Chapter 3 How to Kill a Dragon #3
Another search on Leonard Chase, Fabio found me a Fabio Altera, a Dalton City entrepreneur and, would you look at that, a former governor candidate. In the last race, he’d lost to Benjamin Whitehall.
What had I gotten myself into?
Dropping my phone into my pocket, I hurried downstairs. I found Leonard Chase on the sofa where I’d left him, except he was curled up on his side, staring in front of him unseeingly. The tumbler was empty.
“Another?” I asked.
“Yes. Rocks if you have them. Soda on the side.”
I made him the drink and poured myself one as well. I brought him a glass of water and sat by his head on the sofa.
“No soda, sorry.”
He guzzled the water, then sipped the whiskey, and lay back down.
What now? I couldn’t admit to searching him up online. But I could ask—and see if he’d lie.
“Who’s Fabio?”
Leonard visibly recoiled again. The mere mention of the name had an immediate effect on him. “An ex. He’s a big name in Dalton City.”
“Why is he trying to find you?”
“I was something he owned and lost. He doesn’t like losing.”
“Have you contacted the police?”
“No. Up until today, he hadn’t broken the law. And even if he did, he would make sure nobody could prove it.” He looked at me. “I guess I can’t call the police now, can I?”
“We can. But we would have to come up with a believable tale.”
He made a derisive sound into the glass and swallowed more whiskey. “No point anyway. Even if the police were able to catch them, which I doubt, they’d never get to Fabio.”
“What do you want to do?” How can I help?
“Move again, I guess.” His voice was empty, void of emotion. How badly must Fabio Altera have hurt the boy that meeting my dragon merely rattled him in comparison?
His scent rose around me, and even with the fading hint of vomit, he smelled better than any omega I’d ever met.
The suggestion that I could still find my mate shook me to my core. It had been too long now. How big a chance was it that a random club hookup would turn out to be the one? His scent, taste, the way the dragon hovered…
“What’s your name?” I asked unnecessarily. I felt like I could read his changing expressions, and I wasn’t usually great at reading people. Who was I kidding—I actively avoided looking into most folk’s faces because they pissed me off on principle. But Leonard Chase… I could look at him for hours.
He blinked, and a little crease appeared between his eyebrows. He was clearly considering what was safe to tell me.
“Leo.”
“I’m sorry about what happened, Leo. I wanted to help you, and I didn’t know how else—”
“I know why they followed me. But why did you?”
Apparently, my online search gave him too much time to think.
“I tried not to.”
“You tried.” He scoffed. “I guess I should be grateful. I would have been tied up in a private jet, with my toes broken or something.”
“I won’t hurt you.”
“You keep saying that, yeah. Was there something hallucinogenic in the drink?”
“I don’t think so.”
Closing his eyes, he blew out a breath. “So the creature you turn into…”
“I’m a dragon shifter. There are many of us all over the world.”
“How come nobody knows about you?”
“If you start telling people tomorrow, will anyone believe you?”
He scowled in front of him, not acknowledging my question.
“I can help you.”
No reaction. His scowl darkened even more.
“Have you drugged me?” He gave me a scathing glare that looked positively vicious on his gorgeous face.
Too bad I found even his seething anger beautiful. “No, I haven’t. Do you feel strange? Did you take something at the club?”
“One small drink. Never let it out of my sight. But do I feel strange? I flew over the city in a dragon’s claws. I think that qualifies as strange.”
“You’re sober, Leo.”
He sat up straight and downed another large mouthful of the whiskey. “Not for long,” he said darkly. “Why do you have a pool in your living room?”
“Um. I like water. It calms me.”
Shaking his head infinitesimally, he swigged the rest of the good-sized drink. “I think I need to sleep. Or wake up. Either of those would do me fine.”
“I’ll bring you some comfortable clothes.”
Leonard leaned against the backrest and looked up. “Even your ceilings are dark.”
“I promise you, I’m not a murdering psychopath nor do I feast on human flesh. I might have unconventional taste in interior decor, but you’re safe here.”
He met my gaze, and his features seemed truly exhausted. The shock had worn off, leaving him drained. “Not like I have any choice but to trust you.”
“I have a guest bedroom. Several, in fact.”
“You’re right that the water’s calming. I’ll stay here if that’s okay.”
“Sure. I’ll bring you clothes and a blanket. There’s a bathroom over there if you need to use it. The cupboards hold all necessities.”
When I stood to go upstairs, he scrambled up behind me. The bathroom door clicked shut as I walked through the atrium.
I came back to the living room after a few minutes, carrying a fleece blanket and some sweats I’d found that were too small for me but would still fit two of him. Leo was back on the sofa and already asleep.
So I unzipped and pulled off his boots, covered him with the blanket, and sat down into an armchair next to the large sectional he sprawled on.
I shouldn’t be watching him sleep like the creepy monster I was, but I couldn’t tear myself away.