Without a word, she moved to stand in front of him. Evie's addictive scent wafted up to his nose, causing his dragon to hum. Kiss her.

He reached out and pulled her soft body flush against his, her heat making his cock pulse. She let out a little noise of surprise, but she quickly recovered and placed her hands on his chest. Too bad he was wearing a t-shirt so he couldn't feel her soft skin.

Squeezing her soft body tighter, he murmured, "Get ready, human, because your life will never be the same after you've kissed a dragonman."

Her lips parted to say something, but he lowered his head before she could speak. The instant he touched her soft, warm lips with his own, heat flashed through his body. Her soft skin and sweet scent weren't enough; he wanted, no needed, to taste her.

Seaming her lips, she finally opened and he growled as he explored her mouth. She tasted just as sweet as he'd imagined, but he needed more, much more.

As he stroked his tongue against hers, Bram moved his hand to her arse and squeezed, loving how she pressed even closer against him. Then the female moved her hips and it was Bram's turn to moan at the friction against his cock. The bloody seductress knew what she was doing; he'd give her that.

Wanting to take the power back, he slapped her arse and Evie arched her chest against his. His dragon hummed. More, take more.

Moving a hand to the back of her head, he tilted her for better access, determined to devour her sweet, hot mouth. A mouth he'd very much like to feel around his cock.

When Bram's lips touched hers, all of Evie's trouble and nervousness morphed into something much hotter. The simple touch of his strong, warm lips sent wetness rushing between her legs. Then he parted her lips with his tongue before invading her mouth, and she nearly cried out at his taste.

Bram stroked and explored, making clear who was dominating whom. In most circumstances, Evie wouldn't put up with that shit. But as his teeth clashed against hers right before he gripped her arse possessively, she decided that when it came to snogging and sex, she might just like a man taking control.

Unable to resist, she moved her hips against the hard bulge at her stomach, and this time, Bram let out a sound of pleasure.

Despite being pressed up against his chest, it wasn't skin-to-skin contact, and she needed to feel the warmth of his skin. However, before she could move, Bram slapped her arse and the mixture of the sting and heat made her pussy throb.

This dragonman seemed to know how to turn her on.

Desperate for his skin, she moved her hands from his chest to his neck. She then pressed her hard nipples against his chest and was rewarded with a moan. While this dragonman might like to take control, she had her own sort of power over him, and she wanted the chance to use it again.

Don't think of the future. Focus on driving the man crazy in the present.

Then Bram pressed his cock harder against her stomach. If what she felt through his jeans was anything to go on, the rumors about the dragon-shifters and their long, thick cocks were true.

Before she could move her hips against that deliciously big bulge again, he slapped her arse once more before turning them both around and lifting her to sit on his desk. As he moved closer, her legs opened to accommodate his trim hips, her skirt riding high on her thighs in the process.

Yet the man never moved to touch between her legs, not even with his barely restrained cock not more than a few inches from her core. Deciding to take matters into her own hand, she scooted to the edge of the desk, but just before her clit would've made contact, Bram broke the kiss to stare into her eyes.

His eyes were dilated and filled with a hunger that shot straight to her pussy. The dragonman wanted her.

Placing his rough hands on her upper thighs, her core pulsed at the contact. If he'd only move his hands a little further...

Shuttering his expression, he severed contact and stepped back before he said, "You'd be a good fuck. I'd give you that."

Suddenly feeling exposed, Evie closed her legs and tugged down her skirt. She knew she had no right to demand anything, but his words stung a little. There was so much more to her than a pussy to be used for some man's cock.

At least there was a positive to take from his words; Bram might yet take her as his mate and protect her from the dragon hunters.

Determined not to let the dragonman know how his words affected her, she straightened her shoulders and said, "Well?"

"You've earned the right to show me you have something to offer Stonefire in the way of information." Pointing behind her, he continued, "Hand me that laptop."

While he hadn't said outright that he was attracted to her, his cock had betrayed that little fact earlier, so she focused on passing the next test. She picked up the laptop and handed it to him. "What do you want to know? And how long do I have?"

He moved toward the table on the far side of the room, and opened the laptop. "Start with the Carlisle dragon hunters. Then move on to the DDA inspector deaths, and finish with the little known knowledge concerning dragon-shifters that you learned from your friend."

Frowning, she hopped off the desk and barely managed to keep from toppling over her heels. "All of that could fill a book. Tell me, how long do I have?"

After typing in what she assumed was a password, he looked over at her with expressionless eyes. "Until I return from questioning the dragon hunter."

"Wait a second, that's nowhere near enough time for me to do a proper job. On top of that, I didn't bring my glasses with me and the screen will blur after a few minutes."

Bram stood up. "Considering your future and life is at stake, I suggest you find a way to make it work."

She opened her mouth, but Bram beat her to it. "I don't care about your excuses. Type like your life depends on it, because, after all, it does."

Taking a step toward him, she couldn't hold back her temper. "Is this how it will be between us, if I do pass these mysterious tests of yours? Because I assure you, I don't like arseholes and being submissive to your every order is not my style."

Shit. The instant the words left her mouth, she regretted it. You're supposed to woo him, remember?

Yet Bram looked unfazed. He moved to the door and motioned toward the laptop. "Provide some information first, and then we'll worry about what might happen in the future."

The dragonman exited the door and she heard the lock click.

Bastard.

With Bram gone, a flood of emotions hit her at once. Hope, that she might be able to live past the week; confusion at how the dragonman went from hunger in his eyes to ordering her about like a soldier; and irritation that she didn't have enough time to do a proper job at her task.

Oh, and not to mention her wet panties were a physical reminder of whatever else she thought of the dragonman, one kiss was all it took to turn her on like no man had done before.

His earlier words echoed inside her head, "Get ready, human, because your life will never be the same after you've kissed a dragonman."

Damn the man. There was no way she could let on that he'd been right. She doubted any man, dragon or human, could ever possess her mouth in the same sexy way.

Forget about the kiss and focus on your task. One thing was certain, she'd never have another kiss with Bram if she couldn't prove she had information he could use. And she wouldn't lie to herself; she very much wanted the dragonman to kiss her again. Just thinking about all that raw, sexual heat and power focused entirely on her made Evie shiver.

She inhaled and exhaled a few times, stretched her arms over her head, and moved toward the laptop. Thinking about Bram and his hot kisses would have to wait.

Typos be damned, Evie opened a word processing document and went to work, typing as fast as she could without really being able to see what she was doing.

Once out of his cottage, Bram took a deep inhalation of the cool evening air in an effort to clear his head of Evie's scent of woman and sex.

Stepping back from her spread legs and switching back into 'clan leader mode' had been one of the hardest things he'd done in a while. She'd been wet and willing for him, and with a few more kisses and caresses, she probably would've let him fuck her.

His inner dragon growled. Why did you stop? You ache. She aches. You both want it.

It's not that simple.

Why not? Sex makes everyone feel good. It is simple.

At least his dragon's words weren't desperate and filled with an intense need, meaning Evie Marshall hadn't initiated the mate-claim frenzy.

He should have felt relieved, but a small part of him was sad at that thought. Her being his true mate would've made the future so much easier and more certain.

His inner beast chimed in. It can be certain. Choose her. She is soft with fire. She is a good fit.

The dragon was too bloody perceptive. Few people ever stood up to him, let alone a mere human, and once Evie let her temper truly shine, it would be fun to provoke her.

Nearly missing a step, Bram brushed that thought aside. There was maybe a five-minute walk between his cottage and where the Protectors of his clan kept any prisoners and Bram needed to think of what he would ask during his interrogation. The dragon hunters were a growing pain in his arse, to the point that Bram had become more involved with the prisoners instead of merely letting Kai and his team handle them.

From right after Tristan had been shot down by the Carlisle hunters nearly eight months earlier, the Carlisle dragon hunters had grown bolder with each attempt at either capturing one of his people or sneaking onto his land. If he didn't know his people as well as he did, he might think he had a spy in his midst. There had to be another way they were getting information.

Remembering Evie's words about the hunters killing DDA inspectors, he wondered if the two were connected. He'd have to look into it and find out.

Reaching the two-story brick building with walls of reinforced steel, Bram put on his take-no-shit expression and walked through the door.

The young injured Protector-in-training, Nikola, sat in a chair just inside the place. Bram glanced to her bandaged arm and shoulder and then back to her dark brown eyes. "Still trying to prove yourself worthy of your fame?"

The young dragonwoman shrugged and then hissed at the pain as she clutched her arm. She finally managed, "People will always treat me special, so I figure I need to do something to earn that regard."

Nikola-or, rather, Nikki to most of the clan-was the child of the first human sacrifice sent to Stonefire twenty-five years ago. Despite her best efforts to discourage it, many of the older dragon-shifters showered her in affection and extra attention; to them, she was their first hope of one day repopulating their numbers to what they had once been.

Frustrated with the unwanted praise, Nikki had decided on becoming a Protector. So far, it hadn't changed how the older dragon-shifters treated her.

Bram, on the other hand, treated her like any other young dragon-shifter. "Well, you can't earn anything if you're dead. Next time, don't be daft."

"How do you know I was daft?"

He raised an eyebrow and the female dragon-shifter sighed. "Right. You're a bloody mind reader, that's why."

"It's my secret power. Now that's settled, give me the update. Has Kai found out anything?"

Waving a hand to the closed door down the hall, she said, "He's been in there with the hunter ever since he rung you. Kai did say that he'd prefer you do the special knock to announce your presence rather than just barging in."

The request was reasonable. "But before I go, you're going to tell me how you were injured."

While no one liked to share their failures, most especially a Protector-in-training, Nikki knew better than to try to withhold information from him. After standing up, she met his eyes and said, "While tackling our current prisoner to the ground, one of the other hunters shot me."

"With a regular gun?"

She nodded. "Yes. No one has yet seen the laser-type gun the hunters used on Tristan all those months ago."

No doubt, the hunters were saving it for a special occasion. "Since you'll be out of commission for a while because of your injury, I may have a job for you."

Usually Bram wasn't the one to give her assignments, but if Nikki was confused, she didn't show it. "As long as you clear it with Kai first, sure, I'll do whatever you need."

"Good." He looked toward the door. "Keep the same rules in place while I'm in there with the hunter. Only those with high-level clearance are allowed to disturb me. In addition," he turned back toward Nikki and said, "I need you to call Arabella MacLeod and give her my order to go to my cottage and watch my guest."

The dragonwoman frowned. "What guest?"

"Evie Marshall, the DDA inspector."

Nikki looked confused, but she merely bobbed her head.

With that, Bram headed toward the door at the far end of the hall. Arabella would seem a strange choice to most of his clan since the dragonwoman still hated all humans except for her sister-in-law Melanie, but Bram didn't trust another male to be in the same room with Evie. If she pulled out her seductress charms, she could probably find out all sorts of information he didn't want made public.

No, Arabella not only preferred men and would be resistant to those charms, she would be skeptical and he needed that to give him the peace of mind to focus.

Of course, he tried not to think about how quickly he didn't want other males in the same room with the DDA inspector. The human female was going to be nothing but trouble if he did take her on as his mate.

But a good kind of trouble. It will be fun.

Ignoring his dragon, Bram increased his pace. The sooner he finished interrogating the dragon hunter bastard, the sooner he would see if he would have a female of his own to fuck. Yes, to fuck. He wasn't about to hope for more, especially when he had no bloody idea whether he could trust the lass or not.

Chapter Five.

Evie squinted at the words on the computer screen, but it didn't help make the letters any clearer. If not being able to see properly wasn't bad enough, her blurred vision was giving her a bloody big headache. Astigmatism, combined with slight farsightedness, was definitely not her friend tonight.

She'd typed nearly three thousand words of information, but that was just the tip of the iceberg. Hell, she'd barely finished the introduction about the Carlisle dragon hunters. Still, she'd rather be thorough than gloss over the information. The more concrete detail she provided, the higher the chance Bram would take her as his mate.

His mate. All of that sculpted, glaring, stubborn dragonman could be hers soon. Not that she'd have any claim on his heart. Evie was clever enough to know the mating would be a transaction of sorts: her safety in exchange for information. Still, she couldn't help but wonder what it'd be like to have Bram Moore-Llewellyn naked and unrestrained above her.

Stop that, Evie Marie Marshall. She wiggled in her chair. Sex fantasies would bring back wet panties, and she didn't want Bram scenting it when he returned. The last thing she needed was the dragonman's ego to inflate at how a simple touch or thought about him set her body on fire.

Leaning back in her chair, she closed her eyes to clear her mind of Bram when there was a knock on the door. Evie opened her eyes and debated whether she should answer it or not when a muffled female voice sounded from the other side of the door, "Open up, human. Bram sent me to babysit you."

Great. Bram didn't even trust her to stay in a cottage and type without causing trouble. She hoped the rest of her life wouldn't be this way, with a guard watching over her nearly every second of every day.

With a sigh, Evie stood up and moved to the door. Not a complete idiot, she opened the door a crack in case she needed to close it quickly and was greeted by the sight of a pair of woman's breasts encased in a t-shirt. Looking up, it took everything she had not to gasp at the woman's disfigured face.

The scar running down from the woman's right temple, across the bridge of her nose, to her left ear as well as the healed burns on her neck, told Evie the woman's identity; or rather, the dragonwoman's identity. She said, "You're Arabella MacLeod."

The dragonwoman raised an eyebrow. "Great to see I have a reputation. Now open the fucking door before I kick it open."

Evie had to somewhat put up with Bram's bullshit for a chance to stay safe, but she didn't have to put up with Arabella MacLeod's attitude. "If you're going to try to intimidate me, you have a long way to go before you even start coming close to Marcus King's level. How about we cut the tough act and converse on a level footing?"

Arabella crossed her arms over her chest. "So, the DDA inspector has a backbone." While waiting to see what the dragonwoman would do, Arabella kicked the door hard enough to send Evie flying backward on her arse.

Not even her squishy bum could save her tail bone from crashing against the floor. She glared up at the dragonwoman. It was on the tip of Evie's tongue to quote DDA regulations about accosting an inspector, but Evie kept quiet since those laws wouldn't protect her from the dragon hunters if Bram cast her out on her own.

Evie slowly stood up, ignoring the pain in her backside as she said, "Feel better now?"