Vivienne’s eyes were glued to the big screen as she softly rocked Amber Rose, trying to soothe her into sleeping.

The baby girl had sensed Max’s rage and started crying as soon as he stood up. Vivienne was glad that Max had stormed off, though, because the reporter couldn’t stop talking about him, and was painting him in the worst possible light.

The woman’s words made Vivienne feel guilty. If the same reporter had asked Vivienne what she thought about Max Prize just a day ago, she would have probably added to the list of the man’s shortcomings. But now it was different. She had seen a different side of the man. Deep inside, Vivienne could even admit that she had judged him poorly.

Max wasn’t the monster that woman thought he was. Far from it.

Vivienne had witnessed the moment he realized Amber Rose was his daughter. A bad man would’ve discarded the baby girl like yesterday’s garbage the same way his biological parents did, but Max hadn’t even wavered at the discovery. The light in his eyes had shown pure, unconditional love for the baby. Certain sentiments are impossible to fake; a father’s love is one of them.

The reporter tilted her head, looking like she was listening to someone. After a moment, she announced the next sensational piece of gossip, forgetting all about Maximus Prize.

Max’s cell phone rang from the floor where he had dropped it. The sound was loud enough to stir Amber Rose who had finally relaxed in Vivienne’s arms. She reached for it, intending to silence it, but then saw that it was Wilson calling and answered.

“Max—” Wilson said.

“It’s Vivienne. Max left.” Vivienne blinked as she saw the silhouette of a large dragon flying over the blanket of clouds. “He went out for a ride. I think.”

Wilson uttered several curses before saying, “I apologize—”

“No need for apologies. The situation is seriously fucked up. That reporter has already pinned Max as the assassin. But how? Why?”

“Vivienne, he needs to come back to the apartment asap. The police are coming. Social services are coming too.”

Vivienne’s heart grew heavy. “Wilson, the baby is Max’s.”

“How do you know?”

“I was there when he discovered Amber Rose is his daughter—”

“I’m on my way to the apartment. If we are lucky, we can manage to get him inside before the police arrive.”

Amber Rose’s little mouth moved toward Vivienne’s chest, reminding her it was time to feed the baby. Running from the living room to the kitchen, Vivienne kept looking out the wall-to-wall windows of the hallways, hoping to catch the dragon’s attention as she waved her free hand in large circles.

Unaware of her attempts, the beast kept flying in and out of the clouds, casting long shadows on the streets below.

Vivienne fixed a bottle for Amber Rose and fed her as she walked up and down the hallway, hoping that the dragon would finally turn her way. Instead, the winged animal flew higher and disappeared from her sight.

A few minutes later, steps resonated in the foyer. Vivienne cradled the baby girl to her chest and ran toward the source of the sounds, but it was Wilson entering the apartment.

“He’s not home yet,” Wilson said, correctly reading her expression. “We are almost out of time. The press has already gathered downstairs. Max is usually careful, but it would be a disaster if he’s caught in his dragon form.”

With Vivienne following closely, Wilson strode toward the living room, exited onto the balcony, and reached for the wall.

Holding one of those flare guns usually found in boats, Wilson looked over his shoulder at Vivienne. “Stay a few feet behind.” He then shot in the air.

A whistling noise echoed in the silent night before a colored flower blossomed, illuminating the dark sky red and orange.

“Aren’t we trying to maintain a low profile?” Vivienne asked, covering Amber Rose with her sweater for fear that the baby could catch a cold. Thinking it better, she stepped inside the living room, taking shelter from the breeze and rain.

“Max knows what to do.” Wilson looked at the sky for a few more seconds before entering the room. “He’ll be back soon.” Without pausing to explain, he moved into the hallway, forcing Vivienne to trot after him.

Wilson went straight to Max’s bedroom and made a beeline for the master closet, reemerging a moment later holding a neatly folded pile of clothes.

“I assume that this isn’t your first rodeo,” Vivienne commented, eyeing the change.

“No, ma’am.” With the same purposeful stride, Wilson hurried to the other side of the hallway where a French door opened onto a smaller balcony. Located on the opposite side of the building’s façade and shielded by one of the four lateral walls that jutted from the skyscraper to form a star, the terrace was the perfect place for a discreet landing.

As they reached the door, a large shadow darkened the sky. The soft whoosh of wings announced the dragon’s arrival a moment before the majestic animal appeared in front of the balcony.

A shifter herself, Vivienne was used to supernaturals shifting in and out of their human forms. Dragons were the rarest of species, though, and it wasn’t an everyday occurrence when one of them dropped from the sky and changed into a handsome billionaire in front of her.

With a chuckle, Wilson gently pushed her chin up, closing her mouth which had remained open when she gasped at the sight of a buck-naked Max. Again, shifting usually involved one being naked at the end of the process, nothing new there. Still, not every shifter looked as virile as Maximus Prize did.

“You need to be presentable in less than five minutes.” Wilson threw the bundle of clothes at Max.

At Max’s raised eyebrow, Wilson said, “You are a wanted man. The police, the press, social services, all want a piece of you at the moment—”

“Social services?” Max’s growl startled Amber Rose. His stormy gaze softened at the sight of the baby, and he reached for her.

Still speechless, Vivienne opened her arms for him to take Amber Rose.

If Vivienne had thought that she had seen it all for the day and that nothing could surprise her any longer, she was sorely mistaken. Before her incredulous stare, the billionaire playboy who had just been accused of murder cradled the baby girl to his chest before dropping a kiss on the little head and soothing Amber Rose with a lullaby. All of that he did stark naked.