Page 13 of Lyric

“The racer.” He nodded.

“I—I’ve seen you. I mean your dragon. On TV.” My knees went weak, and I let myself fall.

The alpha caught me under the arms to let me down slowly. I bent over, trying to catch my breath. Clear my thoughts.

“What’s your name?” Lyric asked.

“Jinn.”

“Jinn. I like that name. First things first. Are you hurt?”

I felt pain all over. Exhaustion took all my strength. “I’ve been running. A long time. My ankle… I can’t go on. He’ll come back. He’ll kill me.”

“Where did you come from?”

“The road. He kidnapped me. I woke and jumped out. But I couldn’t out-fly him. My dragon’s too small.”

“You were kidnapped? I need to get you to the authorities. But first, we need to get you to the point where you can even move. You’re in no shape to fly or even be carried on my dragon’s back the far distance we’d need to go to get back to the city.”

Lyric opened the lid of a box. I saw there were several bins embedded in the nest. Storage bins. He must have spent a lot of time here.

He brought out a blanket and quickly wrapped it around my dirty body. Then he brought out some fluffy pillows. He helped me lie back on a soft, mossy section of the nest. Everything in my body sagged at the sudden comfort and safety. When the adrenaline stopped running through my system, my vision started to go dark.

“Rest,” Lyric said. “I’ll make you something to drink. I know it’s warm out, but you need something strong. Do you like coffee?”

“Yes.” My eyes were already closing. “I love coffee.”

That was the last thing I remembered as I drifted off.

The aroma of fresh coffee entered my dreams. Suddenly, Colt was there, trying to get me up, roaring at me, his dragon shifting, his claws extending.

I cried out.

“Shh. You’re safe,” said a voice. “You’re just dreaming.”

The tone wasn’t Colt’s. It was low and soft. A human hand came up to my forehead and brushed the tangles of hair away.

“Are you going to kill me?” My voice sounded like someone else’s. Someone frightened and desperate. Someone who’d lost everything because the wrong alpha had met him in a bar.

I didn’t even go to bars that often. We’d been celebrating a co-worker’s birthday. I’d gotten tipsy and the alpha who bought me more drinks flattered me until I said yes to his every demand.

“My name is Lyric, remember?”

I nodded, opening my eyes.

He was the most handsome alpha I’d ever seen. I remembered thinking that whenever I saw his dragon race. He was famous. The fastest dragon on the planet.

“Ready for some coffee? It will help.”

Lyric helped me sit up, plumping the pillows behind me. I took the tin cup and inhaled. It was like going from misery to pleasure in a split second. Coffee was a miracle.

Coffee with cream and sugar.

I took a quick sip. It had both.

I took another sip, swallowing in joy as hot tears slipped from my eyes. The steam warmed my cold insides. The afternoon air blew cooler now, currents rustling the tops of the trees around us.

I looked up to be sure it wasn’t Colt coming back for me.

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