Claimed by Ice (6 page)

E
xander didn’t look
up when Jane entered his office, gave no hint that he even saw her as she deposited the file on his desk. It was something she’d noticed more and more lately, or rather, something she’d missed.

She’d thought she was imagining it, but she’d felt his eyes on her when she wasn’t looking. She’d never seen him though, had told herself that it was simply her dreaming up what she secretly wanted and not anything that he did.

But now, she wasn’t so sure. He’d been different, more withdrawn, and she found that she missed the little bond that had grown between them.

“Exander,” she whispered.

He looked up, blue-brown eyes flat, distant.

“Yes, Jane?” he said.

“I wanted to apologize, for earlier. I didn’t ask if Jewel could come over, so I hope you didn’t mind?” she said, question clear in her voice.

He stood, walked closer to her, his powerful steps almost hypnotic. “Your sister is very important to you. It’s only natural you’d want to spend time with her,” he said.

She furrowed her brow. “That’s not an answer.”

Exander moved closer, towering over her with his imposing height. “You take care of her,” he said, moving even closer.

His proximity had Jane almost light-headed, his clean male scent filling her senses and setting off an urgent thrum of desire between her thighs.

“Yes,” she finally whispered, the word coming out on a husky almost moan.

“Who takes care of you?” he asked.

But she didn’t answer, couldn’t, not when his lips were inches from hers, his eyes, usually so cold, now lit with fire. On instinct, she darted her tongue out to lick suddenly dry lips, and the motion drew his gaze. He lifted his hand, cupped her cheek with it, and then traced his thumb along her bottom lip, eyes sparking as he did.

She let out a deep exhale but then froze when he leaned forward and sealed his lips over hers. Her eyes drifted shut, and her heart started to pound.

She’d dreamed of this, wanted it, but had never thought it would happen. But it
was
happening, and the reality was far better than anything she could have conjured in her mind.

His lips were firm yet soft atop hers, his hand strong and searing against her skin. And when he slipped his tongue between her lips, his spicy, masculine flavor exploded in her mouth, the first taste of him drawing a moan.

There was more passion in his kiss than anything she’d ever experienced before, and she wanted to fall into it, give herself to him, uncaring where they were, who he was, only caring that every fiber of her being cried out for him.

And then he was gone, the kiss broken, leaving Jane bereft.

She opened her eyes, almost afraid to look at him and the see the regret, but unable not to. But she could see nothing in his expression, and save for his heavy breaths, he gave no clue of what had transpired between them.

“Jane,” he said on a deep rumble.

But she didn’t wait to hear and instead rushed out of the office as fast as her legs would carry her.

I
t had been
childish and silly of her to run out like that, but she’d needed to be away from him, hadn’t wanted to hear his apologies, promises that it would never happen again.

She’d go back soon enough, once she’d regathered her wits and was ready to face him. But for now, she walked in the public garden close to the building. She’d stumbled on the place by accident, a little oasis in the city, and she found that visits calmed and renewed her. As she walked through, occasionally stopping to smell one of the lush, perfect flowers, she wondered where it had come from. The place seemed otherworldly, reminded her of him, in fact.

Her heart skidded at the thought, and she turned to head back, deciding that the longer she waited the harder it would be to face him.

She turned, but was stopped by a greeting.

“Hello,” a man said.

Jane looked to the source of the sound and her gaze landed on a tall, handsome man. A dragon, she could instantly see, his dark hair, dark eyes, and bronzed skin too perfect to belong to a human. She’d never seen him before but something about him was familiar, though she couldn’t place what.

“Hello,” she replied.

“You come here often?” he asked.

Jane smiled, and the man’s expression turned quizzical.

“Did I say something I shouldn’t have? I still struggle with the nuances of human communication,” he said.

“It’s fine. I’m Jane Graves, by the way,” she said, walking over, hand extended.

“Jane? Exander’s Jane?”

Jane faltered for a moment, knowing she would have remembered this man if she’d met him.

He smiled, kindness lighting his eyes. “I am Ormr Vale. Exander’s father.”

She wondered how she’d missed it before because it seemed so obvious now. Lighten his hair, add a few swirls of blue to the brown in his eyes, and he’d be Exander’s doppelganger the resemblance was so strong.

“Pleased to meet you,” Jane said.

“Would you mind taking a stroll with me?” he asked.

“Of course not,” Jane said, falling into step beside him.

“My wife commissioned these gardens,” he said.

“Really? They’re beautiful,” Jane replied.

A fleeting moment of pain crossed his face. “She never got to see them. But I made sure they were built exactly as she wished. Did Exander bring you here?” he asked, glancing at her.

She shook her head. “I just stumbled across them one day.”

“Then they worked as she intended. She always thought they were a nice little surprise for city-weary people.”

“They are,” Jane said lamely.

“So has my son been nice?” he asked, brows lifting as he shifted the subject with ease.

“Umm…” Jane started and then trailed off, not sure how to respond.

“That means no, I take it,” he said.

“It’s been interesting,” Jane finally settled on.

“Interesting. Not a word that many have used to describe my son.”

Jane paused and then turned questioning eyes on Ormr.

“He has quite the reputation, you know? Cold, distant, boring.”

“Boring?” Jane said incredulously, starting to walk again. “Cold, yes, distant, yes, boring? Anything but,” she said.

But she went quiet again when she saw her companion’s amused expression. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. I happen to agree, at least mostly. My son is many things, none of which is boring. He’s not cold or distant either, though I suppose I have a biased opinion.”

Jane murmured noncommittally.

“You disagree?”

“I don’t know him well enough to say,” Jane finally replied.

“I doubt that. I’m glad he found you.”

“Oh, he didn’t find me. I’m just an employee, or I hope to be soon,” she said.

“Of course,” he said.

T
he sound of laughter
, the two voices that he would recognize anywhere, floated toward him. He followed the sound, idly wondering why his nerves were suddenly at ease.

He came upon them, his father sitting next to Jane on one of the stone benches. His lungs squeezed tight at the sight of her, bathed in sunlight, a smile of pure delight on her face.

She was luminous, stunning.

He didn’t like it at all, or rather, the desire that kicked up in his gut at the sight.

“I was looking for you, Ms. Graves,” he said, not bothering to soften his tone even as he saw his father’s disapproving stare.

The smile on Jane’s face froze, and she looked over at him.

“I just… Never mind.” She stood, reached out to shake his father’s hand. “It was a pleasure to meet you, Ormr. I hope we’ll see each other soon.”

“And you as well, Janie. And we will. The Dragon Ball is this coming weekend. Please attend.”

His father spoke in that way that even Exander was incapable of defying, and Jane nodded.

“Okay…” she said.

“Excellent. I’ll see you there,” his father said.

Jane walked away without sparing him a glance, and by the time he looked at his father again, the man had stood.

“So you’re trying to push your mate away?” he asked.

“She’s just an employee, Father. Nothing more.”

Exander breathed out hard, feeling like a hatchling and not a full-grown man.

His father snorted. “She said exactly the same thing. I didn’t believe her either.”

“Why did you invite her to the ball?”

“Because she’s delightful, and no need to waste time introducing her to our world. Besides, you always go on about that, wasting time and being efficient. Why should things be different with your mate?”

“Father,” Exander said on an impatient sigh, “it’s not like that.”

“Whatever you say, son. Come, let’s check on your mother’s roses.”

L
ater that night
Exander took flight, pushing himself as far and as fast as he could.

But no matter how high he went, how hard he pushed, he couldn’t escape thoughts of her, the feel of her lips under his, her soft sighs of pleasure.

He also couldn’t escape what his father had said, wondered if it could possibly be true.

Jane Graves, his mate?

His dragon seemed to accept the idea, welcome it, but Exander wasn’t sure. He wasn’t ready for a mate, didn’t know if he ever would be. But even if he were, it wouldn’t be Janie, so sweet, so tender, so able to make him
feel
without even trying.

He let himself fall, relaxing his body completely, thrilling in the weightlessness of free fall as he hurtled toward earth. At the last moment, he caught himself, flipped, and flapped his wings and headed back to the house.

Even before he arrived, he sensed her, and the way his dragon purred made him even more worried that his father had been right.

J
ane looked
at herself in the mirror again and smoothed her hands down the pale gold satin, unable to remember what had possessed her to let Jewel talk her into getting this dress. She had a perfectly serviceable black dress hanging in the closet, and her standard ponytail twist had gotten her through more than its fair share of dressy events. But this, how she looked now, hair wound in a fancy updo, the expensive dress plunging dangerously low, was too much.

The muffled stirring she heard out in the living room let her know that Exander was waiting. The man was stealthily silent whenever he wanted to be, so she knew the noise was her cue to hurry.

Which meant she had no time to dig out her old dress. And Jewel had probably taken it anyway.

“Here we go,” she said on a low breath as she stepped into her shoes, the platform heels giving her four desperately needed extra inches of height.

And as she walked along the hardwood floors, she couldn’t stop the little shiver of delight at the sound the shoes made. These had been her choice. In fact, she’d had her eyes on them for years, the nude patent platform a timeless style that she’d often wished she’d been rich enough or daring enough to try to pull off.

And she still wasn’t either of those things, not by a long shot, but for tonight at least, she’d fake it. New resolve propelling her, she hurried to the front door where Exander waited. His back was turned, but at the sound of her approach, he rotated, then stopped short.

He looked her over, eyes going cloudy, then shifting to ice, his lips turning down into a sneer that took her newfound confidence right along with it. He raked his gaze over her again and then turned abruptly.

“We’re going to be late,” he said, voice gruff.

“Sorry,” she said tentatively, not really sure what she was apologizing for but feeling the need to do so anyway.

He flattened his lips but didn’t speak, and Jane followed him out to the car, trepidation rising. But even still, she couldn’t ignore the figure he cut.

His tuxedo was tailored to perfection, the jacket hugging his broad back and showing the trim cut of his waist, and with each of his long strides, she saw the power of his strong thighs.

Her throat went dry, and she stood for a moment, taking in the sight, knowing he’d always been handsome, powerful, but realizing he’d never been more so than she found him now. When he reached the passenger door, he opened it and looked at her, and she was momentarily struck. His eyes were still icy, face so still it looked carved out of granite, demonic, angelic, and more appealing than any man—dragon—she’d ever seen before.

She finally moved and slid past him and into the car, trying to calm herself in the few moments she had alone before he got in. It was far too brief a time, and she hadn’t recovered when he slid behind the wheel and took off.

The silence in the car was heavy, almost unbearable, and Jane snuck surreptitious glances at him, couldn’t miss the tic in his jaw, the way he kept his lips in that grim line. She considered saying something but then decided against it. It was hard enough to stay focused, the unfamiliar dress and shoes, his proximity, leaving her more on edge than usual. To make no mention of the fact that she was about to mingle with dragon elite. Best to save what little focus she had to get through the night.

So she turned her eyes out the window and swallowed, wondering what she’d gotten herself into.

“
H
ow are you this evening
, Exander?”

His father stopped next to him and looked up, eyes twinkling.

“Fine, Father. And you?” he said around the anger that had lodged in his throat after he’d managed to pull his gaze away from Jane.

It was hard, though, especially when she was talking to Sebastian.

“Did you hear me, Exander?”

He started, only realizing when he looked at his father again that he’d turned away.

“I said, Janie looks lovely this evening, doesn’t she?”

“I hadn’t noticed,” he said.

“You’re the only one. Sebastian definitely seems to notice.”

He gritted his teeth harder, knowing what his father was doing but still not able to resist looking back at them. Sebastian now had a hand on Jane’s shoulder, the touch light, casual to the untrained eye.

But Exander knew better. Sebastian was a shark, and Jane couldn’t handle him. He’d chew her up and spit her out and not give it another thought. And if she had any common sense at all, she’d know that.

“You’re shifting, Exander,” Ormr said.

He looked down, saw the iridescent shimmer of scales that now covered his hands.

“Still think it’s nothing?” his father added.

This was unacceptable, losing control like this. He needed to gather himself, regain his equilibrium.

A feat that proved impossible when he heard Jane’s soft laugh, the sound coming to him even over the din of the ballroom.

Enough.

He turned and strode toward them, his anger increasing with each step.

Sebastian tightened his hold on Jane, face bright with amusement as he approached.

“Exander,” he said when Exander stopped in front of them, his eyes glued to Jane.

“Sebastian,” he said flatly, watching as Jane’s eyes widened at his tone.

“Where did you find this lovely creature?” he said.

Instead of responding, he said, “Jane, it’s time to go.”

He didn’t wait for her to say anything as he looped his arm in Jane’s and led her out of the ballroom, ignoring the scales that still shimmered on his skin.