A Dragon's Seduction (4 page)

 Just thinking about those sexy lips, that sharp-angled nose and his determined chin gave her goose bumps. It had been a long time since a man moved her to such distraction.

Oh, okay. Never if the truth be known.

She’d been attracted to a few men here and there, of course, but it had never been more than an innocent flirtation or two. Certainly nothing like this … this …
need.
She wanted to touch him. Feel him. Taste him. Her body heated at the thought.

The light kiss he’d given her before leaving only ignited her interest. Her heart hitched at the memory. She touched her mouth where his lips had left an everlasting imprint. She’d been pleasantly surprised by the gesture.

She’d like to have gotten to know him a bit better. Too bad he’d been called back to work. But considering the string of arsons lately, it hadn’t been a surprise.

Callie stopped pacing and bit her lip thoughtfully. For the life of her she couldn’t figure out why the firefighter seemed so wary of her. He tried to hide it, but she could tell he still didn’t quite trust her. But why? Oh, sure, she had nearly zapped him with her shield the first time they’d met, but it
had
been an accident. And she
had
apologized. Maybe some men just couldn’t handle a powerful woman.

As if
.

Callie pulled a face. If she were half as powerful as he thought, then she wouldn’t be standing on Bourbon Street practically shaking in her scarlet high-heeled boots.

She knew she should go on in and confront Grigori, but fear rooted her to the pavement. Her estranged half-brother had been one of the most powerful wizards in New Orleans. Now he was also the most dangerous. If her intuition was right and Grigori had invoked a dragon, then his powers were insurmountable.

It was one thing for him to pass his Magik off as illusions in his Magik shows. The humans believed they were simply tricks of light and sleight of hand, not realizing what they were watching was real. She could deal with that kind of deception, but if he intended on using his Magik for pure evil then she had to stop him if she could.

Only one way to find out.

Callie took a fortifying breath and opened the metal door. The lights were dim and Grigori stood on stage in the midst of blue spotlights performing one of his many illusions. The audience packed all but the last three rows in the room. Lucky for her, she would be able to slip into one of the back auditorium seats unnoticed. Not that it mattered. She had no idea what she was going to do or say to Grigori.

Callie’s gaze swept the room. The audience sat spellbound as Grigori waved his hand over a glass box and made the woman inside disappear. Callie grimaced at the collective gasp that rewarded his performance.

A black aura surrounded the magician and dark energy radiated from the stage filling the room with a sense of malevolence. The humans didn’t seem to notice.

 Callie’s blood iced. Not that her half-brother had ever been a charmer. Far from it. They’d fought like cats and dogs growing up, but once in a while Grigori would do something brotherly and she would almost forget there was something pure evil about him.

Almost, but not quite.

The woman reappeared in the glass case and a round of cheers echoed through the room. The audience jumped to their feet. Every clap, every cheer grated. These humans didn’t know they were cheering pure evil.

Out of the corner of her eye, tucked away in the shadows, Callie spotted a tall, dark form leaning against the wall. The form wasn’t clapping or cheering but was instead staring at Grigori with intense dislike. 

Her heart quickened its beat.

Brayden.

He stepped out of the shadows, his eyes melting into hers. A passionate jolt zipped through her veins like a streak of white lightning. The sensation heated her all the way to her inner core.

Her pulse galloped. Talk about a four-alarm fire! No doubt about it. The fireman was hot! Inferno hot! Too bad she wasn’t a jump-your-bones kind of gal because
this
man made her want to do just that.

 Brayden walked toward her with long, confident strides. She noticed he wore jeans – nice snug ones – and a white button-up shirt. Thick wiry chest hair peeked out from underneath the unbuttoned top.

Callie swallowed and clasped her hands together in her lap. A sudden urge to run her fingertips across his chest consumed her.

Get it together, Cal. He’s just a man like any other. Well, maybe not exactly like any other, but a man all the same.

 “We meet again,” Brayden whispered in her ear. His breath gently lifted a dark curl at her temple sending delightful shivers along her cheek.

Inferno hot all right! Absolutely smoldering!

“What are you doing here?” Callie whispered back, though the words came out husky and breathless. Her face scorched like a tropical sun.

“Enjoying the show. And you?” He eased his muscular form into the seat beside her as the audience took their seats once again. Though the lights were dim, she could still see his ruggedly handsome features.

Enjoying the show, my foot.

The firefighter definitely had an agenda and watching a Magik show wasn’t part of it. So what
was
he doing here?

Still, she wasn’t about to tell him the real reason she was here either. “The same.”

“Do you mind if I join you?”

Callie shook her head, though she didn’t know why he even bothered to ask seeing he had already settled back into the seat.

Clearly, Brayden St. John was a man used to getting what he wanted.

Callie leaned back against the velour seat and tried to concentrate on the show. Not an easy feat considering her body was fully conscious of Brayden’s muscular one beside her.

His shoulder brushed against hers as he shifted in the seat. A butterfly did a jig in her stomach at the light touch. Heat rushed to her cheeks. Why on earth was her body so
aware
of this man?

How in the world was she going to focus on the task at hand if her body kept reacting to this firefighter’s every touch no matter how innocent it was?

Callie frowned in the darkness. She didn’t like this feeling. She was used to being in control at all times, but in this man’s presence she could feel that control slipping away bit by bit. And she didn’t like it one iota.

CHAPTER THREE

Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.
The old adage rumbled through Brayden’s thoughts as Callie’s delicious scent of magnolias enticed his libido to life once again. The dragon inside stirred. Yep, he would definitely stay on his talons around Ms. Callie Gautreaux. If he didn’t, he might actually fall for the sorceress and no matter how much his mortal side desired her, he knew making love with her would be a fatal mistake. It was known throughout Jarithia that any dragonshifter who mated with a sorceress who did not truly love him would lose his shapeshifting ability during climax and become trapped inside his beast forever. That punishment had been set forth by the Grand One many centuries ago, and Brayden wasn’t about to take that chance.

“I believe I owe you another apology.”

Callie’s jaw dropped.

Brayden chuckled. “Don’t look so shocked, my dear. I can own up when I’m wrong. Not that I usually am,” he quickly added with a wry grin. “But I shouldn’t have snapped at you the other night during the apartment fire, and I didn’t get a chance to apologize properly at dinner the other night.”

“It’s all right.”

“No. It’s not. I realize now you were only trying to protect the kids.” Brayden shrugged inwardly. Maybe she was. Maybe she wasn’t. “You just caught me off guard. Besides,” his grin widened, “I’m used to being in control. Finding you there with your purple thingy just threw me for a bit.”

   “Shield.” A smile tugged at the corner of Callie’s lips.                

“I beg your pardon?” Brayden blinked, suddenly noticing how delightfully kissable her lips were. Full and sensuous. He bet they’d taste good too right now.

“The purple thingy.” Amusement laced her voice. “It’s called a shield.”

“Shield then,” Brayden agreed. He shifted in the seat, his arm brushing against hers. Another tingle of pleasure splintered through him.

Careful, St. John. A sorceress’s touch can be deadly.

Brayden forced his attention back to the show and tried to forget just how sexy this particular sorceress was.

Grigori’s assistant, a petite woman with bleached-blonde hair, waved a wand and a large puff of smoke appeared on stage. An odor similar to popped firecrackers filled the room. Grigori held his hands out toward the smoke. Seconds later a white tiger emerged. The beast growled then jumped onto a podium. The assistant held out two flaming hoops and the tiger roared twice before gliding through the air and effortlessly clearing both hoops. The audience cheered wildly.

Brayden felt Callie’s body stiffen beside him. She seemed to cringe with each gleeful shout from the audience.  “He’s good.”

Callie flung him a look. “Yes, he is.”

Brayden noticed Callie didn’t seem too impressed. “Are you?”

“Am I what?”

“This good?”

“I don’t do tricks.” Callie shifted in her seat and looked decidedly uncomfortable with the question.

 Brayden wrinkled his brow. For a sorceress, she certainly didn’t flaunt her gifts. “Why not?” Most wizards and sorceresses he knew loved to show off their Magik.

Callie sighed. “Long story, but the short version is my father was a powerful wizard in his day. He practiced necromancy and tried to force me to follow in his footsteps. I refused and walked away from it all when I was seventeen. Needless to say, he disowned me.” She shrugged as if it were of no importance, but even in the dimly lit room, Brayden didn’t miss the flash of hurt that flickered across her features.

“So now you just rescue children from burning buildings?” Brayden teased, leaning closer.

“I don’t practice Magik. Not usually. I’m not even very good at it since I didn’t hone my gift. A young sorceress with just a pinky full of Magik could have done the same thing I did to save the children.”

“Hmm. A sorceress who doesn’t like Magik. Makes one wonder what you’re doing at a Magik show.” Brayden gestured open palmed toward the stage where Grigori helped a volunteer from the audience into a wooden box. Once inside, the woman’s blonde-haired head protruded from one end and her sandaled feet from the other.

“I didn’t say I didn’t like it. I said I didn’t practice it often. Besides, this show isn’t supposed to be real. Just illusions, remember. ”

“Is it just illusions and tricks of light?” Brayden whispered softly against her temple. “Or is it real like yours?”

Callie hitched a breath. “What makes you think it’s real?”

“Because a sorceress wouldn’t need to come to a Magik show. Especially one that was supposed to be fake.”

“What about you? Why are you really here?” Callie turned to face him, her full lips only inches from him. 

Brayden had a sudden urge to capture those lips in his. And from the way she was looking at him, he didn’t think she would object too much.

The dragon inside snorted and the urge to shift strengthened. How could one woman make him want to take such a deadly chance? Had she bewitched him already?

The dragon inside hissed and pawed its protest. Brayden tightened his reins on the beast. He definitely had to exercise more control around the lovely Ms. Gautreaux.

“I’m here for some answers.” Brayden searched her face. “And it looks like you just might have them after all. Why don’t you tell me why you’re really here? Maybe we can help each other.”

For an instant, she looked as if she wanted to tell him. A kaleidoscope of emotions flashed across her face as she snagged her bottom lip with her tooth. She hesitated for a second then shook her head. “No particular reason.”

 Disappointment settled over him. She didn’t trust him any more than he trusted her.  What a pity. If she wasn’t behind the recent fires, then he could have used her help.

Callie turned her attention back to the stage where Grigori’s sword sliced the wooden box in two. She cringed and grabbed Brayden’s arm. Her fingernails dug into his bicep, but he didn’t really mind.