Fury of Fire (Dragonfury Series #1)

could see to the back. Nothing. Nada. And that was the last in a long line of ultramodern cabinetry to check. The entire kitchen was full of organic, whole food that no one in her right mind would want to eat. And she was a nurse, for pity’s sake…totally game for the health food scene.
    What was wrong with these guys? Did they have something against junk food? Obviously, no one in the house ever suffered from PMS.
    And wasn’t that a shame.
    She needed someone to talk to…someone with enough estrogen to counteract the heavy dose of testosterone that lived in the house. But Daimler had put the kibosh on that idea fifteen minutes ago, informing her she was the only female for miles. For miles! God, that sounded ominous. Though, come to think of it, she should probably be happy about the intel. After all, if she was the lone kidnappee, the Nightfury gang couldn’t have any other victims chained up in their dungeon.
    Or somewhere equally scary.
    But then, scary was a matter of opinion, wasn’t it? A question of degrees, and her compass had been spun in the wrong direction. True North? Yeah, right. Try upside down and backwards. That’s what Bastian did to her. Now she couldn’t tell which way was up, how to get out, or whether she wanted to.
    Three days.
    Of Bastian.
    God help her.
    With a frown, Myst abandoned her quest for chocolate and turned toward the floor-to-ceiling windows. Framed by huge timber beams, the glass panes had lost their opaque sheen, allowing her to see through to the garden beyond. Fall flowers bloomed along flagstones paths. Huge trees and well-groomed shrubs swayed in the night breeze, moonlight painting their leaves with a silver brush.
    A lovely prison. Yeah, Black Diamond was absolutely that: modern, beautiful, well designed, but a prison all the same.
    Pausing beside the kitchen island, Myst glanced at the baby sleeping in the crook of her arm. Was Gregor worth all this? Worth the kidnapping, all the fear, and now, her promise to stay in a place she knew was dangerous?
    Disgusted with herself, she shook her head.
    Of course, Gregor was worth it.
    He was life affirming, an innocent caught in a horrible net. Which begged the question…how could she possibly leave him?
    The answer was obvious. Everything inside her said no. She didn’t want to leave Black Diamond without him. Yet she couldn’t take him with her, either. Bastian had made that clear. Gregor was only half human; the other half was pure dragon.
    So…
    She couldn’t raise him on her own. He needed to be with people who understood him, knew his history, and were able to teach him about the challenges of his nature.
    With a sigh, Myst brushed his cheek with her fingertip. How unfair. Holding him was heaven, but in three days, she’d be forced to give him up. Never see him again. The thought left her stuck in the middle…jammed between her world and his. And in that small space, there was no compromise or easy way out. It came down to one thing…a choice.
    Stay or Go. Her life for his.
    Her throat went tight and, skirting the island, Myst walked toward the playpen. She needed to put him down…just for a while. Cuddling him wasn’t helping her. It made the ache worse. Made the thought of leaving him harder to bear and the idea of keeping him seem less like a sacrifice. But he wasn’t a puppy. Adoption was serious business, and she had a decision to make.
    Releasing her hold, she forced herself to lay him down. As she adjusted the blanket and tucked him in, she traced the whorl of his tiny ear, listening to him breathe. Limited time. They were destined to have limited time together, and she wanted to remember everything. From his beautiful baby smell and the softness of his skin to the way he looked bundled up, so small and perfect, in his playpen.
    A knot the size of Seattle settled on her chest and pressed down. Myst breathed through it and withdrew, putting the distance she needed between them.
    Time for some fresh air.
    She could what-if herself to death later. Right now, the garden looked like the perfect escape. She could lose herself among the tall trees and flowering shrubs for a while to think and plan…and snoop.
    Bastian’s home was enormous. A timber-framed monster with more square footage, locked doors, and coded entries than she could cover in one evening. But memorizing the layout was less important than finding transportation. She needed a car to get the heck out of Dodge.
    And where did most people