Page 79 of Shifter Marked and Claimed

He didn’t open his eyes, but I noted the way his far ear twitched.

Circling the pool, I stood in front of him. He didn’t acknowledge me, which made me grin some more. I’d played this dangerous game before with my sister, knowingly angering her while she did her best to appear unaffected.

I put a hand on his snout. That there was no answering clicking was interesting. I felt fairly certain he was annoyed with me at present. That meant the previous clicking and cheek rubbing were what? Signs of happiness? Maybe.

Not lifting my hand, I moved around his crossed arms, stepping carefully on his piled treasures. The texture of his scales under my fingers reminded me of etched glass. Smooth, but not slippery. He turned his head slightly when I reached the end of his jaw but didn’t dislodge my touch. By the time I reached his shoulder, the clicking was back.

Perfect.

I stopped walking and kicked the nearest trinket into the water. It landed with a splat.

“Oops.”

The clicking quieted, but didn’t go away. I kicked another piece in. Then another.

“Hmm. I wonder if I can skip one straight into the skimmer.”

Breaking our contact, I bent down to pick up one of the gold coins. I heard a rattle of shuffling treasure behind me. Ignoring it, I drew back my arm to do as I’d threatened. A hand closed over mine.

“Would you like to speak with your sister?” Vedar asked.

Turning, I dropped the coin and smiled up at him.

“Yes, I would. Thank you.”

He used the hand he still held to tow me around the pool. I happily let him and noted that the sheets were slowly drifting toward the skimmer. If the pool broke, did that mean he’d have to call for a repair person? The idea had merit. Although, anyone who came here would likely be another creature. What were the chances that it would spread the word that the dragon kidnapped their human neighbors?

Lost in my hopeful plotting, I almost ran into Vedar when he stopped abruptly in front of Zoe’s door. He turned just as quickly, leaning in and rubbing his cheek against mine. Already off balance, I teetered and grabbed onto his arms for support.

The clicking started up in earnest, and his hands grasped my waist. The pressure of his grip, the proximity of his beautiful face, and the way he seemed to be purring with pleasure sent an explosion of heat inside of me. It both stole my breath and freaked me out.

Before I could jerk free, he released me and touched the door.

“Ten minutes,” he said, his glittering, golden gaze mesmerizing me.

“Holy shit,” Zoe said from inside the room. “Why are you still naked?”

CHAPTEREIGHT

I hurriedinto her room before Vedar could change his mind, and he shut the door behind me, locking it with a click.

Zoe stared at me with wide eyes. Sir Cuddles lay in her lap and just blinked at me as Zoe absently rubbed his bare belly.

“Our neighbor’s face isn’t the only pretty thing about him. His ass is incredible. Did you see the size of his—”

“Zoe.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. No looking. But you looked, right?”

“It was hard not to. He hasn’t put on clothes since he dragged us inside.”

“Us? No. You. He allowed me along for the ride after you begged.”

She was right, but I couldn’t let myself think about that just yet.

“Zoe, focus. Vedar’s only giving us ten minutes. He’s admitted that he plans to keep me here forever. Since you’re here because of me, I’m pretty sure that applies to you too. Joey has Chloe. We need to get out of here and find help. Now.”

I turned and tried the door. It wouldn’t budge, which didn’t surprise me. Scanning the room, I spotted a wooden chair in the corner and grabbed it. We’d once spent a night in a shitty run-down building that had more than a few sections of drywall broken out of it. We discovered why when a madman broke through a new section to chase us out of “his” house.

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