Enticed by the Dragon Lord
The Dragon Lords #5
Lyra Valentine
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Copyright © 2016 by Lyra Valentine
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Enticed by the Dragon Lord: The Dragon Lords #5 by Lyra Valentine April 2016
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
About the Author
Chapter One
Ishbel Logan watched the sky as dutifully as she watched the ground below her. Darra, her blue beauty, could blend in well with a clear sky, but not with the bright spot of a dragon rider on her back. And they needed to avoid any riders from the rebel Castle Glenn.
Ishbel sighed when she drew patrol duty again. She’d done so for over a month, and almost wished she could go back to polishing and tending the riding gear. Except that meant she wouldn’t ride Darra. Riding Darra was the sweetest joy. She supposed she should be thankful for the tensions between her Castle Hendry and the scoundrels of Castle Glenn. Even if patrol duty never amounted to anything exciting.
What she wouldn’t give for a little action. She envied the elder riders that fought off packs of dragons from Castle Glenn. The border had always been contested, and the folk from the other side were always committing some crime against those from and owing allegiance to Castle Hendry. The Glenn riders were forever crossing the border and stealing away with sheep and supplies. It’d been so bad recently that even the crofters mounted watches at night and sounded horns when the dark winged shapes of enemy dragons appeared in the sky.
Meanwhile, she was stuck in the land of sheep and empty skies. She never suspected how mundane a dragon rider’s life could be.
Her flight group was the youngest mature group in the castle, and weren’t experienced enough to patrol the contested borders between the castle lands. They were stuck flying over the small spit of land that jutted into the sea. Even the crofts there were long abandoned and the people moved closer to the castle. The animals left were fair game for dragon food.
Across the water, she could see a similar land’s end that belonged to Castle Glenn. The land there was as empty as what she flew over on her side. Further out was an island with the ruins of an abandoned castle. Ancient times must have been very different, with the people on the land owing allegiance to the island castle. Now, the more distant castles claimed the land.
Darra’s stomach rumbled as they flew over a herd of sheep and Ishbel felt the vibrations between her thighs. She grinned. “You ate before we left!” She teased.
The blue dragon turned her head and directed a sparkling eye at Ishbel. She pat the dragon’s neck and let her spiral downward toward the land.
Once grounded, Ishbel secured Darra’s reins around the saddle. She wanted to let the beast have free motion for her hunt, but they were still on patrol duty. She wouldn’t completely remove her gear until they were safely back in the castle. With a smack on her scaled rump, she sent Darra off to find herself a sheep for a snack.
Ishbel lazed on a large rock. The weather still chilled her enough to wear extra layers, especially high in the sky. The sun shone brightly and warmed the rock enough for her to slip off a jacket and relax.
Darra hunted the sheep nearby. She teased them on the ground by rushing at them like a prowling cat. When she had enough fun, she launched into the air. The sheep bleated warnings, but she was too quick for them. She dove and breathed a jet of fire on her selected prey. Cooked within seconds, she settled down to enjoy her meal.
A dark shadow crossed over them. Silent, like Darra hunting her meal, the dragon above circled them.
At first, Ishbel thought it was Darra hunting for another sheep. She had a huge appetite the previous days, and she was sure the distant herds here were preferable to the herds near the castle. The sheep were larger, and more of a challenge.
Darra rumbled as she settled into another bite just as the shadow crossed over again. Ishbel shaded her eyes against the sun and saw a gold dragon angling down toward them. She didn’t recognize the sheen from her castle. The emblem sewn to the front harness of the saddle—two trees twisted into one another—was the sign for Castle Glenn.
“Darra!” Ishbel yelled. She jumped to her feet and ran for her dragon.
Darra bugled a challenge as Ishbel pulled herself into the saddle. She strapped her legs into the stirrups as Darra lumbered forward. Her wings stretched wide and Ishbel was flung forward and back as the dragon lifted into the air. Great sweeps of her wings lifted them high. She darted forward, trying to head for Castle Hendry.
A burst of flame in front of them caused Darra to swerve sharply. Ishbel sucked in a breath and thanked the gods she secured herself to the saddle. On her side as Darra dodged the attack, she could see the sickening drop that would have meant her death.
Darra evened out, and Ishbel spared a glance behind her. She ground her teeth. The golden dragon shimmered in the light. It was huge. She didn’t think even the largest dragon at Hendry came close to its size. She was small and fast, but Ishbel didn’t know if Darra could outmaneuver the beast behind them.
It didn’t want her dead, which was comforting. Darra was fast, but Ishbel was certain the gold beast could overtake them easily. Instead, it followed behind and directed them where it wanted. Her lips pressed together in anger. She scolded Darra when she played too long with her food. Why would the dragon rider on the gold’s back not do the same?
The gold opened its maw and Ishbel saw the fire ignite in its throat. One breath later and the stream of fire roared past her. Even in the sky with the air rushing around them, she could feel the heat from the flame. Darra banked to the side again, warming her belly and protecting her rider from any injury.
They were herded over the water and toward the ancient ruins of the island castle. She squeezed her legs and tugged on Darra’s reins, but the gold behind them corrected their path with a jet of fire every time they tried to dodge their captors.
She drove Darra over the island and tried to gauge a good landing spot. The courtyard was full of crumbled wall and overgrown shrubs. The remaining walls didn’t appear large enough for two dragons, and she was sure the gold’s rider would want her in close range. Besides, a rumor of rock trolls living in the ruins made her question landing too close to the castle foundation.
She eyed the far coasts. Perhaps if Darra could dodge the gold enough around the ruins, they could make a break for it…
The gold’s rider read her intentions. They sidled up next to Darra, and the rider gestured in a downward motion. An open stretch of beach was below, and that’s where she was intended to land. The gold’s jaws opened again, and before another jet of fire could graze by, Ishbel angled Darra to the sand.
She swung a leg over and slid off her dragon as soon as they were landed. Her fingers tore at the scarf holding her hair away from her face, and the messy locks bo
unced free as she strode over to the man from Castle Glenn.
His hair was almost as bright as her own, though not nearly as many tangles. He kept it clipped short, though it was longer than the stubble of beard covering his cheeks. Her eyes flicked over him to judge if she could take him in combat. His shoulders were wide, and his arms bulged with heavy muscle. Even through his tight fitted clothes, she could tell his trunk and thighs were thick and solid.
Her stomach flipped, and she told herself it was just the sinking feeling of being captured.
Chapter Two
Rory Meyrick pat Morro’s golden side and squeezed with his knees, the sign to land. The smaller blue dragon was already angling toward the ground, and Morro continued to crowd over her. The gold dragon trumpeted his victory.
Rory certainly hadn’t expected to see another soul on his patrol of the outerlands. Morro ate so much that he tried to ease off the nearby castle herds when possible. A patrol of the abandoned outerlands was as good an excuse as any for the dragon to eat his fill.
The flash of shimmering blue in the sky alerted him to something. He circled Morro around, and saw a blast of flame that could only mean a dragon. Knowing no one else from his castle should be nearby, Rory directed Morro across the bay to investigate.
He knew it was likely one of the sheep stealers from Castle Hendry, but needed to be sure. Sometimes rogue dragons strayed far from the mountains. Sometimes the upstarts of Castle Hendry made fools of themselves by trying to patrol land they didn’t have the numbers to control. They were notorious for taking land and livestock that didn’t belong to them. Their sordid history went farther back than the memory of the oldest Castle Glenn dragon rider. Glenn constantly needed to defend against Hendry.
Tensions had risen so high lately that even the crofters were watching for dragon incursions. He knew it was likely only a matter of time before an outright battle happened. He had emissaries reaching out to other bordering castles, Kinley and Sherwin, to bolster their numbers should it come to fighting, but had yet to hear back. Each castle liked to maintain its independence, and aiding another could be seen as a sign of weakness to unfriendly eyes. Just as much a sign as seeking aid, Rory mused.
With one of their own captured, Rory hoped the Hendry folk would quietly accept peace along the borders. He didn’t want to see dragons slaughtered.
Barely on the ground, Rory reached down to unstrap his legs from the saddle. He dropped swiftly to the ground, and turned to the blue dragon across the beach. Her rider, he could plainly see now, stalked across the grainy sand like a cat dunked in water. He had to wipe a smile off his face.
The girl tore at the scarf wrapped around her hair. A tangle of bright red braids and curls bounced out of the covering. Blue eyes, almost the same color as her dragon, sparked angrily at him. He opened his mouth once, then snapped it shut when no words came out.
“Who the bloody hell do you think you are?” She demanded.
Rory was taken aback. No one spoke to him like that. The people of his castle held to the proper respect a Dragon Lord commanded.
“Well? You’re just going to stand there like an oaf?” She waved her scarf in his face as she gestured.
The little spitfire continued to rage at him, and he let her tucker herself out. When she paused to draw in a breath, he held up a hand. “I’m Rory Meyrick, Dragon Lord of Castle Glenn. You were on my lands. Do you want to explain that?” He asked coolly.
Her mouth audibly clicked shut and her eyes widened. She didn’t belong to his castle; he’d know her on sight if she did. The only logical answer was she belonged to Castle Hendry. Those no-good sheep thieves were encroaching on his land everyday, and now yelling at him about it. He couldn’t let the girl get away.
“Your lands?” She planted fists on her hips. Her eyes flashed again. “I don’t see anything but a ruined old castle. This is not your land!”
Rory crossed his arms over his chest and waited for her silence. He’d found after years as Dragon Lord that silence was the best tactic. The other party would talk to fill the silence, and trip themselves up if they had plans against him.
The girl must have been familiar with the tactic, because she took the opportunity to fold her arms over her chest, too. He hitched his eyes to her face and tried to ignore the milky white cleavage he glimpsed under the laces of her shirt.
He broke after several long moments of silence. “You’ll make a good hostage. I’m sure Hendry will want you back, and they can have you. Once they agree not to touch this land again.”
“They’ll fight you for this.” She ground her teeth together.
Rory saw worry in her eyes before she steeled herself again. Curious. He studied her again, and saw she was younger than he first judged. No dragon had bugled a cry in her defense, meaning she was here alone, or had been abandoned to her fate. She certainly didn’t seem to think anyone would bargain for her, if the brief doubt in her eyes was an indication.
Rather than forcing her atop her dragon and into the air, Rory bustled with the pack hanging from the side of Morro’s saddle. It’d been time for him to eat, and he would be damned if he let the strange girl interrupt his lunch. He spread down an extra saddle blanket for them to sit. He kept his eyes on her as he started building a small fire. The air was chilly, and there was a rabbit to be roasted.
“What’s your name, anyway?” Rory asked once the rabbit was roasting.
“Ishbel.”
Her name paired with the messy braids made her seem like some fairy princess. He briefly wondered if he should worry about her enchanting him into releasing her, then shrugged it off. Fairies were long gone, and she would have bewitched him already if she could.
Even reassuring himself, he couldn’t deny that he was unnaturally drawn to her.
He found her blue eyes studying him from across the flickering fire, and hastily looked away.
Cliff walls rose up on either side of them, and the land angled to reach the flat top of the island. The former occupants must have carved the decline. Supplies could easily be ferried in and out by dragons, but no rider wanted to be on such mundane duty. The small beach could be used for boats bringing goods from the mainland.
Rory could still feel Ishbel’s eyes on him. He settled his shoulders, letting his shirt pull across his back. It was a silly thing, but something the girls seemed to like. And why shouldn’t he revel in the attention if she was willing to give it.
He handed her a bowl filled with berries from his pack, and sliced off a portion of rabbit. It’d take a few more hours to fly back to the castle, and neither should starve. “Apologizes for the inconvenience, m’lady.” He resisted a childish urge to stick his tongue at her. “You won’t be treated badly.”
She huffed a single note of harsh laughter. “Not treated badly, that’s what you call being a hostage? Just release me!”
He saw her test the heft of the bowl, and turned back to the fire. “If you don’t want to eat, that’s fine. I won’t be feeding you again before we land at Castle Glenn. If you try to hit me with the bowl, I’ll tie you up and throw you over Morro’s saddle like a sack of grain for the rest of the journey.
She settled the bowl in her lap and plucked indignantly at the berries. Glaring at him, she crunched down harder than necessary. Rory kept his grin to himself.
***
Ishbel almost laughed when Rory moved so his shirt stretched across his back. Did the men really think that was something they could do to pull a girl’s interest? Not that the little shiver that ran straight to her core complained. But it was from imagining his muscles rippling under her hands that did it, not his flex.
He was infuriating, that was sure. Stuck up and big headed, just like everything she knew about being a dragon lord. Power seemed to inflate their egos. Too bad for this one that she’d grown up with a huge family and a self-important father. She knew a silence power play when she heard one.
So she waited for him to ask the questions. She didn’t offer
anything after her initial outburst. She even cursed herself for threading worry into her voice about her worth as a hostage. She knew Hendry would fight for her, if only to save face. Dragon Lord Tamhas McNabb wouldn’t want to let any other castle see that he could lose one of his own riders so easily.
She turned at the sound of flapping wings, and saw the gold dragon take off into the air. Darra remained on the beach, and her glittering eyes watched them from some distance away. She was completely still except for her tail flicking in agitation. She didn’t even cooperate when Rory went to fetch Ishbel’s pack for her bowl and mug; Rory needed to dodge a lash of her tail when he retrieved the pack.
Ishbel bit into her slice of rabbit. She hated to admit that Rory knew how to prepare his meal. She knew how to survive on her own if it came to that, but she was certain it wouldn’t taste nearly as good as what he offered. She softened toward him. But only just.
“Where did you learn to cook?” She broke her own rule of silence. She squinted at him. Had she seen the briefest hint of a triumphant smile?
“My mother taught me.” He sounded sad at the memory. Before she could press, he offered more. “I was the only one she had left after some dragon raiders stole onto our land. My father and brother were tending a sick sheep. Helping her give birth, I think. I don’t think the raiders meant to light the barn on fire, but it went up fast.”
Ishbel was quiet as he looked into the flames and his past. She wanted to reach out and lay a hand on his shoulder, or take him into her embrace. She opened her mouth to speak when he shook off the memories.
“So I want the only one left to teach how to cook. Until I bonded my dragon and moved to the castle, of course.”
She could see why he would attempt to use her as a hostage to end the fighting between their castles. Deep trauma scarred him and drove him. Not to vengeance, as she had seen could readily take hold of someone, but to healing.
She wondered at him giving her his life story. The suspicious mind of her father wondered if he did so to throw off her defenses. There was no reason for him to do so, other than the growing trust and companionship she felt between them.
Enticed by the Dragon Lord: BBW Fantasy Romance Short (The Dragon Lords Book 5) Page 1
