The Commander and the Dragon (Redwood Dragons Book 3)

by Sloane Meyers

  And she was very much in the air.

  High above the training fields, Mac was on her broomstick and performing some of the most beautiful aerial moves he had ever seen. She looked like a ballerina in the air, timing her twists, flips, and turns perfectly to the music that was emanating from her bag. Zeke was mesmerized. He’d heard the expression “poetry in motion” used to describe dancers, but he had never seen anyone who moved quite so poetically.

  Mac continued on for several minutes, not missing a beat as one song ended and the next song began. She did not notice Zeke far below her, sitting next to her tote bag now and looking up at her, watching her soar through the air. The next song must have been the end of her playlist, because when it ended the music faded away. Mac slowed, then turned her broomstick downward to return to earth. Zeke watched her, and saw her eyes widen in midair when she spotted him. She landed next to him with barely a thud, and stepped off her broomstick hurriedly, laying it next to her tote bag.

  “How long have you been here?” she demanded. Her cheeks were flushed bright red. Zeke wasn’t sure whether it was from the exertion of flying or embarrassment that he had caught her flying.

  “For about two songs,” he said. “That was quite some flying up there. You almost looked like you were dancing.”

  “Well, I used to do aerial broomstick dancing in high school and college,” Mac said, sitting down next to Zeke and pulling a bottle of water out of her tote bag. She took a long sip of water, guzzling down about half the bottle before replacing the cap.

  “Is that an actual sport or something?” Zeke asked, confused.

  Mac laughed. “I forget sometimes that you didn’t grow up around wizards. Yes, it’s a sport. Quite a popular one, too. All the wizard high schools have teams, and many of the wizard colleges. I went to military academy, and they, of course, had a very competitive team. “

  “Let me guess, you were captain of the team?” Zeke asked.

  Mac blushed but didn’t answer.

  “You were!” Zeke said. “You’ve pretty much always been an overachiever, haven’t you? Captain of the sky dancing team, youngest military commander ever. What’s next, Mac?”

  Mac crossed her arms defensively. “It’s called aerial broomstick dancing, not sky dancing. And overachiever sounds like such a negative word. There’s nothing wrong with putting your whole heart into what you’re doing. And that’s just what I’ve always done.”

  “I noticed,” Zeke said wryly. “But I’m a little surprised to see you out here sky dancing, excuse me, aerial broomstick dancing, when just this morning you were yelling at me for allowing you to actually get a decent amount of sleep. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad to see you relaxing a bit. I’m just surprised.”

  Mac frowned. “Well, I’m not actually relaxing. I mean, it is kind of fun. But practicing these moves helps me to practice the moves I need to be a good fighter in the air. ‘Sky dancing,’ as you call it, may look like a silly sport on the surface. But it requires extreme proficiency in many moves that are very similar to the moves you need to fight a battle up on your broomstick. I wanted to run through a few of my old routines to make sure I’m staying sharp. I might even try to teach some of the extremely advanced moves to our best flyers. If we keep working at this, we’re going to have the best damn army of flying wizard soldiers this world has ever seen.”

  Zeke smiled at the pride in Mac’s voice. “I think that’s an excellent idea. And, for the record, I really do think it’s okay if you want to do something to relax a bit. You’ve been pushing yourself way too hard over the last week. I’m glad you at least slept last night, even if you are mad at me for moving the meeting time.”

  Mac smiled sheepishly. “It’s alright. I’m not mad. And I have to admit that you were right. I did really need to catch up on sleep. I got more done today than I have in a long time.”

  “That’s good to hear,” Zeke said, reaching for her hand. He stroked it with his thumb for a few moments, and then dropped his voice to a low, husky tone. “I missed you today, you know. I wanted nothing more than to sneak up to your office and shut and lock the door behind me so we could have a little fun. But we were both so busy.”

  Mac’s cheeks started to flush again at Zeke’s words. “I would have liked that very much,” she admitted. “I can’t tell you enough how much I wish things were peaceful right now.”

  “Well, wartime or not, I’m glad you’re in my life. We just have to make the best of what we have right now. I actually did head up to your office to find you, by the way. I wanted to see you before I left, but I guess you were already out here.”

  Mac nodded. “I’ve actually been out here for quite some time,” she said. “It’s probably about time I headed out. If I don’t get a proper dinner and some rest, you’re going to be on my case about it.”

  Zeke laughed. “You’ve got that right,” he said. “Before you go, though, I have something for you.”

  “You do?” Mac asked.

  Zeke nodded, and handed her the small paper bag that had the gift for her inside. She pulled out a small, square-shaped package that was wrapped in sparkling pink paper. Mac laughed and winked at him.

  “How’d you know that pink was my favorite color?” she teased.

  He rolled his eyes at her. “Just open it,” he said.

  She carefully tore at the paper, and opened it up to reveal a cashmere pink scarf. It was a deep hot pink shade, brilliant with just a hint of shimmer to it. The salesperson had led Zeke to it right away when he said he was looking for a scarf for Mac. Everyone knew she loved pink, and this scarf was perfect for her.

  “Zeke,” she said, almost at a loss for words. “Wow. Just, wow. It’s so soft. And so beautiful. Thank you so much. But what’s the occasion?”

  Zeke smiled, pleased that she seemed to like it as much as he’d hoped she would. “The occasion,” he said, “Is that I’m replacing the pink scarf that was in your office until I shifted into a dragon while wearing it.”

  Since Zeke had still been wearing Mac’s scarf when the attack on Falcon Cross started, it had been torn to shreds as he hurriedly shifted into dragon form. He knew that Mac would not have dreamed of complaining about the loss of her scarf—not when so many people had lost their lives. But Zeke had noticed the glaring absence of the scarf on the coat rack every time he visited Mac’s office since then, and he had decided to do something about it.

  “You really didn’t have to do that,” Mac said. “It wasn’t your fault that you had to shift all of a sudden like that.”

  “I know I didn’t have to,” Zeke said. “But I wanted to. I know you loved that scarf, and I did my best to replace it with something that you’d love just as much.”

  “I think I might love it more,” Mac said as she stroked the soft fabric of the scarf. “It’s so beautiful, and it was a gift from you.”

  She looked up at him, and her eyes were filled with sweet desire. Zeke wished that they were somewhere secluded and alone right then, instead of in the middle of the open training fields. He would have loved to tear her clothes off and take her right then and there, showing her how deeply the passion inside of him burned for her. But he had to content himself with leaning over to kiss her on the lips. Even with the knowledge that they were in full view of anyone inside of headquarters, it took all of Zeke’s self-control to keep from ripping her shirt off the same way he had in her bedroom last night. The sun was sinking behind the horizon, and the sky was lit up brilliant oranges and reds that cast a warm glow over Mac’s skin. She looked so beautiful in that moment that it made Zeke’s heart hurt.

  He took a deep breath then, and decided that he wanted to make this moment extra special for Mac. Perhaps they could not make love under the setting sun, but that did not mean that they couldn’t be close to each other. Zeke reached his hand into Mac’s tote bag and pulled out her tiny music player, then pressed play. The player must have still had an amplification charm on it, because immediately the notes of a b
eautiful waltz filled the air, loudly and clearly.

  Mac gave him a quizzical look as he stood and offered her his hand. “What are you doing?” she asked as he pulled her toward him.

  “I’m asking you to dance with me,” he said.

  Mac raised an eyebrow at him. “I thought you told me that you don’t dance,” she said.

  “I don’t,” Zeke said. “But for you, I will. For you, I’d do anything. Now, may I have this dance?”

  Mac smiled at him, and her eyes filled with happy tears. “Yes,” she whispered. “Of course.”

  And so they danced. Underneath the pink and orange sunset sky, they moved in perfect rhythm to the music of the waltz. Although Zeke had claimed he didn’t dance, he actually knew how to waltz perfectly. He’d had to learn several years ago while on a mission to recover an ancient dragon artifact. In order to fit in with a group he needed to spy on, he’d learned to dance, since they all liked dancing. The mission had been a difficult one for him, which perhaps was part of the reason why he never wanted to dance. Dancing had always brought back bad memories of that mission. But perhaps, he thought as he twirled around with Mac, it was time to make some new memories.

  When the first song ended, they did not stop. They danced to another song, and then another, until the sun had completely disappeared and the sky turned to the gray-blue light of twilight. The music died then, mid-song, and Mac sighed.

  “The battery must have died,” she said. “I could cast a spell to revive it, but I suppose since it’s getting dark we should be going, anyway. Although I don’t really want to. I could dance with you here all night. For someone who claims not to dance, you’re pretty damn good at it. Where’d you learn to waltz?”

  “Long story,” Zeke said. “How about I tell it to you over dinner?”

  Mac grinned. “Sounds good. A certain bossy dragon shifter did tell me that I have to eat proper meals.”

  Zeke grinned back at her, then leaned down to nuzzle her nose. “You know I’m right,” he said. They both laughed, and then Mac started to pull away from his embrace to go gather her things. But Zeke pulled her back before she could get away.

  “Wait just a second,” he said, his voice filling with emotion. “There’s one more thing I want to tell you.”

  “Oh?” Mac asked. “What’s that?”

  Zeke took a deep breath, looked her straight in the eye, and said. “I love you, Mac.”

  Mac’s eyes widened and started to fill with tears again. “I love you, too,” she said. “I wanted to tell you last night, but I felt silly for saying it so soon. But as soon as we made love, I knew. It was the strangest thing. It was like my whole body was filled with this wonderful warmth, and I just knew.”

  Zeke’s heart filled with joy. So she had felt it, too. “That’s the lifemate bond,” he said.

  “Lifemate bond?”

  “Shifters believe that destiny has chosen one person for us all, to be our partner for life. Our lifemate. When we find that person and make love to them, it forms the lifemate bond. It’s a similar idea to the concept of soulmates, except much stronger than that. It’s an unbreakable bond, and it lasts for your entire life.”

  “Wow,” Mac said. “That’s intense.”

  “I know,” Zeke said gently. “But I can’t think of anyone I’d rather spend my life loving and protecting than you. I hope you feel the same way about me, but even if you don’t, there will never be anyone else for me now. I’m bound to you. My life from this day forward is yours.”

  Zeke held his breath, waiting for Mac to respond. A few tears had spilled over her eyelids now, and were leaving wet, salty trails down her cheeks. But a smile broke across her face then, and her skin glowed by the light of the moon, which was growing stronger with every passing second.

  “I feel the same way,” she said. “I can’t think of anyone I would rather spend a lifetime with than you.”

  Then she leaned forward and tilted her face upward toward him. He leaned into her kiss, his skin burning as the heat of desire filled him. She looked so beautiful right now, with tendrils of her hair falling loosely from what had been a tight bun this morning. The flying had left her with a sexy windblown look, and Zeke wished again that they were alone out there on the field. She had closed her eyes, and he closed his then, as he drank in the wonderful sensation of her lips on his. He wrapped his arms around her, and she wrapped hers around him. Despite the constant threat of danger from the enemy, life in that moment was perfect.

  And then, suddenly, the perfection was broken by a long, loud siren. Flashing red lights started spinning on every corner of the Military Headquarters building, and Zeke felt his heart drop. He knew what that siren meant.

  “We’re under attack again,” Mac cried, breaking free from Zeke’s arms and running for her broomstick. Up above them, the sky was already filling with wizards, who were zooming upward on their brooms at top speed.

  Mac pushed a stray strand of hair back from her face as she picked up her broomstick and swing her leg over it. She paused to look back at Zeke, her face set with a grim determined look.

  “Here we go,” she said, and her voice sounded like a mixture of nerves and grit.

  Zeke rushed over to her, took her face in his hands, and kissed her on the lips one more time.

  “Be careful up there, okay?” he said.

  Mac nodded. “You too,” she said. And then she kicked off the ground, zooming upward into the air to join her army.

  Zeke let out a roar, and began to shift into dragon form. It was time to fight for the hometown of the woman he loved. He’d be damned if he let the evil forces win.

  Chapter Twelve

  The sky around Mac had erupted into utter chaos. Wizards from both sides of the battle were zooming back and forth, casting spells at each other and doing their best to throw shields up before any spells hit them. Bat shifters were everywhere. They weren’t that hard to take down, and Mac must have already zapped nearly fifty of them out of the sky with blasts of laser light from her magic ring. But they seemed to just keep coming. They were ugly, pesky things, and more than one of them had landed a sharp bite on Mac’s arms or legs.

  She ignored the pain and kept flying, doing her best to keep tabs on which way the tide of the battle was turning. Everything was so frenzied up here that it was hard to tell, but it seemed that things were moving steadily in favor of Falcon Cross. High above her, she could see the dragons circling and shooting flames from their mouth at evil wizards and shifters alike. Below her, on the ground, hundreds of ground forces were also engaged in the battle. Their enemy had not been content to rely solely on the wizards and shifters who could fly, and it had been a smart move on his part. Mac’s army was stretched thin trying to keep all of the moving parts of the enemy army at bay.

  Mac had not intended to be right in the thick of the fighting as she was now. She preferred to be higher up, above it all, so that she could see everything clearly and give instructions to her wizards. But the enemy had swept in so quickly that Mac had been caught up in the rush of soldiers, and was now fighting at the very heart of the battle. She wondered, as she threw attacks left and right from her magic ring, why Peter’s protective shields around Falcon Cross had fallen so quickly. They should have held longer. Falcon Cross should have had more of an advanced warning, more time to prepare for the onslaught while the enemy tried to break through the shield. But no, the protective shields had quickly fallen. Something was off here. Peter was one of the best spellcasters alive today. His spells should have been more effective.

  There wasn’t much time to worry about it now, though. Mac danced across the sky, much the same as she had less than an hour earlier to her music. Only this time, she was twisting and weaving through deadly laser beams and angry bats. She slowly rose higher and higher, trying to make her way to a spot above the fighting where she could see exactly what was happening.

  The noise of battle rang incessantly in her ears. Screams of anger mixed with screams
of pain, and the zinging of both attacks and shields from magic rings filled the sky with an electric hum. Mac flew through it all, adding the noise from her own attacks and shields to the cacophony. She did not scream, though—not in anger and not in pain. She used all of her energy to focus on moving higher and higher above the ground.

  The mass of moving bodies slowly thinned out, and finally, she broke free from the fight. She tilted her broomstick upward and rose high into the air, rising even above the spot where the dragons were circling. When she looked down, she smiled. From up here, she could see that the Falcon Cross army was going to win this battle. The bats had nearly all been killed at this point, and the evil wizards in the air were almost all gone as well. Even though Mac had not yet had a chance to implement her new training program that would focus on flying, her wizards had easily outflown most of the evil wizards.

  “Magicae amplificare,” Mac said, putting an amplifying spell on her voice so that she could talk to her army. She looked around carefully for a few more moments to make sure that she had a good grasp of how the battle was playing out, and then she spoke.

  “Squadrons two, four, six, and eight, shift your focus completely to attacking the ground troops,” Mac said, her voice booming across the sky. “We’ve almost completely wiped out their aerial army, and the ground army should be easy to take down. Onward, for magic, and for Falcon Cross!”

  “For magic and for Falcon Cross,” came the roar of her soldiers replying back to her in unison. Then, the squadrons Mac had called out turned their broomsticks downward, flying lower until they were right above the ground troops. When the Falcon Cross wizards began aerial attacks in earnest on the enemy’s ground forces, it was only a matter of minutes before the ground forces began running back, attempting a hasty retreat. The other Falcon Cross squadrons, which had continued their aerial defense of the city, were buoyed with courage by the sight of the retreating ground forces. They attacked the enemy’s aerial forces with a renewed vengeance, aided by the dragons who were taking down several enemy soldiers each minute with their carefully aimed streams of fire. Mac smiled and fist pumped the air. Victory was theirs once more. In just a few more minutes, the battle should be all but over.