When she woke up the next morning, Riley was already gone, and her stomach was rumbling like a bear awoken early from hibernation. On the way to the kitchen, she sniffed her shirt and detoured to the bathroom. Shower first, then breakfast. She’d finished the last of the granola yesterday, but if she was lucky, there was still some cereal left.

Ten minutes later, freshly showered and dressed, she looked like one of the living again. And there was cereal in the pantry. Double win. As she poured the flakes into her bowl, she felt him. A smile tickled the corner of her lips, threatening to spread. She set the bowl down on the counter and hurried to the door, not even bothering to suppress the skip in her step. She opened the door before he’d even rung the bell.

“Come in,” she said, grinning.

Not even waiting for his response, she grabbed his arm and tugged him inside. As soon as the door was closed, she pushed him against the wall and gave him a long, languid kiss. She slid her hands under his shirt, scraping her fingernails up his back.

“Sera,” he growled against her mouth.

“Yes?” she asked with a smirk, tracing her tongue across his lips.

Kai’s hands tightened around her arms, and he spun them around and slammed her back against the wall. He returned her kiss, his breath hot and heavy. His tongue slid past her lips, exploring her mouth in hard strokes. The spicy, sweet scent of dragon burned her nose and flooded her body, making it throb with unfettered desire. She wrapped her legs around him, willing him to be closer. His magic poured down her neck and over her body, kissing every curve, scorching every nerve. A soft moan brushed past her lips.

“No.” His chest buzzed against hers, deep and low. “I didn’t come here for this.”

“Oh?” she nuzzled against his ear. “What did you come here to do? Play a few rounds of Go Fish? I have a deck of cards in the kitchen if you’re interested.” She nipped at his neck.

Roaring, he closed his hands around her wrists and thrust them against the wall. Dragon fire burned in his eyes. “No, I didn’t come here to play cards,” he said in a rough whisper. “I came to take you to breakfast since our date last night was interrupted.”

“Maybe I’m only hungry for dragon,” she said, licking her lips.

He swallowed hard, magic swirling in his eyes. “Sera, you’re making it exceedingly difficult to stay focused.”

“Good.” She pushed against his iron grip, trying to break free. His hands didn’t budge. “Let go.”

“No.”

“I want to touch you,” she said, squirming in frustration.

“If you do that, I won’t be able to control myself. And then we won’t be going to breakfast. I promised you a date, and I’m going to give it to you. No matter what my baser instincts are driving me to do.”

“I want to see more of these baser instincts. I don’t care about breakfast. Really.” Her stomach growled, betraying her.

His eyebrows lifted. “You’re such a horrible liar.”

“And you’re a stubborn ass,” she shot back, echoing her dragon’s words from last night. And remembering everything else she’d said about Kai, like how Sera should tell him she’s Dragon Born. She sighed.

“Are you all right?” Kai asked, watching her closely.

“Fine. I guess I’m hungrier than I thought.” She gave him a wobbly smile. “How about that breakfast?”

* * *

Kai brought Sera to a small diner at the southern end of the Presidio. It was called Magic Pancakes. United in their paranoia, they sat side-by-side in the booth, each with a clear view of the only door in or out of the place. She ordered pancakes. He ordered potatoes and sausages.

“How can you go eat at a restaurant called Magic Pancakes, and not try the pancakes?” she teased him.

She knew very well that he didn’t eat pancakes. And he knew that she knew it. They’d had this conversation more than once. It was fun. But rather than banter with her like all the times before, Kai’s face remained serious.

“I chose this place because you like pancakes, Sera.”

Her heart flip-flopped like one of those pancakes. She covered it up by quickly cutting off a piece of pancake and sticking it into her mouth. Mmm, buttermilk pancakes. Kai was still watching her with his serious mask on. He’d been doing that a lot lately.

“So, did you get that vampire put away last night?” she asked him between bites. “Claudine Evercast, you said her name was?”

“Yes. She’s being moved to Atlantis.”

“Are you sure that prison is safe? After all, Finn didn’t have much trouble escaping.”

“My unfortunate cousin had the assistance of one of the most dangerous and powerful mages in the history of the world. I find it unlikely that Claudine has similar connections. She’s ticked off too many supernaturals in her many centuries as an undiscriminating mercenary.”

“Yeah, we mercenaries who are discriminating about who we kill are much safer.”

He grunted. “I heard about your run-in last night with the vampires.”

“Oh? Did Naomi talk to you?” Sera asked, her pulse popping against her skin. She was pretty sure Naomi wouldn’t reveal her secret to Kai, no matter how much she thought he needed to know. But pretty sure wasn’t the same as completely sure. Not by a long shot.

“No,” he said, and she heaved a sigh of relief. He noticed that, but what he made of it was anyone’s guess. “You two rescued a lot of children. News of the kidnappings has spread to the Council.”