Page 27 of Her Dragon Outlaw

I'm next to her because some part of me wants to be.

That part needs to be restrained.

We decided to take a short ride into town to review some of the files in a small local coffee shop. The warm, cozy space smelled like roasted grounds and sugar. The decor was simple and rustic with a burst of floral touches.

Lori smiled widely at me. “This place is cute.”

“It smells like it's going to be great.”

Her eyebrows disappear into her hairline and she places her elbows on the table. “How can you smell if a place is going to have good food?”

“Not so much the food but the coffee definitely has a good smell. It’s rich and nutty with a dense aroma.”

“I didn't know you were a coffee connoisseur,” she said humorously.

“It's a side job,” I said casually, wincing when she let out a laugh.

I was supposed to be drawing lines, not throwing myself over them. I’ve been doing my best not to look at Lori. I didn't want to see her interest, her bright smile. I didn’t want to think about how her heart called to mine.

I wouldn’t think about how I wanted her.

Steadying my heart rate, I pushed Cody down. This isn’t about him. It was about Officer Belden, and Miller. Lori was just the unfortunate woman caught in the crossfire. I made a mistake sleeping with her. I made it twice. And if I didn't stop now, it would happen again.

I turn my attention to work, ignoring the look of confusion on her face at my rapid change in mood. Lori was flipping through the recent faxes we received on the case. The Chief was still tracing several leads which could point us in that direction, right now it’s our job to see if there was anything we were missing. Something that could tip the Chef off.

I’m inspecting my own document when I hear Lori curse. Dark rivers of coffee spread across the documents and she jumps back, yanking the papers up and shaking them frantically in the air.

Fuck.

This is my fault. I’m risking this investigation because I can’t tell her no. I hand her everything she wants, not because I have to, but because I want to. That thought reaches inside my throat expanding until the air is ragged and dense. I harden, shoving my emotions out of reach.

My jaw tightens, anger rising as I struggle to control the outburst that sits on the edge of my tongue. I give in. It’s the only way I can make sure she stays at arm's length.

“You need to pay more attention, you’re not serving coffee. This is important,” my tone is sharper than I intended. Avoiding her eyes, I grab a handful of napkins and quickly clean the mess before it could spread.

The tension rippled off her small frame. It crawled under my skin until I could taste her embarrassment, her hurt. My dragon growled, the tension of her discomfort setting him on edge in a way I’d never experienced. I was ashamed and immediately wanted to take it back.

She had her head down while she was reorganizing the papers, her small shoulders tight.

I’m an asshole.

“Lori,” I say softly.

She looks at me. Her eyes are guarded, dispassionate.

“I -” I’m cut off by my phone.

I glance at the screen. The word Chief fills the screen. Perfect, of course, he’d call now. I answer as I hold up my finger to Lori who gives me a small nod.

“Belden, ” I say without bothering with preamble.

“We’ve got a lead. A good one.” The Chef says, an excited edge to his voice. “The forensic department was able to trace the sample of shifter DNA to their owners.”

“Willing or Unwilling?”

“Unwilling, to an extent. From what we gathered, all the hosts have one thing in common, they all slept with a silver-haired witch named Stella. But here's the tick, every single one of them had a personal item missing the next morning.”

“What did she take?”

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