Luka sighed. “Okay. I’ll talk to her. We’ll find the sample as soon as we can.”

  “Keep me updated,” Sapphire said. “I’m going to have to try very hard not to think about it, as other gem dragons can read minds.”

  “Oh fuck,” Luka said. “This is complicated.”

  “Very,” Sapphire said. “Look, I understand things have been confusing for you here, but this is how things work in our world. Dragons are rare and their blood is valuable, and our secrets are key if we are to survive. Please make sure not to leak anything in the future. And this human… She is not to know anything until you know she is yours.”

  Luka pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling a headache coming on. “I get you.”

  “Okay,” Sapphire said, his tone slightly gentler. “Good luck.”

  “I’ll need it,” Luka said as he hung up.

  A day ago, he’d felt he had everything under control. Everything handled. Now it was all spiraling, and Luka needed to find a new plan.

  But he would, because planning was what he was best at. Besides, how hard could it be to find one little human and pin them down to get the sample back?

  Luka pulled out his phone to dial Iris, knowing he had to get things in motion as quick as he could.

  * * *

  Iris locked her lab and walked out into the main courtyard, wondering what Luka wanted to talk to her about that was so urgent.

  He’d texted, seeming almost panicked, and asked her to meet somewhere other than the lab. She’d suggested the library, since there were private meeting rooms. She was in a good mood, both from the awesome sexy times yesterday and some feedback she’d gotten on her latest sample notes, so she was ready to handle a little stress.

  Especially for Luka, who’d been there for her lately, no matter what.

  When she reached the library, she saw he was already pacing in front of it. He was wearing a black jacket with a hoodie beneath it and dark jeans that perfectly cupped his butt.

  She smiled and raised a hand to greet him but stopped when she saw how pale his face was and the relief in his expression when he saw she was near.

  As he hurried over to her, she braced herself for whatever he was about to tell her, but he merely took her hand to pull her inside.

  “So where were those private meeting rooms you talked about?”

  “This way,” she said, moving toward the steps. “I already called and reserved one. The head librarian is my good friend.”

  Normally, he would have commented on that, but instead, he just followed her to the room she’d requested and hurried to open the door for her, looking around suspiciously before he shut it quickly behind them.

  “What’s this about?” She took a seat, trying to calm her heart rate. She didn’t even know what was worrying him, yet she was worried about it as well.

  “I… I don’t know how to say this,” he said quietly, sitting in a chair and fidgeting before leaning forward. “We need to find that sample.”

  Her jaw dropped. “Why? I thought you said it could wait.”

  “I didn’t realize how important it was,” Luka said. “Look… I can’t tell you everything, but it’s valuable. More than I knew. Alek needs it. We need to find it. I can’t tell you more than that.”

  Her curiosity had skyrocketed, but she could see how much distress he was in, so she didn’t push for more answers. It was her fault the sample had disappeared, and if he needed it, she would help him get it back.

  She would still have time for her research, since she was a little ahead. “It’s fine.” She walked over to him, put her hands on his shoulders, and kneaded gently. “It shouldn’t be too hard. It’s one of the people who has access to the science lab. We can find it. It’s going to be okay.”

  “I don’t want it to screw up your project,” he said, and she noticed his eyes were slightly bloodshot.

  She pulled his rolling chair back and sat in his lap, reaching one arm around his neck as the other stroked his hair. She couldn’t help trying to soothe him, especially when he was usually so calm. “You won’t. We’ll get it done. It’s fine.”

  “I know how much tenure means to you,” he said.

  “Life happens,” Iris said. “Besides, I’m smart enough to solve this mystery and still get my project done.” She stroked his hair back again, and he looked like he could practically purr. “It’ll be okay. I promise.”

  He let out a long, slow breath. “You’re right. We can figure this out together. It shouldn’t interfere in your work.” He turned to face her. “Where do we start?”

  “As I said, I think it’s someone in the department. They had access, and they had motive. I mean, they might not have known what it was, or they might have done it to distract me from my other work since they might have known interfering with my samples would be too obvious.”

  “Maybe,” Luka said.

  “They had to be somewhat familiar with the lab because they didn’t damage very much in their search. The question is if they knew what the sample was and how.”

  “Is your network secure?”

  “As far as I know.”

  “So how do we find out who it was?”

  “I mean, there are a limited number of people who have access to the labs,” she said quietly. “I think if we talk to them all, maybe we can find out more. Or at least distract them so we can check in their fridges.”

  Luka looked like he was finally starting to cheer up. “You’re right. We can go about this logically. Somehow.”

  “Yes,” Iris said. “Hey, it can be fun in a way. A little mystery.”

  A wrinkle appeared between his brows, and he frowned at her.

  “Okay, okay, I get that this isn’t fun for you. I’m trying to make the best of it.”

  “I’m sorry,” Luka said. “You didn’t deserve to be caught up in this. All you did was try to help out a friend.”

  “I don’t regret it,” Iris said. “As long as I make it to my symposium—and I’m going to—this will just be a temporary bump.”

  Luka looked a little doubtful about that but had the good sense to nod. “Yes. A temporary bump.”

  “So I guess we need to talk to some professors, then.” She straightened, and he helped her climb down from his lap. “I think I know just where to start. I warn you, though; this is going to get pretty boring.”

  Luka laughed then, and the sound was a relief to her after seeing him so tense. “I doubt it.”

  “No, I’m serious. These guys love to talk about their research. They aren’t the ones up for tenure, but they’ll know who will be. The hard part will be to not fall asleep when they start going on about their life work.”

  Luka smiled at her. “I have no doubt that talking to them will be a bit tedious, but I meant that it won’t be boring because nothing could be boring as long as I’m with you.”

  She felt a blush move all the way up into her cheekbones. “Aw, shucks,” she said, taking his arm as they walked out of the meeting room. “Did anyone ever tell you you’re too nice?”

  “No,” he said honestly.

  Iris couldn’t help laughing at his frankness as they made their way out of the library.

  Chapter 8

  “Should I be in here?” Luka asked nervously, looking around at the faculty lounge where Iris had taken him to possibly interview subjects. He was getting an oddly high number of stares, even considering how many he was used to.

  “Strictly speaking, no, but if I say you’re my assistant and I need you in here, there’s not much they can do to gainsay me.” She looked around and glared at the people staring, forcing them to look away. “Besides, they’re already suspicious of fresh blood in here. It took a while for them to stop staring at me that way anyway.”

  “But why?” Luka asked, looking at the older, white-haired men around him.

  “Look at me,” Iris said. “I’m their complete opposite. Lots of these guys are smart, awesome people, but they are used to things being a certain way, and I defy that. Still, some of them are my friends. I should be able to get information in some way.”

  She read down the list of names she had made, marking them with small notes with a black pen. They were in a far corner of the lounge, and now that normal speaking had resumed, Luka doubted anyone could hear them.

  “Professor Collins is on sabbatical, so I can’t talk to him. So are Williamsburg and Harris.” She tapped her lower lip with her pen. “And Dr. Taylor has tenure, so he’s out. He has a younger professor he’s mentoring, though, Dr. Clemens, so maybe I should talk to him. I should also check his lab and maybe Henrick’s old lab, too. No one has seen him in ages, but I bet his samples are all there. That could be a good place to hide things. I think Stapleton is using his lab now. Speaking of which, he’s a younger professor looking for tenure, so he’s a suspect, too.”

  Luka just stared at Iris, admiring how quickly and clearly her mind worked. He’d never thought about finding a mate for himself one day, because he’d been so caught up in Alek’s rise to prominence and subsequent fall. But even if he had imagined a mate, he’d never known it could be someone as perfectly suited for him as Iris.

  If he’d known someone so fascinating was out there and meant for him, he wasn’t sure he could have focused on anything else in his life.

  “You okay over there?” she asked, glancing over at him. “You’re looking a little bit out of it.”

  “Oh, no, I’m fine. Just thinking about lunch,” he said, hoping he sounded casual.

  “Well, fair enough, given how much you eat, big guy. But we need to interview at least a few people first.” She pushed a curl back into the headband she was wearing. Along with her glasses, it gave her a cute, nerdy look Luka quite liked.

  She did stand out in this room, given her age and her tiny figure, but she also radiated life and passion and intelligence, and he was sure that got her a few stares as well.

  “True,” Luka said. “So have you decided where we should start?”

  “Here,” she said, pointing at one of the names on the list. “I was thinking—”

  “Dr. Jensen.” A shadow fell over their table, and Luka looked up to see a man in his midforties, with graying hair, a receding hairline, and a generous waistline, glaring down at them. “Perhaps if you spent less time hiring boy toys and more time in the lab, we’d be less worried about you making a mess of things next week.”

  Iris glared up at him, and Luka admired her ability to keep her cool. “Dr. Nelson.”

  Dr. Nelson didn’t seem bothered by her cold demeanor and quickly got back to being a douchebag, as seemed to be his usual mode of operating. “I had heard rumors about Talia bringing certain men into the facility, but it’s disappointing to see you bringing someone, too. I should have known things would be odd with too many female professors around.”

  Luka had to keep himself from cracking the table in his effort not to grab the man and show him what he thought of him.

  But he didn’t need to make trouble for Iris right now, and she was perfectly capable of handling herself.

  “I think you should worry more about how long it will be before another tenured position opens up, since I’m going to lock mine down in about a week from now.”

  Dr. Nelson’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t think that’s going to happen, so I’m not worried about it.”

  Luka stood up then, getting in Dr. Nelson’s face the way Dr. Nelson was getting in Iris’s. “Was it you, then? Do you have it?”

  The man glared at him, proud but uncomprehending, and Luka felt Iris’s hand on his arm, pulling him back.

  “Do I have what?” Nelson asked coldly. “And step back before I call campus security.”

  Luka took a step back, not wanting to harm Iris’s chances of getting to the bottom of everything. But this man rubbed him the wrong way.

  “Dr. Nelson, I’m sorry to have bothered you, honestly.” She stepped in front of Luka, much to his chagrin. “As for boy toys, this is my assistant, Luka. He helps me in my lab. As you can imagine, I’ve been busy lately. Surely, someone who works as hard as you do can appreciate that.”

  Dr. Nelson looked a little taken aback by her flattery but affected by it nonetheless. “Fine then. Don’t let it happen again.” And then he made his way, back rigid, out of the faculty lounge, presumably to teach a class or something.

  Luka sat back down at the table in a huff. “I still think it could be him,” he muttered, more to himself than anything.

  “Nelson is a douchebag, but I doubt he’d risk his career for petty theft. Then again, the grad student who works under him, maybe? But we don’t need to tip him off.”

  “Sorry about that,” a new voice chimed in. Luka looked over to see an older professor a couple tables over, waving at them. “You know Dr. Nelson has a few pieces of wood up his posterior.”

  Iris giggled. “Thanks, Dr. Hanstrom. You always know how to cheer me up.”

  The man seemed nice enough. He was easily one of the older people in the lounge, but his white hair was finely cut and he was handsome for his age. A cane rested at his side, easily within reach.

  Luka just didn’t like how often he apparently made Iris smile, though. He leaned into Iris, who was still chuckling at Hanstrom’s joke. “Could it be him? Maybe he’s being nice so we don’t suspect him.”

  “Dr. Hanstrom?” Iris looked over at the man, who’d gone back to eating his sandwich with a calm look of bliss on his face. “No way. I mean, look at his cane. There’s no way he could move as fast as the guy in the lab did. It was almost impossible. Plus, he’s a nice person. I like Dr. Hanstrom.”

  Luka frowned at that, knowing he was being silly, but not liking his mate complimenting anyone else.

  “Not as much as I like you, obviously,” Iris said, putting her hand over his and squeezing it quickly, then releasing him before anyone could notice.

  “What did they mean by boy toy?” Luka asked.

  Iris blushed slightly, rubbing the back of her neck. “Well, because you’re handsome, and…”

  “So I am your boy toy?”

  “No, you’re my good friend,” Iris said. “And you know… a bit more than that.”

  “How much more?” Luka asked curiously.

  Iris gave him a look of exasperation. “Can we talk about this later? I think I know where to start with our talks. And after we finish interviewing people, I can also have you visit a few classes while I get a peek at some labs. Hopefully, by the end of the day, we’ll have either found it or found some kind of clue to help us get closer to that end.”

  Luka nodded, feeling relief that it sounded so straightforward. Things were going so well with Iris, and he didn’t want the outside shifter world to interfere.

  As long as they could just hurry and locate the sample, everything would be fine, and he could go back to enjoying time with his mate.

  * * *

  That evening, when she was done talking to all of the professors on her list, Iris felt like her ears were going to fall off.

  Between hearing way too much about peptide chains from Dr. Clemens and far more than she needed to know about mitochondrial DNA from Dr. Stapleton, she was about ready to scream.

  Plus, in her interviews, all she had seen was fellow scientists who were passionate about their work. She hadn’t sensed any tension or resentment or any reason any one of them would want to sabotage her or steal.

  Several professors had actually congratulated her on her upcoming symposium and wished her luck or asked her how things were going.

  It made her feel bad for considering any of them suspects at all.

  At the same time, who else could it be? She dreaded having to tell Luka the news about how unsuccessful she’d been, especially after he’d probably spent a boring afternoon attending classes to see if he could notice anything unusual when the professors taught.

  It wasn’t the best thing for him to do, but she hadn’t had any other ideas for him.

  She had gotten to see the fridges Clemens and Stapleton were using, and there was no sign of her sample there. She’d also checked the communal fridge, to no effect. But then again, whoever stole something probably wouldn’t just leave it out in the open. If anything, they probably would have destroyed it or taken it home.

  If she could discover someone had destroyed it, and had some proof of it, would that be enough for Luka to calm down?

  She kind of just wanted to go back to how things were between them when she was just working on her project and he was there for her when she got off in the evenings.

  The extra stress she was feeling from the missing sample situation really wasn’t good.

  She was just packing up her things in her office when she got a text from Luka, asking the status of her investigative efforts.

  Nothing here, she typed back.

  Me neither, Luka replied. Though, I learned some interesting new things about human bodies.

  Good for you, she typed back. We should always be learning.

  I know one human body I want to learn more about, he replied. Intimately.

  She snorted, feeling her face flush. It should sound stupid, but even the weirdest things he said sounded sexy. She liked that they didn’t need to play games with each other or lie.

  Sounds good to me, she texted back. Then she added, I’m sorry we haven’t figured anything out yet.

  It’s okay. We’ll get back to it tomorrow.

  I know you’re worried about it.

  I am, but we can’t do more than we’re doing. Besides, if we don’t take some time to relax, we won’t be able to think clearly when we’re back on the job. I already feel bad this is taking you away from your work.

  She sighed. It’s okay. It’s my fault for not securing the sample properly. As for relaxation, what did you have in mind?

  A massage? A bath? Is there anything you usually do to take a load off?

  She thought about it for a moment, and her mind immediately went to the hot tub on her back deck. It was the one luxury she allowed herself, and she hadn’t invited Luka into it yet because it was her place where she usually went to be alone.

 

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