Tempting the Dragon (4 page)

“Staking a claim?” Amber lounged in the doorway, her gaze sharp, her expression interested.

“I’m the distraction, remember?” Jade summoned up a sweet smile. “Unless you want to do it?”

Amber laughed, the sound deep and throaty. “Don’t tempt me. That man is easy on the eyes.”

This made Jade snort.

“Ewww.” Pearl said, grimacing. “Mommmm. Don’t be a cougar. That’s disgusting.”

Inspecting herself in the mirror, Jade decided she looked presentable enough in her faded jeans and light green T-shirt.”

“You’re wearing that?” Amber asked, perfectly shaped brows raised. “How are you going to be a distraction dressed like that?”

Jade eyed her mother patiently. “Don’t you think he’d find it a little strange if I met him on the front porch wearing a miniskirt and six-inch heels?”

Both Pearl and Sapph snickered.

“You could put a little effort into it,” her mother began. “At least wear a dress. Even a nice blouse.”

Jade stared at her. A blouse. She wasn’t even sure she owned such a thing. “No,” she finally answered. “Now if you ladies will excuse me, I’ve got some distracting to do.”

With that, she swept out of the room, her head high.

In the hallway, her steps slowed. Unlike her heartbeat. So much for bravado. She’d been racking her brain trying to figure out exactly how to distract Rance.

She wasn’t sure how far her family expected her to go, but she had no intention of getting even the slightest bit intimate with the man.

Her body’s reaction to the idea of seeing him again called her a liar.

“Good morning.” Pasting a bright smile on her face, she strode forward, hand outstretched. Tall and broad shouldered, his gray eyes blazed as he looked at her. He took her hand, but instead of shaking it as she expected, he lifted it to his lips and kissed the back, his mouth lingering.

Damn. She thought she might melt into a puddle right then and there. Somehow, she remembered to breathe.

Then, while her knees still shook and she couldn’t find her voice to save her life, he released her and flashed that same charming smile. “Hold on, darlin’,” he said, lifting the camera that hung around his neck and snapping a few shots of the house, the front porch and her.

When he’d finished, he was still smiling. “How about you and I go visit Forestwood Lake?”

Together? And then she remembered she needed to distract him.

“Okay,” she managed. Because she knew he wouldn’t see anything unusual there at all. Not once in all the time her family had been taking care of Libby had Libby let an out-of-towner see her.

* * *

How Jade Burnett could manage to look so damn good in blue jeans and a T-shirt, Rance didn’t know. But when he turned and saw her sauntering toward him, her long silver hair tumbling in a luxurious fall over her shoulders, his breath caught in his throat. And his entire body went on red alert. At least he’d gotten a few shots with his camera.

Giving himself a mental shake, he focused on what she’d just agreed to do. Go to the lake. With him.

“Do you want to walk or drive?” she asked.

He pointed to the shiny red Mustang convertible he’d rented in Albany. “Let’s take that. I’ll put the top down so we can enjoy the day.”

Most of the women he knew would have immediately protested, claiming the wind would mess up their hairdo or something. Jade appeared supremely unconcerned. In fact, she seemed delighted. “I love convertibles,” she said.

“Did they tell you to be extra nice to me?” he asked, suddenly suspicious.

“They? Who is they?”

The perplexed frown didn’t fool him. Especially not when she combined it with a mischievous grin. “If by
they
, you mean my family, then no. They did not ask me to be nice to you.”

Interesting. “Well, then, what exactly did they decide?”

This time, the blank look she gave him was decidedly fake. “What do you mean?”

He waited until they were both inside the car, seat belts fastened, before answering. “About the lake monster. You were going to call a meeting to find out what you could and couldn’t tell me.”

“Put that way, you make it sound as if you truly believe there
is
a lake beast,” she quipped, well aware of how much Libby hated the word
monster
.

He shook his head and pressed the ignition. The engine came to life with a powerful rumble. When he glanced at her, she grinned. She dug a hair-thingy from her pocket and expertly put her hair up in a ponytail.

“Nice ride,” she said. “Too bad it’s a rental.”

Amused, he chuckled. “If that’s your attempt at a dig at me, it’s pretty weak.”

She widened her eyes, the picture of innocence. “A dig? Why on earth would you think that? It’s just that this is such an awesome car, probably nothing like what you drive at home.”

Instead of responding, he had the strongest urge to kiss her. This didn’t surprise him, not in the least. Jade Burnett was gorgeous, with her long sexy hair and those amazing green eyes. Not to mention the lush curves of her body. Rance liked women, all women, but until today he’d never really figured he had a type. But now he knew. That type would be Jade. Slender and perfectly shaped, gorgeous creamy skin, with a tiny dusting of freckles across her nose. Lips that were made for kissing and a body that begged for his touch.

Yep. Jade was his type. He had the awful feeling that, forever after this, he’d be comparing other women to her.

Astounded at this thought—after he’d lost his wife Violet and started drinking, he hadn’t ever thought of getting close to any other woman—he concentrated on the drive. He’d already taken a solo trip to Forestwood Lake, walked the trails, stood on top of the marbled stone cliffs. With the wealth of leafy trees and undergrowth all over the rolling hills, the area was pretty, but then so was every other lake or hiking trail in the Catskill Mountains. This part of the earth called to something primal, deep inside him.

In fact, in his previous life, Rance had thought if he ever wanted to become a country guy, he’d buy some land and build a house here. Now, he knew he never would. He needed the fast pace of the city to distract him from everything he’d lost.

“Take the next right,” she said, startling him out of his reverie.

He did as she asked, turning onto the unmarked dirt road. Though there were occasional ruts and bumps, for the most part it seemed to be well maintained. As he drove, he noticed with a sense of amusement the way it wound through the forest in an apparently nonsensical pattern. Then they made one more turn and he slowed, awed despite himself.

The lake spread out below them. From this vantage point, higher than any of the others he’d been to, the sparkling expanse of water was a dark, vibrant blue. He let the car coast to a stop, even though the road continued, and got out, grabbing his Nikon D4S out of the bag on the backseat. While he had several cameras and lenses, he liked this one the best for everyday use.

He walked to the edge of an area that had apparently been set up for viewing purposes and stood still, marveling. A sense of rightness settled low in his chest. He’d only had this feeling a few times in his life—once in a remote area of Alaska, another on Vancouver Island and now here, on the opposite coast.

Lifting the camera, he lost himself in his art.

Jade came and stood by his side, silent, as if she understood. He appreciated that she didn’t feel the need to fill the silence with meaningless chatter.

Once he’d taken his fill of pics, he lowered the Nikon and drank the scenery in with his eyes.

As he soaked in the strange feeling of contentment, he reminded himself he’d come here for a reason. “The only thing that could make this better would be if the so-called lake monster would make an appearance,” he joked.

She snorted, but when he cut a sideways glance her way, her intent expression as she stared at the water seemed far too serious.

For maybe the eightieth time, he caught himself wondering if there really
was
such a creature. In his world, where shape-shifters walked the streets unnoticed alongside humans and vampires, who was he to even think to discredit such a possibility? Just because he’d never seen one—not Nessie in Scotland or any of the others reported to have been sighted—didn’t mean they didn’t exist.

Hell, he could shape-shift into another creature entirely. Judging by Jade’s aura, so could she, as well as the rest of her entire family. Pack, he figured. Most of the other shape-shifters he met were wolves. Even though he wasn’t, not by a long shot, the aura revealed nothing about what kind of beast they changed into.

He eyed the lake and wondered. A flash just below the surface of a wave caught his eye. As he peered hard at whatever it had been, something big—something huge actually—leaped out of the water as if trying to fly. Or maybe like a whale breaching. Except this was fresh water, not the ocean. Moving fast, its large body arced in a flash of glinting silver scales before it dove back under.

It looked like... No. It couldn’t be.

Stunned, he didn’t move. Didn’t breathe. While he wasn’t entirely sure what he’d just witnessed, he felt a sense of awe that he’d been privileged to have seen such a sight. And of course, he hadn’t been holding his camera.

Chapter 4

“D
id you...?” Turning to the silent woman next to him, one glance at her ashen face told him she had also seen. “So there
is
a Forestwood monster.”

“Which never, ever shows itself to strangers,” she mused, her voice breaking.

“I guess there’s a first time for everything.” He glanced from her to the lake and back. “Why do you think that is?”

“Since we’ve already discussed the fact that we’re both shifters, what kind are you?” she asked, staying true to her apparent penchant for avoiding answering questions by asking one of her own. Still, her question surprised him, since an unwritten rule existed forbidding discussing this sort of thing. While everyone recognized one another from their auras, they were specifically forbidden from discussing intimate details unless you were a mated pair.

Which he and Jade definitely were not.

Since he wasn’t sure how exactly to answer, he settled on simply staring at her.

Deciding to see where she meant to take this, he waited. When she didn’t speak, he finally had to. “You know better than to ask me that.”

“Yes. I do. And since you apparently do as well, you’re clearly aware of the law,” she continued. “We are not to reveal ourselves to humans.”

“True.” Intrigued, he watched her, waiting to hear what she’d say next.

“So you can’t write an article about Libby,” she said.

Momentarily confused, he frowned. “Libby? Who’s Libby?”

She clamped her lips together tightly before lifting her slender arm and pointing toward the lake. “Her. The so-called lake monster. Except she hates being called a monster. Use the word
creature
instead.”

“Libby?” Flabbergasted, he stared at her for so long her face turned pink. “Y’all named it?”

“Her, not it. And yes. She’s lived in that lake for centuries. My ancestors’ ancestors took care of her, just as I do today.”

He lifted his camera, pushing the video option and getting ready to record. Before he did, he was about to ask her if she minded, but the way she froze at the sight of it told him she did.

“I’ve said enough,” she told him, her voice sharp. “If you’d like to see more of the lake, we can continue. Otherwise, I’d appreciate it if you’d take me back home.”

He lowered the camera and headed back toward the car. “I’d like to see more.”

Her deliberate movements telegraphing her reluctance, she climbed in the passenger seat and secured her seat belt.

“And while we’re driving,” he continued, “you can tell me why the people in town consider you to be a witch.”

* * *

A witch. If she hadn’t been so upset, Jade would have laughed. For as long as she could remember, people in town claimed to know that the Burnett who took care of the lake monster had magical powers. Jade has always laughed it off. Until she’d been assigned to be Libby’s Guardian, and realized quite suddenly she did have powers. The day she’d been given the necklace by her mother, she’d felt the sense of honor the heirloom conveyed. On that day, she’d come into her own powers. Each Guardian’s was different. Amber had never said what gifts she’d been given, but Jade didn’t doubt that her mother’s had been inconsequential just for that reason. Amber was the type to shout from the rooftop.

As for herself, Jade considered her own powers minor, as well. She couldn’t do a whole lot, just a bit of telekinesis. Oh, and the occasional bit of prophetic ability. Not entirely reliable, most of it came to Jade in her dreams, usually as a jumbled mess, leaving her to puzzle out the meaning.

No, the only one with actual magical abilities was Libby. A powerful seer and oracle, there were many written accounts of her being asked to help the Burnetts with something. Every single recorded time, her answers were correct.

Still. If Rance wanted to believe Jade had really strong magic, well... Since she needed all the advantages she could take, she decided she wouldn’t disabuse him of the notion. Let him think she had true magical powers. Maybe if he focused on that, he’d let his determination to write about Libby fall to the wayside. Being called a witch was the least of her worries right now. Actually, she’d grown quite used to it.

Why had Libby chosen that moment to rise out of the water? Jade didn’t know what to think. In all the years her family had been taking care of Libby, she couldn’t think of a single instance when the beast had revealed herself to an out-of-towner. Scratch that. The only ones in town Libby had let see her spectacularly beautiful scales were all shifters. Maybe because she knew they, unlike humans, would never betray her.

Forestwood seemed pretty equally divided, as far as Jade could tell. Her entire family was part of the Pack, which meant they shifted into wolves, as did most all of the other shifters in town. There were a few large cats, but not many as they preferred a warmer climate.

Shaking her head, she tried to clear her jumbled thoughts. Worry and uncertainty had her second-guessing herself. Would it have been better if she’d pretended she hadn’t seen Libby jumping out of the water? In her shock, she’d inadvertently revealed the truth of Libby’s existence.

And she wasn’t even certain she could trust him with that knowledge. As her stomach roiled, she saw another family meeting in the near future.

They rounded a corner and the picnic area sat directly ahead of them. Rance pulled into a parking spot and killed the engine. He glanced at her once with his hand on the door. She pretended not to notice, so he got out and walked down the path that weaved around the little pavilions and picnic tables.

Heart hammering, she followed him all the way to the edge of the water. As she came up beside him, she half expected to find him staring out into the expanse of lake, searching for another sign of Libby. Instead, he looked down at the shallow pools where the gentle waves slapped against the rocks worn smooth.

“It’s peaceful,” he murmured. “Not exactly the kind of place one would expect to find a monster.”

Not a monster.
She bit back the words, her automatic defense of Libby hovering on the edge of her lips. She’d already revealed too much. And warned him not to use that word. Anything else she said would only make the situation worse.

“You can’t go back, you know.” A half smile curled his sensuous mouth. The combination of his deep, sensuous voice and Southern accent made her weak in the knees.

“I don’t know what you mean,” she lied, aware she sounded more prim than dignified, even though she’d tried for the latter.

His smile widened. “Pretending you didn’t tell me about Libby.”

Though she should have known it was coming, she winced at the sound of the name on his lips. “I made a mistake.”

“Maybe.” He shrugged, turning again to look out at the water. The wind whipped his dark hair, giving him an otherworldly look, and she found herself wondering exactly what kind of shifter he was. If he were wolf, she’d bet he’d be magnificent in his lupine form.

If he were something else... She shook her head. No matter what form of beast Rance Sleighter changed into, he’d be golden and perfect.

“Hey, Jade.” The familiar greeting made her turn, smiling. She often ran into Lucas Everett, one of the other sets of twins in town. Lucas and his brother, Monroe, were identical twins and made no effort to help anyone tell them apart. They both wore their dark hair long, brushing their shoulders, and the same blue eyes. The two had been pining after Pearl and Sapphire for as long as Jade could remember. They were one year ahead of Jade’s sisters in school and rumor had it that they’d actually considered failing so they could share the same classes. Both brothers loved hanging out at the lake and often one or the other could be found here, making sure the picnic area remained pristine.

Lucas gave her his usual one-armed hug. “How’s everything?” he asked. By “everything,” she knew he meant her sisters.

“Fine. They’re both fine.”

He grinned. She grinned back.

Rance coughed. “Aren’t you going to introduce me?” he asked.

“Sorry. Lucas, this is Rance. Rance, meet Lucas.”

After she finished, she expected the usual handshakes. Instead, Lucas took a step back, his eyes wide.

“Rance Sleighter?” The reverence in his tone was usually reserved for his favorite musicians.

“That’s me.” Rance held out his hand.

After vigorously shaking it, Lucas exhaled. “I’ve followed your work. In fact, I even did a report on you last year for journalism class. I dig photography, too, though my camera isn’t as nice as yours.” He glanced from Jade to Rance and back. “How do you two know each other?”

Jade clamped her mouth shut, making a mental note to do a Google search once she got home.

Rance glanced at her once, then shrugged. “I came here to do a pictorial report on your lake monster, er, creature. Ms. Jade here has been trying to convince me not to. Says Libby wouldn’t appreciate it.”

All the color blanched from Lucas’s face. “Jade told you her name? Seriously?”

Crap. Jade swallowed hard, hating the look of dismay and condemnation on Lucas’s face.

She wasn’t sure how exactly to respond—in fact, she wasn’t certain she should. This was not the kind of thing she wanted the kids gossiping about in the hallways at school. She could only imagine Pearl’s and Sapphire’s reactions if they learned what she had done.

When he realized Jade wasn’t going to answer, Lucas turned again to Rance. “Why are you bothering with stories about a hypothetical lake monster? I’d think you were famous enough without having to spend time on fluff like that.”

Only because she was watching Rance closely did Jade see the kid had scored a direct hit. Though the wince seemed barely perceptible, she saw it.

“Fame is a fleeting thing,” Rance responded, a trace of bitterness in his voice. He’d once been famous, but jobs had dried up when he’d started drinking. And then once Eve had became ill, he’d basically quit. “But if you’ve followed my work, you surely know I’ve always specialized in photographing offbeat, unusual stories.”

“And put your own personal spin on them.” Lucas shook his head, clearly disappointed. “But this is different.”

Rance’s gaze sharpened. “How so?”

Jade placed a warning hand on the teenager’s shoulder, just in case he might be goaded to say something he’d regret.

“This is beneath you,” Lucas tried, his voice vibrating with the urgency of his conviction. Not for the first time, Jade wondered why her younger sisters refused even to give him the time of day.

“Is it?” Though Rance spoke in a mild tone, his gray gaze blazed. “These sorts of things have long been a personal interest of mine. And I’m finally at a point in my career where I’ve earned the right to do what I want.”

“Even if doing what you want hurts people?” The kid stared intently, perhaps realizing his idol might actually have feet of clay.

Rance tilted his head, his dark shaggy hair glinting in the sunlight. “Explain.”

Double crap. “I think that’s enough for now,” Jade interjected, giving Lucas a stern look. “I appreciate your help, Lucas, but I’ll be handling this.”

Immediately he dropped his head. “Whatever. I guess you have to since you’re the Guardian.”

Though she winced inside, she managed to keep her face expressionless. Of course Rance missed nothing. She had no doubt he’d made a mental note and would ask her about this later.

So be it. For whatever reason, Libby had chosen to show herself to him. That had to mean something. Until she knew more, all Jade could do was try and distract him. And hope and pray she could talk him out of writing that article.

“I’d like to walk along the shoreline,” Rance said. “Would you care to join me?”

“Of course.” She hoped she managed to sound as smooth as he did. Her inner wolf, reacting to her heightened emotions, paced. Snarled, wanting to break free. Even though she’d just changed the night before, her beast wanted more. She’d need to make an effort to shift and have another hunting run that evening. Since she preferred to become wolf in a group, her large family came in handy at times like this. She’d have to see who else might want to go with her.

“Hey, darlin’.” Rance’s light tap on her shoulder startled her, nearly making her lose her footing. Only his quick grab of her elbow stopped her from falling.

“Are you okay?” he asked, holding on for a heartbeat too long before releasing her.

She decided to be honest. “Not really. I’m confused and a bit unsettled.”

“I’m sorry.”

She sighed. “You sound like you mean that.”

“I do.”

At this, she shook her head. “If you really were sorry, you’d leave town.”

“Ah, you know I can’t do that.”

Somehow she’d suspected he’d say that. “Can’t? Or won’t?”

“Good point.” As they climbed over another rocky patch, he once again took her arm. And once again, she had to pretend her skin didn’t tingle from the contact. Funny thing that. She hadn’t realized she could be capable of such tangled emotions. She both wanted the man gone, and to wrap herself around him and never let him go.

* * *

Days like today, Libby felt the full weight of her many years. Her kind did not live forever, but their lifespan far exceeded that of humans or other shape-shifters. She’d constructed the Guardian necklace when she’d first arrived in Forestwood years ago, using an unusual purple-colored stone she’d found deep in the lake. Since then, each Guardian wore the talisman, passing it down to their successors. Libby had a matching one in her jewelry box somewhere, though she no longer felt the need to wear it. She’d learned long ago that a piece of metal and stone couldn’t replace an actual connection between living beings.

Sometimes the loneliness made her bones ache. When that happened, she’d go out into the lake, change into her beast and sink to the bottom, holding her breath as long as she could. Long enough to make herself dizzy. Long enough to almost convince herself that she could make herself drown.

Libby hadn’t always been alone. Once, a long time ago, she’d been surrounded by others of her kind. Friends and lovers, family and strangers. A vibrant community, similar to the one Jade and the Burnetts enjoyed here in Forestwood. Like those of the Pack, they’d spent most of their time in human form, taking great care never to allow regular humans to see them change.