Chapter 16 #2
“Just putting down some ground rules.” Then to soften my order, added, “I can’t wait for you to roast me some marshmallows.”
“They shall be golden perfection,” Abaddon boasted.
When we arrived at Leo’s ranch, a sprawling few hundred acres of fields and forest, Maddox whistled. “Does that fence run the whole length of it?”
The metal barrier with rods spaced barely far enough to stick an arm through rose ten feet with the top of it barbed. Bolted to it at intervals were signs. No Trespassing. Private Property. Under Surveillance.
“Yup, the whole way around. Leo said his grandad had it erected because of a fight with another rancher. Something about cattle rustling.”
“Must have cost a fortune.”
“Leo’s family made a lot of money back in the day.” And Leo continued the tradition despite not being a rancher. Turned out renting land could also be lucrative—and less work.
“You have a code to get in?” Maddox stopped his truck by the front gate and opened his window so he could use the keypad.
I recited the alphanumeric string and he punched it in.
The gate whirred and shifted on its mechanized track, giving us entry.
The long driveway went for a quarter kilometer before reaching the house, but we turned left at the first fork and followed it for a click before reaching a large barn surrounded by paddocks.
Maddox whistled at the sight of the building. “You know, when you said barn, my mind immediately went to big, red, wooden shed.”
“As if Leo would own something so outdated.” The structure before us gleamed, the metal roof and siding immaculate, broken only by windows and doors.
A small door for people and massive double for the horses.
Currently, the barn held no animals. When Franco, the groom employed to handle the care and training of the horses, died, Leo chose to sell off his stallion and three mares rather than replace the man.
“Take in the duffel while I snag the groceries. Wouldn’t want the ice cream and fudge bars melt,” Maddox stated, sliding out of the truck.
As I hefted the zippered bag, I glanced around and noted a camera mounted to the barn facing the driveway.
A blinking red light indicated it was recording.
I’d have to ask Leo about turning it off.
While I craved the security of the perimeter, I didn’t want Abaddon to have to hide all the time while we stayed here.
A growing dragon needed fresh air. But what excuse could I use with my boss?
I’d have to think of something plausible.
I entered the building and spotted another camera monitoring the line of stalls. Dammit. I’d have to warn Abaddon to not leave the loft apartment until I had those recording devices handled. However, before I called Leo to ask a favor, I’d get my dragon and myself settled.
The duffel bumped my leg as I climbed the spiraling steps to the second level.
At the top, I unlocked the door and entered a spacious, open concept living space with massive windows overlooking the pastures.
A great view of the open space. Wouldn’t be easy for anyone to sneak up from that direction.
“Can I get out now?” Abaddon asked.
“Give me a second to check the place out.” Did Leo have surveillance even inside the private apartment? I perused all the walls and ceiling before relaxing enough to say, “It’s safe to come out, but don’t be plastering yourself in the window until I know if this area gets any traffic.”
Abaddon emerged cautiously and sniffed as he waddled around the space before flopping on a shag rug in front of a cold fireplace and declaring, “This is acceptable.”
I snorted. “Glad you like it since it’s our home until we figure out our next move.”
“Our next move should be to vanquish the hunters.”
“Oh, just that?” I queried. “Easy peasy.”
“What’s easy?” Maddox asked as he entered laden with bags.
“Little Fella thinks we just need to eliminate the goons looking for him and all will be good.”
“Why do all that work when you can just go after whoever is paying them?” Maddox asked, heaving the bags onto the large island.
“That’s assuming it’s a single person giving them orders and not the government.”
“The more I think about it, the more I get the impression we’re dealing with a private player. This is Canada, after all. Our government takes forever to get anything done and usually only starts after years of pointless studies.”
My lips quirked. “Good point.”
“I’m hungry,” Abaddon stated. “Do I smell watermelon?”
“Yup.” Maddox pulled it from a cloth bag and my dragon moved so quick, I expected to see sparks.
“Gimme!” He held up his hands for it.
“Excuse me?” I huffed, hands planted on my hips.
“May I have it, please?” groused Abaddon.
“Here you go, bud.”
“Mine,” Abaddon hummed, hugging the giant melon to his body.
“You know the rule,” I stated, pointing in the direction of the bathroom that I knew held a large glass stall.
“I’m not a child,” pouted my young dragon as he toted his watermelon away.
“Then don’t sulk like one,” I shouted.
Maddox snickered. “How long before he enters the dragon teen years and gives you the middle claw or stomps to his room and slams the door?”
A sigh escaped me. “Soon. Too soon.” This rapid growth proved challenging as Abaddon changed daily.
“This is a pretty sweet place,” Maddox remarked as I helped him put away the groceries—which involved some serious Tetris skills seeing as how Leo had already filled the fridge and cupboards.
“Used to be where Franco lived so he could be close to the horses.”
“What happened to them? I noticed the stalls were empty.”
“When Franco died, Leo couldn’t find anyone he really liked and since he wasn’t a rider he thought it simpler to sell them off. The horses were left over from his mother.”
“Do all his employees live this well?”
“Just the ones he likes,” I joked.
“Did you see all the cameras? I spotted one on the barn, another inside, plus another pair on a swivel covering the pastures.”
“I noticed.” My lips twisted. “I never realized before how many he had set up. Do you think Leo will find it odd if I ask him to disconnect a few?”
“Seems like a normal request for privacy, but you know him better than me.”
“Ooh, the privacy angle is a great excuse. I’ll tell him I can’t exactly have outdoor sex if I think his security guys are watching,” I mused aloud.
“Open air nookie? I’m in even if I have to take a hammer to the cameras,” Maddox drawled with a wink.
He always found a way of making me feel sexy as hell.
“In good news, I didn’t spot any cameras inside.”
“It would have been weird if you had. One would expect to not be watched when relaxing in their off time.”
“Speaking of relaxing, if we toss Abaddon that bag of sticky toffee, we might be able to get five minutes to ourselves.”
“And what would those five minutes involve?” he purred.
“Bedroom tour, and a testing of the mattress. That is, if you’re up for it.”
He grabbed my hand and placed it on his groin. “For you, always ready.”
Indeed, his erection swelled the front of his jeans and despite our quickie that morning, I was ready to go again.
“You toss Little Fella the candy while I go strip.” I left him and strode to the bedroom, it and the bathroom being the only enclosed rooms. The bed, a king-sized thing on a platform, faced a window that would greet the morning sun. Gross for a girl who liked to sleep in.
A press of a button brought down the shutters. Last thing I needed was for someone passing by to glance up and see me bouncing on Mads cock.
My clothes hit the floor just as my lover entered, but rather than toss me on the bed, my back ended up pressed against the floor to ceiling glass window, my legs around his hips, his cock buried to the hilt.
Without any kind of discernible effort, he held me aloft, bouncing me to drive his shaft deeper. Our lips meshed in a passionate, panting kiss as we quickly raced for the edge of the orgasmic cliff.
Most guys had to put a ton of work in to getting me primed. Maddox just had to exist. Like, seriously, everything about the man turned me on. His looks. Smile. Personality. That deep voice. The way he made me feel…
I clutched at his shoulders as my body tightened and leapt into climax. A rolling wave of pleasure consumed me. A good thing Maddox held on to me because I would have slipped to the floor in a boneless puddle otherwise.
When we’d both finished, Maddox stood there just holding me tight.
I might not be a conventional girly girl, but that didn’t stop me from basking in the protection he afforded me in that moment.
Granny might have raised me to only rely on myself, but I began to understand and even appreciate how nice it could be to have someone to lean on.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
I sighed. “Our time is up.”
A remark that made Maddox chuckle. “Just like a child.”
An apt comparison seeing as how my almost cock-blocking dragon apparently needed me that instant to show him how to turn on the television.
The apartment came with an eighty-inch flat screen with cable and Abaddon seemed excited at the chance to watch something other than the free channels I used to get at my place.
Maddox spent a few hours with us, checking out the amenities inside and outside.
He spotted a total of four outdoor cameras.
In good news, the interior one watching the stalls seemed to be inactive given it lacked the red light of the others.
It made sense. Why bother monitoring an empty barn?
Just in case, though, I had Maddox put a piece of tape over the lens.
It would be nice for Abaddon to have a place he could play.
Or, as he stiffly informed me, Dragons don’t play. We hone our skills.
By skills, he meant flying. He began his practice that night after dinner while I sat perched on a tall stool. I watched as Abaddon climbed and balanced atop a stall door. He would then leap, extending his aerial arms and flapping hard only to sink.