Page 13 of Always Say Yes to a Dragon

Sweat prickled the back of my neck, and I glanced around the restaurant before whispering, “What’s your deal?”

With the flattened face and reptilian features, it was hard to tell, but he seemed displeased, his lips curling in. “I don’t want to discuss that here.”

My whole body went stiff. What was there todiscuss? It was just a tip. An excessively large tip.

I glanced down at the wallet, which was fatter than it was two days ago. I shouldn’t take anything. It probably came with hidden strings.

But the last time I’d done this, I’d been able to breathe easier. I only needed a hundred more for rent this month, and if it was sittingin Az’zael’s wallet… I glanced at him, taking in the way his golden eyes fixed on my hands, the way his muscles tensed under his suit. Hewantedme to take it, and the knowledge settled in my stomach, then lower.

He wouldn’t offer anything he couldn’t give, right? And he hadn’t asked for anything in exchange.

Yet.

I reached for it.

He exhaled like he’d been holding his breath. The sound hit my chest and heated my blood.

When I’d grabbed the last bill and was just about to remove my hand from his wallet, one massive, scaled paw covered mine, trapping it on the table. “There’s more for you if you come to my home tonight, Elle.”

I gawked at him, too stunned to move. When I finally regained some control of myself, I snapped, “Get real.” Iknewhe was hiding something. So stupid of me to believe his vulnerability from earlier.

The scales on his face and hands darkened from bright red to deep scarlet. “Not my home, then,” he rushed out. “Coffee. Tomorrow. Adate?” He said the last word cautiously, like he wasn’t sure if it was the right one.

“What, just coffee?” No way in hell he expectedjust coffee.

“Coffee and a conversation.” His eyes gleamed.

“I show up for a coffee date and you’ll hand me your wallet again?” Bull-fucking-shit, he would. Men didn’t go around handing women hundreds of dollars forjust coffee, even dragon men. I shouldn’t have touched the money in the first place.

I dropped the bills and tried to wiggle my hand away.

He immediately let go. A very stupid, shamelessly horny part of me registered it as a loss of heat, comfort, and protection.

“Yes. More than what’s in front of you.” His breath hitched on the last word.

I glanced from his face to the wallet, then back to his face. His eyes were wide, his breaths shallow, and he looked…anxious? Like he had a real stake in my answer.

I chewed my lip, recalling my late-night foray into Arranged before I’d uninstalled the app in despair. I’d flirted with the idea of sex work, buthedidn’t know that. Although, aside from propositioning me at work, he’d been pretty polite—all “pleases” and “thank-yous.”

After the disaster of my last relationship, maybe something a little less emotional and a little more secure would be a pleasant change of pace. No messy feelings convincing me to stay with someone who’d treat me like shit over and over. Just a straightforward agreement between me and a hot dragon.

I could go to “coffee,” hear him out, then leave if I didn’t like what he had to say. He wouldn’t leap across the table and attack me in public, after all.

“Fine. Coffee. Tomorrow.” I snatched the cash off the table and shoved every dollar into my apron with sweaty hands. Go big or go home, right?

Air puffed across my face, and my attention jerked to his wings, which he instantly pinned back to his body. “Coffee. Tomorrow.” He grinned, every single tooth on display.

What had I gotten myself into?

I worked the rest of my shift in a daze, swinging betweenI can’t actually show up to coffeeandWhat’s the harm?, all the while fending off questions about Az’zael from nosy coworkers.

What’s helike?Excessively polite.Did he try to talk to you?Yeah, a bit.Aren’t you afraid he’ll eat you?At that one, I’d felt myself blush a fiery red as I stuttered out, “No.”

When I couldn’t take it anymore, I dragged Jen outside for a break and told her everything.

“He was kind of nice. Seemed to go out of his way tonotscare me. Would fucking him be so bad?” After I told her about his proposition, Jen was, like me, convinced he was interested in a pay-for-play arrangement of some kind.

“No, fucking him wouldn’t be so bad. He’s kind of hot.” Muscular. Well-dressed. I’d looked up his age, and he was thirty-two, only a year older than me, so it wasn’t like he was creeping on a much younger woman. “I’ll meet him for coffee. After that…I don’t know.”

---