Page 19 of Seducing the Dragon
The dragonwoman arched an eyebrow. “My orders are to get you out of bed and out of the house in the next twenty minutes. It’s your own fault you sleep too soundly.”
She frowned. “Orders? Who...” Then it hit her. “Oh no, he bloody well didn’t.”
She moved to pass the dragonwoman, but she moved into Evie’s way. “Yelling at Bram won’t accomplish anything. Lochguard’s clan leader is on his way here and he has a lot on his plate. Don’t bother him.”
“Lochguard? As in the Scottish dragon-shifter clan?”
For a second, the dragonwoman’s brows drew together, and in that instant, she looked pale. “He didn’t tell you?”
Somehow, she had a feeling that telling her clan secrets was a big no-no. Evie would use that to her advantage later. “No. What’s your name?”
“Nikola. I’m your new guard.”
So, she still had a guard. She resisted a sigh as she wiped the water off her face with her sleeve. “Right, Nikola, here’s what we’re going to do. I need to learn the lay of the land here. Did Bram place restrictions on where I could go?” The dragonwoman shook her head and opened her mouth, but Evie cut her off. “You take me where I ask, and I won’t mention your slip-up. Does that sound like a deal?”
Nikola’s face turned fierce. “My orders come from Bram, not you. I always tell him the truth. Blackmailing me won’t work.”
Of course she’d be assigned a loyal guard. Still, she could be of some use. “I admire your spirit, so let’s try another approach. How about you ask Bram if I can go out today to explore since he refused to show me around? Promise me you’ll ask that, and really push for the decision, and I’ll jump into the shower without any more fuss.”
The dragonwoman hesitated, but finally nodded. “Fine. You have ten minutes to shower, so hurry up.”
Nikola left and Evie smiled. Her request might be simple, but she had an ulterior motive. As she moved toward the bathroom, she nabbed her clothes and starting humming. What had begun as a bloody awful way to wake up had turned into a way for her to not only search out the dragon-shifter doctor who could give her the answers she needed to maybe gain Bram’s trust, but she could also get under the bloody dragonman’s skin.
Yes, the dragonman was in for a surprise.
Bram glanced at the time.If Clan Lochguard’s leader was punctual, Evie had five minutes before the dragonman would arrive.
It was bad enough he’d agreed to Nikki’s request to allow her to show the bloody female around in his stead. Now he ran the risk of Evie and Finn crossing paths, and Bram very much didn’t want that to happen.
Evie probably didn’t know much about Lochguard’s new leader. Finlay Stewart had taken over the Scottish dragon-shifter clan six months ago. Few inside the DDA knew much about him since Lochguard had remained isolated throughout the transition and had postponed any inspections or female sacrifice requests. If Evie had heard the same rumors Bram had heard recently about the new leader having more open-minded views on humans and dragon-human interactions, she might’ve gone to Finn for help instead of Bram.
Yesterday morning, he would’ve sent the female packing while giving her his best wishes. Yet after kissing the female and holding her soft, warm body against his last night, both man anddragon didn’t want Finn anywhere near her. He still didn’t know the lass’s whole truth, but provided she didn’t betray him, he planned to keep her.
His dragon emerged from the back of his mind.Good. Embrace the truth. She is fire, and you like her.
Bram grunted, but before he could converse any more with his inner beast, steps echoed down the stairs and he moved from behind his desk to stand at the bottom. Looking up, his heart skipped a beat.
Evie wore a short jean skirt, brown flat-level boots that went to just below her knees, and a blue sweater the same deep blue of her eyes. The top hugged her figure and dipped low enough to show her small cleavage. Even from here, he could make out the lace shapes of her bra through the material. With the added cold, every male in his clan would be able to see her nipples.
His dragon snarled. Her nipples were not for anyone else to see.
He growled. “You are not going outside dressed like that without me.”
The human arched one dark red eyebrow. “Since I’m auditioning to be your mate and am, in effect, no longer a DDA inspector, I can wear whatever I want. I’m wearing this.”
He ignored the look Nikki was giving him at the news of Evie auditioning to be his mate and moved up the stairs until he was one step below her. Even with the extra step, he was still taller than her. “As aformerDDA inspector, then you very well know dragon-shifter populations are heavily male. In Stonefire’s case, only about thirty-five percent of our clan is female. Dressing like that will attract nearly every unmated dragonman in Stonefire.”
“The competition might be good for you.”
He resisted a snarl. In normal circumstances, he knew there were a lot of good, single dragonmen in his clan who would make fine mates. Right now, however, they were all enemies.
Gesturing behind him, he said, “You’ll wear one of my big coats and not that tiny thing on your arm. My jacket will also cover up your tempting curves.”
Evie shook her head. “It’s early April, not December. I have a scarf and a jacket. I’ll be warm enough since my legs never really get cold.”
At the mention of her legs, Bram glanced down at the plump, creamy skin on display. He remembered touching that soft skin yesterday right after he’d kissed the human, and he itched to do it again.
With the sight of her skin, combined with her sweet, womanly scent, his cock was coming to life. He was about to reach out and touch her thigh when Evie broke the spell by clearing her throat and saying, “Eyes up here, dragonman.”
