by Mills, Julia
Sam nodded, and Grace continued. “Lance explained the situation when he called for my help. I took it upon myself to get an order of temporary custody for Sydney while also preparing any paperwork I may need to ensure you two were released from the less than legal questioning you were forced to endure. Since I did not know your complete legal name and address, and was unable to get back in touch with Lance,” she shot him a look at him that he knew had caused many criminals to cringe, “I used Aidan and myself as temporary guardians and our address as her place of residence until other arrangements can be made. You are more than welcome to stay with us until everything is sorted. We have a big house just outside the city and have made provisions for her safety.”
He could tell from the tension in Sam’s shoulders that she was still not happy with what was going on. He still had so much to learn about his mate, but he did know that she needed time to think things through and having this sprung on her did not sit well. As her unease rose, his need to comfort her became almost overwhelming, something so foreign to him he was not sure how to react. Just about to move to her side, he stopped short when Aidan’s voice sounded through their link. “Chill out, Bro. Grace has it under control. Your doc is just protecting what’s hers, and you need to stay put and let her work it out. No hot-dogging. You hear me?”
“Yeah, I hear ya, Asshole, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it.” Lance almost growled.
“Damn, how the mighty have fallen.” Aidan chuckled through his mind. “I’m loving this shit.”
“Isn’t it great to see the little pain in the ass all tied up in his underwear?” Royce threw his two cents into the conversation.
Before Lance could answer, Aaron decided to get in on the fun. “I cannot wait until they are formally mated. She is gonna give him a run for his money. Couldn’t happen to a nicer guy.”
Feeling ganged up on and truly despising each and every one of his brethren, he was plotting his reply when he heard Sam speak, more in control of her emotions than before, “I’d definitely like to go with you and make sure you have everything she needs. She’s still recovering from her surgery and a fever we have yet to diagnose. I apologize for losing my temper. Thank you very much for taking care of all the paperwork. My dealings with her social worker could be described as hostile at best.” She halfway chuckled, and he could feel her acceptance through their growing bond.
Grace smiled and took a few steps forward until she stood in front of his mate. She reached out and grabbed Sam’s hand, holding it for a just a second before speaking again. “You’ll get used to us taking care of one another the more you get to know us. The guys tend to take things too far and act like Neanderthals. If you have any problem with that one, you just let me know.” She dropped Sam’s hand and pointed right at him and winked. “Together, I’m sure we can take him down a peg or two.” And with that, the two women laughed like lifelong friends. He could only imagine what hell was coming his way.
Not wanting to think about it any longer, he walked over and slid his arm around Sam’s waist, while turning them to face Sydney. “You ready to go, Kiddo,” he asked.
“I sure am, Lance, but I don’t want to ride in this wheelchair. Can you carry me?”
He looked down at Sam for confirmation, and when she nodded, he knelt down to let Sydney crawl into his arms. She latched onto his neck, and he stood turning to face the others. “Have you met everyone, Sydney?”
“Yes, I did while you and Dr. Sam were talking in the other room. Mr. Royce said I should ask you what you were talking about.”
The whole group erupted into laughter as he frowned and Sam blushed. He knew it was one of about a million things they were going to use to get back at him for all he’d done to them. Looking down at Sydney patiently waiting for his answer, unaware that she was being used to get back at him and not one to be outdone, he thought quickly. “We were deciding what to have for dinner tonight. I heard a rumor that you like cheese pizza.”
The child’s eyes lit up as she nodded her head and looked to Sam. “Can we have cheese pizza, Dr. Sam, please, please, oh please?”
Forgetting her embarrassment, Sam smiled, “Yes, we can have cheese pizza, but we also need to make sure they have red Jell-O and animal crackers in case your tummy starts to hurt again.”
“Oh, I already told Miss Grace, and she said Mr. Royce and Mr. Devon would stop at the store for us. Isn’t that cool?”
Again, the entire group was laughing. For the first time in many years, he was truly happy. Not cracking jokes and acting like an idiot to keep everyone going, but truly happy, and it was all because of the woman standing by his side. He really was an idiot to have thought he could have stayed away from her. The Universe may not make mistakes, but She damn sure knew how to screw with a guy’s sanity.
Four hours and countless bouts of laughing later, the fridge was packed with red Jell-O and the cabinet with animal crackers, along with anything else Royce had decided Sydney might need. The big guy was going to make a kick-ass dad. He literally thought of everything. Eight large pizzas had been devoured, and they had watched “How to Train Your Dragon”, a DVD Grace had gotten Aidan as a joke. Sydney loved it, and he and his brethren had watched while barely keeping a straight face. Where in the hell did cartoonists get their crazy ass ideas?
He’d decided to walk the perimeter of Grace and Aidan’s land to make sure all the young Guardsmen and werepanthers were in place. He knew what had happened at the hospital had just been a prelude to Andrew’s true plan, and that the little bastard was really good at creating chaos. He nodded to Jace, one of the youngest of the group, but by far the most promising, “Anything suspicious?”
“No, sir, nothing at all.” Lance cringed at the use of ‘sir’. He knew it was the way Rayne and the others were training them, but he hated how old it made him feel.
“Good. Just make sure you stay alert.”
“Yes, sir. Absolutely, sir.”
“Good job, but you can drop the ‘sir’ crap with me. Lance is fine.” Lance chuckled, not wanting to break the young man’s spirit, but really hating that he had been called sir three times in the span of thirty seconds.
“Yes, si…ummm….Yes, Lance.”
“Better.” He nodded his approval, and the younger man smiled. “Now stay alert, and let us know if you hear anything.”
“Yes…Lance.”
The young man was going to make an excellent Guardsman, but he really needed to lighten up. Chuckling, Lance turned on his heels and resumed his perusal of the grounds. As usual, Royce had done a great job with the tactical positions of all the men, and he could sense the werepanthers moving through the tree branches.
For the first time since leaving the hospital, he realized Max had been missing in action. Pulling the cell phone from his back pocket, he dialed the King as he finished his inspection. Four rings later, he left a short message asking the Leo to give him a call. Something seemed off. It wasn’t like Max to not be right in the middle of things. He’d seen Sophia, Max’s sister and second-in-command, when all the big cats had arrived. She’d briefly spoken with Royce to confirm the plans and then disappeared with her pride members to shift and begin their security sweep. He was glad the panthers were on their side. Their ability to blend in and get information far surpassed that of the dragons. It was something that pricked his ego just a bit, but as long as they were allies, he didn’t see the harm in them all sharing talents. He remembered more than one time that Max had called for backup, needing the muscle and raw power of the dragons, so he figured in the grand scheme of things, they were all equal.
He stopped and spoke to a few more of the young Guardsmen as he made his way back to the house. He could see why Aidan had agreed to stay with Grace after their mating instead of all the way back at their lair. The couple had stated they needed to be closer to Grace’s job with the State Prosecutor’s Office, at least until ‘The Auctioneer’ and his band of thugs were safely behind bars, but he also could
see how this huge estate fit the couple. With the high stone walls enclosing the massive expanse of land, it gave the couple the privacy they needed and kept his long-time friend from feeling the claustrophobia that sometimes plagued their kin when they stayed in the city too long. He thought about Sam and imagined she would want to stay at her home after they were mated, then quickly shut down that train of thought. There was no way he could move forward with the official mating until all of this shit was put to rest. He was resigned to the fact that he couldn’t stay away from her, but officially mating was out of the question. Hell, he hadn’t even started preparing her for the mind blowing revelations he was going to have to drop at her feet. He could only imagine what would happen when he told her he had the soul of a dragon living within him, and when needed, he could call him forward. He stopped dead in his tracks. What the hell was he going to do? He knew Rayne and Aidan had dealt with this very issue, and their mates had responded favorably, but something about Sam told him he was not going to have it as easy as his brethren had.
Looking through the patio doors, he watched as Sam and Sydney laughed while playing, what he assumed was ‘Slap Jack’. If not, they were beating the hell out of a defenseless tray table. He could not tear his eyes away from his spectacular mate. She was mesmerizing. Her dark brown eyes danced with joy, and she had the most adorable dimples when she just let herself go and enjoyed the moment. His thoughts returned to a few hours prior, when he had held her close and watched her every emotion as she came completely undone in his arms. What he would not give to sink into her warm, welcoming body, stare into her deep, dark eyes, and lose complete control with her. He continued to study her and imagine all the ways he wanted to explore her magnificent body. His cock made its presence known, but even his attraction to his mate could not stop the flood of images that ran through his mind. Samantha Malone was his in this life and the next, and he could not wait to begin their life together. He had spent so many years running from fate, telling himself that after the loss of his mother and sisters to the hunters and wizards all those years ago, that he would never let another woman close.
His failure to protect his family had been the driving force behind all he did for close to a hundred years. If he had only stayed with his family while undergoing his transformation, he would have been there to protect them, but his mother had demanded that he go to the lair of the most elite Dragon Guard and train with the best.
The loss of his father in battle had been devastating and something that tore away at his mother’s soul bit by bit, with almost debilitating loneliness; but she had carried on for her family, for her children. She had wanted the best for them all and swore to uphold the promise she and his father made on the day of his birth. He would be trained by the most Elite Dragon Guard Force, and there would be no discussion about it. He had traveled for the better part of six days on foot to reach the lair of the Golden Fire Clan. Alexander MacLendon, Rayne’s father, had been the Commander of their Force and one of his father’s most trusted friends, even though they were from different clans. Lance had grown up listening to the stories of the battles fought and foes defeated by these mighty warriors and their brethren.
For three long months he had trained night and day, learning everything he could from the best Dragon Guard Commander their kin had ever known, and becoming fast friends with his son while not having any clue what fate had in store for them. On the day his mentor deemed him ready to return home, there was a huge feast in his honor. They partied the night away, not knowing that his own clan was under attack. The next morning Alexander sent him on his way, but not before decreeing that Royce would accompany him back and assist with further training of any younger, newly transformed kin. The older Guardsman was an almost silent traveling companion, only speaking when asked questions, and then most answers were no more than a few words. He had to admit, he’d been glad to have him close by when his first long range flight almost ended with him hitting the side of a mountain as he tried to somersault in the air. Royce had yelled loud and long through the mind speak of their kin, reaming him for his foolishness, but he’d still done it again just to prove he could. After that, they walked for almost an entire day before Royce would allow him to call forth his dragon and soar again. Lance smiled as he thought of all the years he’d been a thorn in the old man’s side and how it had all started.
His levity was short lived as he remembered what they found as they crested the ridge just above his clan’s lair. The Golden Dragon Clan had been completely decimated, the stench of black magic permeating their lungs with every breath. The feelings of loss and despair threatened to overtake him as he remembered how he ran from pile to pile of smoldering debris, envisioning the vibrant clan members that had been reduced to nothing more than ash at his feet by the treacherous wizards. He slowed as he came upon the broken remains of the wheelbarrow he had repaired the day before leaving for training. Following a trail of blood, he found what was left of his mother and younger sisters, huddled together with hunters’ arrows protruding from their chests. They hadn’t stood a chance.
He and Royce had immediately begun burying his fallen clan members, performing the Rite of Passage to ensure each soul’s passage into the heavens. The longer they worked to honor the dead, the more clear what had happened became. The only remains present were those of women, children, and elderly members of the clan; no Dragon Guardsmen. The atrocity had obviously been planned to deliver the most possible devastation to the clan and to all dragon kin. Lance called out through the mind speak unique to his clan, alerting the warriors of his findings. Only two of his clan answered. They detailed the bloody battle they had been in and the loss of the other Guardsmen of their Force. After much discussion, it was determined that those that killed the women and children were part of the same wizard coven that had also killed their Guardsmen.
Lost in the memories of how he and Royce, along with the two surviving Guardsmen of his clan and the Force of the Golden Fire Clan, had tracked down the hunters and wizards, exacting a justice befitting the crimes they had committed against his people, he missed Sam walking towards the window. Not until she tapped on the window was he thrust back into the present and face to face with his future. He could see the concern in her eyes and could only imagine what expression he wore after reliving the most devastating loss of his very long life. Trying to reassure his mate and throw off the haunting memories, he plastered on his infamous shit-eating grin and even threw in a wink for good measure. He knew he had succeeded when she smiled back at him.
Sliding the door open, he almost hit the ground as Sydney catapulted across the room and latched onto his leg. They all erupted into laughter as he pulled the child up his body and into his arms while making his way to the couch. He collapsed in a heap with the child in his lap and Sam at his side. “You ladies really think you are funny, don’t ya?”
“We…are,” Sydney laughed.
“We’ll just see about that,” he said as he tickled her sides, careful to avoid where he sensed her weakness until she was begging him to stop.
“Not fair,” she said when she finally regained her breath.
“Hey kiddo, you sneak attacked first. I was just defending myself.” He winked at Sam, adoring the fact that she was relaxed and having fun. Leaning his head forward, he whispered into Sydney’s ear and smiled as she covered her mouth with both her little hands, trying to keep her giggles contained.
He counted to three in her ear and half tossed, half sat the little one on the other side of Sam, while he moved closer to her hip. They both attacked at once, tickling Sam’s sides until she was squirming with tears running down her cheeks. Somehow amidst their fun, Sam wiggled free, and before he could catch her, she was across the room with arms thrown out in front, trying to protect herself from more tickles. He knew he could get past her defenses if he really wanted to, but decided he would let her think she had the upper hand, at least for the moment. Besides, watching her ample breasts move up and
down as she struggled to regain her breath was a hell of a show. Once again, his imagination ran away with him and as he felt his cock growing hard, he had to remind himself that a child was in the room.
In an effort to distract his wayward thoughts, he decided to mess with Sam instead. “You really think you are safe over there, Doc?” he teased.
“A whole lot safer than between you two,” she chuckled.
“But Dr. Sam, we were just playing around,” Sydney said, and he almost laughed out loud as she winked at him, so sure she was suckering the doctor.
He looked up just in time to catch the look of adoration for the child on Sam’s face, and felt the warmth around his heart that would never go away as long as he had her. There was no other like his mate. Thank the Heavens that his brethren couldn’t see his sappy display of emotions or hear his thoughts. There was no denying the growing feelings he had for Sam and his need to be near her as much as possible, but if he could avoid the inevitable shit storm a few times, he wouldn’t miss it. The mating call was working overtime to make sure he did everything he’d sworn he would never do, especially with Andrew and ‘The Auctioneer’ still out there and threatening what was most important to him. He would protect these two special ladies and any other, like he had been unable to do for his mother and sisters.
In an effort to keep the dark thoughts at bay, he decided to play along with Sydney, “Don’t ya think Dr. Sam cheated by sneaking away, Sydney?”
Blonde curls bounced all over as she nodded her agreement, “I do. Maybe we should go get her.” She nearly shook with excitement, waiting to see if he agreed.
“No. No. No,” Sam said from across the room, trying her best to sound tough, but her barely contained giggles gave her away.
“Aw, come on, Dr. Sam,” Sydney begged.
“I think you’ve had quite enough excitement for today, Miss Sydney. How about we go up to that pretty room Miss Grace got ready for you and get you tucked in for the night?”
