Treasure Lane Dragons: Complete Series (BBW Paranormal Dragon Shapeshifter Romance) (42 page)

“Why not? What’s she worth to you? You know she knows who we are, right? I bet the bitch wants to expose us for some quick tabloid bucks. Wouldn’t that be great? ‘Bassist reveals that two top rock groups are composed of dragons and they’re messing with your minds!’” Colt snorted at that, though the look in his eyes told Apollo that revealed identities weren’t the only things they were worried about.

“I don’t think we have anything to fear from her. She just wants you to leave her alone,” Alexander said mildly. Apollo had to once again admire his brother’s self-control. Were it left up to him, the Blackscales would already be down on their backs, getting the shit kicked out of them for the stunt they’d pulled.

“I think we’d like to be the judges of that,” Cameron bit back just as calmly, his words so icy that they could have frozen an ocean in a second.

“You’re just going to have to take my word for it,” Alexander said, crossing his arms over his chest.

“You’re not laying one fucking finger on her,” Apollo added, the rumbling growl of his dragon reverberating through him. He meant it – they’d have to go through him to get to her. Why he was feeling so strongly about this woman he’d only met a few days ago was another matter altogether, but that was something to deal with later.

“That is to say that I haven’t already,” Cameron said, grinning. This time, it was Apollo, who had to catch Alexander, getting a hold of the always reserved and in control man before he got close enough to punch Cameron. Alexander’s face was contorted in a snarl and his eyes burned gold, so bright they were almost blinding.

“You seem awfully attached to her,” Colt said, smirking dangerously as he cocked his head to the side. His gray eyes were shadowed with red – all of the dragons getting far too close for comfort. “Would hate to see something happen to her.”

“I’ll gut you alive if you harm a hair on her head,” Apollo said, his chest aching at the merest mention of causing any harm to Jade. Fuck, she’d got to him good, and by the looks of it, Alexander was right with him on that one.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Cameron said with a chuckle, sharing a look and a nod with his brother. “But we best be leaving you. Wouldn’t want to cut your beauty sleep short. You two seem to need it.” Cameron motioned loosely at both of them, and Apollo’s dragon relaxed. He could deal with idiotic banter from two worthless dragons, as long as it wasn’t directed at Jade. Somehow, that was all that mattered now.

Apollo loosened his grip on Alexander as the Blackscales took a few steps back and shifted. As a parting gift, they scorched a semi-circle around them with their blackish-red flames, burning so bright and hot for a few seconds that Apollo could feel his clothes char. To him and his dragon, it felt like little more than the sunshine on a warm summer day.

The Blackscales took flight, the perfectly choreographed, serpentine beasts with gleaming red eyes shooting into the skies. Only when the last hint of them disappeared could Apollo relax a little.

“You know why they were here tonight, right?” Apollo said quietly, feeling the tightness in his chest release slowly, though irritation still gnawed at him with rabid teeth.

“I do.”

Looking over at Alexander, Apollo was surprised to see his brother still fuming, his muscles hard and ready for a fight, almost begging for it. He knew exactly how his twin felt.

“I wasn’t kidding. If anything happens to her…”

“I know. I feel the same way.”

The answer was right inside of Apollo, and he knew what it was. It was painfully obvious to him now, like it had been standing right in front of him all along, and he just hadn’t noticed. Like a revelation or the perfect words to a song that had been in the back of your head for weeks, he didn’t know what to do with Jade arriving in his and Alexander’s life so suddenly. Go for it? Wasn’t that always the right answer?

As if reading his mind, Alexander’s tension oozed out of him and the man took a deep breath, his gold eyes flickering back to blue.

“You know what we have to do now, right?” Alexander asked.

For the first time in as long as Apollo could remember, he felt exactly in sync with his brother – what he felt was echoed in Alexander and Alexander’s rage and fury mirrored in him.

“Yes,” Apollo said, grinning wickedly. Oh yes, he knew exactly what they needed to do. And he was damn well going to enjoy it.
 

CHAPTER NINE

Jade

Jade yawned to herself, still trying to rub the sleep from her eyes. It was impossibly early, and they’d already been travelling for a while. As far as she could tell, no one was really interested in telling her where it was that they were going. So, it was no wonder that when the black stretch limo she was cooped up in pulled up at a private airstrip, she had more than a little cause for confusion.

“C’mon, green eyes, time to roll,” Apollo said, shoving the door open and hopping out with the grace of a seasoned predator.

Alexander followed him with equal ease, giving Jade a cryptic look on his way out. All Jade could do was glance from one beefcake to another, hang onto her disposable cup of coffee and haul herself out of the car with plenty of questions but no real energy to spare to ask them. She pulled her bass case out along with her, Michelle giving it a slight push when it caught stuck behind one of the plush seats.

“So, um, what’s going on?” Jade asked between yawns, shielding her eyes with her hand from the rising sun sweeping across the airfield.

“Your guess is as good as mine,” Michelle mumbled, lighting a cigarette and glaring at the Goldplains brothers.

They were hard at work unloading suitcases from the limo, not letting the driver lift a finger, when Jade noticed her two ragged cases as well. She wasn’t even aware they’d been brought along. All that she’d been told in the morning was that she needed to get up, NOW, and so she’d done. Of course, getting out from between Apollo’s sheets had been a struggle and a half, but to her credit, she’d only taken one lengthy inhale before she got down to brass tacks. It was unfair how damn good they smelled, and a girl was allowed a tiny bit of indulgence, right?

“Isn’t it obvious?” Apollo asked with a wolfish grin that begged to either be kissed or smacked off his face. “We’re going on an adventure! Aventura! All that jazz.”

Alexander just snorted and slammed the boot shut.

“No, we’re not going on an adventure. Michelle, I’m sorry we woke you up this early, but we figured if we got so close to the airplane, you couldn’t kill us before we could make a run for it.”

Jade frowned, taking a sip of her coffee and begging the caffeine to bring her faculties back to her. Whatever was going on, she got an urgent feeling that she was better off knowing what exactly was transpiring in her immediate presence.

Michelle’s well-kept brows curled into a threatening lightning cloud of impending irritation, and she took a long drag of her cigarette, her eyes narrowed.

“I’m listening,” she said, with a voice that told Jade that Michelle was not a woman in any mood to be fucked with. In general, Jade thought that any man who could match that spitfire had to be
some
man. Phew. Scary.

Just please don’t let her get pissed at me,
Jade thought to herself, inching closer to Alexander and Apollo. Though Michelle looked like she could put on a hell of a battle, Jade figured it was safest to side with the dragons when given the option. They
were
dragons, after all. And such fascinating ones at that.

“We’re going to have to push the next two dates. And before you say anything, this is important,” Apollo said, raising his hand before Michelle could let out a cry of protest.

“Really important,” Alexander stressed. Jade noticed the way he glanced at her, and her stomach churned. It could have been the fact that she hadn’t had breakfast or the strong coffee, but who was she kidding – it was Alexander. A look or a touch from either of them sent her body in a tailspin of wanting that was hard to get a grip on, no matter how she tried.

“We haven’t told Tayo or Clay, so you need to tell them as well. It’ll just be for a few weeks, then we’ll be back on the tour, and we promise we’ll make it up to the fans. Whatever we need to do,” Apollo was quick to add, as Michelle’s cheeks were getting that oh-shit-we’re-in-trouble red.

“Do either of you two knuckleheads want to explain to me what the FUCK is going on here or do I have to take off these Manolos and use them as an ice pick to get an explanation out of one of you scaly pricks?!” Michelle roared, her cigarette discarded on the pavement. Inadvertently, Jade gulped. Apollo, on the other hand, only grinned a little – brave man.

“We can’t. The less you know, the better. It’s… dragon business,” Alexander concluded, stealing another glance at Jade and sending her blushing. She wasn’t even sure why.

“Wait. Does she…” Michelle started, looking between Jade and the towering forms of the Goldplains brothers.

“She knows we’re dragons, yeah. Sorry, she figured it out on her own. Not our doing,” Apollo said, chuckling at the plethora of emotions that were going over Michelle’s expression in rapid succession. Michelle seemed to ponder this for a moment, still looking like a storm about to descend on some hapless village, before her anger cracked and she sighed tiredly, nodding her head.

“Fine. A break it is. We’ll say Apollo got laryngitis or something.”

“Hey,” Apollo protested.

“Shut up. If I have to tell thousands of fans their concerts are going to be pushed, I’m at least going to do it my way, capiche? But what does Jade have to do with your ‘dragon business’?” Michelle asked, making air quotes with her long fingers, heavy with eye-catching jewelry.

“Yeah, I’d like to know that too,” Jade said meekly, peering over the rim of her coffee cup. While she was usually all fire and brimstone when the moment called for it, this particular situation, combined with the royal clusterfuck from last night, left her feeling a bit deflated.

“That’s a dragon secret,” Alexander said with a barely concealed smirk, receiving glares from not only Michelle but Jade as well. Lords know she was sick and tired of dragon secrets.

“And that’s all I’m going to get?” Michelle asked, clearly exasperated. Both of the golden-haired twins nodded, but Apollo at least had the decency to look a bit sheepish about it. Jade had to admit that it looked good on him. But dammit, didn’t everything?

“We’ll call you when we get to Gold Way. For now, please don’t let anyone know where we’re going. If we’re right, everything should be over in three weeks tops. For better or for worse. Okay?” Alexander asked, or more like stated. Michelle pursed her lips, shifting her iron gaze to Jade.

“Question is, are you okay with this, Jasmine?”

Jade balked. Their attention veered to her and stayed there. Apollo and Alexander’s blue eyes seemed to gaze through her, right into her soul, and her body felt tingly with heat and expectation. Michelle, on the other hand, looked every part the role of the seasoned professional, who could take every hit without batting a lash or even being all that surprised.

“I… um. Do I need to go with you? Did I do something wrong? I’m really sorry about last night,” she mumbled, feeling like a little girl put on the stand again. She didn’t revel in the feeling, but at least Apollo and Alexander’s presence made her feel more at ease. Apollo stepped closer to her, and when he put his hand on her lower back, she relaxed a little. There was no tension in that touch, no aggravation.

“Yes, you do. And no, you didn’t do anything wrong. There’s nothing to fear. We just want to make sure that you’re safe, Jade,” Apollo said, his voice almost a purr that trembled through her.

Whatever this was, it posed no danger to her, and that was all she really needed to know. Jade had decided to trust her health and safety with these men because she believed they were
good and reasonable. Now, when they were asking her to trust them, how could she say no?  Slowly, Jade nodded, seeking out Alexander to confirm that Apollo’s words were also true for him. The way he looked at her left her no doubt of that. In fact, if anything, it made her feel that the sooner they left, the better.

“Okay. Yes. I’m okay with this.”

“Alright. What can I say then? Bon voyage,” Michelle said with a bemused smirk, looking resigned, yet not entirely surprised.

What are they plotting…
Jade wondered as the Goldplains said their cheerful goodbyes to Michelle, picked up the suitcases and headed to the private jet with Jade in tow. Well, whatever it was, she could be sure that she’d never get bored with Apollo and Alexander around. If even Michelle, who’d worked with them for over a decade, couldn’t see their twists and turns coming, what hope did Jade have?

CHAPTER TEN

Jade

Gold Way was absolutely breathtaking. It was a sweeping sight. A long, wide valley nestled between towering mountains, looking down upon seemingly endless wheat fields and a wide, impossibly clear river snaking through it – it truly was one of those beautiful, hidden American gems. Jade also spied a small town right at its center, clustered around the narrowest part of the river.