There was no rest for either of them as the night progressed. Cassius, once given the room, became an expert lover.

Brooklyn had never been spun in so many different directions, as if she was a contortionist in the circus, exploring every avenue of lovemaking. She traced the lines of his body with her tongue, her fingers and her breath, every experience different and more invigorating than the last. And with every orgasm, she felt as if he had shot her full of fire with his seed. It was like nothing she had ever known before.

I bet he has a million girlfriends all over the world, Brooklyn thought wistfully as she studied Cassius’ sleeping form, a part of her yearning to wake him up, even though her body ached and throbbed. She simply did not want to let him go, not when their time together was so fleeting. She knew he felt it, too—she had sensed it in the way he had caressed and taken her.

Maybe there was hope for them. Maybe they could work something out…

We both knew that it was only going to be tonight, Brooklyn told herself firmly, reaching out to brush a stray curl from Cassius’ forehead as his chest rose and fell in deep, rhythmic breaths. Long distance relationships don’t work out with normal people. Imagine how badly it would work out with us.

She could not silence the nagging doubt that he was hiding something from her, like she was his wife rather than a woman he had just met and slept with. Still, she could not let go of the wistfulness that enveloped her as her own lids grew heavy, and she snuggled into his massive arms, soaking up the heat of his body.

The connection they had could not be faked, even if he was just some wealthy playboy.

All good things must come to an end, Brooklyn thought, yawning as sleep embraced her. In the morning, we will say goodbye, and I will remember this as the best sex I ever had. Audrey will be so proud of me.

Cass was still asleep when she rose, and Brooklyn stared at him for a long moment, wondering if she still felt the same way about him in the light of day. To her surprise, her heart still twitched at the mere sight of him, the memory of the wee hours flooding her hotly.

I am going to be sorry to see him go, she thought, sighing quietly as she slipped out of bed, careful not to disturb him. She had no idea how long Cass had before he had to be somewhere, but she didn’t want to ruin the last of their time together by rushing it along. Brooklyn decided she would make breakfast, pushing her feet into a pair of bunny slippers and grabbing for a wine-colored velour robe to cover herself.

In the hallway, Veronica poked her disheveled head out of her bedroom across the hall.

“Holy hell!” she moaned. “You were so loud last night, I had to put in earplugs between you and the damned dog!”

Brook’s lips pursed, and she narrowed her eyes at her roommate.

“Funny how I never complain when you and your friends are in the living room playing World of Warcraft until five in the morning,” she retorted, but she could feel the flush rising to her cheeks. Had they really been that loud? Subtlety and discretion had been the least of her concerns as Cass had pounded into her, her legs twisted around his neck.

“Don’t tell me you took that jackass back!” Veronica yelled after her. “After everything he did to you!”

Brooklyn paused on the landing and glanced at Veronica over her shoulder. For a split second, she did not know who her roommate was talking about.

“What jackass?” she asked.

“Ryan, of course!” Veronica snapped, rolling her eyes, as if Brooklyn were toying with her. Brooklyn held back a gasp—she had completely forgotten about Ryan after meeting Cass.

“Of course not!” she scoffed. “And keep your voice down!”

To Veronica’s credit, she looked contrite as she lowered her tone, the anger in her voice changing into what sounded like glee. “A rebound? Good for you! Anyone I know?”

If possible, Brooklyn’s cheeks grew redder. She didn’t acknowledge her roommate and escaped to the main floor, her mind beginning to spin. Was that all it had been? A rebound? Was that why she felt like there was more to what had happened between her and Cass than just sex? Had she just been projecting her feelings after encountering Ryan onto Cass? It was a possibility, given the circumstances of the previous night, but Brooklyn didn’t want to admit that what she was experiencing wasn’t real.

The sex was incredible, she thought as she started the coffee maker and turned toward the fridge. Who cares why it happened?

Brooklyn pushed the uncertainty out of her mind, along with any reminder of Ryan, and focused on making breakfast. She hummed softly to herself as she mixed together the pancake batter and prepared bowls of fresh berries. The coffee sputtered as Veronica entered the kitchen, her brow furrowing slightly.

“I don’t think Hunter likes your new friend very much,” she said.

Brooklyn’s head jerked up from the frying pan, and she realized that she had not seen her German Shepherd that morning.

“Why do you say that?” she asked, looking to the floor for Hunter, but he was nowhere in sight. She poked her head into the living room, but she still did not see her furry companion.

“He spent all night howling at your door, for one thing,” Veronica commented, plopping unceremoniously onto a kitchen chair. “And he currently has your booty call cornered in the bedroom.”

Brooklyn’s brows shot up in shock.

“What do you mean?” she demanded, glancing at the pancakes cooking and then back at her roommate. She knew that, if she left Veronica in charge, breakfast would be ruined.

Her roommate shrugged. “Hunter is growling, and from what I could see, your hunky friend was backed up against the wall, but I didn’t stop to gawk. I only half-looked.”

“Why didn’t you call Hunter off?” Brooklyn yelled, reaching to turn off the burner before dashing toward the stairs.

“He’s not my damned dog!” Veronica cried back, and Brooklyn gritted her teeth, scaling the stairs two at a time.

What the hell has gotten into Hunter? she wondered as she hurried toward her bedroom. She had noticed that he had been wary of Cass the previous night, but she had chalked it up to being jealous. Still, she had never known her German Shepherd to be aggressive with anyone. Maybe Veronica was making things up, or she had misunderstood what she had seen.

Yet as she drew closer, she heard the unmistakable growl of her dog, followed by a whimper. Without hesitation, Brooklyn threw open the partially open door, ordering her dog to heel.

“Hunter! That is enough—”

Her words died in her throat as she froze in the doorway, her eyes trying to understand what she was seeing. Hunter stood, his black and tan body rigid as he alternated between whimpering and growling. Brooklyn could not blame him.

Cass had disappeared, and in his place stood a snorting beast, his wide nostrils flaring with anger as a set of amber eyes glowed against the dark room. His face had shifted into a leathery head of spikes, a forked tongue slithering from his blue-green lips. But the body of the creature remained that of a man’s, one Brooklyn had grown to know well over the past few hours.

She opened her mouth to scream as his gaze slowly moved upward to rest on her stunned frame, but she choked on the sound.

Almost as if she had imagined the entire scene, she blinked and stared into Cass’s hazel irises, his eyes shrouded in worry.

“Wh—wh—wh—” She kept stuttering on her words, trying to formulate a coherent sentence, but she could not bring herself to do it. Dizziness overcame her body, and she turned to run. Her knees failed her, buckling underneath her and sending her down to the floor.

“Stop!” Cass thundered, rushing to her side. “You need to breathe—”

“Don’t touch me!” Brooklyn screamed, hysterical, wildly waving her hands as he fought to hold her. “Let me go!” Cass instantly dropped his arms and stood back, watching her closely as she floundered for more to say. “Wh-what are you?” she gasped. “What was that?”

Hunter growled, his confidence growing with her presence, though he didn’t lunge at Cass. Brooklyn wondered if her poor dog was afraid of the creature he had seen.

“I don’t know what you think you saw—” Cass started to say, but Brooklyn backed further down the hall, her hands up as if to ward him off.

“Don’t touch me,” she gasped again, her back against the wall. “Just get the hell out.”

“Brooklyn,” he tried again, “you can’t just—”

“GET OUT!”

At the bottom of the landing, Brooklyn heard Veronica calling out to her. “What is going on? Do I need to call the cops?”

The smell of burnt pancakes filled the air.

“Get out,” Brooklyn whispered, her face colored with fear. “Please. Just go.”

Cass stared at her as if he wanted to protest, but Brooklyn kept her eyes lowered, carefully avoiding his gaze until he brushed past her, buttoning his shirt as he did.

“You don’t understand,” he muttered, and Brooklyn could hear the bitterness in his voice as he moved down the stairs. She didn’t care. She didn’t want to understand.

She did not exhale until the front door slammed and she heard Veronica turn the lock. Hunter ran into her arms, whimpering slightly, and she stroked his head lovingly.

“Shh,” she mumbled quietly. “Everything is all right now, boy. He’s gone.”

Hunter shuddered, and just as Brooklyn allowed her body to relax against the wall, a piercing beeping reverberated through the air, followed by a scream from her roommate.

“I’ve got it!” Veronica yelled, rushing to deal with the smoke detector and the burnt breakfast as Brooklyn struggled to compose herself. The shrill noise was not helping her state of mind, but Brooklyn was grateful that Cass had left without incident.

Then she realized that his absence didn’t mean that she was safe. He knew where she lived. What if he came back for her as whatever monster he had transformed into? How could Cass be such an unbelievable creature? She hadn’t imagined it, and she knew Hunter hadn’t, either. How, though, could anyone be a beast like that? How could he be… a dragon?

Although she was aware that the idea was preposterous, no amount of logic could calm Brooklyn’s fears.

He’s just some important bigshot who will disappear back to wherever he came from, she thought. I have nothing to worry about.

Veronica finally managed to stop the alarm, and when she returned to the second floor, she folded her arms across her chest, her face demanding an explanation.

“What the hell was that about?” her roommate asked.

“Nothing,” Brooklyn answered quickly, pushing herself off the wall and turning back to her bedroom.

“It didn’t sound like nothing! Did he hurt you?”

“Just leave it alone, Veronica!” she snapped, slamming the door to block her out. Veronica jammed her foot in the doorway to stop it.

“This is my house, too!” she reminded Brooklyn. “I feel like I’ve been living in a soap opera with you.”

“Then feel free to move out!” Brooklyn growled, her hands still trembling. Veronica looked taken aback by the words.

“I am your friend,” she replied tightly. “Even if you don’t treat me like one. If you have brought danger into this house, I have a right to know about it.”

Brooklyn glared at her, feeling exceedingly defensive, and also slightly guilty for treating her so poorly.

“You’re not in any danger,” she retorted, spinning to dismiss Veronica, even though she had virtually no confidence in the words she spoke. They might both very well be in grave peril.

Brooklyn had just come face to face with a dragon, and she had lived to tell the tale. Of course, she knew she would never tell anyone what she had seen. It would be a secret she and Hunter would take to the grave… whenever that grave might claim them.