A Dragon's Heart: (Dragons of Paragon - Book 1)

by Jan Dockter

  Aldain raised a brow, “I could be asking the same thing of you. Where do you think you are going at such an ungodly hour?” He could see the wheels turning in her head.

  She was wondering if she should lie or tell him the truth. She decided she was already caught so she might as well tell him the truth.” I got a call from my ex and he wants to talk to me. I told him I had nothing I want to say to him but he has my best friend Carrie with him. He talked her into getting in his car while he told her how sorry he was for what he did to me; he told her how much he loved me and wanted another chance. She has always been way to soft hearted for her own good. She told him he needed to go his own way and leave me alone, but she wasn’t mean about it. He said he really needed a friend to talk to, Carrie was quick to point out that she was my friend not his. He actually cried in front of her. He knew what a tender heart she has and that bastard cried.”

  “She agreed to go with him to his house so they could talk, right now she is watching a movie at his place. She has no idea that he is holding her as ransom until I agree to meet him. I can’t let him hurt her; I have to go get her. Even if it means seeing that slime who calls himself a man! I just can’t leave her there.”

  She abruptly turned to get in her car, before she took more than two steps Aldain grabbed her by the shirt and held her up. “What the hell!” she sputtered. “Put me down” she said as she started swinging at him. He held her far enough away to where her short arms were swinging at air.

  “What do you think you can do to him Tori? He has already beat you bad enough to hospitalize you. If he decided to hurt you again I doubt you will be able to stop him. You’re five foot nothing. I can’t let you go. I am here to protect you, just in case you have forgotten.”

  The entire time he was talking, Tori was trying to hit him with everything she had, while swearing like a truck driver. She finally tired herself out and he felt it was safe to put her down. Before he could stop her, she kicked him hard in the shin and tried to take off running.

  “Why you little midget” he said as he quickly grabbed her shirt again.

  She turned to look at him. Her face looking thunderous. “What did you just call me?”

  He said in his baritone voice, “You heard me. You barely come to my waist. You’re not much bigger than a midget. If you will calm down and listen to what I have to say. We can go get your friend. I have a better plan.”

  This got Tories attention, “I am all ears Dain my man what’s your plan?”

  Aldain blinked, “What did you call me?”

  Tori smiled, “Well since we are close enough to give each other nick names. That’s yours. So, what’s your plan? I don’t have all night.”

  Aldain sighed, she wasn’t going to make this easy. “You drive to his house. I will follow you from a distance. He will never see me. When you get into his house I will find a way inside. Does he have some doors you could make sure are unlocked?”

  Tori smiled. “Actually, he does, and he rarely locks them. They are in the back of his house. You could sneak in there.” Aldain thought this was perfect. He could stay hidden in the house to make sure Tori and her friend remained safe. When she left with her friend he would go out the way he came.

  Chapter Five

  Aldain followed close enough to keep Tori in his sights but far enough away so it didn’t look like she was being followed. He watched her pull into a driveway that had a huge house on the side, you could tell her ex came from money. When she got out of the car, he silently closed his door and went around the back of the house. He checked to make sure no one was nearby and quietly slipped inside. He found a large pantry to the side of the refrigerator and noiselessly entered it. He could tell Tom and Carrie were in the den watching television; so far, she seemed safe. He heard Tori ring the doorbell and Tom told Carrie to stay and watch the show. He said he had some business to attend to but would be back shortly. Aldain found it odd that he didn’t tell her it was Tori at the door. This gave him a bad feeling.

  Tom opened the door and grabbed Tori by her arm and quickly shut the door after pulling her inside. He told her to make sure and keep her voice down, he didn’t want Carrie or his parents to hear her. Aldain knew this was a lie since his parents weren’t even there. He had checked to see if there were any other vehicles in the garage as he was walking around the back and the garage was empty. He knew Tom was alone.

  Tom pulled Tori to the stairs that went down to the basement. Tori kept trying to pull her arm away but Tom had a death grip on it. Tori told him he was holding onto her too tightly, and that he was hurting her. He loosened his grip as they both went downstairs into a huge basement. It was set up like a theatre with huge television sitting in the middle of the room. A horseshoe shaped couch surrounded it.

  Just as Tori opened her mouth, Tom grabbed her and threw her on the couch. His body followed hers down so he landed on top of her. He quickly put his hand over her mouth so she couldn’t scream. “You listen to me, you deceitful little bitch. If you don’t drop those charges against me not only will I come after you but I will get your parents and your best friend as well. You know I have the money to hire someone to take care of all of you and I will pay whatever it takes.” Tories eyes widened at his threat. She knew that he meant what he said.

  He released his hand from over her mouth slowly to make sure she wasn’t going to scream. She hissed at him, “You slug. How about I go to the police and let them know you just threatened my life and the life of my family and friend. They can add that to the list of assaults you bastard.” She drew her arm back and punched him square in the nose. She felt it crunch as blood started pouring out of it.

  “You fucking bitch!” he yelled. He put his hands around her neck and started squeezing. Tori was pulling at his arms as hard as she could, trying to get his hands loose when she started to lose consciousness. She could hear her heart beating in her head. Suddenly his hands were gone and she started gulping in huge breaths of air.

  She looked up and saw Aldain holding Tom by the throat with his feet in the air. She could have sworn she heard a growl come from Aldain but that probably didn’t happen. Her hearing wasn’t totally back yet so she must be hearing things.

  While Aldain was holding Tom in the air his mouth was close to his ear. “You listen to me you pathetic excuse for a man. If you ever, and I mean ever, bother Tori, her family or her friends. I will end your life. MYSELF! And just so we are very clear; not only do I have more money than your parents. but I also have the means you mentioned…. In fucking spades… You piece of shit. Do you understand? Blink your eyes once for yes.” Tom was almost purple from lack of air but he quickly blinked his eyes. Before he threw Tom into the wall, Tori had her cell phone out and took a quick picture. Aldain wasn’t sure why and didn’t care. He threw Tom into the wall where he fell into a heap on the floor.

  Tori walked over to Tom as he was gasping for air. She showed him the picture she took. It showed Tom being held in the air by his throat and showed he had wet his pants. Aldain heard Tori say, “If you don’t want this picture plastered all over the internet you would be wise to listen to my big friend here. Your reputation for being big and bad would be ruined. You pig!”

  It took Aldain everything he had to keep his dragon at bay, he wanted to kill Tom. He hurriedly grabbed Tori away from Tom as they went upstairs to collect her friend. Carrie was surprised to see Tori as she explained to her what had happened. Carrie apologized profusely for putting her in danger and thinking that Tom thought of her as a friend, acting like he needed someone to talk to. He made Carrie think that he was going to apologize to Tori. She was glad Tori broke his nose. Aldain hung behind the girls as they walked to Tori’s car. Carrie finally realized he was behind them.

  She stopped short. “Tori, who is your tall dark and handsome friend here?”

  Aldain smiled at her. “My name is Aldain Kincaid. I know your name is Carrie. It is my pleasure to meet you.” He said as he took Carries hand to his
lips kissed it.

  “My oh my… A gentleman with old fashioned manners. That’s refreshing. You must be the friend that Tori mentioned was coming from Scotland. I noticed that slight accent.” Tori felt a rush of jealousy. She shouldn’t have and didn’t understand why she did. Carrie was her best friend and she had no claim to Aldain.

  She shook it off. “Yep this is him. My sister and husband live with Dain in his Scottish castle. He is my knight in shining armor. He is very handy to have around.”

  Tori had no idea just how much of a knight in shining armor he really was. He just raised his brow at her shortening his name again. He was going to have to get used to it. He opened the car door for Cassie then went around and did the same for Tori. He told her he would follow her to Cassie’s, then home. Neither one of them thought it was a good idea to take Cassie to Tori’s house. Her parents were sure to ask questions and they didn’t need to know about tonight.

  Aldain’s body was still tense as he followed Tori home. When he saw Tom choking the life out of her, his first instinct was to shift and tear his throat out. His dragon roared and demanded he save their mate.

  Aldain was startled as he realized what his dragon had said; Tori was his soul mate. The realization made him ecstatic; he had found his mate! He wasn’t going to be alone anymore, there was someone to love. Now all he had to do was slowly romance her until she loved him back. A million thoughts were going through his head at this new development.

  Aldain was very sure of himself with the opposite sex. Tori, however, wasn’t like any other woman he had ever met. She is very independent and outspoken. She has a very dominant personality and he would have to tame it, he also has a very dominant personality. He was going to have to be very careful how he woos her. He was definitely out of his element with her. One thing he’s sure of is there isn’t going to be a dull moment with her at his side.

  Chapter Six

  The time Aldain spent with Tori and her family flew by. Her parents were great people and he informed them before he left that as far as he was concerned they were as much a family to him as his blood family. He was there for them if they ever needed anything.

  There were some problems with Tori having nightmares at night. Aldain would find himself running into her room because Tori would be screaming because she kept reliving the beating Tom was giving her. She would be thrashing about and you could tell she was trying to fight him off. Aldain would hold her hands to keep her from hurting herself as he whispered in her ear, “Wake up Tori. You are safe. I am here, your parents are here. You are home again. Shhh.” As she started to comprehend his words she would stop flailing her arms and relax. She always woke up from her nightmares drenched in sweat. The last thing to leave was the shaking of her body. Those nightmares seemed so real to her.

  Then she would break down and sob. She couldn’t understand why Tom treated her like he did. Was it something about her that made him want to hurt her? What did she do wrong that would make a person want to hurt her so badly? She hoped her nightmares would stop, the constant reminder of that beating was almost more than she could take. She was always told how emotionally strong she is so there was no way she was going to talk to her parents about it. Maybe when she got to Scotland and talked to Becca it would help get rid of her nightmares. Until then she just prayed every night it would be nightmare free.

  When Aldain and Tori got to the airport her mother’s eyes welled up with tears as she gave Tori a hug and kiss. Then she did the same to Aldain. A small sob escaped her lips and Tori rolled her eyes, her mother was so dramatic.

  Andrew Robinson cleared his throat as he hugged his daughter good-bye and told her to take care of herself. When he shook Aldains hand he told him to make sure and let them know when they arrived safely. He knew Aldain would take good care of his daughter. Aldain thanked them for their hospitality again. Their flight was called and they went to wait in line with everyone else.

  The flight was going to be a long one. They were in the air for several hours and Tori had fallen asleep as soon as they took off. When she woke up Aldain looked at her with a critical eye. “What, do I have something on my face?” she said as she raised her eyebrows.

  He shook his head and continued to look at her a few more minutes. “I just want to make sure your face doesn’t look as bad as it did. Becca would have killed Tom without hesitation if she had seen how badly you were beaten. I don’t want to down play what happened. But I am glad you aren’t wearing the proof of how bad it really was. I don’t think anyone would be able to stop your sister if she saw that.

  “Yeah probably not. I am the tomboy of the family but when Becca loses it, it even scares me. She is a force of nature to be reckoned with when she gets mad. So when she does, it is like Mt. St. Helen’s erupting,” Tori said.

  “I have never actually seen her mad so I will just take your word for it. To me she is always sweet and even tempered,” Aldain stated.

  Tori snorted, “Boy does she have you fooled. Once when we were teenagers, we went swimming and some boy thought it would be funny to pull her bikini bottoms down. She hit that kid so hard she broke his jaw and he had to suck out of a straw for six weeks.” Aldain was shocked because he just couldn’t see Becca doing that. It was good to know though so he filed that story away in his memory. It seems both Robinson girls could be hell on wheels.

  They finally arrived in Edinburgh and Aldain had a car waiting for them. Becca wanted to meet them at the airport but Aldain talked her out of it. He said it wouldn’t take them long to get to the castle and since she was always wanting to try new dishes she could stay there and surprise her sister with her new culinary skills.

  The sun was just starting to set over the horizon. The sky was beautiful. The hues of pinks and blues seemed so much brighter in Scotland. Aldain finally pulled into the castle driveway and Tori’s mouth dropped in awe. It was huge and still had that medieval look to it. Before she had a chance to remark on it Becca came running out. She opened the door and literally pulled Tori out of the car hugging he so tight she could barely breathe.

  Tori told her she missed her too but Becca was beginning to squeeze the life out of her. Becca pulled away from her and with her hands on her shoulders carefully inspected her face and neck. Her eyes weren’t swollen shut but they were both still black with bruises. They were beginning the process of turning yellow. Her lips were back to their normal size. You could still see some slight bruising around her neck. Tori stood there patiently, waiting for her sister to reassure herself that she was fine.

  Aldain and Cade unloaded the car and brought their luggage inside. Cade made the remark that the luggage seemed heavy. Aldain had a half smile as he said, “Wait until you see the trunk that will be arriving if you think these are heavy. I had to stop her from adding the kitchen sink. I can tell you one thing. This woman has no shortage of clothes or shoes. She could open her own store with them.”

  Becca kept her arm around Tori’s shoulders as they walked into the castle. She wanted to show her around when she got the chance but the first thing she did was take her to her room. Tori walked in and her mouth dropped, her room was huge. It had a bedroom that had a huge king bed in it with an ensuite bathroom had one of those garden tubs, the kind that you can sink into like a small pool. She couldn’t wait to fill it and just soak. The shower was separate and there was another room attached that could be considered a sitting room. An outside balcony encompassed the bedroom and sitting room. The balcony overlooked a loch. It was a gorgeous sight.

  “Wow this is beautiful Becca. My ‘room’ is bigger than the entire downstairs of home,” said Tori.

  Becca smiled, “Do you like it? Because if you don’t we can find you one that you do like.”

  Tori raised her brow, “Seriously, you have bigger rooms than this? I don’t even need one this big but I am not complaining. This one will do just fine.”

  Before Becca left Tori to unpack, she told her she fixed a special dinner for her. Tori
stared at Becca, with a look of surprise and admiration on her face. “Since when do you cook?” Becca smiled and told her she would be surprised at all the different things she was learning since living in Scotland. She didn’t bother to mention that since she left home she had been turned into a vampire and was learning of all the different mythological creatures that existed. She knew eventually she would have to tell Tori, but right now wasn’t the time.

  Tori unpacked her things. She left plenty of room to spare for when her trunk got there. She filled the garden tub with hot water. She noticed the bathroom was well stocked with various kinds of shampoos and soaps and decided she was going to try a soap made from heather. She put it to her nose and liked the fragrance, it had a soft flowery smell with an earthy and herb quality to it. Heather surrounded the area and you could smell it everywhere you went.

  Tori was so engrossed soaking in the tub that time slipped away from her. Before she knew it, Becca was at her door telling her dinner was ready. She reluctantly got out of the tub, dried off and put on some clean clothes before going downstairs.

  As she headed downstairs the smells coming from the kitchen were savory. Tori couldn’t believe her sister was the one that cooked the food. Her stomach grumbled at the smell. She didn’t realize how hungry she was until now.

  Tori sat down to a feast of food. There was a roast of pork, roasted pheasant, potatoes, stuffing with various kinds of vegetables and breads. Tori looked at all this food. “My god Becca. You have fixed enough to feed an army. I can’t wait to try all of it.”

  Becca beamed, “Trust me on this Tori; these Scotsmen have bottomless pits for stomachs. I wouldn’t be surprised if anything is left when dinner is finished.” Tori doubted that, but if there were leftovers she was sure they wouldn’t be there long.

  As they all sat eating Aldain asked Tori if she was interested in him taking her to a gathering of a well-known clan in a few days. He was invited to a celebration of the upcoming wedding of one of the main clan members.