Dragon Hunter by Charlene Hartnady
Chapter 10
“What did he say?” Riley asked. She wore one of his shirts and drowned in the thing. It didn’t look like she was wearing anything else underneath there.
Fog kept his eyes locked on hers. “He said yes.” He nodded once.
“Oh, thank god.” She threw her arms around his middle and hugged him tightly. “Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.” She spoke against his chest, so her words were slightly muffled.
Fuck, now he could feel the softness of her lush globes. Full tits tipped by hard nubs. Thankfully, she let go before things got awkward. By awkward, he meant hard. “No problem,” he said, clearing his throat.
Down, boy!
“No, I mean it, I owe you one.”
“You don’t owe me anything. You should know that Storm was very suspicious of us. He’s onto us, which I knew would happen.”
“Are you saying that we might need to launch into operation ‘not actual sex’ quite soon, then?”
He nodded. The human clearly had absolutely no idea what that meant. She might not be smiling so broadly if she did. “I think the first order of business will be to get you some clothing and some basic toiletries. I need to start planning this rescue mission.” No fucking pressure!
“That would be amazing.”
“I told you about Melina. She should be able to sort you right out in the clothing department. Anything else you need, we can order online. Although that might take a couple of days to be delivered.”
Riley looked down at herself. “I’m assuming we’re going to go out.”
“Melina doesn’t live in my chamber, so that would be a yes.”
Riley chuckled. “Good one.” Then she turned away from him. “My jeans are dirty. Wish I had a bra,” he heard her mutter.
“You look absolutely fine, I swear.” He gave a one-shouldered shrug.
“You’re a great liar, Fog.” She turned back, smiling.
“For the third time, dragons don’t lie. At least, we don’t under normal circumstances. It’s not who we are. You look perfectly decent. Everything is sufficiently covered. We can go.” He pointed at the door.
“Let me put on my boots real quick.” She picked them up. “Pity this top doesn’t stop the bounce,” she muttered the last as she sat down to put her shoes on.
Bounce.
Damn! He felt that word in his balls. Her breasts would bounce plenty in certain situations. This wasn’t about that, so he moved right the fuck on. “Something else to be mindful of. We can’t discuss why you are staying here. The real reason, I mean.”
“Your friends were there when you found me. They know we were abducted. It isn’t really a secret.”
“That part of it is okay. Everything that was said in our meeting yesterday was confidential.”
“Or your balls will be removed with a silver blade. I will be in debt for the rest of my life.”
“Exactly. If anyone asks anything, you need to say that you can’t discuss it. As far as the tribe is concerned, the royals are looking into sending a team.”
“They aren’t, though.” Her eyes darkened and narrowed.
“I know that. You know that. But everyone else doesn’t.”
“That’s wrong.” She frowned, her eyes dropping to the floor for a few beats.
Irritation and anger surged. “It is, but it’s how it is.” He heard the growl in his voice.
“I don’t get it; why not rescue her?”
“It would be a dangerous mission. Lives could be lost. You’re here to test compatibility. Stick to that, and we’ll be okay.”
“Got it.” She nodded. “We’re in lust after knowing each other one night.” She rolled her eyes.
“It’s possible to have that happen.”
“Unlikely.” She made a face.
“What? Have you seen me?” He lifted his arms and flexed his muscles.
She laughed, shaking her head.
“Please remember that dragons will be able to scent a whole lot from you. They’ll know we aren’t sleeping together. They’ll know you showered and washed your hair this morning. That you had coffee and oatmeal with banana for breakfast.”
Her eyes widened. “Wow! You’re getting all that just by smelling me?”
Fog was getting much more, but he didn’t want to freak her out. “Yes, so be careful of getting caught out in a lie.”
“Am I your girlfriend?” she asked.
“No.” He shook his head. It came out a little harsher than he intended. “We only just met.”
“I agree. It’s definitely too soon for that.” He could see her mind working.
“Hopefully, no one asks too many questions,” she muttered, shaking her head.
He touched the side of her arm. “I’m going to start working on that plan while you’re at Mel’s.”
“Thank you.”
“Stop thanking me.” He felt guilty every time she did it. This was going to get more difficult before it was over.
Riley stood up. “I’m all set.”
Holy fucking shit!He tried not to gawk. Tried and failed. Who knew an old t-shirt and a pair of boots could be sexier than lingerie? Than a slinky dress. Than most fucking things.
Close your mouth!
Get your shit together, Fog!
She did a little turn, lifting her arms. “I’ll start a new fashion craze.” She smiled.
A craze? Abso-fucking-lutely she was going to start a craze! Every red-blooded male was going to lose their ever-loving minds. It would be public knowledge that she was here and that she was unclaimed.
“Before we go, can I borrow your cellphone? I need to make a quick call. Better yet, do you have a computer? I need to let my work know that I won’t be coming in. I’m due to fly out this evening.”
“Fly out?” He frowned.
“I’m a flight attendant. They’ll have to call out a standby at the last moment if I don’t turn up for work. I might end up losing my job. I can’t have that happen. I’ll tell them it’s a family emergency. Which it technically is.”
“Sure.” Fog walked over to his desk. His laptop was in the drawer. He pulled it out and opened it, logging in. “All yours.”
“Thanks.” She sat at the desk. Several minutes later, she closed the computer. “That should do it,” Riley said as she headed back over to him. “Um…I need a charger for my phone.”
Fog’s jaw dropped all over again. Yep, it was going to be a long-ass walk over to the salon. She looked so damned hot. “Sorry, what did you say?”
“I’ll need a charger for my phone. You said to make a list of the things I need. I’ll definitely need a working cellphone.”
“No problem. Write down the make, and I’ll sort it out.” He held out his hand to her.
She looked down at it and frowned.
“I will need to establish quite quickly that you are…taken, or other males will come sniffing. If that happens, it’ll be a nuisance and interfere with our plans. To avoid issues, I recommend holding hands and maybe a hug or two in public.” He lifted a brow. “That should keep the dragons at bay for a day…maybe two.”
Fuck!
Forget Storm. The prince was the least of his worries. Things were going to get real!
