Free Draven's Crossing: Tempestuous Crossings by Selena Illyria

to him.
    “I’m going to throw up on you if you don’t release me in a second. Oh God, don’t feel good. Bathroom?”
    He let her go and watched as she scrambled off the platform bed and looked around.
    He pointed at a door. She ran toward it and rushed inside.
    Hamilcar entered the room with a wizened old man trailing behind him. “She’s awake?”
    “Yes. As soon as she comes out, please give her a full physical exam. I want to make sure she’s in perfect health.” Well, as perfect as she can be.
    Rose came stumbling out of the bathroom looking pale. She groaned and climbed back into bed as if she owned the thing.
    “How are you feeling, beautiful?” He moved to her, pulled up the covers, tucked her in and brushed back her hair.
    “My stomach doesn’t like me, and I think there’s a pink elephant on the ceiling.” She blinked a few times.
    “There’s a doctor here to make sure you’re okay, and that I didn’t hurt you too badly or take too much blood, or both.” He placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. “Do you want me to stay?”
    “Do I have to get naked?” She yawned, which he found adorable.
    “Yes, just to make sure.” The doctor nodded.
    His body tightened at the thought of her being nude again. Hamilcar had dressed her in a silver chemise. Her hair was a wild tangle of curls. She smelled of sex, sweat, cinnamon, and vanilla with a hint of sourness. His fangs ached. Shaking his head, he pushed away his desires and focused on her.
    “And then I can shower?” she asked.
    He hated that she would be washing his scent off of her body, but he nodded. “Fine. You should go shower. There’s no way in hell I’m repeating tonight. I’m too damn hungry and tired now. You can just feed me.” He heard her stomach growl.
    Hamilcar made a coughing sound that caused Draven to lift his head and glare at the man. The black dragon shrugged.
    “I’ll be back, honey.” Placing another kiss on her forehead, he exhaled and straightened. “Please take care of her. Hamilcar, go see the Police Chief, apologize to him for me, and tell him I’ll be calling in a few minutes.”
    Draven left the room. After rushing through his shower and routine, he dressed in a pair of silk pajamas and left the bathroom through a private entrance that led down a short passage to his office. With a sigh, he sank down in his chair feeling exhausted. He picked up his phone, hit speed dial, and waited. The Police Chief answered on the first ring.
    “I’m so sorry for my behavior. It was inexcusable.”
    Silence on the other end made him think the werewolf was pissed with him.
    “Sorry, Drav, Hamilcar just filled me in. I understand. I’d be in a pissy mood too if my mate was sick and it was my fault. Totally fine. Okay, my people have been working quickly and quietly over this. Don’t want the media, namely, Isadora Jones, sniffing around here complicating things.”
    Draven hid a smile. Despite the Police Chief’s annoyance, he figured the werewolf had a soft spot for the Crossing Times lead reporter.
    “As I suspected, the victims are vacationers from a neighboring town. I’ve contacted their police department, who is sending someone over to help in the investigation. They were apparently vampire obsessed fanatics who wanted to hang with the local crowd instead of sticking to the tourist routes. After canvassing the local haunts and showing their pictures around, we know that they all left the various local pubs alone, picking up no one, so we have to assume that they were chosen as soon as they got to the more low traffic areas. Based on the info we got from their local police, they were middle class and their bosses said they were on vacation. As far as friends and family knew, they didn’t know each other. Basically, we’re fucked. We have nothing to go on. May as well be dealing with Jack the Ripper here.” The squeak of springs told Draven that the werewolf leaned back in his chair.
    “Damn, and the Council will