Chapter 3

THREE

Samantha

We pull into the diner and Granger kills the engine. We all sit for a really long minute, staring. I don't know what they're doing, but I'm trying to accept where we are. After being a dragon, being hunted by a dragon, and having sex with a dragon, I'm back in the real world, and I need to act like it.

"Okay, I'm breaking the silence," Granger says. "I'm this close to dying from hunger," he continues, indicating an inch or two with his good hand.

I take a deep breath and nod. "We'll feel better when we eat."

I hope.

We head into the restaurant and with our appearance, and Granger's sling, get more than a few stares from the people scattered around the room. A few men's gazes linger on my bare stomach, and Aydan instantly moves to stand in front me, blocking me from view. I try not to roll my eyes. I guess it's kind of sweet he wants to defend me from their pervy gazes, but I still glance around him to see the room.

There are a couple waitresses, a number of truckers at the bar, and a few groups of people in booths. Instantly, I'm assaulted by the smell.. Oil, lavender, sweat, mint, lemons. The scents from everyone here are overwhelming all together, but even when I separate them by individual, I don't like the scents. They aren't awful like the green dragon, but they're not good either. It's weird.

"You okay?" Aydan asks, frowning.

I nod. "Just a lot of scents."

They both exchange a look, and I feel my cheeks heat. They don't know yet how much I've changed. They don't know how important scents are to me now.

A waitress leads us to an open booth in a back corner, and I slide in next to Granger, not wanting to deal with Aydan or his mood right now. We're handed menus, and our focus snaps to them. I pick out what I want to eat, then notice the TVs in the corners. They're muted, but there's one screen after another showing the green dragon, me, and even Evander.

Most of the gazes in the room are on the screens, and I catch scattered bits of conversation. People are scared. Dragons have been destroying things, killing people, at least according to the news, and they don't know what to do. This feels like a nightmare.

It feels that way to me too.

My whole body tightens. I sense Granger and Aydan noticing the screens and the conversations too. All our focus moves to the TVs, to the images flashing on the screens.

"So…you're more in tune to scents. Any other changes?" he asks, and I don't know if he's actually curious or just trying to distract me.

I nod. "I'm stronger and faster, not that you'd notice, unless I do something with a lot of force. I won't need you guys to open jars of peanut butter anymore," I say, trying for levity but failing. "There's probably more, but–"

"What can I get for you?" the waitress asks, stopping in front of us and tapping her pen on her pad of paper.

Her gaze slides over all of our battered forms, and the wrinkles in the corners of her lips seem to grow deeper as she frowns. She shifts from one foot to the other, like she wants to be anywhere but here. The feeling is mutual. She smells like onions and burnt cheese. It's hard not to wrinkle my nose with her this close.

I let my gaze run over the menus. "I'll get a Dr. Pepper, your Sunshine Scramble, the Chicken Fried Chicken, and a side of fries," I say.

She turns to go, and Granger stops her. "Actually, we haven't ordered yet."

Her eyes widen, and I realize she thought that was the order for the table. Oops. Unfortunately, that happens to our crew a lot. We're big eaters.

Granger sounds excited as he speaks. "I'll take a Dr. Pepper too, a Mighty Meat Slammer, the French Toast Cheesecake, and potato skins."

She glances at Aydan as if in disbelief that we're still not done, but Aydan doesn't notice. "I'll take the Dr. Pepper and the Mighty Meat Slammer too, along with the All That Meat Omelet, and the Classic Cheeseburger and Fries."

The waitress stops staring and starts writing. She scribbles for a full minute before she glances at us again, probably noticing how dirty and banged up we look. "Okay, uh, that will be right out."

When she goes behind the counter, my gaze moves back up to the TV, and I see Evander and the green dragon fighting as the helicopter films them from a distance. Watching it from this angle, I see things I hadn't been able to from below. The green dragon crashes into him from behind, and an already-injured Evander goes tumbling through the sky before smashing into the earth.

I cry out, then press a hand over my mouth. The video continues, from afar, for a long minute, but Evander doesn't get up. Then, it switches to a reporter.

My throat feels tight. My body feels hot. I'm not sure I can breathe. The aching in my chest changes to a painful twisting.

"If it killed him, it saves us some trouble," Aydan says.

My gaze swings to him, and I realize he's been watching me. "Don't say that."

"Why?"

I shake my head, unwilling to tell him how I feel. I know he'll just be an ass about it.

"Come on, say it! We all know it!"

Words come exploding from me. "What the hell do you want from me? I care about him, okay? Is that such a terrible thing?"

For a second, I think he's going to break the damn table, but then he slides angrily out of the booth and stomps off. I don't take a breath until I hear the door jingle and shut behind him. Upset, I don't even bother to look at where he went. Instead, I slide closer to Granger, and he immediately wraps an arm around me. I snuggle into his big frame, feeling tears slipping onto his shirt.

Inhaling deeply, I'm surprised by his scent. There's the coppery scent of blood and dirt, but there's also his scents. Of soap and books. It puts me at ease. Like some part of me knew this scent was his, even as children, and now I connect it with him and safety. All things Granger. All things I love and feel safe with.

"I'm sorry you're going through this," he says, and his voice vibrates through his chest.

"Th-thanks," I say, followed by a sniff.

One of my tears falls on the arm that's in the sling. I reach down and rub it away, then keep my hand on his. "I'm sorry you got hurt. But thanks for coming after me."

He kisses the top of my head. "I'm always going to come after you like a hostile NPC with a vengeance."

A hostile NPC, meaning a nonplayable character in a video game, like the damn wolves in Minecraft. You attack them, and they won't stop coming after you until you, or they, die. Which is nerdy as hell. But also super sweet.

"Same." I lean up and attempt a smile. "Dragon or no dragon, I'm always going to be there for you guys."

His expression softens, and he uses his thumb to wipe away a tear on my face.

I sigh. "What am I supposed to do about Aydan?"

He drops his hand and looks away in a rush. "You know how… protective he is of you."

"Yeah, I know. The guy has shown his ass enough times when it comes to being protective of me. But the thing he doesn't understand is that this stuff with Evander and I… it's dragon stuff, not human stuff."

His gaze swings back to me. "Are you sleeping with him?"

The question catches me off-guard. Why does it matter? I'm about to bark exactly that, but then I remember this is Granger, not Aydan. He's not going to be an ass about it. "Yes."

His shoulders slump, probably because he's thinking about how bad all of this is when it comes to the angry guy probably pacing outside. "That does… complicate things." He hesitates. "If he survives the green dragon, are you going to keep sleeping with him?"

I don't want to consider the possibility that he's not okay. He has to be. I rub the spot over my heart again, aching to see Evander. I need to know that he's okay, despite the fact that my human-self still doesn't quite trust him.

"Honestly? Probably."

He inches away from me. "Aydan isn't going to be able to handle that."

The waitress drops off our drinks, and I take a deep breath, speaking in a softer voice. "Granger, you don't get it. Since I've become a dragon, everything has changed. My needs. My wants. It's hard. I mean, Evander smells so good, you have no idea."

He rubs his face with his good arm, looking upset. " Smell , Sam?"

"Yes." I move closer and sniff his neck. He freezes. "Even you and Aydan smell good. I don't know how to explain it. It's like some kind of biological thing."

Granger drops his arm back around me, staring at me strangely. " I smell good?"

I nod, even though I feel like I'm getting off topic and slip closer, breathing him in again. "Like soap and old books."

He gives a strange laugh. "Is that good?"

I nod, drawing back, feeling embarrassed. "Yes. But that isn't my point. This thing with Evander and I isn't logical. It's animalistic."

He looks thoughtful. "You interacted with the green dragon, right?"

"When he made an… unwanted advance on me," I say, nodding.

His eyes widen, and I see anger in his face. And Granger is never angry. "He tried to force himself on you ?"

I nod.

"You should be more upset about this," he grounds out.

I shrug. "I was, but I'm doing better now."

He turns away and starts sucking down his Dr. Pepper. I grab my own and take a sip, getting the feeling he needs a minute to gather his thoughts.

When he's done, he sets down his drink a little too hard. "Did you like the green dragon's scent?"

I wrinkle my nose. "No, it was awful."

He looks thoughtful. "Then it isn't as if you like the scents of all living beings, just certain ones."

"Exactly." I take another sip of my sweet, sweet liquid. "Granger, I don't think I could stay away from Evander if my life depended on it. But if what that guy from the institute said is true, then my life seems to depend on me continuing to… you know? To cover my scent."

"And do you think your scent is still covered now or is the green dragon on our tail?"

My stomach flips. Has it been too long since Evander and I had sex? No, it was just last night. I should be okay.

Just thinking about Evander makes my chest ache. It looks like he might have been hurt or killed. And if he was, the green dragon is likely searching for me even as we speak. If he finds me, I don't think I can survive him on my own, and Granger and Aydan are only human, not that they'd let that stop them from doing everything they can to help me, but ultimately it will lead to their deaths.

I can't let that happen. My stomach turns, and for a minute I can't catch my breath. I don't know what I'd do without them.

"Sam?" he asks, looking at me with concern.

I settle back against his arm. "I don't know."

"And do you think covering your scent requires… semen specifically?"

Ah, fuck. "I imagine so based on what the scientists at Specter Inc. said."

The door jingles, and I already know who it is before I see him because that delicious smokiness that is all Aydan reaches me, and I realize, even with the distance, all the other customers, I can pinpoint his unique aroma. It's strange how my sense of smell works. It seems to be more in tune to people than things, probably some biological evolution to allow survival of my kind.

Aydan scoots into the booth across from us and Granger takes his arm from around me. Aydan is radiating the kind of barely controlled anger that I've only seen from him when I've pushed him too far. Luckily for me, before he can say a word, three waitresses arrive at our table and slowly begin squeezing plates on it. They bring Granger another drink, and then we're all devouring our food like we'd been lost in the woods for days. There's no conversation, not until we've cleared our plates, and the waitresses have mostly cleared off our table.

We settle back, our bellies full. Some of the tension between us has eased. Granger gives the waitress his card and leaves her a big tip, and then we're all sipping our drinks and avoiding what we need to talk about.

It's a couple long minutes before I make eye contact with Granger and know the conversation is about to begin. I just hope it's less awkward than these long moments of silence.

"So, tell us why Specter Inc. is the place we should be going right now," Granger says.

Okay, this I can handle. "Specter Inc. is a powerful company that mostly funds scientists. One of their main areas of interest is dragons. They actually fund the Phoenix Institute. If I want answers on how to stay safe as a dragon, or even more about what I've become, they're the place to go."

"And what if they just try to chop you up into little bits?" Aydan asks, one brow raised.

I shrug. "I'll shift into a dragon and burn them all to death."

"Can you do that?" Granger asks.

I think so. "Yes."

"And what if they're prepared for that?" Aydan asks, frowning.

I pause, my thoughts racing. "You two will take care of them."

Maybe they won't be enough to combat whatever the hell will be waiting for us at the base, but we don't have a better plan. We have to trust that the three of us can get out of any situation.

"We'll fight with everything we've got," Aydan says.

Granger nods. "Okay then, that's where we're heading and that's our plan. Now, problem number two…"

Aydan and I both glance at him. There's another problem?

Granger runs his good hand through his hair. "The green dragon can scent Samantha over long distances unless she's recently had intercourse."

Oh my god, is my face on fire? It feels like it's on fire.

He continues when neither of us speak. "It seems pertinent that Sam's scent be covered before continuing to the base, which requires the use of semen from a specimen. Otherwise, we'll simply attract a tumescence dragon and be no safer there than on the mountain."

Okay, tumescence, meaning engorged genitals, semen, and specimen. I can talk about this in a clinical sense. "That seems to be correct. But if we can delay our journey, I can find a specimen in this town who can perform enough intercourse to ensure my scent is properly covered."

"No!" they both say at the same time.

Granger is beat red. Aydan just stares for a minute. I don't know what to do. Just go out and find a horny guy to bang anyway?

Then, Aydan's blue eyes meet mine and intensify. "You're not going to bang some random horny guy for his cum."

I throw up my hands, feeling frustrated and embarrassed. "Then what do you want me to do? Go find Evander?"

His "No," comes out an angry growl. There's a tense pause, and then, "You and I need to talk."

"Talk?" A nervous laugh bubbles from my throat. "But I thought this talk was going so well already?"

He slips out of the booth. "Outside. Now."

Which sounds like oh so much fun.