Beaufort Creek Shifters (10 book series)
The Dragon’s Pretend Marriage Chapter 11

Milton

The door was open when I got to the townhouse.

Though I was hesitant to leave Brandi behind, I could tell my constant presence was getting on her nerves. No girl wanted her fiancé up her a*s, even one as attractive as me. Besides, I needed a breather as well. Thirty minutes would do the trick. And then I could get right back to nosing my way up her dress.

The interior of the townhouse barely held Brandi's scent. Mostly, it was just the smell of birdseed and coconut oil that hung around. I assumed that was Lenny.

Up the stairs and to the right-those were Brandi's instructions. Her old room hosted a medley of violets, blues, and greens, a multicolored wonderland that could have very well belonged to a teenager.

Brandi was far more mature, of course, even with her combative nature. When we butted heads, we simply made out. It was an easy course of action that gave us both something to feel satisfied with later.

Sex isn't a cure-all, I reminded myself. You have to do some communication.

Bah, it was ridiculous to think about communication when moving a muscle could change the most invasive of thoughts. Why do any talking with my mouth when I could just do things with my mouth to my girlfriend?

I squinted at the bed. The sheets were still tucked around the mattress, capturing some late morning light.

I've never thought of her as my girlfriend, I realized. Maybe it's just because I keep saying it.

Several minutes went by with my inspection of the place. There was no sign of the picture Brandi had described to me in detail. The drawers hosted next to nothing and neither did the closet. The small room barely contained a life's worth of memories. It wasn't even worth keeping.

Why was Brandi hooked to this place?

Was it her brother? Her mother? Her alpha?

He was our alpha, technically. He was the one who approved of this union. He had no idea it was entirely false, a bravado to keep enemies at bay and our parents off our backs. Brandi was brilliant. She was wonderful. But I couldn't keep her. I paused in the doorway. Or can I?

A rotten smell struck my nostrils. I spun around and faced the window, searching the area for an animal. It could have been anything. It could have even been a wild bear.

But it was nothing. The windows were empty. The yard was clear. Nothing sat in the trees either. It was quiet.

Almost too quiet.

Slam.

I flew across the room and collided with the desk on the other side. Wood splintered beneath me, breaking my fall. My forearm flared with pain as I recovered my position and turned around.

Two hulking men stood in the hallway. One of them stepped inside while the other cracked his knuckles. My nose wiggled as I scented the air once more.

Rotten. Disgusting. Musky.

It was body odor. And a lot of it. Coming from these two guys. I couldn't quite place their abilities, but I knew they were some kind of shifters.

I bent my knees while raising my fists.

There was one way to figure out the mystery.

The shifter inside the room cocked his head. His tattered gray hair fell into his eyes. "You're not the girl."

"I'm not a girl at all, Mr. Observant."

He snarled. "We're supposed to get the girl."

"You're not getting anyone. This is private property."

The other shifter pushed past his friend. "Do we look like we care about private property, buddy?"

"I don't know who you are, but you have thirty seconds to leave."

The guy behind him snorted with disbelief. "Or what?"

Black smoke plumed from my nostrils with my next exhalation. My eyes burned as my vision watered up, my gums aching as my teeth descended. Canines. And then razor-sharp rows. Talons popped from the tips of my fingers. "Or you'll regret it..." My voice cracked on the last word, turning into a horrendous gurgle that made both men jump back.

I wanted to warn them about my size, but it seemed like watching my shift was doing the trick. My suit tore. My skin broke open. Scales expanded as my body size doubled, and then tripled, and then quadrupled, making the room cramp up by the second. Both men hopped into the hallway. The shifter with gray hair leaned into the railing. "This is that Brandi chick's mate. F**k, man. F**k, he's a goddamn dragon!"

The invaders scurried off once my tail snapped through the windows. It fell into the yard, warm earth cushioning my hot scales. Shifting is easy for dragons. We can stop it at any point.

So long as we're in control of our emotions.

But considering Brandi's behavior, her ravenous appetite, and the appearance of these two shifters of unknown origin who named her specifically, I was having a hard time getting myself under control.

Which meant the roof would need repairs. Among other things.

I released a mighty roar that vibrated the air. Birds scattered and critters shuffled off to hide in the woods. I fell back into the yard, landing on my back as my long neck swung into the brush. My body contorted as an angry bellow echoed from my lungs. Great waves of panic washed through me.

Brandi was in danger.

Brandi had been in danger this whole time.

And I had to find out why.

***

My flight back to my penthouse suite was more than interesting. Planes flew above my head as I zipped across town, beating my wings harder than I ever had in my life. While my scales provided a cloaking mechanism from prying eyes, the sounds of my irritation couldn't be hidden.

It probably sounded like thunder cracking through clear skies. The humans were undoubtedly confused.

But it wasn't my problem. Brandi was my problem.

Rather, her problems were my problem.

And from where I was looking, it appeared that her problems were huge.

Minutes after landing on the main deck, I shifted into my human form and shuffled inside, shouting commands at any servants who happened to be passing by. Clothes materialized into my hands and then swept over my skin, the cool fabric comforting my lava-hot temper.

For a moment.

"Brandi!" I lunged into the bedroom and checked the closet.

No sign of her.

A series of irate grumbles rumbled from my mouth next. It led me into the hallway, to the arcade, and then to the library where I knew she would probably be hiding.

Had she sent me to her old house on purpose? Had she known those men would be waiting to find her?

Anger turned into pure fury.

Did she just set me up?

"BRANDI!"

Books fell to the ground, footsteps pattered across the carpet. A sharp huff echoed next and then Brandi appeared at the top of the stairs, her hand over her chest and her eyes hooked on me. "Where have you been?" she asked. She fled down the stairs, grabbing my hand to yank me upward. "We had no idea where you were. Jermaine and I have been="

"What?"

She paused, fixing me with a stern glare. "I said, Jermaine and I have been trying to find you. Blake said you blasted the second floor of the townhouse to pieces and then took off. You've been missing for four hours, Milton!"

I recoiled. Four hours? That wasn't good.

I had no recollection of anything happening between the time I left the pack and my arrival here at the penthouse.

Brandi softened slightly while her brows dipped together. "Milton? Are you okay? What happened?"

"There were two men looking for you."

The artery in her neck bulged. Color drained from her face as she released my hands. She retreated a few steps. "Oh..."

"Do you know about that?"

"I...well, I just...I should have..."

I took her shoulders firmly. "You should have what?"

"I should have told you."

My eyes narrowed to slits. Somewhere in my cavernous soul, my dragon roared to life. My vision burned with unshed tears as a blurry sheen echoed over everything. My girlfriend had lied to me.

But about what? What was so dark that she couldn't tell me? A literal dragon?

Steam floated in wisps from my forearms. Pain lanced through the bone that connected my wrist to my elbow. I hissed while lifting my arm to inspect it.

Brandi gasped. "You're injured. What the hell happened, Milton?"

"You need to explain yourself first."

Her eyes rounded out as she took my hand. She inspected the injury and then led me upstairs, taking me to her favorite balcony. A laptop sat next to a cell phone along with a few other techie devices that were likely from Jermaine. He was probably scouring the city -and the skies-to find me.

I bowed my head. "Text Jermaine. Tell him I'm fine."

"No, we're healing you first. Stay still." Her voice took an authoritative edge. Call me silly for finding it totally adorable despite my anger. "I have something in my bag..."

That trusty old satchel appeared seconds later. Gods, the thing was ratty and ugly. I had begged her to get rid of it, but she insisted on keeping it. She considered it good luck.

It was starting to make sense why she kept it around. While she didn't carry it everywhere, she did keep it close.

She plucked a small vial from the inside pocket and then sprinkled the contents over my wound. Though the skin had already begun to heal, the liquid sizzled over the flesh, inspiring the scar tissue to dissipate. Soon, there was nothing left of it. The pain disappeared.

I blinked at her. "What else are you hiding?"

"A lot, actually." She gestured to the loveseat. "Please, don't run away. I don't..." She bit her lower lip. "I don't want to scare you off. Just understand I did this to protect myself, okay?" "Protect yourself? From those shifters?"

She nodded as she sank into the cushions. She left enough room for me to sit down. When I joined her, she took my hands. Genuine affection radiated from the tips of her fingers. What assaulted me next couldn't have been described as anything less than sheer

terror.

It was the same kind of terror I felt when I thought about her getting injured.

Was she worried about me?

She hung her head. Guilt wafted off her just like that nasty body odor had from those two shifters. "Some years ago, before Blake was alpha, I made a deal with the Gilberts."

"Excuse me?"

She winced. "Please, let me explain."

How could I let her explain? The Gilbert pack proved to be our mortal enemies. What could she have possibly gone to them for?

I snatched my hands back. "Are you the reason they've been attacking us?"

Horror struck her features. "Gods of Appalachia, hell to the absolute no, Milton."

"Explain."

"I will if you'll let me!"

She shot up from the loveseat and crossed the balcony, putting as much distance between us as possible. Her phone buzzed. Jermaine's name appeared a few times. He was probably just trying to check in or something.

But she didn't seem particularly worried about her phone. Only the distance between us.

Only me.

She turned around with her arms crossed over her chest. "My family wouldn't help me, okay? My mother and grandmother were flat broke. I was already a high school dropout and whatever grants I could get were about my skills-" She hiccupped. "I really don't have many of those."

I frowned but kept my mouth shut. If I interrupted her again, then she probably wouldn't explain anything.

She shivered as she turned to the window. Sunlight poured over her glistening skin, lighting her copper freckles on fire. "Nathan wouldn't help me either. And Shelly?" She huffed. "Let's just say Shelly didn't breathe without Nathan making sure it was okay." "That doesn't sound like the Haydens I knew."

"That's because they were really good at putting on a performance." She gestured between us. "Like you and me. Like we've been doing. They were putting on a little show of their own."

I frowned. "I don't get it. They were happy together."

"That wasn't without some fighting. I'd overheard their arguments. That was how I tried to get Nathan to give me the money to go to school."

My chin tilted. "You studied sociology." I shook my head. "But I thought you didn't want the degree?"

Red blossomed on her face. "I flunked out, Milton. I failed. Because of..." She sucked air into her lungs and then shook her head. "It doesn't matter. The point is that Nathan wouldn't give me the money. But he knew someone who would." "The Gilberts."

"They used to be friends. You know that? They used to trade all the time."

A memory slid to the forefront of my mind. "I think Blake mentioned that once or twice."

"They used to do some light deals here and there. Nothing huge. Usually led by Shelly."

"Shelly?" I shook my head. "No, Shelly is too vain for that. She never did business with anyone."

She arched her right brow. "You sure about that? Shelly had quite a few meetings with Raymond. She sealed a few deals."

"That's odd."

"Well, it's the truth. Nathan referred me to Raymond's crew and they gave me a loan." She squeezed her eyes shut. "Except I never read the fine print. I just signed my name. Like a damn idiot." Anger boiled back to the surface. "Brandi, you're not an idiot. You were just a kid. You didn't know any better."

"No, I didn't. Because my stupid brother took off and I didn't have him to back me up. And you?" She laughed dryly. "You were too big of a bully to see me as anything except Tanner's baby sister." I stared at her. "What?"

"You really don't remember," she scoffed. "You made puberty feel like a death sentence. You were so mean to me."

"Brandi, I don't know what you're talking about."

She shook her head. "Whatever. It doesn't matter anymore. The point is that those little Gilbert fuckers are after me for some big cash. That's why they caged me and left me in the middle of the road." I stood up and clenched my fists at my sides. "That was why they did that?"

"And they'll do it again. Except for this time, they'll probably light me on fire or something. If they don't get the cash, then they'll kill me." She trembled. "Or you. Or Blake. Who knows?" "That's not happening."

She hugged herself. "No, I'm going to turn myself in. I can't risk the pack anymore. I can't put any more lives at risk."

"Brandi, no."

The resonance in my tone drew her attention. She looked so small suddenly, so vulnerable. It pulled me directly to her. It inspired me to wrap my arms around her. Where they belonged.

I pressed my cheek to hers. "We'll figure it out."

"You can't pay them off, Milton."

"Then I'll do something better," I told her. "I'll lure them out and I'll kill them." I held her at arm's length, looking deep into her eyes. "I'll make sure they regret ever fucking with my fiancée."