Page 4 of Tempt the Dragon
The vamp grabbed at Aiken’s arm, using all its strength to try and pushit away, but Aiken was ten times stronger and expended little effort to keep the creature down. “One more chance. Who called this meeting and for what?”
“Suck my di—” He never finished that statement. Aiken partially opened his mouth and shot one lethal line of fire straight into the vamp’s face.
The stink was sickening as the fire burned off its flesh before making its way through therest of the body. By then, Aiken had stood and stepped away from the lost cause. Mel’s intense gaze pinned him where he stood and for endless seconds they only stared at each other.
“Oh great, you struck out too.” Ziva’s voice penetrated the silence. “Nobody wants to talk tonight. Who’s she?”
Aiken could feel Ziva’s heat signature. She was a volatile Drakon, so she was always on a lowsimmer. Whereas Mel’s signature barely registered.
He lifted a hand warning Ziva to stay back. “I’ve got this. Just head to the truck.”
“Bullshit! If she’s a vamp and you’re gonna get answers, then I want to hear them too.” It was never easy giving Ziva directives. No matter who it was in their clan, her natural instinct was to always push back.
“I said I got this, Ziva. Now, get tothe truck.” He was in command of this mission, no matter what Ziva thought or even if she just didn’t give a damn, which was usually the case. Still, he knew his words were biting, just one more indication that this night wasn’t going as planned.
For a few muted seconds Ziva appeared surprised at his stinging tone, then her anger showed via the string of lively curse words she tossed at him,before her beast made a rumbling sound and she turned away. “Keep your communicator on to record it. We all know your memory’s not worth crap.”
He ignored her, focusing his attention on Mel once more. She looked phenomenal in those jeans, black combat boots, what appeared to be a sports bra and a denim jacket. This was the woman he thought he’d never see again, the one who’d broken his heartand walked away eighty years ago. She was the one who’d gotten away and the one whose memory still haunted him in the darkness of night. And she was the only woman he’d ever loved, the one his beast had selected.
“It’s been a long time, Melody.” He was giving her that look. The one that used to have her tearing her clothes off in seconds.
“Don’t call me that and don’t look at me thatway.” She took a step closer to him only because she needed to get control of this situation. It was imperative that she prove she could handle being in this space with him at this moment. “You made me lose him. You, of all people, know that time is money.”
“What’s the bounty?” His calm demeanor still infuriated her. They’d just killed seven vampires and who knows how many more downstairsand he was standing there talking like they’d just met up by chance on the street.
She had no idea why he was here, nor did she care. He obviously had his job and she had hers. More importantly, at this moment, she had to get a grip, to still that incessant churning in the pit of her stomach that hadn’t stopped since the last time she’d seen him. “I knew my target was here and then you bargedin and I lost him.”
“How much, Mel? What’s the price for you to bring him in?” He wasn’t asking for a name or what the vampire had done that caused someone to put a bounty on his head. Why did his persistence come off in such a cooler, more focused way than hers? That had always been a question that plagued and irritated her to no end.
From the day she’d started with the Collectors andlater had been paired with Aiken as her trainer, she’d noticed their differences. No matter how many times he’d tried to tell her they were the same because of the type of beast that loomed inside of them.
“One million.” Stalling was pointless and would only prolong how much time she’d need to spend in his company. And lying to him had never been an option.
Mel saw the moment realizationhit the russet brown tone of his eyes. The orange that formed a striped pattern when his beast was on full alert had slipped away after the other Drakon left. He’d wanted to look at her with his human eyes, the way he often did. She couldn’t allow herself to be affected by any of this because none of it mattered anymore.
“Look, I’ve got to get out there and track him again. This client wantsa fast turnaround.” It took a moment before she could convince her feet and legs it was time for them to move.
He stepped in her path as soon as she did. Like a part of her knew he would.
“How fast?”
She sighed. “Three days.”
“You have to find a vampire in three days to claim a million-dollar bounty. It has to be a Lord and since you’re here tonight, I’m guessing it’s the sameone we’re looking for.”
“If you get out of my way, I’ll find him again.” And maybe, just maybe, she’d be able to convince her human self that what the beast inside her wanted was still inconsequential. She didn’t have to give in, she couldn’t give in. Losing herself was not an option.
“I know you’ll find him, but the next time we’ll be with you. Come on, we’re going to the Office.” Heturned away from her, walking in that confident and sexy as hell way he always did. It never occurred to him that she wouldn’t follow or wouldn’t go along with whatever he was planning. That’s because he didn’t know how much she’d changed in eighty years.
A gust of cold air slapped her in the face the moment she stepped outside. January in Burgess definitely packed an arctic blast. She pulledthe lapels of her jacket close around her at the same time Aiken looked over his shoulder.
“Still fighting it,” he said with a shake of his head.
She didn’t respond, didn’t want to entertain the conversation they’d had too many times to count. Instead, when they came to the bottom of the steps leading away from the house, Aiden turned in one direction to head to his truck and she keptstraight, going across the street to where she’d parked her nondescript company-issued car. Before she could run her fingerprint over the computerized lock strip on the door, Aiken was by her side.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m getting in my car and going to find my target.”
