“What was that all about?” Brooklyn asked Kirra as they lay Cass on his bed in the stunning glass bedroom, high atop the sea. The housekeeper seemed uncomfortable in the huge room as darkness enveloped them.

“I have no idea,” she said shortly, and Brooklyn gestured toward the door.

“You can go,” she said. “I’ll look after him until he wakes.”

“I don’t know,” Kirra replied. “I am not sure how I feel about leaving you alone in here with him.”

“Maybe you should call for a doctor,” Brooklyn insisted, pulling off his shoes and socks. “And I’m not leaving his side.”

“No need for a doctor,” Kirra said. “This happens all the time.”

Brooklyn’s head jerked up, and she stared at her. “This isn’t normal. He needs to be checked.”

Kirra smiled frostily. “Nothing about Mr. Williams is normal.”

Their gazes met in the dark, and Brooklyn suddenly understood what the woman’s words meant. She nodded slowly.

“It’s true, then,” she muttered to herself. She crawled upward and lay her head on the pillow beside Cass as Kirra finally turned to leave. Brooklyn’s fingertips glided over the lines of Cass’s face, as if trying to memorize him by touch.

She had arrived at the secluded island only hours before, brought ashore at gunpoint.

“This is private property,” a tall, brawny man had informed her, waving his semi-automatic weapon in her face. “You have no right to be here.”

Fury had washed over her as she gestured at the sleeping infant in her arms.

“I am here to deliver this child to his father,” she’d snarled, looking at Audrey, who was silent for once in her life. “There is no need for the gun.”

The guard had spent a few moments determining what to do. They’d tried to reach Cass on his cell phone without luck. He was not at his office nor in the house. They’d had no idea what to do with the uninvited guests and their newborn.

Finally, Kirra had stepped in, agreeing to keep the women and child under her watch in the house.

“You better not go anywhere other than the suite I provide for you,” she had said sternly. “I will send for you when Mr. Williams arrives.” She had paused to look at the women. “If you are not who you say you are, there will be no record of you having ever been here.”

Fear and anger had swept through Brooklyn.

“You would hurt an innocent baby?” she’d spat, and Audrey’s eyes had bulged. Kirra’s own dark eyes had grown smaller as a half-smile formed on her lips.

“On second thought,” she’d said, “you may have free reign of the house. I will have someone give you a tour.”

Brooklyn had been too tense to analyze the sudden change of heart. She had just been happy they had not been shot.

“You need to wake up,” she whispered now, her lips brushing against Cass’s ear. “You need to wake up and meet your son.”

Her attraction to him was still as acute as it had always been. It was as if they had never been apart. There was no escaping it.

“Wake up,” she pleaded. “Please, Cass, wake up.”

Brooklyn buried her face on his neck, smelling the sweet scent of his aftershave. Her hand fell along his cheek, gently curling around his throat. She relished the way his chest rose and fell to the rhythm of his even breaths—at least he was only unconscious. At least it seemed like nothing had happened to him.

She pressed a soft kiss to his jaw, and she was about to lie back down beside him when Cass took a sharp breath, his lips parting to softly exhale her name.

“Brooklyn?” She sat up, almost leaning over him as Cass’s eyes slowly fluttered open and focused on her. “Brooklyn?” he repeated, his voice rising with disbelief. “Is that really you?”

Brooklyn let out a wet laugh, her own eyes filling with tears as she grinned down at him. Instead of answering him, she leaned down to kiss his mouth.

Cass grabbed her by her armpits and pulled her on top of him, and Brooklyn moaned at the feeling of his member growing hard inside his pants, separated from her center by her panties. The fire inside her was building, the desire to have him acknowledge her after such a long time almost palpable. She couldn’t wait for him anymore.

Her own button throbbed as Cass undid his pants and freed his erection. Brooklyn pulled her skirt up higher and purposely slipped her panties aside so that he could watch as she slid her fingers over her wet clit. Cass bucked his sack against her rear, his hands reaching up to toy with her full breasts, but she slapped his hands away, pinning him to the bed as she guided him inside her.

“Holy shit, I missed you,” he groaned. “I was coming to see you—”

Brooklyn silenced him with her mouth with a passionate kiss as she ground herself into him. A cry fell from her as Cass’s member pierced her high and deep, penetrating her as she had dreamt. Their movements became frenzied, and Brooklyn raised her hips to allow him further inside.

“Oh, how I missed you,” she gasped, tears of painful pleasure slipping from her eyes. “Oh, Cass, don’t stop!” She released his arms, reaching out to leverage herself against the sheets as he tried to nip at her breasts, but she ducked out of his way.

“Oh, you tease!” Cass moaned.

If possible, his thrusts grew harder and hotter, and while she was expecting it, she was still burned when his seed shot through her, while she simultaneously was sent over the edge.

“Cass!” she moaned, quivering as he exploded, his fingers gripping into her back. They fell onto the bed, a mass of limbs, panting, and whimpering simultaneously.

“Oh, my God!” Cass sighed. “You’re here. You’re really here!”

Brooklyn laughed and propped herself up to stare into his handsome face.

“There has not been one day that I have not thought about you,” she told him sincerely. “I acted like a fool the morning that—” He held up his hand.

“No,” he said quietly. “You were scared. I probably would have reacted the same way.” Brooklyn studied his eyes. “I thought you went back to Ryan,” he said, and Brooklyn’s face turned crimson.

Did he already know about Audren and stayed away on purpose? she wondered.

“How did you know that?” she asked.

Cass lowered his eyes, shame on his cheeks. “A couple months after we hooked up, I went back to your house in Burlingame to apologize. I—I thought what we had that night was really incredible.”

“It was. It is,” Brooklyn murmured in agreement. They locked eyes.

“Anyway,” Cass continued. “Your stuff was all gone, and a neighbor said you had moved to LA with Ryan. I checked at your job and they said you had quit, so I realized it was probably true.”

Her heart swelled, and disappointment swallowed her in unison. If she had not gone back to Ryan, would she and Cass have been together all along?

“It was a poor judgement call,” she said quickly. “He begged for forgiveness, and I… I was missing you a lot. I can’t believe you came looking for me.” Cass smiled at her, and he leaned over to kiss her neck sweetly.

“If I had believed I had a shot with you, I would have never left California,” he told her.

Brooklyn realized that things were going to be all right, after all. Audren would have a father, one who could explain whatever changes he might go through, and she would have a life with a man who actually loved her.

Her eyes grew smaller as she recalled how he had entered the estate.

“What were you going on about when you came home?” she asked. “Did something happen?”

Suddenly, Cass bolted up as if he had forgotten.

“Shit!” he cursed. “We have to find a safe place for you.”

“Why?” she demanded, also pulling herself up. Her heart was pounding.

“You have to trust me, Brooklyn. Get ready to leave,” he said, jumping out of bed and scrounging for his socks and shoes.

“I can’t really travel much more,” she told him. “I came here for a reason, Cass.”

“You can tell me all about it on the way,” he said. “Right now, this is more important.”

There was a scream and a crash from outside. Brooklyn and Cassius looked at each other.

“That sounded like Audrey!” Brooklyn yelled, running toward the door. Before she could reach it, it smashed inward against the only solid wall. She drew in a sharp breath as she came face to face with a fully-grown dragon, steam emanating from his nostrils as he stared them down.

“Father!” Cass cried. “What the hell are you doing here?”