Page 6 of Dragon Tempted

“Hell no,” she answered, fussing with her sunglasses so that she could hide her smile.

“I figured as much, but I had to ask. Okay. So John obviously isn’t too concerned about the asshats in the other clans. And in his defense, I agree with him to a certain degree. I think you need to figure out what would make John want to help.”

“You want me to figure out what motivates a four-hundred-plus-year-old grumpy hermit?”

Ryan merged onto the highway. “Isn’t that why you’re paid the big bucks, fearless leader?”

“I’m not paid any bucks!” She tilted her head from side to side to relieve her stiff neck. “But I get what you’re saying.”

He looked over at her. “You need to get rid of all that tension. How about once we get back to the house, we go work out in the training center. You need more practice on your defensive skills, and you keep finding excuses to miss our workouts.”

She sat up straight. “They’re not excuses! I’m…running a clan,” she sputtered. “I have responsibilities.”

“As your PA, I’m well aware of all your responsibilities.”

“Seriously?” She glared at the side of his face since all of a sudden he wouldn’t take his eyes off the road.

He shrugged. “Have we not already established that you obviously need to punch something?”

“That’s not hard to guess. Was this your plan all along? Get me mad enough that I would agree to kick your butt?”

“Right. You figured me out.” Ryan laughed. “Except for the part about you kicking my butt.”

Sienna laughed too. “We’ll see about that.”

A short time later, Ryan drove through the gate and up to the clan house. Her sisters-in-law, Megan and Tessa, stood on the front steps, and Sienna barely held back a groan as she took off her sunglasses. She’d forgotten all about their plans for tonight, especially after the failed meeting she’d just escaped from.

Before she could make it up the stairs onto the porch, Tessa groaned. “Oh no, I’ve seen that look before.”

Why was everyone suddenly an expert on her facial expressions? “What look?”

“You don’t want to go out. Adam and Eric are babysitting the kids tonight. Megan and I need to get our drink on!”

“My schedule is booked. It’s all Ryan’s fault,” Sienna said with a shrug. Let’s see how Ryan planned to get out of this one.

Tessa turned toward Ryan and plopped her hands on her hips. “She will work herself into the ground if you let her.”

Ryan’s eyes widened. No one wanted to face off with Tessa. “We can reschedule.”

Sienna shook her head. “Nope. I have been avoiding my training. You were right to hold me accountable.” She looked down to hide her smile when Ryan narrowed his eyes at her.

“What sort of training?” Megan asked.

“Self-defense,” Ryan answered.

Megan nodded. “That is important.”

Maybe Sienna would get out of going to a bar yet.

Tessa pouted. “So is stress release, friendship, and libations.” She tapped her finger to her chin. “You go ahead and get ready to work out. I have an idea. I need to talk to some people.” She turned on her heel and headed back into the house.

Now Sienna was scared. Tessa’s ideas could be wild or often problematic. She glanced at Megan, who was as wide-eyed as the rest of them. “I’ll go see if I can rein her in.”

“Good luck with that.” Ryan chuckled as Megan followed Tessa.

Sienna sighed, which made Ryan’s chuckle grow into a laugh.

“It’s not funny,” she grumbled.