Fire of Stars and Dragons

by Melissa Petreshock

  “He has an unusual ability, even for us. He catches glimpses into the past, particularly if it is something on the forefront of your mind at the moment of physical contact.” My dragon stops, looking away for a moment. “I am sorry for your loss, Cait. I had no idea last night.” Meeting my eyes again, his expression is softer, saddened. “Never would I have teased you regarding your request if I had known.” He drops his gaze to the floor and swallows hard. “May I ask who he was… who he was to you?”

  In a way, it takes the edge off the question, thinking Theo might feel a tad jealous, and I like that idea. “Mr. McCurdy’s son, Jack. He was my boyfriend. Had been for over two years at the time.” I don’t explain further, how it was the pressure of nearly flunking out of law school and a night of too much alcohol that led to standing on the ledge. I don’t tell him how I pushed everyone away afterward, convinced they would all die, and I was safer keeping only my immortal vampire uncle close. I don’t say what flawed logic that turned out to be, leaving me with no one now.

  No one but Theo… Theo, standing here telling me he wants to be everything I need, everything I want. “But that was a long time ago.” Not so long to someone like him, but almost two years for me, and I want to put it behind me. I pull the comforter back on the empty side of the bed. “And I asked you to come here.”

  He comes and stands at the side of the bed, looking at me quite seriously. “Cait, you do understand you’re inviting a man into your bed, do you not?”

  I roll my eyes, trying to ignore everything that’s happened between us and the fact that he’s changed into a pair of gray basketball shorts and an ungodly tight black tee since I saw him in the living room, presumably preparing for bed. “I had one guy friend, a half Fae named Owen, who spent the night more times than I can remember growing up. Of course, he’s gay, but whatever. Does it really matter?”

  Theo’s expression is sternly unimpressed by my argument. “Dragons may not procreate the way humans do, but I believe we have established that I am most definite in my lack of similarities to your gay friend in my predilections and desires.”

  We stare at each other for a rather long silent minute while I’m trying very hard not to recall every detail of Theo’s kiss. I am not going to think about his raven black, wavy hair brushing against his shoulders in that tight black t-shirt, or his bold green eyes, or the way his lips beckon mine, or how defined the muscles of his body are under such a fitted shirt. No. I am not going to think about any of it.

  “You did ask me to marry you, right?” He nods, eyes narrowing in caution. “And I did say yes.” His mouth curls up ever so slightly. “So, I’m not asking just any man to share my bed, but I think we can both agree I should speak with Dante about all of this before we take things too far. Let’s just keep that in mind for tonight.” My own resolve is tenuous, but I’m determined this is the best course of action.

  “Agreed,” he states with a nod. “However, if you wish for me to join you under those covers, I need to be careful not to overheat, Cait. I doubt you want to wake up to a shifting dragon in your bed.” And with no more preamble, he pulls his shirt over his head, dropping it to the floor, my eyes following its descent.

  Managing to pick my eyes off the floor and close my mouth, Theo smiles, moving onto the bed and closer to me, a wild animal stalking toward its prey. “Roll over, Cait.” He instructs in a voice so low and full of unspoken need I’m too stunned to argue, doing as he says before my thread-thin resolve snaps.

  He slips in behind me, wrapping an arm around me, pulling me against his chest, warm and enticing. I swear he’s killing me, and I shift positions. Wiggling closer to his body, I smile widely in satisfied triumph when, after several minutes, dragon or not, Theo reacts just as humanly as any other man.

  “Cait, what are you doing?” he growls in my ear.

  “Trying to get comfortable,” I answer innocently, reaching back to rest my hand on his hip, keeping him from going anywhere, ensuring he’s pressed against my backside and knows that I’m well aware of the quandary he’s in now.

  “Continue to get comfortable like that, and I will have to find a comfortable position of my own, Cait.” His voice is huskier, even lower this time. “And I’m afraid that would require negating our previous agreement regarding our sleeping arrangement.”

  And I’m frozen with indecision, wanting to finally sleep for the night, yet wanting to get just a little more comfortable to see what happens.

  Chapter 10

  *Corrin*

  “Jennifer.” Approaching her desk, I greet my secretary earlier this morning, not having the delicious delay of Cait. “I have a personal errand for you. Call someone over from PR to cover until you return.”

  She looks up with mild surprise. “Your Majesty?”

  “Is there a problem?” My patience wears thin after the events of last night.

  “No, of course not, but maybe I should call someone from another department.” She shuffles a few things around her desk, not meeting my eyes. “I think PR is a bit overwhelmed today.”

  “My brother can handle it. His assistants are the best, aside from you,” I offer as a compliment. “I require you to handle this matter for me personally and cannot have some incompetent girl flailing in your place in the meantime.” Jennifer nods, a tight smile forming across her face. “Good. Take one of the cars to Copley. Purchase a gift from Tiffany’s for this woman.” I pull out my GoSky and send a file to her with a media photo of Cait. “Something appropriate for a lady of interest to a man of my status. I’m confident in your ability to satisfy me in this… and see to whatever other accoutrements such gift giving entails.”

  “Yes, Sire. I will take care of it immediately.” Reaching under her desk, she grabs her purse, preparing to set about her new task. “Do you wish to have it brought back for your inspection or sent right away?”

  Heading toward my office door, I stop, thinking for a moment. “Bring it back here. I should like to send a handwritten note with it.” Feeling that sounds too soft, I add, “and I need to ensure you have not failed me on this matter, Jennifer, given its importance. I daresay after ten years of service, you would be difficult to replace. Do not disappoint me.”

  She nods carefully, offering a curtsy as well. “I will do my best, Your Highness.”

  I don’t respond, entering my office, thankful for the silence and peace awaiting me, and the work to keep my mind occupied, but find Dante in my desk chair. “Corrin,” he states in a rather flat tone, his eyes piercing through me. I step no further into the room, and he gestures toward the door. “You think some trinket will make amends for your behavior last night?”

  “Certainly no trinket. Something extraordinary, a gift fit for a queen.”

  Everything electrical in the room flickers, a boom of thunder resonating outside the building, and in a flash of light he stands unnervingly close. “Caitriona is well above the likes of you, and more than a child’s toy for you to play with, boy. You take things too far… far beyond the measure of patience I hold for you.” Running a finger along my neck in a slow slicing motion, painful sparks fly at his touch, leaving a trail of burnt flesh in its wake. “Perhaps I shall always regret the day I allowed you to continue existing,” he says in a severe tone, enunciating each word with an icy-edged warning, “wanting to believe your father could instill manners in a savage.”

  He smacks my cheek, and I scowl, wanting to fight against his verbal assault, yet Father taught me better than to tangle with the demigod. “And what do you intend to do now?” Dante could end me at any moment, and not even Oliver could prevent such a thing.

  “I will protect her, Corrin. Cedric is aware of the tenuous nature of your fate.” His stare bores into me, and I am thankful I have no need to breathe under its weight. “I love Caitriona and will not allow any harm to come to her, not at your hands nor another’s. Consider your actions, lest you find your own demise.”

  In another flash, accompanied by a deafening cra
cking of thunder, surely a sign of his anger, he disappears from my office, and I take a deep, unnecessary breath.

  *Cait*

  Waking up in an unfamiliar tangle of arms and legs should seem strange, but for some reason, it doesn’t. I’m warm and cozy, though not under the comforter, and curled up in the strong arms of Theo. I open my eyes, finding myself snuggled with my head in the crook of his neck, hands on his sculpted bare chest in the protective cocoon of his body, curled against him, his arms and legs wrapped around me.

  It’s no surprise I’m so warm. Nothing like your own personal dragon to ensure you never get cold. He’s like a living, breathing heating blanket, and I briefly wonder if I can install a thermostat on him for the summertime to keep me from melting.

  “You’re finally awake? I was beginning to think you’d sleep the day away, Cait.” Theo startles me, unaware he was already awake, and he looks down to meet my eyes. “Good morning.”

  There’s an intensity in those two words and a glimmer in his green eyes, seeming brighter today, now that he’s more than just my dragon. He’s mine, or at least I hope that’s what we’ve settled finally. “Theo, are you happy? I mean, the way things are, being with me instead of the Corrigans or somebody else… and now with the choice I’ve made.”

  He smiles, teeth perfect, white, and straight, though I suppose a dragon who transforms into a human wouldn’t choose a physically unappealing form. Theo certainly didn’t, not by any stretch of the imagination. “Pummeled with questions the second you’re awake? Not even a good morning?” he teases. “I see how it is. But to answer your question, though it is not our place to judge what is meant for us, I am happy. If I had the freedom to choose a person to spend the rest of my existence protecting, I do not believe I could have chosen someone more pleasing than you, Cait.” His face turns serious. “And if I could have chosen my destiny, I would never dared request something as profoundly beautiful as your love, something so outside the realm of my deserving.”

  I don’t know what to say. No one has ever said anything so sweet to me, ever. Dragons are the oldest living beings walking the Earthen Realm. How he feels fortunate bound to me for an eternity when I’m amazed to think I could be with him for even one human lifetime is baffling. “But why?”

  Loosening his grip and rolling onto his back, he stretches, displaying the enticing perfection of his upper body as he rests his head on his arms. “Why not? You’re intelligent, witty, responsible, kind. You accept the unknowns in life and face your fears head on… so brave.” Theo closes his eyes and breathes in, gently exhaling, “And so beautiful, Cait. If I am meant to exist, feeling the strange emotion of loving someone, of falling in love, of being in love, I shall gladly endure such frivolities with you for an eternity without a moment’s regret.”

  I stare at him, even more at a loss for words than I already was. “Oh.” This is all much more than I’ve experienced before, a depth of love and devotion I never imagined possible.

  He smirks, reopening his eyes to meet mine. “You did ask, Cait, and I cannot lie to you. There are things I cannot tell you, but when you ask something I can, I cannot lie to you. It is a vital matter of trust between dragon and ward. How could I ever properly protect you if you do not fully trust me?”

  There’s a strange stare down between us for a few moments before I crack and start laughing. “Alright, I’ll make a note not to ask you questions I’m not one hundred percent sure I want the answer to. Sometimes relationships are better off without such one hundred percent honesty… like when I ask you if a pair of jeans makes my ass look fat.” We both laugh then I turn serious for a moment. “But I have to admit, there are some things over the past two days perhaps I could have lived without knowing.” I don’t tell him I wish I never knew he called Dante, not wanting to remind him how much that hurt, or say I could have been better off not knowing Corrin did want to see me, not needing him to gloat over how he was right to keep it from me.

  “I would say you’ve done remarkably well. Never would I have imagined a human could handle the things you have, showing strength and character exceeding all expectations.”

  Climbing off the bed, he stands stretching and flexing, and I can’t take my eyes off his body. It’s sinful, absolutely sinful in his movements, graceful in their fluidity, delicious in the rippling, sinewy, undeniable evidence of the strength he possesses. He picks his shirt off the floor, but I move across the bed, pulling it away, tossing it across the room, kissing his bare stomach, the hardened toned muscle that’s impossibly defined, unnatural, supernatural.… My dragon.

  “We should probably go brush our teeth. The phrase ‘dragon breath’ has reality-based origins, Cait,” he whispers, though he doesn’t push me away. “With the high body temperature we run and our ability to breathe fire in our natural form… I think it does something,” he continues to explain, his hands in my hair, making no effort to stop me. When I teasingly bite at his nipple, he growls, low but not threatening.

  “Damn it, Cait.” Theo lifts me into his arms and carries me into the bathroom, depositing me on the double-sink vanity, and opens a drawer, pulling out a new toothbrush. “I wasn’t kidding.”

  I pick mine up out of the cup by the sink, holding it out as he offers toothpaste, and watch him for a moment as he goes about his morning routine. So normal. Nothing about this feels like a couple as odd as us should feel—a beyond-ancient dragon and a human he claims he will stay with for the rest of eternity. “Wait.… Theo, I’m human, mortal. How is it I’m supposed to be your ward until the end of time like you first told me?”

  Brushing my teeth, I wait with little patience as he finishes, biding his time, avoiding the answer. He goes on to wash his face then holds up my hairbrush. “May I?” I nod, mouthful of toothpaste, scowling at his delay tactics, though he does have an amusing case of bed head. By the time I’m done, he’s coaxed me off the vanity, brushing the tangles out of my hair. I stare at him in the mirror as he stands behind me, arms crossed over my chest, trying to relieve my impatience by focusing on every movement of his arms, his shoulders, only managing to frustrate myself in other ways as well.

  “There are many things I cannot explain to you, Cait, your destiny one of them.” My dragon pauses, indecision in his beautiful green eyes. “You will not always remain mortal, Cait. I told you, you cannot ask questions, but the change has already begun. Later, you will understand better. Just know this has always been within your blood, waiting… waiting for a dragon to awaken this gift from its dormancy.” Laying the brush down, he takes my shoulders and turns me to face him. “There is no greater privilege than to be your dragon, Cait, to have you as my ward, considering the destiny before you. Any dragon would be honored to hold this position, to protect you.”

  “I wouldn’t want another dragon, Theo, just you.” He smiles down at me, running his fingers along my cheek. “I couldn’t love another dragon, Theo, only you.”

  He grabs the back of my thighs, lifting me onto the vanity again, pressing his lean heated body against mine as I wrap my legs around him. Leaning me back to the mirror, his stubbly chin grazes along my jaw. “Any dragon would be out of his mind not to love you, Cait.”

  “You’re out of your mind, and you love me,” I reply, giggling.

  With a growl, his lips are on mine, my fingernails raking along the length of his back, feeling the planes and ridges of my every desire mapped beneath his skin, fueling the need to have him closer. His breath is minty fresh yet still incredibly warm, his tongue hot, a flame dancing with mine, fire threatening to consume me, and I’m tired of waiting. “Shower,” I mumble out breathlessly as his mouth makes its way to my ear, the heat of his breath sending tingles in every direction.

  “You want a shower now?” Mouth on my skin, the words are growls, frustrated.

  “No. You. Me. Shower. Now.”

  His hands are under my shirt, lifting it off, when he stops. “What about Dante?”

  This time, I growl. “Less tal
king. More doing. No stupid questions.”

  And in a heartbeat, my back is bare and against the outer glass wall of the shower as he reaches in to adjust the water with one hand, holding me with the other, kissing my shoulder and neck. As soon as he’s satisfied with the temperature, Theo steps us inside, not caring he’s still in his shorts, and I’m soaking my pajama pants.

  A hand on my leg, he pries me off him, lowering me to stand on the slate-tiled floor. Our eyes remain locked, and without a word, he slowly slips his fingers along my hips, pushing the wet flannel down until he’s kneeling at my feet, tossing my pajamas away, leaving me bare in front of him. “You are a goddess, Cait, beautiful and perfect.” There’s such reverence in his voice I might think he was serious, not just being romantic as the shower sprays down on his head, water trickling along the angular lines of his face, cascading onto the perfection of his shoulders and beyond.

  Gently kissing just below my navel, he works a painstaking slow path upward, thumbs ghosting over my nipples as he finds his way back to my mouth, sensual yet passionate in his attentions. “I must bathe you first.” Theo states this with the same reverent tone, guiding me under the flow of water and taking my lavender shampoo from the shelf, then squeezing some into his palm.

  “Why?” I ask, watching his hands, hands I love, strong, powerful and large, capable of unimaginable harm, yet tender in their caress with a touch meant for caring, for seeing to another’s needs.

  Kneading his fingers into my scalp, he grins. “So many questions, Cait.” His eyes have a wistful look about them when he answers. “It is our way, the old way… respecting the divinity of a woman, created in the likeness of the Goddess, something none of us could overlook with you.”

  “None of us?”

  His hands still for a mere second before he continues his task, answering. “Dante, myself… even Corrin could not ignore certain things you deserve, Cait. You mustn’t forget. We are not human men. Beings such as us are beholden to different traditions, not those of man. Traditions of the Goddess, the giver of life to us, our Mother.” Theo rinses my hair gently, lips briefly meeting mine. “I should bathe you in the finest fragrant oils, a part of the rituals long adhered to, but your essence is quite intoxicating on its own. I rather enjoy indulging in your natural scent, Cait.”