Dragon Shattered will be out on March 21st–that’s less than a month! I just cannot wait and have to share an extra little excerpt with you now!
This is from Taylor’s point of view, when he first meets one of the other guys he’ll be working with (uh, and sharing Ariana with…but that part comes later…).
The elevator stopped on forty-six and I waited while the doors opened. They parted to reveal a giant dude heaving a couch. He looked like a poster boy for protein shakes and workout equipment. The first thing that hit me, before the leg of the couch, was his scent. Clouds and fire—he, too, was a dragon shifter.
“Hey, that couch isn’t going to fit in here,” I said.
“The hell it won’t,” he grunted.
“It’s probably too heavy for the elevator.”
He ignored me and inched the couch toward the door, holding the sliding doors back with one hand. The upholstery was harsh on the eyes. If I had to name the shade, I’d call it garbage green. And the stale scent of the thing told me the cushions were full of dust.
“You know what, I think I’ll get out here,” I said, but it was too late.
With a last grunt, he shoved the couch the rest of the way in, trapping me in place.
“Sorry,” he said, but he didn’t sound that apologetic. And then he stepped in after it.
Now we were really jammed in together.
The giant man sent me a sly grin. “Do you like men?”
“What? No,” I said. “I’m into women, sorry. Straight as an arrow.”
“Me, too,” he said, “but this would make a good meet cute on one of my mama’s old romance flicks.”
I couldn’t help my laugh. “Do you work here?”
“Not yet, but I hope to,” he said. “I’m interviewing for the partner position.”
I shook his hand. “Taylor Stonehall. I’m interviewing for the same one.”
He gave me a look before taking my hand in a shake. “Slade Rouland. Why don’t I hate you on sight?”
“No idea,” I said. Inside I was thinking that maybe, subconsciously, he could tell that I didn’t really want his job. But that couldn’t be it. How could he figure that one out from thirty seconds of conversation? “If you don’t work here—yet,” I said, “how come you’re dragging around a couch?”
“Maintenance guy told me I could snag it for our living room.”
“Reasonable enough,” I said.
The elevator dinged for the forty-eighth floor, and the doors opened. Slade stepped out and tugged on the couch. I pushed it from my end, then had to dive back for my duffel before the doors closed again. I shoved the duffel out in front of me, and Hafiz’s book of poetry tumbled out of the unzipped pocket.
“Hafiz?” Rouland asked.
“Yeah.”
“Isn’t that love poetry or some shit?”
“Yeah.” I stood up straight, waiting for the inevitable conclusions people drew.
He frowned. “What are you, Romeo?”
“Hardly.” I thought of the beautiful Mrs. Ariana West and how I had failed to charm her.
But maybe I’d work on that. I didn’t want the job, but I definitely wanted the woman.
We’ve got more Dragon Shattered to share with you as we lead up to the big release!
Keira’s blog–“All the Dragons–Cover Reveal“
Keira’s blog–“Just One Little Taste–Excerpt from Dragon Shattered“
