Dragon Awakened

by Jaime Rush

  “This isn’t going to put me in a position to lie to my superiors or give you away, is it?” Kade asked, following them out the door. “You know what I went through. I can’t do that.”

  “No one should connect you to me.”

  Kade put his hand on Cyn’s shoulder just before he could follow Ruby onto the deck. “You ever going to tell me why you quit so suddenly?”

  She paused at his low voice, wanting to hear the answer, too.

  “All I can say is, trust your gut above all else. If it doesn’t feel right, it’s probably not.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind.” Kade didn’t look any happier with that non-answer than Ruby was. “Be careful,” he called out as they left.

  She waited until they neared Cyn’s car before reaching for his forearm. “You had the same tattoo Kade has. V for ‘Vega,’ I presume.”

  He watched her trace the lines. “Yes, they use magick ink, inscribed by a Deuce with that particular skill.”

  “But yours is faded.”

  “They use magick to take it away, too, when you leave.”

  She saw the shadows in his eyes. “Come on, tell me. Why did you quit?” When his expression hardened, she said, “Oh, wait. I know. Later.”

  That actually got a smile out of him.

  Cyn’s body was plastered to her backside.

  It wasn’t an altogether bad feeling.

  Okay, it shot heat through her, little electrical sparks down to areas that hadn’t felt anything like that before meeting Cyn. And her Dragon was writhing in pleasure, which felt weirder than anything else.

  They were in his workout room, and she was supposed to be learning how to fight with the walking stick. His arms were around her as he showed her how to position her hands on the stick.

  “Hold it firmly, hands roughly shoulder width apart,” he was saying just above her ear.

  She didn’t mean to, but she leaned slightly into him, her eyes closing for a second. Something about his body enveloping hers, the strength of him, made her feel safe. She’d never needed to feel safe before, never had a guy act protectively on her behalf. She was too tough to need a guy’s help. Until now. And somehow Cyn and his protector role aroused her, too. Get hold of yourself.

  She focused on their hands, side by side on the carved wood. “Like this?”

  “Perfect.” The word rumbled next to her ear. “You have excellent posture, shoulders even and up, body straight.”

  She swore her Dragon purred in response. Something had changed in the way she moved. Subtle, but definitely different. Since she’d Awakened, she had gained an awareness of her body.

  And with sexy-as-sin Cyn around and half naked, another part of her body had awakened, too. Because for an old man, he totally rocked.

  Without saying a word, he’d pulled into a music store on the way back and bought her a Red Hot Chili Peppers CD, which was now playing.

  Her Dragon sighed.

  “Okay, Ruby, pretend I’m an assailant who’s come up behind you. If you’re not expecting it, you’d have the stick down like this.” He guided the stick so the tip hit the floor, molding her hand over the smooth top of it with his. “The instant my arms go around you, bring the stick up and hit me in the neck. The element of surprise only lasts a second or two, so capitalize on those seconds.” He clamped his arms over her shoulders.

  The problem was that it felt so good she didn’t want to make him move away.

  “Ruby? Attacking you, remember? Don’t worry about hurting me. I’m tough.” He was real tough, not her bluff tough, she realized.

  She pulled up the stick, stopping it when it touched his neck. Then she twisted out of his grip and brought it to the side of his head, feeling like a baseball batter.

  He didn’t even flinch or try to stop the movement. “Good job. Do it again.”

  They worked for another hour, and she was glad he’d made her fortify herself with eggs and toast when they’d returned to his house. He taught her some general moves, for those times when she couldn’t Catalyze and now, when she didn’t have the stick. They moved past the Chilis back to the music Cyn had loaded into his music system, and Robert Plant, lead singer of a group called Led Zeppelin, belted out about needing a whole lotta love.

  Which she really did not need to hear with Cyn periodically pressing some part of his body against hers.

  She faced him, blocking his attempts to grab her. “So is this what you would have been doing if Mon had brought me to you when I was thirteen?”

  “Yes. At the dojo though, in a class.”

  She knocked his hand back, hearing their flesh collide with a loud smack.

  Her eyes met his. “And now I get private lessons.”

  He merely grunted in response, then lunged forward to grab her. Remembering the move he’d just taught her, she grabbed him back. Which, unfortunately, knocked them both off-balance. He tried to right them, she overcorrected, and down to the wood floor they went, her on the bottom.

  He braced himself with his hands to keep from falling on top of her, which left him hovering over her. “It would not be effective to have the demon land on top of you.”

  He didn’t get up, even though she could see the strain of his arm muscles as he poised over her like he was going to do a push-up. She could feel his heat, and more so, the heat in his gaze as his eyes locked onto hers. He lowered his mouth, so subtly she might have imagined it. Her body strained to meet him halfway. God, her Dragon was going nuts.

  He suddenly stood, reaching down to help her to her feet. He’d been about to kiss her. So why hadn’t he? She had to get a handle on her disappointment, and the fact that her disappointment meant she wanted it, too.

  He released her hand the moment she’d gained her footing. “Now we do some Dragon work. I don’t know how much time we’re going to have here, or if we’ll get back to the dojo. Still need candles?”

  Oh, yeah, a challenge. She saw it in the glint of his eyes. “Yes.” She had to stop letting him manipulate her.

  He had a lazy sway to his gait as he walked over and lit the candles. She hit the lights, plunging the room into a den of candlelight.

  “You’re going to have to grow up and get over the candles,” he said as he returned.

  “In case you haven’t noticed, I am grown up.” She pulled off her shirt and tossed it to the floor, her gaze on him.

  He paused, embers flickering in his eyes. “Ruby, don’t do that.”

  “Do what?” She pushed down her pants and kicked them off.

  “Play the seductress. This is not the time nor the place for it.”

  She laughed, more of a sputter. “Me, a seductress? You’re kidding, right?” Like she could seduce a man like him.

  He did not seem to share her amusement. Or her disbelief. “Look at yourself.”

  She found her reflection, taking in the cant of her hips and the swell of her breasts because of the way she stood straight and confident. The soft, undulating light played over her skin. “I’m…”

  “Beautiful.”

  She met his gaze in the mirror, her heart thudding at the way he’d said the word, the way he’d meant it. “I was going to say different. I feel different since you Awakened me.”

  “It’s the Dragon. They’re very sensual creatures, and now that sensuality flows through your veins.”

  Yes, it did.

  “So that’s why I threw myself at you?”

  “The only reason.”

  “Then why did you kiss me back?”

  He shrugged. “Caught up in the moment. Let’s get to work.”

  She Catalyzed. He shucked his pants and became Dragon, too. She charged him, eager to release some of her pent-up energy. If she battered him a bit, all the better, since he was the source of it. She rammed into his shoulder, bouncing back because he didn’t budge.

  “Give me what you got, Ruby.”

  Sheesh, even in Dragon speak, he could say her name like that. She faced off with him, figuring out her
next angle of attack. He lunged beneath her, lifting his head and sending her rolling down his back. She landed off-balance but bounded up quickly.

  “Good recover,” he said.

  He swung his head around and pinned her against his shoulder. “As Dragon, your throat is your most vulnerable area. There’s a kill spot just beneath your chin where the scales are thinner. Our enemies know this. Never let anyone near your neck.”

  Ruby knocked him back, freeing herself. She swung her tail at him, and he blocked it. The firelight shone and danced on his scales, making him as gorgeous as Dragon as he was as human.

  “Do Dragons have sex?” she asked. “I mean, they seem…”

  “Horny?”

  “Yeah, pretty much.”

  He leaned forward, as though to nuzzle her neck, and then thumped her instead. “Watch your neck. Dragons would have sex if we let them. It’s one of the reasons you have to be in control before you can even think of finding a mate. You can’t let your Dragon go humping another Dragon. They’ll kill each other. Not intentionally, but throw claws and fangs into a frenzied mating ritual”—he shook his massive head—“dangerous as hell.”

  She felt the shiver shimmy all the way down her body. No Dragon sex for you. Because Cyn’s Dragon had some razor-sharp talons and killer teeth.

  Curiosity got the better of her. “Dragons have mates?”

  “Like all beasts, they seek the right mate. If there’s genuine affection between two Dragons who partake in lovemaking, the beasts take it as being mated for life. They don’t understand the complications that go with human relationships or concepts like irreconcilable differences.”

  They moved in a circle around each other, closing in until they were neck to neck, cheek to cheek.

  She found herself playfully nipping his neck. “Sorry, that was my Dragon, not me.”

  He nuzzled her, an evocative growl coming from his mouth. With what looked like some amount of effort, he pulled back. “Ditto.”

  Against her will, she stepped closer to him again. “Our Dragons seem to be hot for each other.”

  “Dragons have no sense of right and wrong, only of what they want. Mine doesn’t give a damn that you’re off-limits. Time to Catalyze before they get the wrong idea.”

  Suddenly they were human again, side by side, their bare skin pressed together. Their gazes locked. She came to a stop, her chest so tight she could barely breathe. He, on the other hand, was breathing deeply.

  “Except it doesn’t go away when the Dragons do,” she whispered.

  “No, it doesn’t.”

  He clamped his hand at the back of her neck and jerked her toward him, covering her mouth in a hungry kiss. She responded, desire exploding inside her. She was no accomplished kisser, but her mouth seemed to know exactly what to do, her tongue dancing and sparring with his the same way they’d just done as Dragons.

  She nestled closer against him, threading her fingers into his silky hair. She slid her hands across the width of his back, the heat of his Dragon tingling on her fingertips. Like the night before, she followed the lines of his spine down to the dip of his lower back, over the curve of his ass.

  He let out a soft groan, running his hands down her collarbone and squeezing her breasts. She moved into his hand, craving more of his touch. His slightly calloused palms created delicious friction on her skin. She pressed her thighs closer to his, feeling the light sprinkling of coarse hairs against her legs. She clutched at him, pulling him fully against her so that she felt the full length of his erection like a steel rod against her stomach.

  Yes, yes, want—no need—to feel you. All of you. On me, in me.

  He moved his hands to her ass and pulled her closer yet, as though he’d sensed her desire. His mouth left a wet trail down her neck, making its way slowly down to her nipple, which ached for his touch. She let out a small gasp as his tongue circled and tickled and flicked. And as he moved to lavish the other breast with the same attention, his hand cupped her mound and moved in lazy circles.

  Warm satisfaction rolled over her. His fingers parted her folds and stroked the slick skin on either side of her throbbing, swollen clit. He dipped his finger into the well of her entrance and used her own wetness as he slid over and around every inch of her. Little mewling sounds she’d never uttered before came out of her mouth as his finger slid inside while he caressed her nub. And then he covered her mouth with his as she gasped, her orgasm rocking her.

  She caught her breath, not easy as he continued kissing and caressing her, and wrapped her fingers around his erection.

  “Ruby,” he said on a groan, rubbing his mouth back and forth across hers. He took a shuddering breath and stepped back. “I can’t let this happen.” He released her, still shaking his head. “This isn’t right.”

  She was dizzy at the flip of emotions, trying to gain her balance both physically and mentally. “It felt pretty right to me.” But then she remembered something he’d said earlier. “You said I was off-limits.”

  “You are.” He grabbed up her clothes and shoved them at her. “I’m…” It was the first time she’d seen him truly thrown off. “I’m your sworn protector, and you’re in a vulnerable place right now.”

  She tugged her shirt over her head. “Me, vulnerable? Did you see me kicking that demon’s ass?” Oh, no. What if he was just using that as an excuse? “No, don’t explain. It was obviously just Dragon lust. You made it clear that I was too young and not your type.” She hoped he would negate that and look at her the way he had when he’d said she was beautiful.

  He kept his expression carefully masked, his voice even when he said, “You are too young. Definitely not my type.”

  “So you agree that this”—she gestured to indicate the electricity between them—“is only because of our horny Dragons?”

  “Yes.”

  “Nothing to do with Ruby wanting Cyn. Or…Cyn wanting Ruby?”

  “Nothing at all. Once we’re done with this, and we’re apart from each other, you’ll forget all about me.”

  Which meant the opposite was true as well. He would forget about her. All righty then. Get that through your head, Ruby. He doesn’t want you. Even as he was doing everything in his power to keep her safe. “Why did you swear to become my protector? That’s some serious business if it means laying your life down for someone.”

  The heat in his expression was gone, but his Dragon was flexing its talons and looking at her as though it would eat her. And not in the bad kind of way. Her own Dragon responded, aching to reach out to him.

  Stop it.

  “You were an orphan like me.”

  “You’re an orphan?”

  “You needed a Dragon to guide you, teach you. Since my organization made you an orphan, I accepted the duty to be that Dragon.” He obviously didn’t want to go into his own past, gliding right over it.

  She remembered his expression when he’d told her about the massacre. “Your parents died during the Mundanes’ ambush, didn’t they?”

  He hesitated before answering. “Yes.”

  “Tell me.”

  “I was sleeping on my parents’ bedroom floor after having a bad dream. I woke to gunshots, and by the time I got up, the Mundanes were already running down the hall. My mother took her last breath as I gripped her hand. My father could only blink as blood poured from his head. The Mundanes ducked into each of our rooms, splattering the beds with gunshots, and then moved on to the next house. My brother was dead. I would have been, too, if I’d been in my own bed.”

  He had kept emotion from his voice, but she saw it in his eyes. “I’m sorry,” she said, knowing better than anyone that no words could ever soothe the past.

  He walked to the cabinet to turn off the music. “Get a shower. We’re going to see another friend of mine. I’ll fill you in on the way.”

  Chapter 14

  Purcell lit a cigar and settled at the desk in the lab to study the latest solar event alert from the Space Weather Prediction Center. T
he experts had been warning about the solar maximum for months now, the peak of storm activity that occurred every twelve years. Two smaller eruptions had already passed the Earth with little effect, but the one that had just erupted was supposed to be a three or four out of five on the NOAA Space Weather scale. It would affect the Earth’s magnetic field in two days when the coronal mass ejection hit.

  That’s what he was counting on.

  But he had learned in the more than three hundred years of his life not to count on anything. Not on the company of his first two wives, whose lives had been cut short. Not on the fidelity of his third and final wife. He had lost two of his offspring during the earlier, violent years of Miami. By the time his remaining son was born—if he was, indeed, his biological son—Purcell had stopped caring about much. Darren had been simpering and desperate to please, going into physics just to make his father happy. As in everything else in his life, Darren was only average in his efforts.

  Darren wasn’t naturally inclined to the sciences, but he’d tried. His biggest achievement was introducing Purcell to his brilliant friend. Justin had an amazing idea about creating portable Deus Vis so Crescents could leave the Field for extended periods of time. He only needed funding, a facility in which to work, and privacy. Purcell offered him all for a cut of the tremendous profits they would reap. Perhaps Miami would be less crowded and less dangerous if Crescents could leave. Gone were the days when they numbered in the hundreds, when the different classes remained separate rather than interbreeding and muddying the purity of their bloodlines.

  Justin’s goals centered on offering freedom rather than gaining notoriety or profit. Purcell suspected Darren garnered a sense of importance from being associated with the project.

  When Justin’s last version disturbed the Deus Vis, he took a step back to re-evaluate his process. Fallon had felt the disturbance on the godly plane and saw it as a way to gain their freedom. That he and the other two gods in the notorious Tryah needed Purcell was an even bigger rush of power. Suddenly Purcell was infused with a higher purpose. Not only helping gods but also finding a more permanent way to clear out many of the Crescents. He had used financial incentives, including a yacht, to push Justin to continue. Brom’s vision of mass death proved that they were on the right track, but it frightened Justin into destroying all of his research and prototypes.