Loved by a Dragon: A Paranormal Shifter Romance (Exiled Dragons Book 2)

by Stone, Sarah J.

“What is it, Aaron?”

  “Nothing. Just do what I ask. Just this once. Promise me.”

  “I promise,” she told him, leaning forward and kissing him on the cheek.

  “Good. Thank you for that.”

  “Well, I love you, too, and I can’t do anything that might jeopardize you any further than you have already done yourself.”

  “Then you won’t mind going with me up to one of the uninhabited islands off the north coast tomorrow. I need to practice fire breathing,” he laughed.

  “Oh, no. I remember the first time you tried that!” she laughed.

  “I think everyone does. I set the entire forest on fire behind our houses,” he snickered.

  “It was glorious. Everyone was running around and trying to get it contained with buckets of water because there was no public hydrant back then.”

  “Oh, God. I forgot!” he said, his eyes widening.

  “Forgot what?” she said with a puzzled look.

  “Do you remember how that fire finally got put out?”

  “No. My mother had already taken me into the house away from the smoke when it was finally put out. I watched it for hours out my window before it finally went out.”

  “It was raging through the dry bed of the forest. There was no danger of it getting to our homes by that point, but everyone was afraid it was going to get to the next village before it could be put down.”

  “Yeah, but it didn’t.”

  “No. It didn’t, because we had one dragon in our midst who doesn’t breathe fire. He breathed ice. He sprayed a long line just ahead of the fire and stopped it.”

  “Oh, wow. I never knew that. Who was the dragon?”

  “It was the dragon shifter that Aiden killed: McCord.”

  “That’s why he poisoned him before fighting him. He knew he couldn’t fight him and win. McCord would have just cemented him in a block of ice in a fair fight.”

  “Exactly.”

  “The McCord brothers. Are either of them ice dragons?”

  “I don’t know. I’ve never known anyone in our clan to be one other than their father. No one is sure where the recessive gene that allowed that capability came from. Perhaps it skips a generation, or maybe one or even both are the same but just have never shown it.”

  “That’s incredible though. I’d love to see it someday.”

  “Me too. I’ve never seen anyone do that. Anyway, I thought that we might go somewhere safe. I mean, it’s not really practice. I just need to make sure it’s all working okay. It would be a hell of a time to find out my fire is out in the middle of this battle with Aiden.”

  “Well then, I guess we are off to scorch some rocks,” she told him.

  “First thing in the morning then. We’ll fly out before daylight and spend the day there. I know a great place where we can do that and then wander over to the coast of the mainland for a good breakfast before taking the train back to Newry.”

  “That sounds perfect,” she told him.

  “In the meantime, I have some good news.”

  “That will be a first based on how things have been lately.”

  “It’s going to rain very heavily during the fight.”

  “Yeah?”

  “He’ll barely be able to see me before I light him up.”

  “That’s my dark, beautiful beast.”

  “Yes, I am.”

  “What’s in this bag?” she asked, taking note of the bag he had carried with him on his fight in from the Mournes.

  “Oh, oddly enough, it’s a gift from the McCord brothers.”

  “How did that happen?”

  “Well, it would appear that when Josh went rogue, he regained contact with them somehow. They got wind of my challenge against Aiden and wanted to help however they could.”

  “I’m surprised they didn’t challenge him themselves,” she said.

  “I am, too, but I’m sure they have good reasons for it,” he replied, leaving out what Josh had told him about their plans.

  He didn’t want to lie to her, but he felt the omission was probably best, as it would only open the door for suggestion that he back off and let them sort it out. That was no longer an option now that it had been mandated by the Council, but that would be hard to make her accept under the circumstances.

  “I suppose so. I just wish things could be different,” she replied.

  “Yeah, me too,” he said thoughtfully.

  CHAPTER 12

  The following morning found Kate and Aaron flying out under the cover of the remaining darkness. They circled the edge of the coast, flying north toward Scotland and just beyond to a series of small islands that most didn’t even realize existed. Setting down on the rocky coast, they remained in dragon form as they set about the task at hand. It would be a quick exercise, just a check of his fire stream and a return home before daylight.

  Aaron turned away from the rushing waters of the ocean and looked for the tree he knew very well from days gone by. This is where his father had brought him to practice his aim and stream after the incident with the fire in the woods. The tree was still there, though it showed all the signs of the abuse it had received over the course of time. There were large, black spots that ran up its front and streamed outward to where branches had once been.

  Pulling his breath in, he focused all his power on the well-roasted tree and let go, giving it everything he had. He felt his body heat with the force of the flames that shot across the shore and lit what was left of the tree up once more. It was a magnificent feeling that he could never describe to someone who lacked the ability. There was no denying that it was the second greatest pleasure of being a dragon. The first, of course, was flying.

  He was about to shift when another mighty flame once again lit up the already burning tree. Turning, he saw Kate pulling back from her addition to the fire. Shifting back into human form, she laughed and walked over to where he stood. Aaron shifted, and they both stood looking at their handiwork for a moment.

  “I’d say that we’ve still got it,” Aaron laughed, pulling her close.

  “Yeah, we do. I think I understand now why humans use the term ‘dragon’s breath’ sometimes,” she said, waving off the rancid smell of their breath as she shriveled up her nose.

  “Probably so,” Aaron laughed, reaching for the bag he had carried here on his back to retrieve a bottle of water and a container of mints.

  “Ah, fully prepared, I see,” Kate laughed, accepting a mint and a huge drink of the water.

  “That I am. Ready to go get some breakfast?”

  “Sure am. Where are we headed?”

  “I had thought about the mainland, but I think it might be too ambitious to get over before daylight and then get a ferry back. How about we swoop down to Portrush on the northern coast instead? Plenty to choose from there, and we can take a stroll along the beach before we grab the train back down to Newry.”

  “Perfect. I love it there. Can we do some shopping, too?”

  “Oh, that might be a problem.”

  “Why?”

  “I left my wallet in my other scales,” he said dryly.

  “Oh, you’re ridiculous! Good thing I made sure we had clothes in the bag, too, or we would be screwed.”

  “I know you did. My wallet is in there. I’m just yanking your chain.”

  “Nice try, but you seem to forget that I’m an independent woman. My wallet is in there, too.”

  “Sassy, aren’t you? If we didn’t have to get to land before daylight, I’d show you just how much that excites me.”

  “If we wouldn’t be stranded on this island for it, I’d let you.”

  “Ah, the trials of being invisible to the masses,” he laughed.

  “Let’s go,” she told him, turning and shifting as she ran down the beach and took flight out across the ocean.

  Aaron shifted, grabbing the bag in his powerful jaws as he followed behind her toward the larger island of Ireland. They touched down on a remote stretch of beach
and quickly got dressed, walking up toward the more populated area and into a local pub that did a fantastic breakfast fry. They barely spoke as they sat down to eat, each one starving after the exertion of flying so much and breathing fire.

  The waitress quickly grew frustrated with bringing them more water only to watch them gulp it down and switched to a large pitcher instead, replacing it several times before they were done without comment. When they finally got up to leave, she looked relieved that they were going, causing them to laugh. Aaron did leave her a large tip, something most people in this area didn’t do, but he felt bad that she had to keep coming back to them so much.

  “Well, off to the shops!” Kate said happily as they made their way down the sidewalk.

  The rest of the morning was spent just enjoying themselves. Anyone who didn’t know their situation would think they were just like any other happy couple out for a day in the seaside town. How could anyone know that they lived by an ancient code that most people would never be able to understand? The truth was, they could go anywhere and do anything they wanted, except be who they truly were. If they left the safety of their home in the Mournes, they were reduced to an existence where they could never reveal themselves as shifters. They would always have to hide like they currently were. Waiting on the train, they sat whispering to one another in the crowded station.

  “I wish we could spend every day like this,” she said.

  “We’d go broke pretty quickly,” he laughed.

  “You know what I mean. I wish we could be like regular people and just get out and enjoy a nice day without worrying about anything.”

  “I think it’s a nice thought, but I doubt there are really that many people that ever get to do it. I think that everyone has something going on in their lives.”

  “Perhaps so, but not like us. We have so few choices. We either give up what we are, don’t fly, and just exist as if we are human, or we have to fight to maintain our homeland.”

  “There isn’t much we can do to change who we are, so why lament it?”

  “I don’t know. I’m not lamenting it. Just saying that it can be hard sometimes, this lot we were dealt in life.”

  “I know it can,” he said softly, kissing her on the forehead and smiling at her.

  “What am I going to do if I lose you again?”

  “You won’t, Kate. No matter what happens to me, I will find a way to get back to you. If not in this world, then in another. No matter what, I will always find you.”

  “I don’t want to think about spending days, waiting for another life to begin. All those days spent alone missing someone. I think about my mother and wonder how she did it all these years. I know she loved my father so much, and his death hurt her to the core. I don’t think she’s ever really gotten over it.”

  “How could she, Kate? Dragons mate for life. Once we’ve chosen the one we want to spend our lives with, that is exactly what we do.”

  “And if the one we choose perishes?”

  “Then we remember them fondly and go on with our lives. Listen, Kate, I know you’re scared, and as much as I believe in my heart that I will come out victorious in this fight, I can’t make you any promises. If I don’t make it, I need for you to go on and find someone to love. Promise me you will do that.”

  “You aren’t the only one that can’t make promises,” Kate said solemnly.

  Their conversation was disrupted by the overhead speaker, a voice announcing the arrival of their train. Aaron sighed and stood, reaching for Kate’s hand. She stood up and walked with him, hand in hand, toward the waiting train. There was no conversation as they settled into their seats and eventually began their journey back home. Aaron considered how quickly they would be back in a world where they could just take flight and return as he stared out the window.

  After a while, he could hear the quiet sounds of Kate’s breathing as she fell asleep on his shoulder, and he closed his eyes, following her down into a peaceful nap of his own on the way home. Once again, he had the dream, but this time his father was warning him of something. At first, the words were unclear, but then his eyes shot open as they sank in and made perfect sense to him. He looked over at Kate, who was still sleeping soundly and then returned his gaze to the passing scenery as he realized that the warning was not some ghostly commentary, but an old memory.

  CHAPTER 13

  Aaron’s mind wandered backwards once again, back to the fire behind his house. His father was shouting at him to grab another bucket as they tried in vain to put it out before it got worse. Instead, it had only grown, thankfully roaring through the dried leaves in the forest beyond their house instead of blowing back toward any of the structures that might be in its way.

  People were coming out from everywhere, some with buckets of water and some taking flight above the trees with hoses from their gardens between their claws, trying to spray what water they could down on the flames for as far as the hoses would reach. It had kept the fire away from the homes, but the wind kept pushing it through the woods. At some point, Aaron had broken free of his father and ran into the woods with his own bucket, trying desperately to put down the flames he had created.

  It was then that he had spotted the boy. He had watched in wonder as he sprayed a row of ice along one section of the fire before moving on to the next. Aaron had watched from behind a still smoldering tree as he was joined by another, an older man but not the boy’s father. Aaron had never seen the boy’s father, as he was raised by only his mom, but he knew the man. He continued to watch as Mr. McCord finished what the younger boy had started and walked over to him, whispering something in his ear. The boy smiled broadly and ran off.

  “It’s okay. I’ve put it out,” Mr. McCord said, as he stepped out of the woods and raised his hands to calm the masses down.

  Two young boys, not much younger than the boy he had watched in the woods, came running up to him and hugged him tightly as he smiled down upon them. Aaron looked around for the other boy and spotted him with his own mother. He was looking toward Mr. McCord, but not at him. Instead, his gaze was focused firmly upon the two boys clinging to his knees. If looks could have killed, they would have been dead in their shoes.

  Aaron’s heart raced as the memory became clear. He had jumbled it up. He had only remembered the boy and somehow thought it was Mr. McCord, but now he realized that wasn’t possible. McCord would not have been a boy when he was, as he was only a little younger than his sons. Even with the altered aging experienced by dragon shifters, there would have been enough of a difference that he would have been a man. He had a wife and children. He was no boy.

  The boy was someone else – someone he knew – and his heart sank as the boy’s face became clear in his mind once more. The boy was Aiden. It wasn’t just McCord he had seen breath ice upon the fire. It was also Aiden. What were the odds that there were two ice dragons in the same village? It was a very rare trait and usually limited to only one family. The thought led to yet another conclusion. Was Aiden really a McCord? His father had died when he was very little, but what were the odds that he was never his biological father at all?

  Thoughts seemed to run wild in his head as his memory opened up a whole new world of possibilities, none of which he was sure were accurate, but the one thing he did know was that he was in more trouble than he anticipated. His fire would be useless against an ice dragon, but Aiden’s ice could spell his end within a matter of seconds in the right circumstances. For a moment, Aaron felt a sense of doom, but he held on to what was at stake, not just for himself, but for everyone. He had to do this, and he had to win. There was simply no other option.

  Looking over at Kate, he smiled. She was the best thing that had ever happened to him, and it was for her that he would make it through this – for her, for his mother, and for everyone who had ever feared the wrath of Aiden. If he was right and McCord truly was Aiden’s father, then that made him an even bigger monster than Aaron had anticipated. Someone had to put him down
, and if that someone had to be him, then he would make sure he was up for the task.

  Thoughts of how to combat Aiden with this newly acquired information plagued him as he and Kate reached their destination and then made their way home. He tried not to show his concern, as it would only make her more anxious to know what he was up against. Still, he struggled to sleep as the thoughts weighed heavy on his mind.

  CHAPTER 14

  Morning brought no relief to his anxiety. There was only one day left before his battle with Aiden, and Aaron found himself growing increasingly anxious. It wasn’t so much a fear of his opponent as it was what might happen if he failed. Even with insisting that Kate stay far away from the events, there was a chance that Aiden would go after her, especially if Aaron was no longer around to protect her.

  He made arrangements with a local boy to get a note into the village to be passed along to Josh with Aiden’s Dragon Guard. Hopefully, it would make it to him in time to be of some use. With that out of the way, he settled into what might be his last day with Kate. He couldn’t help but notice how beautiful she looked as the morning light flowed through the front window of the cabin. It overwhelmed him in a way he couldn’t describe.

  “Are you ready for this?” she asked softly.

  “I am.”

  “I wish there was a way to talk you out of it.”

  “I know you do, Kate. There’s nothing I can say to that, really. It’s just what needs to be done.”

  “We could leave, forget all of this, and just go away somewhere.”

  “We could, but you know that I won’t do that. This isn’t just for me. It’s important for all of us.”

  “I know. I just wish you weren’t the one that had to do it.”

  “I wish I wasn’t either, but I am and that is all there is to it,” he shrugged. “Hey, let’s not dwell on it. Let’s just enjoy our day together.”

  “I’ll try,” she said with a rather bleak looking smile.

  Their conversation was disrupted by a knock at the door. Kate looked at him, alarm on her face. He put his finger up to his mouth to indicate she should be quiet and made his way quietly to a nearby window to try to see outside without being seen. He didn’t recognize the two men standing outside with hoodies pulled securely over their heads and was debating whether he should answer when one of them called out to him.