Chapter 17
Emmeline was to meet Luke in Bayview after work finished at Inferno.
She could have met him at the bookshop, where they would both be headed afterwards, anyway, but she didn’t know how the conversation would go.
If it went well, she could get work done at the bookshop after, but if it went poorly, she would want some space away from him for a little while before getting back to work.
He had apologized, which she appreciated, but that didn’t mean all of her guards were down.
In truth, she was scared. She was barely holding herself together, and she was afraid of what she might feel for him if she let herself—but she wouldn’t let herself feel anything unless she knew he was genuine.
There was the possibility that he was only acting this way to distract her.
He was her rival, after all. She knew winning Anh’s investment was just as important for him as it was for her.
It had been three weeks, bringing them halfway to their deadline, and she needed to focus—something that seemed impossible to do if things continued the way they were with Luke.
There was no denying that he had gotten under her skin—but his hand had been so gentle in her hair. He’d apologized. He’d brought her chai.
She didn’t know what his plan was: hence, this test. “What drives you?”
That was her question, and he’d refused to answer. If he answered her now, then he was genuine. If he didn’t, then he was just playing with her.
Meeting in Bayview was the best course of action because it gave her an excuse to visit.
She had hardly been to that part of Starshine Valley, and she wanted to see the lake.
Arriving early, Emmeline took in the sights.
As throughout the rest of the valley, a blanket of snow covered every tree, bush, and patch of grass, along with the lake itself, though parts were cleared out for ice-skating on the frozen waters.
The area was cute, fitted with a walkway that wound along the lake.
There were benches for people to rest, along with small shops: a cafe, a bakery, a bookshop.
As Emmeline walked down the path, she spotted a few people jogging in athletic clothes, then saw some old couples walking together.
There were mothers pushing strollers and fathers with toddlers; teenage girls giggling over coffee cups; and solitary young men reading on benches.
Some were accompanied with chimeras of various ages, and Emmeline smiled as she walked past a baby chimera holding onto a twenty-year-old guy’s beanie, its snake tail curled across the guy’s shoulders.
She hadn’t seen a baby chimera before; it was adorable with its little goat face and stubby horns.
Emmeline continued walking, until she spotted a small truck selling hot chocolate. The sweet scent of the drink wafted toward her. She walked up and scanned the menu, which had about twenty different options. Eventually, she settled on a classic blend.
With her drink, she walked over to a bench, sitting to stare out at the silver lake. Some teenagers played ice hockey in one section, while others skated in another. The sky darkened, the sun about to set.
Emmeline checked her phone; Luke was late. She nibbled on her lower lip, trying not to think the worst: that this was what he wanted, for her to wait for him only for him to stand her up.
“Mommy, look!” a little girl said, pointing. Glancing up, Emmeline spotted Torch, who was flying above with Motu in her paw. The little girl wasn’t the only one staring in awe.
Emmeline smiled to herself. Since this was the chimera area of town, her dragon would be a novelty. While she hadn’t been to Bayview much, it was nice. Unlike the Hills, but lovely all the same.
The hot chocolate was sweet and warm, and she took another sip, gaze straying to where there was a toboggan slide set up.
It looked to only be open on the weekends, but there were some people pulling up their own toboggans and even a few chimeras flying the toboggans on to the top.
Passengers shot down the steep slide, both children and adults shouting in glee.
It looked fun—probably as thrilling as a dragon diving down in the sky.
Emmeline checked her phone again, then frowned.
Luke was ten minutes late now, with no message.
Standing, she walked back and forth, sipping her hot chocolate until she reached the end.
She went to toss it, just as a man a few years older than her tossed a crumpled piece of paper into the trashcan at the same time.
Her gaze met his, and she paused. He was very good-looking, with wavy black hair and stubble across his cheeks and jaw. There was a nasty scar slashed across his throat, the skin white and raised. There was another scar over his brow and in indent in one ear.
“What did you get?” he asked, giving her an easy smile.
“The hot chocolate?” she asked. He nodded. “A classic.”
He didn’t hesitate: “How about I get you another?”
“Oh.” She hadn’t been expecting that, but she wasn’t entirely averse to the idea, either. She was used to men offering her such things.
“I’m Flint,” he said. His voice was deep and raspy. “Give me a sec.”
Before she could respond, he headed for the hot chocolate truck. Emmeline checked her phone, wondering where Luke was. Then, Flint was back. She put her phone away as he offered her a fresh hot chocolate, steam rising from the top. The sweet scent filled her lungs. With a shrug, she took the cup.
She was standing here waiting anyway, and one little hot chocolate was no harm; she was hardly going home with him. Besides, Flint was handsome. She always enjoyed handsome men. Though his beauty had a dangerous quality to it, the way the flash of lightning did, with the promise to scathe.
He was the type of man she would have—years ago—cautioned Millie (with her terrible taste) away from, but Emmeline had handled plenty of men like him before. She wasn’t worried.
“You’re not from around here,” Flint said, tilting his head as he assessed her.
“Oh?” she asked. “Then where am I from?”
He took the chance to check her out, his gaze slowly going down, which amused her. She was used to men who were forward. They knew what they wanted and weren’t afraid to show it, which made them the most uncomplicated.
After everything being so complicated with Luke, this was a welcome distraction. She liked when guys fitted into neat boxes; it made it easy for her to manage.
“Let me guess,” he said, looking her over. “Dragon rider?”
Surprise lit through her, but she didn’t show it, not wanting him to think she was impressed. “Beginner’s luck,” she said casually. “There’s only three other animals to choose from, anyway.”
He shrugged easily, then pointed a finger up. “The dragon circling above kind of gave it away,” he said. She looked and, sure enough, Torch was flying overhead.
Emmeline’s lips twitched. “Someone’s sharp.”
“I get the feeling you like sharp,” he replied smoothly, earning a laugh out of her. She was about to respond when Flint’s gaze shifted to something over her shoulder. His expression soured.
Emmeline glanced back—Luke was there, looking royally pissed off. Anxiety spiked through her at his expression.
He stalked up to her and Flint, practically radiating tension as he came to stand by Emmeline’s side. She could immediately sense he was angry, though really she should have been upset since he was the one who was late!
“Luke,” Flint said curtly, nodding. So they knew each other.
Luke didn’t respond. Instead, he turned to Emmeline, dark eyes stormy. “Go,” he said, voice hard. Her brows crinkled. He’d never spoken to her like that, his voice a command. She opened her mouth to argue, but he ground his teeth together. “Now.”
Her blood beat hotly in her veins. First, he was late, and now he was ordering her around like a toxic jealous boyfriend. How dare he tell her what to do!
As she geared up to fire back a response, she saw the tight expression on his face. He was at the very edge of bursting, glaring at Flint, who didn’t seem too pleased to see Luke, either, though he wasn’t acting like a barbarian about it.
Something told her not to argue with Luke right then. Suppressing her anger, she turned to Flint.
“Thanks for this,” she said, raising the hot chocolate in a “cheers” motion. Before she could bring her hand back down, Luke snatched the to-go cup from her. He took a stride away from her and tossed the cup into the garbage.
Her mouth dropped open.
She was about to quarrel with him, but Luke wasn’t even looking her way. He was staring Flint down with his arms crossed.
Fuming, Emmeline stalked away. She walked along the pathway, stopping in front of one of the empty benches. She sat down, then stood again, too worked up to stay seated.
Releasing a frustrated sound, she began pacing back and forth. The sun had set by then, the sky a deep shade of navy blue. It was too early to see the stars.
Emmeline glanced over, where Luke was exchanging heated words with Flint, who looked peeved. Obviously they didn’t like each other, but she didn’t care. That still didn’t give Luke the right to behave in such an uncivilized manner with her.
She continued to watch as eventually Flint left. Luke released a long breath, as if trying to steady himself. He was practically twitching, and though she was angry with him, seeing him so distressed made her unsettled.
It was the first time she had ever seen Luke so upset. Not even when she had broken his heart all those years ago had he been this agitated, like a kettle shrieking. She could have sworn steam was coming out of his ears, and for a moment, she felt a little guilty, as if it was her fault, somehow.
Then, Luke turned in her direction. He stalked over, his anger directed at her, and any remorse she felt quickly went away. She was the one who should have been angry he was late, after all. And yet, his eyes were blazing, his hands in tight fists at his sides.
Turning her cheek, she crossed her arms over her chest as he came to a stop beside her.
“Do you have any idea who that is?” Luke asked. She ignored him, and he grabbed her elbow, pulling her to face him. “Do you?”
She turned, narrowing her eyes at him. “Oh, now you’re speaking to me in more than one-word orders?” she asked, voice dripping with venom. Luke made an irritated sound, looking away for a moment before snapping his gaze back to hers.
“Don’t piss me off, Emmeline,” he said. She threw his hand off her arm.
“What is wrong with you?” Anger burned through her. “How dare you order me around like that? Who the hell are you?”
He scoffed. “When you’ve taken complete leave of your senses, that’s what you get,” he replied. “Are you insane? You just take any drink from any stranger you met five seconds ago just because he’s hot?”
Emmeline paused. Luke kind of had a point, but she was not going to admit that. Besides, she could handle herself, and even if she couldn’t, Flint was correct in noting that Torch had been circling above. Her dragon wouldn’t have let anything happen to her.
She didn’t explain any of that.
“It was just a hot chocolate!” she cried, genuinely baffled by his reaction. “It’s five p.m. on a Monday evening! And we’re down by the lake, not in some club!”
Luke ground his teeth together. “Stay away from Flint.”
She couldn’t believe this. “You don’t get to tell me who to stay away from!”
“I do when you have exceptionally bad taste in men!”
“No wonder I went after you!” The words were out before she could think better of them.
Emmeline froze.
Luke’s face twitched, confusion breaking through the rage. “But that was just to get back at me,” he said. Her heart pounded. “You weren’t actually interested in me.”
She paused, unsure how to respond, and the moment was enough for his anger to come back in full force as he seemed to replay her words.
“And don’t compare me to fucking Flint!” he snapped.
His expression was furious, as if she had offended him deeply. She had no idea why he was so upset, but he was behaving entirely out of character. He wasn’t explaining anything; he was just ordering her about.
“You’re right—he’s much nicer than you!” she snapped back.
Luke’s face flashed with hurt. Before she knew what was happening, he bridged the space between them, seizing her shoulders. “You don’t know anything,” he said, shaking her.
“If you’re not going to tell me, then obviously I don’t know!”
He clenched his jaw, looking away from her. With a frustrated huff, he released her, turning. He pulled out a whistle and blew; shortly thereafter, Sharptooth arrived, swooping down behind him. Adrenaline beat through her as she watched him head toward his chimera.
“You’re leaving?” she cried, appalled. “I thought we were going to talk!”
“I can’t talk to you right now,” he replied.
Pain slashed through her. “But you said if I asked again you would answer,” she said, hating the way her voice wobbled. She sounded like a child, and she hated that, too.
He turned back to face her, expression turbulent. “Please don’t ask me anything right now,” he said, jaw clenched over the words.
“But you said—”
“I changed my mind!” he cried.
She flinched. How could he do this? He said . . .
He really was just playing with her.
The realization shouldn’t have surprised her so much, and yet. She shook her head.
“You were right,” she said, voice empty. “I don’t have a good opinion of you. I was hoping to change that—but it seems there’s no need.”
He looked gutted by that, and she was glad.
“Torch!” she called.
Luke’s dark eyes filled with regret as Torch swooped down, landing behind Emmeline. Motu was in her paw, and the baby flew to Emmeline’s side, holding onto her leg.
Both the baby dragon and Torch could immediately sense that Emmeline was upset. Torch growled at Luke, eyes slitted into a glare.
In response, Sharptooth inched closer to Luke, growling just as deeply. The animals stared each other down as Emmeline went to mount.
“Torch, come on,” she said. Luke took a step toward her.
“Emmeline, wait—” he started, but it was too late.
She was gone.