of my own council members."

They drove through Greenrock, now buzzing with activity. Jane spotted a group of furries hanging out around the gazebo in the town center. “I’ll be honest, I never thought they would turn out to be the ‘cool kids.’”

“Those cool kids gave the alliance the hope they needed when things were darkest,” Alex commented.

“Yup, and without them, really, without furries, I never would have taken the undercover assignment – and I never would have met you.”

“We’ve talked about this babe...fate would have found a way.”

"You keep saying that - Oh, look at that!" Jane pointed toward the town square, where a statue was being unveiled—a dragon and several other shifter forms standing together in unity.

"The conspiracy theorist types will have a field day with that!" Alex laughed.

“Naw, it is under the guise of a nod toward the furries, celebrating how they have helped in the rebirth of Greenrock. Of course, we know the truth.”

When they reached the portal facility, the parking lot was already filling up. Jane recognized vehicles with diplomatic plates and government SUVs with tinted windows—all carefully selected to avoid drawing attention.

"You know, I'm still impressed with how well your father's team has managed security for these events," Alex said, taking her hand as they walked toward the entrance. "Hidden in plain sight."

"That's the Bureau for you," Jane replied. "We're very good at keeping secrets when we want to be. The official cover story about this being a 'scientific research facility' seems to be working perfectly."

Inside, Jane immediately spotted her sister Melissa deep in conversation with Turtle James, who was demonstrating something with animated gestures. Since discovering her own shifter abilities—a fox, to everyone's surprise—Melissa had thrown herself into Cindy's training program with enthusiasm, all while maintaining her cover job at a local marketing firm.

"Jane!" Cindy called, waving from across the room. She hurried over, Dylan close behind. "You're glowing! Has she told you yet?"

Jane blinked. "Told me what?"

Cindy's eyes widened. "Oh! Nothing. Forget I said anything."

"Cindy..." Jane gave her a warning look.

Dylan sighed. "Nice going, honey. Yes, Cindy is also expecting. We were going to wait until after the ceremony to share the news, but..."

"Really?" Jane squealed, throwing her arms around Cindy. "Our babies will be just weeks apart!"

Alex and Dylan exchanged the bemused looks of men who knew they were about to be drawn into endless conversations about nursery themes and baby names.

"Congratulations, brother," Alex said, clapping Dylan on the shoulder.

As more guests arrived, Jane found herself swept into a whirlwind of greetings and introductions. Brian and Lisa were there with their son Benji, now a toddler who delighted in showing off his ability to shift between wolf and rabbit forms. Jason and Avery had brought little Sallie, who had grown into a confident young girl with a mischievous smile and remarkable control over her tiger shifting abilities.

When her father arrived, Jane hugged him tightly. "You clean up nice, Director," she teased, smoothing his perfectly pressed suit.

"Can't embarrass Earth on its big day," he replied with a wink. "Your mother sends her love, by the way. I told her about all the latest developments too.

“Please tell me you didn’t make her sign any non-disclosure agreements.”

“Actually, no I did not. She already knew the basics anyhow. You know her and I have been getting on pretty well as of late. She's planning to visit next month."

"Really? And next month? God help us all," Jane muttered, but she was smiling. Her mother's initial shock at learning about shifters had quickly given way to enthusiasm, but she had not told her just how big a deal all this was...or about the interplanetary part for that matter.

The ceremony itself was brief but meaningful, conducted behind layers of security and surveillance jammers to ensure no unauthorized signals could escape. As the portal was activated, its emerald light filling the chamber, Jane felt Alex's arm tighten around her waist. She looked up to see him gazing at her, his amber eyes filled with a love that still took her breath away.

"What are you thinking about?" she whispered as applause erupted around them.

"How perfectly improbable this all is," he replied softly. "That I would travel from another planet to find you. That we would create a new life together. That our child will know a galaxy united instead of divided. Maybe someday all of this will even be made public."

Jane leaned against him, feeling the steady beat of his heart. "Pretty good for a dragon and his kidnapped FBI agent, huh?"

"I prefer to think of it as 'protective custody,'" Alex said with a playful growl.

"You'll never live that down," she warned him, laughing.

As the crowd began to disperse toward the reception, Jane paused, taking in the moment. Her family—both blood and found—was thriving. Her worlds had merged in ways she could never have imagined. And within her, a new life grew, the legacy of an unlikely love that had bridged worlds.

"Ready?" Alex asked, offering his hand.

Jane nodded, twining her fingers with his. "For anything."

Thank you for reading Her Enemy Dragon Captor! If you loved it and are new to the Portals world then start with the Shifter League series, HERE on Amazon .

If you have read all those then we would recommend another of Leela’s series… this one with Pamela Avery…

Click here to get The Damaged Pack Shifters Box Set on Amazon!

Here is a little preview of The Damaged Pack Shifters …

“The old man may be in trouble.”

Seven simple words and yet their effect was so powerful that the man listening at the other end of the line immediately surged to his feet, his throat dry as he demanded with a croak, “Bo, what the hell does that mean?”

Those words from Bo put Derek in a serious sweat because of the entire Damaged Pack, Bo was the most taciturn and least given to exaggeration.

“Calm down, Derek. I said, he may be in trouble. I’m not certain yet.”

There was no need to explain who “the old man” was. Derek knew Bo meant Joshua, the craggy old man they had all come to love and respect like a father. Joshua was more than a mentor; he had picked them all up off the streets— all five of them. He’d dusted them off and set them on the right track to being amazing people with something to offer the world. When they had all discovered they had magical abilities that allowed them to turn into different mythical creatures, Joshua had been the one to teach them to hone their strengths; he had taught them to hide their abilities from humans. He had taught them to watch each other’s backs, and when the five of them had voted to name themselves the Damaged Pack of Weirna, Joshua had cheered them on.

Derek ground his jaw testily. Why was Bo playing semantics? He had known Bo since he was a kid, and not once had he caught the other man in a lie or an exaggeration. If Bo said the old man may be in trouble, it meant the old man was in the very thick of it! Bo was the master of understatements.

For all his wonderful traits, Joshua Cox was also a very stubborn old man. He would never admit that he needed help. And Bo was just as stubborn , Derek thought in exasperation. If Bo was calling now, then he obviously needed help with Joshua’s problem, but he would die before he would admit it.

There was only one possible solution.

“I’ll be on the next plane out!” Derek ground out. The words were tight in his throat as memories of Weirna threatened. It was the only real home he had ever known, but then it had turned out to be his doom too. He shoved the memories aside; he needed to focus more on the good and on Joshua.

“Hey, hold your horses,” Bo interjected in a gruff tone. “You don’t need to do that— yet.”

“Why not?”

“Things haven’t progressed to that point just yet. Heck, I haven’t even contacted any of the others as it is.”

“What’s been going on, Bo?” Derek demanded.

“I’m not sure. Just some vibes I picked up. I’m gonna watch him a little more and get back to you.”

“I’ll call you in two days.”

“Two weeks, Derek. Give me two weeks. Oh, and you won’t be able to reach me. I’ll reach you.”

The line went dead.

“Yo man, they’re here,” someone shouted as Derek returned his phone to his pocket, deep in thought.

He raised his head slightly, sniffed the air a little and then relaxed. The little crowd of ten people were next to harmless; one sniff could tell him loads about an entire room full of people. It was his unique gift.

Derek looked around at his surroundings; natural vegetation on every side, just the way he liked it. Tall forest trees, dense shrubs, the scent of rotting leaves, faint scent of dried animal blood, and wet earth; he was in his element.

He looked at the men, women and two kids assembled before him; they were tourists looking for a good time in the wilds of Kenya. Dexen Resort was his idea; his and his partners’. They had set it up in a place few tourist resorts dared to use. The area was closer to the jungles of Kenya and offered exposure to more wildlife and the government had been on the verge of cordoning it off when he had appeared and offered to buy it. They had been dumbfounded but when he had managed to drum up financial support from his partners, they had gladly let him have it. The area was wild and untamed but with funding and help from his partners, he had made the resort into a luxurious paradise. It had become a veritable Mecca for the more adventurous tourists because Derek was famed for taking tourists to places where angels feared to tread and bringing them back safe and sound. No wild animal had ever harmed anyone he was leading around. In a matter of three years, Derek and Dexen Resort had quickly become sought-after throughout Kenya. He had been travelling all over Africa for the past decade, picking up experiences and adventure; the last three years, he had settled in Kenya.

He loved Kenya. It offered one of the most exotic wildlife tourisms of any place on earth and something about the African country and its virgin, raw, naked appeal drew him and enthralled every last one of his senses.

Ever since he had come here as a wildlife tour guide, he hadn’t looked back. He had adapted so fast and become so knowledgeable about the area, and even the language, that all the locals loved him. Everywhere he went, local women pressed food on him, and young local girls tried to rub their breasts against his arm, their dark eyes filled with silent, wicked promises smiling into his.

He made it a point to avoid them all. He alone knew his powerful secret; he alone knew he could lose all control in the throes of passion. It had happened once with Marjorie; she had discovered his secret and ultimately he had lost her forever.

He smiled a warm welcome now at the assembled tourists in front of him, unleashing his fatal attraction on the gathered crowd with his potent dimpled smile that eased his chiseled features.

Derek was very tall, at six-three, with a mass of long black hair that hung to his shoulders and was tied up at his nape with a band. His eyes were an unsettling shade of grey that tended to turn pure silver when he was in a mood — and he was in a mood more than half the time. Marjorie had described him in that lilting Spanish-accented voice of hers as the “tall, dark, brooding sort with animal magnetism.”

The thought of Marjorie made his heart squeeze in his chest and he shut his eyes for a minute, allowing himself to picture her with her short, wispy blond hair, exotic green eyes, and throaty laugh. He wanted desperately to have her in his arms again, just like in the old days; to sniff her unique shampoo and kiss her chubby cheeks until she chortled. With a tired sigh, he forced his eyes open— hell had a better chance of freezing over before any of that would happen. Besides, at this point, he wasn’t necessarily fantasizing about Marjorie; just any beautiful woman! He had been celibate for more than a decade, thanks to Marjorie!

“Welcome!” he got out, focusing his attention on the men and women assembled in front of him.

Choruses of “Hi,” and “Hello” rent the air.

“You guys ready for our tour? It’s gonna be amazing,” Derek said, smiling at the small group. They were two American couples, an African couple and a Chinese couple and they all seemed very eager to get started. Two little kids, a boy and a girl, were also hanging onto their mothers’ hands, dressed from head to toe in protective clothing.

He hid a grin. He had taken special care of the area and it was as safe as could be. But then, they were tourists; he supposed the slight niggling fear at the back of their minds was part of the excitement. Adventure was supposed to come with some small dread in the pit of your stomach, wasn’t it? Fear was good in this context; otherwise, their outing would just be a snooze-fest.

Something shifted in the wind; he tensed, inhaling deeply as a wild, indefinable scent quivered on the edge of his senses. It was sweet and tangy and strangely intense, and it seemed to go straight to his brain! What was that? Before he could fathom what it was, a fresh gust of wind blew right into his face and he lost the scent.

“I’m Derek Cavanaugh,” he told the tourists, forcing his attention back to them. “I’ll be your tour guide today. The area is pretty much safe but because I’ll be showing you a lot of hidden caves and paths and wild animals, I don’t want anyone to get lost or hurt, so you have to do exactly what I say every time, okay?” he finished as he turned to lead the way.

“Hey, hold up,” someone called, laughing breathlessly as a group of three people ran up to them. “Tom lost his shoe, so we got held up.”

Derek turned, along with everyone else. Two women and a little boy were approaching the group. The woman who had spoken was clad in tee-shirt and jeans with a pair of glasses shading her eyes. Despite her casual appearance, he could tell she was extremely wealthy. She had that aura of quiet wealth about her, and she walked with the confident gait of the average wealthy American.

Beside her, another woman tagged along with her son in tow. The second woman was wearing an unbuttoned shirt over a tank top and jeans with scuffed sneakers. She had a fresh, unspoiled face, and even from a distance, and devoid of makeup, he could tell she was a total knockout. As she walked forward, her chin-length red hair fluttered in the slight wind again and her scent blew his way, hitting him in the solar plexus like a blow.

Derek tensed, every fiber of his being going on high alert as he inhaled the second woman’s scent. That was the exact scent he had picked up earlier; it was unlike anything he had ever perceived in his entire life. It was calming and drugging at the same time; it made him want to bury his nose in her skin and hair for the rest of his life; it stoked a hunger deep in his soul, and at the same time, satisfied him. Everything inside of him roared with need. That wild, dangerous side of him reared its head; snapping to be free. His eyes glinted in warning, his teeth started to shift, and with great effort, he clenched his fists to control himself.

Through narrowed eyes, he observed that she was a deliciously stacked woman, with curves in all the right places. She was about five-eight, with slim, delicate shoulders that made a man want to protect her, smooth flawless skin like a baby, high arched brows, high cheekbones that defined her slim face and aquamarine eyes that were so startling in their intensity that even from several feet away he was struck. And yet, there was a sad quality in her eyes; barely there but he saw it. Her breasts were high and firm beneath her tank top and her tiny waist gave room to curvy hips encased in jeans so tight she seemed to have been poured into them. She was incredibly hot and … rather dangerous , he thought— she had to be, because why else would she affect him like this?

Everything in him was raring, straining to be free.

The women came closer, heedless of his inner turmoil, and Derek realized, for the first time in his life, that if he didn’t beat a hasty retreat, he could shift form right there in front of everyone.

Derek took a few hasty steps back for self-preservation; the little group kept coming closer. He saw Murphy, his co-guide, shoot him a confused look.

“I’m gonna be sick,” he got out desperately. Before anyone could so much as comment, he lunged for the back of the resort and disappeared from view.

He ran off into the dense forest behind the resort and grabbed the first strong oak he came to. He shook it hard, shaking it until it began to uproot from the ground. His entire skin was on fire as the familiar heat spread through him.

What was it about that woman that had made him lose all control? At thirty, he had mastered himself enough that he never once shifted form, unless he absolutely wanted to or unless it was a full moon. Today, though, one whiff of a woman’s scent and he had lost all control and had been about to reveal his secret.

Okay, not just any woman; this woman!

What was wrong with him? Who was she?

He gave the tree one last vigorous shake as he felt his wild side begin to recede some more. I am under control now , he thought as he slowly let go of the tree.

He’d wanted to have her in his arms with a desperation that defied all logic. He’d wanted to revel in her unique scent and bite her cheeks and lick every part of her in the most sensuous way possible — and he didn’t even know her name! What the hell was wrong with him?