“Nah, on the side I mentor troubled youths in the art of combat and weaponry,” I retort. “Somebody needs to show the newblood the ropes if he wants any hope to beat me in the next race,” I tease, shooting a wink over my shoulder to Soren.
“I’m older than you.” He rolls his eyes, still guarded and high strung, but it’s something.
“It’s not your fault you’re getting such a late start,” I cajole, patting his arm in comfort.
Vince interrupts, hating the lack of attention. “I was just coming to sell something new to Garret, but I thought you might want first dibs before I do. Want to see?”
“New what?” I narrow my eyes at him, intrigued and annoyed for being interested.
He smirks, knowing he has me hooked. “The crate’s still in my truck. Come on, I’ll show you.”
I bark out a laugh, rolling my eyes much to his confusion. “You might as well claim to have a puppy and candy in your van there, Vince. That’s how lovely ladies like myself end up abducted.”
Soren growls and my amusement falls a bit, surprised at his reaction, but not wanting to pry in front of strangers. Soren’s hand falls on my shoulder, pinning Vince with a look.
“If you have something to show her, you can bring it in here,” he decrees, and I look at Vince expectantly.
He debates for a minute before nodding, returning a few minutes later with a crate in hand. All the while Soren never removes his hand, watching Vince warily. When he pries the lid off the crate, my eyes zero in on the objects inside. I practically dive into the box in my excitement, making it abundantly clear Soren made a good call bringing it in here instead of us going out to his trunk.
“They’re beautiful and I must have them,” I declare adamantly, with absolute conviction.
I stroke my hand reverently over the metal, cooing like they are my beautiful babies. It’s a set, each handle made of a perfectly detailed dragon body. The blade running along the dragon’s spine is made to look like a wing, pointed on the top and the bottom. They’re a combination of silver, black, deep red, and I’m pretty sure I came just from looking at them.
A terrible side effect of our lineage; we may be the stronger race, but every beast has a weakness. A dragon’s is their hoard. Since I have three, that’s even more ways to distract me or rile me up. You could likely leave a trail of pretty books on the ground and lure me away from a crowd. My brothers have spent years training me to try and overcome that pull, to keep my head in the game so nothing can be used against me, but damn; these are something else.
“Little dragon,” Soren rumbles behind me, “if you don’t dial back your enthusiasm, we’ll have another bookstore incident.”
I blink, snapped out of my trance and look around at the few other people in the store staring at me hungrily. I fight against the mortifying thought that the hornier I get, the more pheromones I give off. I don’t feel bad getting excited over these gorgeous weapons though; everyone has their own kink.
I try to compose myself, tearing my eyes away from them and to Vince. “How much?”
His eyes are dilated, but he doesn’t step closer or start spazzing the fuck out, for which I’m grateful.
He clears his throat, his voice coming out gravely. “I don’t want your money.”
I can already guess where he’s going with this and fight the urge to just steal them. “Then what do you want?”
He smiles, knowing he has me right where he wants me. “A date.”
I could probably outrun him...
“Fine,” I spit. “But Soren stays with me, that’s non-negotiable.”
Vince frowns, but nods. “Alright then, let’s go.”
I blink in surprise. “Right now?”
He smirks. “I can see the wheels turning in your head. And I know better than to let you leave here with them before you pay up.”
I scowl, knowing he’s completely right and hating him a bit for it. I look over at the blades, sighing wistfully as he puts the lid back on and heads out to his car. Soren helps me grab my purchases and we climb into my SUV after agreeing to meet Vince at a diner down the street.
“I don’t like him,” Soren states as we start driving. “He has no problem manipulating you for his benefit.”
I sigh. “Yeah, me either. But damn, Ren, I want those blades.”
From the corner of my eye, I see his lip twitch as he fights a smile. “We could steal the blades and use them to kill him.”
I grin, throwing the car in park and looking at my guard appreciatively. “Savage; I like. Let’s save that for plan B though, deal?”
