It shouldn't have been any surprise to her that he'd come to the same decision she'd known he would. Dan was a good man. A brave man.

A dead man, her subconscious supplied, unbidden.

A sinking feeling set in as they pored over various maps in search of a safe-haven to set up a bunker far, far away from civilians.

If only Rene would get back to her, she could find out something...how many more were coming. How far they were prepared to go.

In the meantime, though, she had to work with what they had.

She found it fascinating that Dan had physical road maps of the entire country, not just an app on his phone. Boxes of them. It was as if she learned something intimate about him, a piece of himself he didn't share with many people. She wanted to ask him why, but it felt like an invasion of privacy, and she'd already overstepped with him.

He bent over a map of the entire United States, staring at it intently, as if he could divine their next move with a flick of his eyes. A lock of his hair fell on his forehead and Mina had to stifle the urge to push it back.

With Dan so close, she was stifling a lot of reactions, like the frisson of tingles that teased her nipples and between her legs.

Focus, she told herself sharply. The decisions they made in the next few minutes carried life or death consequences. That was what she should be thinking about, not how irresistible the man sitting next to her was.

The human man.

"What do you think?" Dan asked. "I’m thinking west. Maybe south?"

He shifted slightly in his seat, pushing his legs farther apart and against Mina's. The pressure and warmth of his muscular thigh against hers made her pulse pound.

"I'm partial to the Rocky Mountains," she said, hoping he didn't note the huskiness of her voice.

"Yes, but which part?"

"You know, Colorado is very thin in population. It's so large, and except for the biggest cities..."

Jesus, what was wrong with her? They were in the middle of a crisis and all she could think about was that mouth. It might have been all the adrenaline from their battle, but she was amped, body trembling like a too-tight wire.

He was staring at her with his chocolate-colored eyes, his warm and delicious lips only inches from hers, and she swallowed hard. He had trailed off, gazed locked on hers, and for a second, she thought he was going to continue. Instead, he lowered his head and crushed his mouth to hers. His tongue swept along her lips, urging them to part.

Mina leaned into him, soaking in his scent, a mix of fresh Montana air, aftershave and male musk that hijacked the thinking part of her brain. The bristles of his shaven beard rasped her tender skin, sending pinpricks of pleasure down her spine. She couldn't deny it. She wanted more and she yielded, allowing his tongue to enter her mouth.

She groaned as he explored, sliding wantonly against her tongue. He tasted so good. And when he flicked a thumb over her sensitive nipple, she moaned.

A sharp knock on the door struck her like a slap in the face and she jerked back with a start, covering her tingling mouth with one hand.

Jesus, that had been close.

Too fucking close, you idiot.

If they hadn't gotten interrupted, she would’ve gotten into some serious trouble. This whole thing was complicated enough without adding another layer to it. The odds of her surviving this mess were almost zero. The odds of a human surviving were even less. Which meant that Dan was on borrowed time.

The wave of sadness that engulfed her at that realization made the back of her eyes sting and she swallowed the rush of emotion. She hardly knew him, for god's sake. If she felt like this now--so invested already in the life of a man she'd met only days ago, what would happen if she let herself get closer? Or pulled him closer to her, only for him to have to bury her?

They could be a team, but they could never be lovers. She stepped back on trembling legs. “Company.”

Dan seemed to be less relieved about the interruption and bit back a groan.

"Is it safe to assume if that was more of your friends, they wouldn't bother knocking?"

She nodded wordlessly. If she was going to play it cool, she wasn't about to let him hear how much their kiss had affected her.

She lowered herself to the edge of the couch as he crossed the room to the front door.

"Mina?" he called softly.

Instantly, her instincts rose to the surface and she focused. She pushed Dan's scent and the lingering lethargy from his touch aside and attuned her senses to her surroundings.

"A man and a woman. He's got sandy blond hair, and she--"

"Etienne and Taya." She could smell them now. Sense their very presence in the air like a tangible wave of energy. "I know them, it's all right. You can open the door."

She made her way to the hall on still-shaky legs, a dozen conflicting emotions swamping her all at once.

What were they doing here? And how did they find her?

The door swung open and a rush of cold blasted in as she peered outside into the furious golden gaze of Etienne the dragon shifter and his lady love.

"Hey, guys," she mumbled, suddenly very aware of her disheveled appearance.

"Hey guys?" Etienne snarled, pressing his way past Dan without a word to him. He glowered down at her, his cheeks twin slashes of red. "We've been worried sick looking for you, and that's all you have to say to us? If Rene hadn't had the sense to contact me and give me a clue as to where you were, we could've lost you forever."

Exactly her plan.

Damn Rene.

But now, as she stared into the faces of the people that strangely seemed to care about what happened to her, guilt hit her hard.

She tried to think of what to say to make it better, but knew her actions were indefensible. To Etienne, at least. They still made perfect sense to her, though. Taya came up to stand beside him and laid a hand on his forearm.

"She was just trying to protect us, Etienne," she murmured softly.

He wasn't having it, though. He pulled away and stepped closer until he and Mina were toe to toe.

"You're coming back to the chateau with me where I can at least try to protect you."

Underneath all those yucky feelings of remorse, a sizzle of outrage ran through her. She was still Mina Silva. Badass bitch, and she wasn't about to let him push her around like some sort of rag doll. Fucking fake-ass big brothers. She didn't need him to protect her.

Before she could set him straight, Dan's low voice sounded from behind Etienne.

"I know she said you all are friends, but I'm going to need you to back up there, buddy."

In another lifetime, the expression on Etienne's face might have been funny. His eyes went wide with disbelief and his brow rose clear to his hairline. He slowly turned to peer over his shoulder at Dan.

"Look, Sheriff. I appreciate what you're trying to do here. But we're, well, kind of like family. I'm afraid you're going to have to let us handle this between us, all right?"

The tension between them was thick enough to suck the air from the room, and Taya stepped in to break it.

"Stop the pissing contest, boys. We all want the same thing, so can we maybe have a seat and talk this over like grown ups instead of turning this into a literal cock fight, hmm?"

Impressive. Little Taya had been so timid at first. Which made sense, considering she was the sole human at the mercy of shifters who could've torn her limb from limb when they'd met. But since turning into a Valkyrie, she'd gotten her legs under her and now she had the strength to back it up.

Mina added her own voice to the mix. "Agreed. The testosterone in here is cloying, boys. Let's shut it down and have a seat."

Dan kept his gaze locked on Etienne until the other man finally looked away first, albeit reluctantly.

"Fine. But we don't have a lot of time."

He stalked into the living room and Dan closed the door with a snap before following him.

A minute later they were all seated in front of the fire, staring at Mina expectantly.

"What does he know already?" Etienne asked matter of factly.

"He knows most of it."

"Most of it?" Dan demanded, a scowl darkening his handsome face.

"Well, all the important stuff, anyway," she said, holding up her hands in front of her defensively. "If I think of anything else, I'll make sure to let you know. But let's work off the basis that Dan is in the know. We got attacked by a pair of shifters on the country road about five miles from here. They made no effort to hide themselves at all, so what that means, I can't say."

"We missed the fight by an hour, max," Etienne said grimly. "We followed your scent and saw the aftermath. One got away, I'm guessing?"

Dan inclined his head. "Affirmative."

"If you'd told us what was happening I would've come," Etienne growled. "We could've taken them on together."

"We would've come," Taya corrected, clearly irritated at being left out. "He didn't even want me to come here with him. Tell him, would you,” she demanded of Mina. “Tell him how strong I am now."

Sweet Taya. She didn't get it, still. It didn't matter how strong she was. Etienne loved her too much to risk her safety unless his hand was forced.

"You both act like I have a death wish or something," Mina said, with a tight smile.

Their silence spoke volumes.

"I don't. I swear it. But I made my bed and now it's up to me to lie in it. It's too late to keep Dan out of this. They've seen him. He's seen them. He's tied to it now. But you don’t have to be."

"Taya and I are the darlings of the Council. They want a baby dragon so bad, they will let us get away with almost anything."

"Except treason, Etienne. If you walk away from this and stay away, they'll let you live together happily as if nothing happened. If you side with me now, they will never save face. You have to go and let me handle it. Please."

She leaned forward and took his hand, a move so uncharacteristic, he flinched. She could feel his turmoil seeping through his pores and her heart ached for him and the struggle he was feeling, but...

"Etienne. If one of you dies, then this was all for nothing."

She let those words sit for a long moment, and almost felt them sinking in to both Etienne and his mate’s consciousness. Maybe she'd said enough to get them to--

"Sorry, but if you die, neither of us could live with ourselves anyway. Pack your shit up, Mina," Etienne said, the finality in his voice killing the last shred of hope in her heart. "You can bring your friend here, too. We'll leave Montana. Find a remote place up high, without trees and a clear sightline to make the most of our advantage. You two are sitting ducks here and you know it. Put the shoe on the other foot. Would you just walk away if it was me here in the same boat?"

Her silence spoke volumes.

"Then don't ask it of me."

"He's right, you know," Dan said, breaking his silence. "We have a better chance with the four of us. And as long as we take this fight away from innocent bystanders, I'm satisfied. But I'd really like to find a way to see that you’re not dead at the end of this if we could manage that."

Crap.

It felt like she was being torn in two. The part of her that was all Valkyrie wanted to turn around and tear ass out the door. Fly back to Europe and draw her enemies back with her. Etienne and Taya would be fine.

But the human part, that had become far fonder of Dan than it ever should have, couldn't go. If she left now, he’d be dead within twenty-four hours. And damn it, that mattered now.

"Okay. We'll come."

Taya let out a sigh of relief and Mina held up a hand.

"On one condition. If it gets to the point that it's over, that we have no chance and it's just going to be a slaughter, promise me this. Let me at least try to turn myself over to them in exchange for your lives. Rene still has friends in the Council. Let him broker the deal if there is one to be had."

"Mina--"

"No, Dan. That's non-negotiable. Either you all three agree, or I’ll leave now alone. I won't watch you get mowed down because of me. Promise?"

It took a few seconds, but eventually, one by one, they nodded in agreement.

"Okay." She rubbed her hands together and let out her pent up breath. "Where to?"

Dan spoke up then, his voice low and thoughtful. "How long you think it would take to get us to Colorado?"

They all began chattering about flight patterns and times as she looked on, near close to tears for the second time in as many days.

It was bizarre. As awful as their circumstances were, for the first time in longer than she could remember, she felt warm. Deep down inside. In the place that had been cold for so long.

These people cared about her. She'd be damned before she let anything happen to them.