Page 23 of Cats Never Fly

AtleastIhadn’t needed to defend myself againstSimon.Iwouldn’t have been able to do anything but squeeze him to death and, frankly, that sounded horrible.Canyou imagine the viscera and other goop that wouldhave gotten on my scales when his body burst like an overfilled water balloon?Sounhygienic.

“Simon, give your friend your jacket,” the police officer said. “Lastthing we need is for someone to post on social media about skinny dippers at the lake.Wheneverthat happens, we end up with a bunch of perverts with binoculars hiding in the bushes.”

Simon’sgaze darted down to my junk and back up again, as if he’d forgottenIwas naked until the hellhound reminded him.Heshucked his jacket and flung it at me.Truthfully,I’dkind of forgotten about being naked too after having been without clothes for most of the day.Itwasn’t like dragons ever felt cold.Although, admittedly, being without clothes when the others were dressed was a little weird.Ididn’t mind a bit of kink, but being naked in a crowd of fully dressed people had never interested me.Bondage, though, might be fun to do with the kitty cat.I’drather enjoyed having him at my mercy in my coils.

Ofcourse, my arm chose that moment to start itching again, distracting me from imagining the sexy cat shifter tied to my bed.Irubbed at that irksome little bite quickly before pulling on the jacket.

Simon’sbody heat lingered in the lining in the most delicious way.Iwasn’t cold, but like most of my kind,Iloved heat.Mysister had thoughtIwas crazy for moving so far from the equator and its blistering year-round sun.IdoubtedI’dever convince her of the merits of cuddling with someone under a cozy blanket in front of a roaring fire.Shepreferred her solitude too much.Herfavorite way to spend her afternoons was napping in her enclosed courtyard,where the tiles were hot enough to fry an egg on.No, she wouldn’t like it here.Atall.

IpulledSimon’sjacket tighter around me and reveled in the warmth.Thecat shifter wasn’t a big guy like the hellhound, but he was still larger thanIwas.Hisjacket, which fit over wider shoulders and thicker arms, was too big for me, and it wasn’t somethingIwould have chosen for myself, but it’d do.Thehem fell to mid-thigh, so it covered my twig and berries, which was the hellhound’s goal.

Althoughdragons didn’t have as strong a sense of smell as some supes, enough ofSimon’sscent infused the jacket that evenIcould enjoy it.Itwas all freshly mown grass and wildflowers, andIwanted to push my face into the fabric and close my eyes.Itreminded me of home and safety and hope—thingsIwasn’t sureI’dever experience again after waking up in that stupid cage.

Iswallowed down the lump in my throat and blinked away the burning in my eyes.Simondidn’t realize it yet, but he’d saved me.AndIwas going to reward him.Onmy terms.Afterwe saved those other supes.

Ofcourse, my brain conjured all kinds of delightfully decadent ways to reward him, butIwasn’t sure the cat would be onboard with any of those.Iwas sure he was an adult—because ew,Icouldnotbe attracted to someone underaged—but he seemed a bit young.Alittle naïve.I’dhate to shock him so muchIscared him away.But, ifIhad my way,Iwould have fun teaching him a few things as a thank you.

Ilet my gaze wander down his body again.I’dalready felt the bit of softness around his middle and the sturdythickness of his thighs whenIwrapped him in my coils earlier, and nowIregretted letting him go as quickly asIhad.

Hewas stocky with nice husky arms—perfect,Iwas sure, for holding his lover tight… or, better yet, bracing himself to be taken on all fours.Hisface was a little too broad to be considered classically handsome and his nose a little too round and cute to be elegant, but the gentleness in his eyes reminded me of howIimagined a romantic poet might look when eyeing his love.

Icould easily imagine this cat shifter sprawled across the fainting couch in the vault whereIkept my hoard.Hewould be naked, of course, wearing only a gem-encrusted crown nestled in his dark brown hair.Divine.Itwas a shame he didn’t wear any jewelry because his skin would be lovely adorned with gold.Andhis pale eyes…Iwas sureIhad a gemstone that precise color.ButifIdidn’t,Icould always buy more untilIfound the perfect match.AndthenI’dcover him with them.

Werehis eyes in his shifted form the same color?Ifthey weren’t,I’dcollect that color too.Mychest warmed at the idea of adding to my hoard.Therewas nothingIenjoyed more.

Butfirst things first.Thehellhound was right.Ihad thingsIneeded to say.Peopleto save.Etcetera.Etcetera.

Iwouldn’t have been so quick to talk about the cages to just anyone, but hellhounds were remarkable creatures.Therewere fewer around than there used to be, but that was true for all supes.Magicwas fading, and as far asIcould see, no one was fixing it.Ihoped theSCheld think tanks on how to save magic, even if no one thought toinvite me, a lowly bartender and entertainer.Thatdidn’t stop me, though, from philosophizing with my regulars when it got close to last call on quiet nights.Thatwas when thoughts turned to all those big life questions.Thosewere always the best conversations.

Thefact there was a hellhound here now, just whenIneeded one, when there were so few in the world, felt like a sign.Hellhoundswere inherently trustworthy.Andthey could be deadly if you broke any of the big supernatural laws.OrsoI’dheard.I’dnever actually seen one mete out justice.Buthellhounds were the stuff of legends.Theyinspired countless stories, which were usually told to baby supes to make them behave.

IgrabbedSimon’shand and pulled him along as we followed the hellhound away from the lake.Whichreminded me…

“Whereare we?”Mysenses picked up all kinds of magic in the air and in the earth beneath my feet too.Whata strange sensation.

“WillowLake,”Simonsaid.

Iknew where that was, which meantIhadn’t gone too far from my home inAspenBay.I’dnever been toWillowLake, though, so everything was unfamiliar, particularly all that magic.Thetown must sit over a nexus of ley lines.Itwould explain why other supes were drawn here, because there were a lot of supes here.Icould tell that much.Thestrange mishmash of their magic washed over me, colliding and dancing and shimmering together to form a heady and delightful cocktail.

Ipartially shifted my feet when we arrived at a gravel road.Isighed.Mydragon feet weren’t a good look at theend of my human legs, but without shoes, it couldn’t be helped.Thiswould at least help save the pedicure on my human-shaped feet.Luckily, the pedicure on my paws wasn’t as susceptible to damage.HadSimonnoticed my neatly trimmed and shaped claws with their glossy coat of clear polish?

Whenwe arrived at a parking lot in front of a large old building with a sign that readWillowLakeInn,Vanguided us to a police vehicle.Heglanced down at my dragon paws at the end of my legs when he opened the passenger door for me.

“Sorry,Ididn’t think about your feet,” he said, and it sounded like he meant it.Wait, of course he did.Hellhoundscouldn’t lie.

“It’sfine,OfficerHellhound.”

“Youcan call meChiefClarkorVan,” the hellhound said, but we both knew that wouldn’t happen.

Ipatted him on his chest beforeIclimbed into the front seat of theSUV.Itwasn’t the most graceful of movements, butImade the most of it.Okay,Imay have bent over a bit more than necessary asIcrawled into the seat and maybeIextended my legs one at a time asIlet my feet take on their human shape again.Ihad great legs.Iknew it andIdidn’t see any reason not to show them off a little.

Behindme,Simonpurred.Thekitty cat liked what he saw.

Thenhe abruptly stopped, coughing as if to cover up his reaction.Butit was too late,I’dalready heard.ApparentlyVanhad too, since the hellhound chuckled asIplopped my bottom onto the seat and situated myself.IcaughtVanpatting a blushingSimonon the back.Itook that as a good sign for my plans to rewardSimonfor saving me, even though the cat shifter was currently looking anywhere but at me.

“Whydon’t you take the back seat,Simon?”

Simonswallowed and did as the hellhound suggested.Iwouldn’t have minded sitting on his lap in the front seat, butSimonhad jumped into the back beforeIcould suggest it.