The Dragon King and I (14 page)

“I’m already seeing someone. So no. He’s not.”

“You have a beau?” she purred.

Too late now. “I have a friend of the male persuasion yes.”

“Is it serious?”

Knowing she’d just invite Phillip anyway if I said no, I replied with an emphatic; “very.”

“Then I expect to see him tomorrow as well.”

Panic. “He can’t—”

“Love you darling. Say hello to your mystery man for me and remember, the food goes on the table at 7:30, so I expect you both no later than 7:35. Good night.”

And with that, she hung up on me.

Chapter Seven

She cried, “Laura,” up the garden,

“Did you miss me?

Come and kiss me.

Never mind my bruises,

Hug me, kiss me, suck my juices

squeez’d from goblin fruits for you,

Goblin pulp and goblin dew.

Eat me, drink me, love me;

Laura, make much of me;

For your sake I have braved the glen

And had to do with goblin merchant men.”

- Christina Rossetti, Goblin Market

“Wake up.”

I made an unintelligible sound, still groggy from lack of sleep, and buried myself beneath my blankets. It was nice and warm under there until someone decided to stick their fat head under one side of it and let the cold air in.

“Alex.”

I opened one eye and glared.

“What, do you want?”

I saw his lips quirk up on one side. “It’s time to go.”

I closed my eye again and settled deeper into the pillows.

“What time is it?”

“6:00.”

I jerked up in the bed in a panic. “At night?” My mind whirled and I was trying to figure out how to hyperventilate when Sam chuckled and settled on the edge of my bed.

“In the morning.”

I made a sound like a dying wildebeest and let myself fall back against my pillows. “Why the hell are you waking me up at 6:00 in the morning?”

From what I’d understood of the conversation last night, we still had to figure out where to go. In my mind that meant going around noon. I wasn’t emotionally prepared to wake up this early. I told Sam as much and groaned when he merely blinked at me without a trace of sympathy crossing his face.

“I already know where the markets are. We need to go now though, or we’ll only be able to catch the one tonight.”

Every hopeful, I said, “What about that twixt and twain nonsense? I thought we weren’t going to make our move until noon.”

He nodded solemnly, “For the piper and I yes, but you’re mostly human so you have to travel when the veil’s the thinnest. Now get up. We need to leave in fifteen minutes or we’ll miss our chance.” He got up to leave but some thought must have crossed his mind, because he snapped his fingers in sudden revelation.

“Ah. Make sure you wear something...maidenly.”

I lifted one brow at his word choice, thought about not asking, and then realized I had to.

“Why?”

He bared his teeth in something that I think was supposed to be a smile, but which came off looking too maniacal to be friendly or happy.

“We’re using you as bait. I’ve read up on method acting and they say it helps to dress the part.”

He left and I sat staring intently at my hands in my lap. What confounded me wasn’t my role as bait, but what exactly constituted as maidenly attire. I debated the issue for minutes that I didn’t have and in the end I found myself scrambling into a knee length, white dress with pleats along the skirt and a bow accenting the half moon scoop that made up the back.

It was more wanton than maiden, but to be honest it was the only white thing I had in my closet. I ditched the garter belt and thigh highs that went with it, instead pairing the ensemble with a pair of nondescript sandals. I put my hair up in a high knot, reminiscent of Sam’s previous hairstyle, and deemed myself ready.

I was pretty pleased with the results, but then it occurred to me that unless I wanted to ride with Conric (which I did not), I’d have to get on the back of Sam’s motorcycle in this get-up. As if my thoughts had summoned him, Sam opened the door without so much as a knock to announce his presence and met my eyes expectantly.

I glowered at him and had the pleasure of watching his face twist in exaggerated confusion.

“You have got to get yourself a car.”

“How come?”

“Because, unless you want everyone and their grandmother getting a glimpse of my cookie jar, then I no longer approve of your mode of transportation.”

His eyes narrowed. “If I remember correctly you’ve never approved of it.”

I patted his chest as I slipped past him into the hall, “What can I say? I was blessed with sound judgment.”

He made a low, unhappy, sound in the back of his throat as he followed, and I felt my own spirits lift at his darkening mood.

Childish?

Yes.

But I found that I could live with the moniker.

* * * *

“Isn’t this Flo’s place?”

I wasn’t sure why I was whispering exactly. Maybe because my own vocal cords were unsure of their welcome so early in the morning. I’d never seen what 6:00 am looked like and I’d been tempted to keep my eyes closed the entire time just to make sure that that didn’t change. But because of the dress issue, we’d ended up walking and I needed my eyes in order to make that a successful endeavor.

6:00 am was not at all what I expected.

It was chilly first off, and the birds kept making these obnoxious noises. Also, the grass was wet, the sky was dark, and the streets looked like those of a ghost town. I was severely unimpressed, and made no effort to hide that fact.

“Flo.” Conric considered the name thoughtfully. “Isn’t that the name of Clarabell’s little lackey?”

I shot him a glance filled with disgust and he shrugged. “I’ve never had to deal with the imp. My business has always been with the Madam of the house.”

“Flo isn’t an imp.” I said defensively. “She’s a…a um—”

“A goblin.”

I pointed at Sam triumphantly, “See.”

Conric rolled his eyes, some of the polish that was so much a part of his personality wearing thin. I’d been examining both men closely ever since we’d headed out. Neither looked the worse for wear, though there was a tightness to Conric’s jaw that hadn’t been there before. Whatever their talk had been about last night, they were both keeping mum about it.

Like a shark, my curiosity sensed blood in the water, and I found myself humming the chorus to the song from the
Legally Blond
musical beneath my breath when otherwise unoccupied.

I made a move to walk beneath the trellis and up the pathway, but Sam grabbed me by the collar of my dress and pulled me back. My brows rose.

“We’re not here to make a social call.” he explained gruffly.

“Then what are we here to do?”

“I was thinking a kidnapping.”

Huh.

“I don’t think Flo would like that.” I warned. “She isn’t a big fan of unnecessary touching.”

My eye began twitching at the very thought and Sam shook his head.

“We’re not going to kidnap Flo. Flo is going to kidnap you.”

“How do you figure that?” I snorted.

He opened his mouth to explain, looked at Conric, and then shook his head.

“Here. It’s easier just to show you.”

Stepping into my personal space, he gripped my shoulders and stared down at me. His hair was in a French braid today, so there was no impromptu Sam cocoon. Even though, the look on his face and the way his thumbs began to slide across my bare flesh provoked an intimacy that we usually both tried to avoid. I felt myself relaxing under his ministrations. His hands were really warm. In fact his entire body radiated heat, and when he took a step closer, his chest brushing my breasts and that heat kissing my nipples, I felt lust blaze its way through my body.

My lips parted, and suddenly he jerked me up, and against him, until I was standing on my tip toes. My breathing came hard and fast and a liquid heat pooled between my legs with an almost painful intensity. His blue eyes were as bright as I’d ever seen them, for once overpowering the dark crystals that swam in their depths. There was a look in those eyes…something indescribable. When he angled his head, brushing his lips across my own, I felt my common sense sort of fly away. My tongue dipped out, my eyes slid closed, and I pressed even closer as soft lips morphed into moist heat and unspoken promises.

The kiss was tentative. Over in a heartbeat, but it left me feeling restless. Unfinished. When he set me back onto my feet and took two giant steps back I had to stop myself from following him and demanding with action rather than words that he finish what he started. My skin felt too tight, and my palms were itching like a gambling addict’s. I cleared my throat to demand what his deal was, when I saw him glance away from me, and indicate Madam Clara’s with a slight inclination of his head.

Flustered, I followed his gaze and lust disappeared beneath the cold wash of fear. There was a creature huddled on the doorstep. From where I stood all I saw was sickly, green, yellow eyes, slitted like a snake’s. It watched me without blinking, though it hummed some wordless tune to itself and rocking from side to side.

My heart lurched painfully in my chest and I looked over at the two men in desperation. But Sam and Conric were otherwise occupied. Sam had Conric backed up against the brick wall of the neighboring building, a Laundromat. He had one hand over Conric’s mouth, but his eyes were steady on my face. At first I was confused, but then I realized that Conric was fighting him. He was struggling to get away, to get me if the flushed, mindless, look of adoration on his face was any sign.

His brown eyes were glazed with madness and his hands kept dancing in the air. I felt sick on the inside when I realized that he was trying to conjure his lute. Which was why Sam was forcing him to stay silent. Had my attraction to Sam caused this? Probably. It turned out the piper wasn’t as immune to my charms as he’d claimed.

The realization made me sad, but it frightened me, too. Conric wasn’t like a human caught in the curse. He had power of his own. Maybe that power made him more susceptible, maybe it made him less, I just knew that I was grateful for Sam’s intervention because I had no idea what Conric would have done to me had he had his way.

My head jerked around at the sound of squealing tires. What few cars there were on the street were stopping, the men in the driver’s seat glancing hungrily in my direction as they fought to get out of their cars. From across the street I saw a bum stumble forth from the space between two buildings. His eyes were too bright and he wrung his hands in obvious upset as he glanced around looking for me.

This was going to get really bad.

I felt warm breath on the back of my hand and jerked around with a scream. I’d turned away from the house to watch the two men, and therefore had missed seeing the creature from the doorstep cross the intervening distance between us. It now stood beneath the trellis, still watching, still humming, but now there was a sick smile on its face as it reached out hand.

“Come buy.” Flo implored her voice like velvet despite the harsh monstrosity of her face. “Come buy, come buy, little maiden, pretty maiden, with her wishes all in a row. We have something fun for you, oh yes. Something to fill the ache in your belly. Come, come.” her hand beckoned, and my mouth went dry to see the elongated claws.