Boarlander Silverback (Boarlander Bears #3)(7)

He pulled up to the side of a cliff where a construction crew was working to rebuild a demolished house right into the rocky face. She wanted to be awed, but she was having trouble keeping her gaze from Kirk for too long.

“What’s your problem?” she asked. She’d never been a fan of men who were hot and cold, and Kirk was the ice king right now.

“Rebellious teenager,” Kirk guessed. “You wanted to be a cop to feel powerful. Submissive personality you hate, so you picked a job where you could bully people and feel empowered. No friends because you give up on people to avoid rejection. You pull triggers easily because you’re scared, and then you feel guilt because you realize you’ve lost the person you wanted to be.” He dragged his dark gaze to her. “How close am I?”

She huffed a disgusted sound and shook her head, infinitely disappointed in what a jerk he’d turned out to be. Her eyes burned as she said, “Rebellious teenager, check. Raised in a girls’ home, no parents, landed in juvie three times before I got recruited right out of high school.”

His face went slack. “Recruited for what?”

“Undercover narcotics. And I don’t have friends because f*ck you.” She threw him one last dirty look and shoved the door open. “I can find my way back without your help.” She slammed his door and walked toward the half-built house.

Alison shook her head and blinked her eyes hard because he didn’t deserve this emotional reaction from her. He was a complete stranger, and not a nice one like she’d thought. His engine roared, and gravel sprayed behind her as he spun out and drove away.

Good riddance.

She would rather walk all the way back to her cabin than sit in the car another minute with Kirk Slater.





Chapter Four


Alison stopped at a massive burn mark across the lawn. It probably stretched the length of an acre, and suddenly, she regretted telling her only safety net to piss off. Even if Kirk had been a jerk, he’d sounded sincere when he’d said he wouldn’t let anything happen to her. But now, she was standing right in front of the dragon’s lair, weaponless, and probably smelling like dinner.

“You smell scared,” a deep voice said from the trees.

Alison jumped and instinctively reached for a gun that wasn’t at her hip.

Damon Daye stepped out of the shadows of the woods. He wore a fine, charcoal-gray suit, and his dark hair was mussed on top. It was a youthful cut that contrasted with the first hints of silver at his temples. His dark eyes were hard as stone. He looked unassuming enough, and dashing even, but his presence pressed a weight upon her shoulders she’d only felt once before, the night she was trying to save Emerson Elliot from the clutches of the Boarlanders who had apparently not kidnapped her like her faulty intel had stated.

Damon housed the biggest and most dangerous monster of all.

Alison straightened her spine and cleared her throat. “I asked for a meeting with you two weeks ago.”

“And I denied it. Ms. Holman, you do realize this is private property, do you not? Without a warrant or probable cause to be here, I don’t have to answer any of your questions. Now, your first impression left much to be desired. I don’t enjoy seeing weapons pointed at my friends. It makes me feel…” A low, prehistoric rumble sounded from the man, and his eyes lightened to a terrifying silver color. “Angry,” he finished.

Holy shit, Damon was scary. She cleared her throat, stalling so that her voice wouldn’t tremble when she spoke. “Then why now? Why have you finally decided to meet with me after all this time?”

“Because you have a champion in your corner.”

“Who?”

“Kirk Slater.”

Well, that drew her up short. “But…he hates me.”

Damon lifted his chin and placed his hands formally behind his back. He narrowed his eyes slightly. “Hate is a strong word, and not what he feels, I think. You have this meeting because he reminded me of the favor you did for some of the people I care about.”

“What favor?”

“When you delivered the news that the laws concerning shifters were changing, you went against your partner to give Emerson that note. Call Cora Keller. You knew Emerson might be able to sneak her marriage to Bash under the wire if she had the right information. And you, for whatever reason, gave us that information. I’m intrigued by you, Alison Holman. You surprised me, and I assure you, I’m not surprised easily.”

Most likely a product of his immortality. Or what was his immortality, because rumor had it, the dragon was mortal now.

“Why are you here?”

Damon’s sudden, direct question caught her off guard, so she stumbled on the answer. “Uuuh, to serve as the point of contact—”

“Between the outside world and my mountains, yes, yes, you said that when I met you the first time. Now chip away at the bullshit and tell me what is really happening.”

“I’m not entirely sure.”

Damon frowned and cocked his head. His eyes were still silver, but now his pupils were slowly elongating. “Explain.”

“My partner and I were chosen for a special task force, but we weren’t told what it was until right before we got on a plane headed for Wyoming. We learned about the last minute changes to shifter rights on our way here. My guess is they’re worried about retaliation from you and from your people.”