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The Dragon’s Secret Baby
A Paranormal Romance
By Jasmine Wylder
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Bonus Content (Limited Time Only)
Paranormal Romance Collection
Shifter Romance: Bonded to the Alpha Wolf
About Jasmine Wylder
Chapter One
Dominique
Monkeys called to one another in the jungle around the camp. Dominique Mennel ignored them, having become accustomed to their racket. The first couple months here at the Belize dig site had been torture with the constant noise, but over the last three years working here it was just background static. Today of all days she wasn't going let a little bit of monkey chatter distract her.
She sat in her camper staring at the phone, her fingers drumming an impatient beat. Cellphones didn’t work out here and so she had to rely on this landline. Any minute they were supposed to get the results back from the artifacts they had sent in for radiocarbon dating. Three years on this dig and she hadn't found anything as exciting as this.
Dominique had wanted to be an archeologist ever since she was a little girl, and this was the first dig she had headed herself. She would have preferred to work a little more to the north but this fit her schooling, and their patron, Claire Perry, had offered the job to her personally. It was something that she couldn’t refuse.
The land she was working on was at the center convergence of four Dragon clans and she was hoping to find evidence of her theory that the Dragons' migration to the area predated the earliest written records, but there was no such luck. She had found pottery shards and a few more interesting pre-Maya artifacts, though nothing earth-shattering.
Until they found the egg. It was surrounded by all sorts of artifacts, from clothing to baskets full of food to jade and obsidian jewelry. It had been sealed in a tightly-cemented stone box and all around the box was charcoal and ash, as if a fire had been lit around it and then it was buried. Dominique hadn't heard of anything like it before, and all the local Dragons her colleagues talked to didn't seem to have any theories as to what it was.
The egg itself wasn't all that extraordinary. It was blackened from soot and measured in at just larger than an ostrich egg. What was exciting was the almost invisible symbol found emblazoned in gold at the top. Dominique thought it looked like a Chinese character, though she didn't know the language herself, and sent a picture to a linguist in China. From that, they learned that it was a character not used since the Shang Dynasty–over three thousand years ago. Proof that Chinese Dragons, at least, had come to the Americas almost two thousand years before the first Mayan cities were built. It changed everything archeology knew about American–and Dragon–prehistory.
If the context found with the egg backed up the find, then she was looking at worldwide recognition for this dig. Validation for all the years and money she sunk into getting her degree.
"Hey, sexy lady," a voice said behind her, making her jump.
Dominique let out a disgusted sigh and glared at the man who just stepped into her camper. Virdi Einskis. He was a member of one of the local Dragon clans. Somewhat paler than the others native to the area, the similarities between their clan's unique language and the one used in Iceland lead to speculation that they were originally European refugees that fled the Dragon Persecution that arose with the Vikings in the late eighth century. Many of the Dragons took it as fact, and claimed to be ousted royalty. A few had even named themselves after the Nordic gods.
"What do you want, Einskis?" Dominique snapped. She had no patience for distractions today.
She tried to ignore the fact that he was shirtless—and ripped. Seriously, that much muscle ought to be illegal. The first time he had walked into the camp, wearing a pair of ripped jeans, casually carrying a peccary over his shoulder with those bulging muscles, Dominique had almost swooned. She still had to work hard to stop the drool from pooling in her mouth whenever he stopped by. It was too bad he was such a jerk.
"I was hoping to catch a glimpse of this egg you lovely ladies found," he said.
His dark eyes caught hers and Dominque quickly looked away. There was something unsettling about looking into Virdi's eyes. There was always something below the surface, just out of sight, that threatened to suck her in and turn her inside out. She'd seen him with the students at the dig–especially the female students. She wasn't going to let herself be taken by whatever it was he used to lead them out into the forest when nighttime fell.
"I'm busy," Dominique snapped at him. "Go bother somebody—"
"Hey, Dommy," a bright, chipper voice just behind Virdi said. "Ooooh, I thought I saw our resident Dragon stalker come in here."
Dominique pinched the bridge of her nose. Great. Just what she needed–her flirty boss to step in. Claire's flame-red hair was piled on her head, wearing her usual fare of skin-tight cutoff jeans and tied up men's shirt that looked more suited for the porno version of archeology than the real thing. She latched onto Virdi at once and giggled, squeezing his thick bicep.
"You're looking like a tall burst of flame today," she cooed. "What can I do for Princess Skaldi's son?"
Virdi tapped Claire's nose and chuckled. "I'd like to see the egg you ladies found. I hear it's quite the sight."
"Of course you can see it. It's a Dragon egg, after all, and you're a Dragon," Claire said. "Dominque? Why don't you come show our guest our find?"
"I'm waiting for confirmation on the radiocarbon dating," Dominque protested. She stood and put her hands on her hips. "Besides, he's caused nothing but trouble since we got here three years ago. The egg is a precious artifact that belongs to all the Dragons of this area, and Skaldi's group has already tried to claim artifacts that clearly don't belong to them—"
Claire cut her off with that simpering-sweet smile that the redhead did so well. "Dominique, please. Virdi here isn't going to try to steal it, are you?"
Virdi put an arm around her waist and pulled her tight against his chiseled side. Dominque's scowl deepened. The Dragon didn't reply—but then he didn't need to, because Claire burst into fits of giggles, as though she never got male attention, and twirled a stray strand of hair around her fingers. Honestly. The girl didn't hurt for guys flirting with her, yet she acted like every man she laid eyes on was the last in the world.
"And I do fund this dig," she added,
batting her eyes at Virdi. "Won't you do it for me, Dominique?"
And there it was.
Dominique angrily yanked open the drawer in her desk and retrieved the keys to the safe where the egg was being held. When it came to Claire 'I'm funding our dig' Perry, she had to know when to pick her battles. It wasn't like Virdi was going to try to steal the egg. He was constantly wanting to see whatever new thing they dug up and while he did cause problems, it was more annoyances than anything serious. Dominique just didn't like him. He walked around like he ruled the world.
She flipped her long, shiny black braid over her shoulder as she pushed past him, hitting him squarely in the face. All she got in reply was a chuckle of amusement. She led Virdi and Claire to Esther's camper. Her colleague was bent over a statue they had dug up three feet above the burned egg shrine. Dark brown hair stuck to her skin and when Dominque entered, Esther pushed her glasses up on her nose.
"Dom! What's up?"
Dominique gestured at Claire and Virdi as they entered behind her. The four of them stuffed into the camper was more than tight and Dominique found herself squished against Virdi's side when he stepped forward to explain what he wanted. She pulled herself back from him as much as possible, ignoring the rising heat in her cheeks. They were in a jungle. It was perfectly natural to feel a little overly warm.
"The egg, huh?" Esther eyed Virdi with a toned-down version of Claire's giggles.
Seriously. Dominque rolled her eyes. A pang hit her in the stomach as Virdi stepped forward and put a hand on Esther's shoulder. He was always flirting with all the girls in the dig. Or at least, he flirted with the pretty ones. Apparently she was too thick in the waist for him to waste time with. Not that she cared. She didn't even like him.
"I'd really appreciate it," he murmured in a husky whisper.
Esther chewed her lower lip, grinning. The pang increased, though Dominque huffed and rolled her eyes. What was it about this guy that turned the otherwise stable Esther Doron into a giggling mess like Claire?
"I've got the key," she said shortly and pushed past them to open the safe.
The egg was carefully wrapped in bubble wrap, nesting in a pool of velvet that Claire just happened to have in her suitcase. Dominque carefully brought it out. It was deceptively heavy and she cradled it against her chest, fearful of dropping it.
Virdi's dark eyes widened. An awed, almost reverent look came over his face and he reached out. Dominque didn't like surrendering the egg, but she did so at the cough and glare Claire gave her. The Dragon let out a slow breath, his thumb tracing over the symbol on the top.
"You have no idea what this means, do you?" he asked in a low voice. His gaze flickered up and met Dominique's.
Her breath caught in her throat. Wordlessly she shook her head.
"This is… my ticket to everything I want."
The reverent look on his face disappeared in an instant. Virdi smirked as he pushed Esther into Claire and turned. Dominique shrieked in protest as the other two women stumbled over themselves. She jumped over the bed, dashing after Virdi as he rushed from the camper.
"You are not getting away with this!" she shouted at him.
Just outside the camper, Virdi laughed. Smoke billowed from his mouth and his earthy-colored skin took on a forest-green hue. Dominque swore and threw herself across the space between them. She was not going to let him just shift and fly away!
Her attack must have been unexpected, because he didn't move out of her way in time. His torso lengthened as she plowed into him, knocking him off his feet. He pushed her while thin bony protrusions sprang from his naked back. Dominque snarled, grappling with the bubble-wrapped egg still clutched in his hands.
"You lying, thieving, jerkhead of a Dragon!" she shouted, kneeling on his chest. It was times like these that she was grateful that she didn't have a figure like Claire's; that tiny woman could be knocked off of a burly man like Virdi with no problem, but she was stocky and strong and wasn't so easily shoved aside.
"Get off me," Virdi wheezed. "You'll break the egg!"
That made Dominque pull back at once. Protecting the egg was of the highest importance. Virdi took advantage of her distraction and shoved her. His hand clipped her shoulder, spinning her to one side. With a shriek, she threw herself over him again. Her knees slipped to either side of his head, pinning him down; she grabbed the egg and yanked it to her chest. The Dragon refused to let go, pulling Dominique down over him as he yanked on it.
"You know," he said, his breath brushing against her thigh, "if you wanted me to give you a ride, I'd be more than happy–if you'd ask!"
Dominique gaped at him. "How dare you—"
He yanked on the egg again, this time making her lose her balance. Dominque tumbled over his head. Her hands slipped off the egg. She rolled a few times and jumped back to her feet. Virdi was already half-shifted, green scales sprouting over his body. He grinned at her; she howled and threw herself forward, reaching for the egg. Virdi danced out of her reach, still laughing.
A hollow dong rang through the camp. Virdi's eyes widened. He blinked a couple times, then his knees buckled. His eyes rolled into the back of his head. Dominque jumped toward him and grabbed the egg. The Dragon hit the ground with a solid thud, revealing Esther standing behind him. She held a frying pan in her hands, her glasses askew and a fierce snarl on her lips. Dominque cradled the egg in her arms, checking it for any sign of injury. It seemed none the worse for its ordeal and she let out a relieved sigh.
"My!" Claire said from the doorway. "He tried to steal it! Is he dead?"
Esther prodded the Dragon with her frying pan. "No, he's breathing. Dragons have thick skulls."
Claire's hands fluttered in the air. "I do hope he's not too upset with us when he wakes."
Dominique repressed the urge to roll her eyes again. "Let's get him tied up somewhere. I'll call the local police."
Still cradling the egg in her arms, she headed for the camper. Her heart hammered, no matter how hard she tried to calm it.
It's okay, she told herself. The egg is okay. We'll just have to be more careful in the future. And as for that Virdi Einskis, I hope he goes to jail. It's no more than he deserves!
Chapter Two
Virdi
His head felt like a colony of army ants had decided to take his brain out through his nose. Virdi groaned, reaching to rub the tender spot, but he couldn't move his hands. A frown crossed his face as he glanced down. Ropes wound around his arms and legs, pinning his elbows to his sides. They were tight, too. His hands were numb. Sheesh, these women didn't play around. How long had he been out? It was still bright out, so it couldn't have been more than a couple hours.
He was in one of the campers. A quick sniff filled his nostrils with the scent of jasmine and honey. Dominique. He had to repress a groan. If it was either of the other women, he'd have a chance in getting her to at least loosen the ropes, but from the day Virdi arrived on the scene, Dominique had looked at him like he was trying to steal her family heirlooms. Which was a shame, because she was smoking hot otherwise. Curves in all the right places, with iron-willed determination and a fiery piercing gaze that never failed to make his heart beat faster.
"Awake, are you?" the humorless archeologist's voice greeted him and he looked up.
He smirked as he got a great view of her breasts. "You know, from this angle, you look especially sexy. I like a girl with meat on her bones."
Dominique's face twisted in anger as though he had just insulted her and she jabbed him in the chest with her toes. "I don't care what you think of me. What did you do to our phones? None of our calls are going through."
"Oh, my. That is unfortunate," Virdi said dryly. He hadn't done anything to the phones but she wouldn't have believed him anyway. "Maybe you should untie me so I can fly into town and find a repair man. Or I could take you closer to a cellphone tower, so you don't have to rely on landlines."
"You—"
"Dominique." Esther grabbed her co-
worker and pulled her back. "Come on, that's not going to help."
Virdi took advantage of their distraction to focus on partly shifting. The spikes on his back pushed through his skin, making him grimace while they cleanly sliced through the ropes before the women were finished with their argument. They didn't even notice as he brushed the ropes off, and only turned their attention back to him when he jumped to his feet. Claire, just behind Esther, screamed. Dominique reached for a frying pan as he grabbed her around the waist. One of his hands circled her throat.
"Give me the egg," he snarled. The other two women shied away from him, eyes widening, but Dominque spat and cursed, twisting like a feral cat. He tightened his grip on her and allowed his claws to grow. It was only when he put their sharp tips against her neck that she stilled. "I don't want anybody to get hurt here. So just give me the egg and I will walk away—"
Dominque's arm jerked back. Her elbow cracked against Virdi's sternum. The air rushed from his lungs and his heart jumped twice. He tightened his grip on her but even as he did so she scratched at his face, nearly gouging an eye. He sucked in a deep breath, coughed and pinned her arms back to her side.
"Stop that!" he shouted, moving his clawed hand to her shoulder so he wouldn't accidently kill her. "I just want the egg!"
"I am going to kill you," Dominque snarled.
"Let's just give him the egg," Esther shouted. "It's not worth your life!"
A scream from outside interrupted Dominique's reply. Another scream rose, this one cut off by a bone-shaking roar. Dread slid down into Virdi's stomach. He dragged Dominique to the window. Outside, a blood-red Dragon stood in the middle of the camp. Paul Johnson, one of the Dragons from a clan that recently immigrated to the area.
He held a human between his jaws; the man wasn't moving. Virdi cursed. He might be a lot of things but at least he and his clans didn't go around killing humans. And who would take the blame for this? Not the new group. They'd all suffer.
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