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Nikki snorted as she sat down. “You should tell her that next time.” Nikki sobered. “But female dragon-shifters are much rarer. Surely Lochguard puts pressure on the females to breed as much as possible.”
“Some, aye. But we also have special licenses for human females now, just as Stonefire does, so I don’t see why the old grannies continue to give you trouble.”
Staring at Logan’s frown, she could tell the Scottish dragon-shifter didn’t view children born to human mothers as any less special. Too bad many of the elders believed dragon with dragon pairings were the best for a child.
Ironic, considering Nikki was half-human and half-dragon-shifter.
Her beast sighed. Forget about all of that. It’s just for a quick fuck, not a life-long mating.
Finally siding with her dragon, Nikki pushed aside her past and smiled. “Do you—“
Nikki’s mobile chirped with an upbeat song. Her boss’s name flashed on the screen.
Her dragon roared in protest as Nikki picked up her phone and answered, “Yes?”
Her boss’s, Kai Sutherland’s, voice came on the line. “Hartley’s here two weeks early. It’s important. Come to central command straight away.”
Telling Kai she couldn’t come because she needed some nookie wasn’t an acceptable excuse. She was a Protector; Nikki had a duty to fulfill.
Nodding to herself, Nikki answered, “Of course. I’ll be there right away.” Clicking off her phone, she shot Logan an apologetic look. “Sorry, but duty calls. Maybe we can do this again sometime.”
Logan took her hand and squeezed. “Maybe next time, you can come to Lochguard.” She stood up and he followed suit. Pulling her hand to his lips, Logan murmured, “Text me when you want to visit and I’ll give you a personal tour.”
His warm lips against her skin sent a shiver down her spine.
The Scot released her hand. Nikki touched his arm. “I will. And I really am sorry.”
He motioned toward the door. “Go, lass. I understand duty interrupting your life when you least want it. I’m a nurse, after all.”
She lingered a second, memorizing the tall Scot’s form, before rushing out of the restaurant.
Damn Rafe Hartley and his poor timing. Why would he come early? Their entire mission required precise timing. It wasn’t as if they could start a day ahead of schedule. Maybe one of his human contacts had screwed up, which would be even worse.
Narrowing her eyes, Nikki picked up her pace. If Rafe gave her any crap, then Nikki wasn’t going to hold back. The sooner she finished the assignment with the grumpy human male, the sooner she could see Logan again.
~~~
Rafe Hartley leaned against the rear wall of the largest room at Stonefire’s central command and clenched his fingers. “Where is she?”
The tall, blond figure of Kai Sutherland, Stonefire’s head Protector and the dragonman currently shagging Rafe’s sister, merely raised his eyebrows. “She’ll be here.”
Then the cocky bastard turned back toward his team.
With a scowl, Rafe walked over to Kai. Only because of more than a decade of training did he keep the classified details out of his protest. “May I remind you that the past six months of planning will mean nothing if we let this opportunity slip through our fingers? People are growing suspicious and are talking about moving again. They’re meeting to discuss it tomorrow. We need to strike then. Who knows when our next chance will be.”
Kai met his gaze. “I, more than anyone, understand what’s at stake.” The dragonman scrutinized Rafe a second before adding, “Whatever is making you grumpy, you need to push it aside. You’re a soldier. Do your job.”
Rafe took a step toward Kai, but before he could punch the bastard in the face, Nikki rushed into the room.
While there was a faint blush on Nikki’s lightly tanned cheeks, the dragonwoman was breathing regularly. He demanded, “Did you even rush here?”
Nikki’s black brows furrowed over her golden brown eyes. “Don’t start, Rafe.”
As he had from the first time he’d met her on Stonefire many months ago, Rafe wanted to simultaneously goad her and pin her against the wall.
Not now, Rafe. It wasn’t as if he’d ever have a chance. Dragon-shifter females were off limits, end of story. “I can reprimand you later. Come. We need to talk in private.”
Nikki looked to Kai and the bastard nodded. “Go. I already know what it’s about.”
