Max’s whole body went rigid as Heather appeared in the hall at dinner time. She’d been given a gown to wear: a dark blue thing of some soft fabric that clung to every curve of her body and showed off her elegant and long figure. She’d done something to her hair too, and it was flowing over her shoulders in a long wavy mass that made his hands itch with the yearning to grip that hair, to fist those tresses and use them to guide her face to his so he could kiss her deeply and madly.

Christy took a seat next to Blake, which left him seated next to Heather. Her skin gave off the subtle smell of soap and flowers, and his nostrils dilated as that scent found its way to him. Worse than that was the way her leg brushed against his for a second, making his erection start again and frustration mount up inside him.

The meal began. Heather looked over at him, her clear eyes taking in his face. A slight blush came upon her porcelain skin as she caught him regarding her and she quickly averted her eyes, and so did he.

He asked, gruffly, “Are your accommodations adequate?”

“Yes. Thank you.” That blush got deeper and then she fiddled with her knife and fork. “This looks great. I love lamb. It is lamb, isn’t it?”

The last words held a note of real worry. He nodded. “It is.” Under the table, their legs brushed again, and his pulse spiked upward. He quickly drew his leg away. “They’re allowed to roam wild, and we only kill what we need.” Oh, holy saints! What the hell was wrong with him?

She cut a slim section of meat off the chop on her plate. “So…I mean I thought dragons ate everything raw or something.”

He held back a gusty laugh. He shot a look down the table. Christy was glaring at Blake and holding her fork and knife in a way that suggested she was ready to carve Blake’s face up if he got too close and everyone else was preoccupied with talking and eating to have heard her words. He lowered his voice. “That’s because all you know of dragons is what you learned in your world. In your world, dragons never really existed.”

“Oh, I didn’t know that.”

He toyed with the root vegetables on his plate. “Most people don’t. In your world I mean. We were of your world, once, but we weren’t dragons then.”

Her mouth hung open. “Huh? Sorry,” the blush went fiery, entrancing him. “I mean, how old are you?”

He grinned again. “In your time? About a few hundred years old. Here, a little younger.”

She gaped at him. “What did you mean by you were of our world but you weren’t dragons then?”

“We, our ancestors, were cursed and became dragons.” He applied himself to the lamb, hoping she wouldn’t ask anything else, and thankfully she didn’t. The curse of the dragons was a sore subject, and many times he found himself wondering why none of them could figure out a way to reverse it. On the other side of that, he didn’t really want to reverse it either. He liked being a dragon.

Heather’s elbow bumped his. She muttered a fast apology, and he just nodded. He ate, but while he ate, he was busy watching her dine. She ate like a cat, all slow and with real relish. The sight made him harden again, and he shifted a bit in the seat than asked, “What did you do over there?”

“I’m a lawyer. I…I argue cases before the courts to determine if someone’s innocent or guilty.”

“I see.” He studied her pretty face. “That’s a calling I take it? To serve truth and justice?”

Her head dropped. “It could be, if that’s what someone wanted to do.”

“You didn’t?”

“No. My parents wanted a lawyer in the family.”

There was real bitterness and rancor in her voice. She popped a mouthful of food into her mouth and chewed hard in a strong indication that she did not want to talk about that either.

He decided to change the subject by asking, “How’s your shoe?”

“Good. They gave me these slippers,” she looked sideways at the floor. “I have to admit that they’re way more comfortable.”

He said, “I can see where they would be.”

An amused look came upon her face. “I know I should not ask but…but why do you change into a human with all your clothes on?” The blush that time was so red it looked like her face had caught fire. She stuttered out, “I’m not saying you should not be dressed…not that you…I mean it’s not like you look like you have anything to hide…oh, my God.” She gulped, paled visibly, and muddled onward with the words, “In all the movies and stuff, when a monster changes, they never have clothes.”

His amusement died a swift and painful death. Monster. She thought he was a monster. Of course, she did. She was a human without powers, and she had never known dragons. Still, that word choice rankled him. “Oh? Maybe they’re the wrong kind of monsters.”

The rest of the meal passed in tense silence between them. She stood from her chair, and he could see by her face that she was worried and scared, not to mention confused. He had to remind himself that she was a stranger in a strange land and likely terrified by the incredible differences between the two worlds. He had been in her world a few times, and every single time he had been stunned and shaken by what he had seen there.

Impulse made him ask, “Would you like to see something amazing?”

She gave him a suspicious look. “Um…like what?”

“You’ll have to trust me for a few minutes.”

Her fingers picked at her nails. She said, “Christy…I can’t leave her alone.”

He shot a look at her friend, who was arguing something with Blake and looking quite happy to be arguing whatever it was. Blake had probably asked her to have a child or something. He said, “I don’t think she will mind. Also, Blake never shuts up, so she probably won’t even notice you’re gone.”

Heather chewed on her bottom lip and then said, “Hold on. Let me just tell her I’m…” She darted toward Christy, leaned in and whispered something into Christy’s ear. Christy gave her a long and level look then nodded slowly. Heather straightened and then said, “Okay, but I’m really tired and…and I’m not agreeing to have dragon babies or whatever so don’t get any ideas.”

Oh, he had ideas already. Lots of them. He gave her what he hoped was an innocent smile. “I don’t need humans to bear my children.”

She walked toward him, the gown rippling and swaying around her body. “All right then.”

This was a bad idea. The worst idea, in fact, and he should say he had changed his mind or something like that. Instead, he just jerked his head toward the stairs and said, “Come on then.”