Page 10 of Kidnapped Forced Mate

He shakes his head. “We’re on a remote island, and–” He presses his lips together as if he’s said too much, shoulders tensing underneath a crisp white shirt. “It doesn’t matter,” he says matter-of-factly. “I just can’t have you running around as if you’re supposed to be here.”

“So I’m not supposed to be here?” I frown.

The man drops his face into a palm as if he’s wrestling with himself. “No. You’re not supposed to be here. It’s because my inner dragon forced me to save you…”

“You weren’t saving me…” I remind him.

He looks up with a deep frown, raising a questioning hand in the air. “I literally saved you from being kidnapped last night.”

“You’re still not listening,” I sigh, dropping my head defeatedly. “I am an FBI agent working undercover to catch an arms dealer. The kidnapping was staged by my department for a reason.”

The man’s frown deepens. “Then why does my dragon warn me that you’re not safe…?” he asks, but it’s more a question he seems to be asking himself.

“Look, I don’t care about your dragon or whatever is going on,” I assure him. “I need to go back to the investigation you interrupted and salvage my case before it’s too late.”

He lifts his head and stares deadpan in my eyes. “That’s not possible.”

“Are you even listening to me?” I exclaim, this time fighting against my restraints. This psychotic dragon shifter is certifiably the bane of my existence. I have to get out before I become his meal or something. “I have to get back to my job. My life! You can’t keep me a prisoner here!”

“Keep your voice down!” he commands with a finger on his lips, and it gives me another idea.

Instead of wrestling against the binds, I open my mouth and scream as loud as I possibly can.

“Help me!” I yell at the top of my lungs. “Get me out of here!”

In a flash, the man is in front of me, tearing another piece of organza from the bedpost and quickly wrapping it around my mouth. Gagged, my voice is muffled against the fabric. But I still try screaming even when he steps back and throws me a devilish grin.

“No one’s gonna hear you,” he taunts, going to the balcony and sliding the door shut. When he turns back to face me, he’s not nearly as bemused as he was a few seconds ago.

“Don’t make this harder than it already is for me,” he grates through gritted teeth as he marches forward. He grabs a fistful of the black satin sheet and yanks it out from under me. “I need to sleep,” he informs me angrily, nostrils flaring as he utters each word. “You’re gonna do the same and not give me any trouble while you’re here. I need to figure out why my dragon is restless because of you. It’s far more important than whatever you’ve got going on in the mortal world!”

With that, the man turns on his heels and marches to the bedroom door, locks it, then marches to the corner of the bedroom. He flops down on a sofa and shuts his eyes with an audible huff.

Did he just say mortal world?

Does that mean we’re not even on Earth?

A shiver passes through me as a world of endless possibilities makes me question everything I know. At this point, does catching Luca Mancini even matter when the world as I knew it isn’t as black and white as I thought it was?

Chapter 5 - Stryder

Shutting my eyes with a furious huff, I fold myself into the sheet and hide behind it.

It’s better than facing the woman’s questioning glare when I have no clue why my inner dragon feels so protective of her. Forcing myself to sleep, I only wake up when my brother, Stryker, sends me a mind link to inform me that I have to attend today’s meeting.

Groaning as I open my eyes, it feels like I’d barely gotten much sleep thanks to my overworking mind, even while my body rested. I dread having to face the human, but luckily for me, she’s knocked out cold on my bed.

A bed I’ve never had a woman in, I think sullenly as I quietly go around the bedroom to get prepared for the day. I can only hope that this isn’t the meeting I’ve been dreading – especially not so soon after Felix’s wedding.

Not while I have a stranger in the bed meant to be shared with the human mate with whom I’m supposed to produce dragonspirit children.

Now I have a bigger problem to deal with, I think as I glance at the human who lies in my bed. Not only was bringing her to the island a mistake, but she knows now that I’m a dragon shifter.

Great. Just fucking great.

Sighing discontentedly, I lock my bedroom door behind me, sending out a silent prayer to the gods that no one has decided to visit my quarters today. The last thing I need is for someone in my family to discover that my door is locked.

Everyone knows that I’m probably the least tidy of the Vulkan siblings and the most careless when it comes to privacy. It’s not like I ever had reason to lock my door until now.

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