“I don’t know.”

“What don’t you know? You like him, don’t you?”

“I…” I hesitated, thinking. I was a dragon; we weren’t supposed to have these kinds of feelings. But, whenever I thought of Garret, something was definitely there. What did attraction feel like, anyway?

Was it grinning every time you heard his voice, or feeling breathless whenever he turned his gaze on you? Was it wanting to see his smile, to hear his laughter because you knew something you said made him happy? I’d never felt anything like this before, that sense of just wanting to be near someone, to be close. And if that was the case…”I guess…I do.”

I liked Garret. A human.

Lexi nodded. “And he likes you, too. Don’t give me that doubting look, Em. Trust me, I’ve seen it before, and the boy has it bad.

Why do you think he keeps showing up and hanging around?” she leaned back and grinned, confident in her analysis. “He’s completely smitten with you.”

Strangely, that thought made my stomach flutter. That someone like Garret could return my feelings…But this was so new. I never expected I could feel like this. I wasn’t supposed to feel like this, not according to Talon.

Glancing at Lexi, I gave her a pleading look, my voice coming out kind of desperate. “So, what am I supposed to do now?”

“Oh, Ember.” Lexi patted my arm with a confident smile, sixteen years of human experience shining through. “That’s easy. when you see him again, you pick up where you left off. And you don’t run away this time.”

“It might be too late for that,” I sighed, putting my chin in my hands, suddenly morose. “I have no idea where he is. I didn’t even get a phone number or an email.” Ironic, really, that my first real step as a human was also the thing that had driven him away. And now, I was dejected. Over a boy. Was this why dragons weren’t supposed to have human emotions? They made everything so complicated.

But Lexi was undeterred. “Ember, please. I know this town like the back of my hand, and it’s not a big place. We’ll find him, trust me.”

“You’re awfully confident about that.”

She snorted. “A hottie like Garret kisses you and then vanishes without a trace? I’d be a sucky best friend if I didn’t help you get him back.”

Best friend. Until recently, I thought Dante was my only real friend.

It had always been just us against everything. But I couldn’t talk to my brother about the human boy I had feelings for. He wouldn’t understand. Not only did Lexi understand these crazy, alien emotions, she was encouraging me to act on them.

I gave her a grateful smile. “Thanks, Lex.”

She grinned back, looking sly. “No problem. Just remember, when we find him again, I want to hear alllll the juicy details from here on.

That’s my fee for helping you. Leave nothing out, okay?”

I laughed. “You’re horrible.”

“A girl has to have a hobby. And admit it, you’d be lost without me.”

My eyes rolled up. “How did I ever survive so long?”

“I have no idea, but the important thing is, I’m here, now.” she rubbed her hands together, already scheming. “And, good news for you. I already know where we’re going to look first.”

Garret

Apparently, parties at seven o’ clock don’t really start at seven o’ clock.

“Garret? Ohmygod, hi!” Kristin greeted, looking a little confused as she opened the door. “I didn’t expect you to show. You’re…uh, early.”

I checked my watch. It read six fifty-five, barely toeing the line of punctuality where I was from. Let another couple minutes slide, and you’d be begging your drill sergeant to make an example of you.

Confused, I glanced back at the girl. “You said seven p.m. this Saturday, right?”

“Well, yeah, but…” She shrugged and opened the door wider.

“Come on in. Nobody’s here yet, but make yourself at home.”

“Thank you.” I stepped through the door into the foyer, taking a quick scan of the room. Bright and airy, with floor to ceiling windows that gave a clear view of the ocean, it was large, open, and quite expensive looking. Everything was decorated in white. The walls—

those not dominated by windows, anyway—were white. The kitchen was white marble and stainless steel. A white leather sofa curled in an L-shape around a black and white coffee table, which sat beneath a seventy-two inch flatscreen on the wall. There were small splashes of color throughout the house; blue pillows on the sofa and fake trees in the corners, but most everything else was a stark, unyielding white.

“There’s beer in the fridge if you want some,” Kristin called from a half-open door down the hall. “Or soda. Help yourself. People should be arriving soon.”

Uncomfortable, I wandered into the living room, feeling awkward and out of place. Parties and strange houses weren’t really my thing. I would adapt, of course, but the only reason I was here hadn’t arrived yet, and from the looks of it, wouldn’t be here for a while.

“So, where’s your cousin?” Kristin asked, still yelling at me from down the hall. I wondered why she didn’t come out of her room if she wanted to talk. “What was his name, again? Travis or something?”

“Tristan,” I called back. “He came down with something and couldn’t make it.”

“Oh,” Kristin said. That was all. No, “that’s too bad,” or “I hope he feels better.” After another few seconds, I heard the door close down the hall. Just as well. My partner wasn’t really sick, of course.

He was hunched over his laptop, watching the front door of the Hill residence. If the two guardians left the house, he would follow, see where they were going. If they didn’t, he would continue to observe. I was glad Tristan was on the computer tonight and not me. He didn’t mind long hours of surveillance; it was one of the reasons he was so good at what he did. Nothing escaped his notice, no matter how small or insignificant. If something strange was going on at the Hill residence, Tristan would know about it.

I also had a mission to accomplish tonight, though mine would be very different.

“I think we’re onto something,” my partner had said last night, regarding me over the open take-out cartons on the counter. Outside the window, the sun was setting over the ocean, tinting the sky pink and the clouds a brilliant red. I sat in the living room, carton of Mongolian Beef in hand, picking at it with my chopsticks and trying not to think of how the sunset somehow reminded me of her. “I think I know what our next move should be.”