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

by Jan Dockter

  “Have you had some trouble, sir?”

  “Why?” said Ryan.

  “Your clothes.”

  “Oh. That. French kilt. Lost my shirt when I took it off to get some sun.”

  Simmons gave him an incredulous look.

  “At night, sir?”

  Ryan looked up at the starry sky. “Well, at least I won’t get a sunburn.”

  “And where is your car, sir? Did it break down?”

  “No. We took an Uber. We asked the driver to let us off down the road so we could stretch our legs. Long flight.”

  “Yes,” affirmed Steph, “long flight.”

  “An Uber in this part of Scotland?” asked Simmons with doubt on his face.

  “Simmons, are you in the habit of questioning your employer?”

  “No, sir. It’s just that we had no word.”

  “Then let us in, get the maids to draw us a bath in the large tub, and get us some food. I’m famished. What about you, Steph?”

  “I could eat.”

  “There, the lady is hungry, too. Are my and my mother’s rooms ready?”

  “As always, sir.”

  “Good. Steph, darling.” He held out his hand she took it. They stepped into an atrium where the walls were paneled wood. Ryan led her up a staircase of polished wood and down a hall to the second floor. When they got out of earshot of the majordomo she punched his arm.

  “Hey,” he protested.

  She glared at him. “When did I become your fiancé?”

  “Um,” said Ryan. He wasn’t thinking when he said it but it sounded like a good idea.

  “Um is not an answer.”

  “You don’t want to be my fiancé?”

  “I didn’t say that. But a girl likes to be asked.”

  “Does she now?”

  She grunted in frustration. “What am I going to do with you, Ryan Kaur?”

  He knelt on one knee and looked up into her eyes. “Steph Brooks, will you take a bath with me?”

  She smacked him in the arm.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  Steph

  Steph thought she could get used to taking luxurious hot baths in large stone tubs. And most definitely she could get used to having the sexiest man on the planet between her legs showing how long he could hold his breath while tonguing her clit. She bucked her hips forward and his tongue slipped inside her. She panted because they had been doing this for the past fifteen minutes, with Ryan breaking for air every couple of minutes. The tease, release, tease, release was driving her insane.

  Despite the fact she sat immersed in water sweat beaded on her forehead. Ryan broke the water again, and shook his head splashing water droplets on her. He rose and sucked the tip of her nipple causing a shock of electricity to surge through her.

  “Ryan,” she whimpered. “Please.”

  “Please?” he said with a smirk. “I thought I was pleasing you.”

  She splashed water at him.

  “You know what I mean,” she said.

  Ryan lifted her up with his strong arms and she shrieked. He lowered her to his lap and rubbed the underside of his straining shaft between her pussy lips.

  “You are a wicked, wicked man,” she rasped. What he was doing felt good but she wanted more.

  He pulled her closer and nibbled on and behind her ear. “Baby,” he whispered. “Big bad lawyer. I thought you take what you want.”

  “No, actually. We are taught to negotiate first, and then go for the jugular.”

  “Mmm, well we can negotiate,” he said seductively.

  “On what?”

  “Let’s say you marry me and I’ll fuck you now.”

  “Fuck me?” she said incredulously.

  “You prefer ‘making love?’”

  “On second thought, I’ll go straight to taking what I want.” Before he could stop her; she gripped his cock, rose up and put it at her entrance. She let the head go in, then backed off.

  “Oh fuck,” he said dropping his head to the lip of the head. “You’re killing me.”

  “You’re a dragon and immortal, so I highly doubt that.”

  She held him to the petals of her entrance and dropped on his shaft slowly, inch by inch.”

  “You are a tease,” he complained.

  “Uh huh,” she said rocking sliding up his cock and down again.

  “You feel so good,” he rasped. “Fuck. Stop teasing.”

  “And start pleasing?” she said.

  “Yes,” he rasped.

  She loved having him inside her. He filled every inch and touch places that shivered pure pleasure through her. Steph started a rocking motion that elicited groans from Ryan. The throaty sounds he made sent shivers down her spine. He gripped her ass cheeks and urged her to move faster.

  “Greedy,” she teased.

  “Yes,” he said. “I want all of you all the time.”

  She placed her knees on either side of his. “Then get ready, mister.”

  She stared deeply into his eyes and lowered herself on his shaft. Steph sighed as he filled her. She lifted herself delighting in the sensation of his cock searing her with his passion.

  Damn, woman. Ryan’s words rang inside her head and his rising excitement merged with her own. All he knew and experienced he shared with her in one explosion of thought. It was too much to process at once but she felt all he felt. Steph saw how beautiful she appeared to Ryan, how his breath caught when looked at her, his abject terror of losing her. There was no doubt in her mind how much he loved her despite the short time they were together. His dragon’s heart knew from the first moment he saw her that she was his mate forever and always.

  She picked up the pace and the intensity of her strokes and they rose on a shared every nerve ending laid open to jolts of sizzling energy. Together they climbed, their breathing ragged, and broke apart in white heat.

  She fell against him and they sat like that in the cooling water as they come down from their lovemaking.

  “That was amazing,” Ryan said stroking her red hair. “Now let me ask you a serious question.”

  “What’s that?”

  An urgent rap on the bathroom door interrupted him before he could ask what was on his mind.

  “Sir, I think you should come out here,” said Simmons through the door. His voice was muffled and Steph could barely make out what he said.

  “We’ll be a few minutes,” called Ryan.

  “Sir, this is important.”

  Ryan sighed. “We just can get a few minutes alone, can we?” he murmured into Steph’s ear.

  “I’ll stay right here,” she said lazily.

  “Mr. Ryan, sir,” said Simmons more urgently after a few more raps on the door.

  Ryan stood with water dripping from his lean body and grabbed a towel.

  “Just a minute.”

  “He sounds upset,” said Steph standing after Ryan. The majordomo’s voice was not calm unlike the first-time Steph saw him and this made Steph take notice. Warning bells trained into her a Marine went off. She rubbed herself furiously with a towel and then put on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt that Ryan brought her before he got into the bathtub. She drew on the hoodie and canvas mules grateful that Ryan’s mother was the same size as her.

  Ryan finished dressing the same time she did, and he opened the door. Simmons stood outside his face pale.

  “Sir. There are some gentlemen to see you.”

  “What gentlemen?” questioned Ryan.

  “They didn’t say sir. They wait in the atrium.”

  Ryan and Steph walked the hallway and then halfway down the stairs when they spotted two men. Ryan froze in his tracks.

  They’re dragons.

  How do you know?

  I smell them.

  What do we do?

  Run. Up the stairs now! There is a ladder in the hallway that leads to the roof. Get to the roof and I’ll meet you there.

  But what about you?

  I’ll meet you there, he said firmly in her
mind.

  But-

  No buts. I know you are an ass-kicking woman but you can’t go up against a single dragon, let alone two.

  Hurry then.

  I will.

  With trepidation clenching her stomach, Steph retraced her steps. At the top of the stairwell she leaned over the railing and looked at Ryan, arms crossed and sensed that he was holding them off with talk to give her time to get to the roof.

  She ran along the corridor and found the wooden ladder attached to the wall. Steph climbed.

  “Miss?” said Simmons from under her. “Where are you going?”

  “Get some air,” she said put one hand over the other to make the top. Once there she encountered a recessed handle.

  “Pull it and it will open,” said Simmons. “But I don’t understand why-”

  “Thanks. You’ve been a big help. Will you see to Mr. Kaur? He might need you.”

  The ceiling panel swung open with a pop and Steph pushed herself onto the ceiling. She scanned the sky with her hand shading her eyes, her doing a pitter patter in her chest as she waited for Ryan. She hated not being in the thick of the action, but he was right. As much as she hated to admit, Ryan was better equipped to handle the dragons that she was.

  A frightening roar filled the air, and Ryan as a blue dragon dove and grabbed her by the claws. Turning her head, she saw a red and green dragon rushing toward them.

  Take a deep breath.

  Steph gulped a deep breath of air and Ryan dove. Cold prickled her skin and her heart hammered in her chest.

  When air rushed around her body again, she breathed. It was night again, though the air wasn’t quite as cold as Scotland. Ryan settled on a broad lawn and Steph saw he returned to his home in Connecticut. He shifted and Steph felt the strange curl of dragon magic around her as he became human again.

  “Right back where we started,” she said.

  He set her on her feet.

  “It was the only place I could think of. Apparently I need a mental picture of a place to get there.”

  “And in the same state of dress I see,” said Steph looking at his naked body.

  “Well, you have nothing for a French kilt here. Unless you give me your hoody.”

  “We have to figure out something about clothes for you. If you keep shredding them every time you change—”

  Ryan took her hand and started the walk back to the house.

  “At the dragon’s palace people wore robes. I understand why now.”

  “Wait. Dragon’s palace?”

  “Yeah, that’s where Calvin took me after we left you at the hospital.”

  “Where is that?”

  “I don’t know. But I met the queen of the dragons. She’s the one behind adopting out dragons to rich families.”

  “It makes sense dragons were behind that. I didn’t think there was one dragon who directed it, though.”

  “Yeah, she’s one scary dragon. She’s the reason I left abruptly.” Ryan fell silent then and a pensive look came over his face and Steph didn’t like the silence. She punched his arm playfully.

  “Well robes don’t work unless you want to join a monastery.”

  “No, I definitely don’t want to join a monastery,” he said with a wicked smile. “I hear they don’t allow women.”

  “Can’t live without women?” Steph asked coyly.

  “Can’t live without you.”

  “That’s sweet, but that doesn’t solve your fashion problem.”

  “I should have landed in the pool and I could have said I was skinny dipping.”

  “Well, there is one thing that is true about you. Life with you is not boring.

  “I pride myself on my “not-boringness.”

  They walked into the security lights by the pool and Ryan ducked into the cabana by it for a couple minutes. He walked out a pair of shorts and a tee-shirt.

  “How’s that?”

  “Not as exciting as you naked but it will do.”

  Ryan pulled Steph into his arms and kissed with a passion that made her head spin.

  “Let’s go upstairs to my room.”

  “Aren’t you hungry?”

  “Only for you.”

  “Well, maybe you can live on love alone, but I’m famished.”

  “Okay, we’ll make a trip to the kitchen first. Then I’ll ravish you.”

  “Incorrigible,” she said as Ryan drew open the patio door and they stepped in. Immediately lights in the study switched on. His father sat at his desk with a drawn and pinched expression on his face and several police officers stood by the double door.

  “Son,” said Mr. Kaur. “I’m sorry. These men are here to arrest you.”

  “What are the charges,” said Steph. “I’m his lawyer.”

  “Evading responsibility, assault, and kidnapping,” said one officer who stepped forward.

  “They have a warrant,” said Mr. Kaur. “Ryan, you have to go with them.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  Ryan

  Ryan huffed as the police officer ordered him to put his hands on his father’s desk, while the cop patted his body searching for weapons.

  “You should have seen me five minutes ago. You wouldn’t have needed to pat me down.”

  “Ryan,” his father said in a warning voice, “don’t say a word.”

  “He’s right,” said Steph. Alarm sounded in her voice. “You don’t want additional charges brought for resisting.”

  “You have the right to remain silent…” The officer went through his spiel.

  “Do you understand these rights?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then this way, sir.”

  “Where are you taking him?” said Mr. Kaur.

  “You can check the docket for his arraignment.”

  “But I’d like to arrange bail.”

  “For these charges, there is no bail.”

  “He’s right,” said Steph. “In this state for felonies there is no bail before arraignment.”

  “We’ll see you in court tomorrow, son.”

  “And we’ll bring a decent change of clothes,” added Steph.

  “You might want to bring several,” said Ryan with a wink.

  “Come on, Kaur. I don’t want to be at the station all night doing paperwork.”

  “Bye, Dad, Steph.” Though he was furious, Ryan allowed the officer to take him out of the house and into the police car. The thought briefly crossed his mind that he could shift and escape but that would just out him as a dragon. As far as he knew his cover as a human was still firmly in place and Ryan would like to keep it that way.

  Each officer had their own car and the other officer drove behind them on the dark country road. The headlights cut through the darkness but only illuminated small sections of the pavement. From the back seat, he could barely see their path but what he did see was a flash of bright light. The police officer cursed.

  “Dispatch,” said the officer, “Are there reports of a fire on my inbound route?”

  “Negative,” crackled the response from dispatch.

  The car slowed to a crawl.

  “There is something out here blocking the road, dispatch. It looks like a fire. Call county fire and get them to clear this road.”

  “Ten-four. Will do.”

  The car stopped and sitting up in his seat he observed the fire blazing in the middle the road. A thick tree trunk burning completely from end to end blocked their passage. Ryan thought it was strange that the log would burn like that. How would anyone get such a large piece of wood to burn like that, not unless they were—”

  “Oh shit,” exclaimed Ryan. “Turn around, turn around. Get out of here was fast as you can.”

  “Be qui—”

  But the man stopped in mid-sentence as a large red dragon rose up from behind the fire. It trumpeted a high trilling sound and a green dragon appeared behind him.

  “What the hell?” said the officer in confusion.

  “Go, go, go,” said Ryan shocked
that these two could find him. “These guys don’t play. Turn around.”

  The officer turned on his flashing lights that gave a surreal feel to the dark county lane frantically turning his wheel. But it proved difficult to turn the full-sized police car on a narrow country lane with another vehicle behind him. The car fell forward into a depression at the side of the road and the tires spun without traction in the soft earth.

  The red dragon hopped over the fire like he was playing a child’s game of hopscotch. With one talon, he tore the driver’s side door of the police car like it was a piece of thin aluminum foil. The dragon dug his claws into the police office and dragged him out in the night. The man screamed as the dragon shook him like a rag doll and then tossed him to the side of the road. Ryan turned to find the green dragon at the second car and doing the same thing to the unfortunate officer in it.

  “Stop,” Ryan yelled but all that came out was a dragon’s roar. His arms thickened and with a sick feeling Ryan knew he was transforming. The handcuffs broke apart but not before they drew blood so as he struggled to get free of the seatbelt his blood smeared the straps. His growing body rapidly filled the back seat of the cruiser. Ryan’s clothes tore and he thought wryly that maybe he needed to move to a nudist colony. He twisted and pushed his feet as they turned into his rear claws into the door and it popped open. He jammed his fore claws into the fabric of the roof over head and propelled himself out of the car. Ryan winced out as his wings curled around his shoulder caught the edge of the door’s outer frame, but they didn’t rip. His growing tail pulled uncomfortably beneath him as he yanked his body free of the car.

  The green dragon stood before him taller and heftier than Ryan. But Ryan’s anger surged through him like fire and his only thought was of ripping this dragon limb from limb.

  Instead he breathed the fire rumbling in his belly but was surprised that it came out as a trickle. Laughter filled his head from the red dragon.

  You spent all your baby fire on the queen, the bigger dragon laughed. Of course, it didn’t hurt her. Most dragonets spill their harmless baby fire when they are hatchlings. This only reveals your ignorance of our ways. Come back with us, and we will teach you what it means to be a dragon.

  If, replied Ryan, being a dragon means harming defenseless humans, then I want nothing to do with you, whoever you are, or your vile queen.