Jace shot Beau a meaningful look. “Devon will be safe when she wakes up, and then we can take our time explaining the situation.”
Again, they were going to clash. What if their trio was doomed before it even fully formed? There was no room for error. The rare opportunity to take two loving mates and bond for a lifetime would only be offered once, and they were off to a horrible start. Beau struggled to hold his tongue but couldn’t. “Stop and think! This is kidnapping. An American woman can’t disappear on safari and not have repercussions.”
“Miz!” Kibo fired a bullet overhead. His frantic footsteps in the brush were headed their way. “Where are you?”
Jace tensed. Beau’s worrywart ways were starting to irritate him. Was there a less shocking way to tell the woman he’d chosen as his life mate that he and Beau were shape-shifting alien beings looking for love? No. This was going to be dicey however they approached the topic. Hopefully, his instincts had been right in choosing Devon and she really was the sort of open-minded woman an adventure like this required.
“Beau, I’m in charge. Listen to me. Shift!” Jace commanded as he hoisted Devon into his arms. “Let’s get out of here.”
In a rush of breath that sounded like a guttural hiss, he shifted to dragon form, proudly spreading his wings wide. A burst of wind caught the leathery skin like massive sails flexing. God, it felt good to take dragon form. He never tired of it. Those first ecstatic moments of transformation were almost as satisfying as an orgasm. Unable to control his joy, he ignored Beau’s accusing stare, lifted his pointed muzzle, and shrieked at the sky.
Flapping his powerful wings he rose from the ground and became airborne. Jace carefully carried an unconscious Devon in his hooked talons as he flew into the mist of the falls.
Beau shifted too, snatched the backpacks from the ground in his talons, and took flight.
As they glided above the mist, he gave himself a harsh chiding. Beau was right to question him. His stupid stunt at the falls could have gotten them all shot. He’d allowed his hormones to get the better of him and behaved like a frat pledge show-off instead of a wise Marduko patriarch. Taking dragon form and chasing Kibo away from the pool had been a stinking bad idea. To his shame, it was now crystal clear to him that a terrified guide firing randomly into the brush could have seriously harmed or killed Beau or Devon. A single foolish act could have cost him the people he cherished most. He knew he’d better rein himself in. That level of stupid just couldn’t happen again. The trio couldn’t afford it.
These weren’t the old days when awed and reverent villagers brought humble offerings to the falls, hoping to catch sight of a fabled dragon. This was the day of the camera phone, the internet, Glocks, radar, and laser-sighted, shoulder-launched missiles, and as archaic as they were in their thinking, even the goddamned Order of the Knights of Saint George were a well-armed and ever-present threat to the Marduko. Add to that it was fucking risky business flying over an open plain with an unconscious woman in his talons.
No wonder his kind was nearly extinct, especially coupled with the dismal fact that a lone, unmated male could expect to die before his thirty-fifth birthday. If fate spared a Marduko male and he was lucky enough to find compatible mates, it better be true, fully committed love for all involved, or else a sneaky little trick of nature hit the self-destruct button anyway. Only true-mated trios survived to breed. The unlucky ones withered and quickly perished, but that was something he hoped he’d never have to face.
Carefully interlocking his talons around Devon, Jace created a secure cage to hold her. He had no idea how Devon would respond to any of this. His future was so uncertain. His thirty-fourth birthday had already come and gone. No pressure there.
In his desire to have Devon and the sacred waterfall all to themselves, he’d deliberately scared the bush guide to the depths of his soul and run him off. To his credit, Kibo had faced his fears and promptly returned for Devon. It took balls to turn around and face an enraged male dragon alone. Damn Kibo and his selfless heroics. Why didn’t the guy just piss his pants back to camp like most people would, instead of regrouping and coming to the rescue with guns blazing? But now and then it was nice to be surprised by someone’s behavior in a positive way. Kibo was looking out for Devon’s safety, and any man who did that earned his begrudging respect.
Beau flew at his side, soaring with grace on a rising stream of air. A faint blue iridescent sheen glistened on his armored scales. He seemed to effortlessly ride the mountain updrafts with barely a beat of his wings, but then Beau was lighter in build and wasn’t carrying a grown woman. He couldn’t coast the updrafts the same way Beau did, and labored at the edge of his limitations. He gazed ahead with determination and focused on the goal. Mount Kilimanjaro at sunset was a stunning and formidable sight. The eastern sky was indigo, and the mountain’s glaciers were bathed in peachy light. A pale sliver of moon rose behind.
Jace hoped he could find the mountain cave his ancestors had once taken shelter in as easily as he and Beau had found it the night before. They had provisioned the cave high on a rocky ridge as a cozy retreat where Devon could be safely exposed to the truth.
Tuning in to his instincts, he let himself be guided higher up the slope. He wanted to be there already and was concerned for Devon. The air was much thinner and cooler here, and only the toughest, spikiest senecio trees flourished at this altitude. He was eager to get to the cave and light a fire to keep her warm.
Devon stirred restlessly in Jace’s talons.
Damn. Jace glanced at Devon. The swoop spell was wearing off and she was beginning to move. He gazed warily at the jagged ravines below as they rushed past. What if Devon woke midflight in a panic and struggled violently or wriggled free of his grasp? He was terrified of crushing her ribs or puncturing her skin with a firmer grip, but hell, it would be so much worse to drop her.
He willed Devon to be still. Please, sweetheart, don’t wake up.
Beau released a joyful shriek and dove toward the mountainside.
A moment later Jace sensed the cave as well. He drew his wings back and pointed his snout downward in a steep but controlled dive. The cave was straight ahead on an inaccessible cliff, partially buried behind the shale debris of a landslide. At this angle the cave appeared to be a dark gash in the steep mountainside, but he knew much more lay beyond.
Flying toward the lip of the precarious ledge, he gazed toward Beau and sent the focused mental image to be ready to quickly shift to human form. He didn’t dare set Devon down in her disoriented state with dragon wings beating above her head. She’d freak out and bolt for sure. If she slipped and fell, it was a lethal drop to the rocks below. He wanted to be sure a steady pair of loving arms was waiting to pull her safely inside the cave before he would risk setting her down on the narrow strip of level rock.
Beau flung the packet of clothing he was carrying toward the mouth of the cave. He latched on to the stone and shifted. With a few crunching sounds his body and bones regained human form. His steel-gray scaly skin smoothed, and his wings gracefully retracted back into his shoulder blades. He hunched forward with an exhausted gasp, then rose on shaking legs.
“That shift kicked my ass.” Beau lolled his head, making the vertebrae in his neck pop. He secured his footing and opened his arms wide. “Hand Devon to me. I’m ready to catch her.”
Jace flapped closer to Beau, hovering in front of him and making his fair locks blow straight into the air from the beat of his wings.
“Let her go.” Beau took hold of Devon’s arms. “I’ve got her.”
He glanced at the sharp rocks below. Suddenly he was too nervous to release his hold on Devon, and couldn’t relax his grip. “I can’t.”
Beau moved closer to the edge. “It’s cold up here. We need to get Devon inside and start a fire.”
His talons locked and refused to let go. He’d already done so many risky and stupid things. What if one of his rash acts got a mate killed?
“Come on!” Bea
u shouted. “You’re exhausted. I can see it. You have to set Devon down and shift. You can’t keep hovering.”
Devon woke with a scream. “Oh my God!” She writhed wildly in Jace’s hold and glanced downward. “Holy fuck!” Her screams echoed across the mountainside.
Beau frowned. “Jace, there’s a hiking party on the next ridge. I saw their campfires last night when I was flying in provisions. What if someone heard Devon scream?”
Devon gasped and struggled. “Beau, tell me right now what the hell this is about!” She stared upward at the dragon flapping above her head. Her face blanched. “Why are you calling that monster Jace?” Her eyes flew wide. “Have I been drugged?”
Finally, he realized he had to trust Beau to catch Devon. This wasn’t all on him, even if he’d scared himself into believing it was. This was a dual venture. The mate bonding could only be successful between equals who trusted each other completely.
“Don’t be afraid.” Beau stretched his arms forward. “Devon, grab on to me and don’t let go.”
Devon reached toward Beau with straining fingers. Tears of panic streamed down her face.
Fighting his fears, he willed himself to relax his grip and allow Beau to carry Devon to safety.
“It’s all right.” Beau latched on to her waist and drew her near.
“Help me!” Devon’s arms twined around Beau’s neck and clung tightly. She buried her face against Beau’s chest, refusing to look toward Jace. “Is it leaving?” she asked hopefully. “What does it want from us?” Her voice quivered.
“I promise the dragon won’t hurt you.” Beau turned and walked Devon safely inside the cave.
His heart dropped. This was bad. Devon sounded terrified, and worse, repulsed by his dragon form. He landed on the tiny ledge and shifted, but this time the cracking in his bones was painful. Beau was right; the shift did kick his ass. He almost screamed in agony when his wings retracted with a rib-splitting crunch. The shift took longer than normal and seemed especially hard to endure. Chalk it up to a harsh combination of adrenaline, mating excitement, and exhaustion—he’d certainly never attempted anything as strenuous as alpine flying with a mate in tow. It was no wonder that forming a trio was a young dragon’s game.
Jace walked past a naturally formed entrance that twisted at sharp right and left angles and protected the cave from roaring mountain winds or prying eyes. He stepped into the domed chamber just as Beau lit a lantern. The warm glow of the lantern flickered against the curved walls, distorting everyone’s elongated shadows.
Devon sat huddled beneath a pile of blankets beside an unlit fire pit. She looked at him with suspicion burning in her eyes. “Beau said that flapping creature out there was you.” She tensed. “What are you? Why did you befriend me and trick me into coming here? If you were decent, if you truly meant no harm, shouldn’t you have warned me what I was getting involved with?”
Shame pierced his heart. “You’re right. I should have.” He strode naked across the cave toward a duffel bag filled with clothing. “I’ve made a lot of stupid mistakes, and I want to apologize for that.” Digging through the bag, he retrieved a pair of jeans and a heavy flannel shirt and slipped them on. Then he reached for a warm, dry shirt and tossed it to Devon. “Get out of those wet clothes and set them by the fire.”
“I trusted you!” Devon’s anger grew as she clumsily tore at the buttons of her damp shirt. “I respect you at work. I was dumb enough to think or hope that maybe you had loving intentions toward—” She looked away in discomfort. “I feel completely insane saying this.” She paused. “And then it becomes apparent that you’re already intimately involved with another of our coworkers, a man, but wait, there’s more. It turns out you’re some sort of prehistoric flying lizard that abducts me to a mountain cave. I find all of it highly disturbing.”
Jace looked at Beau. “How much does she know?”
“Not much.” Beau lit a pile of logs stacked in the fire pit. The fire crackled to life. “You were only outside the cave for a couple minutes. I wanted Devon to know the dragon posed no threat to her. So I told her it was you.”
Devon turned on Beau. “I suppose you’re a dragon too?”
“Yes, I am.” Beau’s gaze sank.
“Don’t look away so guiltily!” Devon snapped. “I want some answers right now. Can you even understand how deceived and vulnerable I feel? This is not normal for me. I’m on fucking Mount Kilimanjaro huddled in a dragon lair! That’s why everyone says never get involved with coworkers.” Devon’s sarcastic laugh echoed through the cave. “This is so weird and so wrong. I hope to God I am dreaming and that tomorrow none of this will be real.”
He watched helplessly as Devon began to shut down. He could see it in her eyes. “I’m hungry.” Jace ignored Devon’s angry rant and pulled several foil-wrapped MREs from the duffel bag. “Is anyone else ready to eat?” He riffled the packages in his hand as he read the labels aloud. “We have ‘Mountain Chili’—sounds appropriate for this place. And ‘Home-style scalloped potatoes with country ham.’ That sounds promising too. Here we go, real comfort food: ‘Mac and Cheese.’ This one’s for Devon.” He tossed the packet into her lap. “It tastes better heated.”
Devon’s stomach growled. “Do you really think you can distract me from this bizarre situation with macaroni and cheese?”
“I’m going to try.” Jace dared to smile. If he acted sane and kept talking to her in a calm voice, maybe she’d start to relax? He poured bottled water into an aluminum cooking pot and set it near the fire to heat. After the taxing flight, he had to restore his body’s energy. “We’re all hungry and tired. I think we should eat, get warm by the fire, and talk. Don’t you think doing something normal like sharing a meal would help?”
Devon didn’t answer, but she looked a little less angry.
Beau gently touched Devon’s hand. “Jace and I would never hurt you. You’re very important to us. We’ll do our best to answer any questions you might ask, and I’m sure you’ll have a lot.”
“Hell yes, I have questions!” Devon’s gaze darted between Jace and Beau. “I don’t suppose there’s any chance I could be returned to camp?”
“We’d have to fly you there in our talons or on our backs,” Jace said in a matter-of-fact manner. “Are you up for another flight so soon?”
Devon looked horrified. “No more flying. No way.”
“Fine.” Jace set his foil packet into the pot. “To be honest, I have no business flying anywhere until I’ve had something to eat and rested. You have to understand that when we step out of this cave, the only direction is straight down. We can’t hike out of here. We’re hours from camp by Jeep, even if we had one, and at least a couple of days from camp on foot. That’s if we don’t get eaten in transit.”
“So, I don’t have a choice.” Devon tossed the sealed foil packet into the cooking pot. “I’m a captive?”
“You’re an honored guest,” Jace corrected her. “This is a sacred place and you’re the only woman I’ve ever considered bringing here.”
“I don’t feel honored. I feel trapped.” Her gaze hardened. “You lured me to Africa.”
Denying it would serve no one. “We did.”
“Why?” She sounded combative. “To scare the shit out of me?”
He fought down a rising sense of panic and used his best corporate voice. What if Devon rejected them? “You will get to see and photograph Amboseli National Park, and hopefully you’ll get to know Beau and me a little better, and some of the initial weirdness of meeting dragon men will fade.”
“Or not.” She shifted restlessly. “Meeting dragon men might always be a little weird. Seriously, how is this even possible? How do you even exist?”
“We’ll tell you everything, but a full stomach and an open mind will make everything a whole lot easier.”
“A whole lot easier for who?” Devon’s crossed her limbs. Her body language screamed off-limits. “I feel tricked and used, but for what purpose?”
&n
bsp; He bit his lip. The next part could send her running, but in which direction? “I spent months getting to know you at work and really watching you from afar. I hope this doesn’t make me sound like a stalker, but I know how you like your coffee. You add almond milk and a spoonful of cocoa. Your favorite color is purple, and you have a purple yoga mat in the trunk of your car. You go to yoga classes Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturday mornings—”
Her mouth drew taut. “Have you been spying on me?”
He shook his head. “Not in an invasive way. I just notice things. We did go on a few dates and you told me some of this too.”
“Yeah. That. Why pretend we’re dating when you don’t call back, hold me at arm’s length, and then spring something like this on me? This is not how normal people date!”
“I’m not a normal person and neither is Beau.” What else could he say? It was true. “I wish I were. I dream of being just like every other fucking guy on the planet who can ask a woman on a date and be casual about it, but I can’t. I’m a Marduko dragon and different rules apply. There is nothing casual or normal about my life.”
Her posture straightened, and she appeared defensive. “Okay, I’m listening. Explain yourself.”
This was it. Out with it. His stomach clenched. “Devon, over the last few months I’ve fallen in love with you.”
“What? No!” Her mouth gaped. “We went on a couple dates, and then you just ignored me!”
Jace shook his head. “Trust me, I wasn’t ignoring you. I had to go slow and I had to be sure.”
“Sure of what?” Her gaze darted between them.
“Sure of an attraction to me.” He glanced at Beau, whose face was so red, he looked like he was ready to jump off the ledge and fly away. “And Beau. I had to be sure there was real interest in us both before we could risk exposing ourselves to you. Devon, you’re the only woman who’s seen me in dragon form.”
The expression on her face was a puzzling mix of emotions he found impossible to decipher. “Is your mother a dragon? Of course, she must be…. How the hell did I get pulled into this?”
Sirens and Scales Page 425
