Tipping The Scales: Knox (Mate Craze)(11)
A clue—and one hell of a clue at that. These glasses, the ones I wore only when I had to, did something to her. As she spoke, the most controlled of shivers passed through her, causing a husky quality in her voice and a hoarseness in her throat.
Made me wonder if other things caused that same rasp.
“I only wear them when I’m working outside. Contacts get all kinds of crap in them.” It was a lie and I was grateful she wasn’t yet my mate—or didn’t know she was. I wore glasses because I read so much that even my dragon irises couldn’t help me.
“Oh, that makes sense. I like them.”
She didn’t like the glasses. She liked me in the glasses. My dragon did a victory roll inside. He’d been downright unruly since the day before, wanting to rip me open and drag Kallie to the nearest cave and hide there away from the rest of the world.
“Thanks. So, are you ready to tackle Liam without any coffee?”
Her face scrunched up in confusion. “How did you know I hadn’t had any coffee?”
Looking down at the carpet didn’t help me make an excuse for what I would ordinarily call my enhanced dragon sense. If the woman had drunk coffee in the last twenty-four hours, I would’ve been able to smell the bitterness clinging to her brown hair that begged me to pull it—touch it—I meant touch it.
“I have a good nose,” I gargled out, tapping my finger on my nose.
“Oh, okay. Should I have coffee before tackling Liam? I thought having you around was enough.”
Taking one step closer to her—not enough but closer—I shrugged. “Here’s the thing. I need coffee before tackling Liam. He’s the Smaug to my Thorin.”
She stopped breathing for a second. “You like Tolkien?”
“Do dragons fly?” I couldn’t believe that just came out of my mouth. Why didn’t I just transition right there in the hotel hallway?
“Yes. I can quote Lord of the Rings. Rhi puts it on and mutes the sound and I can say every word.”
I clapped a little like a big stupid dork. “Nice. I’ve got most of it down but not all. You’ve got me beat.”
Her deep brown eyes looked down at the notebook in her hand, complete with a pen tucked into the spine, like she was begging it to remind her of her task.
I had to help her out. She was experiencing some of the first effects of the mating without even realizing it.
“Hey, so just for me, let’s get some coffee to go and then fuel up before the courthouse. I’ll give you a mini tour. Show you all the things that have changed since last summer.”
“Has a lot changed?” She finally got ahold of herself and began walking. I swore she almost threaded her arm through mine but stopped herself. Humans—always second guessing everything.
“Some. Come on. Maybe we will get Liam a doughnut.”
“A doughnut for a dragon?”
I stopped solid, wondering what she meant by the comment.
“You know, Smaug, dragon?”
“Oh, yeah. Dragons do well with doughnuts.”
I’m a colossal asshat.
I pointed, coffee to-go cup in hand, at the bank. It was a new addition since she’d been here last. Mentionable, but not necessarily noteworthy.
“Nice. A place to get money.”
Goodness, I loved the snark in this woman.
“Hey, it’s a progressive town. Don’t hate.”
She laughed and a thousand hairs stood up at attention on my body. I raised a hand to my neck, the scales left behind by my dragon still pulsing every time she spoke—every time she looked at me—every time she breathed. I couldn’t believe the sensation. I’d never heard of this happening, even during the Mate Craze.
And before Kallie, I had been slugging through the Mate Craze swamp without a rope in sight.
“So, what’s the deal with all of the Viking innuendos?”
“Innuendos?” I almost choked on my coffee. This woman was too clever for her own good. I’d really have to watch what I said.
“Yeah. On that building back there, two ravens on either side of the door, there’s Viking stew in small print on the menu, not to mention there are swords everywhere.”
The girl didn’t miss anything. I didn’t expect her to. Already I knew that she was as smart as a whip.
“Huh. That’s true. Maybe the founders of the town were descendants or something. I’ve never looked it up.”
Her eyebrows bunched again. “You’ve never looked up the history of this town? Weird. The way people act around you, you are the history of the town, and the mayor, and the president.”
I looked away. “Nah. They’ve just known my family for a long time.”
She “hmm”ed to herself, but I heard it loud and clear.
She sighed at the building ahead. “And of course, the courthouse. I haven’t finished my coffee yet.”
She held it out in front of her and twisted the cup a little, the imprints of her soft pink lipstick stained the rim. I wish she’d stained my lips instead.
“We can sit here and finish our coffees if you like.”
I sounded like a mushy beast.
“That would be great. The weather is perfect today.”
We sat on the steps of the courthouse. I would refrain from telling her that my grandfather poured the concrete himself. Her legs were crossed at the ankles, lengthening what looked to me like endless legs.