Page 7 of In the Line of Fire

4

Damien

Ishowed up on Hugh Eldam’s doorstep less than twenty-four hours after the stubborn man had hung up on me. He’d refused to give me any details about his daughter without speaking to her first. Not even her name.

He’d promised to call me as soon as they spoke, but he couldn’t guarantee how long that would take since she was “out of touch at the moment.” His caginess made me think that the chances of his daughter being my mate were higher than I’d thought, but Connor warned me that the Eldams were an intensely private family, and Hugh’s answer might not have meant that she was in any danger.

I’d refused to let any of Connor’s arguments deflate my newfound hope, though. I’d pestered him all night and the following day until he’d finally coughed up Hugh’s address. As soon as I knew my destination, I said my goodbyes to my family and headed out.

I wasn’t expecting to receive a warm welcome from the phoenix shifter, but I didn’t care if I had to sit outside his home for the next week straight in the pouring rain. Hugh Eldam was the only solid lead I’d gotten in the three years since I’d first caught the hint of my fated mate’s scent. I’d wait however long it took to get him to trust me with even the smallest scrap of information that would help me find her.

It wasn’t exactly how I’d wanted things to go when I met my fated mate’s parents for the first time, but the situation was what it was. His daughter’s safety was more important than what the man thought of me, especially if she turned out to be mine.

Lifting my hand, I pressed the doorbell while wondering if I was going to need to ring it as often as Connor had to call Hugh last night before he’d finally answered the phone. But shortly after the peal of sound ended, I heard footsteps approaching the door. The man who flung the door open wasn’t quite who I expected. For someone with such a big personality, he was small in stature. At six-foot-six, I was a good ten or eleven inches taller than him. I weighed at least a hundred more pounds than he did.

Neither of those facts—or the reputation I’d built in all my years as the head enforcer for the shifter council—seemed to make a difference to Hugh. Puffing out his chest, he pointed his index finger at me. “I said I’d call you back after I spoke with my daughter. Not to show up on my doorstep without any warning or sure as fuck without an invitation.”

I shrugged and flashed him an apologetic smile. “My trip to Tigerville for my sister’s mating ceremony was over, and you’re my best chance at finding my fated mate. Where would you have gone if you were me?”

“He’s got you there. Let the man in, Hugh.” His human mate came up next to him, bumping him to the side with her hip and returning my smile. “He’s come a long way to speak with you, and the cat is already out of the bag. There’s no secret to keep since he already knows what you are.”

“Fine,” he grumbled, shuffling back a few steps. “Come on in.”

“Thanks,” I muttered as I walked past him. His offer was less than enthusiastic, but I wasn’t about to pass up the opportunity.

He slammed the door shut behind me, and his mate laughed softly. When I glanced over my shoulder, she was rolling her eyes and shaking her head. “Sorry about that. He tends to get extra grouchy when it’s this close to dinnertime.”

“And now that you’ve talked me into letting him inside the house, I can only assume that you’re going to offer to feed him, too.”

“Of course, I am.” She moved past me, waving her hand in a follow-me gesture. “You know that I’d never let a guest in my home go hungry while there was food on my table.”

Hugh glared at me as he stalked past me to follow his wife into the kitchen. I pressed my lips together to suppress a small grin since I knew he wouldn’t appreciate me finding humor in his irritability. The last thing I wanted to do was piss Hugh off after I’d been handed a golden opportunity to make some progress. It would be damn difficult for him to ignore me while I was sitting at the same table.

Hugh took the seat at the head of the table, and his mate patted the top of a chair to the left of him. Before I sat, I stretched my arm out to offer her my hand. “I’m Damien Veles.”

“Oh, dear. Where are my manners?” She gave my hand a quick squeeze. “I’m Stella Eldam, and this big grump is my mate, Hugh. We’re Soleil’s parents.”

Soleil.

The name of the woman who might be my mate resonated deep in my soul, stirring my dragon’s interest.

“Nice to meet you.”

“I wish I could say the same,” Hugh grumbled as he reached for the basket of rolls Stella set in the middle of the table.

After taking one out, he didn’t bother to hand them to me. Instead, he set the basket on the other side of his plate. Stella shook her head as she placed a platter of roast beef with carrots, potatoes, and onions on the table to the right of where I sat, along with a boat of gravy. “If you share the roast, maybe my ornery mate will be willing to give you one of the rolls.”

“Stella,” Hugh sighed, moving the basket to the middle of the table. She flashed him a soft smile, dropping a kiss on the top of his head before moving to the other end of the table to take her seat. I lifted the platter filled with food and held it out so Stella could take what she wanted. Then I served myself a healthy portion and handed it to Hugh. “Fucking dragon shifters. So damn greedy.”

“Like you can talk when it comes to food,” Stella teased.

He shrugged and dug into his food. There was no conversation while we ate, except for me offering several compliments to Stella about how wonderful the meal was. I’d gone for seconds, and Hugh had thirds. There weren’t any scraps left on the platter when we were done. I helped Stella clear the table and load the dishwasher, only sitting back down when she ordered me back to the table so her mate and I could chat.

Hugh gave her a slight nod of resigned acceptance. Then he turned toward me and dived right into the conversation I’d come here to have. “Soleil might not be your mate.”

As much as I loathed to admit it, he could be right. But I wasn’t the only one in denial at this table. “It doesn’t matter. She needs help either way, and I’m the best one to give it.”

“I’m not so sure about that.” He gave me a considering look as he strummed his fingers on the table. “You’re not just an enforcer for the shifter council. You also report to the damn witches.”

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