Trusting the Dragon Prince

by Rinelle Grey

  His own voice cried out her name as well, and his arms pulled her tightly against him as he thrust wildly several more times, gasping in release.

  It was beautiful. Perfect. Far more amazing than she could have even imagined it would be. Rylee was glad she’d seized the moment and pushed aside the fears that had kept her from this. No matter what else happened, she couldn’t ever regret this.

  She leaned her head against Calrian’s shoulder, feeling glad it was him. They may not be in love, may not be promising this would be forever, but she couldn’t deny she felt a closeness to him. He’d given her far more than just this wonderful experience. He’d helped her believe in herself again, something she’d been struggling to do for a long time.

  She’d wanted to do something for him, to repay him for his kindness, but yet again, he was the one who had given to her. He’d given her an experience she’d never even guessed was possible, and one she would never forget.

  Calrian leaned in and kissed her again, his lips gentle and undemanding. Rylee felt tears starting up in the back of her eyes. Her emotions were still on a bit of a rollercoaster from the morning’s ups and downs. That was probably why.

  She wasn’t attached to Calrian. She’d only known him for a few days. The link they’d shared must have intensified the feelings. But they would fade soon enough.

  Wouldn’t they?

  As he pulled back a little, she could already feel the change. He still stood in front of her, still touching her naked body in several places, but somehow, he felt distant. The connection, the bond between them, was gone now. The constant awareness of him she’d felt for the last few days had disappeared as though it had never existed.

  And she missed it already.

  Chapter 28

  Calrian could see it in her eyes, feel it in the power surging through his veins. The Mesmer ritual was complete. He was at full strength again.

  And his tie to Rylee was gone.

  That reality hit him like a blow. He’d forgotten about it in his need to regain his strength.

  It was strange. He’d almost become used to it in the last few days. Unlike previous Mesmer bonds he’d experienced, this one’s strength had fluctuated, varying between intense and impossible to ignore to a comforting presence. At times its magic had felt more like a precious connection, a tie to the one person in this strange and confusing world he felt like he could rely on rather than something he needed to fix.

  Now that it was complete, he felt suddenly alone again. The weight of responsibility for all his brothers and sisters, for his entire clan, rested heavily on his shoulders.

  Calrian knew he was strong enough to support the burden. He would never accept that he wasn’t.

  But the thought of leaving Rylee held him back from immediately acting upon his responsibilities.

  Because now he had a responsibility to her as well.

  He’d put her in a difficult situation. Her former mate had seen him here, and he’d stood up to him for her. Eric had threatened to tell her father, and that would cause even more problems for her. He could hardly leave her right here and now.

  He’d said, before they’d mated, that she could come back to his clan. And that thought warmed his heart more than he’d expected. But it was a useless promise if he couldn’t find them.

  All he knew was until he did, until he could offer her something more than she had here, he couldn’t leave her.

  The fact he had no wish to only added to his certainty. The intensity of the Mesmer bond might have faded, but his feelings for her hadn’t. He still wanted to care for her, to protect her. He still longed to see her smile and to hear her voice.

  Calrian reached out a hand and cupped her cheek, staring into her eyes. No matter what else, he would stay until he was sure she was safe, that his presence hadn’t caused any problems for her. She’d given up everything for him, and he’d see he paid her back. Somehow.

  “Thank you, Rylee,” he said softly, wishing he had more words. The simple thanks seemed completely inadequate.

  She frowned. “For what?”

  “For all you have done to help me. For giving me back my strength so I can find my clan.”

  Her expression changed then. Her eyebrows drew down and her frown deepened. “I didn’t just sleep with you to give you strength. This meant so much more to me than that.”

  And he knew it had. He could see it in her eyes, a reflection of the conflicted feelings he was experiencing. Even though the Mesmer was gone, this had not ended.

  Calrian knew exactly how she felt. “It meant more to me too,” he said quietly. He didn’t elaborate. He wasn’t even sure what it meant himself. All he knew is that he wasn’t ready to walk away from her. “Will you come with me to find my clan?”

  She searched his face as though trying to figure out what he meant by his question. What she found there must have satisfied her, for she nodded. “Any excuse to leave right now is probably a good one. But we’d better hurry. If Eric did tell Dad about you, I suspect we’ll see him before long.”

  He nodded, his expression grim. “I’m sorry I have caused so much trouble for you.”

  Rylee shook her head immediately. “You’re not the one who’s caused a problem. Eric is. And my father.” The smile she gave him then warmed his heart. “You have brought nothing but pleasure into my life.”

  The way her voice lingered on the word pleasure and her skin flushed told him exactly what she meant by that.

  Calrian wished he could offer her more. He’d happily shower her with much more pleasure if he was able to. But it was risky. He’d only need to sleep with her twice more for their bond to become permanent.

  As soon as he thought of that, he couldn’t help wondering what it would feel like. Would it be like the longer Mesmer bond they’d shared? No, it would be even better. He was sure of that. They’d share a dragon voice. He’d be able to talk to her in his head, to feel her presence for the rest of his life, to know he’d never be alone gain.

  Calrian gave himself a mental shake. He shouldn’t be thinking of that. He couldn’t offer her that right now.

  No matter how much he wanted to.

  Instead he allowed himself to caress her cheek, to feel her soft, warm skin, one more time as he said, “I’m glad, Rylee. Very glad that I was able to share this with you.” Then he made himself pull back. Not too far, he didn’t want her to feel rejected, but she was right. They should hurry.

  Rylee apparently felt the same way. She hopped off the kitchen bench, and went to pick up her clothes, pulling them on hastily. “Let’s go.”

  They peered through the curtains before opening the door, but all seemed quiet. They made it out to the car and drove off without encountering any resistance. But Calrian knew it was coming, knew he would have to be here to help Rylee face it.

  And he knew it would be much easier if he could find his clan first.

  If he could, then he would be able to offer her an alternative. He wasn’t sure if it would work, if his clan would accept her. They certainly hadn’t had a very high opinion of humans before he’d entered the Mesmer. He wasn’t even sure if it would be safe there, if the war with Trima still raged. But it was better than the nothing he had right now.

  Right now he was the one who was dependent on her. And that was never more obvious than as he followed her out to her car and slipped in beside her, watching her as she started the vehicle as though it were a simple task.

  Yes, now that he had his strength back, he could fly at night, searching for his clan. But he had no idea how long it would take to find them. And if it weren’t for Rylee, he would have to find somewhere to hide during the day and hunt for food to eat.

  She had no idea how much she was helping him. This was all normal to her.

  But it was all so completely different to his normal.

  They pulled out on the main road, and Rylee breathed a sigh of relief. When Calrian looked over at her, she gave a small smile. “We managed to escape with
out having to face my dad.”

  She clearly wasn’t looking forward to that.

  “I’m sorry,” Calrian said again. He knew she’d said it wasn’t his fault, but he couldn’t help feeling like it was. If he hadn’t been there, yes she still would have had to stand up to her ex, but Eric wouldn’t be able to tell her father she had someone staying with her if he wasn’t there.

  Rylee reached over and put her hand on his knee, sending a feeling of warmth through him. It was different from the feelings he’d had while they were in the Mesmer, less urgent and not as dramatic, but it affected him none the less.

  “It’s okay, Calrian,” she said softly. “You have nothing to be sorry about. There’s nowhere I’d rather be right now than here, helping you.”

  Her words hit right to his heart. She couldn’t possibly mean them, could she? But as she glanced briefly over at him, taking her eyes off the road for only a few moments, he could see it was true. The smile she gave him, warm and… was that happy...? only confirmed it.

  For the first time since he’d woken from the Mesmer sleep, Calrian felt this might just work out, that his life might not be a completely disaster after all.

  “Thank you,” he said softly, putting his hand over hers for a brief moment.

  She gave him another smile. “Right, where to?”

  Calrian stared at her a few moments longer, his mind not switching to business mode as quickly as hers had. For a moment, he was tempted to tell her to turn around and go back to her house… back to her bed.

  But her father could be there. And if he had any hope of offering her a way out of this mess he’d created, he needed to find his clan. Calrian forced himself to focus. Where should they start?

  “Back to my lair,” he decided. “Now that I have my strength back, I can fly up and see if they left any clues as to where they’ve gone or what happened.”

  Rylee nodded and turned towards the wave rock.

  As they drove back to his former home, a jumble of feelings swirled around in Calrian’s mind. But the most dominant one was hope—hope that he might find something to help him locate his clan, hope that he might be able to help Rylee.

  But mostly he felt hope that he might have a chance to be happy, whatever the outcome.

  Chapter 29

  Rylee pulled up in front of the wave rock and stared up at it. She couldn’t see any sign of a dragon lair from here, but Calrian seemed certain this was the spot. And it was too distinctive for him to be mistaken.

  She just hoped he found whatever it was he was looking for.

  He’d been so worried earlier about her interaction with Eric. It had probably thrown him that she’d burst into tears. But Rylee felt strangely calm about the whole situation.

  Perhaps it was because he’d believed in her and listened to her. Perhaps it was because he’d backed her up in her choices and said she needed to do what she felt was right. Or maybe it was because he’d offered her another option if he found his clan.

  Not a feasible option, but it warmed her heart that he cared enough to suggest it anyway.

  Calrian opened the door and stepped out, staring up at the cliff, his face determined. Then he turned and searched the surrounding area. But all was calm and quiet. There weren’t many tourists around in the middle of the week.

  They were the only two people here. Rylee got out and stared too.

  Calrian turned to her, his expression intense. “I need to go up there.” He paused for a moment, then asked, “Do you want to come?”

  His question surprised her. She wasn’t sure why. It just hadn’t occurred to her that he would ask. There was no way she could climb up there. He hadn’t been able to in human form, so he had to be offering to fly her up.

  That was temptation enough. Rylee nodded quickly before she could chicken out. “I’d love to.”

  Calrian gave her a smile and then, after one more glance around to be sure they were still alone, stripped off his shorts and put them carefully on the front seat of the car. Rylee tried not to stare as he stepped out into an open space, but gave up any pretence as his body began to change.

  His skin darkened and took on a blueish hue, scales appearing all over his arms and legs and face. His body shifted and changed before her eyes, growing larger, his neck growing longer, and huge blue wings sprouting from his back.

  Her mouth was probably hanging open, but she didn’t care. It was the most amazing and unbelievable thing she’d ever seen. She couldn’t help wishing Rowan was here to see it. He’d be very impressed.

  When Calrian was one hundred percent dragon, he looked over at her. For a moment, a shiver ran through her. He was huge and had giant teeth and horns. But his eyes, when they rested on her, were completely familiar. He might be a dragon, but he was still Calrian.

  “Are you ready?” his voice said into her head, just as familiar and comforting as his eyes.

  That gave Rylee the courage to step forwards and say, “Yes, but… uh… do I climb on, or?”

  Calrian bent one knee, creating a step of sorts. “Yes, climb on. Don’t worry, you can’t hurt me.”

  Rylee nodded and stepped forwards, climbing onto his knee and from there onto his back. Once she was up there though, she felt suddenly uncertain. She was quite high up, and Calrian hadn’t even left the ground yet. What if she fell off while he was flying?

  As though he was reading her thoughts, Calrian said, “Don’t worry, I will hold you on with my magic. You can’t fall. Are you ready?”

  Rylee bit her lip. He might say his magic would hold her, but she couldn’t feel a thing. It felt very dangerous up here.

  But this was Calrian, and she trusted him. Surely he wouldn’t let her do this if there was any risk. So despite her misgivings, she nodded. “Yes, I’m ready.”

  She felt his muscles bunch under her seconds before he launched them both into the air. His wings spread out on either side of her and beat the air strongly. For a moment, Rylee was filled with terror.

  Then she saw the ground retreating as they soared up towards the cliff. From this angle, she could see a shadow behind a fold in the rock, the entrance to his lair. Excitement replaced fear. She was riding on a dragon’s back. A very sexy, hot dragon’s back. And she was going to see a dragon lair.

  But when Calrian landed in the opening behind the fold of rock, the large cavern was empty.

  For some reason, Rylee had half expected to see more dragons here, and she was more than a little disappointed that she didn’t.

  But her disappointment must be nothing compared to Calrian’s. She turned and put a hand on his scales, as though she could somehow ease the pain he must be feeling.

  He barely seemed to notice.

  He walked forward, transforming back into a human as he walked, seemingly unaware that he was completely naked. He walked across the room, looking in every corner as though he expected to find his clan hiding somewhere.

  Rylee watched, feeling incredibly sad for him. How hard must it be to have your whole family gone? To be the only one of your kind?

  Calrian walked down a passageway on one side of the cavern, and Rylee hesitated. She wanted to follow him, to see if she could help, but she wasn’t sure if there was anything at all she could do to help.

  How could she possibly help him to cope with losing everything?

  *****

  Calrian wasn’t sure why he felt the need to search every room in the lair. He already knew from the lack of answers to his calls that there was no one here. But he couldn’t help hoping for a clue, some sign of where they’d gone.

  But the more rooms he searched, the more clear it became. The lair was completely empty. Not so much as a gnawed bone or single bedding fur indicated that this had been anything more than an empty cave.

  Of course, it was no ordinary cave. He could see the claw marks where dragons had carved the tunnels and rooms, the indents in the sand where sleeping furs had lain, and the steps carved into the few tunnels that led downwards.
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  But there was nothing at all to indicate why his clan had left or where they might had gone.

  That had to be a good sign, right? If Trima clan had wiped Rian clan out, they wouldn’t have bothered to clean the lair out to this degree, would they? Calrian wasn’t sure if that was a valid reason to hope or an indication that he was clutching at straws.

  Eventually he made his way back to the main cavern, where Rylee met him, her expression sympathetic. “I’m so sorry, Calrian,” she said, putting her arms around him.

  Her warmth and her sympathy helped soothe some of his pain, helped keep some of the terrifying loneliness at bay.

  The way his naked body instantly reacted to her closeness helped provide a distraction. It was so tempting to stay here with her, away from reality. His clan might not be here, but neither was her family. She would be safe from them here, even without his clan. He was sure they could find plenty to keep themselves entertained.

  The thought was nice for a while, until reality intruded. They had no food, no bedding furs. And Rowan wasn’t here. He knew Rylee would want to return to her son.

  He wouldn’t pretend. His clan wasn’t here. Finding them was going to take him more time than he’d expected. He needed to prepare himself for that fact, not let himself be distracted from that goal. No matter how much he wished he could be.

  He kissed the top of Rylee’s head, letting himself inhale her scent for a few moments, then stepped back. “We’d better return to the car. Do you think we have some time for searching and calling to my clan?”

  He appreciated Rylee’s help, but he wouldn’t let his search intrude on her life. He’d done that enough already.

  She nodded slowly, searching his face for a moment. Then nodded again with more certainty. “Where shall we look?”

  That, Calrian didn’t know. He didn’t even know why his clan had left. How could he possibly hope to figure out where they had gone? They could be miles away, nowhere near the lair. For a moment, he felt his shoulders slump. “I don’t know.”