5. Maya

5

Maya

Don’t freak out. Don’t freak out.

She knew the Blackburns were rich. She knew dragons hoarded ridiculous amounts of treasure. Apollo had caught her up on what he called “all that dragonly nonsense” after she moved to Hideaway.

But this?

This was too much.

“Really?” she said weakly. “The real Troy? The one they made a movie about? The, um … the Iliad Troy?”

“So we have always claimed.” Corin’s eyebrows drew together. “If not Troy itself, then another city of similar vintage. That necklace is over three thousand years old.”

It was a good thing she was already sitting down, because she was going to faint.

“Oh.”

“And someone took them from my clan’s vault to give to you.” His expression darkened. “This should have been discovered earlier. For this much treasure to be taken from our hoard is unthinkable.”

Any other time, she would jump to reassure him—but she was still feeling quite dizzy, actually, and anyway, she didn’t work for him anymore.

“I think I’m just going to…” She dropped her head between her knees.

Corin was at her side at once. He touched her shoulder. “Miss Flores—Maya—”

“I’m fine. I just—need a moment.” To breathe. To let the world stop spinning so very fast.

“Chree-chree?” A murmur of magic, and Tomás wrapped a pudgy hand around her fingers. “Mama?”

“It’s okay, sweetpea. Mama’s just…” Looking at the floor from very close up. She bit her lip.

This was worse than the watch. So, so much worse.

Tomás looked between her, and Corin, and his hoard, still spilling out of his old briefcase. He wavered, clearly caught between staying near his mother and defending his treasure from the other dragon.

His little face began to crumple.

Her head was still spinning, but too bad. “Everything’s fine,” she reassured Tomás. “See? Let’s put your hoard right here and you right here, and we can cuddle and you can have all your treasures.” She tugged the suitcase onto her lap and settled Tomás onto it, smiling at him. He smiled back, wrapping his arms around her neck.

Blackburn did not smile.

“What is it?” she asked, her heart rate spiking again.

“I assumed the Ocean of Stars was an outlier,” he said. His face still looked like a thunderhead, but his voice was restrained. “But these pieces are some of the most valuable of our hoard.” His eyes fell on her, dark as a starless night.

She swallowed. I don’t even want to think about what that means in terms of monetary value. “From your family hoard, not your personal hoard?”

“If they had been from my personal hoard, I would have known it long ago. This is—” He shook his head. “An even greater insult, to steal from all of us.”

“If you want them back—”

“No. The treasures were stolen fair and square.” Somehow, his expression lightened. “And gifted to a hatchling, which makes them untouchable.”

“All mine!”

“Yes. All yours, little Flores.” His tone was friendly, but a muscle twitched in his jaw, and his eyes were still pitiless black. She’d never seen him so furious.

“They weren’t given to him,” she reminded him.

He gave a short, knife-sharp smile. “Whether given directly, or he intercepted them on their way to you, makes no difference. They are his.”

“On their way to me—” She swallowed. “I thought it was only the necklace. But all this … how long has this been going on?” She looked down at Tomás and tried to stop her voice from trembling. “How long have you had all these treasures, sweetpea?”

Tomás blew out his cheeks. “Hoo!”

“I last visited my clan’s vaults after—some months ago.” There was a strange bitterness in his words and Maya wondered whether he’d been about to say after you left. Her breath caught in her throat. He continued, his voice eerily calm. “There was nothing missing then.”

“So they knew I had left, and they—whoever they are—” She stopped before her unsteady voice upset Tomás again.

Corin’s expression was veiled. “Someone has known all this time where you were, and sent you piece after piece of the most precious treasures from my family’s hoard.”

For a dragon, that had to count as a deadly insult. “Why?”

His jaw worked. “If you’d seen these as they arrived, you would have been terrified. One after the other, and you had no idea where they were coming from.”

But she hadn’t been terrified when she thought they’d come from him. She was terrified now , sure, but… “I would have blamed you.”

“And when the next one arrived?”

The tightness in her throat retreated. She frowned. “I would have confronted you about it already, so I would already know it wasn’t you sending them, and—we’d be in the exact position we are now!” She gestured, wide-eyed, only then taking in the ridiculousness of the situation: her with her baby dragon and a ratty old suitcase of priceless treasure in her lap, her ex-boss sitting opposite. On the floor of her son’s nursery. Way too close to the greasy spot on the rug where Tomás had spent an industrious morning rubbing cookie dough into it.

She should have tried harder to wash that out.

But that was only her guilty surface thoughts talking. Behind them, her mind was ticking away, falling back into the familiar routine of sifting through Corin’s business dealings and upcoming meetings to divine hidden dangers. Even before she’d known he was a dragon shifter, she’d known that there was more going on in his world than could be seen on the surface.

She’d assumed then that it was just normal, ego-driven business bullshit, but now…

“They wanted you here,” she said slowly.

“What?”

“However long it took, however many pieces of treasure they had to send here after they stole them, they wanted to draw you out here.”

The fire in his eyes changed. “Then I shall give them what they want.”

“But—”

“They made you part of their plot. I left you unprotected. I will not do so again.”

His words still echoed in her head an hour later. Tomás, worn out by a morning of horrible bananas and showing off his hoard to a big, strange dragon, had exploded with exhaustion. Now he was asleep, the house rang with silence.

And there was nothing to distract her from what Corin had said.

She crept down the stairs. Corin was waiting at the bottom; she’d banished him to the living room when Tomás announced his loud and immediate need for a nap, and he’d gone. Almost meekly.

I left you unprotected. I will not do so again.

His words made her squirm. They made her want what she could never have. What he certainly did not want.

He didn’t even want to be here. The only reason he insisted was staying was the treasure. And everything about leaving her unprotected, or whatever, was just … more draconic bullshit. It had to be. She was his ex-employee, and that meant he could mess with her, but no one else was allowed. Leaving her unprotected was like … like leaving his side open. Forgetting to guard a weakness against an opponent.

Yes. That must be it. It was totally fine for him to chase her across the country, but anyone else, nuh-uh.

God, he was such a—such a…

She should have finished that thought before she opened the door to the living room, because once she caught sight of him, there was only one way it could end.

He’s so fucking hot.

Desire and misery coiled together inside her. She shoved them both away and nodded towards the kitchen. “Can I get you a drink?”

“There’s no need.”

“I’m getting myself one.”

“Then a water, please.”

She hid a frown. At work, she knew exactly what sort of boutique whisky he drank, exactly how he took his coffee, and made sure they were always ready before he knew he wanted them.

Now he was hesitating to ask her for water?

She got the drinks and sat down opposite him, looking at him more carefully.

He looked exhausted.

Maya rubbed her thumb against her forefinger anxiously. He shouldn’t look exhausted. He should look … sneaky, and cunning, and excited by the chance to do sneaky, cunning, draconic things. Unless he was brooding. Sexily. No, don’t think that.

But that was the Corin she’d known when she worked for him, even if she didn’t know why he was like that. He’d never encountered a problem he didn’t jump at with what she now recognized as draconically possessive enthusiasm.

“I am sorry.”

She looked up sharply. “What?”

He averted his eyes, his mouth twisted. Which went some way towards shaking her from the shock of hearing Corin Blackburn apologize for anything.

He kept his voice low. “When I thought it was only a single lost treasure, there was still a chance—”

“A chance that what?”

His expression, already grim, froze over. “I will need to involve my clan in this. It will be impossible to keep the thefts secret.”

He’d wanted to keep it quiet. Of course he did. She wanted to keep it quiet, too. So why did his words make her squirm with something like shame?

Oh.

Oh, shit.

Because the thief had to be another dragon. A dragon who’d sent treasure to her .

And there was one dragon intimately connected to her that—

That it was impossible for the thief to be.

Tomás’s father.

She was going to have to tell him the truth.

“Maya?”

“Mr. Blackburn,” she replied automatically.

“You don’t look well.”

“It’s nothing. Well, you know, not nothing. This whole thing is ridiculous,” she said, taking refuge in anger. “Fine. Involve your clan. Go off and search your vaults for evidence—”

“I’m not going anywhere.” His eyes narrowed to thin slits. “You have no problem with me involving others in this search?”

“Why would I?” She stared at him, hoping her expression was confident and collected, but afraid there was a hint of crazy lady showing through. “The sooner you can find out who stole your treasures, the better. Send your whole clan after them, if you need to. Assuming one of them isn’t the culprit.”

His eyes flashed. “You’re accusing someone from my clan?”

“Whoever sent me those treasures knew exactly where I was. The list of dragons who fit that description is short. We’ve ruled you out. Apollo has no interest in stealing gold, and no reason to send it to me. I would have noticed if Tomás had taken a long trip like that.” Even if she hadn’t noticed his growing hoard. “What about the others who followed you the night you chased me here?”

“My cousins?” One dark eyebrow rose to a perfectly doubting peak.

“The only people I told about moving here were my mom and Felicity. Neither of whom have any interest in your treasure. But your family were all over it. And they’re all dragons. What else am I meant to think?”

To her surprise, amusement lightened his expression. “Accurate as ever, Miss Flores.”

“I’m only potentially accusing one of your clan if I can’t find anyone else to suspect.”

“You suspected me.” His eyes glittered.

“And I don’t anymore, because you wouldn’t look so grumpy about all this if this was some elaborate double-bluff and you really were responsible.” She grimaced. On second thoughts…

No. Corin wasn’t behind this.

He opened his mouth. “Miss Flores—”

Her phone rang, the familiar peal making her jump. Corin’s mouth snapped shut.

“Who—” She picked up her phone and her heart sank.

Mom.

Had just mentioning her mom somehow summoned her? Maya’s throat tightened. “Excuse me,” she said quietly, and went into the hall. “Hi, Mom.”

“Maya?”

The hope and tension in her mother’s voice made her stomach shrivel as she closed the door behind her. “That’s right! Tomás didn’t steal my phone this time, ha ha.”

“Is this a good time? I was hoping you would see my message earlier, but maybe it didn’t get through…”

Was this a good time? Oh, god. If she could see through solid walls, she would have been staring straight at Corin. “Uh, not exactly—”

“Oh.”

Guilt guilt guilt. Maya sucked in a breath through her nose. “Can I call you back later? It’s just—been a weird day. There’s a lot going on, I know I said I would call you earlier in the week but—”

“No, no, I understand, you’re so busy—”

Their voices overlapped, and both fell silent at the same time.

“Well,” said her mother after a pause that lasted an eternity. “I would—there’s something I’d like to talk to you about, soon. Sometime when you have time.”

Same here , Maya thought, biting her lip. Like ‘Hey, Mom, by the way, your first and only grandchild can transform into a dragon.’

Somehow, no time had ever been the right time for that conversation.

“Maybe tomorrow?” she suggested, and immediately winced. As though tomorrow would be any less of a train wreck than today.

Her mother agreed, with a doubtfulness that Maya fully deserved, and she put down the phone, guilt crawling a familiar route through her gut.

Corin looked at her carefully as she went back into the living room. “Is everything all right?”

“On a scale of one to a mystery dragon sending me stolen treasure, my mom calling ranks well below all my other problems right now.” She groaned and ran her hands through her hair. “What do we do next?”

He cleared his throat. “My grandfather has care of our family vault. Guarding our combined treasures is the right of the eldest in the clan. I will inform him of the incident.”

“You’re going to tell your grandfather that someone stole your family heirlooms on his watch?”

“I know.” He gave a grim smile. “Wish me luck?”

“You’ll need it.” Her heart swooped in her chest. None of their conversations when she worked with Corin had been like this. But it seemed so natural not to hide her thoughts from him. To talk back. To tease him.

She didn’t have to make a good impression anymore. So she wasn’t. That had to be it.

“Meanwhile, on the assumption there may be a mole in my organization…” A muscle under his eye twitched. “I’ll have my cousins look in to it.”

“The Dans ?” she burst out.

Corin’s eyebrows shot up. “Excuse me?”

Oh. She’d never called them that in front of him, had she? “Your cousins. Aedan, Braedan, and Caedan. The Dans.”

“The—dear god. No one in the family even dares to mention my aunt and uncle’s ridiculous naming scheme, let alone make a joke of it.” Something in his expression made her heart leap. “And you don’t think they’re the right people for the job?”

Great. Now she’d insulted his family. In for a penny, in for a pound , she thought. “Maybe if the job was warming the seats at a bar, or lying about on a beach. Or being your back-up band as you chase me across the country. But sneaking around and finding out who’s selling your secrets to the enemy? No.”

“Then I had better arrange for a trusted advisor to do the actual investigating while the Dans lumber around.”

“Mm, see, trusted advisor sounds to me like exactly the person who ends up betraying you. You might as well call them the grand vizier and be done with it.”

His eyes glittered. “In that case, perhaps it’s better to secretly tell each of my clan mates about the investigation separately and have them all work to root out the traitor while hiding their own secrets. The Dans are not my only cousins. Then there are aunts and uncles, distant hangers-on…”

She knew his family was as massive as hers was small, but he kept his home life and his work so separate that she’d never met most of them. The same way his grandfather had.

All those relatives, and he was in charge of corralling them all. If the others were anything like the Dans?

“Sounds exhausting.”

The hint of amusement vanished. “Yes,” he said. “Exactly.”

What was that about? Maya sipped her water. Not her business, that’s what it was about.

Even if that little back-and-forth had been the most comfortable she’d felt in conversation with Corin since … since ever.

“And that’s easier than you going and heading the investigation instead? Why would you stay here?”

He shot her an odd look.

I shouldn’t have asked him that. I really shouldn’t have. She braced herself for his answer.

“Why, indeed.” He shaped the words with a craftsman’s care, and she shivered as though each syllable was a fold of silk brushing against her skin. “I have already told you I have no intention of leaving this place. Whoever is behind this has insulted my ability to protect the things that are dearest to me. I cannot let it stand.”

So this isn’t about me? It’s just about the treasure. This time, she managed to bite her tongue before she said anything that would only end up in her stupid feelings getting more hurt.

She didn’t want Corin to be here for her. She wanted him to solve this issue with the treasure and get out, so she could get back to—whatever her life was, now.

Free. Wonderful. Entirely lacking in the stress that had hounded her heels her whole adult life.

Lonely.

She shook herself. “I work at the bed-and-breakfast, so I can check you in today if you like.”

“That won’t be necessary. I’ve already made my own arrangements.”

“What? When?”

“I’m not entirely incapable without your assistance, Miss Flores.”

She narrowed her eyes. “There’s something you’re not telling me.”

“There are many things I’m not telling you, Maya. You can’t expect a dragon to reveal all his secrets.”

“A few would be nice.”

“Join me for dinner, and perhaps I’ll let a few slip.”

He was asking her out to dinner? Maya’s heart rate sped up. But—

“You’re here to investigate the stolen treasure, not spend time with me.”

She hesitated so that he could agree. Except he didn’t say anything.

Ker-thump , went her heart.

“You’ll be too busy staking out the mail van to eat dinner with anyone,” she went on, as though her pulse wasn’t racing. “The main mail depot is in Dunston. Everything comes through there.”

“What an appealingly named city,” he said distastefully. “I have no interest in staking out post vans.”

“Then you’ll have to find some other way to keep yourself busy.”

“I’m sure I’ll manage.”

She closed her eyes briefly. That shouldn’t have sounded so suspicious.

Or so sexy.

She took a deep breath that did nothing to calm the irritation buzzing beneath her skin. “Try not to make too many enemies while you’re here? I still have to live here after you’ve finished swooping in and solving the crime of the century.”

“I shall do my best,” he said dryly. His eyes flashed, and he reached out to touch her hand. She’d still been rubbing her thumb and finger; a bad habit. She had no idea he’d noticed it. “You know me too well.”

She did. “Try to behave?”

His fingers were still brushing the back of her hand. For a moment, that touch was everything.

And then more than everything. He stepped closer, sliding his fingers along the delicate underside of her forearm, drawing her gently and inextricably toward him. Her brain short-circuited, remembering and classifying other, normal touches from when they’d worked together: helping him into his coat, brushing lint from his shoulders, the brush of fingertip to fingertip as she handed him a glass, or a document, or a pen…

Always her, reaching for him. Never him reaching for her. Not like this.

His thumb brushed the inside of her elbow.

She was wearing an oversized t-shirt. That defined a limit of how far he could go before he had to reach under her clothes to go any further. Another few inches of bare skin before the baggy sleeve. The least sexy outfit she had ever thrown on, except at least Tomás hadn’t thrown up or thrown food on this one. Yet. Maybe.

This couldn’t be happening.

This wasn’t why he was here.

Was it?

He bent his head, the black fire in his eyes an eclipse ring around pupils blown wide and liquid dark. She tipped her chin up to meet his gaze, her lips falling slightly apart. He stared at her mouth as though he wanted to devour it. Devour her.

Every breath of longing she’d ever felt for him surged up with a roar. Her skin hungered for him, the blood soaring in her veins a heat only he could quench. Or make burn hotter until they both flamed out.

She had learned to ignore this feeling, all the months she’d worked under him, but it had never been as strong as this.

His fingers tightened around her elbow.

“Corin—”

His name on her lips broke the spell. He let her go—quickly, as though she burned.

Then he stepped away. “Until tomorrow.”

That evening, she was still breathless.

Everything else in her life was back to its usual routine. Tomás was in his bath, piling up bubbles and then blowing them down. They’d had exactly the slow, silly evening they both needed: he’d ‘helped’ her cook dinner, stayed human-toddler-shaped for most of the meal and then transformed and gobbled the rest as a dragon, and now he was battling bubble-towers in the bath. She would tuck him into his crib with tonight’s choice of treasure. If she was lucky, he would sleep through most of the night and in the morning—

In the morning, she would wake up in the same town as Corin Blackburn. A few minutes’ walk away from whatever bed he had slept in.

Thank goodness he’d made other arrangements and wouldn’t be staying in the bed-and-breakfast. If she knew all that was separating them was a wall, she—

She would have a very disturbed night, that’s what she would have.

Bad enough that he would be in town. They might pass each other in the street. Grab coffee from Tess’s or a bite to eat at Caro’s at the same time. He would be the subject of every breath of gossip from one end of the cove to the other, and she would…

Her stomach turned over. She would be, too.

“That’s nothing new,” she muttered to herself. She and Tomás, and the storm of excitement they rode into town on, had been the subject of practically every conversation she’d heard the edges of as she got to know her new home. Corin being here was like the sequel to the most hotly anticipated soap opera of the year.

The woman who’d run away to Hideaway Cove with a dragon on her hip and another one at her heels.

The heat in his gaze still seared through her. It was a good thing she’d said no to dinner. Because she had a strong suspicion she wouldn’t have said no to anything else.

He does want me.

She’d had no idea he felt anything for her. She hadn’t seen the extent of his self-control until the thread of it had almost broken.

How much further would he have gone, if she hadn’t broken the spell?

If she’d kissed him instead of breathing his name like an idiot, would he have let her?

She groaned as she imagined him kissing her. Making her body feel all the things it desperately wanted to feel.

His self-control hadn’t broken—but she’d seen what lay behind it, now. The desire in his eyes.

Later that night, when Tomás was finally asleep, and she had an hour or two to herself, she found herself wondering… How much would it take to snap that thread?

Corin was here in Hideaway. And for the next few days, he wasn’t going anywhere.

She had wanted him for so long. And now—he wasn’t her boss anymore.

He wasn’t anything to her. And she wasn’t anything to him—except that he wanted her, physically, and was clearly concerned that want would distract from the important business of hunting down the jewel thief.

If she thought about it like that … they could both really do with getting it out of their systems.

It was reckless. It was maybe—probably—very likely the worst decision she could make, out of all the bad decisions she’d made these past few years.

But they hadn’t been all bad, in the end. Her thoughtless one-night stand had given her Tomás. Running away to Hideaway had given her this new, safe life. And this…

A thrill went through her, hot and slippery and tempting.

Was she really considering seducing Corin Blackburn?