Then what?his dragon rasped.Say, ‘Female, I’m a dragon. My seed’s hellfire. You’ll die.’
I hate you right now.
You can’t hate me. I am you.
And there was that.
Even knowing nothing would fulfill him, he remained. It was a way to pass the time until sunset when work began. But the argument with his dragon dropped him back into a funk?—
“Fuck me,” the blonde rasped.
Race gripped her wrists, halting her clumsy attempts to open his leathers. “You’re climbing the wrong pole, female. Go find a human.”
“No—”
He dumped her ass on the next chair and stalked through the dark club to the exit.
Yeah, he was a psychotic asshole. Blood and violence were his heartbeat, a rhythm he couldn’t unlearn. Sane women should run, not beg to fuck.
Outside the club, the late-afternoon air engulfed him with an icy embrace. For a second, the chill almost reached his bones. Almost. But dragon heat won.
A pack of scrawny punks drifted past, all piercings and bleached hair, glaring his way.
What? They wantedhimto clear off the footpath?
Race growled, his lips peeling back. A flash of fang, and they froze before bolting, tripping over each other in their panic.
Foolish pavement heroes.
He flipped his braided hair over his shoulders and headed down the street, passing the few humans huddled in their coats. The sensation of eyes on him remained, and he ignored it.
He turned into a quiet, rundown alley to dematerialize back to his cave.
Not cave, his dragon rumbled.Mountains.Himalayas.
Race didn’t bother asking why. He had time, so he flashed to a nearby stream, needing the soft barrier water provided. He opened a portal and stepped into a dense forest outside a village at the Himalayan foothills. Twilight cast long shadows through towering trees.
Not long ago, he’d been in this region, helping the angel Lore rescue his abducted female. It still blew his mind that a cold bastard like Lore had fallen hard for a human. All that mate bullshit wasn’t for him. Haunting clubs by day and killing at night suited him just fine.
Now what?he asked his ornery dragon. A prickle brushed against his senses?—
Fuck! He spun back and shut the gateway, aware his stalker had crossed through as well.
Persistent asshole.Worse, he knew who the pest was.
Frustration pounded in his skull. Race flashed into the forest shadows, seized the blond male by the throat, and slammed him into a tree. “You don’t listen well, do you? I told you a fucking thousand times. Not now. Not ever. Go back to Lemuria!”
“I cannot,” Koal croaked, amber-gold scales rippling beneath his bronze skin. “You are our last hope?—”
“Not as long as I breathe.” Race shoved him away. “Take that message back to whoever sent you. Hunt me down again, and Iwillkill you.”
Race stalked out to the busy village catering to hikers and climbers. The bitter winter wind cut through the cedar trees, carrying the scent of woodsmoke. He needed a drink. A godsdamn strong one.
At the mere thought of Lemuria—his former world—pain stabbed through his skull. He wished he could tear the memory out by its roots.
The last rays of the evening sun cast long shadows across the frozen ground. Villagers hurried by in thick woolen shawls, their breath forming white wisps. A shepherd corralled his goats into a pen. They all gave him a wide berth. Good. Showed they had survival instincts, after all.
Race finally slowed down.
