Nothing appeared to be missing, so what was his game? Had he dropped it? Why else would you leave someone a knife?
Unless it was a ploy of some kind.
I dug in my pack for an empty plastic baggie and used it to pick up the knife before shoving it into the outside pocket of my pack.
How had he even been carrying it? His hand? Tucked somewhere anatomically improbable?
Maybe he’d lost it when he’d... whatever he’d been doing in my tent. Was he running from something? Running toward something? Being chased by his own bad decisions, like me?
I quickly tore down my tent and started the walk to my car. Behind me, the campsite faded into darkness, and I didn’t look back.
I’d wanted a few more days of decompression before I put on my big girl panties and dealt with my life.
I needed to revise that timeline.
Chapter 2
Lucan
Isoared through the night sky, wings spread wide, self-loathing settling heavy in my chest like I’d swallowed a boulder. The wind whipping past me did nothing to cool the burning embarrassment crawling across my scales.
I was an absolute moron.
My dragon rumbled in protest at our retreat, but even he couldn’t argue with the facts. I’d spent days searching for her, and when I finally did, I’d botched it so spectacularly it deserved an award.
Perhaps theNot-a-Serial-Killer Participation Trophyfor telling her not to run while standing naked in the dark. Or maybeThe Hallmark Award for Worst Meet-Cutefor the least romantic first-contact scenario. But my favorite wasThe Most Likely to be Featured on a True Crime Podcast Gold Medalfor ticking every single box on the “How to get a restraining order” checklist in record time.
Landing naked in a woman’s campsite in the middle of the night? What the hell had I been thinking?
My dragon pushed against me, trying to turn back toward her. Ever since we’d caught her scent in the campsite near one of our landing sites, he’d been impatient.
And now her scream echoed in my head, cutting through me like a blade. The pure terror in her eyes when she’d seen me and the way she’d fumbled for her bear spray all spoke of a woman who’d been genuinely afraid.
Of me.
The one thing I’d never wanted to be was someone who frightened others. My whole life, I had been a calming presence. Not the wild-eyed creature lunging from the shadows and destroying in seconds what typically took me mere moments to build: trust.
I prided myself on reading rooms and winning people over, and I had so catastrophically misread the entire situation. I’d let my dragon take over my common sense, and now I had no clue how to salvage the situation.
I could still smell the acrid bite of the bear spray lingering in my nostrils. It had at least knocked some sense into me, and I hadn’t chased after her. My dragon had wanted to, but following a terrified woman deeper into the forest would have only made things worse.
If that were even possible.
But of course, I made it worse. I’d been driven by some idiotic impulse to go into her tent and leave my gift. As if a fancy knife would somehow make up for traumatizing her. As if she’d return to her campsite, find it, and think, “Oh, the naked forest stalker left me something shiny. How romantic!”
When she hadn’t returned after a few minutes, I shifted and took to the sky, circling the area to make sure she was safe before reluctantly heading toward Wings End.
The lights from the RV park came into view in the distance, nestled among the trees like stars. Home. Usually, the sight filled me with comfort, but tonight it reminded me of what I’d potentially lost before I’d had it.
I spotted Zarek standing in a clearing we used for shifts, his arms crossed over his chest. Even from the sky, I could see the impatience in his posture.
Great. Zarek’s judgment was just what I needed after the night I’d had. Not that I planned on telling him, but unfortunately, his bullshit detector was strong.
I circled once, losing altitude before tucking my wings and landing. The ground shook beneath my claws, and I beat my wings harder than necessary. I took petty satisfaction in the way Zarek had to shift his stance to keep his balance.
I shifted, bones cracking and reforming, scales melting into skin, until I stood on two feet instead of four.
“You’re late.” Zarek tossed me my shorts and shirt.
