The loamy scent of dirt mixed with tangy pines, sweeter deciduous trees, and the freshness of the first buds of spring. The air was tainted with the faint smell of a man. He had it now and would recognize it if their paths ever crossed, but above it all was the unique scent of Raine. It was slightly spicy and sweet, below the sweat and tang of blood.

  “You’re no monster. Maybe a bit snarly and stubborn. And, okay, you talk about killing, more than is probably healthy. But if you were a monster, you’d have let me die.”

  “I almost did.” He was no hero. If she saw him that way, she was doomed to disappointment.

  “Almost doesn’t count. When it came down to it, you did the right thing.”

  He almost hadn’t, and that would haunt him. His personal code of right and wrong had always guided him, kept him from straying over the line. But the line had become blurred, almost nonexistent in the years leading up to him disappearing into the cave. He’d been teetering on the edge, perilously close to becoming something he never wanted to be. Monster. The word echoed through the centuries.

  “Are you okay?” A soft touch on his arm yanked him back to the present. Worry clouded her pretty eyes. He cursed when he noticed she was biting her bottom lip. It was wet and full and begged to be kissed. She pulled back when he swore. “I’m sorry.”

  He shook his head and rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s nothing you did. It’s me.” It was always him.

  Her tentative smile settled him. “Don’t worry about it. Wrap the sleeping bag around you and we’ll start walking. You can always fly away if you want to. Not like I can stop you.”

  Her kindness warmed the cold places in his soul. She had no idea how unusual her fearlessness was, or how attractive. She thought she was being clever, but he recognized her game—couching her request to make it seem as though he was the one helping her when her intention was the opposite.

  Maybe we can help each other.

  When was the last time anyone extended a hand of help or friendship? The dark-haired man with weapons tattooed on his body flashed into his mind once again, the memory of who he was just out of reach.

  He unzipped the sleeping bag and wrapped it around his waist. It fell almost to his knees. He’d rather go naked, but if it would make her happy, he’d put up with looking ridiculous.

  The urgency to leave, to find another place to sleep, was lessening the more time he spent with her. An alarm bell sounded in the back of his brain, but he ignored it. After saving her life, it would be wrong to not make sure she was safe. He owed her that much. If his logic was flawed, too damn bad.

  “Come on.” She held her hand out to him. This time he took it. Dirt was embedded beneath her nails. The bandages she’d put on her blisters and cuts were stained and torn, a testament to her determination.

  He brought her hand to his mouth and pressed his lips against her palm. Her fingers jerked but she didn’t pull away. A rosy hue spread over her cheeks, a big improvement over her earlier paleness.

  With her free hand, she pulled a thin black rectangular box from her pocket.

  “What’s that?” It lit up when she pressed a button.

  “It’s a cell phone. It enables me to talk to anyone around the world.” She typed in a number and then pressed another button. “And this shows me where I am in relation to my car so I can find my way out.”

  “All that in one tiny box?” Mankind had made huge advances.

  “Like I said, the world is much different than it was three hundred years ago, but don’t worry, I’ll help you get acclimated.”

  An unaccountable hunger rose within him, and it wasn’t for food. His cock stirred to life. A low growl vibrated through him. He licked his lips, wondering what she’d taste like. Sweet or spicy or a combination? Heat rolled over him, pouring off his skin and singeing the ground beneath his feet.

  “You doing okay? You made some sort of growly sound.”

  “I’m fine.”

  She’s dangerous. As much as he was drawn to her and as innocent as she seemed, he couldn’t forget she’d done the impossible—awakened him and convinced him to leave the cave. He was a fierce drakon, once feared by the mightiest nations of the world, yet he was unable to walk away. A sliver of concern dimmed some of his arousal. It would be smarter to leave, but there were questions that needed answering. And, like it or not, Raine was at the center of it all.

  …

  What I wouldn’t give for a cup of coffee.

  Her boots now weighed fifty pounds each, and that was no exaggeration. Okay, maybe a slight one, but it could be forgiven. Every step took more effort than the last. Fatigue pressed down on her. The stump rose out of nowhere, catching her toe and sending her off balance. Too tired to correct and regain her balance, she began to fall.

  Strong hands caught her. “I’ve got you.” Lucius scooped her up like she weighed nothing. From this position, her face was right next to a wide swath of bare, warm, muscled flesh. She wanted to bury it against his broad chest and make yummy noises.

  The rumble that went through him vibrated into her in the most delicious way, making her skin tingle. He’s a drakon and you’re a human. Don’t take advantage of him. Some would scoff the idea was even possible. He was stronger and bigger, but he’d been asleep a long time, was disoriented after waking after so long, and only beginning to find his way.

  “Thanks for the save.” She patted his pectoral muscle, but come on, how could she resist? It was right there tempting her. It was as sleek and hard as it looked. “You can put me down.”

  “No.” His jaw clenched and his lips firmed. His very kissable lips. Don’t notice that. Look away.

  “Ah, why not?” She pressed a hand against his chest, letting his warmth sink into her.

  “I will carry you.”

  It was one thing to be independent, quite another to be stupid. “Put me down when you get tired.”

  The heat from his big body surrounded her and made her feel safe, a totally foreign experience. The temptation to make it into more than it was flitted through her nimble brain.

  It was a pipedream, but a pleasant one. It was also pure avoidance on her part. Lucius was much more fascinating than thinking about the fact that someone had tried to kill her. Mack had led her to the cave for a reason. If he’d wanted her dead, he could’ve accomplished that anywhere, anytime. No matter how she looked at it, Lucius was at the center of this. Had Mack known she’d somehow be able to wake the drakon? Did he even know what Lucius was? If so, how?

  Trying to figure it out only gave her a headache and made her nauseous. As soon as they were out of here, she’d pull on her big girl panties and deal with the mess her life had become.

  “You’re thinking loudly.” His voice was different in his human form. Still deep, but not the baritone of his drakon.

  “Sorry. I’m trying to process everything.” Talk about an understatement. Her mind was a whirlwind of activity.

  He grunted again and kept walking. His even gait, the slow rise and fall of his chest, relaxed her. I’ll close my eyes for a second. No more than that…

  She jolted when a crow cawed. The sky was much lighter than it had been. “Did I fall asleep? Why didn’t you wake me?” Twisting her head from side to side, she tried to get her bearings. “You might be off course.” She fumbled for her phone.

  “I am going in the right direction.”

  She barely kept from rolling her eyes. It was official. Didn’t matter the species, men wouldn’t stop to ask for directions. “How do you know?” Smooth, hard skin brushed against her hand when she reached into her pocket. It took her two tries to punch in her password. The GPS came to life. She checked the reading and frowned. “You are going in the right direction. How is that possible?”

  “I’m following my nose. In that direction, I detect things that aren’t natural to the forest.”

  “That’s some nose you’ve got. Oh God, put me down.” She patted his chest. “Now,” she added more firmly.

  He stopped and lowered her legs, making sure she was steady before taking a step back. “Do you feel ill?”

  “No, but I stink.”

  He tilted his head to one side, the pink of his eyes seeming almost lighter than they had been, glowing around the darker pupils. His nostrils flared. “I can smell sweat and the cave.”

  “Earth, open up and swallow me now,” she muttered. On her most-embarrassing-moments scale, this one hit the top five.

  “You also smell sweet and spicy.” His voice dropped an octave, and he crowded against her.

  “Wait. What?”

  His fingers glided over her cheek. “So soft.” His thumb grazed her bottom lip, sending shivers of delight rippling through her. “So alluring.” Her nipples tingled and perked up, standing at attention.

  Alluring? Her? “Are you sure you’re not suffering from some post waking-up-from-a-long-nap thing?”

  The corners of his mouth twitched. “My senses are more alive than ever.”

  Was that a good thing or a bad thing? It no longer mattered when he lowered his head, his breath teasing her mouth just before his lips touched hers, soft and warm and leaving her wanting more.

  Fingers curling against his chest, she went up on her toes to deepen the contact. Oh, he tasted good. Like chocolate and hot male—pure heaven. When she parted her lips on a groan, he swept inside, teasing her tongue with his.

  This is the best kiss ever. No, it’s wrong. He thinks he’s recovered from his ordeal, but he’s not. I’m taking advantage of him. I’ll stop. Any second now.

  The world ceased to exist. The forest cocooned them. Other than his lips on hers, Lucius wasn’t touching her, wasn’t doing anything that might overwhelm or cause her fear. The kiss was gentle, showing great restraint, but that made it even more poignant. She ran her tongue over his full bottom lip, eliciting another of those deep groans she was coming to love.

  A sound intruded her erotic bubble. She blinked and found herself staring at Lucius’s broad back. The muscles in his shoulders were bunched, his head cocked to one side. Then she heard it again. “That’s an engine.”

  His shoulders were stiff, his stony face back in place. Gone was the gentle man who’d carried her and kissed her. This man was scary. No, not a man, a male, a drakon.

  Maybe he regretted kissing her. Not that it mattered. It was just a kiss. And a tsunami was just a tiny wave. Her entire body was still vibrating.

  “My car is over there. Stay here while I make sure no one else is around.” The last thing they needed was for someone to see and possibly record them. And it would give her a few minutes to cool down from the super-hot kiss. Her job was to help Lucius, not seduce him. If she could remember that, she’d be fine.

  Chapter Six

  Hours later, Lucius wheeled the vehicle into her driveway. It pained her to admit, but he was a damn good driver. A fast learner, too. Quick and competent, with sharp reflexes.

  “Remind me again how you talked me into letting you get in the driver’s seat?” She still wasn’t quite certain how it had happened. After watching her for about an hour, he’d given her a smile that had practically blinded her. His eyes had glinted with undeniable challenge, and before she knew it, she’d stopped to switch places.

  “You didn’t use some drakon mind control on me, did you?” That was impossible, right?

  He put the car in park and turned the key to silence the engine. “Why would I do that when reason works so well?”

  “That’s not an answer.”

  Ignoring her, Lucius shoved the door open and climbed out, stretching his arms toward the sky. The sleeping bag slipped low and then slithered down his lower half in slow motion.

  Raine almost swallowed her tongue as his entire body was put on display under the morning sun. The tattoos covering his left side seemed to glow, the gold taking on an even rosier tone. There was no pattern she could discern, but it was a series of swirls that interconnected from his neck to his ankle. The muscles in his back and shoulders bunched and flexed. The cheeks of his ass were beefy and full, his legs strong enough to withstand a hurricane.

  When he turned, their eyes met. The wind playfully teased the ends of his brown hair, the silky strands sliding across his face. The pink of his eyes deepened. All the moisture in her mouth dried up, making it impossible to swallow.

  She’d seen him naked, but somehow it was like seeing him anew. And he was aroused. No hiding his erection, which seemed even bigger in the light of day.

  She blinked, breaking the spell. Don’t just sit here like some lovestruck idiot. Order given, she opened her door and got out, retrieving her backpack to give him time to reposition the sleeping bag. When she deemed enough had passed, she straightened.

  He was still naked.

  “Put that back on.” She pointed to the crumpled fabric lying on the cold ground.

  “Why? This is natural.”

  “Maybe for you. It makes me uncomfortable.” In more ways than one. “Not all of us look that good naked,” she muttered.

  “I heard that.” His grin was fleeting, but she didn’t mind if her objection amused him, since he did as she asked. When he was suitably covered, she grabbed her keys and closed the car door.

  “Follow me.” Her house was more than big enough for her but seemed to shrink when he entered. After dumping her gear on the floor just inside the door, she punched in the code to deactivate the security system before it alerted. “Penelope? Come here, baby.” Her pet always raced to greet her when she got home, sometimes acting more like a dog than a cat. There was no padding of feet, no happy meow. “Penelope?”

  “She’s in there.” Lucius pointed toward the bedroom. “She senses me.”

  Raine hurried into the room, dropped to her knees, and looked under the bed. Two green eyes stared back at her. “Come here, girl.” She held out her hand, letting the cat sniff it. “It’s safe.”

  “That’s a perfect picture.” Lucius leaned against the doorjamb with his arms crossed, his massive biceps on display. He wasn’t looking at her face but her behind, which was up in the air. She sat back on her heels and scowled.

  “Stop staring at my butt.”

  “Why? It’s a beautiful one.”

  Pleasure at the compliment warmed her, but she ruthlessly shoved it aside. “You don’t deny it?”

  “Why would I? It’s the truth.”

  The man was as blunt as a wrecking ball. He strolled into her room, went to her dresser, and began to pick up everything on it, studying it before setting it back in place.

  “Stop that.”

  He frowned and set a dragon statue back in place and resumed his post by the door. “You have eclectic tastes.”

  That was a polite way of putting it. Her bedroom wall was covered in prints of mythical creatures—fairies, dragons, werewolves, and even a phoenix. Sculptures littered her dresser and the shelf in the corner, along with chunks of amethyst, rose quartz, and other crystals. It didn’t exactly scream an adult lived here. It was more adolescent fantasy nerd.

  “I’m hungry.” She strode toward the entry, but he didn’t move. She had to turn sideways to sidle past him, sucking in a breath when their bodies slid against each other. Heat radiated from him, along with a sexual allure that was getting harder to deny.

  “I’m hungry, too.” His voice had deepened again, sounding more like it did when he was in dragon form. She didn’t think he was talking about food.

  “Look, I’m not used to being attracted to a guy I just met, especially not one who can turn into a huge dragon. Or is it drakon?” She dug her thumb into her forehead and rubbed, trying to ease the throbbing. “This entire situation is fucked up. It’s not smart to bring sex into the mix. Danger and adrenaline with proximity is heightening our awareness of each other. That and the fact you haven’t had sex in…God, three hundred years. You’re hot and all, but I don’t do one-night stands. It’s all so confusing.”

  “It doesn’t have to be.”

  “It really does. A couple of weeks ago, I lived a boring life. I taught classes at the university, paid my bills, bought groceries, did laundry, and had the occasional coffee with a colleague from work. Now someone’s tried to kill me and I can’t even call the cops because I have a drakon in my home.” The laugh that escaped her lips was more than a little hysterical. “And on top of that I’m attracted to you. So yeah, it really is confusing.”

  She retreated to the kitchen and yanked open the refrigerator. The cold air was welcome. “I have eggs and bread.” She opened the freezer. “Bacon, but it’s frozen.”

  “Would you like me to thaw it for you?” His breath wafted over her nape, making her jump. Her head smacked against the freezer door.

  “Stop sneaking up on me.” She slammed the door shut and tossed the bacon into the sink.

  “To answer your earlier question, I’m a drakon. I have two forms—human and dragon.” Before she realized what he was about, he leaned over the sink and inhaled deeply.

  “No fire!” Her homeowner’s insurance wouldn’t cover a blaze by a drakon.

  But no flames erupted from his mouth. Only a warm blast that melted the ice crystals. He did it a second time before straightening. “That should do it.”

  Her hand shook as she lifted the package from the sink. Sure enough, it was perfectly thawed. “Thank you.”

  “No problem. Do you have a place I can clean up?”

  “Of course.” After taking Lucius to the main bathroom and showing him how to work the shower and toilet, she went to her bedroom and flopped onto the bed, not caring how much dirt she transferred to the fluffy green comforter that covered it.

  “Meow.” Penelope poked her sleek head out from beneath the bed.

  “It’s safe. I think.” Burying her face in her hands, she rubbed her eyes. “I need to get cleaned up and cook breakfast or lunch or whatever meal it is.” Everything was out of whack, including her. “Then I need to figure out what to do about this mess I’m in.”