Dragon's Heart, Volume 1

by T. Cobbin

  “Did they have children of their own?”

  “Nah, they couldn’t. My uncle often said it was fate handing me to them on a plate. I miss them a lot. They died a few years back. My aunt had a heart attack after falling down the stairs, and my uncle died twenty-four hours later. The doctor said his heart just gave out, broken heart syndrome he called it.”

  The scent of both love and misery drifted over to him from her, and he wanted to reach across the table and pull her into his arms. Fuck it! Getting up out of his chair, he quickly moved around the table, picked her up, and sat down in her seat before she could say anything else. Being the feisty woman he’d come to know he thought she would fight him, but instead she surprised him by hugging him tightly around the waist and laying her head on his chest. His dragon purred.

  “Do you believe in love at first sight?” he asked quietly. He rested his chin on her head and waited for her to reply. After a few minutes he heard the whispered answer.

  “Yes.” Lifting her head, she looked up at him and said, “I also believe in love ’til death do us part.”

  It took a nudge from his dragon to remind him to take the breath she’d just stolen.

  * * * *

  For the next hour Wendy enjoyed herself, talking about her life and finding out about his. She was surprised he behaved with her sitting on his lap; she could feel the bulge under her butt and now knew that it definitely wasn’t a pair of socks.

  She would have been happy to sit talking to him until the sun rose, but she knew driving home tomorrow would be the death of her, literally, if she didn’t get another hour or so of sleep.

  “I can’t wait to go home.” Wendy sighed and stretched a little. “As soon as they release me I’m going up to see Amy and the baby, then I’m going to drive home and enjoy a nice, long bath. But I think I better get some shut-eye, because I really don’t want a dent in my Sally.”

  “Sally?” Pete asked, his eyebrows raised in question.

  Wendy beamed. “Yeah, my little beetle.”

  She found herself lifted up as he stood, and she wrapped her arms around his neck, feeling each and every one of his tight muscles. Leaving the canteen, he carried her along the corridors until finally coming to the ward where she’d been given a bed for the night. When he placed her on the bed, she felt the overwhelming loss of both his body heat, which was a lot warmer than hers, and also his touch.

  She removed her robe and Pete silently took it from her hands and placed it at the bottom of her bed. Lifting the blanket and sheets over her body, she lay down, watching the big man sit back down in the chair.

  “You aren’t going to get much sleep in that chair.”

  “I don’t think the nurses will like it if I climb into bed with you. I’ll get what I can. Don’t you worry about me.” He smiled then tilted his head back and closed his eyes.

  She studied his handsome face until she finally succumbed to sleep. She dreamed of a big man who slept beside her and made her scream out his name in ecstasy.

  The clang of metal hitting the floor had her awake in seconds. Confusion and fear ran through her system. Shit, was someone in her house? Then suddenly all her memories came rushing back, and she realized she was in the hospital ward. She glanced down at her watch. 6:32 AM. Already she could feel it was going to be a long day.

  “Morning, sugar.”

  She let the silkiness of Pete’s voice run over her then looked up to see him watching her. “Morning, Pete. Did you manage to get any sleep?”

  “A little.” He smiled.

  “Well, you have all day to sleep I suppose. And if you’re working tonight, you’re going to need it, right?”

  He cocked his head slightly, examining her. “What are you planning today?” he asked instead of answering her question.

  “I told you earlier, I’m going to see Amy and the baby, then Sally and I will be making the trip home. I have two weeks of work left before the summer holidays.”

  Pete moved forward to the edge of his chair. “I have a few weeks’ holiday coming up too. I would love to take you to Bardsey Island where I grew up. I haven’t been back there since my family’s death. Would you accompany me?” Wendy saw pain flicker in his eyes.

  “Have you ever taken anyone to your island before?”

  “No. You’re the first woman I’ve ever asked to see it. Why?”

  She shook her head. “Why me then?”

  “I told you before there is something special about you. I don’t want any other woman, Wendy. I want you and only you. I asked you last night if you believed in love at first sight, and you said yes. Tell me that you don’t feel something between us?”

  “Well, I certainly felt the way you feel about me last night.” She smiled, licking her lips. While she had sat in his lap she had felt his rock hard cock the entire time. She actually wondered if it was painful for him to be so stiff for all of that time. “I do, however, feel that there is something more than that between us. If I was to say yes to the trip, what would it entail?”

  “If I was honest,” he said, moving even closer so he could whisper, “lots and lots of sex while also sitting and watching the sunset or sunrise with a beer and good company. If I was to lie…” He paused, tapping his cheek with a finger as if he was thinking hard. “Nope, can’t think of anything.” He smiled at her.

  It was pretty fucking hard to hide the shivers that were running through her. If her pussy could purr, she would have had to keep her legs crossed to stifle the noise. A holiday somewhere quiet and out of the way with weeks of sex? Yeah, she could handle that. Visions of his naked body on top of hers filled her mind, the images making her body quake in response.

  Clearing her throat, she nodded and ran a finger over her lips, trying hard to suppress a grin. “Sounds like a plan then.”

  Before they could discuss it further a doctor in green scrubs appeared at the end of her bed, with several others standing behind him. Wendy couldn’t help the glee that flooded through her—it was time to go home. She glanced over at Pete, and suddenly, she felt like she was leaving something behind. Uh-oh!

  * * * *

  Pete waited outside the small, curtained area around the hospital bed while Wendy dressed. He couldn’t believe she was willing to go with him to his island. The fact that he’d even thought of going back had shocked him. He hadn’t stepped foot on the island in twenty-six years. The pain he felt just thinking about his family home had hit him hard each time he thought of going there. But for some reason going back with Wendy didn’t feel as bad.

  As for the caretaker who’d murdered his family...he hadn’t been seen since the incident occurred. If he truly had been insane, Pete had thought the man could have been incarcerated with his rantings about dragons, but nope, the man had not been seen. There was still a missing person’s report for him. That was something Pete checked on regularly.

  Hearing Wendy hum as she dressed, Pete smiled. In two weeks he would be taking his mate to his family home. He couldn’t wait.

  Across the ward, he spotted Dennenth talking to Sarah. He’d only had a few minutes to catch up with his friend earlier. Dennenth had told him briefly what had happened and how he planned to take Sarah home then bring her back with their son. From the look on the woman’s face, Dennenth had a fight on his hands.

  “Okay, numbnuts, I’m all done. You can come in now.”

  “My name isn’t numbnuts.” He growled, sliding the curtain back along the rails to rest against the wall.

  Wendy looked at him with a cheeky smile on her face. She shrugged. “You look cute when you’re trying to be angry at me. Let me go tell Sarah and Melanie goodbye and give them a hug, and we can go see Amy, and then I can finally get in my car and go home. Oh, and thank you for having someone bring Sally here along with my bags last night.”

  She grasped his t-shirt in her small fist and pulled him down to her level. There would have been no way she could have done that if he hadn’t let her. Warm lips caressed his cheek
. Could my cock get any harder?

  He looked down into her sparkling green eyes. His mate was gorgeous. He’d watched her sleep, memorizing every single bump, scar, and blemish. She had a small star-shaped scar just above her eyebrow, her freckles were a deep brown color, and she had several small strands of natural blonde hair from a slight quiff at the front of her forehead.

  “You’re welcome,” he said, standing up to his usual height.

  He gestured for her to walk in front of him toward her friends. He nodded to Dennenth, who was still sitting beside Sarah’s bed, and waited patiently while Wendy give each of her friends a hug and kiss. He knew from the brief conversation he’d had with Dennenth last night that Sarah had seen his dragon, but as of yet she hadn’t said anything about it. And based on what he’d heard from the conversations between the friends, Sarah hadn’t told her friends about what she’d seen.

  “Now, shall we get out of here?” Wendy said after she picked up her bag and walked the few steps toward him from the end of Sarah’s bed.

  Pete plucked her bag from her hands, quickly scooped her up, and gently threw her over his shoulder. “Yes, let’s.” He strode down the corridor and through the ward doors.

  “I can walk you know.” She huffed. He felt a small tap to his butt and stopped mid-stride.

  “Did you just slap me?” he asked and slid her a little down his body so he could see her face. Her cheeks turned a darker red.

  “So what if I did, armor butt?”

  “Armor butt, huh?”

  “Well, it’s like slapping a piece of fucking concrete,” she murmured, looking down at her hand.

  Pete looked down too and saw it was quite red. Dropping her onto her feet carefully, he lifted her hand to his mouth and kissed her palm. He wanted to lick it and take the stinging pain she must feel away, but it wasn’t quite the time to tell her he had healing magic.

  Every dragon shifter had different magic abilities. His friend and boss Troy could manipulate earth in different ways. Dennenth’s was protection, whereas Pete’s dragon magic was healing. A spear of sadness rippled through him when he thought of his family. He pushed away the thoughts that had haunted him for years: if only he had gotten to his family sooner, perhaps he could have saved them.

  “Hey, you okay?” Wendy’s soft hand slid down his cheek, bringing him from his bad memories.

  Grabbing hold of her hand, he lifted it to his mouth and kissed the center of her palm. “Just thoughts that shouldn’t be lingered on.” He smiled at her. “Let’s go see this baby.”

  This time he left her to walk beside him still holding his hand.

  Chapter 3

  Two long weeks passed, and Wendy found herself getting nervous and excited the closer the time came to get in her little car and drive to London. Pete was then going to drive them through Wales to Porth Meudwy for the ferry ride to Bardsey Island. Pete and her would stay there until Amy and Troy’s wedding four weeks later.

  All in all the journey was going to take them just under nine hours. Nine whole hours in a vehicle with Pete and getting to know him better made her feel a little excited as well as a little worried. What if the man was boring? What if he had disgusting habits? She shook her head. Her thoughts were running away with her. Whatever happened she would take it in stride.

  She’d googled the island and knew it was a small tourist trap with hikers and bird lovers, and she even found out the general history of the place. But no matter how much she looked she couldn’t find any details about a family that had been murdered there. Pete hadn’t gone into a lot of details, only that they had all been killed. She frowned. Actually, he hadn’t even told her who had done it. She wondered if Pete knew who had done it, or if the person had been caught. She planned to ask those questions…and more.

  Shaking her head, she picked up the last of the children’s chairs and placed them on the tables while taking a long look at the classroom. It was going to be weird coming back here without her best friend. Amy was going to stay in London with her soon-to-be husband. They had been friends from the time Amy had first walked into the building. The sense of loss seemed greater as Wendy locked the door. Why did it feel like the last time for her too?

  “Hey, you’re deep in thought there.” Bobbie came up behind her, making her squeak in surprise.

  “Good Lord, woman, hand me back my heart you just shocked out of me.” Wendy glanced around, looking for their other friend. “Where’s Melanie?”

  Bobbie laughed. “You didn’t hear? Oh, that woman got carted off yesterday pretty quick after she’d locked up. The night after the hospital incident I drove down to London to pick her up, right? Well, I talked her into staying the night, and I also talked her into going clubbing at Dragon’s Heart. She ended up sleeping with both Brock and Cole, and the three of them seemed to have hit it off. They’re currently backpacking around Britain.”

  “I can understand the Britain part being you wouldn’t get Melanie going anywhere abroad, but two men? And why is this the first I’ve heard about it?”

  Bobbie chuckled. “Girl, you’ve been in your own little world since coming back two weeks ago. It’s as if I had superglued your phone to your hands for crying out loud.”

  Bobbie was right. The only time Wendy put the bloody phone down was when she was asleep. Getting messages or calls from Pete made her day.

  “What about you? What are you doing for your hols this year?” Wendy asked.

  A huge smile lit up Bobbie’s face. “I do have one little secret,” she said, holding up her finger and thumb with a small space between them, then she paused as if she were suddenly unsure if she should continue.

  Wendy linked arms with her, giving her a little comfort. She hadn’t ever seen her friend wary. The woman was always assertive, always ready to give someone what for if she thought they were wrong. She was the Pitbull of the group. If something got in her way, she didn’t let go until she was done.

  Wendy remembered a time when Bobbie suspected one of her pupils was being abused by their father. She’d mentioned it in the staff room one afternoon, and two weeks later the father had been brought up on charges after Bobbie found the evidence needed to contact the authorities. The father was rather vocal when he was arrested, spouting off that it was the kid’s fault, but when he was asked where he got the shiner he was sporting, he suddenly shut up. Between the group of friends, they all knew Bobbie had smacked the man; it wasn’t that she shouted it out, it was the fact she’d broken several knuckles doing so.

  “I, umm…” Bobbie said.

  “Spit it out.” Wendy giggled. Yep, her friend was sure nervous about something.

  “Well, that night Melanie wasn’t the only one who got lucky at Dragon’s Heart.”

  “Oh, do tell.”

  “He was tall, sexy, handsome, and had dimples just above his butt cheeks that needed exploring.” Melanie’s face lit up with a smile that put the sun to shame.

  “Butt cheeks? How the hell did you… Nope, don’t even go there.” Wendy chuckled louder. She really didn’t want to know just how she had seen some man’s butt dimples. “It’s weird us all going separate ways this summer. We’ve always spent the summer together, or at least partially.”

  “Yeah, I know.” Bobbie nodded. “We will stay in contact. Plus, we’ll all be together in four weeks when Amy gets married.”

  “I know. It just feels sad, that’s all. So what are you planning on doing this summer?”

  “I’m going to be a waitress for a few weeks, do some adult stuff while hoping to get some action between the sheets with a hunk of a man—”

  “With butt dimples,” they both said together, laughing.

  Reaching the playground gates, they chained them up and gave each other a hug. Wendy watched her friend walk down the small lane toward her home, feeling a little nostalgic. This was the first year since being there that she and her friends were going their separate ways.

  A few hours later Wendy had Sally all packed an
d ready for their road trip in the morning. With all her emotions floating around inside of her, it was a very long night filled with ice cream and crappy movies. If she caught any sleep, it slipped through the net.

  When the sky began growing lighter she gave up on the movies and any sleep she wished to get and decided to leave earlier than she’d planned to. Climbing into her little car, Wendy set off toward one handsome man who made places on her body tingle, and an island.

  The pure, country air smell dissipated and the city, polluted air grew stronger as Wendy drove toward Pete. It was only 7:30 AM and he had already rung twice and texted several times, making sure she was still coming and seeing how close she was.

  She jumped a little when her phone rang through the car speakers just as she was pulling up outside the massive building where Pete had said he lived. Seeing it was the person in question, she picked up the phone, blurting out, “No fucking way do you live here.” She heard his deep chuckle in the speakers before he spoke.

  “I guess you arrived then.” After a moment’s pause his voice again filled her car. “I see you on the camera now. See that keypad to the right of you?”

  “Yep.” She nodded, looking up into the camera just outside the large gray security gate.

  “Put in 210212. Park in bay twenty-one.”

  She followed his instructions and waited while the gates slid to the right and opened fully. Driving into an underground car park, she looked around at the expensive cars inside. Her tiny red beetle would sure look out of place amongst those. She drove up to bay twenty-one and saw a kaki-colored jeep sitting in the next bay over. It was the only vehicle in the car park, other than hers, that had any sort of color. The rest were all dark and boring blacks. Somehow she knew deep down that jeep, which was twice the size of her beetle, belonged to Pete. Putting Sally into park, she turned her engine off and picked her phone up from the hands-free car mount.