Filed To Story: A Claim of Fortune Book PDF Free by Jaymin Eve
“A hairbrush,” I repeated. “Grab one and I’ll brush your hair again.”
It was one of my favorite memories of our time together, the feel of her silky strands between my fingers, the honey and chocolate of her scent wafting toward me with each stroke. I’d thought about it far too often, wondering how all of that gorgeous hair would look curled around my fist, but that wasn’t my reasoning for tonight. Tonight, we both needed grounding, and I knew this would work.
Emme glanced around the room, as if calculating what might happen if she got within touching distance. “Hunter’s in his office on a call, and they have security cameras down here,” she warned me, narrowing her eyes. “You wouldn’t have much time to keep me captive.”
I shook my head and couldn’t help but smile. She really was fucking adorable. “I’m not keeping you captive. I’m trying to change the narrative between us. One step at a time, right?”
If her wary expression was any indication, Emme wasn’t convinced, and my smile fell under my disappointment as she pushed to her feet and disappeared from the room.
Until she returned.
Not even ten minutes later she stood there with a black hairbrush in her hand.
When she shuffled closer, I remained so still that I wasn’t even breathing. I’d break my own neck before I broke her trust this night, which she’d learn as soon as she was within touching distance. When she stood right before the bars, she reached to hand me the brush, and I moved slowly as I took it.
I savored the glide of our fingers, a reminder of how soft and delicate she felt. Her scent was everywhere, and my fangs ached with the desire to sink them into her again. And again. Mark every inch of her perfect skin and claim it as mine.
A desire I managed to contain as she offered me a tentative smile. “If you ever break my trust again,” she warned me, her expression neutral, “then we’re done. I’ll figure out how to destroy our bond or lock you in the basement for the rest of existence. Most people don’t get second chances in life, Talon. Don’t waste yours.”
My free hand drifted up, my fingers tracing across her cheek and over her lips. “You are my only chance in life,” I whispered, leaning closer to breathe her in.
Her eyes widened, the blue encasing me near whole, but she didn’t back away.
“Turn,” I murmured, and she sucked in a ragged gulp, before obeying.
Ah, fuck. I liked that far too much.
She sank to the ground with her back against the bars, and I gently freed her hair from where it was trapped. With the first stroke of the brush, the tension lining her spine eased, and after ten minutes she was half slumped on the floor.
When her breaths evened out, I pulled off my shirt and draped it over her, annoyed at how awkward it was to cover her from within the cell. “One day, Sweet Honey,” I breathed, tracing my fingers over her soft hair, “You will sleep in my arms. Until then, I’ll keep watch over you.”
There was no doubt in my mind any longer: I’d destroy the world before I let anyone hurt her.
The world and every fucking shifter in it.
EMME
Finley might have needed therapy, but he wasn’t the only one.
How else could I explain the ease in which I’d fallen asleep beside the shifter who’d forcibly bonded me. My wolf was a relaxed fluffball, sprawled out and all but purring. The rhythmic stroking of the brush through our hair, and how careful he was not to touch me in any other way, soothed my exhausted body.
I hadn’t seen Talon in days, and it had taken more of a toll than I’d realized. My trip down into the garage had been to see my new bike-Hunter had checked the security cameras and deemed it safe-but I’d found myself at the containment room door as soon as I stepped inside. Hit with an uncontrolled desperation to get inside.
Once I stood under the dark, watchful eyes of the dragon shifter, it was as if I could breathe again.
He should have been with us today, but this was a pretty nice ending to my perfect Christmas and birthday celebration.
I had no idea how long I slept, surrounded by his smoky maple scent, warm despite the hard floor beneath me. Eventually I roused to the sound of low rumbling tones.
“I’m taking her out of here,” Hunter informed the dragon without inflection. “I gave her a moment to ease the strain on your bonds, but she can’t sleep on a hard fucking floor.”
“No,” Talon snapped back, somehow keeping his voice low and modulated despite his annoyance bleeding through. They were both so busy trying not to wake me as they argued that they hadn’t noticed I was awake. “She’ll leave when she’s ready. You don’t get to take her away.”
When she’s ready. That felt like a win from the shifter who struggled with the concept of consent.
Hunter gave that consideration. “If you want her to remain here with you, then you’ll answer my questions.” I barely suppressed my smile at how he lived up to his entitled alpha mantle. Not that I blamed him for using whatever advantage he had to keep our pack safe.
I expected Talon to snarl as he’d done when Slade questioned him, but he surprised me. “If I have the answers, I’ll give them to you. Providing it doesn’t place Emme in any danger.”
The dragons didn’t bother to lie. That was why Talon’s apology before had gone a long way toward opening a connection between us. It didn’t erase the past, but his more considerate attitude of late, was helping to heal wounds. Even if the scars would always remain.
“How did Fletcher manage to keep you a secret from us? Did mother… Donatella… know?”
Hunter didn’t sound hurt over his family’s betrayal, but he was good at keeping his feelings locked down. Even through the bond I got nothing more than a mild sense of annoyance.
Talon answered with ease. “We were kept in a large compound far from the cities. It has above and below ground facilities. I never left, unless it was to kill for him. There was no reason for you to know, and I never saw your mother there.”
This was the second time he’d mentioned this “compound,” and now we knew it was two levels. This was definitely where we’d find our enemies, and I wondered if Talon knew the precise location.
“Where’s the compound?”
This question had Talon sighing. “I can’t tell you that. If you went there, you’d be killed, and that would hurt Emme.”