“You can talk.” Nadie blinked up at him, and Dante snorted a laugh, a small tendril of smoke escaping his nostril.
Jace picked up Nadie by the waist and set her on Dante’s arm. “Climb up, I’ll be right behind you.”
Nadie did as ordered, her movements careful. As if Dante or Jace would ever let her fall.
“You can talk,” she repeated.
“Yes, I can. Not all paranormals can. In fact only a few who shift into fully new creatures can. Dragons spend most of their days in their dragon form, so it’s only natural they would be able to talk in this form.”
“That is really, really wicked,” she said, a smile in her voice.
“I can’t talk in my bear form, so I’m kind of jealous,” Jace put in.
Dante felt the two of them settling on his upper back, their thighs squeezing him tight. He didn’t have a harness for them up there, so Jace would have to hold on tight—something they’d done in the past. Now, though, if Dante ever wanted to take Nadie on a ride of her own, he’d have to make a saddle of some sort. Demeaning in some respects, but for his mates, he’d do anything.
Nadie patted his scales, and he moved back into her touch. “We’re going to have to have a talk about this whole dragon thing. Watching old movies with sexy men in kilts really didn’t prepare me for this.”
Dante growled, Jace joining in. “Kilts? You want me to wear a kilt? Because if you’re talking about some other man you think is sexy, I will have to kill him.”
Nadie sighed dramatically. “That’s all you got out of that? Okay, fine, no other man in the world is sexy. They ceased to exist for me.”
“Good,” Dante said.
“I was joking, Dante.”
“I really don’t think you were,” Jace added in.
“Fine, you two are alpha idiots, but I adore you. Now as for the kilt thing…please?” She bounced on Dante’s back, and he grinned. “Please wear a kilt for me. You don’t have to wear anything else.”
Jace coughed a laugh, and Dante looked over his shoulder, his long neck curving. Jace grinned. “I’ll wear a kilt if Dante does.”
Dante nodded. He’d worn them before when he’d been living in Scotland during the time of Highlanders and Lowlanders and times of war. “Done. Now hold on tight and let’s go.”
He pulled open a portal and lifted off the ground. Nadie squealed—not with fright, but with pure delight. He moved his wings, and he flew through the portal. Fire and starbursts surrounded them but didn’t touch them, the fire real, but not harmful to those who entered invited.
Soon they found themselves on the rocky cliffs of the dragon realm, the portal closing behind them. Nadie and Jace didn’t speak, but they looked around, Dante doing the same. The jagged cliffs and peaks dotted the landscape. The vast sea crashed into the cliffs, the foamy waves violent but still soothing to Dante’s ears.
There were castles off in the distance, each belonging to a different dragon in the same House. They were on Azure Royal land, Dante’s land. His own castle was the closest to them, but he wouldn’t be taking his mates there. No, he would be going to the head palace where he could get this over with.
“Almost there,” he whispered, aware they weren’t alone. Dante was never alone.
He knew dragons had spotted their entry and were waiting for Dante’s next move. If he’d brought in outsiders, then it had to be for only a few reasons. Either they were to be used for fucking or for a meal. After all, paranormals weren’t human. No, they might have human form, but they weren’t what their diluted prodigy were.
It was a rare concept indeed that these would be his mates.
Hence the reason they were there.
Protection came in many forms, and knowledge was one of them.
Caves dotted the cliffs, a dragon’s hoard a secret and cosseted possession. Most of the visual caves were decoys and booby-trapped for those who dared enter their territory. The traps usually didn’t kill, as a dragon wanted to experience that particular enjoyment themselves.
He landed on the edge of the Royal House and lowered his head so Nadie and Jace could slide off his back safely. Jace put Nadie between him and Dante, and the dragon approved. Nadie didn’t have a handle on her powers yet and needed the help. One day she would be a fighting force, but until then, they all had to be careful.
Five female dragons stalked into the room, their blue scales mixed with the colors of their various other lines. Two were of the Scarlet House, another from the Chartreuse House, while two more held Alabaster scales.
“Dante!” the Chartreuse dragon purred. “You’re home!”
“Finally,” one of the Scarlets said. “We’ve been waiting forever.”
“What can we do for you?” an Alabaster said. She smiled with lots of teeth. “We’ll do anything for you.”
Dante closed his eyes and prayed for patience. Or a really sharp stick.
Nadie cleared her throat beside him, and Dante lifted a lip, baring a fang.
The five female dragons blinked and looked down at Nadie, confusion on their faces. He saw their eyes light up, and for a moment, Dante was afraid he was going to have to kill those of his House.
“You’re mated!” one of the Scarlets said. It could have been the one that had spoken before, but Dante couldn’t tell. He didn’t care who they were or their names. They weren’t Nadie, so they didn’t matter.
All five shimmered, and suddenly they were five dragons in human form. Each of them wore clothing, and while some would have found their curves and long, wavy hair sexy, Dante couldn’t be bothered.
“Yes, he is,” Nadie said, that inner succubus of hers shining through. Dante grinned. He liked this Nadie.
One of the Alabasters came up and brought Nadie in a hug. Dante growled, as did Jace right behind Nadie, both ready to fight.
“We’re so happy for all of you,” that same Alabaster said. “I’m Vivian, this is Moira, Bree, Donna, and Lauren.” She pointed to each of them, but for the life of him, Dante couldn’t figure out who was who.
“It’s about time Dante’s found his mates,” Moira or Bree said. “Oh! And you’re a bear.”
Jace nodded, his eyes wide. This hadn’t been the welcome either of them had expected.
All five dragons were talking a mile a minute, and he felt Nadie becoming overwhelmed through their bond. He wouldn’t be having that.
He opened his mouth and roared.
Everyone stopped moving and turned to him, their eyes wide.
“Thanks,” Nadie said after she blinked.
Dante lowered his head so she could pet him. “These are my mates, Nadie and Jace. We are here to introduce them to the House and show they are under my protection.” They were also there to see his family and do the same, as well as find out if Rock was the dragon he needed to take over the Conclave’s position, but he didn’t mention that. Yet.
“We’re so happy you mated,” Lauren said. Or at least he thought it was Lauren. Dear gods, these women confused him. They always had.
“Seriously,” another dragon put in. “While Dante is beyond sexy, as you well know,”—she winked—“he wasn’t the true half for any of us so it wouldn’t have worked. But now that he has mates, we need to celebrate.”
Nadie started laughing and shook her head. “You guys are crazy.”
One of them raised their brow. “Duh. We’re mateless dragons. It happens.”
“Now tell us everything. How you met, how you mated. Everything.”
Dante closed his eyes at Vivian’s demands but didn’t say anything. Nadie seemed to have entered into yet another group of women. He shimmered his body and became human again, wanting to be able to at least be in the same form as the people around him. They talked with the females for over an hour, and by the time they were through, Dante was laughing so hard he was crying.
It seemed, without the need to hide or fight off women, being in the Royal House wasn’t that taxing.
He probably shouldn’t have t
hought that last thought considering, as soon as he did, Obsidian dragons landed beside him.
His family.
He growled but didn’t shift to his dragon form, not wanting to give them the luxury and pride of that. He and Jace stood in front of Nadie while, surprisingly, the five female dragons moved so they surrounded the triad, ready to fight.
“I see you’ve mated,” his father, Udell, drawled.
Dante raised his head. “They are under my protection. You’ve been warned.”
His mother, Stacia, glared and chomped her teeth once at Nadie. His beautiful mate rolled her eyes. Dangerous in most cases, but he wouldn’t let his mother hurt her. As it was, he had to hold back a laugh at the move.
“Your bitch disrespects me,” Stacia snapped.
“Shut up, Mother,” his sister Fadia said, bored as ever. “We’re here, they’re here. They’re mated. Let’s go. I need to go see Number Four.” Fadia had at least six husbands scattered around the realm at last check and numbered them rather than remembering their names. Considering she couldn’t keep track, Dante couldn’t really care either.
“Dante left us long ago, and I want to go home. I want that roasted boar I saw on the table before we left.” Dante had to hold back a snarl at his brother Meurig’s tone. Dear gods, the man ate constantly and couldn’t even be bothered to deal with family business.
“Fine,” Stacia growled. “He’ll get what’s coming to him. I hear there are plans for our Dante.” Stacia grinned then, and Dante had to hold back the bile in his throat. Her face really wasn’t a pretty picture.
And just what did his mother know about the Conclave? Or was she referencing another threat to his life?
With that, they flew off through the large open arches, leaving a bewildered Dante in their wake. Something was up their sleeves—at least his mother’s. They’d been trying to kill him since he was a baby though, so he shouldn’t have been surprised.
“Are you okay?” Nadie asked as she placed her palms on his stomach.
He pulled her into his arms as Jace wrapped his own around Dante. “I will be fine. You both are now claimed on a public level. That should help.” Or at least it would put the law on their side.
“Now, are we going to find that other dragon?” Jace asked.
“What other dragon?” Vivian asked, the other woman surrounding her.
While Dante didn’t trust them fully, the fact that they’d been prepared to fight to protect his mates helped make his decision. “I’m looking for a dragon named Rock.”
Donna scrunched up her nose. “Why would you be looking for him? He’s a right bastard.”
The ladies nodded.
“Plus I hear…” Bree’s eyes widened, and she shut her mouth.
“What do you hear?” Nadie asked.
“That he’s sleeping with your mom,” Lauren answered, a frown on her face. “Sorry, Dante. I know it’s gross to hear that your mom’s a whore.”
Dante grunted. He knew his parents slept around. He hated his family, and now that his mates had met them, he wanted to go jump in a lake and clean them all from the taint that was his family.
“Rock is not a nice dragon,” Moira put in. “Whatever reasons you have for talking with him, I’d reconsider. He’d gut you and blame someone else. He’s one of those dragons.”
Dante’s hopes fell, but he nodded and thanked them for the information. Soon Jace and Nadie were on his back again, and they returned to the human realm. He shifted back to human form, and his mates were holding him.
“I’m sorry,” Nadie said.
“Fuck, Dante, we’ll find another way,” Jace put in.
Dante shook his head but didn’t say anything, merely pulled his mates closer. It didn’t matter, not anymore. It looked like a fight was inevitable. Based on what he’d heard, he couldn’t trust Rock in a position of power, and he couldn’t find another way out of the Conclave’s order.
He would have to fight for his right to live as he desired.
The bears, succubi, and even some of the dragons would be on his side…but would it be enough?
He held back a roar and closed his eyes.
There was only so much a dragon could do, and roasting his enemies on a spit wouldn’t solve his problems. Between his new mating, Nadie’s powers, Jace’s job as a Mediator, and the battle on the horizon, his dragon wanted to hide everyone in his hoard and never come out.
The fight was coming. There was no way around it.
Dante wouldn’t fail.
He couldn’t.
****
Rock screamed and threw a vase against the wall. It wasn’t his vase, so he didn’t give a shit as it broke into a dozen pieces and littered the floor. He roared, the anger running through his veins ready to burst. If he’d been in dragon form, he’d have spewed fire, but as it was, he’d turned human to fuck the woman on the bed beside him.
He wasn’t in the mood, but he’d do anything to get ahead.
Even Stacia.
He’d been watching Dante’s little triad of bliss and fucking happiness when Rock wasn’t hiding the fact he was watching them from the Conclave. The Conclave kept a watch on Dante as well, ruining every plan Rock could come up with. Between the dragon’s natural wards and the fact that the fucking dragon was never alone, he couldn’t get close enough to kill the bastard.
He’d almost been able to get at the dragon, but then the Conclave had created a storm and almost killed one of Dante’s mates. The woman, Nadie. The Conclave wanted her dead so Dante wouldn’t care about her anymore. He wouldn’t have cared about her death, but ever since that moment, Dante had increased his power and wards, halting all of Rock’s plans.
“Come fuck me, Leonard,” Stacia whined behind him. “Get over the stress and put that dick in me. I’ve had a fucking long day with Udell and my beastly children and need to get sweaty.”
Rock whirled around growled. “Don’t call me Leonard.” He couldn’t believe his mother would name him something that sounded so pathetically weak. That’s why he went by Rock. That name was tough. Just like his scales.
Stacia held up her hands, legs spread, ready for him. “Sorry, lover. Now get that penis in me.”
Rock sighed and walked close so he stood between her legs. He lifted her thighs and pumped into her, annoyed that he’d gotten so angry over that little prick.
Stacia made the appropriate sounds, and he leaned down, sucking a nipple into his mouth. She seemed to like that, pressing him closer to her breast. He pulled away and turned her over. He slammed her face into the bed and fucked her from behind, thrusting as hard as he could, enjoying the way she mewed.
“Enjoying yourself?” he asked.
“Yes, yes, keep going,” she said, her words muffled from the sheet in her mouth.
He gripped her hips and stopped for a moment. “I’ll keep going, but I need to think about how to kill your son.”
She waved her arm around, kind of difficult to do at her current angle but whatever. “Fine, fine, kill my son, just keep going.”
Rock shrugged then thrust again, his mind on how to kill the son of the woman he was fucking. What an odd world he lived in, but if he was careful, he’d one day rule it.
Not a bad way to end the day.
Chapter Fifteen
The block of wood flying at his head should have been the worst part of his day, but Jace had a feeling it was only the beginning. He ducked out of the way and kept prowling toward his mates.
“Oh my God!” Nadie ran to him, her hair wild around her face. “I’m so sorry, honey. Did I hurt you?”
The sight of this tiny woman worried that she’d hurt a bear as big as himself made him smile, despite the fact that inside he wanted to scream and rage over what wasn’t in his control. He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and smiled.
“You didn’t hit me. Don’t worry about it. At least you didn’t hit the house.”
Her eyes widened, and she stepped to the side so she could see around
him. “Crap. This whole lightning thing is hard.” She looked down at her open palms and wiggled her fingers. “I don’t think I’ll ever get the hang of it.”
Dante walked up behind her, the hair that had escaped his braid flying around his head in the wind. Jace tried to smile at his dragon, but Dante seemed to see beneath the surface and knew something was wrong.
Damn intuitive dragon.
Dante wrapped his arms around Nadie’s hips and brought her to his chest. Jace fisted his hands, wanting to join in, craving their touch, but he couldn’t. Not yet. Not until he told them what he’d found out and dealt with their reactions.
Jace swallowed hard and put his thoughts to the side for the moment. “What were you practicing?”
Nadie tilted her head and frowned. “You’re not telling us something.”
Jace sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “Let’s talk about it in a bit, okay? I’d rather hear how your powers are progressing and relax before we deal with yet another thing on the outside looking in.”
Nadie bit her lip then nodded. “You get a pass for now, but don’t think I’ll be forgetting any time soon.”
Jace smiled softly then pulled her into his arms, unable to hold back any longer. “Thank you, darling.” He lowered his head, his lips brushing hers, and she melted against him.
When he pulled back, it was to find Dante even closer, the man’s hand behind Jace’s head. Jace closed his eyes as his dragon pressed his mouth to Jace’s in a rough caress.
“We won’t be forgetting,” Dante whispered. “Come, you’ll want to see how much better Nadie is getting.”
Their mate snorted before walking over to the area of trees where they must have been practicing. “Sure, dragon, whatever you say. So far I’ve burned a hole in the grass and almost knocked Jace out with a piece of wood. So much better.”
Jace grinned at her frustration. She was doing much better than she thought, and he and Dante would just have to prove it to her.
“So, what have you been doing?” he asked.
Nadie held out her hands and sighed. “Blowing up things?”
Tangled Innocence Page 16
