by Lucy Lyons
Ryan
Ryan snorted as he extended his foreleg hoping the woman would understand that she needed to climb on his back. If she didn’t, he’d have to pick her up with his claws. With hearing more sensitive than he ever had he followed the movements of the men behind the door trying to gain entrance. He heard the hiss of flame and knew they were trying to torch the door open. If he could, he’d shoot flame at the door himself and melt it permanently to its metal frame.
But this whole being-a-dragon thing was still very new and there was much he did not know. Spewing fire would be helpful but beyond his skill set at this moment. His conversation with his father was disappointing and unrevealing. As Ryan surmised after he transformed to his dragon self he was adopted by his parents as a baby. They had no idea who his parents were or are. When Ryan displayed unusual abilities when he was young his father employed a hypnotist to suppress Ryan’s natural expressions of super strength, hearing and shifting.
It was infuriating.
But now there were many things he understood about himself—his constant restlessness, the feeling of being constrained, the sense that he was more than he was. Every victory on the playing field, in card games, in seducing women were all pale imitations of who he was.
The woman stood there with his clothes in her hands, staring wide-eyed at him. How could he convey that he would not hurt her? That he needed for her to come with him so they could flee this place? There was no question in his mind that she should go with him wherever that would be. It didn’t occur to him that she wouldn’t.
Ryan roared his frustration which was probably not the wisest thing. She yelped, then straightened her body and a neutral expression settled on her face.
“Okay, you damned dragon. But afterward you are going to explain everything.”
Of course he would. He shook his head in the human equivalent of agreement. She took off her shoes wincing then clutching them along with his clothes and scrambled to his back. She settled between his shoulders and he raised his wings.
“Wait!” she called. He felt her shift and fiddle and he snorted impatiently. He looked over his shoulder to see her stuffing his clothes and shoes into his pants, then turning pulling the legs through loops and then tying them a knot and hanging the contraption off her neck.
The effort to break the ruined door was nearly paying fruit. The hissing of the acetylene torch suddenly ceased. Any second their pursuers would pour through the opening they made.
“Let’s go!” she yelled.
Ryan watched the edge of the high building and leaped, soaring down toward the helipad on a lower level below. People out for a smoke on the helipad screamed or cursed at the sight of the dragon bearing down on them, but he felt the edge of a current of warm air and banked to find the rising spiral to carry them up and over the city.
Steph had grabbed his hide with both hands and leaned over his neck reducing wind resistance. His heart unaccountably swelled at the thought that the woman was that smart. She was a prize, this one.
He soared relishing the wind under his wings and the freedom of flight. Ryan thought he could go on like this forever, but he felt Steph shiver on his back. She was hurt, and probably tired and sore and couldn’t ride him for long without weakening. This was a sobering thought. Where was he going to go?
He hadn’t thought about that on his mad dash to get to Steph. After his conversation with his father Ryan had the horrifying thought that she would be held accountable for his actions, and he could not allow this. Ryan might not be as involved in his father’s business as the elder Kaur would like, but he was aware of the powerful and dangerous elements that ran through the current government.
Ryan ran through the different properties his father owned and remembered a hunting cabin in Vermont. They couldn’t stay there long, but it would give Steph the opportunity to regroup and Ryan a moment to think about their next steps. A picture of the lodge popped in his mind and then the most amazing thing happened.
Utter cold gripped him, the kind he imagined existed in space, and the sensation of falling overtook him. He could hear Steph screaming in his mind. But because he could not breathe knew that was not possible. There was no air where they were.
Ryan swore and almost lost it as panic gripped him. This would not do. Steph was with him and he needed to protect her. At the thought of Steph an instinct he didn’t know he had asserted itself telling him this was right and normal. Ryan regained his composure. He thought about the cabin again.
The atmosphere burst around them and the sun sinking in the sky temporarily blinded him. He looked away and then below to the secluded lake and the large “cabin” his father built as a getaway from the pressures of urban living. Ryan had counted on flying for at least two hours, but this was much, much better. How he got here was a mystery, but he was glad there was some shortcut for travel. It would make things easier once he figured out what to do.
He swooped low over the lake for the sheer joy of it, then settled on the grassy shore.
Thank God! The words came from Steph but he didn’t hear the sound. But he got the impression that she was utterly exhausted and couldn’t take much more.
Ryan shifted and turned to catch Steph in his arms.
“What are you doing?” she snapped.
“Holding you up.”
“Get your hands off of me.”
Ryan stared into her compelling greens eyes and thought that he wasn’t going to let go of her.
“Where the hell are we?” she snapped.
“At my family’s hunting cabin. I thought it was a good place to hide out a bit while we decide what to do.”
“I need to get back to the city and report to my firm.”
“No,” said Ryan stubbornly. “That is the first place those government agents will look for you. Besides, I don’t think you are done with your assignment of babysitting me.”
“Babysitting?” she said indignantly.
“Don’t deny it. And my father was right. I am a mess, and I need to stay away from the family business for a while until the dragon business dies down. I don’t think they’ve associated the dragon with me yet.”
Ryan lifted Steph in a sweep of his arms.
“What are you doing now?”
“Taking you inside and getting you out of the sight of prying eyes.”
“Here? We are in the middle of nowhere.”
“No, not quite. You have heard about surveillance drones, haven’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Well, then.”
Ryan held her tightly as he walked up the stairs that led to the deck that surrounded the log cabin. He breathed in her scent and found it enticing. No. Mesmerizing was more like it. Had he ever found a woman’s natural musk more enticing? He did not think so. From deep within him he rumbled satisfaction.
He set her on her feet outside the door. He intended to find the key and get her inside. But with her so close he found the lure of her body too much to take. Ryan had never second guessed himself on his attractions. He enjoyed women, and they enjoyed him. But this was far, far different, and he wanted to find out why.
Ryan leaned forward and touched his lips to hers. Instantly the taste of her overtook his senses. He drew closer and put his arms around her pulling her to him. Her mouth was soft and the taste of her sent tingles through him. He deepened the kiss, and she did not protest. Pressing his tongue forward she opened for him and slid his tongue along hers. This tasted better than the finest wine and he wanted more of her.
“Come inside,” he said. His fingers searched for the emergency key between the chinks of the logs and found it. Reluctantly he drew away and opened the door.
Steph stared at him with a far away look and Ryan knew she would deny him nothing. Something rattled in his brain long forgotten about dragon lore. What was it? Yes. Dragons could seduce any woman. It was part of their magic. Well, Ryan didn’t feel any magic except the kind between a man and a woman when they were hot for
each other.
Still, he would not abuse the thin thread that tied them together and would not take advantage of it. He wasn’t sure what that thread was, but he wanted to make sure that it wouldn’t snap. In less than a day this woman became very important to him which seemed incredible. But then again it was entirely true.
He opened the door and picked her up again and walked through the halls to a guest bedroom. Ryan lay her down gently on the bed which smelled of clean bed linen. His father kept a caretaker here who was supposed to have the cabin ready at a moment’s notice so he wasn’t surprised. But that was another consideration. He didn’t want the caretaker to reveal their presence.
“Get some sleep,” he said. “I’ll be back in a little while.”
“No,” she said. “Stay.”
Ryan swallowed hard. How could he refuse he
CHAPTER SEVEN
Steph
This man took her on a hell ride through the country, crashed into a deer, snatched her from the hospital, changed into a dragon and took her on a heart stopping flight through nowhere. And yet, though every sensible part of her protested, when she gazed into his blue eyes she wanted nothing more than for him to hold her. She didn’t mind that he was naked. She enjoyed gazing at his unclothed form. And she wanted to hold that body against her.
“Please stay.”
Ryan swallowed hard and seemed to be struggling with something. Then he sank to his knees on the edge of the bed.
“This has been a difficult day.”
She reached up and swept his bangs from his forehead.
“I’ve never felt this way,” she said. “I’ve never wanted to hold someone as much as I want to hold you.”
“Do you think it is because I’m a dragon?”
“Don’t you know?”
“No. I just found out what I was today. My parents hid it from me all these years.”
“That’s awful. But why would they do that? Aren’t they dragons too?”
Ryan shook his head. “No. I was adopted as a baby.”
“That’s a terrible thing to keep from you.”
“I don’t know what to think. I mean, dragons aren’t well liked in society, are they? Here in the states they are tolerated much like any other minority, but in certain places, like England, they jail someone for being a dragon.”
“I know. In the Marines we had a corporal who was a dragon. We didn’t know until he got startled one day by mortar fire and transformed. He was transferred out the next day. I never heard what happened to him.”
“I can understand why people are afraid of dragons. We’re scary as fuck.”
Steph studied his face and saw concern line his handsome face. For the first time in his life he didn’t have everything figured out. Overconfident, brash Ryan Kaur didn’t know what to make of himself. Why was he talking to her like this? On the other hand, who did he have to talk to?
“Yeah, you made my heart race there when you changed.”
“Steph, you absolutely must keep this a secret.”
“Ryan, of course I will. I’m your lawyer.”
“I’m not so sure of that. My father was pissed when I stomped out after our little talk.”
“You mean when we first met?”
“No. After the crash. I flew back and confronted him. Heard the whole sad story. Couldn’t have children but wanted them. Looked all over the world until they found your law firm that handled my adoption. Raised me as their own, etc. They saw me do some freaky things as a child, but instead of coming clean with me, had a hypnotist suppress my natural abilities. I don’t know what I’m pissed at the most, that they did that, or that they pretended I was the perfect son for so long.”
Probably the last thought Steph. That would explain so much.
“Hey, I hate to ask, but do you have any sort of pain reliever around here? My ribs are killing me.”
“I’ll go look.”
Steph couldn’t help but watch him walk away. His glutes were just as she liked them, round and firm. Damn, she must have been hit hard on the head because she was thinking some very horny thoughts about a dragon.
Ryan returned, but disappointingly he was dressed in jeans and a tee shirt. He handed her pills and a glass of water. “All we have is acetaminophen.”
“That’s fine,” she said. Steph took the pills and lay back on the bed.
“You rest, and I’ll be back. There are some things I have to take care of.”
“Okay.” She did feel drowsy. Steph snuggled into the pillow.
Before she knew it, she was flying. She didn’t know where or how, but she had the sensation of movement, and then she stopped in what looked like the courtyard of a ruin. Another woman stood there at what looked like a stone altar. She turned and Steph was struck at how beautiful she was. Long blonde hair streamed down her shoulders, and she wore a white gown that covered her body cinched at the waist with a belt of woven knots.
The woman turned and looked her up and down.
“Are you a dragon?” she said.
“No. I’m a lawyer,” said Steph as incongruous as that sounded.
“Then how- Ah, then you serve a dragon,” she said more confidently.
“I guess you can say that.”
“Who is this dragon?”
“I can’t reveal that. It is a secret.”
“I stand here at watch at the home of all dragons, where the queen of the dragons lives. I hear the cries of distressed dragons and give them directions for their flight home. Do you understand?”
“No.”
“Then know this. Tell your dragon to think on the queen of the dragons and his heart will bring him home.”
Steph gasped and sat up. A light switched on and she saw Ryan sitting in a chair by the bed.
“Hey, sleepyhead,” he said.
“How long have I’ve been sleeping?”
“Just a couple hours. Are you feeling okay? You look as white as a sheet.”
“Had a disturbing dream is all.”
“I can imagine. Here, I made us some food.”
“What? The famous Ryan Kaur can cook?”
“I don’t call making hamburgers from frozen patties cooking.”
“I’ll reserve judgment on your cooking skills.”
He handed her a plate with a hamburger on a roll.
“All we had was ketchup.”
“I don’t mind. I like my burgers naked, anyway. Aren’t you eating?”
“Ate already. Actually, I chomped on some of that deer while I was in dragon form. I’m still digesting it.”
“Raw deer? You ate raw deer?”
“As a dragon. Apparently, it is a thing we do. I tell you what though. It was delicious.”
“Ugh,” said Steph.
“Do you feel any better?”
“Some. I’m not as sore.”
“Good.”
Steph took a couple thoughtful nibbles on her burger. “So what are we going to do, Ryan? Are you going to keep me as your prisoner?”
“Prisoner? That’s not my intention.”
“Then what are they?”
“Everything is so new. I don’t know.”
He didn’t know. Well, that was just great. Her entire life was disrupted and here he was playing things by ear. This did not set well with Stephanie who lived her entire life by the motto “plan your work and work your plan.”
“Then why did you take me from the hospital?” she said sharply. “It wasn’t for my stunning legal counsel.”
Ryan’s brows drew together as the muscles in his jaw pulled tight. Confusion and concern etched lines around his eyes.
“I had to protect you. Once my father told me what he knew, I realized that you were in the center of the storm. I couldn’t stay away.”
“Couldn’t,” she said. “You mean you didn’t want to.”
“No, Steph, it was like a compulsion. I had to be with you.” He stood from the chair walking back and forth thoroughly agitated. “I used to ha
ve everything figured out. Now I do and feel things I never have before. I mean there were things I was always good at, reading the micro expressions on peoples faces, hearing things extra well, but once I shifted into dragon, instincts I never had, desires entirely foreign to me have kicked into overdrive. I’m totally in the dark and I don’t know what is going to happen next.”
Steph got up from the bed and took Ryan’s arm.
“Hey,” she said. “I understand. This is a lot to take in. But dragons have been around for thousands of years. Someone must have figured it out.”
“But I haven’t.”
“You’ve only known about being a dragon for less than a day. I think you are allowed.”
“You know what the craziest thing is? Sometimes I think I can hear your thoughts.”
“My thoughts?”
“Yeah. It’s freaky. Like you say something to me, but your lips aren’t moving.”
“Maybe you can,” she said. “I mean, we don’t know a lot about dragons, though we do know dragons do have magical abilities. Maybe that’s one of them.”
“I hate not knowing.”
He began to pace again in agitation and she moved close to him and ran her hand up and down his arm to soothe him. He stopped and looked into her eyes.
“When you are next to me like this, I feel better.”
This admission surprised and touched Steph. She reached up to brush the hair out of his eyes for the second time. He was a different man than the one she first met. The first Ryan was impatient and angry and ready to strike out at the world. This Ryan was introspective and considerate. Maybe it was from the shock of learning that everything he knew about himself was a lie. That his parents lied to him when he was growing up. That had to suck in a major way. Steph couldn’t imagine such a thing. Raised with Marine ideals from childhood, the idea of acting dishonestly made her queasy.
His brilliant blue eyes gazed at her filled with longing.
Ryan lowered his head and kissed her. The contact of his lips against her produced a pleasant buzz of electricity that shot through her entire body. Her nipples and her lower hips did too. She pressed her body against him and found his shaft hard and straining against his jeans. Steph’s breath hitched as she stroked his swollen member through the cloth. His eyelids fluttered half-lidded over his eyes and moaned.
