Page 20 of Tempting Her Dragons (Embracing The Bond #10)

Chapter Twenty

Maverick

M y arm is wrapped around my mate, and her eyes are heavy. The situation is tense, but I can’t help it—I enjoy having her pressed close.

The office filled up with shifters. Saphira’s brothers’ faces drained of color as we told them the situation. Their attention constantly moved back to Saphira as they worked with the others. They weren’t happy with Ryker, but have calmed enough to work together. I understand both sides of the situation. Saphira needed to open up to her brothers, and I’m grateful we were here with her when she did. They love her and are worried about her. I can smell their sadness and pain through their scent. I have no doubt they will support her once it settles in their mind.

The panthers arrived with their bar manager, Stephan. They explained he was talented with computers, so he was at the desk, several open in front of him. Sally and Mom were huddled together, watching everyone. King paced in front of the desk; his energy high.

I’ve been messaging Shade. He finally responded, but he hasn’t been able to pinpoint the twin’s location yet and doesn’t appreciate my constant texting. Shade values his privacy and wants to remain in the background. It isn’t the time to have a conversation about his infiltration into the group and his silence about it. We need to find the threat first. Honestly, I don’t care who he knows or works with. He helped us find Saphira and nothing else matters. It would have been nice to know who we were coming here for, but I can overlook his secrecy.

Saphira is right. This man is human. His brother was human, too, but he caused damage to many women. Their families were affected by their experience and their death. Humans may be weak, but they live in shadows, no one suspecting their vicious ways. Right or wrong, if we didn’t have Saphira, we would walk through the streets, making ourselves a target, asking for his attention.

For two men who have never had anything gifted to us such as Saphira, we won’t apologize for wanting to hide her away, never to be hurt again.

“Brother,” King says. “Take her home.”

“I’m awake,” Saphira mutters.

“Firefly, you’re not.” His face clears, and he walks over, crouching in front of her.

“Research is boring,” she says. “It’s my least favorite part.” She sits up, stretching.

“I’ll stay,” he says. “Get some sleep, go with Mav.” He rubs his thumb over her jaw and straightens.

“Alright.” She stands quickly and sways. We both move to steady her.

“Let us know,” I say, wrapping my arm around her.

“Of course.” He kisses her and squeezes her hand before moving to the desk.

“Take care of her,” Laken grumbles, and I nod. “Night, sis.”

“Night.” Bishop intercepts us, kissing her on the forehead. She leans into his touch and smiles. “Be safe. We love you.”

“Love you,” she whispers. I clasp her hand and pull her through the doorway. I move quickly through the club. The crowd is thinning at the late hour.

Everyone moves out of my way, probably seeing the strain I can’t hide. I’m uncomfortable having Saphira out in the open. I take her safety seriously. I can’t imagine the twin attacking in the club with so many witnesses and various shifters around him. He would be killed swiftly and mercilessly. He could have approached her while we were distracted by her ex-date earlier. He wants to cause chaos and fear.

I open the car door for Saphira, my eyes constantly scanning the area. Once I’m in my seat, I relax slightly, but my anxiety is running high.

“Maverick,” Saph says, turning in her seat.

“It’s alright, baby. I’ll get us home safely.” I glide my hand over her head and then turn my attention to driving.

She quiets and soon I hear her breathing change. I’m thrilled she spent time with King today. I could see the satisfaction on his face as I entered the club and knew he was at peace. He deserves Saphira’s love. For too many years, he has been going through the motions of life, unsure of the future. He wanted me to believe he was happy, but something was missing, for both of us. We had a purpose and a life that should have been fulfilling. Mom loved us as if we were still little boys, and most days, still treated us that way. Her unending love should have been enough.

Saphira is what was missing. We need her now and won’t be able to go on if she is taken from us. I have to be vigilant. I’m in charge of taking care of our mate. I keep my gaze rotating from the road to the mirrors. I don’t need to be followed.

We don’t have enough information about the brother. We can’t even find his real name. He has used numerous aliases. He is talented at hiding. I don’t like going into any rescue without having as many facts about the mark as possible. Many of the images Shade found on camera are of his side profile. He doesn’t hide, but he won’t show himself fully. He has to know they are there. He’s lived years as a ghost, and that’s not possible unless he knows all the tricks of evasion. I’m curious what he is hiding from.

When we take jobs, we know everything about the mark; their family, friends, jobs, and what they like to eat. Shade is very thorough, but we still dig into their backgrounds. I don’t know how the brother was missed. Going into the rescue, we are invisible, erasing any trace of our presence. We fucked up on the job. We allowed a victim to hear King’s full name and to see his face. It’s our fault he is being hunted.

I park in front of the cabin and turn off the car. Getting out, I stand with the door open, looking around the area. I let my senses free, listening for any sound out of place. I hear nothing but animals, and the natural sounds of the forest. Humans have a salty smell to me. I will smell him if he comes.

Saphira doesn’t stir as I close the car door and move to hers. I scoop her up and hold her close. Going up the stairs, I use my mind to open the locks and use my foot to gain entrance. Nothing has been disturbed. The only scents I smell are ours. I kick the door closed and re-engage the locks.

I float, placing her on her bed, and remove her shoes before slipping her legs under the covers. She snuggles into the pillow but doesn’t wake.

I can’t wait to see her dragon. It is another way to bond when dragons fly together. I can talk to King while we are in our animal form. Most shifters can, but usually it is in pictures. We haven’t discussed our power with Saphira. We rarely use all the gifts we have. Seeing her kill, we are amazed at her abilities. We have had no reason to share what we can do.

I leave the bedroom door open and move through the house, double-checking every avenue of entry. I won’t be able to sleep tonight, even if my mate is tempting. Opening the fridge, I grab some water, drink it quickly, and move to the window at the front of the house.

I love being in dragon form. Flying through the sky takes my breath away even now. This will be the perfect place to stretch out our wings without being seen. At home, we shift several times a week. It’s been too long, and my skin vibrates with need. My dragon is moving against my skin, ready to bond with our mate and fly with her. I bet she is beautiful.

Most shifters can’t shift with their clothes intact, but we can. Our magic is vast. We can move things with our mind, levitate, breathe fire—in and out of shifter form—and poison with one touch. While shifted, our dragon’s skin is deadly to humans and can cause damage to other shifters. Our massive claws can drip poison, as well. Not many can beat us.

There’s a rustling of covers and I tilt my head to the side as Saphira climbs from her bed, leaves her room, walking quickly to my side.

“Are you alright?” she asks, slipping her hand in mine. Her breasts press against my arm, her other hand grasping the back of my neck.

“I’m fine.” I breathe deep. “I should be asking you how you are.”

“It was draining,” she admits. “Telling my brothers what I do is a relief, and a conversation that needed to happen for a long time. They took it better than I expected.”

“All they want to do is protect you,” I say.

“I know. I just didn’t want them to doubt my abilities.”

“I don’t think they do. It’s a brother’s job to look out for their sister or brother. King and I have always had each other’s best interest at heart.” It would kill me if something happened to him.

“Not saying anything was my way of protecting them,” she sighs. “I didn’t want to worry them with my activities or sadness.”

“That’s what families are for, right?” I ask.

“True,” she says softly.

“They were trying to protect you the best they could, they just went about it in the wrong way. I’m glad they apologized and acknowledged the hurt they caused. You deserve to be praised for the work you do. It’s courageous and commendable.” I kiss her head. “Once everything settles, they’ll see it that way, too.”

“Thank you,” she mumbles. “You didn’t lie down with me.”

“I won’t be able to sleep,” I whisper.

“You’re worried,” she guesses.

“I am,” I confirm. “Any other time, I wouldn’t care that someone wants to kill us.”

“It’s because of me.” She pulls and pushes her grip slightly. “Mav, I am not helpless.”

“I know. I know,” I repeat softly. “It’s hard to put it into words.”

“I’ll listen,” she says.

I look out the window. “It took years to believe Mom wouldn’t leave us. We didn’t know what to think when she took us to a farmhouse in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by fields of vegetation. She told us it was our home. We would live with her and never be harmed again. It was difficult to trust. She fed us, bought us clothes, and gave us a room each. I didn’t sleep in my bedroom for a year. Once the house was quiet, I snuck across the hall. King stood in his doorway waiting. He would grab my hand and pull me in. The room had a lock, but we also moved the dresser against it. We couldn’t relax. She saved us—logically we knew that—but our emotions were skeptical.

“We thought maybe she did it to do something else bad. We took turns sleeping, and King never let go of my hand. He was my brother and my safe place. Every morning, Mom would knock on the door and invite us down for breakfast. It was a week before we accepted her invitation. She would leave food outside the door when we were determined to starve. It wasn’t a big deal to us. They had denied us food plenty of times.” Saph drops her head to my shoulder. “I remember her face that morning. She couldn’t hide her relief. Every day, she would try to break through and gain our trust. Little by little, she did it. As we came to believe the life she swore she would give us, proving by her actions it was true, we still had moments of fear. She was too good to be true. Who rescued two boys and gave them a good life?

“Several times, she would go into town, and we refused to go. There were things she had to do, and we always wondered if she would come back. Other times, she would get up before us and go outside to work the gardens. When we couldn’t find her, we would panic, thinking she left us.”

“She never did,” she whispers.

“Never.” I release her hand and wrap my arm around her waist. “We have moments as if we are boys again. You came into our life fast and unexpectedly. You could be taken away just as fast. Logically, we know you are a fierce woman and dragon, but anything could happen. We didn’t know our parents would be killed in such a gruesome way, and they were shifters.”

“I’m sorry,” she says. “I don’t want you to worry. Roxanne is a wonderful woman and I’m so thankful she found you. I want you to trust that I can do anything. Everyone has limits, and even though we are dragons, shit happens. My past is filled with situations you wouldn’t think a powerful dragon would be in.” She moves so her front is pressed against mine. “We both have to learn how to trust.”

“Do you trust us?” I ask, cupping her hips.

“I do. You have done everything to allow me to.”

“Good. I think you are our equal.” I kiss her softly, but pull back quickly.

“What’s wrong?”

“You are distracting.”

“Maybe we need a distraction,” she smirks.

“If I start tonight, I won’t want to stop.” I take a deep breath. “Baby, I can’t be gentle.”

“Then don’t,” she says. “I don’t need you to go slow or gentle.”

“Be sure,” I growl.