Page 18 of Here Be Dragons

“Oh! Thank you.”

He held his hand out to me. “My pleasure. I’m Seth. You must be Carly.”

I held up my swollen right wrist, which had started to bruise up, and took the offered hand. Instead of shaking it, he brought it to his lips and kissed the back of it.

Desmon snarled. The young wizard just shrugged and released my hand.

“I’m glad you’re safe now. But how are we going get the information if there’s no one to question?” Mateo was less cavalier and much more to the point.

“They didn’t tell me much,” I said. “But I can tell you what I know, if that helps.”

“It will help greatly,” Desmon said. “But you can do all that later. Let’s get you cleaned up, properly dressed, and settled in first.”

“Of course,” Mateo said. “I’ll be in the library.”

“And I’ll go let my mom know she can’t keep your bunny and call him Rabbit DeNiro.” Seth disappeared into the building before I could even try to react to that.

I was taking my first step to the double doors when Desmon stopped me and scooped me into his arms. Considering my shoes were nothing more than a pile of melted sludge, thanks but no thanks to his dragon fire, I let him carry me.

Did this mean we were even for his pants? I doubted my entire outfit would cost anywhere near the price of a single seam on his perfectly tailored trousers.

The second we stepped through the French doors, I was struck by the sheer elegance of his home. Everything oozed wealth, from the marble floors to the chandelier hanging from the ceiling of the sitting room we’d just stepped into. On one side of the room was a baby grand piano and several buttery leather armchairs. On the other, a richly upholstered couch looked super inviting, and I was suddenly exhausted from my eventful day even though it wasn’t even lunchtime yet.

What I wouldn’t give to sink into those soft cushions and take a nap!

“Not quite the cave I was imagining for a dragon,” I quipped. Considering I’d already totally felt up his crotch and he’d seen me completely naked, I figured we were on bantering terms now.

He raised a brow. It was an extra sexy look on him, and I wanted to kiss the artful arch. That had me thinking of the almost-kiss we’d had back in the parking lot. My body reacted, coming to life and reminding me that the clothes the wizard had given me were just illusion. I was technically still naked in Desmon’s arms and he was topless, so there was a hell of a lot of sizzling skin-to-skin contact.

“I’m sorry to disappoint.” The corner of his lips lifted in amusement, like he was thinking of something funny.

Personally I didn’t think he could ever disappoint, but I didn’t say that. I bet he already had an inflated ego, and I didn’t need to add to it.

I expected him to bring me to the first available shower to get washed up since I was still covered in ash, but instead, he took a spiral staircase to the third floor at the very top of the house. Here, the décor changed so that it resembled an old castle, with faux stone walls and sconces lining the hall. It was a medieval castle with all the modern conveniences! Neat.

We came to a set of heavy double doors made of solid wood. The knockers on them were two bronze dragon heads. He didn’t need to set me down to open them. They must have sensed him coming and opened for him automatically.

I gasped as we stepped into the room. We weren’t in a fancy mansion or even a medieval castle anymore. We were in a cave! No wonder he’d been amused at my comment earlier.

The ceilings were high and domed, and the walls were lined with rock that was carved to resemble a natural cave formation, with rough rocks jutting out at irregular intervals. A massive bed took center stage, but it looked more like a nest carved from solid ebony than a piece of furniture. The numerous fluffy pillows were piled up high, creating a cozy cocoon that beckoned me to climb in.

No! Desmon was my boss! I shouldn’t be eventhinkingabout climbing into his bed.

I didn’t know how any of this had happened, and I was confused as fuck, but I really had to stop this before things went too far. I mean, I was just the chubby new hire. What did Desmon want from me? He could have any woman in Darlington he wanted, maybe even the world. He couldn’t possibly be interested in me for anything other than a fling. And I couldn’t afford a fling with my boss right now. I needed this job!

I struggled in his arms until he set me down on the floor of his ensuite bathroom, which was about the size of my entire one-bedroom apartment. The whole cave theme continued in here too. There was a waterfall against the wall, the water disappearing between the stones of the floor. In the center of the room was a massive tub that looked like a mountain hot spring.

I looked around in awe before finding my words again. “I…can clean up on my own,” I said. If he stayed, something might happen between us that I’d regret—if not immediately, then probably in the near future. Like I said, I wasn’t main character material, and someone like Desmon was the ultimate main character. That meant we were not destined to be together, and any fling would only end in heartbreak, not to mention with me being out of a much-needed job.

If Desmon was disappointed, he didn’t let it show. Instead, he merely went to the wall and pulled on a knob that I’d mistaken for a rock. The rain shower in the corner of the room sprung to life.

“This dial here controls the temperature. Move it to the right if you would like it to be warmer, and to the left if you need it cooler. I’ll find you a warm towel and some real clothes. Shout if you need anything.” He paused in the doorway, his eyessmoldering and the corners of his lips lifting ever so slightly in a way that made my imagination demand to know what type ofanythinghe meant. “I have exceptional hearing.”

Then he stepped out, leaving me alone in his fairytale bathroom.

Chapter 10

Desmon

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