Dragon Song by Jordyn Tracey Read Free Book Online

settle down. Monica is a faithful girl. She’s been waiting all this time for you, trusting you to do the right thing.”
    Stone was familiar with the guilt trip his father tried laying on him regarding Monica, his father’s ward, and if there was anything Stone would use to describe the woman, ‘faithful’ was not it.
    An excited shout in the hall caught his attention. As if she sensed they were speaking of her, Monica burst into the room and launched herself across the room to land on his lap. “Stone! Lawrence just told me you were here. Why didn’t you come up to see me in my sitting room?” Her pouty pink lips were somewhat appealing, but the innocence she exuded was not. The demure hairstyle, the moderate makeup, and the flattering but modest dress was all an act. No one knew like Stone knew what a hell cat Monica was. After all, they had been lovers for two years before he’d called it quits, finding that while they connected well physically, Monica’s heart was cold. She loved one thing—money. And she would do whatever it took to have it.
    Monica was his father’s ward. He’d taken her in when she was about six years old to cultivate her he said in order for her to be Stone’s wife some day. While his father didn’t say so, Stone was sure the man had done a thorough background check on Monica’s family and delved into their medical history. He then would have paid off her family to sign over her care to him. Stone considered the very fact that any parents who would do such a thing were a black mark on her history. His father didn’t agree.
    “Hello, Monica,” Stone said and helped her off his lap. She continued to pout, but squeezed into the chair next to him. Stone decided to vacate the seat and let her have it. No matter how much Monica tried to get back into his bed, he would not take it there. Neither she nor his father would corner him into making her his wife. When and if Stone decided to marry, the woman he chose would be his equal in and out of the bedroom. She would never be lured by his money alone. How he would find this paragon of virtue, he didn’t know, but if he didn’t, so be it. He would be the last of his kind on the earth, and that was a good thing with these issues surrounding his uncle.
    “It’s been a long flight, Father. If you and Monica will excuse me, I think I’ll get some rest before dinner.”
    Not waiting for either of them to respond, Stone pivoted and headed out of the room. From the rustle of her clothing and Monica’s protest, he figured she was about to follow him, but his father called her back. Stone was relieved. He did not feel like uncurling Monica’s sensuous body from his, especially when it had been days since he’d last been with a woman. He had every intension of “starving” himself until he could feast on Tielle.
     
    * * * *
     
    Stone stepped from the shower and ran a hand across the fogged mirror. His reflected eyes shifted while he watched them, changing from rounded pupils to that of a narrow slash. Whenever he was home, he longed to transform to the beast that lived deep inside of him, to fly and feel the wind beneath his wings.
    Above the trickling water as it swirled down the bathtub drain, beyond his soap’s scent and the heavy steam that hung in the air, he heard her. Did she think he wouldn’t know she was there in his room?
    He flexed his shoulders and nabbed his towel to begin drying off. As he did so, he heard Monica slip out of her clothes, tiptoe across his room, and climb into his bed. He sighed. What did she think she would accomplish? Had he not met Tielle, Monica would have tempted him beyond reason. Finding her in his bed would have led to an entanglement he’d already fought hard to be free from. Not again. This was why he had put an ocean between Monica and his father and him.
    With the towel knotted around his waist, Stone stepped out the bathroom. “Why are you here, Monica?”
    She pouted and stretched as if she