Flood fumbled with the key in the lock. His hands shook. “I can’t believe you’re here.”
“I can’t believe it either.” She was smiling. Looking radiant and beautiful.
The cage finally opened and he stepped out, taking her hands in his. “I didn’t think I’d see you again.” A tear tracked down her cheek. “I made the wrong decision. I don’t want to leave. I’m scared…so scared, but I want to take a chance on us. I’m in love with you, Flood. I can’t believe it happened so quickly but it did.”
“You are?” Flood was grinning. He cupped her face in both his hands.
“Yes, no doubt about it. I am!”
He leaned down and kissed her. Soft and gentle. Tears continued to flow down her cheeks. He used his thumb to wipe them away. “Why are you crying?”
“I’m happy.” She sniffed. “I’m afraid, but I’m very happy.”
“You don’t have to be afraid. I will always put you first. I will spend forever showing you that you made the right decision taking a chance on me.”
“I know you will.” Her eyes brightened. She pulled away, taking a step back. Paige began to unbutton her blouse.
“Stop!” Flood folded his hand over hers to stop her.
Her eyes widened. “What is it? We have to hurry,” she spoke quickly, urgency in her voice. “We’ve got to—”
“No!” Flood shook his head. “I was afraid too. I didn’t fight hard enough for us. I didn’t do everything in my power to stop what was happening. I allowed Torrent to steamroll me. I backed down too easily.”
Paige frowned. “You did fight for us. You tried to mate me. It was me who put a stop to it.”
“I should have fought harder. I refuse—” There was shouting outside that drew their attention. Flood took both her hands in his. “They’re here already.”
“Let’s hurry then. Mate me. I don’t want to leave.”
“No. When we mate ‒ and it is going to happen ‒ it will be magical and wonderful. I refuse to rush something so special. When I make love to you in that way, it will be because we are both committed and ready. It will not be hurried and,” he looked around them, “not like this. Not ever again.”
“For the record, I am ready now, but I agree with you, we shouldn’t be forced or rushed, even though I know you can make me come in under half a minute.” Her voice had grown husky. “It would be amazing if it could all happen on our terms though.”
“If we do this, there is a good chance I could be excommunicated.”
She sucked in a breath. “Then you can’t—”
“I don’t want to stay if you are not with me. I had already made the decision to leave here and to find you. My life is with you now. I might need to move in with you though. Learn how to live amongst humans. Would that be okay?”
Paige smiled. “You would do that for me?”
“I would do anything for you. I love you.”
She smiled. “I love you too.”
Flood brushed his lips against hers. He looked back over his shoulder. “Beck is getting badly beaten. I should go and help him. You stay here.”
“Oh no!” She nodded. “Yes, go. He helped us.”
Paige listened to the meaty thuds and loud growls. Those were followed by more thuds and a couple of snarls. Within a minute, Flood came back inside. The knuckles on both hands were scraped and bleeding. His right eye was puffy and red.
“Are you okay?” She could see that he was breathing heavily.
Flood nodded. “Yes, I’m fine.” He gave her a tight smile. “Let’s go.”
“Where to?” She could guess.
His eyes narrowed. “We need to pay Torrent a visit.”
She nodded, feeling sick to her stomach. What if this didn’t work? What if he threw Flood back in jail and made her leave anyway?
Flood took her hand and squeezed.
“I’m fine. I’m fine,” Beck croaked as they walked out. He must have caught her look of horror. He was bloodied up. His lip was split. One eye was completely closed, the other not far behind. His nose was a bloody mess and looked like it might be broken. There were nine or ten guys littering the ground. Most were still unconscious. The others were half out of it and pretty messed up. “I got six of them and Flood got four.” Beck smirked as best he could.
“Yeah, but look at you.” Flood shook his head, a smile playing on the corner of his lips.
There was the sound of footfalls and Torrent rounded the corner. He had four guards to his rear and one on either side of him. He was scowling.
“My lord,” Flood sounded shocked.
Paige gave a little curtsy even though there was a big part of her that wanted to kick the asshole king in the shins.
“Glad you could make it, sire,” Beck piped up. “I would get up and greet you properly, but I’m waiting on a couple of ribs to heal up a little first.”
His eyes narrowed as Beck spoke. It looked like a storm cloud descended. “What the fuck is going on here?”
“Well, we—” Beck began.
“I will explain.” Flood’s voice was a low rasp.
“No need. I think I can guess.” Torrent widened his eyes. “You disobeyed me.”
“Yes and I would do it again,” Flood said, squeezing her hand. “I love Paige. She is the female for me.”
“The two of you are not mated.” Torrent shook his head. “You haven’t formed any kind of bond.”
“That’s not true,” Paige objected.
“My female is correct. It isn’t true.” He squared his shoulders and took a step towards the king. He didn’t let go of her hand, so she stepped forward as well. “We have bonded and we wish to mate one another when the time is right for us.”
“Well, it’s quite a situation we are in then.” Torrent looked pissed off and disgusted in equal measure.
“No situation, my lord. I’m afraid I can’t take no for an answer. I don’t care if it means leaving right now to make that happen.” Flood’s jaw tightened.
“You would live amongst the humans?” Torrent looked like it was the craziest thing he had ever heard. Like it was absurd.
“Yes.” Flood nodded.
“You wouldn’t last. You would struggle to fit in.”
“I would be with Paige. I would make it work.”
“You can stop right there. I’m not going to force you to leave. This whole thing has blown up in my face. I had hoped to set an example but it turns out I’ve done the opposite. There’s Beck,” the king looked down at the fallen shifter, "I'll get to you shortly." He shook his head and pushed out a breath. "Beck disobeyed every order and then some. I've got Bay and three other shifters in my office pleading your case. It's only a matter of time before more join in. You're a martyr, not an example. If I keep you apart or make you leave, I'll just be adding fuel to the fire. I did what I did to stop potential insubordination and it looks like it’s had the opposite effect.” Torrent rubbed his eyes. “I may have been a bit harsh. I wanted to see the four females mated to Water dragons. I may have messed up,” he spoke softly.
Paige could hardly believe what she was hearing.
“Does this mean…?” When she turned to Flood she saw he was smiling.
Torrent’s eyes hardened back up. “It means I’m granting your leave but am suspending you at the same time. We are in tough, dangerous times. I cannot have you, my leader, disobeying orders. Acting out and punching superiors. What the hell!” He shook his head in disgust.
“It won’t happen again.” Flood lowered his gaze to the floor.
“You will have to prove yourself to me. To all the royals, but especially to me.”
“I will,” Flood said, keeping his head bowed.
“You,” Torrent spoke to Beck, “I have no idea what to do with you. Forget taking Flood’s place.” He shook his head. “For the time being, you will report to Bay.”
“Bay?” Beck winced, hugging his torso. “He’s not ready to lead.”
“And the two of you ar
e?” The king snorted. “Until further notice, you report to Bay. You have just as much to prove as he does.” Torrent pointed at Flood. “You’ve been acting like a hothead.” He looked at Flood. “And you,” his attention moved back to Beck, “need to grow the hell up. I hear you’ve been fooling around with more than one human female.”
Beck looked sheepish.
“I’m beginning to question my management team, big fucking time,” Torrent growled. “You are no longer permitted anywhere near the humans.”
Beck frowned, wincing again. “What? Why?”
“Two females are asking to go home because of you. Do you plan on mating either one of them?” Torrent asked.
Beck took to looking sheepish again. “No, I guess I’m picky.”
“Not so much when it comes to the rutting part of the equation.” Torrent sighed. “Stay away from them,” he warned.
“Fine,” he growled.
“I have work to do. Reports to write. This is one hell of a mess,” Torrent grumbled as he walked away. They watched until he was out of sight.
“We get to be together?” Paige asked, looking into Flood’s eyes. They were dark and gorgeous and focused on her.
“Yes,” Flood nodded. “We do and I couldn’t be happier.”
“Or more excited.” Paige couldn’t help but smile. “I love you so much.”
“I love—”
Beck made a gagging noise. “Please, can you take this somewhere else?” Then he smiled. “I’m glad it worked out.”
“Thank you,” both she and Flood said in unison.
“I can’t believe I’m going to have to report to Bay.”
“I’m suspended,” Flood groaned. He was smiling though. “At least I get to spend plenty of time with you.” He squeezed her hands.
“And when you come back you’ll be reporting to Bay as well.” Beck made a face. “He isn’t ready to lead. It’s a fuck up.”
“We’ll talk about it some other time.” Although he spoke to Beck, his eyes were locked with hers. “Right now, I don’t particularly care.”
“You should,” Beck grumbled.
“Let’s get out of here,” Flood said, brushing a kiss against her lips. “I’m putting you back in bed and then I’m making you breakfast.”
“It’s late afternoon. Not really a breakfast time of day.”
“We’re forgetting this last week ever happened. That means going back to where this all went south. You’re taking off every last stitch of your clothing and getting into bed.”
“Sounds like a plan.” She squeezed his hand as they walked. “Are we still going to do what we planned on doing after breakfast?”
“Hell yes, I might even get creative with the honey.”
Beck gagged from somewhere behind them. They both laughed.
Chapter 24
Six weeks later they were mated. Only six short weeks. It somehow felt like they had to wait forever. Paige had come to realize that when you’re with the right person, time becomes meaningless. It’s what you feel inside that counts.
They spoke their vows surrounded by close friends in an open field of wildflowers. Not something she had ever envisioned, and yet it was perfect. A butterfly had landed on Flood’s head during the ceremony. A sure sign, for her, that her father was there, in spirit.
It was the most magical day of her life. One, she knew without a doubt, they would never regret.
The meat sizzled on the barbecue. “Honey,” Flood tried again, this time bringing her out of her reverie. “I’d love to know what you were thinking just then. That smile was quite something.”
“I was thinking about how much I love you.”
He gripped her hips and planted one on her. “Good because I feel the same.” He brushed another kiss on her lips. “Please fetch me a dish or this steak is going to be overdone.”
“You got it.” She rushed off, quickly returning with a plate.
Their guests were already seated at the outdoor table. “Pass me the salad,” Meghan asked Tide.
Tide passed her the bowl, kissing her before letting it go.
“Can I get anyone something more to drink?” Flood asked, removing the wine bottle from the ice bucket.
Meghan nodded, smiling. “Yes, please.” She held up her glass.
“Why the hell not?” Tide shrugged and held up his glass as well. “It’s a pity Torrent and Candy couldn’t make it,” he said, as Flood poured for him. “I know they wanted to come.”
“Is it because of the meeting scheduled between all of the species?” Flood asked.
Paige had heard a little about it. All the dragon kings of the non-human species were meeting to discuss the hunters. It affected all of them to some degree, so it made sense they would all want to be on the same page when it came to a solution.
Tide nodded. “Yes, Torrent wanted more time to prepare.”
“I should be the one going with him,” Flood growled. “Not Bay.”
Paige looked over at her mate. Flood’s already dark eyes, darkened up some more. He put the wine back in the cooler and began cutting the steak into strips. Flood was still demoted. He was working as a team leader instead of as the supreme ranking male in the dragon army. He’d only been reinstated a couple of weeks ago. Torrent had made him wait and was still making him wait. Beck was back as second in command, his old position. She knew it hurt Flood to have to report into Beck. Bay as well for that matter.
“Bay hasn’t been himself since he went on that last Stag Run,” Tide mused, taking a sip of his wine.
“He shouldn’t be leading. You and I both know it,” Flood growled.
“In his defense, he was doing okay but something happened on that Stag Run and it messed with his head.”
“Shouldn’t have gone on a Stag Run in the first place,” Flood mumbled.
“That’s not fair,” Tide countered. “Bay is still a male even if his equipment doesn’t work. He might deny it but he still gets urges. Still wants to meet females. Still wants to have a life outside of this lair.”
Flood pushed out a breath. “You are right. Bay is a good male. I feel bad for him. He is struggling right now though. He is greatly out of his depth. I don’t think the Stag Run had anything to do with it.”
“He has changed since coming back. I’m convinced something happened. The male will find his feet.” Then Tide looked like he was mulling something over. “Do you think he met someone on the Stag Run?”
Flood shrugged. “Maybe.”
“You say he’s messed up since coming back?” Paige asked.
Tide nodded, helping himself to some steak. “Yeah, forgetful. Distracted.” He frowned. “Not himself at all.”
“Yep, sounds to me like he might have met someone,” Meghan said. “You should go and talk to him,” she urged her mate.
“No.” Flood shook his head. “Rather not! Tide gives shitty advice.”
Tide looked stricken. “I do not!”
“Yeah, you do. You nearly cost me my female.” Flood helped himself to some steak as well.
“Someone needs to talk to him,” Tide said. “You do it then.”
Flood frowned heavily for a few moments. “I’m not so sure I’m the right person for the job either.”
Paige squeezed his leg under the table. Flood locked eyes with her. “I think you are.”
“Thank you, honey.” He winked at her.
“Why didn’t you urge me to go and talk to Bay, Doc?” Tide asked Meghan, who made a humming noise.
“Wellllll,” she drew out the word. “Maybe you aren’t the best guy for the job. We almost didn’t get it together.”
“But we did in the end.” Tide looked distraught.
“You manhandled me. Patted me down and then insisted on monitoring me twenty-four seven. It took forever for you to acknowledge your feelings for me.” She shook her head.
“The whole monitoring thing was for your own good.”
“And what about patting me down and treating me li
ke a criminal? Was for my own good too?” Meghan was grinning from ear to ear.
“Okay, maybe the patting you down part was for my own good.” They all laughed.
Flood put his hand on her thigh and squeezed gently. Warmth and happiness flooded her. Sometimes wonderful things happen when you least expected them to. She only hoped that Flood would get his leadership position back soon. There had been more sightings of the hunters again. These were turbulent times indeed.
Blood Dragon is out on pre-order now
About the Author
Charlene Hartnady is a USA Today Bestselling author. She loves to write about all things paranormal, including vampires, elves and shifters of all kinds. She lives on a couple of acres in the country with her husband and three sons. They have an array of pets including a couple of horses.
She is lucky enough to be able to write full time, so most days you can find her at her computer writing like mad. Charlene believes that it is the small things that truly matter, like that feeling you get when you start a new book, or look at a particularly beautiful sunset.
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Also by Charlene Hartnady
The Chosen Series:
1# Chosen by the Vampire Kings
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