Summer and the Dragon (Redwood Dragons Book 2)

by Sloane Meyers

  It did not take long for him to push her over the edge. She cried out his name as she found her release, and her body began to clench and spasm, squeezing his dick hungrily as it continued to move inside of her. She trembled as the tingling, sweet sensation spread to the furthest reaches of her body. This moment was the most consuming thing she had ever experienced. She was his, and he was hers.

  He felt the strength of their bond, too, she could tell. He groaned as she continued to spasm around him, and then he stiffened and gave one final, giant thrust as he came into her. She could feel him, pulsing inside her, matching the rhythm of her own pulsing body. They stood there, intertwined and panting as their bodies trembled from the intensity of the moment they had just shared. Lily did not know how long they stood, but she knew it was several minutes, at least. Still, when he finally pulled out of her, it was too soon. She wanted him to stay inside of her forever.

  She looked up at him and smiled at the sight of him, his wet hair sticking every which way as he looked down at her with his emerald green eyes. She was surprised by the intensity his expression still held. He looked troubled, and she reached up to push back the wet locks of his hair.

  “What’s wrong?” she asked. She felt her heart tightening with worry. Was it her? Was he having second thoughts about being with her? But she’d thought that what they’d just shared had been so wonderful. She had felt a deep connection with him, as though their very hearts were one. Had he not felt that, too?

  But he soon put her fears to rest. He reached up and stroked her face, and when he spoke, his voice was heavy with emotion.

  “You are the most wonderful, beautiful thing that has ever happened to me,” he said, and to Lily’s surprise his voice cracked as he continued. “I can’t believe I almost lost you today. I never could have forgiven myself.”

  “It wasn’t your fault,” Lily said gently.

  But Vance shook his head. “The most important job of my life is to protect you,” he said. “I love you, Lily. Truly and deeply.”

  Lily felt tears stinging her eyelids, and she was thankful that the water from the shower disguised them.

  “I love you, too,” she said. “For always.”

  She laid her head against his chest, and her heart leapt with joy when she heard him repeat the words back to her.

  “For always,” he said.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Vance blinked against the bright sunshine, wondering for a moment why his head was pounding so much as he sat up slowly in his bed. Had he had too much to drink last night? And why was he in his own bed, not Lily’s? Surely she had not made him go back to sleeping in his own bed after he had experienced the joy and warmth of sharing a bed with her?

  But no, as he rubbed his bleary eyes and the morning came into focus, it all came rushing back to him. He had not had too much to drink. In fact, he hadn’t had a single beer last night. His head was pounding because he was so tired. He wasn’t sure exactly what time it was right now, but it was still early from the looks of the morning sunlight that was beating relentlessly on his face. He had not gone to bed until the early hours of the morning, which was also why he was sleeping in his own cabin instead of Lily’s. He had not wanted to wake her, and he didn’t trust himself to be able to slip in quietly next to her.

  From outside, he could already hear the sound of voices around the fire pit. Knox was already out there, even though he hadn’t slept any more than Vance. Vance wondered, in fact, whether Knox had been able to sleep at all. The information they had read through last night had been troubling, and Vance knew that life was about to change for all of them. The easy, breezy summer they had hoped for would not be happening. Not this year, anyway.

  Vance quickly got dressed. He would go see Lily, and then make his way to the fire pit, where he knew Knox was planning to update everyone in the crew on what they had learned. When Vance opened his door, though, he was startled to see Lily already standing there, her fist raised.

  “I was just about to knock,” she said, laughing. “Did you hear me coming?”

  “No, I didn’t,” Vance said. “I was too wrapped up in my own thoughts. But I’m glad you’re here. I was actually on my way to get you and tell you that we should go to the fire pit. Knox is going to want to talk about the information we found on the phone.”

  Lily’s face turned serious. “Your voice has a bit of an ominous tone to it,” she said.

  “Well, it’s not exactly the best news in the world,” Vance said. “Come on, you’ll see what I mean in a few minutes.”

  Vance led Lily to the fire pit, where Noah was serving fresh coffee from a thermos. Myles was grilling breakfast steaks, and Knox and Bree were speaking in worried, hushed tones. Vance accepted a steak and a mug of coffee, and he and Lily were silent for a few minutes as they both drank coffee and ate. Not long after, Zeke and Owen showed up. Knox looked up when they arrived, and decided that it was a good time to start speaking.

  “Morning, everyone,” Knox said. Vance thought that Knox’s voice had not sounded so weary for quite some time. His eyes had dark circles under them, and his voice was gravelly from lack of sleep. But his expression was still bright and hopeful and Vance found himself thinking that, despite the differences they had sometimes, he really was happy to have Knox as his clan’s leader. As far as dragons went, Knox was one of the best, and Vance felt lucky to have Knox in charge of the Redwood Dragons.

  A chorus of good mornings sounded back at Knox, and then there was silence for a few moments while he collected his thoughts. Vance glanced at Lily’s face and saw the concern etched into it. The somber mood of the group was affecting her, and Vance’s heart went out to her. This was definitely not going to be the summer getaway she had hoped for. He reached for her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, and she looked over at him and smiled bravely. Vance felt his heart melting a bit. She was doing her best to stay positive, and he could only hope that she would still be able to smile after hearing what Knox had to say.

  “As you all know, I went through all the information from the phone with a couple of the guys last night,” Knox said. “What we learned means that we are probably going to be spending our summer fighting, instead of relaxing as we had hoped.”

  Knox paused again, and Vance looked over at Lily. The morning sun was shining on her dark brown hair and giving it a brilliant, warm glow. Her skin looked fresh and tanned, and her eyes were bright. But they were filled with worry, and, as much as Vance wished he could tell her not to worry, he knew that there was plenty to worry about.

  “These are stapled copies of all the information that was in the phone. There should be a copy for everyone,” Knox said, as he reached for a pile of papers and started passing them around. “The two shifters that attacked Vance and Lily were scouts. As far as we can tell, they were sent to scope out the situation, and see where we hide our valuable artifacts. They were supposed to report back on any likely hiding spots for the dragon stones, and on what type of security systems we have in place. Of course, the dragon stones are not hidden anywhere near here. They’ve been sent to the shifter protectors in Texas for safekeeping. But our enemies seem to think we kept them nearby. This is good, in a sense. It will buy us some time. It’s bad, however, because it means that our Redwoods hideout is at risk of attack.”

  “You really think they’d be dumb enough to attempt another attack on our base camp, after the last attack here went so poorly?” Owen asked.

  Knox shrugged. “They might think they are better prepared now. And maybe they are. They’ve been gathering numbers and training fighters. And they are just stupid enough to be dangerous. They are so hungry for the dragon stone that they are willing to take great risks to get it. Unfortunately, that means we need to be prepared for a full-scale attack.”

  “But haven’t you guys always known that there might be an attack here?” Lily asked. “I mean, that’s not exactly earth-shattering news, right?”

  Vance saw a tired smile pass o
ver Knox’s face. “You’re absolutely right, Lily. We are always at least somewhat expecting an attack. But this is different. We know for certain that it’s happening, and it’s happening soon. Not only that, but we know that we’re going to have to spread our resources out beyond just this base camp.”

  “Why?” Myles asked, frowning. “Our base camp is the most important place in the world to us. If we think it’s going to be attacked, shouldn’t we end all of the other missions and bring all of our dragons home to defend us here? Surely, there isn’t an artifact out there more important than defending our home. After all, our home is where all our artifacts are kept after we recover them.”

  “Well, we’re definitely going to put all our missions on hold for the time being,” Knox said. “But our resources are still going to be spread thin, because our base camp here isn’t the only place our enemies are planning to attack.”

  Vance watched Lily’s face carefully as Knox broke his next piece of news. He knew that she was not going to be pleased.

  “There is an attack planned on Falcon Cross,” Knox said. “It seems our enemies hold a bitter grudge over how poorly their last attempt at capturing the dragon stone went. They have planned an attack on the wizard town as retribution. The information we have doesn’t make it clear when or how they will attack, but we cannot be too careful. We must assume it will be soon.”

  Lily sucked in her breath, and Vance saw her looking over at Bree for confirmation. Bree nodded sadly.

  “It’s true,” Bree said. “We’ve already called the High Council in Falcon Cross this morning, to tell them what we’ve learned.”

  “What can be done, though?” Lily said. “If the army coming now is anything like the last army that attacked here, it’s big and powerful. Can a few dragons really hold their own against such a large group? And what about Falcon Cross? We have fighters, but they haven’t seen battle for a long time. Things could get a little gnarly.”

  “Our enemies have a big army, true. But we have dragons,” Vance said, his chest puffing out.

  “And not just the dragons here,” Bree said. “We know dragons in Texas who are willing to fight with us, too. Things are far from hopeless for us. But we need to be prepared.”

  “Which is why it was actually a good thing that those fools yesterday attacked us,” Vance said. “They lost the best thing they had going for them—the element of surprise. We will be vigilant now, and we’ll be ready for them when they come.”

  Knox nodded, a proud smile on his face.

  “We will indeed be ready,” Knox said. “I’ve come up with a plan. Unfortunately, this plan requires us to split our forces. As much as I would like to keep all of the Redwood Dragons together, we have too many different places we need to protect. First, we need to make sure that the dragon stones in Texas are safe. Bree and I will be visiting the shifter protectors there so that we can consult with them, and so that Bree can cast some protective spells over the dragon stones. Second, we need to protect Falcon Cross. Noah will be leading a group there, which will include Owen, Myles, and Zeke. The rest of the dragons will stay here to guard our base camp and our vaults. That means Finn, Grayson, Holden and Weston will be coming home from their missions to join Vance here. In fact, I’ve already talked to them and they’re already on their way home.”

  “Who will be in charge here?” Vance asked. He was surprised that Knox was going away and sending both Noah and Myles to Falcon Cross. Usually, when Knox was gone, Noah or Myles was left in charge. Knox trusted their leadership more than anyone else’s, and, although Vance sometimes had his own quarrels with them, he had grown used to their leadership styles. He wasn’t interested in learning how to deal with another leader, and despite his best efforts to keep a neutral expression, he felt a scowl creeping onto his face. Knox, however, was smiling.

  “You will be in charge, Vance,” Knox said.

  Vance choked on his coffee. This had been the last thing he would have expected. Knox knew he was a very effective dragon when it came to recovering artifacts, but Knox also didn’t like the way Vance always took risks.

  “Me?” Vance asked, unsure what else to even say.

  “Yes, you,” Knox replied. “I know that you and I have had our differences, and that I’m not always pleased with your fondness for taking risks. But you are one of our bravest dragons, and I have a feeling that a certain amount of risk-taking might be necessary to survive the months ahead. If you want to be leader while I am gone, the job is yours.”

  Vance blinked a few times, his heart swelling with pride. He could hardly believe that Knox was trusting him in this way. Not only that, but Vance wanted to get back at the shifters who had attacked Lily. Since, according to the phone data, the shifters were planning to attack the dragons’ base camp here in the redwoods, staying here would give Vance the best chance of getting to fight those bastards. He would not hesitate to take down every last one of them.

  “I would be honored to lead while you’re gone,” Vance said to Knox. “But there’s just one thing.”

  “Yes?” Knox asked, looking at him expectantly.

  “I’m only staying here if Lily can stay, too,” Vance said, squeezing Lily’s hand tightly as he spoke. “She is my life now. If I must fight, I want to do so with her nearby, so that I know I can protect her and keep her safe.”

  Knox looked over at Lily. “Lily? What do you want to do? If you want to stay here, then you are more than welcome to. It will not be easy, and there are certain to be attacks. But then, the same could be said of Falcon Cross. Dark days are ahead.”

  Lily raised her chin high. “I want to be wherever Vance is,” she said, a hint of stubbornness in her voice. “His heart is my home now. If he stays here in the redwoods, then I want to stay, too.”

  “I think that’s a great idea, actually,” Bree said, speaking up again. “Since I’m going to Texas with Knox, we won’t have a shifter ambassador here. Lily could take over that post for me, and make sure things are running smoothly with wizard-shifter relations. It’s going to be more important than ever in the coming days.”

  “That’s true,” Noah said. “And I think having someone around here who can cast spells is going to prove to be useful as well.”

  “It’s all settled, then,” Knox said. “I’ll go to Texas, Noah will take a group to Falcon Cross, and Vance will lead a group here, with Lily by his side. There’s just one more thing.”

  Knox paused, and Vance waited patiently for him to continue. Since he had heard most of the plan-making last night, Vance had a pretty good idea of what Knox was about to say. He wasn’t wrong.

  “We’re going to need to take the offensive on finding the remaining two dragon stones. If Bree’s research is to be trusted, and I think we all agree that it is, then there are still two dragon stones out there—a dragon amethyst and a dragon ruby. No one has seen or heard anything about them for a long, long time, but we need to start looking. If they are still out there to be found, we have to find them first. That’s why I’m going to task the dragons who remain here in the redwoods with researching where these stones might be. Anyone else who has time to jump in, though, should feel free to help out.”

  “Sounds like we’re all going to be mighty busy over the next few months,” Noah said.

  “Maybe years,” Bree said with a sigh. “These things have a way of taking a long time to resolve.”

  “Well, whatever the case, at least we know we’ve got some action to look forward to,” Knox said with a twinkle in his eye. “Now, I’d like everyone to look through these printouts of information and see if there’s anything else in them that we missed that might be a problem. Vance, walk with me for a minute. I want to talk to you.”

  Vance stood to his feet and followed Knox away from the fire pit. He could feel everyone’s eyes on him, but he did not look back, not even at Lily. He had never been singled out like this by the clan leader, and still could hardly believe it was happening. He, Vance Pars, was going to be
in charge of base camp. Turns out his risk-taking hadn’t completely ruined his chances of glory after all.

  Knox walked into the redwoods, following one of the better-worn paths. For a while, no one spoke. Vance waited patiently for Knox to speak, admiring the towering redwoods in the meantime. Finally, Knox stopped, then turned to look at Vance. He put a strong hand on his shoulder.

  “Listen, Vance, I know I’ve been hard on you for being too showy, and taking too many risks. I’ve had to be firm, as leader of this crew. It’s important that we don’t make it easy for people to find our hideout.”

  “I know,” Vance said, bracing himself for the lecture on being careful that he was sure was coming. But when Knox opened his mouth again, it wasn’t to lecture him, but to praise him.

  “I put you in charge for a reason, Vance. As many headaches as you’ve caused me over the last few years, I’ve seen what you’re capable of. I want you to take as many risks as you need to while I’m gone. I trust you, and I think it’s important that you know that. I know you have the clan’s best interest at heart. So do what you need to do to keep this place and our dragons safe.”

  “I will,” Vance said, his heart filling with pride.

  “I know you will,” Knox said. “Now let’s head back. I’ll tell you everything you need to know about leading the clan while we walk, but then I’ll need to pack. So will the dragons going to Falcon Cross.”

  Vance nodded, and kept pace with Knox as he walked and talked. When they reached camp once again, Vance felt confident that he knew everything he needed to know to lead the Redwood Dragons. Knox seemed to think so, too, because he clapped him on the shoulder again and then gave him a thumbs up.