by Tara West
“We’re not betrothed,” Draque protested. “All we did was sleep together.”
“You will be betrothed,” Vepar said in a tone so dark and threatening, Draque knew it would be impossible to sway him.
“I-I beg your pardon,” Teju stammered.
“You will marry the Goldenwand heiress,” Kron said, enunciating each word as if speaking to children.
“Why?” he demanded, currents of molten lava flowing through his veins. He decided he liked his parents better when they were treating them like babes; he was too young to marry.
“To prevent war,” Dagon answered. “Nathaniel Goldenwand will be hesitant to attack us if his granddaughter is here.”
“No, he won’t!” Draque threw up his hands, frustration pounding a hammer in his ears. “He clearly doesn’t care for her.”
“But he cares about his standing in the magical world,” Dagon said. “He will not be able to wage war over the death of his grandchild if she’s safe with us.”
Draque cursed. “I don’t think she’ll agree to it.” In fact he knew she wouldn’t. She only liked Ladon.
“You must make her agree,” Vepar said with a disinterested slur, like a cat who’d tired of his pet mouse.
“Fathers, we’re still at the academy.” Teju steepled his fingers. “Don’t you think we’re too young?”
Kron shrugged. “Our fathers married when they were your age.”
Draque’s heartbeat quickened. They weren’t backing down. “Times have changed.”
“If we marry now,” Teju said, his voice surprisingly calm considering what their parents were trying to make them do, “Goldenwand will know it was forced.”
Kron released a stream of smoke from his nostrils. “No marriage yet then, but we must have a betrothal.”
A betrothal? Draque clenched his hair by the roots. That was almost as bad. It meant they were destined for the inevitable bonding ceremony.
“This is insane!” Teju groaned.
“Would you rather send her back to the man who tried to kill her?” Kron asked, smirking.
Draque’s dragon rose, clawing at his skin. The thought of her in that wicked mage’s clutches made him want to destroy the entire third realm.
Dagon said, “Sons, it’s the only way to keep her safe.”
“Your Highnesses, I beg your pardon, but I don’t think marriage between the Goldenwand heiress and your sons is a good idea.”
Master Eagleheart, his fathers’ mage and Katherine’s father, was behind him, leaning against his ruby-tipped staff. Like Katherine, he was tall and lanky, though his nose was much bigger. His feral black eyes were framed by so many wrinkles, Draque wondered exactly how old the master was. He’d served Draque’s grandparents and great-grandparents, and from what he’d been told, the griffin had been old even then. He’d never had a mate that Draque was aware of; his daughter had simply appeared one day sixteen years ago, a wide-eyed tot who some said had been born of dark magic.
“Master Eagleheart,” Kron grumbled, pulling back his shoulders, “this is a private conversation.”
Eagleheart waved his staff. “As your council, I assumed I was to be included, especially as your decision directly affects the arrangement between your sons and my daughter.”
“We never agreed to any arrangement,” Draque faced Master Eagleheart, speaking from between clenched teeth.
The mage fixed him with a hawkish glare. “It was an unwritten agreement. It’s what’s best for all shifter-kind.”
A bitter laugh escaped Draque’s throat. The only shifters who’d benefit from that arrangement would be the Eaglehearts.
“We have told our fathers and you that we do not love Katherine in that way.” Teju’s words were cool and controlled, which belied the thunderstorm in his eyes.
“She loves you.” The mage turned a pout, so exaggerated it looked forced. “You’re all she talks about. If you marry another it would crush her.”
“Forgive me, Master Eagleheart. It is not our intention to cause Katherine pain, but we think of her too much like a sister,” Draque said, “not a lover.” He didn’t want to lie to his fathers’ mage, but he didn’t want to hurt his feelings either. He thought of Katherine less as a sister and more like a giant, obnoxious, bitchy thorn in his paw.
“You loved her once.” The mage shook his staff at Draque, his eyes glowing red like the hot coals of hell. “I know you did! That siren has you bewitched.”
“Enough!” Kron’s roar shook the stagnant air.
Draque and Teju ducked when dust and debris rained down on them. Draque cursed when a pebble sliced open his ear.
“Master Eagleheart,” Kron continued, the steel in his voice leaving no room for argument. “There has never been an agreement between our houses that our sons would mate with your daughter.”
“I’m sorry, friend, but they must bond with the Goldenwand heiress if we are to have any chance at preventing war,” Dagon added.
“Perhaps a war is what we need.” The mage’s eyes lit with a strange gleam as he banged his staff on the stone floor, the sound echoing off the cave walls. “Between the dragons and the griffins, we can crush the wizard army.”
Draque had thought Master Eagleheart and his daughter the only griffins living in The Grotto. He’d heard the rest of their kind were extinct. Did he really think two griffins and a handful of dragons could crush an entire witch army?
Mother stepped forward. “You have yet to feel the power of the Goldenwand 2050. The wizard army will obliterate us.”
The mage threw back his head and released a grating laugh that sounded like a screeching hawk. “An enchanted wooden stick doesn’t compare to the might of a griffin.”
Vepar folded his paws in front of him, giving the mage a long, apathetic look through half-lidded eyes. “You are either too confident, too foolish, or both.”
When the mage snorted, Kron let out a low rumble, straightening to full height, his long neck nearly scraping the ceiling. “I will not have your temerity lead our army to their doom. Our sons will bond with the Goldenwand heiress, and that is final.”
The mage let out an enraged squawk. “If it’s money you’re after, don’t bother. Her grandfather will disinherit her if she marries shifters.”
Kron threw his head back and released his flame, lighting up the cavern in sparks of white, gold, and red. Vepar protected their mother under his wing, and Teju conjured a protective bubble around them both. Draque’s fathers were protected by their thick scales, but Eagleheart had no such protection. He stood ramrod straight, his chin at a proud angle, and ignored the embers that burned holes through his robe.
“You insult us.” Kron looked at the mage with blood-red eyes. “It’s not about the money. It’s about the continuation of our species.”
The mage’s hawkish eyes focused on the kings. “Your fathers wouldn’t have cowered before witches.”
When Kron roared and blew out an even more massive ball of flame, his brothers roared, too.
Dagon jumped to his feet, golden scales glistening, eyes shooting visual daggers at the imprudent mage. “Leave us, Master Eagleheart.”
Eagleheart spun on his heel and marched back to the chamber’s two massive doors, his staff sparking as he banged against the stones.
Draque and his brother shared dark looks. He’d never trusted Master Eagleheart, and he feared the duplicitous mage would seek vengeance for his perceived slight.
LADON WATCHED THE STEADY rise and fall of Serah’s chest as she slept. Slowly he extricated himself from her arms when he heard his brothers return to their chambers. Tiptoeing to the door, he opened it, hoping the hinges didn’t squeak too much. After closing it behind him, he locked it and pocketed the key. Though he knew it was for her safety, he felt like the lowest of scoundrels for locking his sweet siren away.
His heart dropped when he turned to his brothers. They were looking at him with accusatory glares.
“I smell her mating fluids on you,”
Draque hissed.
Ladon shrugged, regretting nothing. “She wanted me to.”
“She’s using you.”
His blood ran cold as his inner-dragon raged, clawing at his skin. “No, she’s not.” His dragon spoke for him in a a low, warning rumble. “You know she’s got a pure heart.”
Draque gave him a cool look. “I know what she said to her godmother.”
Ladon sucked in a breath.
“She had to,” Teju answered before Ladon could speak. “Her grandfather would never agree to our match.”
Ladon folded his arms with a stern expression. “Exactly.”
“Ha!” Draque threw back his head. “I wonder if you’d feel the same way if she wasn’t yanking your wand.”
Ladon’s talons involuntarily shot out, his inner dragon demanding to fight. He did his best to ignore the call of the beast. No good would come from fighting with his brother. He decided to appeal to Draque’s reasoning.
“Of course I’d feel the same way,” he answered plainly. “I love her.”
Draque and Teju gaped at him, and Draque threw up his hands. “Great goddess!”
“You haven’t even known her a day,” Teju sputtered.
Ladon stiffened under his brothers’ scrutiny. “I know her well enough. She’s the one.”
Brushing past them, he ignored their swearing and sputtering and sat at the table. After shoving several pieces of meat and cheese into his mouth, he poured juice into a tall goblet. Loving his beautiful siren sure worked up an appetite.
“Great.” Draque snatched the goblet from his hands. “Maybe you can propose to her.” He downed the juice in a few swallows.
Ladon should’ve been upset with Draque for stealing his drink, but he was too shocked by his mention of marriage. “Propose?”
Teju sat beside him, propping his booted feet up on the table. “Our fathers say we must marry her to prevent war.” He snatched a piece of palma fruit from the basket and dug his fangs into it, not looking the least bit alarmed that they weren’t yet twenty and being forced into marriage.
But Ladon was alarmed. Were they ready to be bonded? Was Serah? The thought of her reaction to the news made all moisture in his mouth evaporate in an instant.
Ladon snatched the goblet back from Draque, poured, and drank. After belching a ring of smoke, he waiting for the shock to wear off, praying they were joking. When their somber expressions didn’t change, he cleared his throat. “Nathaniel Goldenwand won’t allow it.”
Draque snorted, a plume of smoke escaping his nostrils. “Nathaniel Goldenwand doesn’t have a say in this realm.”
Maybe not yet, Ladon thought wryly.
“So we’re just going to mate with her against her will?” he asked. He suspected Serah’s reaction would be almost as bad as Nathaniel’s.
Dropping his legs to the floor, Teju frowned. “Not against her will.”
Draque tossed a palma fruit above his head, caught it, and threw it again with casual ease, as if their entire world wasn’t about to go up in flames. “She’ll come around.”
Draque was too confident. So far Serah had been a willing and amazing lover, but that didn’t mean she would agree to marriage, especially not when she and Draque were constantly at odds.
“She won’t want to go against her grandfather.” Ladon grimaced. “He saved her life once.”
Teju shot up, smoke pouring from his nose. “When?”
A knife twisted in Ladon’s heart. “When her mother and grandmother tried to sacrifice her.”
“They did what?” his brothers cried in unison.
“They were going to offer her to our goddess before he rescued her.”
Teju scratched his head. “Are you sure he didn’t put a memory enchantment on her?”
Ladon groaned. “I’m not sure of anything at the moment.”
“Getting her to trust us isn’t going to be easy,” Teju said. “She’s been hurt too many times, and we’ve hurt her even more with our treatment of her lately.”
“We have to make her trust us.” Draque leveled him with a dark look. “The fate of our people depends on us.”
SERAH AWOKE TO DRAQUE’S familiar scent, a warm, tempting spice that was richer than his brothers and suited his brooding personality. His arm was draped over her waist, his solid chest pressed against her back, and his erection jutted against her buttocks.
She should’ve been angry with him for cuddling her without permission. When she turned in his arms, determined to tell him off, one look into alluring eyes that shone like tourmaline, and she lost her resolve.
He flashed a devastatingly sexy smile that revealed a deep dimple in his cheek. “Enjoy your nap?”
“Yes.” She tucked her hands under her cheek.
“I’m sorry I upset you earlier.” He reached for a lock of her hair and twirled it around his finger. “Are you still angry with me?”
“I probably overreacted. I’m a little stressed.” She looked away, afraid she’d see censure in his eyes.
He stroked her cheek with calloused knuckles. “Of course you are, after what you’ve been through.”
His sympathy hit a nerve, as if his compassion was attached to a poison arrow that lodged in her heart. She was almost angry with him for showing that he cared. Why couldn’t he always be this sweet? “Have you heard anything from my grandfather?” She needed a diversion.
“No,” he said, “but our fathers have sent him word that you are alive.”
What if he demanded her return? Would they let her go? Would she want to go? He looked away almost guiltily, and she got the impression there was something he wasn’t telling her. “Do we know yet if there are any survivors?”
“Investigators are on the scene. That’s all we know.”
If there had been survivors, surely they would’ve found them by now. She swallowed back a lump of fear at the implication. If she and her dragon studs were the only survivors, that left Serah with more questions than answers. Parliament might even accuse the dragons of murder.
“Do they think you did it?” she asked.
“Probably.” His voice cracked.
She cupped his cheek, forcing him to look her in the eye. “I’ll vouch for you.”
His face colored. “We’d appreciate that.”
Why was he being so polite? Maybe the reality of their situation had finally set in. “Now what?”
He sat up, stretching thick arms corded with muscle. “You’ve only seen a small part of The Grotto. How about a more extensive tour?”
Her stomach churned. So far her visit to The Grotto hadn’t been awful, but what if he took her to the dregs her grandfather had warned her about?
“There’s a special place we want to show you,” he continued. “It’s the underground lake.”
“A lake?” Her veins solidified with fear. “With water?”
“Of course.” He chuckled.
Heat crept into her cheeks. What else would a lake be filled with? She hadn’t been swimming since she was freed from Siren’s Cove. Three years, and she hadn’t once shifted. Would she remember how to do it after so long? Would her tail work after years of neglect? “Do you expect me to swim?”
His expression softened. “Not if you don’t want to. We won’t pressure you, Serah.”
Releasing a shaky breath, she slowly nodded. “Okay.”
Great Goddess! What had she agreed to? She was about to go to a large body of water with three tempting dragons. Her libido sprang to life at the thought.
Chapter Ten
Serah held hands with Ladon while they followed Draque through the maze of damp underground tunnels that smelled like piss, no doubt from shifters marking their territory. It was no coincidence that Teju followed close behind them. She wondered if their sandwich was meant to protect her or trap her. Either way she was grateful that no strange shifters were able to accost her. When a band of rat-looking things, with long snouts and clawed hands, tried to approach her, Draque singed the hair off
the top of their leader’s head with a hot band of smoke. The rat scurried back with a squeal, his friends following him.
“What do you think they wanted?” she asked Ladon.
He squeezed her hand. “They’re scavengers. They like shiny things. They probably want your jewelry.”
She touched her earlobes, making sure her earrings were still there. There were only a handful of ambrosia diamonds in the world, making her rare treasure even more valuable. Grandfather had put them in her lobes after he’d saved her, one of the few times he’d shown her affection. “Rare jewels for a rare treasure,” he’d said, then kissed her forehead.
She’d worn them ever since and she never planned on taking them off. She understood why the rats would try to steal them and was glad she had three dragons to protect her.
As they went down several steep steps, Ladon held tight to her, making sure she didn’t slip. She thanked him several times with kisses, each one hotter and wetter than the one before. By the time they reached the bottom of a dark, humid cave, her calves and libido were screaming. Stealing a glance at his bulging groin, a zing of excitement shot through her. He was just as excited as she was. She wanted to pull him into an alcove and have her way with him. Heck, she’d love for his brothers to come, too. Damn these dragons! She’d always had a supercharged sexual desire, but these guys amped her horniness to new levels.
Thelix groaned. When are we going to get laid?
They wove through more narrow tunnels, some with ceilings so low that her dragon-shifters had to duck their heads.
“How much longer?” she asked Ladon.
“We’re almost there,” he whispered.
“Good.” She straightened when she saw beams of vivid green light spilling into the tunnel. As they approached it, she was struck by warm, fragrant air that smelled like tropical flowers similar to the rich scents she remembered from Siren’s Cove. They exited onto a ledge overlooking the most beautiful pools she’d ever seen. Hundreds of shimmering green, blue, and violet bodies of water were intersected by columns of crystalline rocks that thrust up from beneath the lake and also hung from the darkened ceiling. The sound of water trickling from the columns above filled the caverns with an oddly soothing melody and rippled the water in brightly colored circles.
