Flight Risk

2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Tavian

Finally, the meeting ended. I wasn’t sure what sort of decisions we’d come to or what action items there were, because I hadn’t been paying attention for the past forty-five minutes. Still, I stood up, buttoned my jacket, and shook hands with the many individuals in the boardroom, acting as though I knew exactly what they were talking about.

Luckily, I had the meeting recorded and transcribed, thanks to a very nifty device on my phone that would allow me to go back later and figure out what I needed to follow up on. The biggest item I was concerned about was the trip to the Dragon Flight Games.

“Father,” I said once the group started trickling out of the room. They were laughing and talking about where they’d be heading for lunch. Everyone was excited about the trip. It wasn’t often that we could go as a group.

“Yes, Son? What do you need?”

I didn’t really need anything—at least, nothing related to business. I was the lawyer for my family’s estate, but being nearly one hundred and fifty years old and having had our affairs in order for quite some time, it wasn’t exactly a strenuous job. Sure, additional issues arose now and then, and we had to scramble to keep our legacy intact while being discreet about the fact that we were all long-lived shifters who could take dragon form. But mostly, my days were quite boring, which was why I’d recently begun taking on pro-bono work in the inner city. I had to do something to keep me occupied during the day.

“For the games...”

“Don’t tell me you don’t want to go, son. It’s less about the trip and more about networking while we’re there. We’ve talked about this.”

“Yes, we have—ad nauseam. But that’s not what I’m concerned about. I understand, and I am looking forward to going. The Dragon Flight Games are quite a lot of fun, and it’ll be great to see how our European friends organize the festivities. It might give us good ideas for how we can improve next year.” Our clan was hosting the games in sixteen months. There was a lot to prepare for it.

“That’s the spirit,” he said, snapping his briefcase shut and walking toward the door.

“I think Kier should come.”

Father’s brow furrowed. “The receptionist?”

I bristled internally but kept my outward appearance neutral. “He is way more than just a receptionist. He’s the glue that holds this entire clan together.” That was a slight exaggeration. The clan members lived in several cities, and we had four schools. The headquarters were just that—a central location where all the paperwork was done.

Father’s brow furrowed deeper, creating a line between his eyebrows that told me he was deep in thought.

“No one will be here while the games are going on,” I continued. “And even if there are things for him to do, they can be handled remotely.”

I paused, watching him carefully. I knew better than to push at this moment. I needed to wait and see what his concerns would be before presenting any further arguments. I had plenty of counterarguments prepared, of course—I was a lawyer, after all. That was my job.

“You know I love Kier. He’s fantastic at his job, but he’s a wolf, son.”

This time I had a harder time keeping my response neutral. I had hoped that would not be the argument my father would use. He held up a hand before I could even open my mouth.

“I have no problem with that—you know that. And no one here does either, or at least they shouldn’t. If they do, that problem needs to be reported to me ASAP. The concern I have is that we are going to another clan’s territory, and they might not appreciate him being there.”

“I’m good friends with the clan that’s hosting. Sal and I have known each other for years. He assured me there will be no problem.” And if there was, I would personally take care of it. No dragon would give Kier a hard time on my watch.

I could tell the moment my father’s mind was made up. The line between his eyebrows disappeared.

“All right, then. I’ll arrange it.”

Actually, Kier would handle the travel arrangements, but I didn’t correct him. I just counted that as a win.

I might be young by dragon standards, but I was reaching the point where I wanted to settle down. And in my heart of hearts, I knew Kier was mine. He didn’t know it. Hell, the two of us had barely had conversations together, but I knew .

Now the question was: how did I make him see?

“Thanks, Father.”

“Make sure he understands this is a work trip, but that, like the rest of us, he can have fun and unwind. Maybe you and your friends can take him out with you all.”

Oh, I would take him out—but it would be with me, and there would be no one else around.

“Of course,” I said, keeping my tone measured.

I resisted the urge to pump my fist in triumph. Such an action would have been unbecoming of me, but it was exactly what I wanted to do. Especially when I made my way out to the lobby and saw Kier sitting behind his desk.

After a few moments, his friend—Roy, who knew all the details about the trip—started chatting away with him. I tried to catch Kier’s eye, but every time he looked at me, he quickly averted his gaze.

There had to be a way I could spend some time with him, get to know him better. I had tried in the past, but to no avail.

“Just walk over there and ask him out,” my friend Thorne said, standing at my side. We were apart from everyone else, so they wouldn’t overhear. I wasn’t ashamed of my attraction to Kier, but it wasn’t anyone’s business but mine.

“I’ve done that. It didn’t work.”

He rolled his eyes. “You went up to him and literally said the words, Can I take you on a date? And he said no?”

I sighed. That was not what had happened, and Thorne damn well knew it. “I asked him if he wanted to try the Italian deli place down the street. He thought I meant for catering the board meeting that week, so we got to try it.” Kier hadn’t tried it, though. He ate his same packed lunch he had every day. It was rare for him to go out to lunch, and if he did, it was with Roy.

Thorne laughed. “Strike one.”

“Then there was the time I asked him if he wanted to see that new show on Broadway. I told him I was looking forward to seeing it, and he made sure my father’s box seats were available to me. Of course, he had not been available to go.”

He had laughed when I had suggested it, telling me he didn’t own a tuxedo and they didn’t let you in without one. I didn’t have the heart to tell him I was asking him out on a date. Being rejected quite so many times in one sitting was not my favorite.

“Sounds like you’ve got one more chance, buddy. After that, it’s three strikes, you’re out.”

“I don’t play baseball,” I muttered.

“It doesn’t sound like you’re playing at all—at least not in the major leagues. These are rookie mistakes.”

Perhaps he was right. Maybe the direct approach was the best option. Even though Kier was a wolf, I suspected his reaction to me walking up and asking him directly on a date would be to turn around and run like a scared deer.

Why he held such fear inside him, I didn’t know. I longed to find out. And when I did, I would tear apart whatever wolf pack had done this to him.