A Dragon Gambles For His Girl: A Nocturne Falls Universe story

by Kira Nyte

  He lowered his hands to her shoulders, slipping his thumbs up along her neck. A frown claimed her mouth. A subtle pinch creased her forehead.

  “Ariah, I want to learn everything about you. Everything, from the stories you so desperately revolt against to the reason you think of yourself as a lowly street rat. None of it makes sense to me, why you hold this darkness inside of you when all I see is fire and strength. Your life’s trials will not sway me in my perception of you, but I need to understand what you’ve been through so I don’t inadvertently hurt you.”

  “Like I just did.”

  He projected the thought without using telepathy, just leaving his mind open for her to read. He wanted to give her the choice to hear him or not.

  Ariah tilted her head a hairsbreadth, just enough to press into the gentle back and forth motion of his thumb against the underside of her jaw. When her hand came around his wrist and held him a moment before her face relaxed, his dragon reared its protective head. No one would hurt his Ace. The marked pain he caught in her eyes would vanish. He would make sure she knew happiness, true happiness, with him.

  “You didn’t hurt me, Alazar. I’ve lived as the product of that lifestyle for far too long. I’m tired of it. I don’t want it. I want to be free of the burdens, the debt, the endless cycle of seeing the few bucks I make cross over my palm before they go to pay off some guy or guys my father owes money to. I…I can’t do that anymore. I can’t do the motels. I can’t do the vending machine meals.”

  Her small confession constricted his chest, but he kept his ire at bay. On his next breath, he detected the potent scent of tears. Ariah curled her lips in and pressed them tight.

  Dealing with her father would be discussed with Mark, not Ariah.

  “Hey, you will never have to worry about those things again. I promise you that.”

  Ariah sniffed and straightened her head, rubbing at her eyes with the heels of her palms. As much as Alazar wanted to draw her into his arms and comfort her, he sensed a faint resistance. A warning that she would not be receptive to comfort at this moment.

  “You know, there was a time when I was younger that I believed in perfect lives and happily ever afters. I did. I could see the spectacular world my uncle talked about like I walked it every day of my life. When things went bad, I clung to that beacon of hope and those beautiful stories, thinking that maybe the better wouldn’t be lush forests and clear waterfalls, but a mere sense of security within myself. As the years passed, the images faded. I accepted reality.”

  Alazar drew a knuckle under her eye, wiping away a single tear before it escaped down her cheek. The pain and shame that rolled off her in waves stole his breath.

  Ariah laughed through a sniffle and stepped back, bracing her elbow on an arm tucked around her chest. She ducked her head, tugging at the strands of hair along her cheeks in a subtle motion to hide her face.

  “I’m sorry. This is ridiculous. I mean, you don’t know me and here I am, pouring out my pitiful story to you.”

  He tried to conjure up something funny to say, something to disperse the dark emotions that had thickened the air between them in the last few minutes. The humor had dried up for the time being.

  “Ariah, come here.”

  He opened his arms, beckoning her to accept the support he desperately wanted to provide. He waited, counting each second in his head, ticking off the possibility she would shun him when she may very well need him the most. They may be strangers, but his dragon recognized her in the same fashion her spirit recognized him. The bond was indisputable, silly to try and deny. The longer he stood by her side, the stronger that bond became.

  At last, Ariah stepped into his arms, pressing her face to his chest, and releasing a weighted sigh. As he wrapped his arms around her, he felt the tension in her shoulders melt. Alazar held her tight, saying nothing, absorbing her conflict like air into his lungs.

  A few more moments passed and Ariah slipped her arms around his waist, settling deeper into his chest. He pressed another kiss to the top of her head, stealing a short breath of her vanilla-scented hair.

  “If you could do one thing today, what would it be?” Alazar asked after several quiet minutes. Ariah’s arms tightened around him, her face pressing harder into his chest. If she wanted to stay like this for the rest of the day, he’d be more than happy to oblige her.

  “Get lost in a fairytale.”

  Alazar smiled against her cap. “I’ll make it happen.”

  Chapter Eight

  The adult in her felt like a fool. Get lost in a fairytale? Really? She was beyond those years, beyond that flicker of hope.

  Alazar had asked. There was something in his question that connected with her and nudged her to be open and honest, no matter how absurd her request sounded. So, she gave him her answer and his response ignited a lost giddiness inside her heart. She was ready to spend an afternoon with a dragon.

  A dragon.

  There was no way to explain the illusion she’d seen him perform a short time ago. His eyes changed first, his amber irises filling up the sclera, his pupils stretching until they were vertical slits, like a cat’s. An impossible wave of deep red scales tipped with black formed over the backs of his hands. His nails elongated until they were lethal, dark-brown talons.

  The sight almost left her in shock. When she came to—he kissed you!—the first thing she thought was that she had cracked. Alazar the Dragon Man had gone back to Alazar the Human, dealing a blow to her reality as well as to her protective barriers against his charm.

  Now, she sat in the passenger seat of Alazar’s Mustang and stared at a familiar SUV parked in a driveway in front of a house on a street called Crossbones Drive. There were plenty of large, luxury SUVs in the world, probably even plenty in this town. A quick glance at the neighbor’s driveway doused her mental assurances when she saw a not-so-big-and-luxurious pickup truck parked there.

  Didn’t matter. What were the chances this SUV was the same one from the credit union?

  Slim.

  Alazar rounded the front of his powerful Mustang and opened the door for her, taking her hand and helping her to her feet.

  “Is this your place?” Ariah asked, drinking in the modest two-story home.

  “You can say that. Zareh and I bought it a little over a year ago when we came to Nocturne Falls.”

  Ariah cut him with a curious glance as she followed him to the front door. “Zareh?”

  “Good friend. Second oldest Firestorm dragon alive. He and Kaylae are having a house built up in the boonies. They’ll be abandoning me in a few months.” He wagged his brows. “I’ll be looking for a roomie.”

  Ariah snickered. “This is a lot of house for one person.”

  “That’s why I’ll be looking for a roommate, preferably a lifemate.”

  “Wanted ads might help with that.”

  Alazar paused on the stairs to the small stoop and faced her. “Aren’t you the comedian.”

  Ariah gave him a playful shove. Alazar snatched her around the waist, pulling her close as he stumbled back a step.

  “I go down, you go down with me,” he murmured. Despite the good-natured banter, being intimate and close to this dragon left her dizzy with a tidal wave of need.

  The heated moment shattered when the door opened. Ariah looked up to find herself staring into a very familiar face.

  “Hey, Zar. Poor timing, buddy.” Alazar kept his arm secured around her waist as they faced the tall, imposing man filling the doorway. The man gave her a once-over before a hint of a grin softened his otherwise fierce expression as Alazar said, “Found her, no thanks to you.”

  “You were at the credit union earlier,” Ariah stated the obvious.

  “Yes. Releasing Alazar from grounding.”

  Ariah quirked a brow. Alazar laughed. The guy he called Zar rolled his eyes.

  Ariah looked up at Alazar. “Grounding? Your friend grounded you? How old are you?”

  “Five hundred and seventy-one
. And no, I wasn’t grounded.”

  “You’re how old?”

  “With him, age really is only a number,” Zareh said, stepping aside and motioning for them to come in. He closed the door once Alazar and Ariah were inside the small foyer and held out a hand to Ariah. “He’s got more kid in his heart than a five-year-old. Name’s Zareh.”

  “Ariah.” She shook Zareh’s hand. “I’m stuck on the ‘hundred’ part of that age,” Ariah said, trying to turn the conversation back to the nonchalant disclosure of Alazar’s age. “Actually, not a single number in that line-up jives with you.”

  To her entertainment, Alazar tapped the corner of his eye. “No wrinkles, my friend. I’m aging well. Better than any of those injections and creams could do.”

  “Yeah. Those fine lines around my eyes are all thanks to you.” Zareh chuckled and shook his head.

  “Would you like something to drink?” Alazar asked, drawing Ariah’s attention once again. She’d take any excuse to stare.

  “I’m good for now. Thanks.”

  He gave her hip a gentle squeeze and stepped away. “I’ll be right back. Don’t let him frighten or frisk you.”

  Ariah went wide-eyed as Alazar hurried up the stairs. She snapped her attention to Zareh and took a small step away. Zareh motioned to the living room.

  “Not going to frisk you, have no worries. I save that specifically for Al.”

  “Uhh…”

  Zareh lifted his hands and waved in denial when he realized what he said. “Oh, no. Not like that. The woman you saw me with earlier is Kaylae. She’s my lifemate. You’ve nothing to worry about.”

  “So, you’re a dragon.”

  “Last I checked.”

  “And Alazar, too?”

  “There are times I wonder if he’d make a better peacock.”

  Ariah burst out laughing. She slapped a hand over her mouth. Zareh snickered.

  “Sorry. I can’t see that.” Ariah shrugged, lowering her arm to her side. “I think he would make a great dragon.”

  Zareh leaned toward her and nodded once. “You know something? You’re right. He makes a damn fine dragon. And he’ll make you a damn fine lifemate. Beneath the comedian, he’s an incredible man.”

  “I’m getting that.” A strange warmth simmered in her chest. Her logical self told her it was way too early to have any sort of feelings for Alazar while the hopeful child in her dished out love-at-first-sight propaganda to her wistful mind. “It’s been a while since I’ve laughed. He’s made me laugh a lot today, like he knew that’s what I needed.”

  “It’s amazing how we can sense what our partners need most. You’re meant to be in tune with each other. It’s natural.”

  Alazar returned, flipping through his wallet before stuffing the thick leather book into his pocket. “I’m going to show Ariah around Nocturne Falls. Give her the exclusive tour and all. You and Kaylae have plans?”

  “We need to head over to the construction site and make sure the house is coming along as planned. Pandora offered to bring us to Melworth’s Kitchens and More to guide us in some countertop choices and hardware for cabinets, then on to curtains. Again.” Zareh scratched at the shadowed scruff along his jaw. “Doe insists I help make the decision, although I told her I’m not the best with interior design.”

  “Doe?” Ariah asked.

  “Kaylae,” Alazar and Zareh answered in unison.

  “Wow. You two really have a…connection.” Ariah wagged a finger between the men and smiled. “Endearing.”

  “Let’s get moving before Zar starts into his sob story about curtain shopping. It’ll make you twitch.” Alazar slung an arm around her shoulders as she stifled a laugh. “We’re high-tailing it. Enjoy comparing paisleys and damasks.”

  * * *

  “Does Kaylae’s father live around here? Is that how she and Zareh met?”

  Ariah thirsted for more information about Alazar and the dragons. Actually, she wanted solid, impenetrable confirmation that she wasn’t still asleep and dancing around in a dream. The man sitting behind the wheel of his sports car, looking like a compelling bad boy with a sucker-punching smile, was certainly dreamy. Even her own actions—going off with a stranger after seeing scales on his hands—was dreamlike. Uncle Mark’s push for her to remember and embrace her childhood stories was certainly a depiction of an alternate reality.

  For some reason, Alazar’s lingering grin fell at her question. She instantly regretted mentioning the other woman.

  Dream shattered.

  “Talius was Zareh’s Keeper and Kaylae’s father. He was killed a few months ago by the Baroqueth slayers in search of Zareh’s dragonstone.” Alazar laid off the accelerator a bit and sighed. A rush of unease settled in Ariah’s chest. She was all too familiar with sensing trepidation, from hearing the strain in a person’s voice to reading the body language. “Kaylae followed a trail of cryptic messages that led her to Nocturne Falls, and into Zareh’s arms. Literally.”

  “Oh my. That’s terrible.” Curiosity clawed at her. “About her father, I mean. Her meeting with Zareh sounds almost too perfect.”

  “Quite the contrary. She was treading madness. Her father hid who and what she was from her, so she didn’t know how to control hearing people’s thoughts. She thought she was going crazy. Then Zar hit her with the dragon thing. And the lifemate thing. She took it in stride and now they’re planning their happily ever after.”

  “Incredible, really. I should be thankful, then, that my uncle had the foresight to teach me how to control the thoughts.” The corner of Ariah’s mouth twitched as she looked over Alazar’s impressive profile. Even in his serious state, the guy had a warming effect on her. She wanted to reach over the console and sidle up against him. Allow him to shield her from all the bad in the world. Said world knew she needed the shield. “What are these slayers you mentioned?”

  “Ancient sorcerers. A few centuries ago, the head of the Firestorm tatsu clan had a Baroqueth Keeper. The Keeper wanted the dragon’s power. The dragon refused, and hence ignited the first war between Baroqueth and Firestorm. Wiped out most of our kind, both dragons and Keepers. Rebuilding was slow. Female Keepers are rare. Extremely rare. The only time they seem to come along is when our bloodline is on the verge of extinction. About thirty years ago, the Baroqueth invaded The Hollow in an attempt to siphon power from the dragons. Eight of us dragons were able to escape with our Keepers. We abandoned our homeland and came here, to your world. Dragons separated from Keepers to protect our more vulnerable counterparts. We all went into deep hiding and the hiding worked until the Baroqueth found Talius and somehow tracked Kaylae here to Nocturne Falls.”

  “Please tell me these bad guys are finished. Kaput.” Ariah’s heart sped up at the prospect of escaping one dark life only to find herself falling into the waiting embrace of another, very possibly a Reaper of, dark lives. “Please.”

  Alazar’s hand closed over hers. She hadn’t realized her fingers were fisted until the heat of his skin and the simple contact relaxed her. Every tense muscle along her shoulders and her back eased as she flexed her fingers, allowing his to fall between her own.

  “The three who came here were entrapped in stones that Cade, our leader, took back to The Hollow. Our land is a land of magic. The magic used to entrap the sorcerers here was strong, but I would not doubt that their buddies would sniff them out and release them. Those three are in a very secure dragon jail.”

  “So, there are more bad sorcerers?”

  Her mind reeled. Her father claimed to recognize a threat and her uncle suspected their enemies were after the jewel. Had these sorcerers been at the auction house?

  Alazar frowned and gave a slight nod. “Yes. The exact number is unknown. They’ve had thirty years to grow their numbers and their powers. After the attack on Kaylae to get to Zareh, I question the safety of staying separated from our Keepers. Zareh still grieves Talius’s death. He thinks that if he had been closer, he could’ve prevented it.” He paused at a Stop s
ign and rested his head against the headrest, releasing a long breath. “I’ve sensed Mark close by since we arrived in Nocturne Falls, but kept my distance. Even after the attack, I continued to keep my distance, although I tried to pinpoint his location. It wasn’t until last night when you two opened the dragonstone’s box that I was able to trace him to his home.”

  “What does the stone do?” From what she witnessed last night, it did nothing. It sat pretty on its velvet bed. “Does it really do anything?”

  “That jewel must be guarded. It’s your proverbial baby, Ariah. If it fell into Baroqueth hands, it could mean my death, Mark’s death, potentially your death, and the destruction of the Firestorm dragons as a whole. The responsibilities that come with being a Keeper are ingrained in a Keeper from birth. Mark was born into the position as firstborn to his line. His father was my Keeper before him. Mark fathered no children of his own, but his brother sired you. Not only are you next in line to be Keeper”—he rolled his head against the headrest and caught her gaze—“you’re my lifemate.”

  The intensity in his gaze, the glow of his eyes, poured warmth straight down to her toes. She didn’t care for all the drama with the sorcerers, but she certainly liked the sound of being a lifemate to this particular man. It gave her the first sense of security in her tumultuous life in over a decade.

  The responsibility that came with being a Keeper, however, seemed daunting.

  “How do you know I’m that person?” Even as she asked the question, her heart ached at the thought that Alazar and her uncle might be wrong. “Is it permanent? Is it something that we choose? What happens when I get old and die and you continue to live for a few more thousand years, like the dragons in my uncle’s stories?”

  “There’s no denying the pull between us. I know you feel it. It can be overwhelming at times. In the hour since we’ve been formally introduced, I can’t bring myself to think about parting ways.” Alazar twisted enough to look out the back window. Ariah couldn’t help but follow his gaze to the car pulling up to their bumper.