Page 35 of Her Dragon Outlaw

Days pass. I can’t get her out of my head. At work I expect her around every corner, even though she’d only visited the office a few times. In the shower I see her mischievous smile, and can practically hear her saying, “Can I join you?”

Whenever I smell coffee, I expect it to mingle with apple and jasmine and the ache of missing her becomes almost unbearable. And in my line of work, I’m around a lot of coffee. I’m ready to snap at the next person to start brewing some.

My bed feels empty, somehow, even though I’d never shared it with her. I toss and turn, unable to get comfortable. This would be the fourth night of poor sleep in a row. Even Chief Tanner had commented on how rough I looked.

This is ridiculous. I need to clear my head, before I go insane.

I grab my phone, keys and wallet, throw on some sweats and head outside. Once I have the space, I shift into my dragon form, launching myself into the sky. The cold air is pleasantly bracing and for long, soothing minutes, I don’t think of anything but my heavy breaths, the pleasant burn in my muscles.

It takes a moment for me to realize where my flight has taken me. The lake, of course. I’ve come here too many times, my muscle memory kicked in and betrayed me.

I almost turn around, not wanting to visit our place, to be overwhelmed with more thoughts of Lori. But the lake is where I’ve always gone to think. I can’t let the memories of Lori here take that, too.

I land at the edge of the lake and settle down, tucking my legs beneath me. I don’t shift back to my human form. I want to talk to my dragon side. I’ve been shoving it away, trying to avoid the feelings of longing and loneliness.

“Alright,” I say aloud into the quiet night. At least there’s not anyone but the crickets to hear me. “I’m listening. What do you have to say?”

The lake is calm and still, reflecting the starry sky perfectly. I can see myself clearly in the dark water, my long horns blending with the branches of the trees behind me. I breathe deeply, trying to relax, to let him speak to me.

My reflection seems to move, fixing me with stern eyes. You should not have let her go, he says to me. Guilt and sadness make my throat tighten, the image of Lori radiant in the sunlight coming to me again.

“What else was I supposed to do?” I ask, nettled by the feelings he’s pushing at me. “It was a job. I can’t let anyone get in the way of my work. I don’t have time to date.”

He tosses his head, snorting dismissively. Don’t make excuses, especially not to yourself. You could make time.

“What about when it ends? When she breaks up with me? I’d never be able to think about her again.” I shudder, the idea of fighting with Lori, of heated words and cold silences over undone dishes making me almost nauseous. “I don’t think I could handle that. Not with her.”

She is different. My dragon side is gentle now, sending me images of Lori tucked close to my chest. I swear, I can smell her bitter-sweet scent. She is your destiny. Your true match.

Lori, my fated mate? My jaw drops open. It can’t be. She can’t be. Sure, she’s charming, intelligent, beautiful, brave and sweet, but can she really be meant for me? Anyone would be dazzled by her, would miss her this badly. Sure, I have feelings for her, but those feelings aren’t…

My inner dragon chuckles as my thoughts screech to a halt. Oh, I have been so, so stupid.

Love. Of course it’s love. Thinking about someone all the time, feeling joy just being around them, wanting to do anything to make them happy. I’m in love with her, and I’ve just been too scared to accept it.

With a flex of my wings, I take off, back to civilization, leaving the lake behind. I can see the pink of dawn already starting to tinge the sky and I push myself to go as fast as I can. I have to find her, talk to her. Fix my mistake, if it’s not already too late.

30

LORI

“You okay Lori?”

I startle, almost dropping the caramel latte I’d been supposed to be putting whipped cream on for Jenna’s daughter. Instead, I’m staring into space. I hurry and top the drink, putting a lid on and handing it over with an apologetic smile.

As Jenna and her daughter head out to school, I turn back to Julie, trying to seem perky so she won’t worry. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just a little tired.” I love working at Hot Shots, but my focus has been awful lately. My heart just isn’t in it, and as much as it annoys me, I know why.

Cody is still haunting my thoughts. No matter how hard I try to get him out of my head, I find myself coming back to our time together at the lake, the tenderness he’d held me with. I really thought we’d had a connection.

But he’d proven that wrong, walking out of my life without so much as a backwards glance. I glare into the milk I’m steaming. He doesn’t like me, not nearly as much as I like him, so why can’t I stop thinking about him?

“Hey, we’re getting into the rush,” Julie says, gently taking the drink out of my hands so she can finish it. “Can you take over for me on the register? You know how overwhelmed I can get.”

“Sure,” I say, trying not to be too stung by her pity. I prefer the register anyway. Talking to customers might be just the mood boost I need. I type in my register code as the next customer comes to the counter. “What can I get for you today?” I ask, putting extra pep into my tone since I can’t look up.

“I’m hoping to try something new. I heard there was a different brew I’d like,” says a painfully familiar voice.

I look up to see Cody, towering over the rest of the customers and unfortunately as handsome as ever, standing there like he has any right to come to my workplace after blowing me off.

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