I dropped my bags before my dragon made me think, say, or do something stupid, and did an about-face. “No problem. I’ll take the couch — after I have a look around.”
Mina followed me outside. “A look around? Now?”
I yanked off my shirt and tossed it at her, then bent to unlace my boots.
“Now,” I growled.
The sooner I shifted and put some space between us, the better my chances of resisting the urge to throw her over my shoulder and take her to bed.
I threw my boots beside the entrance, undid my pants, and hooked my thumbs into the waistband.
Mina’s eyes went wide. “What are you—?”
“Catch,” I muttered, dropping my pants, then tossing them to her.
She caught them, more with her face than her hands. Not very nice of me, but if I didn’t shift and fly away, I might just hustle her to the bed, the couch, or that rug in front of the fireplace.
Rug,my dragon voted.
We’re flying,I hissed to my dragon.
Maybe after?the beast tried.
I ignored the comment, a tactic I’d picked up from Mina.
The cottages clustered around a small, open yard — too small for a sane dragon to shift and take off in. A desperately horny dragon, on the other hand…
I ran three steps, shifting as I went. Then I spread my arms — already turning into wings — bounded to a knee-high boulder, and leaped.
Whoosh!Wind stung my eyes as I strained to fly while pushing away the last vestiges of my human body.
I gritted my teeth, pumped my wings a few times, then held them still. I barely cleared Bene’s cottage, but clear it, I did. The moment open air tickled my belly, I exhaled. Then I coiled my tail and let it crack like a whip over his roof, making the walls shake.
Fucking dragons,he cursed.
Nighty-night,I rumbled before shooting up toward the stars, hotdogging in a spiral in case Mina was watching.
Of course she’s watching,my dragon chuckled smugly, releasing a long, sparkly plume of fire.
Show-off,Bene muttered into my mind.
Isn’t it past your bedtime?I shot back.
Steadying out, I set off to reconnoiter. Partly because that was the smart thing to do, partly to try to keep Mina off my mind.
Operative word:try.
Actual result? Epic fail, because all I saw, smelled, and heard was Mina. I pictured her flying at my side, marveling at it all with me. The patchwork blanket of fields and olive groves… The dry, undulating hills… The gentle sea breeze, carrying a faint message to my ears.
A whisper that said,Destiny.
Chapter Twenty
MINA
I stood on the threshold for a long time, gazing up. Clutching the doorframe, because, wow. I’d seen a few dragons in my time, but there were dragons, and there weredragons, like there were cars andcars. Every previous sighting in my memory was the Ford Fiesta type. Marius had the lightning speed of a Lamborghini and the power of a Land Rover.
Or a tank, I corrected myself as another burst of fire lit the night.
