Her Dragon Hero Page 8

  But Jury’s laughter faded, and his gaze flitted from my eyes to my lips. “You’re the beautiful one,” he said in a husky voice. I barely heard him.

  The expression on his face changed, darkened, and I knew he wasn’t thinking about how cute I was. The tension between us grew until it was like static. One move and it would ignite a fire.

  “I want to kiss you, but not here. Tomorrow night, will it be okay if I kiss you then?” he asked.

  I nodded without speaking. If I said one word, I would’ve been kissing him.

  “We’re going to go, I think,” Jury continued. “We’d planned to hang out, but I don’t want to interrupt your girls’ night and we can hang elsewhere.” I started to protest that he didn’t have to run off, but he glanced at Maddox. “Dude, are you okay?”

  Maddox looked over my shoulder with a stupefied expression on his face. Jury and I both looked behind us and saw Bethany headed our way from the bathrooms. She’d stopped to talk to an older woman several tables away.

  “As I was saying,” Jury continued. “I thought we could hang out, but if I stay near you, I might do something that we aren’t ready for. And you deserve some fun time with your friend.” He drank another long pull on his beer, then stood. “Do you have a DD?” he asked.

  I looked him up and down in his khakis and button-down shirt. His muscles looked like they were going to rip the buttons off the shirt. “Yeah, Bethany arranged a cab for later.”

  Jury leaned over and pressed his lips to my forehead.

  Oh, geez. I nearly melted into the booth, becoming one with the cheap pleather. I’d always wanted the type of man to give forehead kisses.

  “See you tomorrow. Have fun with your friend.”

  He nodded his head toward Bethany, then slapped Maddox’s arm. Maddox jumped and shook off the crazed look on his face before sliding out of the booth. I noticed Madd look back toward us four times as they walked toward the door.

  Bethany slid into the booth where Maddox had just left. “Why’d they leave?”

  I giggled and as soon as the door closed behind them, my body turned to mush, and I slid down in the booth. “Oh my god.”

  “What? Tell me!” Bethany leaned over and looked down at me, halfway into the floor. “What did they say?”

  I explained about the forehead kiss and forced my body to use its bones again.

  To my delight, Bethany understood about the forehead kiss. “That’s so romantic,” she squealed.

  We kept giggling and talking but were interrupted a few minutes later. “Please don’t get mad,” the girl said. “I was your server the other day, do you remember?”

  Even though I was a little tipsy, I recognized her immediately.

  “My name is Natasha,” she continued. “Tash. Anyway, I’ve known Jury for years. And I’ve never, ever seen him show a woman affection like that.”

  My jaw dropped. “Really?”

  “For sure. We met when he moved back to Black Claw and hooked up a few times a couple of years ago. I don’t think he’s ever kissed a woman on her forehead. I didn’t know he was capable of it.” She scoffed. “He always said he didn’t do kisses.” If her eyes rolled any harder, they’d stick up in her head. At least that was what my Mama had always told me.

  I looked at Bethany, who had no idea what was going on.

  Tash held out her hand. “Anyway, I just wanted to tell you I take my earlier words back about you steering clear. You must be very special to him.”

  She returned to her table, leaving me flummoxed. I had no idea if it was true. Was I special to Jury or just to Nyx? Did Nyx’s emotions influence Jury’s?

  The only thing I knew for sure was that I wanted to find out.

  Bethany distracted me by challenging me to darts. We were equally terrible at them, so we were a good match. When a couple of guys came over to hit on us, we threw our arms around each other and hugged. “Sorry, boys, we’re in a girlationship,” I said.

  When they walked away, Bethany nearly fell to the floor laughing. “Girlationship?”

  “It was the first thing that came to mind!” I exclaimed.

  We had an amazing time, and to my surprise, when it was time to go home, the cab wasn’t a cab. It was Stefan. “What are you doing here?” I asked.

  “I got a call from Jury. He called and canceled the cab and asked if I was going to be out. He knows I’m a night owl.” He held out his hand. “Ladies, your chariot awaits.”

  I made introductions and told Bethany what Jury had done. She thought it was sweet, too, and thanked him for the ride before we settled our tabs. When we got to the counter, we discovered Jury had paid both of our tabs. “Well, one was paid by J. Kingston and yours...” He pointed at Bethany. “...was paid by M. Kingston.”

  “Why would he pay my tab?” Bethany asked. “Who is M. Kingston?”

  I had an idea, based on the way Maddox had stared at her. “Jury’s cousin. He was probably just being nice. Welcoming you to the neighborhood.” I changed the subject quickly before I said too much. “Let’s go home.”

  We climbed into his truck, and I sat in the middle since he and Bethany didn’t know each other.

  She gave directions to her house, which was right down from the one I was in. She’d told me she’d been living with her parents but had moved to Black Claw when the property had been left to her and she felt good about being on her own finally.

  “Where to, ma’am? I was given strict instructions to deliver you with kid gloves.” I blushed and pointed to the house I was staying in.

  “Thank you so much,” I said when he parked. “I feel bad for taking away from your sleep.”

  “Hey, don’t sweat it. I was up. Can I give you a little advice?”

  I nodded eagerly. Stefan was good people.

  “Jury is young. He’s got a lot of growing to do, but I think he’s going to be a great man. I hope you can be patient with him.”

  His words were all I could think about when I went inside. Then I thought about Jury, and his arms around me. The next thing I knew, I was digging in the secret zipper of my suitcase for my vibrator.

  As I pressed it to my clit and lay back on the bed, I thought about Jury and his deep hazel eyes. Stefan was right. Jury had goodness in him. I imagined his arms around me again, and the kiss he would hopefully be pressing to my lips the next night as I pressed the vibrator harder against my clit. It wasn’t enough by far, when it always had been before. With a moan, I let the orgasm build and hoped that soon I’d be having a whole different experience with Jury.

  I was no virgin, but it had been a very long time, and imagining him filling me, stretching me as he slid in and out helped the little toy bring my orgasm very quickly. It burst through my core, making me clench and moan as I rolled over onto my stomach with my hands pressing the pink vibrator against me to get every drop of pleasure I could out of it. When I didn’t think I could squeeze another drop from it, I turned off the toy and set it on a tissue by my bed to wash in the morning.

  It hadn’t been enough, but it had to do. I drifted off to sleep with the image of Jury’s eyes heavy on my mind.

  12

  Jury

  I couldn’t believe we were on Abby’s fourth day in Black Claw. We only had another three before she went back to Texas.

  In every bit of spare time since the barbeque, I’d been letting Nyx shift, now that he was happier and wasn’t holding us back. And since I had a date that night with Abby, I gave Nyx his head for most of the morning. I needed to work on a little research for my next paper in the afternoon before getting ready to meet her. I told Nyx it was time to head back. I’d invited Stefan over to shift, partially because I wanted a flying partner, but partially because I hoped to get his advice.

  I smelled him before he came out of the back door. My ears were sharp, but my nose was better; I hadn’t heard him drive up.

  Flying low over the treetops, I landed in the backyard as Stefan grinned at me. “Ready to fly?” he asked.


  Nyx growled a response.

  Leaving his clothes on the lawn, he ran toward me and shifted as he moved. By the time he was close, he was fully shifted into his red-hued scales. He launched higher into the air and left me in the dust. I ran to catch up, Nyx’s wings beating as our large body rose above the trees. We chased Stefan for miles, then managed to bite the tip of his tail. He roared with anger for being caught as I made a sharp turn and flew back toward the house. If I could make it there without him touching me—or biting me—then I’d win. We’d played this game many times and as long as Maverick wasn’t playing, we all had a good shot at winning against each other.

  Maddox cheated a lot, though.

  I almost made it home before he caught me. I’d been swinging my tail back and forth to propel me faster, but also so he couldn’t touch it. But he got a burst of speed at the last minute and as I made a beeline for the ground, prepared to hit hard, he slammed into me.

  Nyx and I went rolling into the soft backyard, the wind knocked out of us. Defeated.

  Stefan’s dragon, Eros, landed with a roar of triumph. He puffed up and pranced around for a second while we caught our breath.

  Nyx let me shift back, and I jogged over to my pile of clothes. “Okay, Eros, you won. You’re the fiercest in all the land.”

  He stopped prancing and looked at me, then blew smoke out of his nose as if to say, “Darn right.”

  Before I’d finished dressing, Stefan’s voice replaced the gentle thunder of the dragon’s presence. “Your time of not shifting has made you slower,” he said. “You need to shift as often as possible and fly.”

  I nodded and buckled my belt. “I know. Nyx is so much happier now, though.”

  “So, did you just want a flying partner?” Stefan asked with an expectant look on his face as he held his shirt in front of him. “Or would you like to talk?”

  “Talk, please. I’ll grab a beer.”

  He pulled his phone out of his pocket. “It’s a little early, but I’ll have one.”

  I shook my head. “No, how about a sandwich instead?”

  “Now you’re talking.”

  Dad had gone with Mom to look at some furniture piece she wanted to buy for Charlotte, so the house was pretty quiet. I pulled out lunch meat and handed it to Stefan. He’d been over often enough to feel at home and helped me prepare our lunch.

  “So, what’s up?” he asked.

  “Abby.” I set the mustard and mayo on the counter.

  “I figured that much. What about her?”

  “I don’t date much, you know?”

  He pulled out a butter knife and snorted. “That’s a lie.”

  “No, it’s not. I hooked up plenty. But I rarely ever dated.” He cleared his throat. With a sigh, I clarified. “More like never.”

  He paused in spreading condiments. “I see the distinction. Go on.”

  “Having sex on the first date is nothing for me.” I set the rest of the ingredients out and leaned against the counter. “But with Abby, even though I feel the pull twice as hard as I ever have before, I’m scared of rushing it.” I set my hands on the table and clarified again before he called me out on it. “Okay, about a thousand times harder than I ever have before. This is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced.”

  Stefan put his sandwich together and took a bite, looking around the kitchen as he considered my predicament. “Well,” he said. “Is she a virgin?”

  I shrugged. “I’m assuming not, but who knows?” I wondered what made him ask that question. Who was a virgin at twenty-two anymore?

  “The best thing you can do is let her take the lead. She knows about dragons. Does she know you two are mates?”

  I nodded and began assembling my sandwich. “Yeah.”

  “Okay, then she knows what she’s getting in to. I can’t say I’d rush the claiming bite yet, but if she’s willing and you know you’re going to end up together, why not? Fated mates are rare, yet around here we seem to have hit some sort of jackpot. If we can figure out how we all found our mates and bottle it, we’ll make a fortune.”

  I chuckled and put away the food now that my sandwich was made. “True. Eventually, we’ll end up together, if I consider every other mate situation I’ve ever heard of. It’s inevitable.”

  He nodded. “Let her take the lead, be respectful of her boundaries, and have fun.”

  For once, I’d asked for advice and he’d told me exactly what I wanted to hear. It had been damn hard to leave her at the bar the night before when she was clearly trying to send me signals. She wanted it as much as I did, although probably without the urge to claim me the way I wanted to claim her.

  “Thanks, man.”

  He grinned with a mouthful of sandwich. “Anytime.”

  I snorted and shoved him, then grabbed my sandwich and went to the table. Stefan joined me and we talked about other things, like the baby, and how the remodel was going at the shop. But my mind was only half engaged in the conversation.

  I couldn’t wait for tonight. Whatever happened, sex or no sex, at least I’d be with Abby.

  What an about-face I’d done. At first, I’d only wanted to be around her to help Nyx, but the more I got to know her, the more things I loved about her.

  13

  Abby

  I slept really late the next day. When I finally woke, I felt relaxed and well-rested. I’d tried to pace myself the night before and stay tipsy without crossing into full-blown drunk. When I got home, before my alone time, I’d guzzled some water to help rehydrate me.

  It had worked. I felt great and had a sizzling date to look forward to. I called Harley to find out what services her salon offered.

  She answered in a tight voice. “What’s wrong?” I asked.

  A long breath being released answered me. “Are you in labor?” I squealed.

  “I don’t know yet,” she said after a few more breaths. “I’m having contractions but they’re very sporadic.”

  “Can I come over? Do you need anything?” I jumped up and looked around the bedroom as if I was going to run over there and catch the baby myself or something.

  “No, please, it’s super boring. We’re sitting here timing each one and watching TV.”

  “That sounds amazing. I’ll be right there.”

  I hit the shower and grabbed my purse. By the time I got to the house, Nana was snoozing in her chair in the living room. The nurse answered the door. “Her contractions stopped,” she whispered. “So she went to nap. She tried to call you.”

  I grabbed my phone and realized it was on silent. I was bad about hitting the little button on the side that silenced it. “Thank you,” I whispered. “I’ll text her later.”

  The sweet nurse nodded and shut the door. I found myself back in my car with nothing to do now. Except maybe hit the salon and get that pedicure I’d missed the other day.

  I made it to Main Street without using GPS. I was turning into a regular Black Claw citizen.

  The salon wasn’t busy, so they got me in right away. While my toes were soaking, I asked quietly about a bikini wax and found out they did offer the service and could get me in right away. And best of all, they asked if I’d be interested in letting a trainee do it for a discount.

  Hot damn. I would’ve paid full price if I’d needed to. I wasn’t about to drop Harley’s name or something crappy like that. But letting a trainee practice? Hells, yeah. It also meant I could leave a bigger tip.

  All in all, the morning turned to afternoon and by the time I left the salon, I felt like a million bucks. I even let them give me a blow-out so I wouldn’t have to fix my hair before the date.

  As I got ready, carefully applying makeup, my phone rang the ringtone I’d selected for Harley. “We are Family” by Sister Sledge. Seemed fitting.

  I hit the answer button, then tapped the speakerphone icon. “Hey!” I chirped.

  “How are you feeling?”

  “Huge. I’m sorry I missed you earlier.” She sounded so forlorn I had
to chuckle.

  “Poor almost-mama. It’s okay. I went to your salon and had a good pampering, now I’m getting ready for my date.”

  Her squeal made me jerk my head away from the phone, even though it was lying on the countertop. “I’m so excited,” she yelled. “Where are you going?”

  “I have no idea. I’m wearing a simple blue dress. I only brought two, so hopefully it’ll be fine.” I carefully lined my eyes and grabbed my mascara.

  “I’m sure it’ll be great. Just go with the flow and see if you can’t learn to like him even more.”

  “I will. I’ll text you when I get home so you can call me if you’re up.”

  “I can’t wait!” She hung up and I swore she was more excited than I was. I’d been looking forward to it, probably too much, but all day I’d tried to pull myself back.

  While I hadn’t had a long list of relationships, the ones I had been in hadn’t been successful. Nothing terrible like cheaters or anything. I’d never been beaten up. But they’d all been duds. It had never worked out for one reason or another. My mother had liked to say it was because I was too damn picky.

  I liked to say it was because I held my standards far higher than hers. Whatever the reasons, I hadn’t had a lot of luck.

  Jury was my fated mate, though. It made me cautiously optimistic, yet my track record kept me grounded. Plus, our rocky start and how we met made me want to guard my heart. He’d been kinda mean at first.

  Whatever was happening in the future between us, I was determined to have a good time tonight. Wherever he took me, I was sure I could find a way to let loose and enjoy myself. This was my vacation, after all.

  When I finished getting ready, I felt like a brand-new woman. All waxed and buffed, blown-out, and painted pretty.

  There was something about dressing up, too.

  Jury knocked on the front door with perfect timing as I slipped on my strappy heels. I’d only brought one pair of dress shoes, figuring I wouldn’t be doing a lot of fancy events with my sister and her new baby. If she ever had her.