“You’re mated?” he asked, surprised as his grip on me tightened.
“Yes,” I ground out. “And my mate will destroy you when he learns of how I’ve been treated by the help.”
His laugh went all through me. It set my lower girlie region into overdrive and made me want to tear his head off at the same time. This Dragon was bad news. The sooner I got away from him the better. I had Seth—kind of. I didn’t need any complications—not that killer guy would even want me for more than a roll in the hay. Dragons were over-sexed perverts. The mind-bogglingly large bulge in his pants that he had pressed up against my back was proof that they all wanted one thing.
“You’re not mated,” he stated firmly. “I’d be able to tell.”
Damn it, he was correct. If I were mated, I’d have the scent of my mate on me. Hell, I hadn’t even slept with my mate yet. I knew that Seth wasn’t my true mate even though I wanted him to be. However, the bastard that wouldn’t let go had no claim on me.
Dragons technically had one true mate, but rarely did we have happily ever afters. Violence followed us everywhere and more often than not, a Dragon’s true mate was killed before they ever met. Or the female’s true mate was killed by a stronger Dragon that desired her…exactly what happened to my mother.
“I’m not mated yet,” I snarled as I broke his hold and turned on him. “I will be very soon. And if you lay your hands on me again, I’ll fry your ass to a crisp.”
The look of shock on his face at my escape was priceless. However, I wished I’d kept my back to him. He was hotter than hell on fire. Wouldn’t it figure? If I’d met him under different circumstances, I’d have jumped him in a heartbeat—a meaningless one night stand. But I didn’t meet him in a normal situation…whatever normal meant for Dragons who lived hundreds of years. And I wasn’t looking for a meaningless lay—at all. Ever. I was a single mother with a boyfriend who wouldn’t sleep with me. I was perfectly fine.
It didn’t help that the Dragon bouncer was devastatingly beautiful. His eyes were a golden green and his shoulder length hair was jet black. Cheekbones that could cut glass and a body that belonged on the set of a Hollywood action adventure where the men wore no shirts.
Crappity crap crap.
I wondered if his Dragon form was as beautiful as his human form. Hopefully I would never see his Dragon. If his human was this deadly, his Dragon would be a freakin’ nightmare.
But damn, it would be fun to shift and have a bloody fight with someone—even a gorgeous jerk. I’d been on the lam and hiding my true nature for so long my own Dragon was angry with me.
“By all means, go in and find you mate,” he replied with a smirk on his stupidly full and kissable lips. “Do you have a name, feisty girl?”
“Nope, I don’t,” I replied as I turned on my flimsy heel and prayed it didn’t snap. “And if I did, I wouldn’t give it to you.”
“Oh, I’ll get your name. That’s a promise,” he purred as he slipped back into the darkness preparing to scare the life out of the next unsuspecting guest.
“Don’t make promises you can’t keep, big boy,” I said as I marched away, refusing to look back.
“I don’t,” he said quietly. “Never have. Never will.”
I whipped around to level him with an insult and a zap of fire that would make him hurt, but he was gone. I couldn’t scent him or see him. What the hell kind of Dragons did they have here in Chicago? This night couldn’t get any worse.
Who was I kidding? It could always get worse.
With one last scan of the parking lot, I shrugged and approached the warehouse. The guard was very good. I hoped that wasn’t telling of the power and skill inside—or maybe I did. If I were to ally myself with these Dragons it would be outstanding if they were all as crazy and powerful as the idiot standing guard.
Only one way to find out.
I pushed at the heavy metal door and it was quickly opened from the other side. My stomach lurched with a queasiness I hadn’t felt in ages—first the sexy killer in the parking lot and now this. The opulence of the interior blatantly belied its outer shell. It reminded me of my youth and not in a warm and fuzzy way. Could these people be as evil and materialistic as the ones I’d been running from for years?
“May I take your wrap, Miss?” a formal, tuxedo attired attendant inquired in a monotone. He had as much emotion as the ornate marble covered floor. Handing him my invitation, I shook my head no as I stood at the mouth of Hell and knew I’d made an enormous mistake.
Every instinct I had was to run. Trust was earned. I trusted no one here and as soon as my identity was revealed, I was certain no one would trust me either. What the hell had I been thinking when I told Seth, my kind-of sort-of boyfriend, I would join him? These people didn’t want my help and I didn’t want theirs. And where in God’s name was Seth?
“Are you here alone?” the doorman asked as I stood frozen in my spot.
“No. I’m looking for my escort,” I replied as I scanned the room trying my best not to let my distress show.
That was impossible. My distress was very clear to the personality-free Dragon who’d requested my wrap. It was going to be obvious to every Dragon in the room—and there had to be at least two hundred of them present.
Again. What the hell was I thinking? I was still breathing because I’d avoided my people for years and now I willingly entered a lair? Stupid, stupid, stupid.