AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Mom would nosedive. He’d be picking up the pieces for months.
His mom thought this was real. Finally, a romance between a dragon and a human. If she realized he was only doing it so he could pull off his father’s legacy, she’d be gutted.
She was putting all her eggs into this particular basket, desperately hoping that they would have offspring with shifting capabilities—which was nonsensical, and not grounded in science at all.
And then, of course, there was another worry. Would Min be able to keep up the façade for as long as needed?
Would this serious young human be able to pull off the illusion of being madly in love with him?
Their first meeting had been remarkably pleasant. She had been so easy to chat to. So yes, he thought it could work.
He raised his chin, admiring the long, lean line of his jaw, his spruced scales. Dad would be proud of him.
Then his claws furled inside his shoes.
Damn it, he had to control this habit. He went through the soles of way too many good shoes doing this.
But the displacement activities were necessary, otherwise he’d huff smoke, and the occasional inappropriate flame. He held out his hands in front of him, checked the shakiness in his fingers. Tugged down his jacket and straightened the lapels as the elevator jerked to a stop and the doors pinged open.
And with that, he strode out into the foyer.
A zing of pleasure travelled down his scales as Min stood to greet him.
He hadn’t set eyes on her since their meeting at Adina’s a week ago, and despite regularly reading through her profile and studying the photo of her on the front of the file, he’d kind of forgotten her energy.
All the pent-up anxiety inside him suddenly receded, and the heat in his chest cooled.
Everything about her was soft. The way her hair curled in thick copper waves around her shoulders, the ivory glow of her skin, and full soft lips. And her chocolate brown eyes were thoughtful and intelligent behind her glasses.
She was wearing a beige-colored dress with a dark brown jacket. She seemed to favor muted colors, he noticed. Already he was imagining her in something more vibrant, some sparkling things around her neck and in her ears. The dragon way.
But really, the modest pearls peeping at her ears and the string around her neck, well, they suited her.
“Hello Ethan.” She smiled softly, shyly, as she walked toward him. He wondered whether he should shake her hand again. She’d looked at his hands that time in Adina’s office, with—what? Not horror, but maybe surprised curiosity. Which wasn’t unusual when folks touched dragon skin. They expected it to be cold, hard, rough.
This was one of the most interesting thing about twilight dragons, the softness of their skin. Ethan’s arms, chest, neck, belly, the skin there was golden, smooth to the touch, rippling over his well-toned muscles.
It was one of the few features of his body he really liked.
But enough of these thoughts. Time for business.
He smiled. “Hello again, Min. Welcome to the Blade Wing Building. My office is on the twenty-fifth floor. Please follow me.”
As the elevator doors slid closed, Ethan was painfully aware of them being alone together. Her perfume was delectable, sweet and floral—like her. As he stood against the rail, his tail accidentally flicked out and touched her hip. He apologized profusely and reeled the damn thing back close to his body.
“No problem,” she murmured.
And then, to hide his embarrassment, he found himself talking about the weather. The weather. Couldn’t he come up with something more interesting than that? He racked his brains for something to say that wouldn’t bore the hind legs off her. She only has one set, idiot, she’s human. And they were very nice legs indeed—at least what he’d seen of them.
Ethan pulled himself into line.
It was not appropriate to find this human remotely attractive. Except the truth was, he’d always been secretly attracted to human women. He’d never had the confidence—or, he guessed, the opportunity—to consider dating a human before. Which was probably why this particular human was doing weird things to his pulse rate.
It’s fake dating remember, Blade.
Once they reached his office he watched as she gazed around in awe. He had to concede it was pretty magnificent. His chest puffed up with pride.
“This building is incredible,” she gasped.
