Page 12 of Dragon's Code

“It was good, thank you.”

“So glad to hear. I have your accommodations ready for you.”

“Thank you. That’s great.” I lean on the red and black marble counter. “My best friend needed to see me as soon as possible, so I sent her the details on where I’m staying. Would you be able to make sure she’s sent to my room?”

“I’ll get her a room with adjoining doors, that way you both can have your privacy.”

“Are you sure? I don’t want to take up more room than needed.”

“It’s no problem, Mr. Wystan. I will make sure she is brought to her room when she arrives. What is her name? Do you have a picture I could see?”

“Of course.” I quickly show him a picture of me and her together and give him her name.

He writes it down, though I doubt he needs the cheat sheet.

He sets up another concierge to take my brother to his room which is apparently nowhere near mine. Krystana and I follow him up to the thirteenth floor. He shows her to a suite, and then leads me to my corner suite. I go to give him a tip, but he waves me off.

My sister is close, but not in the same suite. I’m sure some of that is Ash’s insistence, but I’m glad that she’s still going to have her own space. She deserves some.

“No, thank you, sir. Jerrick is taking care of the staff this weekend. My name is Jonathan. I’ll be around all weekend. You can call and ask directly for me or anyone of our staff will happily help you.”

“Thank you, Jonathan. I appreciate your help and guidance.”

“Mr. Carmine has seen to it that the in-house restaurant is for his guests only tonight. Dinner will start at seven sharp.”

“Sounds good. I’ll be there. If my friend shows up in the meantime…”

“She’ll be taken care of, sir. I promise.”

“Thank you. I’m worried about her. I don’t mean to question your abilities.”

“I understand, Mr. Wystan. She will be in good hands.”

“The best, I imagine. Thank you again.”

Jonathan gives me a small nod and heads out the door without another word.

I check my phone for any messages.

ATHENA: I’ll be on a plane in three hours. Should see you in six.

KASH: See you then. The concierge, Jonathan, is expecting you. Your room will be connected to mine, so I won’t be far. I have a dinner at seven, so I’ll most likely see you when that’s over. If you need me sooner, you just tell Jonathan to interrupt.

I toss my phone on the pristinely made bed. I grab my toiletries and head for the bathroom. I take a quick shower, washing off the heat of the desert and the plane film I always feel on my skin after a flight. Dragons aren’t exactly accustomed to flying in metal tubes.

Once I’m clean, I lay on the bed, still in a towel and stare up at the ceiling. It’s been a long day already and it’s not even remotely over. I want Athena here, so I can see her, watch over her, and know what the hell is going on in her life that has her running to Las Vegas. To me.

ChapterThree

ATHENA

By the time I land in Las Vegas, I’m hungry and eager to get to the hotel where Kashton is staying. I don’t want to seem overly needy and I know that he’s here to do a job—some weird job he won’t tell me about—but I can’t wait to see him.

Sometimes I think Kashton works for the CIA or something. He’s always so vague about himself and family and yet I feel like I know him better than anyone. He certainly knows me better than anyone else in this world.

I’ll never forget that first day I saw him by the pond watching my boat like it was the most fascinating thing. He seemed a lot like me. Lonely. I gave him my email address as a silly six-year-old who thought the strange boy would write to her. In my gut, I had no doubt I would hear from him. And I did. We corresponded daily, often more than once. It never slowed down or stopped. We still talk every day about anything and everything.

We even went to the same college and finally got to spend some real time together. It wasn’t just some kid thing, we really jived well together. It didn’t matter that he was four years older than me. It was like he waited until we could go to school together.

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