Page 14 of Defy Me

If she didn't know better...and she really didn't... she'd think that was a dragon pouty face.

"I would be. I have been. That, that," She waved her hand toward the crumpled car. "I don't know what, dissaparation, I guess, we did back there? I think I did that, but I don't know how or why. You obviously think I'm a witch or something else out of a fairy tale, but I don't understand what happens when I go all invisible either. That scares the bejeezus out of me."

Jett tilted his head to the side, again reminding her of a curious puppy. One she'd like to snuggle up with. Except of course when he looked like he was going to gobble her up in one bite. She took a couple of steps back from that intense glare he had pointed at her.

He sat down on his haunches and scratched at the ground.I can't tell if you are lying to me. Your scent doesn't betray you, but only a white witch has powers like yours. I know another who did not know the depth of her powers either. Although she is sweet and doesn't pick people's pockets.

Sigh. Of course she doesn't. She was probably a beautiful, thin, tall, blonde with great boobs and more money than she knew what to do with too. "Yeah, well, I'm sure she's flippin' lovely."

Jett sniffed the air, brought his head down closer to her and snuffled right between her shoulder and her ear sending zings of shivers all through her body. He took one long inhale and sat back, looking proud of himself for invading her personal space with his snout.You're jealous.

"What? No. Why would I be jealous?" She threw her arms in the air and turned her back on him. Jealous. Of what? Pushaw. Nothing. She had nothing to be jealous of.

He bumped her shoulder with his tail trying to get her to turn back around. Poof. "But you are."

Why, oh why did his voice have to send all the tingles to her girly parts? It wasn't fair. She was trying to distance herself from him. He was a crazy ass dragon man she was absolutely not going to continue to be attracted to. "I can not scent your lies, but your jealousy, and now embarrassment are coming off you like a sweet piece of candy. One I enjoy very much. That I'd like to eat."

Don't turn around, don't turn around. He was just trying to bait her. She knew better. There had been plenty of boys at the convent's orphanage who loved to tease and torment her. Granted none of them had been a shape-shifting dragon. Instead of playing his game, Yvaine started walking back toward the car. She didn't have her few meager things anymore, her bag was somewhere in a mass of batstriches back in Glückstadt. If she was lucky the unfortunate owner of the car was on vacation and there would be a suitcase full of plus-sized women's clothes and a mobile phone with hundreds of pre-paid minutes somewhere in the wreckage.

"Yvaine," he growled her name in a way that was more a caress, than a warning. "Where do you think you're going?"

She increased her pace and did not look over her shoulder. She didn't bother being careful of where she stepped even though she should pick her way through the possible minefield of wildlife holes, rocks, twigs, and other things that could trip her up. "We should probably go our separate ways now that we're out of danger. Since I can't fly away from here I call dibs on whatever's in the car."

In a blink Jett was standing in front of her, blocking her way. "Oh no you don't. Not while you can control my shape. I'm not letting you out of my sight."

"I told you I'm not doing anything." Yvaine brushed against his muscled arm and sidestepped him without even stopping. The faster she ransacked the car the sooner she could get out of there. She had enough of dragons for one lifetime. An angry squirrel popped up out of the car scaring her half to death. Probably the partner of the one that had gone flying up into the tree earlier.

A big black dragon butt landed right on top of the car, squishing it into the dirt and sending the squirrel scampering.You are whether you know how you are doing it or not. You're stuck with me until we can figure out how to make it stop.

Gah. She had places to go, people to see. Family to find. Maybe they could explain what was going on with her and her dragon. She'd probably get to her birthplace sooner on the back of a dragon than hitchhiking. Not that she'd even consider riding on his back. "I wish you would stop doing that. Talking into my head, I mean. Can you hear my thoughts?"

No. As far as I know only dragons can communicate with each other with mind speak.He scratched at a spot on his chest.Or with their mates.

That word, mates, stopped Yvaine in her tracks. "Exsqueeze me?"

Don't worry, babe. I don't get a mate. Ever.

An intense denial hit her in the stomach like a bad veggie burrito. "What do you mean by mate? Like a BFF? You're making it sound like dragons are from down under, but you don't sound Australian. Wait. Why don't you get to have friends?"

Mate. As in soul mate. One true love. The one being in the universe who is the match for your true self.

"Oh." Ohhhhh. Well that plucking sucked. Yvaine may not know anything about soul mates, but she wanted to believe there was someone out there for everyone. Even weirdos like her and Jett deserved love.

“You don't get one? Sounds like bullshirt to me, beetee dubs. But I hear ya.” Why was she arguing with him? He deserved to have a woman or a dragon woman in his life. But she wasn't it. She didn't want to be his soul mate. Yvaine smacked her tongue inside of her mouth a few times. A sour taste swirled in the back of her throat.

You must have dragon blood in you.

"Is that a thing? Like people walking around not knowing they are the descendants of dragons? Um, eww. Like did a dragon god have sex with a human as some point in history? Come to think of it, I do know some nuns who definitely seem like they could breath fire, so maybe."

As far as I know, there are no other female dragons or even female dragon descendants. But it is the only explanation I can come up with.He looked everywhere but at her.

Yvaine had no idea who her parents were and by the sound of it she may not even know what they were. She rubbed her forehead. "I'm having a real hard time believing I'm anything other than a slightly weird human."

You're anything but human. That was obvious to me the second you walked into the pub last night. Where are your people? Why didn't they teach you about your abilities?

Ouch. Sore point. "Maybe they didn't know either."

They wouldn't have left her if they had. She wouldn't have grown up thinking she was nothing more than a freak.

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