Dragon's Promise (The Drake's Book 3) (Paranormal Nocturne Romance)

by Denise Lynn

  Little Sean’s eyes were huge, but he didn’t cry. Fearlessly, he reached out his little hands and patted the dragon’s nose.

  The soft rumble started low and soft in the beast’s chest, but Caitlin heard it, and the sweetness of the dragon’s song was enough to make her sob.

  Her son wouldn’t understand, nor would he remember, but she scooted closer to the dragon and said, “This is your father’s beast. This is the bravest and strongest part of him.”

  She removed her pendant and draped the fine chain around one of his ears. The amethyst sparkled in the light from the torch Braeden had lit and perched in the crack of a boulder. “We will remember you always, and little Sean here will know of you, I promise you that.”

  Caitlin shuddered then said, “Thank you for saving us all. We can never repay you for so great a sacrifice except with our love.” She leaned over and kissed him between the eyes. “Oh, I will miss you so.”

  The dragon’s song faded away. His chest rose and fell one last time. Caitlin rested her head against his larger one and cried.

  She heard Braeden approach. He leaned down to take the baby, whispering, “Come on, buddy, give your mother a minute or two.”

  When her arms were free, she wrapped them around the beast. “You brave fool. We could have found another way.”

  A few minutes later Braeden cleared his throat, and she knew it was time to get back to Mirabilus. She had to see to Sean, hoping that she didn’t have to go through this same thing again with him. She didn’t know if she could bear it.

  She dropped one last kiss on the dragon’s head and turned away. Braeden handed her little Sean, picked up a backpack and pointed at Ascalon. “Take that with you.”

  She picked up her sword and looked back at the dragon as Braeden spelled them back to Mirabilus.

  * * *

  The gypsy mage moved out of the shadows with a sigh to caress the beastie’s ear. “Yes, you were strong and brave. And, my sweet, you are well and truly loved. More than I ever could have hoped for you.”

  She frowned and then slipped the chain holding the amethyst pendant from his ear. The mage studied the pendant before she looked around the ruined chamber. “A love like that should never go unrewarded. You should never be without that love. You should never be alone.”

  Using a broken piece of lumber, she cleared a circle around the unmoving beast then tossed the wood aside. After placing the pendant on the floor next to her beastie, she surveyed her handiwork and nodded in approval. “And some morons need spells, blood, pain and death. The fool only needed to dance.”

  She stepped inside the circle and began to do just that. Feet tapping, body swaying, she spun around and around dancing inside the circle’s edge. Her swirling skirts brushing the dragon.

  “Not a dragon born.”

  She clapped while spinning another round.

  “Yet a dragon you shall be.”

  She turned, so her back faced the outer edge of the circle.

  “Once this beast has taken form.”

  This time she danced so her back faced the dragon.

  “It will answer only to thee.”

  She shrugged at her bad rhyme, but kept dancing, turning back and forth, facing the dragon then facing the outside of the circle.

  “St. George will set you free.”

  Her magic spun, she continued to chant and dance faster and faster until her feet would carry her no more, then she fell laughing inside the empty circle.

  * * *

  The second her feet hit the floor of her bedroom, Caitlin headed to Sean’s side. On the way she tossed Ascalon to her mother. “Tell Father we need to respell that.”

  Danielle reached out and took the baby. Heading for the bedroom door, she said, “Your mother and I will see to him for now.”

  Her mother followed, adding, “We’ll manage just fine.”

  Caitlin sat on the edge of the bed and motioned to the door. “If there’s nothing you can do, could the rest of you just go? I’ll call you if I need you.”

  Cameron blustered something about being there for brothers, but Braeden pushed him through the open bedroom door and waved Aelthed to join them. “We’ll be in the living room.”

  She nodded absently and leaned down to place her lips over Sean’s. Uncertain whether sharing her life force would work or not, she exhaled a long breath.

  After a couple tries, she sat up and felt his cheeks. The coldness beneath her fingers drew a cry from her. “Sean, don’t you dare die. Do you hear me?”

  She leaned down again. Summoning all the energy she had, she exhaled again, her tears dropping onto his face.

  When his lips remained icy and lifeless, she stopped. Stretching out next to him, she rested her head on his shoulder and wrapped an arm around him. “Sean, please, move. Say something. Stay. Don’t leave us.”

  She didn’t try to stop her tears; it wouldn’t have done any good, anyway. They fell freely onto his shoulder, to seep beneath her cheek.

  With a shuddering breath she closed her eyes, determined to commit every moment they’d had together to memory. Every argument, each kiss, every glare, each laugh—she wanted them all engraved in granite. Even though she knew that time would try its best to soften the memories, she didn’t ever want to forget even one tiny detail.

  A brisk wind blew through the sliding glass doors, sending a chill across her. Caitlin reached behind her to pull the edge of the quilt over them and froze.

  Above the bed a smoky mist swirled.

  She held her breath. It couldn’t be. She’d watched him die.

  From nowhere she heard a familiar voice chanting a familiar curse.

  Not a dragon born, yet a dragon you shall be. Once this beast has taken form, it will answer only to thee. St. George will set you free.

  The mist lowered. She moved aside to give it room. It flowed over and around Sean’s body, enveloping him, pulsing with life, and then seeped into his body.

  He jerked, his face contorted with pain. His arms flailed as if trying to fight off an invisible opponent.

  Caitlin hesitated. Should she call for his brothers? Or was this normal when the beast and man became one?

  As quickly as it had started, he calmed, easing back into a restful slumber.

  She moved back to his side and placed her ear against his chest.

  This time the tears that fell from her eyes were tears of happiness.

  The beast crooned to her, erasing her fears, reassuring her that all was well.

  Sean’s arm came around her, holding her tightly against him in his sleep.

  Chapter 19

  Caitlin tossed the last of her clothes into the suitcase. She couldn’t believe he was making her leave.

  She glared at his back. He was standing in front of the sliding door in the bedroom, holding their son, not saying a word. Right now she was fairly certain he was using the baby as a shield against her outrage. He knew damn well that she wasn’t going to start anything with little Sean right here in the room.

  What was wrong with him? Less than twelve hours ago he had been at death’s door. Today, with the rising of the sun, he acted as if nothing had happened.

  Since the moment he’d woken up this morning he had treated her politely, like he would a guest at the Lair, or some stranger he’d met on the street.

  Over breakfast, he’d informed her that the jet would be here to take her back to the States before noon.

  She’d been speechless. He wasn’t even going to give her a choice? Or a chance to change her mind?

  Fine. She’d leave. But if he thought she was going to come running if he changed his mind later, he needed to think again. She was not a puppet to manipulate at whim.

  Jerk.

  A knock at the bedroom door tore her away from her fuming. “What?”

  Danielle Drake entered. “I was wondering if I could have a little time with the baby before the plane arrives?”

  Wonderful. He’d told the entire family she was l
eaving? Caitlin took a deep breath. Her anger wasn’t at Danielle. She nodded. “Sure.”

  Once Danielle left the bedroom with little Sean, and Caitlin heard the outer door to the apartment close, she turned to stare at Sean.

  He wouldn’t even look at her.

  She crossed the distance between them and tapped him on the shoulder. “You want to tell me what’s going on?”

  “I told you I wasn’t going to stop you from leaving.”

  “You never mentioned throwing me out.”

  “I’m giving you what you want.”

  “Oh, really? You are, are you? Tossing me and my son out is what I want?”

  “Our son.”

  “Fine.” She corrected herself. “Our son. This is how you treat our son?”

  “I’m not doing anything you didn’t want.”

  “How do you know what I want? Are you suddenly all-knowing?”

  “Have you changed your mind? Do you want something else first? The cabin wasn’t enough, so you want another fuck before you go?”

  A haze of pure red clouded her sight and mind. She raised her arm, palm open, and swung toward him.

  Faster than she knew was possible, he spun around and backed her toward the bed. Before she could so much as gasp, they were naked on the bed, with him on top of her.

  “Is this what you wanted? Do you need some energy to tide you over until you can find someone else to supply it?”

  She didn’t know what was wrong with him. But she did know something was. Not only wasn’t this normal, it wasn’t even rational.

  She knew better than to physically fight him. There was no way she could win, and in his current state of mind she didn’t know if he’d be able to stop himself from killing her.

  So she wrapped her arms tightly around him and whispered, “Sean, where are you? What happened? Talk to me.”

  The rage in his eyes made his glare as hard and sharp as any cut gemstone. He hadn’t heard her.

  Caitlin closed her eyes and crooned to the beast inside. To her relief, the dragon listened and crooned back.

  The man holding himself so tense atop her slowly relaxed. He buried his face against her shoulder. “Forgive me. I’m sorry.”

  “What happened? Where did you go?”

  “A changeling isn’t meant to separate from his beast. When I was by myself, I was filled with a rage I couldn’t control. A cold fury that threatened to consume me.”

  She ran her fingers through his hair. “I noticed.”

  “I was trying so hard to get you out of here before it broke free.”

  Caitlin sighed. “And of course I just egged it on.”

  “I was acting like an ass. What else were you going to do?”

  “Yeah, well, from now on, you don’t ever—and I mean ever, ever, never—separate from your beast again.”

  “No fears there since I have no intention of doing that again.”

  “Good.”

  Sean rolled off her and spelled their clothes back on. “There’s time for a walk before the jet arrives. We have a few things to discuss.”

  “Yes, we do.”

  He took her hand and led her out of the bedroom, down to the main floor and out of the castle. The entire Drake clan was gathered in front of the castle. But he didn’t stop to chat, just nodded and kept walking to the beach.

  Once there, he turned to her and took both of her hands in his. “You’re pregnant.”

  Caitlin stared at him. “Beg pardon?”

  “I said you’re pregnant. With twins.”

  While that probably explained her emotional highs and lows these last few days, this wasn’t exactly the way she wanted to discover the news. In fact, wasn’t it usually the woman telling the man?

  “And how long have you known this?”

  “When we were at the cabin.”

  “Oh.”

  “So, are you going to marry me?”

  She looked up at him. “No.”

  Before she could say anything else, like explaining why, he released her hands, turned away, shifted into a smoky dragon and took off.

  Caitlin wanted to scream. If she did nothing else in this lifetime, she was going to break him from this habit of running away.

  She took three steps to chase after him and felt the wind rush through her skin. She frowned. Something was happening. Her body suddenly felt as light as air. She looked down at the beach, shocked to find it a good twenty feet below her.

  She shifted her attention to her body, which was no longer there. No arms, no legs, no nothing.

  Caitlin headed toward the water and glanced down at her reflection. If her eyes weren’t playing tricks on her, she was the most gorgeous amethyst-hued smoky dragon alive.

  She was lighter than a feather. Not just her body, but her heart. This was impossible, but it was fabulous. She was happy.

  The cool breeze flowed through her; the colors of the earth and sea were more brilliant than she’d ever seen, brighter than she could ever have envisioned.

  She flew over the castle, circled the people staring at her from the lawn.

  Danielle Drake pointed to the left, shouting, “Go get him.”

  Caitlin wanted to laugh. Oh, she’d get him all right. If her mate thought for one minute he was going to escape his fate, he was sadly mistaken.

  She veered to the left and instantly spotted him soaring over the ocean.

  It took little effort to catch up with him, and she fell into line next to him.

  He looked at her, surprise evident in the way he slowed down to study the form next to him.

  Caitlin smiled to herself and then flew straight into him, her form and his blending into one.

  “I’m not going to marry you because you haven’t ever asked me to.”

  He welcomed her, filled her with warmth, cocooning her within the expanse of his misty wings. “And if I did?”

  She snuggled into his warmth, breathing her life force into him and accepting the energy he returned. “If you did, you would never be able to get rid of me.”

  “Well, so tell me Caitlin St. George, milady Dragon Slayer, will you marry this beast who loves you dearly?”

  She sighed at his words. “Yes, my love, I will marry you.”

  He took control of their flight, swirling, rising and dipping before he brought them both to a gentle landing on the beach.

  Once they both returned to human form, he dropped down on one knee and took her hands between his. “I am honored. I swear to you that I will always love you, always care for you and keep you safe.”

  “Of course you will. You haven’t broken a vow yet, why would you in the future?”

  He kissed her hand. “I have to warn you of something, though.”

  “And what might that be?”

  He rose to envelop her in an embrace and whispered against her ear, “Dragons mate for life.”

  Chapter 20

  Mirabilus Island—Six months later

  Caitlin lowered her oversize form down onto the lawn chair on the beach. She was fairly certain she’d be giving birth to hippos, not babies. Pulling a folding fan from the beach bag Sean had provided, she snapped it open and waved it in front of her face. Not that it helped; the summer heat was sweltering.

  Alexia, sitting in the chair next to her, patted her hand. “It’ll get better.”

  “Yeah, in three to four months?”

  “That sounds about right.”

  Caitlin sighed. “So, is everything ready for the wedding?”

  “Everything except for the bride.”

  Sean came up behind them. He handed Caitlin a glass of iced tea and massaged her shoulders. “What’s Danielle’s problem now?”

  “Her veil was delivered this morning, and she doesn’t like it.”

  Braeden dropped onto the sand at his wife’s feet. “And she thinks Aelthed will care what veil she wears?”

  “She just wants everything to be perfect.” Caitlin tried to explain the woman’s reasoning.

>   “Speaking of the happy couple.” Braeden nodded toward the other end of the beach.

  Aelthed and Danielle were walking hand in hand at the edge of the water.

  Ariel snatched one of her children out of the water and joined them. “What do you think of Aelthed’s new look?”

  He’d shaved off his beard and cut his hair. The cleaner look made him appear younger than his nine hundred or so years. The blue jeans and sneakers helped with the overall look.

  Caitlin mused out loud. “How long do you think he’ll be here?”

  Cameron shook water all over his wife, before sitting in the chair next to her. “Who knows? Does it matter?”

  Sean answered, “Since none of us knows how long we’ll live, I suppose not.”

  “Are your parents coming for the wedding?” Alexia asked.

  “My mother says yes. My father just snarls.”

  Ariel laughed. “He’s still not happy about that whole being married for an eternity concept the High Council imposed on him?”

  “Considering he just bought my mother the house of her dreams and let her furnish it to her exacting tastes, he’s obviously fine with it.” Caitlin shook her head. “He just likes to kvetch, to hear himself talk.”

  “When are they bringing Sean back?” Braeden’s tone was a little on the sharp side. He still wasn’t used to being related to the St. Georges and even though Caitlin had made her peace with both of her parents, he didn’t trust them.

  “They’ll fly in tomorrow.”

  The babies decided to fight for space in her womb. Caitlin groaned and rubbed her hand over them.

  Sean took the tea from her. “Come on, we’re going in. You need to rest.”

  “That’s all I do is rest.”

  “Now.”

  He helped her to her feet and looked at Braeden. “A little assist?”

  In the next instant they were in their cool, air-conditioned bedroom. Sean pulled the curtains closed over the sliding doors to block out the sun.

  He then helped her onto the bed and took her shoes off before stretching out next to her.