The Dragon Guardian

by Jessie Donovan

  Then Gina’s eyes fell on the video of the dragons beating their wings in the sky in several V-formations.

  Fergus pressed against her back. “Well, lass? Are any of them with BroadBay?”

  Scrutinizing the dragons for any familiarities, she finally answered, “I don’t think so.”

  Fraser spoke up. “It’s probably the traitors, then. I’ll let Grant know.”

  Gina held up a hand. “It still could be them. I’ve only seen a few members of Clan BroadBay in dragon form.”

  “Aye, well, we know the bastard isn’t there, nor is the clan leader since we do have a picture of Steven Roberts on file. It’s a start. I still need to tell Grant. Any and all information will help.”

  As Fraser went to the front, Gina leaned against Fergus’s side. She murmured, “Is it wrong of me to hope it’s the traitors and not the American clan?”

  He hugged her tightly against him. “No, but it’s a bit early to be celebrating. For all we know, they might be working together.”

  She raised her head. “Do you know something I don’t?”

  “I might.”

  “I know your work is classified and I never would ask for you to put your clan at risk. But is there anything at all you can tell me? Please, Fergus, if they’re coming for me and my baby, I need to know.”

  Fergus stared down at her. One beat passed and then another. Finally, he replied, “There has been some chatter about British dragon-shifters talking with American-sounding ones over the last few days. While all of the witnesses are human and might have misjudged if the subjects were indeed dragon-shifters, I’m not about to dismiss it so casually. Neither has the DDA.”

  “Will the DDA help us?”

  Fergus sighed. “I don’t know, lass. Part of Finn’s mission on Stonefire was to convince them to help us concerning you.”

  She blinked. “What?”

  “Aye, Finn’s in England to try and secure your future here.”

  ~~~

  Keeping Finn’s true purpose from Gina had nearly torn Fergus in two. But his cousin’s line of reasoning made sense—offering a safe haven before a deal could be made was foolish. Gina had suffered so much already and Finn didn’t want to raise her hopes only to dash them. So, Fergus had agreed to keep the secret.

  Gina turned to face him. “But Finn never asked me if I wanted to stay.”

  His dragon snarled in the back of his mind, but Fergus ignored it. “My cousin is fairly good at reading people. Was he wrong that you wanted to stay here?”

  Fergus’s heart skipped a beat at Gina’s silence. He refused to believe Gina didn’t care enough for him to stay.

  Or, had he yearned too much for a mate that he’d constructed the image inside his head?

  No. Fergus knew Gina cared for him.

  His dragon growled. This is why we needed to tell her we love her. Your caution may have cost us our mate.

  You’re wrong, dragon. Saying the words too soon would’ve spooked her.

  His beast huffed. We’ll find out soon enough.

  Thankfully, he didn’t have to wait much longer. When Gina answered, her voice was strong. “You know, that’s why I wanted to talk with him, actually. And also why I was so irritated that he kept canceling.” She stood on her tiptoes and whispered, “I didn’t want to give you false hope until I knew my future.”

  Fergus’s dragon chimed in. Ask her if she wants to stay with us.

  If Fergus were rational, he would save this conversation for a later time. But between his dragon’s roaring and his own curiosity, he asked, “So you’ve thought about becoming my mate?”

  Last week, the word had caused panic to flare in her eyes. But in the present, Gina’s gaze was only full of hope. “I’ve been warming up to the idea.”

  He placed his hands possessively on her hips. “That’s not a good enough answer.”

  She smiled and laid a hand on his cheek. The soft touch of her fingers eased his tension a fraction. “I thought you were supposed to be the patient MacKenzie?”

  Leaning down, he nipped her bottom lip. “I am, except when it comes to you, lass. It’s as if I become a whole different person around you.”

  She tilted her head. “Is that a bad thing?”

  “Yes. No. Hell, it’s both.” Tightening his grip on her, he pulled her closer. “But I wouldn’t change a thing, Gina MacDonald. You’re everything I never knew I wanted.”

  Her eyes watered and his beast snarled. Don’t make her cry.

  Sometimes, tears are happy.

  I still don’t like it.

  Gina wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and murmured, “I wish I knew if Finn had found a way for me to stay. There’s so much I want to say.”

  “Then say it, lass. Because even if I have to leave here to follow you, I will. And not just because I’m your Guardian or because you’re my true mate. Life would be lonely without you.”

  Gina shook her head. “But you can’t leave your family and I would never ask you to do so.”

  The corner of his mouth ticked up. “Oh, they’d find a way to sneak off and see me. My brother and I have secret hideouts all over the Highlands.”

  Amusement twinkled in her eyes. “Full of treasure?”

  Fergus chuckled. “Maybe one day, you’ll find out.”

  As they stared at one another, Fergus willed the lass to speak her mind. But before she could say anything, Fraser rushed over to them and said, “I’m sorry to break up the lovey dovey time, but we have a problem.”

  Fergus frowned. “Spit it out already, brother.”

  Fraser answered, “Iris radioed back. She’s found several wings of dragon-shifters just beyond the Naver forest.” Fraser switched his gaze to Gina. “The ones in human form are speaking in an American accent. A few have mentioned Virginia.”

  Gina’s body tensed under his fingers. “BroadBay.”

  Fraser nodded. “Aye, we think so. What’s worse, Roderick McFarland is with the Yanks.”

  Confusion flashed on Gina’s face and Fergus filled her in. “Roderick is one of the traitors who not only left the clan rather than accept Finn’s leadership, but he helped lead the attack on the human hospital and Holly a few months ago.”

  Placing a hand over her belly, Gina looked between the twin brothers. “So, what’s going to happen?”

  Fergus stroked her side. “We wait. It’s in the hands of Grant and the Protectors now.”

  Gina answered, “But I don’t want anyone to die for me, Fergus. And that’s a possibility.”

  He growled. “If you think I’m going to just allow you to waltz out of here and turn yourself over, you’re sadly mistaken.” Gina opened her mouth, but he cut her off by asking Fraser, “Can we patch in a line to Stonefire from here?”

  Fraser shrugged. “Probably.”

  Fergus narrowed his eyes. “Then do it. I want to talk to Bram Moore-Llewellyn.”

  Fraser didn’t budge. “Are you sure that’s a good idea, brother? Finn doesn’t like it when we step on his toes and contacting the English clan leader will definitely be doing that. We should clear it through Grant in his absence.”

  Fergus shook his head. “No, there isn’t time. What I need to ask of Bram isn’t Protector-related anyway. Just get him on the line.” Fraser remained silent and Fergus growled out, “Don’t make me ask again.”

  “Fine,” Fraser answered. As he walked toward the front of the room, he muttered, “But it’s your funeral if Finn gets pissed off.”

  Gina’s voice filled his ears. “What’s so important that you need to talk to the Stonefire leader?”

  Fergus met her eyes again. “It’s not him so much as his mate, lass. But before they come on the line, I need your permission to share what Travis has done to you and the other females. If the DDA knows what BroadBay has been doing with the deceptive pregnancies, they may step in and help in a way that can prevent a battle and bloodshed.”

  Hesitation flickered in his human’s eyes and he raised a hand to her
cheek. “The information won’t be public knowledge, Gina. Only those who need to know will. No one on Lochguard, outside of this room and possibly Finn and Grant, will know what the American bastard did to you. And if any of them brings it up, I will beat them to a pulp to defend your honor.”

  As his dragon paced in the back of his mind, Fergus held his breath and waited for Gina’s answer.

  ~~~

  Deep down, Gina knew she should just say yes and let Fergus share her secret. Yet as she tried to make her mouth work, memories of her so-called college friends calling her crazy for wanting to keep a dragon’s bastard flooded her mind. Or, how her parents had told her that if she kept the child, they never wanted to see her again. They wouldn’t have her younger sister associated with a dragon’s whore.

  Only her ailing grandmother had taken her in with open arms. But when she’d died a few months ago, Gina had been on her own in Scotland.

  Everyone on Lochguard had been kind to her so far, but would they remain so if they knew the truth? Or, if protecting her ended up costing them the lives of their loved ones?

  Fergus stroked her cheek and she forced herself to meet his kind, steely eyes again. He murmured, “I can’t help you if you won’t tell me what’s going on inside that head of yours.”

  Swallowing the emotion in her throat, she whispered, “If the truth got out, then everyone would either pity me or look at me with disgust in their eyes. And if it came to a fight just to protect me and their family member died as a result, then they’ll boot me out of the clan faster than you can say Lochguard.”

  Anger flashed in Fergus’s gaze. “What in the bloody hell are you talking about?”

  She frowned. “Don’t yell at me. I’ve been here a week and I’m not even your mate. On top of that, I’m carrying another dragon-shifter’s child and wanted by the American DDA. I know you’ll say the clan took in Arabella despite the dangers and her past. But Ara is a dragon-shifter. I’m a human carrying contraband. I can’t imagine any dragon clan wanting to protect me if it cost them their lives.”

  Finn’s voice boomed inside the room. “Lass, then you don’t know us at all.”

  Gina whipped her head toward the screen in the front, which displayed Finn and another male dragon-shifter with dark hair and blue eyes she’d never seen before. “Finn.”

  The Scottish dragon leader answered, “Aye, it’s me. And this is Stonefire’s leader, Bram. But enough with the introductions. Tell me now, Gina MacDonald. Do you wish to stay on Lochguard? And don’t give me any excuses. Yes or no.”

  At the dominance in Finn’s voice, she felt compelled to answer truthfully. “Yes.”

  Finn nodded. “Aye, well, that’s good enough for me.” He looked to the other dragon leader. “How about you Bram?”

  The dragonman’s reply was dry. “Does it matter what I say?”

  A female voice from off-screen hissed, “Bram.”

  Bram sighed. “Okay, Evie.” The English dragon leader met Gina’s gaze. “I do have another question for you, Ms. MacDonald. Before my mate works her magic with the DDA, do you plan to mate Fergus MacKenzie?”

  Fergus growled at her side, but she hit his chest lightly. “Stop it, Fergus.”

  Tightening his grip on her hips, he replied, “This shouldn’t be rushed, Gina. You need to make the decision on your own terms.”

  She looked up at her dragonman. Fergus always put her needs first. Even in the short time she’d been on Lochguard, he’d always been kind, patient, and protective. In that moment, she accepted the truth—Fergus would never abandon her the way Travis had done. She trusted her dragonman completely.

  Hell, she was half-way in love with him already.

  Taking a deep breath, she finally answered, “I am making the decision on my own terms. I want to stay with you, Fergus MacKenzie, provided you want me to stay.”

  An emotion she couldn’t identify flashed in his eyes before his pupils turned to slits and back. “Of course I want you to bloody stay, Gina. If you don’t know that by now, then maybe I need to do a lot more convincing and show you.”

  He leaned down to kiss her when Finn’s voice interrupted them. “Right, then you’re going to mate each other right now, but in the condensed version with me and Bram as witnesses.”

  Gina blinked. “What?”

  Finn asked, “Are you having second thoughts, lass? Because it’s now or never.”

  Fergus muttered, “Gina deserves more.”

  Finn raised his brows. “You can do a romantic, pull-all-the-stops ceremony later. I know you’ve been planning one since you were in your early twenties, cousin. We’ll let you have your dream later.”

  Before Gina could reply to Finn’s revelation, Fergus growled out, “Fine. But you’re going to pay for that later, Finn.”

  Finn shrugged. “I can handle that.” The dragonman motioned toward them. “Hurry up and state your claims. The sooner it’s done, the sooner we can see if the DDA will help flush out the traitors and Yanks near Lochguard.”

  Fergus turned her body fully toward him. “Are you ready, Gina?”

  Placing a hand over her belly, she nodded. It was time to embrace her choice and chance at a future. “As you Scots say, aye, I am.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Both man and beast were still reeling from Gina’s answer. In a few short sentences, Gina would be their mate.

  His dragon growled. Then hurry up and say the words. The human has no idea what to do.

  Fergus took Gina’s hands. “I, Fergus MacKenzie, wish to take you as my mate, Gina MacDonald. You’re stubborn, clever, and are always out to push my buttons. You’ll make a fantastic mother and addition to the clan. With you by my side, I will be a happy dragonman. The only question is—will you accept my claim?”

  Gina smiled. “I suppose so.” Fergus growled and Gina laughed. “Okay, I do. We don’t want to rile up your dragon.”

  Fergus opened his mouth to reply when Finn interjected, “Do the same, Gina. And quickly. I need this done.”

  To his human’s credit, she merely nodded. He loved the fact she could focus on what was important, even if it meant taking an order.

  Squeezing his hands, Gina stated, “I wish to take you as my mate, Fergus. Sure, you’re hot and muscled, but you’re so much more than the outer package. You’re really smart, loyal, and kinder than most anyone I’ve met. To be honest, I sometimes wonder if you can read my mind because you understand what I need so well. I also think you need someone like me to help you relax and force you to take a break once in a while.” Fraser snorted to his side, but a quick glare shut up his brother. Gina continued, “Together we fit and I guess all I need to know is if you accept my claim on you?”

  Fergus tugged Gina gently against him. “Of course I do, bloody woman.”

  She grinned up at him and Fergus leaned down to kiss her. He’d barely nibbled her lip and slipped his tongue into her mouth when Finn’s voice boomed again. “Right, it’s done and witnessed.” Fergus broke the kiss. He and Gina turned toward the screen. “Bram and I will see what we can do here. In the meantime, stay in the bunker. I don’t know what they have planned and Grant is only starting to put together the pieces.”

  Fergus spoke up. “Let me help, Finn. If I reach out via mobile phone to some of my contacts in the area, they may have extra information.”

  Finn nodded. “Aye, do that. But stay in the bunker and protect your mate. Speaking of mates, where’s Arabella?”

  Fraser answered, “She’s resting in one of the back rooms with Holly, Mum, and Ross standing guard. Ara’s thrown up twice today and is exhausted.”

  Concern flashed in Finn’s eyes. “I want you two to help Holly look after her.”

  Fergus replied, “Of course.”

  Finn clapped his hands together. “Brilliant. Then hang tight until—“

  Faye burst into the room, her face flushed from running. She noticed Finn on the screen. “Hello, cousin.”

  Bram finally spoke up. “Finn,
are you finished with the family business? Evie is going to need our help if we’re to secure the human’s future on Lochguard.”

  Fergus spoke up. “Wait, there’s something you need to hear, Finn.”

  Finn pierced him with a stare, but Fergus didn’t so much as bat an eye. “Then say it, Fergus. There’s much to do and not much time to do it. ”

  Gina squeezed his hand in encouragement and he explained about Travis’s bet and what the bastard had done with Gina and the other nine females.

  Finn and Bram both cursed. Finn was the first to speak. “I’m truly sorry you had to experience the worst of dragon-shifter kind, Gina. I’m going to do everything within my power to make sure BroadBay and that bastard in particular pay. ”

  Gina leaned against Fergus. “Thank you, Finn. But all I want is to ensure Travis doesn’t hurt anyone else.”

  Finn looked between Fergus and Gina and back again before asking, “Anything else we need to know?”

  As soon as Fergus shook his head, Finn glanced at Bram. “Let’s get to work.”

  The screen went blank.

  Fergus put an arm around Gina’s waist and waited to see who would speak first.

  Faye surveyed the room. “What did I miss?”

  At a later time, Fergus might have to hug his sister for not bringing up Gina’s past.

  Fraser winked. “Oh, nothing important. Just your oldest brother being mated.”

  Faye’s gaze moved to Fergus and Gina. “What?”

  Pulling Gina tighter against him, he wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “Aye, you have a new sister.”

  Faye grinned. “I’m happy for you both.” She turned toward the two Protectors manning the technology at the front. “Fill me in on what’s happening.”

  As Faye engrossed herself in her work, Fergus rubbed Gina’s arm and murmured, “Come, lass. We could do with a moment alone.”