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  When she got up, she pulled on a pair of leather boots, dabbed on more make-up and changed from her T-shirt into a silky black tank top. She shoved her keys, wallet, and phone into her jacket pockets and hurried out the door. Outside, the sun had gone down and the air was filling with moisture as if it would rain at any moment.

  At the club down the street, she showed her ticket to the bouncer at the entrance. Inside, laughter buzzed in the air, mixing with the tinkling of animated conversation. The opening act was doing a sound check on stage. Winnie hurried to the bar where Tonya waited for her and ordered a craft beer with her tip earnings, cursing the price of the fancy drink.

  "I can't wait to meet the band," Winnie said. “This is so exciting."

  "I know, right?" Tonya said. “I can't believe Derick got us backstage passes.”

  Tonya's boyfriend Derick worked at a booking agency, and every once in a while, the perks of his job really paid off.

  Winnie took a sip of her overpriced beer and looked at the band as they tuned up their instruments. The excitement of the club filled her chest and she smiled from ear to ear, getting ready for a fun night of listening to music with her friends.

  Chapter 3

  Aiden entered the dark club. The acrid smell of alcohol and the musk of pheromones filled his nose. He had been looking forward to this concert for days. Mortar was one of his favorite local bands. There had been talk online that they were being signed to a national label. Seeing them at a small venue like this would soon become impossible.

  He moved through the club and stood at the bar, motioning for the bartender to come over. He ordered a local beer and sipped the contents, enjoying the feeling of euphoria that came with this human beverage. He moved through the crowd as he watched the opening band do their sound check. They would start any minute.

  An intoxicating scent caught his attention. He wasn't quite sure what it was. It lingered on the air just out of reach. He couldn't place it. His inner dragon rumbled to life and insisted on being let out. Aiden shook his head and gritted his teeth, telling the inner beast he had no business coming out right now. Tonight was about Aiden's enjoyment of his favorite human activity, listening to music.

  He hoped for a pleasant night, free from the stress of fighting vampires. He wanted to pretend to be a human with no other worries beside drinking a beer and taking in a rock concert. He moved closer to the stage and the intoxicating smell grew stronger. He looked around at the crowd. The faces of the men and women crushing near the small stage gave him no clue as to what was producing the heavenly scent. His inner dragon grew increasingly agitated, screaming inside his mind to do something about it. Aiden pinched the bridge of his nose and squeezed his eyes closed. He told his inner beast to relax.

  Ever since the dragons of the House of Flames had awoken on Earth, their mating impulse had been activated. Cato's theory was that it had to do with the presence of Dragon Souls in the world. But this was the most pronounced it had been since they'd first emerged from the stasis pods. This was something else, something more intense, something more intimate.

  He opened his eyes and he saw her. Her dark curls bounced as she laughed at her friend and sipped beer with full, red lips. Who was this angel on Earth?

  His inner dragon screeched and flapped its wings inside his mind. Aiden took a step back. She was too lovely to comprehend. The sight of her curves in the tight tank top she wore had him salivating. He couldn't possibly have these kinds of feelings for some random human. He sniffed the air again and his inner dragon screamed insistently.

  “Mate."

  "You don't know that," Aiden said to his inner beast.

  Back on their home world, a million years ago, the dragons of Dragonia had long since given up their intuitive mating sense in favor of using technology to find matches. As their sun died and the female population dwindled, it had become a necessary means of keeping the peace. But here on Earth, among the many thousands of possible Dragon Soul females, it was a different story. Both Kian and Dax had the same intuitive impulse about their mates. Why would Aiden be any different? He sent a brief message over the mental link he shared with his crew.

  "I’ve found her."

  "What do you mean ‘found her’?" Cato asked.

  "My mate. I found her."

  "Don't do anything stupid. You know you need to have your match verified by our mating analysis,” Cato said.

  Aiden shut down his mental link, and Cato's voice went silent inside his mind. He didn't want to be lectured tonight. His inner dragon's insistence was enough distraction for him. If Cato wanted to wait for his computer to verify his own mate, that was all well and good for him. But Aiden didn't need that. He believed in his instincts more than anything, and his instincts were telling him that she was the one. He would stop at nothing to make her his.

  The opening band began to play a pleasant melody, the music vibrating through his chest. He moved into a dark corner of the room, watching her dance with her friend. A man came out from backstage and walked over to the girls. Jealousy flared in Aiden’s chest, but then he saw the man put his arm around the friend. Aiden let out a deep sigh of relief and relaxed. He didn't know how to proceed. He couldn't just walk up to her and tell her “Hi, I'm an ancient dragon from another planet and you're my mate. I will claim you now." As much as his inner dragon insisted that was exactly what he should do.

  The rock band finished their playlist and Aiden ordered another beer. He sipped it with his elbow rested on the bar, watching Mortar set up on the stage. His mate and her friends moved closer to the stage. Being loosened up by the human alcoholic beverages, his mate was laughing and hooting as the band got ready to play. He took his amber bottle in hand and slowly maneuvered through the crowd. Aiden remained hidden. He wasn't ready to make his move. The last thing he wanted to do was scare her off.

  He watched her curves sway as she danced to the music. She took off her leather jacket, and Aiden watched her limbs flow as she danced. She had tattoos that he couldn’t make out in the glare of the strobe lights. When she turned, he saw the one on her back was a red dragon. His heart skipped a beat. If he had needed any more confirmation that she was a Dragon Soul, that was it.

  As Mortar played their opening set, Aiden slipped closer to the girl who had enthralled him. She was the picture of loveliness. Her curves made him salivate, and he could think of nothing but ripping off her clothes and sinking between her legs. He sniffed the air, trying to pick up her scent and separate it from all the other humans in the bar. He wanted to smell nothing but her.

  He finally moved in right behind her where she danced. He could smell her clearly now. It made his head spin and his loins grow firm with desire. He had to use every ounce of his self-control not to pull her into his arms and claim her mouth right there in the middle of the club.

  She twirled around, laughing as she danced and glanced up at him. She gasped when her eyes met his, a spark of recognition running between them. Then she smiled coyly, turning back to her friends. Aiden gritted his teeth and growled. She must know it too. If only on a primal level. His inner dragon shrieked, blowing flames throughout his mind.

  "I can't believe we get to go backstage," she yelled to her friends.

  "It's going to be amazing."

  Backstage? So, his mate and her friends were going to meet the band. Aiden had forgotten why he had come to this club in the first place. To watch Mortar play before they got signed to a label and were no longer playing small, local clubs. He wondered how he could get backstage himself. Being an ancient dragon with technology and magic at his disposal, it couldn't be that hard. He opened the mental link and addressed Cato.

  "Get me on the guest list for the Mortar show tonight."

  "I'm a little busy right now, Aiden. Your request is low priority.”

  "I'm saying it's a high priority."

  "I don't take orders from you. Even if you are the Duke of the House of Flames.”

  "Just do it, Cato."
<
br />   "What is this all about?" Kian said through the mental link.

  "Aiden wants a backstage pass for his little rock concert," Cato said. “I'm in the middle of running an analysis on Aria’s music’s effect on our abilities.”

  "Why do you need a backstage pass, Aiden?" Kian asked. Aiden rarely asked for anything unless it was absolutely necessary.

  "My mate is going back there.”

  "Oh yes," Cato said. "He believes he's found his mate tonight."

  "Just remember you can't be sure until we run the mating analysis,” Kian said.

  "It's her," Aiden said. "Are you going to help me or not?"

  "Just get him the pass," Kian said. “It won't take you more than two minutes."

  "Fine," Cato said. “But you owe me."

  "I don't have a problem with that,” Aiden said.

  The mental link went quiet and thirty seconds later, Cato told him he was on the guest list for the Mortar show tonight.

  "Thank you, Cato," Aiden said, shutting off the mental link.

  Aiden stared at his mate dancing, her movements enticing and lovely. She had a way of moving that was like a balm to his soul. Oh, how he wanted her. He would do anything to claim her.

  After the band played their final song, last call was announced. He watched his mate and her friend slip toward the backstage entrance. He followed close behind, wanting to make sure that no other man dared to touch her. He knew the kinds of things that could happen in clubs when drinking was involved. And he wasn't going to let anyone else place their hands on his mate’s curvaceous body. Aiden approached the bouncer who was checking passes.

  "My name is Aiden Flame,” he said. “I'm on the list."

  The bouncer checked his tablet and nodded his head once.

  “Go on in."

  Aiden followed his mate and her friends into the backstage area. It was brighter in the back there than it had been in the club. He could see her waiting to talk to the band. She had the most excited look on her face as she gazed at the lead singer. It made him so jealous he almost blew flames and ignited the entire room.

  "Hi," said a woman in a tight-fitting black dress that revealed most of her cleavage. She had on thick cat-eye makeup, deep red lipstick, and cat-eye glasses. She was cute and pretty, but not his mate. She obviously had interest in him from the smell of her.

  "How do you know the band?" she asked, taking a sip from a beer bottle.

  "I don't," he said honestly.

  "Really, how did you get back here?"

  "A friend of a friend."

  "They’re a great band," the woman said.

  "Yes, great."

  “I'm not sure how I feel about them making it. I wish them success, but I also want to keep them for myself," she said with a laugh. “You know what I mean?”

  "Yes," Aiden said. "If you'll excuse me."

  He moved away from the woman, and she frowned as he left. He had his sights on someone else, someone who had his heart before they'd shared even a single word. His mate, his one and only. She was walking toward the lead singer, a broad smile on her face as she approached him. She asked him a question Aiden couldn't hear. The singer grinned at her, his eyes growing bright. The singer looked her up and down. Aiden gritted his teeth. He would rip his head off! But he had to hold himself back. If he did something like that, he could never gain her trust. His mate and the singer chatted for a moment and then the singer turned his attention to someone else.

  His mate and her friends made the rounds, speaking with the rest of the band. Then, she seemed to grow weary, pulling on her jacket. Aiden overheard her say it was time to go home. She was tired and needed sleep. Aiden followed them out of the club and onto the street, watching over them as they walked home. She trotted up the entry stairs to her building and disappeared behind the door. Then a light came on in a third-floor window, and he knew it must be her apartment. He could stand there all night and watch her window. Instead, he slipped into the shadows and activated his stealth mode. Quickly shifting, he flew to the roof of the building and landed, shifting back into his human form. He would wait here. And in the morning, he would decide how to tell her that she belonged to him.

  Chapter 4

  Winnifred woke up feeling slightly hung over and tired from staying out late the night before. She glanced around her tiny apartment and let out a deep sigh. Trudging to the coffee maker, she made herself a pot. Sitting by the window with her coffee, she looked out onto the glare of the morning sunlight. She remembered she'd made thirty dollars in tips the day before. The brochure for the trip to the island was still sitting on her table. It was her day off. The shuttle only went out there once a week. If she wanted to go, today was the day.

  How could she justify spending all of her tips and more on a day on an island? Then she thought about the sleepless nights, her dead-end job, and the pile of debt keeping her from her dreams and goals. She was in a constant state of desperation. How could she not prioritize a day away from all of this? Decision made, she quickly showered and dressed, grabbed her outdoor painting kit, her backpack, a water bottle, some protein bars, and a warm, waterproof jacket. She hurried out into the day and hopped on a bus to the pier.

  She got off at her stop and hurried to the counter to pay for her ticket. Standing in line, she noticed a man holding a guitar case buying a ticket right behind her. He seemed vaguely familiar, but she couldn't quite place why. Where had she seen his face before? He didn't seem dressed for a day on the island, but who was she to judge?

  She’d chosen a pair of khaki pants, hiking boots, a warm sweater under her rain jacket, and had her hair tucked under a brown beanie. She truly looked forward to spending the day away from the city. The island was remote and rarely visited since it was a wildlife preserve.

  She had enjoyed meeting the band the night before, but now she would get the peace and quiet she needed. Winnie had a lot of decisions to make, but today was about going out into nature and just breathing for once. The island was full of birds and other wildlife. She hoped to complete a piece. Her impressionistic style was perfect for en plein air painting and she looked forward to capturing the beauty of the island with her brush.

  When it was time to board the ferry, she walked along with the other passengers onto the shuttle and found a seat in the dining area near a window. She looked out the window as the ship set sail over Puget Sound. As they progressed into deeper water she saw a whale, flipping its tail in the distance. The salty breeze blew through the windows, and she let out a satisfied sigh. This was exactly what she needed. Some quiet, some time to contemplate beautiful sights to inspire her art.

  The hot man in the leather jacket strode past with his guitar. There was something about him. She couldn't quite place it. His dark eyes and dark wavy hair, the set of his shoulders and jaw, with a face like a rock star and the body of an athlete. But it was something else. Not just how good-looking he was. She felt drawn to him. She could've sworn she'd seen him somewhere before. But she couldn't remember, and that was troubling. A girl alone in the city could never be too careful. Sometimes guys could get weird.

  He slipped into the shadows and disappeared on the other side of the ship. She relaxed and turned her attention back to the water out the window. She wasn't going to let her anxiety ruin her day. After an hour and a half, the ship finally made it to the secluded island and passengers were told they could disembark.

  They could go on either a guided tour or explore the island following the marked trails on their own. Winnie pulled her backpack up over her shoulder and started out onto the trail by herself. She really needed some alone time.

  She’d bought a sack lunch from the dining car on the ship and added it to the stash in her bag. Her easel was slightly heavy on her back as she made her way up the trail, but after a while it became easier to ignore the weight. She looked for just the right spot where she could set up and begin her painting.

  She breathed in the fresh air and felt a sense of peace and tran
quility wash over her. It was the best feeling. The sky cleared, becoming crystal blue. Birds sang in the trees, filling her ears with their music. Winnie knew then that she had made the right decision. All the stress and anxiety of her life melted away as she crested a hillside and found the perfect view for her painting.

  Down below was a small lake framed by the temperate rain forest. It was absolutely gorgeous. She set up her easel on a turnout from the trail and opened up her chair. Winnifred set up her canvas, opened her palette of oil paints and paint thinner, and began her painting. She dabbed in shades of green and blue. Time stood still as she channeled the view before her onto her canvas. The sun beamed onto the water, making it sparkle as the water lilies bobbed on the aqua-colored liquid. It was a sight to behold and she could barely contain the joy that filled her heart. After she applied the first layer of paint, Winnie covered her palette and opened her backpack to withdraw the lunch she'd purchased on the boat.

  She ate, gazing out at the view. The day was warm and bright, and the colors were vivid in her eyes. A blue heron swooped overhead and settled into the pond below. She quickly picked up her paintbrush and began to dab in the shape of the bird as it stood on one leg and gazed into the water, ready to strike.

  Her worries were no more, and all that existed was her, the view and her paintbrush. She felt like a composer channeling music through her body. It was so beautiful and intense. She lost herself in it and never wanted to be found. This was all she wanted.

  In that moment, she knew what she needed to do. She needed to move to the country so that she could paint like this every day. How she would do it? She didn't know. All she knew was she had to make it happen. When she got back to the city, she would figure everything out. But for now, all that mattered were the subtle shades of green and blue, the tiny dots of pink and yellow, the bird calls that inspired her heart and the fresh fragrance of the forest as the breeze blew through.