Evander (Stratham Shifters Book 4) Read online

  To this day, every year, she mourned their losses as if it were her own. That was the day Callie lost her innocence. It was also around the time she fell into the darker side of things that still affected her to this day. Things she was ashamed to even think about.

  As an adult, she’d saved herself a lot of heartache by listening to that inner voice. The one that spoke in code on a normal basis, but every now and again was crystal clear. And today was no different. Magic was in the air, luring her in. She knew she’d know it when she saw it. It was only a matter of time.

  A wet drop landed on her hair, and she looked up just as large flakes of snow fell from the grey sky. She blinked and wiped the wetness from her cheeks. A glint caught her, eye pulling her attention across the street to the bus station. CC’s Books was in an ideal location. Anyone who came to town would see her shop.

  The more she studied her surroundings, the faster her heart beat. It was then that she noticed a figure lying on the bench.

  She huffed and narrowed her eyes, making sure she wasn’t seeing things.

  She wasn’t.

  It was a man, and that’s all she could tell from across the street, other than knowing he hadn’t been there when she opened a couple hours before. There was no way she would have missed that.

  “What in the world…?” She couldn’t let anyone sleep on that bench now. This was just the start of the brewing storm. Whoever it was would catch their death. She shook her head and hurried back inside. She grabbed her coat from the rack and slid it on, not bothering with the buttons before going back outside. She made her way across the street, wondering who would even be able to sleep with ice and snow falling on them. The closer she got, the more she noticed. It was, in fact, a man–a large one, at that. He wore no shirt and only a pair of jeans. His feet were bare, too.

  Why didn’t he have any shoes? For some reason, that bothered her most. No one should be outside in the dead of winter with no shoes.

  Thump-thump.

  When she stood in front of him, her breath caught.

  Was he even breathing?

  Thumpity-thump.

  Callie bent forward as close as she could without touching him. She shuddered. She didn’t want to touch a dead man. She edged closer and studied his bare chest, waiting for the telltale signs that it was beating.

  It would be just her luck to find a dead man her first day open for business. When she couldn’t lean any further, she sighed in relief when he let out a breath, expelling his massive chest. Her eyes roamed up his torso to a peaceful sleeping face. She chose to ignore the strange flutter in her stomach as she took in his long lashes. They were the kind any girl would die for, but she kept studying the sleeping man, taking in everything she could about him before she woke him up to get him off the bench and somewhere warm. His stomach was covered in scars that trailed further back, wrapping around his ribcage. They were stark in comparison to his darker skin tone. Some were red and angry, others pale and fully healed.

  She grimaced, wondering what had happened.

  Callie gasped and laid her hand over her heart. She ached for this man. This man she didn’t even know.

  It was then she noticed his hair. It was as white as the snow that fell, but there were streaks of blue throughout that were too sporadic to be dye.

  How strange.

  She reached toward the loose strands that hung to the side, not considering how inappropriate it would be; she just wanted to see if it was as soft as it looked. The tip of her tongue peeked out from her lips, and her brows wrinkled in concentration as she edged closer to the man. She held a shaking hand over his head. Her fingers lowered.

  Just as she was about to lay her hand on his head, she was shoved back, and the man stood in front of her, glaring. His chest heaved, and his wide eyes–the color of pearls–stared back at her. She gasped when he snarled at her like a rabid dog. Even his fingers looked like claws. Callie knew she should run, but she was frozen in place–partly by fear, and partly by intrigue. Her heart thundered in her chest, and his eyes followed the sound as if he could hear it.

  Maybe he could.

  “Who the hell are you?”

  His voice was low and fringed in danger. She found it odd, when he went rigid and sniffed the air in front of her body. His nose nearly touched her coat, and still he leaned in closer and sniffed in front of her. When he looked up, their eyes locked. The white in his eyes swirled as if they were liquid. She cocked her head and narrowed her eyes, sure she was going crazy, but not caring much if she was. Her heart pounded against her rib shocking her from the pain. She whimpered, but nothing could distract her from him. Her throat went dry, and she licked her lips. She wasn’t crazy.

  She really saw it. The white reminded her of the pearls her mother let her wear when she was a teenager.

  “Your eyes.”

  They were beautiful, but faster than she would recall later, they went from being white one second to a blue so dark she couldn’t tell where the pupils ended.

  “Who are you?” he asked again.

  Now his voice was on the verge of panic, snapping her out of the strange hypnotism. It was almost as if she had gotten lost in those pearly white orbs. Time stood still–only, it hadn’t. This was why she had to open shop today. It had something to do with this man. This man had to be a part of her new path, but for what she wasn’t sure. There was no need to question fate. Time would tell her all.

  She smiled and held out her hand, hoping he would ignore her strange behavior. “I’m Callie Copeland. And you are?”

  He stared at her hand for a minute. The seconds ticked by before he took her smaller hand in his. His long fingers curled around hers, but instead of shaking her hand, he brought her fingers to his lips and kissed them. Callie’s legs wobbled, but she held firm. She couldn’t allow him to see. This felt like everything she knew she’d been missing with Matty. For all the reasons she left him and her home. The press of his lips ignited a fire inside of her, and he felt it, too. His nostrils flared, and his eyes brightened. Heat flared between them.

  It was the magic.

  Magic that was about to boil over and spill onto the Earth.

  Chapter 3

  Who was this woman? She wasn’t like him; of that, he was certain. The stench of mortal lingered around her aura, yet she felt…different. He wrinkled his nose in disdain, even as the heat rose between them, and a rumble echoed in his mind. Inside his mind, he saw the Golden Dragon, the one he knew was there–that beast was a part of him, mind, body, and soul–but then in the distance there was another, more docile and quiet presence, yet one that couldn’t be ignored. She waited in the background for him to acknowledge her. The Golden Dragon flew to her and circled her. He sniffed her, and his tongue shot out, licking her blue scales. Her body shook as she opened her wings.

  Her wings were tipped in gold, the same as his own. She was his.

  ‘Mate,’ the Golden Dragon breathed, and it was then he knew for certain. No doubt, this woman–this strange woman who dared touch him–was his mate. It should have been so obvious.

  When he focused on her, he realized he recognized the scent. It was the same scent from the day before. It was no wonder he was drawn to the area, but passing out on the bench with his guard completely down was irresponsible. Anything could have happened. And worse, he had no doubt who this woman was, but it could never happen. He wasn’t allowed.

  He wasn’t in Stratham to fall in love with a damn human. He was here to extinguish the enemies of the Council. The demon’s magic ensured he wouldn’t stray. That same demon was looking forward to him messing up. If the vile creature so much as thought anything fishy was going on, he could end his life with just a snap of his fingers–if even that. Evander shuddered, realizing his life could so easily be forfeit.

  Did he want to die?

  He looked at the woman with large, blue eyes staring at him as if it were him who made the world spin on its axis. No doubt she didn’t realize what was going on
. The magic of the mating bond spread around them, circling them, leaving him no choice but to breathe it in. This was how it started. He remembered Mom telling him the story of true mates. How she spoke of it with such desire and passion.

  His heart flipped, sending a strange ache through his soul–a yearning. One he’d not let himself feel in a long time.

  A surge of panic crept up, warning him. He knew he was being watched, and if the demon realized anything was going on, he’d tell the Council. They’d offered him his freedom, too, depending on how this ended. Of course, the demon would love free range; it was mortals, like the tall beauty in front of him that was a target of his vile magic. He had to find a way to guard her from him, regardless of how things ended for the two of them.

  What are you thinking? You don’t want her…or anyone for that matter.

  Thoughts of all the happiness he could have left him, and he frowned, slamming his guard back up. He would not fail, and worse, he could not fall.

  The bond could not control him. It would not. Their lives depended on it. It was okay if something happened to him, but in this short span of time, he knew without a doubt he would never, ever let anything happen to the human in front of him. No matter the cost, she would be safe. Even if that meant staying away.

  Her scent mingled with his, and his dragon whimpered. It was such a pitiful sound that he wanted to fight the feeling even more.

  “What’s your name?” the sweet woman asked.

  And then that feeling went away. Now he wanted to curl around her and rest for the first time in his life.

  The smile hadn’t left her face. Her eyes were bright with excitement, and yet she didn’t seem to find him strange at all. He thought about lying, but then he shook his head and gripped her fingers in his. It was a compulsion; he wasn’t even controlling his own movements. She gasped, and he loosened his grip, as if she were the most delicate thing in the world.

  Maybe she was. “Evander. My name’s Evander.” He ignored how nervous he felt. He’d never been exposed to women, not really. He only knew of the queen. He shuddered just thinking of her. She wasn’t the best example. Of that, he was sure.

  He didn’t want to want her. She wasn’t dragon. He was already being punished because he wasn’t a purebred. Having a human mate wouldn’t make matters any better for either of them.

  It seemed like they stared at each other forever, but then she pulled him out of his daze, and he followed her movement as she looked to the sky. The snow fell heavier now, not that he noticed. He was certain she hadn’t noticed either, both lost in some mating mojo.

  “Let’s get you inside, yes?”

  Was she asking him to come with her? The tug of his hand said yes. He nodded and let her lead him across an empty street. He kept his eyes on her, not paying attention to where they were going, for he already knew. Not that it mattered. He knew he was home, regardless of what he wanted. There was no stopping this.

  ‘Don’t fight it.’

  Callie pushed the door open and went inside. He followed and was hit by a whoosh of hot air. It was like a furnace bringing him back to the dungeon with the way the fire licked his skin and the scent of burning flesh. Evander swallowed and shook his head, trying to erase the memories that attempted to surface. Callie’s sweet voice cut through the flames and extinguished them.

  “You’ll be warm soon.”

  Again, he nodded, even though he was already warm enough, but she was trying to help him. “The cold doesn’t bother me.”

  Lie. But she didn’t need to know that demon magic was the most chilling thing he’d ever felt in his life. He shuddered.

  No, she didn’t need to know about that.

  She circled around him, studying him. He stood tall, and his body grew warm, but it was no longer just because of the forced warm air. When her finger traced a scar on his back, he jumped.

  “What happened here?”

  ***

  He didn’t seem all that comfortable with her touching him, yet she couldn’t stop herself. It was the second time she’d took it upon herself to make physical contact. It didn’t make much sense, but he was standing still in the middle of the main room, not doing anything. He looked lost and confused. She needed to move away from him. His presence was doing strange things and putting some distance between them was probably in her best interest. She had a feeling he could be dangerous if he wanted to be. Instead of focusing on this new and intriguing man, she decided to get to work. It wasn’t like he was going anywhere with no shoes.

  It was not two minutes later that Callie turned around just as he fell. There was no warning. One second he was standing, and then the next he was on the ground. She ran around the counter and knelt beside him. Pain shot through her knees from the pressure of landing on the concrete floor so hard, but that didn’t even matter. He seized up. She needed to hold him still. That much she knew. She gripped his jaw with both hands.

  “Evander.” He didn’t move, but his body was warm. His heart beat. His body convulsed, and even though she wasn’t a tiny woman, she struggled to hold him still. “Wake up,” she said.

  At her order, his body went still, and he opened his eyes, but they were unlike anything she’d ever seen before. They weren’t even the white she swore she saw earlier. They were a brilliant, crystallized yellow. Not gold, not orange, but yellow. She was amazed by how many different sides this man had. And she was sure this wasn’t it. There was more to him that she would find. It would be like unwrapping presents at Christmas. She’d never been able to guess what her gifts were.

  ‘Callie.’

  She gulped, realizing that even though it was Evander’s voice, it wasn’t Evander speaking. How she knew that, she wasn’t sure, but there was something inside of him, and that was who was speaking to her.

  “What are you?”

  ‘We’ve waited so long for you.’

  “For me?”

  ‘Yes, we have. Evander has been through so much. So much so, he doesn’t even remember everything, but we do. We’ve suffered at the hands of the Council for far too long. Now we are free, and the magic brought us here to you.’

  “Why me?”

  ‘You are meant to carry my essence, my power. You are my host.’

  “But I can’t.”

  Evander–or whoever it was–chuckled. ‘How can you not? You believe in magic, yes?’

  “I do.”

  ‘You were made for me, Callie. That’s why we’re here. We were drawn to you, to Stratham as a whole. This is a place of magic. The others, they think they’ve won, but this is just the beginning.’

  Although she wasn’t sure what ‘others’ was being talked about, it felt as if she should. It would affect her somehow. The voice spoke of truth. Callie had felt it, too. The moment she drove into town, she knew this was a place to call home. It was special. She just hadn’t been aware of how special it was.

  “But I can’t take you from him. Doesn’t he need you? And I don’t even know what you are.”

  Another chuckle. ‘I am but one of two, the female to his male. As dragons, we are mated. Now as humans, we shall be, too, but only if you accept me.’

  Callie stared at the man she’d just met. So, he was a dragon, carrying not one, but two beasts inside of him. Even out of control, he was the most beautiful man she’d ever seen. He was the reason for the flutters, for the magic. It all seemed so surreal, but deep inside, she knew the truth. She’d known all along that this world had to be made up of more than just humans. There were too many stories for none to have any semblance of truth. But was she really strong enough to become a dragon?

  Chapter 4

  Evander opened his eyes and glanced around the room, quickly realized he was on the ground–again–and his head ached. He didn’t remember going to sleep, and that could only mean one thing: he’d passed out again. That was getting old fast. It had to be a side effect of the demon’s magic. It wreaked havoc on his body. He growled and cleared his throat when he sa
w Callie watching him with a strange look. Her eyes filled with tears, yet none fell. He didn’t like seeing her upset.

  He sat up and looked around. The books were still piled high, which meant she hadn’t gotten work done. “What happened?”

  He hadn’t been out for long then.

  Callie stood over him with a frown. She opened her mouth as if she was going to say something, but then she shook her head and walked away. He didn’t move as she paced the empty space in the store. Every other second, she’d look at him, shake her head, and then pace some more.

  He felt the nervous energy radiating from her, but he didn’t understand why she seemed bothered by him now. “Is everything okay?”

  This time, she paused and shook her head. “I just don’t know.”

  That wasn’t a good response. Her tone was agitated, and her eyes darted away from him. He stood from the cool floor and stepped into the path she’d paced. Unlike other women, she wasn’t tiny. He liked that about her; in fact, he realized he liked a lot about her. That wasn’t good. Nothing good would come of being with his fated human mate. He tried to pull his gaze from her, but found he couldn’t.

  If he were honest, he didn’t want to. She was beautiful. Soft and sweet, with the sweetest looking lips he’d ever laid eyes on.

  She was still smaller in stature than him, yet she was strong. He could sense her strength. When she brought her eyes to his without flinching, he knew his dragon had picked right. “Talk to me.”

  She sighed. “You’re full of surprises, and I don’t even know if you realize it. You have no idea what just happened right?”

  “Right.”

  “You have a pretty big secret.”

  He wasn’t sure where this was going, but he nodded. “And I suppose you somehow know about it?” What happened during that time he was out? Certainly, he didn’t shift. The shop would have been destroyed.