The Sapphire Dragon (6 page)

“What’s this?” he asked as he examined the strange sheet left in the center of the dead man’s chest. It held the mark of a series of circles with a gleaming stone or crystal in the center of it. He glanced up at Drake. “Any ideas?”

“None,” Drake replied with a shake of his head. “I’ve got some men researching it now.” He turned as two men entered the room. “Did you find anything?”

“Not yet.” The other man shook his head. “I’ll need more time. Possibly more men while we’re at it, too.”

“Whatever you need, Darius.” Drake turned to Jarrod. “You know Darius Black, do you not?” He stepped back so the other man could extend his hand.

Darius smiled. “I’ve heard much about the sapphire dragon. It’s good to finally meet you.”

“And I you.” Jarrod returned the firm grip and shook the other man’s hand. He’d heard much about the black dragon, though he’d never thought to picture the black dragon as a human of Latino descent.

He wore his hair, which was black as pitch, slicked back from his face. His olive complexion matched his black eyes and the slight Spanish accent.

“You aren’t quite as I imagined you,” they both said at the same time and then chuckled.

“You know, with as few of us as there are around, one would think that we would all know each other.”

“Few?” Darius asked, his brows climbing toward his hairline. “Who said we are few?” There are still many of us in hiding. The humans might have caused us to protect ourselves, but they were far from causing our extinction.”

“Not that they didn’t try.” Jarrod snorted. “You said you could use a few more men. “I’m a wizard at internet searches. Do you mind if I help?”

“Of course not.” Darius turned to Drake. “Unless you have other plans for him.”

“I don’t have plans for the idiot, but his mate might. Perhaps you should ask her.”

“You know as well as I do that I can’t claim her. Not yet, at any rate,” Jarrod said with a sigh. “How can I tell her what I am when you know damn well that she doesn’t want to have anything to do with dragons or witchcraft?”

If only he could convince her that having a dragon for a mate was a good thing. He might have lamented the fact that Daisy, the most difficult of the Flowers sisters, was his mate if he hadn’t already fallen head over heels in love with her.

“She’ll come around,” Darius said with a smile. No human female can resist a dragon male for long.”

“I know that.” Jarrod rubbed the back of his neck. “What I’m worried about is what kind of hell I’m going to go through once she realizes I’ve been lying to her.”

“Lying to your woman is never a good idea, my friend.” Darius shook his head. “I do not recommend it.”

“Even when your woman hates dragons and magic and would have nothing to do with you once she found out?”

“It is a bad idea no matter the circumstances. I urge you to rectify the matter before matters become irreparable.”

Jarrod closed his eyes on a sigh. Maybe he should and maybe he shouldn’t. “I don’t know that I can tell her the truth now.”

“You can’t afford
not
to tell her. It’s time, Jarrod. Go to her. Tell her. Do not worry about this situation. We will take care of it and we will find the man who escaped. I urge you to find your mate and tell her the truth.”

“You’re probably right.” Jarrod shook his head and strode toward the door. “I’ll go tell Daisy the truth. The rest of you need to find the murderer, because if I find him first, there will be nothing left of him to interrogate.”

He left the room, barely able to keep himself from slamming the door behind him. What the hell had he been thinking? This was a hell of a pickle he’d gotten himself into, wasn’t it?

Daisy stared out through the window. When was Jarrod coming to visit again? It was strange how quickly she’d come to care for the man. It had just as much to do with his personality than his dark, good looks.

The man was easy to get along with and genuinely nice. She’d spent the last three days trying to get him out of her mind.

They’d had a wonderful dinner and they didn’t lack for conversation, though she had a difficult time keeping the fact that Drake was a dragon to herself.

How could the man live next door to the man who was practically the king of the dragons and not know it? She sighed and walked to her bed before flopping down on her back to look up at the ceiling.

“Where are you?” She frowned. “And why do I give a damn?” She bit her lip. She knew the answer. She just wasn’t sure she wanted to admit it to herself, just yet.

You love him,
a little voice inside her said. Daisy didn’t move, she didn’t do anything but stare at the ceiling and bite her lip. “I don’t love him. I barely know the man.” She scowled at the overhead light as though it knew all of the answers.

Someone knocked on the door. “Are you in there, Daisy?”

It was April. Daisy closed her eyes and wiped her eyes. When had she started crying? “Yeah. Just give me a minute, will you?”

“Sure. In fact, I don’t have to come in at all, if you’re not dressed. I just wanted to let you know that Jarrod is downstairs and he’d like to see you.”

“Jarrod is here?” Daisy jumped up. “Wait a minute. Why do you sound funny?” Daisy hurried to the door and flung it open. “What’s the matter? Is he okay?”

“Of course he’s okay. It’s just that…he’s got something to tell you.”

Daisy’s heart fell to her feet. He didn’t want to see her anymore. That had to be it. If he’d wanted to see her again, a phone call would have sufficed. Since he’d come to see her instead, he must want to break off their relationship before it really even started. It was probably a good thing. They didn’t really have anything in common, anyway.

Who are you fooling?
That irritating little inner voice scoffed.
You’re in love with the man. Hell, you’d probably even take him if he was a dragon.
Daisy shook her head.
No…maybe… Damn it!
She needed to make up her mind.

Hurriedly smoothing her hair, Daisy opened the door and grasped April’s upper arms. “Tell me the truth. Did he tell you why he’s here?”

April stared at the floor. “Yes, but he’s sworn me to secrecy. In fact, I’ve been sworn to secrecy many times over the last pair of years. I can’t begin to tell you what things I’ve heard and said.” The corner of her mouth lifted in a lopsided smile. “Not that I
could
tell you. Like I said, I’ve been sworn to secrecy.”

“Oh ha! That’s so funny, I forgot to laugh.” She glanced in the mirror and smoothed her hair back.

“I wasn’t trying to be funny. I was trying to make a point. Sometimes, we must keep secrets from those we love because it’s the best course of action. It doesn’t matter how we feel about keeping these secrets.”

“You know I’ve never been fond of the
end justifies the means
argument.” She tilted her head and stared at her sister. “What exactly aren’t you telling me?”

“That’s Jarrod’s story to tell. He’s waiting for you in the library.”

“It figures.”

The library was the one room where she felt comfortable in this monster that Drake insisted on calling a summer house. She left the room, slowly making her way to the stairs.
He’s here to tell me he doesn’t want to see me anymore. I’m most likely too boring for him.
She sighed.
If he only knew.
Maybe it was for the best. She probably had no business hooking up with any man. If she was smart, she’d join a convent, or something.

Daisy smiled at the absurdity. She was raised a witch. A convent was most likely out of the question. Slowly, she made her way down the stairs, stopping just outside the library door. She wasn’t sure she could face him, knowing that if he didn’t break it off, she should.

Slowly reaching out, she grasped the knob, took a deep breath and opened the door. “Here goes nothing,” she whispered to herself.

“There you are,” Jarrod said as she entered the room. He looked worried.

She half snorted to herself. He was probably afraid she would make a scene. She might have fallen head over heels in love with the poor sap if it wasn’t for the fact that she was a witch who couldn’t control her powers. Besides, she wasn’t about to make a fool of herself over any man. She had more self-respect than that.

Jarrod hurried to her, grasped her upper arms and pressed a quick kiss to her lips. “There’s something I must tell you.”

“Uh…hi,” Daisy said when he released her. She fought the urge to press her fingers to her tingling lips. Tilting her head back and to the side, she stared up at him. “If you planned on breaking it off with me, you’re doing it wrong.”

“Breaking it—what?” His brow furrowed as he stared at her. It seemed as though he had a difficult time meeting her eyes. With his gaze fastened to her lips, he asked. “What are you talking about? I came here to ask you to take a walk in the garden with me.”

Yeah. Most likely so I can’t grab a vase and throw it at your head when you tell me you don’t want to see me anymore.
Not that she would do that. He’d be doing her a huge favor if he told her he never wanted to see her again.

Not that she
would
throw a vase at
any
man’s head. Nope. She had a lot more self-respect than that. She would simply nod, agree that it was a good idea and immediately turn around and head for her room and a week-long crying jag, mourning her lost chance at a happily ever after. He wasn’t worth more time than that. No man was worth pining over indefinitely. No matter how devastatingly handsome they were.

Daisy slipped her hand through his arm, relishing the feel of his warm skin beneath her fingers. She sighed. Why couldn’t he have come dressed in a business suit instead of a sky-blue polo and khaki slacks? He looked…too good to be true—and he was. She sighed again.

“What’s the matter?” Jarrod held the door open as she walked through. He paused and held out his arm again and, unthinking, she took it.

“Oh, nothing. I’m just waiting for the other shoe to drop.”

“I’m afraid I don’t understand your American colloquialisms, love.”

Stopping, Daisy pulled her arm from his and looked up at him. “Just tell me what you came here to say, Jarrod. We’re both adults and we both can handle whatever it is you have to say. Nothing can be so bad that you need to beat around the bush like this.” She paused, gathering her courage. “So, tell me. What did you come here to tell me?”

Jarrod stood transfixed by his mate’s beauty. A part of him knew he was stalling. He didn’t want to face the truth, not with her staring at him as though he were some kind of monster. He found himself staring into Daisy’s beautiful amber eyes and wondered where to start.

That he loved her was a given. That wasn’t surprising. The fates or destiny or whatever decided a person’s fate had thrown them together as mates. The chemistry between them was undeniable. It wasn’t unusual for mates to fall in love at first sight. He wasn’t sure, but he thought it must be something in their pheromones. He wasn’t a scientist. He was a business owner.

Running his fingers through his hair, he paced away before turning back to face her. “I haven’t been entirely forthcoming with you, love.”
That
was an understatement, if ever there was one.

“What do you mean, you haven’t been forthcoming?” She tilted her head, a little crease forming between her eyes.

She had to know he meant he’d omitted certain things about his life. It wasn’t as though he had a lot of time to tell her much about himself. They had only known each other a few days and most of that they had spent separated because of the danger to her and his efforts to eradicate it. Hell, he hadn’t even had the time to call her over the last few days.

“Let’s have a seat and I’ll tell you.” He took her hand and pulled her over to a bench surrounded by roses. He remembered she loved the sweet-smelling flowers and figured that sitting on the well-placed bench could only help his cause.

“Now what?” She licked her lips and met his gaze, her expression blank.

“Now, I will tell you a story.” He took a deep breath. “It’s about a lonely man who sees the most beautiful woman he’s ever had the good fortune to meet and falls madly in love with her.” That was the truth as he saw it. A dragon fell hard and fast for his female. There was some primitive, animalistic
need
that ensured a dragon would not want to continue without his mate. He always figured it was some sort of species survival mechanism. Falling in love meant sex. Sex meant procreation. It seemed their genes left nothing to chance.

Daisy’s gaze shifted from his face to their joined hands and she blushed, her cheeks turning a lovely shade of pink. Good. At least she knew he’d been talking about
her
and not some fictitious, faceless woman. However, there was something about her expression that gave him pause.

“And then?” She glanced up at him from the corner of her eye.

“He convinced her to take a stroll in the garden where he proceeded to chip away at the armor in which she had encased her heart.” He smiled. “Even though she frightened him with her talk of dancing.” With a grin, he lifted her trembling fingers to his lips, and pressed a kiss to the back of her knuckles. “He then proceeded to act in a way that was contrary to his nature.”

“I-I don’t understand.” Reaching up, she nervously tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. “What do you mean, contrary to your nature?”

He huffed out a nervous breath, gripped her fingers tighter so she couldn’t run and said, “He acted human.” When she stiffened her spine, he rushed on to add, “He knew he should tell her what he was, but her scent drove him mad and he was already so in love with her that he couldn’t think straight. He only acted in that way because he knew she didn’t want to have anything to do with…dragons.”

“You lied to me!” Daisy tried to pull her hand away, but he refused to release it.

“No. I did not. You never asked me if I was a dragon, so I never volunteered the information.” He hung his head. “I know it was wrong. I know you don’t want a dragon as a mate. I had just hoped…” He let his sentence trail off. He had hoped she would fall as head over heels in love with him as he did her. It was just too bad she obviously hadn’t.