More kisses, more forbidden touches, more of those push-and-pull, Daddy Dom power games Draegan Caldwell is so, so good at…
Shit.
Things with that infuriating gargoyle have gone frombadbad (that first night in the manor), togoodbad (all that oh-so-fun button-pushing), to so-fucking-hot-I-need-ice-in-my-pants bad (the drive home from the Ryker plant the other night), to I’m-pretty-sure-we-just-incinerated-my-panties-and-at-least-three-neighboring-counties bad (that whole desk-banging thing)… and he hasn’t even acknowledged it.
Hasn’t said a word about anything other than our bank mission since Klaiburn’s ill-timed text came through.
Does he actuallyregretwhat happened between us tonight? Why? It’s not like I’m asking him for a relationship or anything, perish the thought. And it’s not like he didn’t get off on all those filthy things he did to me, bent over the desk with my bare ass in the air, his tail rubbing my clit as he railed my pussy with his hot, massive,perfectlycontoured—
“MissAvery,” Draegan barks from behind my chair. Even with him wearing his somewhat smaller human glamour, it’s still way too close for comfort in this tiny room. And even with the glamour, yes, the jerk can still smell my desire. Desire that’s already off the charts on a normal day around my gargoyles. Things on the horny home front got a lot more intense after I carved those fae runes and somehow unlocked my inner ho super-spirit. We’re talking constant, regularly scheduled, time-release bursts ofgive it to me, daddywhenever Draegan’s around.
Wheneveranyof my gargoyles are around.
And they all know it, too. Every damn time.
“If you don’t mind focusing on the task at hand,” he grits out, “we might actually make it back home before sunrise.”
Stupid gargoyle super-senses.
“On it!” Ignoring the red-hot throb between my thighs, I give him the double-thumbs-up and grin, hoping the sudden burst of forced enthusiasm is enough to distract him from theenthusiasmgoing on between my thighs.
He doesn’t respond.
I turn my attention back to the metal box. My hands tingle, everything in me dying to know what’s inside.
Answers? Or more questions?
Either way, this is the moment we’ve all been waiting for…
So why the hell can’t I bring myself to open it?
“I… I’m sorry,” I whisper, tears stinging my eyes. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I’m totally freezing up.”
“It’s like a doorway, Miss Avery,” Draegan says softly, surprising me with his sudden gentleness. “You’ve been given an opportunity to peek into another side of your father’s life—one you’ve never had access to before. But once you open it, that’s it. Whether the outcome is favorable or unfavorable doesn’t matter. Either way, you won’t be able to walk through that door again.”
A tear slips down my cheek, and I nod. Because that’sexactlyit. My father and I barely spoke—not in recent years, anyway. This feels like a second chance.
One I’m not sure I actually want.
“Even after everything,” I say, “I just… I don’t want to be disappointed again.”
His warm hand covers my shoulder, strong and comforting. “Whatever it is, we’ll deal with it. Together.”
Bolstered by the unexpected show of support, I take a deep breath and nod. “All right. Let’s see what’s behind this door, shall we?”
I flip open the lid, revealing…
Two small manilla envelopes. Nothing more, nothing less.
“And the plot thickens,” Draegan says.
“Damn. I was really hoping for the fat stacks of cash and a deed to a beach house in the Hamptons.”
“That sort of thing only happens in the movies.”
“Gargoyles coming to life only happens in the movies too, remember?”
He laughs. “Touché.”
