by Alex DuBois
Up where they were, Johnny could see the stars, and he watched them for a long time. After awhile, though, even that got boring, and he felt a wave of exhaustion roll over him. The baby tired him out, and he wondered if he’d ever get his energy back. That energy seemed almost like a dream now, though he’d once taken it for granted.
Well, who knew what the next few days would hold? It was better he get some sleep while he could, he figured, and he trusted his mate enough to let himself do so. If Malachai said that he wouldn’t let Johnny fall, then he wouldn’t.
* * *
How much later it was that he woke up, Johnny didn’t know. He woke because he was cold and wet and the sound of thunder shook him to his very core. Even the warmth of the dragon between his thighs wasn’t enough to keep away the chill.
The clouds were all around them, too, and at first, Johnny wondered why Malachai didn’t just pull up higher. Then he realized that the air felt thinner, and he knew that his lover already had. He probably had as much as was safe for Johnny, who still had to breathe, after all.
A lightning bolt arced down out of the sky suddenly, and it narrowly missed them. Malachai swerved, and though they were never in any real danger, Johnny felt dizzy and scared and he clung to the dragon for dear life.
Through their link, the one that Johnny still didn’t fully understand, he felt Malachai’s resignation. They were going to have to land, to wait out the storm, and who knew how long that would make the trip take? Still, there was really no choice, or no good choice, anyway. It was either land and seek shelter or suffer the wrath of the elements, and maybe Malachai could withstand that wrath but Johnny definitely couldn’t.
Malachai dropped suddenly, and through the torrential rain Johnny saw the jagged stone tops of mountains. In seconds, they were among them, plummeting past the snowline lower, lower, until Malachai suddenly folded his wings tightly as they dove into a cave that Johnny hadn’t seen until they were pretty much in it.
The first thing that Johnny noticed was that it was much quieter in there. Oh, he could still hear the storm, but they were way in the back of the cave and it was much diminished. His ears actually rang with the sudden quiet.
“Wait here, my love,” Malachai directed, and he swooped out into the storm again. Johnny frowned, but it wasn’t long until the huge red dragon was back, carrying what appeared to be an entire tree, all broken up into pieces. Which was probably exactly what it was.
Being the fire dragon that he was, it took no time at all for Malachai to start a roaring blaze which warmed even the large stone cave. Johnny huddled close to it, soaking up the warmth, sensing somehow that the baby inside him enjoyed it, too.
Malachai shifted back into his human form, then went over to Johnny and pulled him close. Malachai always radiated warmth, and that was especially welcome since Johnny was soaked to the bone and chilled thoroughly.
“I’m sorry,” Malachai said quietly. His hands burned as he put them on Johnny’s stomach, and that should have been terrifying, given how hot they were. Instead, it was soothing, and Johnny relaxed a little from the harrowing flight they’d just experienced.
“You didn’t know this was going to happen,” Johnny said softly. He’d never wanted to go on this trip, but that didn’t mean that he was going to blame Malachai for every thing, no matter how annoying, that went wrong.
They rested in silence for a few moments, and then Malachai went to get the sack that he’d carried with him. His lover had thought ahead, clearly, as he brought out a sleeping bag for them to share and a bunch of food and water.
The food, in particular, was tempting. Malachai had brought spicy beef jerky, and that made Johnny’s mouth water. He’d always liked spicy food just fine, but he’d never been as obsessed with it as he was now.
While they ate, they cuddled together, and slowly, Johnny’s clothing dried. He sighed, looking out toward the mouth of the cave where it was very obvious that the storm still raged outside.
“I hope this passes soon,” he admitted. He didn’t really want to go to New York, but that didn’t mean that he wanted to hang out in this cave, either.
“I will keep you safe and warm,” Malachai promised, and his hand rested on Johnny’s stomach in a way that was very soothing to Johnny. This life growing inside him was the most important thing, and he was determined to keep it safe. So was Malachai, and that was reassuring.
“I know.” Johnny buried his face in Malachai’s chest. “I know you will.”
Malachai wrapped his arms around Johnny, and Johnny let himself just relax in them.
“Is the baby well?” Malachai asked, and Johnny smiled and nodded.
“Yeah. What do you think about names, baby?” Johnny asked, and Malachai gave a little shrug as he tugged Johnny into his lap. Malachai was a little smaller than Johnny, but so much stronger, and they made it work.
“Dragons typically have boys. There’s a few exceptions, but most dragons are male,” Malachai said, and Johnny nodded.
“Okay. What names do you like for a boy, then?” He let his fingers caress over his stomach, smiling as he imagined their baby boy growing inside there.
“James. Jack. Daniel. That sort of thing.” Malachai rested his hand on top of Johnny’s, and Johnny glowed with happiness. Having Malachai here, both of them linked in the love of their child as well as for each other, he didn’t think he’d ever felt this complete in his life.
“I like James,” Johnny admitted. “Or Luke. Paul. That sort of thing.” He liked the old fashioned names, and it seemed that Malachai did, too, so that was nice. They were in sync for many things.
“Then let’s say James or Luke,” Malachai said, and Johnny smiled and nodded. On some level, it still felt surreal that he was actually picking out names for the child he was carrying inside of him, but on another, it felt so right.
The moment of tranquility didn’t last. Suddenly, at the mouth of the cave, something that looked like an enormous, growling, furry demon appeared, charging forward at Johnny.
* * *
Johnny ducked out of the way, which would have been futile, if he were alone. The creature charging him was a bear. A grizzly, if he weren’t very much mistaken, only were they supposed to be that enormous? Johnny had only seen them in the zoo before, but the color was right.
Luckily, he wasn’t alone. Malachai stepped forward, right in front of Johnny, and stopped the bear in his tracks though he looked far too small to do that. He even managed to push the bear toward the entrance to the cave, away from Johnny.
“Malachai!” Johnny cried, horrified. He knew that his lover was far from helpless, but he loved him. He couldn’t help but be worried.
He should have been worried for the poor bear.
As Malachai pushed the bear back, he shifted, and by the time he had forced him outside, he was a dragon. He picked the bear up in his huge maw, shook him a few times, and then threw him. Hard. Far.
“Malachai, no! He’s just a bear!” Johnny liked animals. He always had. He wasn’t going to claim he hadn’t been terrified by the bear, of course, but that didn’t mean that he wanted him to die.
His protest came too late. The bear flew wide, disappearing into the trees, and Johnny ran out into the rain to watch, horrified.
“You killed him,” he whispered. “We probably took his cave, and you killed him.”
Malachai looked at him with no expression, and Johnny felt like, for the first time, he didn’t even know the man he was mated to.
“He charged at you,” Malachai said, looking a bit stunned by the whole thing. It had all been so instinctive, Johnny was sure of it. It was still terrifying, just how easy it was for Malachai to kill that creature.
Around them, the rain started to die down a little, but Johnny barely noticed. He felt numb, and clutched his stomach to comfort himself. He wasn’t a vegetarian or anything, but he knew that some animals were endangered. Weren’t grizzlies one of those? If so, Malachai had only added to that.
“The storm’s letting up. We should go,” Malachai said, and he didn’t try to touch Johnny. Johnny wasn’t sure how he felt about that, honestly. Part of him would welcome the touch, but part of him appreciated being left alone. That poor bear’s huge body flying through the air was still a very recent memory.
“I want to go home.” Johnny knew it was infantile, but he couldn’t help but whisper those words. He didn’t want to go meet more dragons, not when he wasn’t sure what to do with the one he had.
“Look, I’m sorry. It’s my job to protect you, though, you know that. The bear charged. I just reacted.” He sighed. “Dragons are very possessive, love. You’re mated to a monster, for better or worse.”
A monster. He didn’t want to believe that, but maybe it was accurate.
“I don’t want you to kill things for me,” Johnny whispered. It was nice to know that he was protected, but not at the expense of the lives of other creatures. There had to be a better way.
“Don’t hate me. I can take a lot of things, but not that,” Malachai reached out to Johnny, but he flinched back just a little bit. “I would never hurt you, Johnny. Is the baby scared of me?”
Johnny frowned, and shook his head. No, any sense he got from the child was pleasure that they were both around. It was all very unformed still, but the baby had been scared of the bear, he knew that much. The baby had felt Johnny’s fear of it.
“You don’t have to fear me.” Malachai stepped closer, and his hand rested on Johnny’s stomach. “I’m sorry I scared you. I only did it to protect you. I would never hurt you.”
Those reassurances helped. After all, Johnny had been in real danger, and even at the time, he’d known that if he was alone, he would have probably been killed. It didn’t take all of the fear away, but it helped.
“I guess we should ...” Johnny started to speak, to say that they should get going, when a huge peal of thunder sounded and lightning lit up the cave for a second. Malachai wrapped his arm around Johnny and brought him back to the safety and warmth of their big campfire.
“Not yet, it seems,” Malachai said, giving a wry little smile. Even given their situation, Johnny couldn’t help but find that smile sexy as hell. There had been attraction between them from the beginning, and it was still there, as strong as ever. Maybe stronger. Nothing seemed to challenge it.
Malachai stripped off Johnny’s clothes, which were soaking wet again, and laid them out to dry. Johnny let him, part of him glad to be taken care of. Soon Malachai was naked, too, and they were both folded into the sleeping bag and Johnny’s shivers subsided.
The connection he’d felt with Malachai was instant, and for the first time, it had been challenged. What was this creature that he was bonded to? A monster, like Malachai said? Johnny wasn’t sure what to think.
Maybe he dozed. Maybe he just rested and let himself relax. Whatever the case may be, Johnny was suddenly very awake, aware that the baby inside him was anxious.
“Something’s coming,” he whispered, and Malachai looked up, a predatory, scary look in his bright blue eyes.
“What’s coming?” Malachai asked, and then there was someone at the entrance to their cave once more. Someone huge and bearded and naked.
“I am,” the stranger said simply, a very serious look on his face in the flickering light of the fire.
* * *
Johnny scrambled out of the sleeping bag, his eyes fixed on the stranger. Who would be way up here in the Rockies? This was the sort of land where humans didn’t normally come, and certainly not in the middle of a huge storm like this.
“What do you want?” Johnny asked, quick to stand up. He didn’t want to be responsible for the death of this man, too. He wouldn’t just hang back and let Malachai deal with this.
“I want my house back,” the man growled, and Malachai walked up to stand beside Johnny, beside him and just slightly in front of him.
Malachai looked at the man, and then suddenly, for some reason, he took a deep breath as if inhaling the guy’s scent. Which, it turned out, was exactly what he was doing.
“I should have smelled it before. Bear.” Malachai crossed his arms over his chest and looked defensive, and Johnny very slowly began to put the pieces of the puzzle together. “I needed a place to shelter my mate. I didn’t know ...”
The man interrupted.
“You didn’t know because you didn’t care. My scent is all through this place, dragon.” He sneered. “Dragon. Arrogant. Always just taking what they want. It’s typical for your kind. What do I care about your mate?”
Malachai didn’t like that, and Johnny could tell that very clearly. He could feel the rise of anger in his mate, and he knew that the bear, while offensive, wasn’t totally wrong. Malachai was a little bit arrogant. Being so powerful, his instinct was to take what he wanted.
“You should ask why I would care about your pathetic life,” Malachai snarled, and Johnny shook his head and stood between them, unwilling to watch this fight play out again. This time, he doubted that the bear would survive.
“Malachai, stop it,” Johnny said sharply, looking into those angry blue eyes that burned hotter than anything else could. Johnny should be terrified, but he wasn’t. This was his mate. He trusted that Malachai would never do anything to hurt him.
It was everyone else he was worried about, at least when Malachai’s eyes burned like that.
“Luckily for you, my mate wants you alive,” Malachai said, and his pose was still strong and dominant and powerful, but he spoke a little less offensively.
“Do you know of anywhere else that we can take shelter?” Johnny asked, because it didn’t look like the man knew, or cared, that Malachai was trying. He was still just as angry as ever, and to Johnny it felt like, since the stranger was quite obviously connected to the bear that Malachai had tried to kill, maybe the guy had a reason to be miffed.
“There’s other caves. All sorts of them, mostly uninhabited.” The guy spoke much more politely to Johnny, but it was still very clear that he wanted them gone, and Johnny wasn’t even sure that he could blame him.
“Okay. Then we’ll go.”
Malachai spoke up then, wearing a slightly sour expression on his handsome face but obviously making an effort to be civil.
“What’s your name? I’m Malachai and he’s Johnny. Inside him is our baby, either James or Luke. You know that we can’t go out in that for very long. He’ll freeze.”
There was a long silence from the guy, and then he sighed softly.
“I’m Peter,” he admitted, as if he didn’t want to give them the name. It was a sign, Johnny felt, that he did anyway. “My mate and our cubs are just a few caves away, dragon. Don’t wave the safety of your mate in my face. He is nothing to me.”
Johnny couldn’t help but notice that, although the words were fierce and gruff, the huge man had softened a bit. His face was less intense, his eyes seemed like they were almost capable of compassion.
“Look, why do you need this cave? If your mate and cubs are elsewhere, can’t we just stay here until the storm passes?” Malachai didn’t like having to ask for something, but he was doing it.
“You’re too close to them,” Peter replied, and he walked over to Johnny, who didn’t flinch back. Peter was imposing, no doubt about it, but it hadn’t escaped Johnny’s notice that the guy had changed his attitude after learning that Johnny was pregnant. He didn’t think that Peter would hurt him.
“I feel sorry for you,” Peter said, his dark eyes expressing the same sentiment. “Married to someone who would murder as easily as he would breathe.” The bear hesitated, and then sighed. “I wasn’t going to kill you, you know. Just chase you away.”
It felt sort of like being punched in the gut, and Johnny reeled at that. It echoed his own thoughts too closely, and while Peter had not intended to kill Johnny, Malachai had definitely intended to kill Peter.
“Look, just tell us where the closest cave is that you wouldn’t mind us staying in
for the night. Or let us stay here.” Malachai flinched, and Johnny could tell that it was difficult for him to say the next word. “Please.”
Peter looked surprised, and then he looked Johnny over. His gaze strayed to Johnny’s stomach, still mostly flat as it was, and then he looked away as if disgusted with himself.
“For the sake of your mate, dragon, and not for your own, you may stay here until the storm passes. Not a moment longer.” He took a deep breath, then turned away. “Remember that you owe this to a human, and to a bear, not to your almighty dragon heritage.”
“I will remember.” Even those three words were hard for Malachai to say, but he said them, and Johnny had the idea that his mate would do as he said.
Just like that, Peter was gone, disappearing into the torrential rain outside. Johnny, feeling a little bit sick, collapsed onto the sleeping bag, overwhelmed by everything.
Chapter Seven
Malachai
Murderer. Arrogant. Entitled.
Somehow, it had escaped Malachai’s notice that people thought about dragons like they did. No, that wasn’t true. He’d known, he just hadn’t cared. What was the envy of those beneath him?
Then he’d fallen in love with Johnny, a human. His mate. The one person that he could not possibly live without. That had made him see things that he never had bothered to even look for before.
The look in Peter’s eyes when he’d spat out the word ‘dragon’, that stuck with him. He knew he wouldn’t be able to forget, and that it mattered.
The storm lasted through the night, but the next morning dawned clear, with not a cloud in the bright blue sky. Johnny slept, but Malachai didn’t, so he was ready to go as soon as Johnny woke up.
The look in his mate’s eyes was sort of heartbreaking. Johnny was scared of him. Maybe he even should be. Their relationship had taken damage the previous day, and some of Johnny’s delusions had been stripped away.
