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Toni couldn’t stop shaking and despite the warmth emanating from Drake’s thighs as he sat close to her, her body felt encased in ice. The crowd at the destroyed door grew with curious onlookers until a loud voice shouted, “Please move aside. Coming through.”
She stared as a large, burly man entered with no problem. His red hair was cut short and matched the red beard he sported. Dressed in khaki pants and a black tee shirt, he carried an air of authority. Belatedly, she realized that the door didn’t shoot red sparks and he had no trouble coming in. The thing...Thomas hadn’t been able to. Drake stood beside her and slid in front of her view, blocking her sight of the man.
“Drake Winston? I’m Mike Nichols. Kale sent me to speak with you but it looks like I’m too late.” The newcomer spoke in a gruff voice that matched his broad frame.
Drake shook his hand. “Thanks for coming out. We had visual confirmation on the goblin a few moments ago.”
Toni twisted her fingers in her lap then leaped to her feet. “I think I’ll get dressed.”
She didn’t have on anything beneath the robe except her underwear and she was certain she needed to clean up after her unplanned interlude with Drake.
He touched her arm lightly and squeezed. “I’ll talk to Mike while you shower.”
Any other time and Toni would have protested being excluded but she practically ran to the bathroom and slammed the door. Her bag rested on the counter beside the sink. She grabbed for a red tee shirt and jeans and set them out. Her hands shook the entire time and her thoughts flew in every direction. The shower was the quickest in history and she couldn’t stop darting looks at the door as if expecting another explosion.
When Toni came out feeling slightly better, only Mike and Drake remained. No one else gathered in the doorway with the exception of a maintenance person.
“We’ll have the door repaired within the hour,” he promised before disappearing.
Drake walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her shoulder. Toni wasn’t ashamed to lean her weight into him. She couldn’t stop trembling. This was all too much and she wasn’t sure what was going on.
Mike sat at the delicate antique desk beneath the window, his bulky frame in jeopardy of crushing the tiny chair she’d admired earlier. He held up a pencil and pad. “I’m going to need you to tell me everything about this fellow. Drake says you know him.”
Toni chewed her bottom lip. Her head spun and the room went hazy.
“Antonia?” Drake leaned in close, his mouth near her ear and the whiff of his familiar scent brought everything back into focus.
“I’m okay,” she lied.
“I need more information,” Mike prompted.
“His name is Thomas Oliver and he works with me. We dated briefly.”
Drake stiffened beside her and if she wasn’t mistaken he growled. Mike scribbled something on his pad. “You’re not from Maverick, right?”
The truth blurted out before she thought better of it. “No. Jacksonville. This was supposed to be a vacation. A chance to get some space from him.”
“You came here to get away from him and never told me?” Drake’s voice was incredulous.
Mike cleared his throat after shooting Drake a warning glance. “Any reason to believe your ex-boyfriend would follow you here?”
Toni jerked. “He’s not my ex-anything. We went out a couple times. Three. I knew right away it wouldn’t work. He seemed...off for lack of a better word.”
Mike grimaced. “Goblins usually are but they don’t typically go after humans. They’re attracted to power and magic in large doses. It’s an irresistible draw to them.”
Okay, this was too much to take in. “I’m not sure what you and Drake are pulling but there’s no such thing as goblins. I know other beings exist. Shifters, vampires. But...goblins? Those are monsters from a nightmare.”
The corner of Drake’s mouth curled up. “Sweetheart, how do you explain the green thing that blew up your door and tried to get in here?”
This wasn’t the first time he’d called her sweetheart and Toni tried not to let the endearment weaken her resolve. “I don’t need to explain it. Clearly, there’s another explanation though.”
Drake held up his hand and said something she didn’t catch. Two tulips appeared in his hand. “Can you explain this?”
Toni shivered. He waved his hand and the flowers vanished. Drake pointed at the entrance and said a word in another language. The broken bits of the door flew about the room and reassembled until it was back in place. Undamaged.
“What about that?” Drake asked.
Toni blinked and tipped to the side. Everything went dark moments before she fainted.
***
“That was your bright idea?” Mike asked with a shake of his head.
Drake cradled Antonia in his arms, waiting for her to regain consciousness. “You heard her. Saw the doubt. My proof needed to be visible and undeniable.”
He was just glad his magic responded.
“That’s what happens when you date a human.” A wealth of meaning accompanied Mike’s smirk.
Was he dating Antonia? The possessive surge of emotion at the thought answered for him. They were beyond dating. He wanted Antonia with him forever. She belonged to him. No other woman would fit him better.
Antonia groaned in his arms. Her lids lifted and she pushed up in his embrace. She stared at Drake and he couldn’t decipher the look in her eyes. “You’re a warlock.”
Did she finally believe him? “Yes.”
“And Thomas is a goblin?”
“Yes.”
This time she didn’t flinch from his answers Drake noted with relief. He ran his hand up and down her back, caressing her hair at the same time. She curled into his chest. “You’re a CEO and a warlock.”
He wasn’t sure if she needed him to agree again so Drake kept silent all the while hoping she could accept him and all the facets that came with him being the head of a major corporation and a magical being.
“Chrissy will be ecstatic.”
He brushed back her hair and lifted her face. “I’ve never made my lineage as public as I could but now I don’t care.”
She looked adorably confused. “But you told me.”
“I don’t want any more lies or secrets between us.”
His phone buzzed before he could explain her new role in his life. Mike rose to his feet, the chair creaking beneath his weight. “I’m glad you two are having a moment but none of it explains why the goblin wants her.”
Antonia sat up further but Drake refused to let her go. She glared and he glared back.
“I don’t know what Thomas’ problem is. I’ve been telling him every way imaginable that I don’t want to be with him.”
Drake’s phone buzzed again and he couldn’t ignore it in light of recent events. “Winston.”
“A goblin is on your trail,” Ben announced in lieu of a greeting.
Antonia used his distraction with the phone to climb from his arms and move to the other side of the room. As long as she didn’t leave, Drake wasn’t concerned.
“I know. The goblin’s name is Thomas...” He raised a brow at Antonia.
“Oliver. Thomas Oliver.”
Drake kept his gaze on her. “Did you get that, Ben?”
“Yes. Are you going to come back now? You can’t want to deal with a dark-magic goblin without back-up.”
“I’m not leaving until I take care of this.” Drake hung up in the middle of Ben’s rant.
Mike tucked his pencil and pad in his back pocket. “We’ll start looking for him. There are a few witches I can call on to help. If he’s still here, we’ll find him.”
As soon as the door closed behind him, Antonia swiped her hand over her hair. “Okay. I think I’m a believer in goblins now. But allow me a few moments to have a small freak out.”
Drake wished he could have told her in an easier way. Aside from passing out, she seemed to be taking it well.
“What do we do next?” She asked, shoulders thrown back.
He smiled and with a single step eliminated the distance she’d put between them. “I called Kale. He’s reaching out to a witch named Emma. I met her while here. He thinks she’ll be able to help.”
She licked her lips. “Kale’s not human, is he?”
Letting out a chuckle, he revealed a little more. “Kale is a very powerful djinn and one of the richest men in the world.”
“And his wife?”
“Really is a children’s book author. All human.”
She blew out a breath. “Thank goodness. I think I want to sleep on all this.”
Heat blasted through his veins. “Don’t even think you’ll be doing that alone.”