It grated that she didn't have absolute faith in his ability to kill anything that presented itself as a threat, but he had to accept that he’d broken any trust between them when he’d refused to even listen to her warnings about their plan.
She’d been right.
Going after Rose was a mistake. One they might not have been able to come back from if Rose hadn't turned out to be the opposite of what they were expecting. Even though Cassandra hadn't been part of their team, she hadn't gone through what they had or grasped just how much they’d suffered at the hands of the crazed scientist, she’d earned her right to at least give her opinion because in the months she’d stayed with them, she’d become part of their family.
He'd denied her that, and he’d hurt her more deeply than he’d realized until he’d seen her again.
Was there any chance he could earn back that trust?
If he could, what did he intend to do with it?
Walk away again as soon as the threat was taken care of and he knew Cassandra was safe? Ask her out on a date? Figure out how to not be a monster so he could have some kind of future with Cassandra?
Hell, he didn’t know what was going to happen after, or what he even wanted to happen after, but he knew he didn't want to spend the rest of his life walking around with this ball of anxiety in his gut. Dragon needed Cassandra’s forgiveness, and at the very least, her friendship.
“Are we done?” he asked the older female cop who had been gently questioning Cassandra.
The woman shot him an annoyed frown, but nodded. “Yes, I think we have everything we need from Ms. Charleston. It was lucky you were here tonight, sir.”
It was.
If he’d stayed at the mansion with the others, Cassandra wouldn't have stood a chance of getting away from the intruder, no matter how hard she fought back, and he was proud as hell of her that she had kept her wits about her enough to fight.
“Chances are this was random, Ms. Charleston,” the other cop, a younger man inserted, and Dragon had to force himself not to rip out the man’s eyes for the way they appreciatively roamed Cassandra’s toned body.
“That’s likely true,” the older woman agreed, although again she looked annoyed at anyone else stepping in to speak, she seemed to like to run the show. “But without a door, and just to be safe, it might be a good idea to stay with someone else tonight. Do you have somewhere to go?”
“She’ll be staying with me,” he replied before Cassandra could say she’d go to one of her brothers’ houses. There was no way in hell he wasn't keeping her in his line of sight until he was positive she was going to be safe.
“All right then,” the woman agreed, and Dragon knew she wasn't pleased about that. The cop was annoyed that he hadn't handed over a name, but when he’d informed her he worked for Prey and that she could call and confirm he was operative Dragon, there was nothing she could do about it.
Still, it left him feeling uneasy to have more people know he existed, even if they had no way to track him down. Of course, people were aware of his existence, but they were either people from his past, people he worked with, people he was rescuing, or people he would kill, this felt different.
Cassandra’s grateful eyes shifting to meet his helped to ease that discomfort, and after taking the cops’ cards, they both bid them farewell. A crime scene unit would be coming out to collect evidence, but thanks to a triple murder on the other side of the city, that would be a while.
Long enough for him to get his little rabbit out of there. He didn't want any more eyes on her tonight, chances of any of these people being connected to Dr. Gardner were slim to none, but still, he couldn’t be positive.
“Pack a bag,” he told her once they were alone.
Wearily, she nodded, and he hated the dark circles under her eyes and the pain in her green depths. “Where are we going?”
“Motel.”
“Not one of my brothers’ houses?”
“Want to risk taking this to one of their homes?” It was a low blow because he knew how much she adored her big brothers, but apparently, it was a blow he was willing to make to ensure he got to keep her all to himself.
“No,” she answered softly, and without another word, headed upstairs to pack.
Sighing, Dragon hated hurting her, but he was selfish enough that he kept doing it. Not a great start to his plan to win back Cassandra’s trust.
Pulling out his phone, he dialed Steel’s number and waited. Half expecting to catch the man in the middle of sex, because sex seemed to be pretty much all Steel and Rose were interested in, he was somewhat surprised when the call was answered on the first ring and his team leader sounded alert and focused.
“What happened?” Steel demanded.
“We have a problem,” he replied.
“She wasn't happy to see you?” Blade asked, tone teasing, and it reminded Dragon how much things seemed to be changing. They never teased each other, they weren't light-hearted, they didn't laugh, they certainly didn't get obsessed with women to the point of needing a tattoo of their teeth etched onto her skin as a sort of claiming mark.
