‘‘And unless that very handsome fireman who brought out my things was mistaken, your little lovefest with Gabriel not only caused the furnishings in your room to burn—a fact that evidently went unnoticed by either of you—but the fire spread to adjoining rooms?’’

I ground my teeth.

‘‘Do I have all that correct?’’

I lifted my chin and gave her a look of my own. ‘‘There were extenuating circumstances. Not to mention the fact that the hotel’s fire prevention practices are clearly out of date. The sprinklers didn’t go on until the curtains were almost gone.’’

She eyed me with a curiously flat look. ‘‘Gabriel must be one hell of a lover.’’

‘‘That is neither here nor there,’’ I said with as much dignity as I could muster, which admittedly wasn’t much.

Cyrene was silent for a few minutes before turning back to me, her voice much lower. ‘‘You slept with him. You really slept with him?’’

‘‘I didn’t intend to. I meant everything I said to you. I still do—but somehow . . . somehow Gabriel made me believe that there may be a way around the situation with Magoth.’’

‘‘So’’—her hands made a vague gesture—‘‘does this mean you’re a dragon?’’

‘‘I accepted him as my mate,’’ I answered warily. ‘‘I don’t believe that changes me in any way other than my life is now bound to his.’’

Another fire truck arrived. We scooted back as more refugees from the hotel were released by the medical folk. ‘‘What do you think Magoth will do?’’

‘‘Probably try to seduce me yet again, but I think . . .’’ I remembered the feeling of Gabriel’s body with a warm flush that started at my belly and rippled upward. ‘‘I think it will be easier to refuse him. Rather than being a weakness Magoth could exploit, I think that this relationship with Gabriel may end up giving me strength.’’

‘‘I’m still trying to get over the idea of you having sex. After all those years when I tried to find a man for you . . .’’

‘‘I haven’t exactly been chaste,’’ I said with a little smile. ‘‘As you should know, since you were the one to give me the Pink Bunny Tinglator.’’

She smiled fondly. ‘‘That was one of my better finds, wasn’t it? But not as good as a man.’’

‘‘No, definitely not.’’

She digested that for a moment. ‘‘Was he in man form, or dragon form?’’

‘‘Really, Cy, does it matter?’’ I draped the blanket I’d been holding tight around me onto a nearby shrub, pulling on the leather bodice that I’d grabbed, along with my pants and shirt, before Gabriel had rushed me out of the blazing room.

‘‘No, of course not, although I can’t help but be curious. I’ve never had sex with a shape-shifter before, so I wasn’t sure how they . . . er . . . did it.’’