A Dragon's Heart

by Dahlia Rose

  “What are you doing here?” she gasped. “I thought Boyd killed you.”

  “Honey, you forget who I am.” He grinned. “We have things to discuss when this is over, you and I.”

  “You mean you have a lot of apologizing to do,” she snapped back, and her eyes blazed fire. “Don’t think I have a short memory, bozo.”

  “Pixie, I’ll spend a lifetime apologizing, just let me deal with this guy, okay?” Kalv replied.

  “Another move and she is dead,” Luke snarled. “You two are insane. I have the gun, the winning hand is mine.”

  “If that happens, what will keep me from ripping you apart and keeping you alive while I do it?” Kalv asked calmly. “I think right now I could disarm you before you even knew it. But the woman I love is at the other end of that gun, so I’ll give you an opportunity to let her go before I break your arms.”

  Luke laughed. “You got some balls, I have to admit that. I could pay you more than you can possibly imagine to just turn and walk away.”

  “Not interested. Let her go,” Kalv replied. “He wants the land because there’s oil beneath it. Baby girl, you’ll probably be a millionaire before the end of next week. I guess he didn’t tell you this little tidbit.”

  Her mouth dropped open. “You are kidding me. Oh my God! The feed for the animals will be paid for, and I can do renovations on the house and the stables.”

  “Um yeah, we need to build a new barn. Well I’ll build it…” Kalv said.

  “What happened to my barn?” Ginna demanded to know.

  He made a gesture with his hands indicating getting big really quickly. Her eyebrows raised and she nodded. “Oh, okay. Gotcha.”

  “Did you two forget the guy with the gun?” Luke demanded to know.

  “No, I didn’t,” Kalv said grimly.

  In a flash, his hand snaked out and grabbed the gun from Luke before he could utter a sound. He grabbed him by the collar and Luke let go of Ginna tried to break Kalv’s vise grip that tightened on the shirt around his neck. Kalv slammed his hand in his face and was satisfied to see Luke’s face bleed. He made good with his threat and broke Luke’s arm, and the man screamed in agony.

  “This place is going to crumble sweetie, these boards are older rotted, head outside,” he said. “I’ll drag these fools out. The sheriff should be coming soon. Boyd went to get him.”

  “I thought Boyd was holding you hostage?” Ginna questioned.

  “We came to an agreement,” he told her. “He saw a dragon and it kinda scared him.”

  “I’m sure,” Ginna said drily.

  She made her way out of the old mine, and one by one Kalv brought out the men and deposited them none too gently outside. Luke was whimpering and holding his injured arm as the police cars with sirens blaring pulled up. In only a short time an ambulance came up behind them and Luke was handcuffed to a gurney to be taken to the hospital. The rest of the men, including Boyd, were to be locked up until state police could get them. Kidnapping was a federal offense. Luke and his men would be going to prison for a long time.

  “I can give you a ride back,” the sheriff offered.

  “We have something to talk about so we’ll walk back,” Kalv said and took her hand.

  The sheriff drove away. He was the last car and his headlights faded into the darkness. Kalv turned to face her and pulled her into his arms. He kissed her long and hard, and she let him for a moment before she shoved him away.

  “You don’t get to kiss me like that,” she whispered. “I offered you my love, my all and it may not mean a lot to you, but to me it’s more valuable that the damn oil under my land. You threw it back in my face and now you think a kiss can solve it all.”

  “You should punch me in the face, or kick me.” Her eyes went to his crotch, and he winced. “Somewhere else please, we might want to have children.”

  “Yeah you don’t get to pick,” she muttered.

  “Pixie, I would take the pain for you,” he said. “The fact is that you were right. Selfish, that’s me. Angry, that’s me. And when the realm didn’t open to my call, I felt more alone than I thought possible. And I hurt the most wonderful woman, and the one who opened my heart to love again. Baby, even before Luke took you I saw what I did and I would have sat outside your door and apologized until I was hoarse. And if that didn’t work then I was going to kick that door in and love you hard until you believed me.” He took a breath and placed her hand over his heart. “This beats for you my love, and I promise to make myself worthy of you again. I swear an oath to you right now. You are my mate, and I am forever in love with you.”

  Ginna looked up at him, and he hoped she could see the truth in his eyes. “You can still love me hard, I’m not opposed to that idea.”

  He grinned and scooped her up against him to devour her lips in a searing kiss. “I’ll do that in Paladin. My darling, we’re going to go home.”

  “Do you really love me, Kalv? You’re five hundred years old and you look like thirty-five. I’ll get older and…” Ginna sighed. “I won’t ever stop loving you, but I’m not immortal.”

  “I would love you no matter what, Ginna. The thing about Paladin for humans it that it slows aging considerably.” He kissed her gently. “We’ll be together for as long as the stars are in the sky. We’ll spend time in Paladin regularly, and you’ll feel the magic build inside you. Ready to go see my home?”

  “Are you sure it will work? I don’t want you to be disappointed again. It broke my heart to see you not be able to step into your world.” He saw tears in her eyes and wiped them away.

  “Even if it doesn’t work, I still have you and that is enough for me,” he said. “If it’s meant to be, I’ll see Paladin again.”

  In a matter of minutes there were once again moving through the sky toward Greenland. He had renewed hope, and it took Ginna to show him the light. Everything felt different when he stood in front of the gateway.

  “If this works you might want me to put you to sleep when we step through to Paladin,” he said. “It can be difficult for humans who are not accustomed to the magic.”

  Ginna shook her head. “No, I can take it. With you I can take anything.”

  “That goes the same for me. I can bear never seeing my world again as long as I have you, he said and kissed her. “Let’s try this again.”

  He stood in the same position as before and said the words that were engraved into his memory forever. The world tilted and shifted, this time the veil lifted. The world of dragons opened before him, and the beauty of it almost sent him to his knees. In the sky they flew in their true forms, and the towers still gleamed in the sunlight. Kalv held out his hand to her and brought her close to his side as they stepped through the doorway. He hoped his magic helped shield her from any pain stepping from one world to the next might cause. Ginna never whimpered or made a sound of discomfort when they walked through. He took everything in, his home a place he had not seen in over a hundred years.

  People and dragons stopped and stared at him, and he saw the king coming down the steps to the great hall. Beside the king was his son Orin, and behind him the ten other warriors that made up the Paladin Court. He stood where he was, unsure if he should move forward or if he would be expelled. Kalv never let go of Ginna’s hand, and she squeezed it in reassurance. Dammir, the king, was the one who spoke first.

  “It has been long since I’ve set eyes on you, Kalv of the Court.”

  Kalv went to his knee but never released Ginna’s hand. “The door was locked to me sire. It was my love who stands beside me that helped me find my way home.”

  “Then we should be grateful for this new love. She is your mate?” Dammir asked.

  “Yes, sire. Her name is Ginna and she holds my heart,” Kalv replied.

  “Rise warrior, and take your place among the twelve, you have long been missed and there is much in the worlds now that needs your attention.” The king rested his hand on Kalv’s bent shoulder, and the connection of home flowed thou
gh him. The magic he thought lost filled his core, and he was once again part of the Paladin court. “Welcome to your mate, Ginna. May her life in both worlds be complete with you.”

  Ginna smiled. “It’s all so very beautiful.”

  Orin stepped forward and took Kalv’s hand and smiled at Ginna. “My wife, Valencia, can help you become accustomed to our world. She is a New Yorker.”

  Ginna laughed. “I’ll be very happy to meet her.”

  “Your house is still the same, but new accommodations can be arranged,” Orin said.

  “That would be best, a new home for my mate and me.” Kalv smiled. “Change is always good.”

  His warrior brothers in the court surrounded Kalv and it was as if he never left. Ginna was by his side, and finally he felt a peace that he swore he wasn’t searching in the years he was gone from the court. He finally understood he never really grieved he locked it al away in anger and guilt.

  “It’s all amazing and so beautiful, Kalv. I can see why you missed it so much.” She smiled up at him happily. “I’m glad, no honored, to share it with you.”

  “The honor is mine, Pixie.” He lifted her and swung her around while she laughed. He brought her close and kissed her before whispering in her ear. “You gave it all back to me, and regardless of whether it’s here or in Blackbird, Texas, I’ve found my home in you.”

  With dragons flying in the sky and Ginna wrapped in his arms, there was nothing more Kalv could ask for. The heart that was broken and still in his chest was finally free, and nothing was more important to a dragon than his heart or the woman that cherished it.

  The End

  About the Author

  Dahlia Rose is the best-selling author of contemporary and paranormal romance with a hint of Caribbean spice. She was born and raised on a Caribbean island and now currently lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, with her five kids, who she affectionately nicknamed “The Children of the Corn,” and her biggest supporter and longtime love. She has a love of erotica, dark fantasy, sci-fi, and the things that go bump in the night. Books and writing are her biggest passions, and she hopes to open your imagination to the unknown between the pages of her books.

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