Her dragon grunted.Be careful. He's clever, and it could be a trap.
I know, dragon. But I have a few tricks up my sleeve as well.
As a child, Lavinia had been without a clan and had worked with a roving group of dragon-shifters, often breaking the law to get enough money to survive.
In time, Clan RiverRock had taken them all in. But only after the elderly leader had died, along with his grudge against wandering dragon-shifters in Australia.
However, her time roaming the bush, as well as the human areas that tolerated dragon-shifters, had taught her skills that most archaeologists didn't have.
Well, except for Max. How the bloody hell he could pull all this stuff off, she didn't know.
Her dragon sighed.Stop thinking and get to it. I still say see if he wants to fuck us before we leave.
A flash of Max's sun-bronzed chest and the hint of blond chest hair made her heart race and her body temperature skyrocket.
He may be a fucking underhanded bastard, but Max was definitely one sexy son of a bitch, with those brown eyes ofhis smoldering more than they should.Not going to happen, dragon.
Her beast fell silent, probably to make some plans of her own. If Lavinia concentrated, she'd be able to hear them, but she was too intent on getting out of the room and sneaking into Max's to bother.
As expected, the door to her room was locked, so she picked it too. Thankfully, the hinge didn't squeak. After opening the door a crack, she listened for any sort of sound and scanned the hallway for any telltale lights or movements pointing toward more traps.
Because she'd bet everything she had, there were some.
There.A few blinking lights at the end of the hallway probably meant more sensors were outside Max's room.
She tiptoed closer, placed her pillow-wrapped bundle on the floor, and slid it under where the sensor would detect movement. Then she moved backward, ran, and jumped to use the wall as leverage to clear any sort of laser lights she couldn't see.
As she landed with a soft thud, her heart raced, and her breathing sped up. But Max didn't come out of his room.
Either he was too cocky about the manacles, or he was waiting for her.
Taking out her little pouch of goodies again, she retrieved what she needed to pick the lock, plus a small pre-filled syringe containing a sedative.
She'd bloody well come prepared for him this time.
Despite his threats, she seriously doubted he'd turn her in to the DDA. Especially once she had the key.
Soon she was inside his room, and she spotted him on the bed. Even in the dim lighting, she could see his broad chest bared to the air, the sheet stopping at his waist.
He was lean but muscled. For a human, he would actually give a dragonman a run for his money in any sort of contest.
Her dragon hummed, but Lavinia ignored it. She definitely wouldn't be fucking Max, no matter how much she mentally drooled over his naked pecs.
Since she'd be able to restrain Max after she dosed him with the sedative, she'd left the manacles in the hallway and crept centimeter by centimeter toward the bed. From her previous interactions, she knew he had quick reflexes for a human.
She had one chance, and one chance only, to get this right.
Stopping next to the bed, she listened to his breathing and did her best to ignore the unique male scent of Max, one that always made her want to lean in for more. She wouldn't put it past him to have some top secret dragon-attracting cologne, or some such rubbish.
Confident he was asleep, Lavinia made sure there was no air in the needle and raised it toward his arm. Just as she was about to prick his skin, his hand gripped hers, flipped her onto her back on the bed, and a hard, muscled male body pinned her to the mattress. Max held her wrists with his hands and her legs immobilized with his own, trapping hers.
His face was close enough that his hot breath danced against her lips, and Lavinia ignored the rush of heat surging through her body. He murmured, "Nice try, pet. But you lose. Again."
The smugness in his tone ruffled both female and beast. Even pinned, she had one last way to distract him and possibly still escape.
A trick that her dragon would approve of, even if Lavinia wished there was another way.
His lips were close enough that she could reach them. She whispered, "Not yet," and then pressed her mouth to his.