“Dragon babies are hungry. She should be eating constantly. If she’s not...I don’t know what to say, brother. Get her to a doctor,” Damon had said.
So now they were driving into Tacoma with a child who was screaming like they were torturing her.
The drive seemed to take an eternity, but finally they were pulling up to the clinic. As soon as they were parked, Kurt jumped out of the car. Faith looked exhausted, but he knew it was pointless to try to take Hope from her. Instead, he carried the diaper bag.
Inside, they were ushered straight to the back by a nurse. The doctor was waiting by an exam room door and he waved them in.
Thirty minutes later, they left. Hope had been given some spray to numb her throat while her parents were told to take their infant to someone else.
Chapter 18
“How the fuck did you get my number?” Cassian asked.
Wrath sat back in his leather office chair and rolled his eyes.
“My sixteen-year-old great granddaughter found you. It wasn’t that hard. Now, I have to tell you something because if I don’t my mate will be upset with me. You should consider yourself honored. I don’t call dragons very often.
“My mate was orphaned when she was an infant,” Wrath continued. “Aegidius helped take care of her financially and paid for her college. He eventually helped her get a job with Kurt. She didn’t even know about his help until today. She talked to him and he told her some sob story about you taking half his money. She would like you to help him out. I don’t care either way, I’m guessing he deserved it.”
“He kidnapped my mate.”
“Is she okay?”
“Yes, he did it on Kur’s orders, but she had my scent all over her.”
“I don’t see what the problem is.”
“Fucking first-generation dragons. Women don’t like being kidnapped, and I don’t like having my treasure stolen.”
“My mate didn’t mind when I kidnapped her. We had great sex after. Anyway, Aegidius was acting on Kur’s orders. Kur doesn’t ‘discipline’ his grandchildren, but his sons know exactly how evil he is. You know his fire can burn a dragon, right? Ever have him burn your skin off? It’s not pleasant. He knows just how far he can go with torture and still allow you to regenerate. Aegidius would be an idiot not to comply. You got your mate back. Stop crying over it.”
“I don’t care about any of this.”
“Neither do I. I did what my mate wanted, and it went exactly as well as I expected. You can fuck off now.”
Wrath disconnected the call and headed downstairs. He found Jess in the kitchen making a sandwich, her dark hair loose and flowing down her shoulders.
“I called Cassian,” Wrath said. “I asked for no favors, but I think he might let up on Aegidius. He’ll think about it and realize that it’s the better business move. Being on friendly terms with my family has benefits. Are you going to talk to me now?”
“Yes, thank you for calling him. I’m sorry I got all moody.”
“You know what it means, don’t you?”
“I’m not PMSing.”
“I couldn’t get under your skin so easily if you didn’t like me. I’m definitely getting laid tonight,” Wrath said.
“Oh my God.”
“Demigod.”
“Fuck you.”
“You will. You like me. You want more of this,” he said with a sweeping gesture down his torso to his crotch.
She shook her head, but she was smiling.
“Eat your tiny meal, human. You’ll need the strength for tonight,” Wrath said.
“If you weren’t so hot, I don’t think I’d put up with this,” Jess replied, picking up her plate.
“But I am,” Wrath said, flexing his biceps.
Jess laughed and then sat at the table pushing her laptop away to make room for her late lunch or early dinner.
~
With Wrath back upstairs working, Jess had some time to eat and then write a report on the security weaknesses of the coffee chain’s website, particularly the online ordering aspect.
Empty plate sitting on the table beside the laptop, she wrote up a quick report and then submitted it. She had just hit send when her phone buzzed with a text message from an unknown number.
Can you talk? This is Drake.
Yes, Jess replied.
Her phone rang.
“This is Jess,” she answered.
“What can you tell me about Ezzu?” Mr. Drake asked.
“I don’t know any secrets about him and I wouldn’t share them if I did. I...bit him. I guess we’re mates or something now.”
“I can get you out of there if you aren’t happy with it.”
“No. Nothing like that. I didn’t mean to sound sullen. It’s just all very unexpected. I like him, a lot. I’ve seen his...other form. I know in my head that he’s dangerous in a way. I felt it when I first met him, but he’s never been particularly threatening with me even when he might have tried to be at the beginning. He’s good hearted. I’m just…”
Stop talking, Jess.
Why was she rambling about her love life with her boss? She almost brought up the curse and the fear that Wrath might just be attracted to her because she looked like his dead mate. That hadn’t left her mind. It was just less important when she was having a little fun with a dragon man.
Her boss didn’t need to know those things.
“I’m just feeling the need to be cautious,” she said. “There’s nothing sinister about him. He loves his family and leads a quiet secluded life. Mostly, I think he doesn’t want to be bothered.”
“I can relate to that. It’s a dragon trait I suppose. Look, I shouldn’t have sent you there without more information. You’ve met Etel?”
“Yes. I’ve only met two dragons, but if you asked me which one was the villain, my instinct would say it was Etel. I know that’s not what other dragons
