by Zoe Chant
This time, Claire didn’t feel any fear. The sense of Raul’s love and power was so overwhelming that she smiled at Malcolm—and took a step towards him.
His eyes widened, the gun in his hand trembling.
And then a wall of dragon fire sprang up all around him. His gun began to heat up. With a scream of pain he dropped the suddenly white-hot metal, sobbing behind the curtain of flames.
Claire ignored him. She knew he couldn’t escape from this prison. And she didn’t have anything to fear now. She’d never have to fear anything ever again, because she was with her mate, and her mate was whole at last.
Chapter Eighteen: Raul
He hadn’t been able to put it together before, but as soon as Claire’s hand closed around his dragon’s heart, he knew.
This was what had drawn him forward. This was why the sensation had felt so familiar.
All along, his family’s lost hoard had rested in the secret lair of Alistair, hidden so deep within the snow castle’s land that even Henrik hadn’t known about it.
As a shadow dragon, Alistair had been good at illusions, and at subtly diverting attention from where he didn’t want it to linger. It was the last place where Raul would ever have suspected to find his dragon’s heart.
He hadn’t even known who’d so viciously attacked his father, back when he’d been a child. It all began to make a terrible sense now. How many other dragons had Alistair robbed?
And in the end, even the gathered treasure here in his lair hadn’t been enough to satisfy Alistair. He’d arranged the death of his own brother, just to get control of the land of the Snow Castle and the hoard that should have been Henrik’s.
Once more Raul spread his wings, glorying in the feeling of power that rushed through him. This was what he’d been along. His dragon was at last whole. The jewel they’d bonded with as a child was theirs once more, and the old wound in his dragon’s soul was at last closed.
Before, shifting had been incredibly painful. It was as if there’d been an open wound, leeching his energy. Now, it was the most glorious feeling he’d ever felt.
All around him, the gold sang. He was surrounded by the harmonies of his family’s hoard—melodies he’d last heard when his parents had still been alive.
His heart was so full of both sorrow and joy that he didn’t know what to do with it.
And then he saw Claire. She was running towards him, laughing and crying, and he remembered her utter terror when she’d thought that he was dying. Her terror—and her incredible bravery as she went straight for his dragon’s heart.
I love you, his dragon sang silently in the language of the gold, which joined in with the melody. I love you!
Effortlessly, he shifted, completely healed even in his human form, with only some dried blood on his chest and legs remaining. He was running towards her, laughing as the treasure around them kept singing of his love.
“I love you,” he gasped when he scrambled up another pile of gold—and then she was finally in his arms, laughing and crying and gloriously alive.
He hugged her as tightly as he could, pressing kisses all over her face, the dragon within him roaring in joy.
“I love you too,” she sobbed, and then she looked up, laughing, and said, “You idiot!”
“What?” he asked with a grin, sweeping her off her feet to carry her down the mountain of gold, just because he could.
“I thought you’d die! Don’t ever do that to me again!”
“Hey,” he said playfully, “I didn’t choose to get attacked by a shadow dragon defense mechanism, or to get shot right in the chest. But now that you’ve pointed that out to me, I promise I’ll refrain from getting shot in the future.”
Giggling, she reached up and threaded her fingers through his hair, her voice giddy with joy when she declared, “Good, because I insist on only ever marrying a dragon shifter who doesn’t get shot again or bleed out all over a pile of gold.”
“Of course not,” Raul said and wrinkled his nose. “Do you know how much work it is to deal with polishing coin after coin to get it clea—”
He wasn’t even allowed to finish before Claire pulled him close. Then their lips met and he forgot everything he’d been meaning to say.
Within his chest, his dragon was alive. For the first time since he was a child, his dragon was a powerful, distinct presence within him, his heart filled by flame—and his mate was right here in his arms.
The song of the gold fell away. Even the power of his dragon became a distant thrum in the background.
There was nothing but the sensation of his mate in his arms, the scent of her hair and the heat of her mouth opening up to him—and he knew that he’d give up all the treasure in the world, as long as he could hold her like this until the end of his life.
***
It felt as if they’d spent an entire day inside the maze, but when they finally made their way back to the castle, it seemed that only two hours had passed.
“We were just about to send a search team back into the maze,” Mrs. Henderson said, laughing as she patted his arm. “What happened to you two?”
“Oh, we took a wrong turn and somehow ended up outside the maze,” Raul said, winking at her. “And then we got distracted...”
By his side, Claire barely managed to muffle her laughter.
“I guess that’s one way of putting it.” Mrs. Henderson wagged her finger at him, her eyes gleaming. “I do hope this means the snow castle will get to host another wedding...”
Raul smiled. He was still filled with disbelieving joy. It seemed strange that here at the castle, everything was going on as it had before. No one knew which secret treasure had been hidden in a cave beneath the snow for so long.
“No,” he said, tightening his fingers around Claire’s. His smile widened. “I fear there’s another little town that has a claim to hosting.”
“Oh? You’re going back home?” Mrs. Henderson asked. Gently, she patted his arm again. “Good for you. It’s always the right thing to return home.”
If there’s anything left to return to, he thought, but didn’t say that out loud.
Instead, he and Claire allowed themselves to be dragged to the balcony, where the party had been hosted. It was getting emptier already; many of the participants of the battle had already left.
But close to the railing, Raul found a familiar face.
“Micah,” Claire said warmly.
In answer, Micah proudly nodded at the trophy displayed on their table.
“Honestly, we thought the two of you would give us more of a fight,” he said and laughed. “What happened?”
“We got lost,” Raul said with a rueful look.
“In your own castle?” Micah shook his head at them, his lips twitching. “I suppose it’s too late to invite you two to join us for a drink.”
“Tomorrow,” Raul said after a look at Claire. She looked as overwhelmed by the events as he felt. They’d escaped the cave without any wounds—but it would take a while to get used to everything that had happened.
“I’ll hold you to it!” Micah said and raised his glass in salute.
Then he winced when he looked over towards a corner. “Let’s hope that little problem gets resolved by then.”
“What happened?” Claire asked.
Raul could see the adorable seven-year-old they’d seen before—Janice—facing off with a little boy about her own age. Next to them, Micah’s boyfriend Jeremy knelt, from his gestures clearly trying to cheer up the little boy.
“I thought that Janice was at last making friends—but apparently she tried to impress her new friend by telling him that only babies believe in Santa, and that Santa isn’t real. Cue tears.” Micah sighed deeply. “You know, I feel deeply blessed for having such a smart, bright kid, but it’s really not easy sometimes.”
“Oh no,” Claire said compassionately. “A real Christmas emergency. I wonder if there’s anything I can do...”
Raul almost said somethin
g—but then realized that with his dragon’s power finally at full force, he no longer needed to physically nudge her.
Instead, he gave her the mental equivalent.
You can’t solve all problems for everyone around here, he said gently to her heart. And you need to rest. Let their parents handle this.
A moment later, Claire gave him a guilty look, some of the tension going out of her.
Sorry. You’re right, her voice said in his head. God, I could sleep for a day now...
Then let’s just do that. The castle will still stand tomorrow.
Out loud, he said, “Your boyfriend’s doing a pretty good job of it already. And look at it like this: Jeremy seems fully prepared for this sort of parental emergency. That’s worth a lot, someone who doesn’t run off at the first sign of trouble.”
Micah laughed ruefully. “Boy, do I ever know the truth of that. But—you’re right.” A small smile appeared on his lips as he looked over to where Jeremy was now patiently making the boy blow his nose. “If that doesn’t send him run screaming, maybe he’s really prepared for a dad with baggage.”
“And who could say no to such adorable—though troublesome—baggage?” Claire nodded towards where Janice was watching Jeremy take care of her little friend. Her black hair was held out of her face by a bright, yellow headband, and instead of looking sullen—the way Dylan probably would in such a situation—she was actually looking guilty.
“They’re worth all the trouble,” Micah said softly, a smile on his lips as he watched her. Then he turned back to Raul. “Still, I wish you two a bunch of kids that believe in Santa and the North Pole and flying reindeer until—oh, at least high school.”
“Flying reindeer, huh?” Raul murmured, an idea suddenly taking form in his head.
It’ll have to wait, he reminded himself then.
Now that the excitement of having to fight for their lives was draining away, the adrenaline leaving their bodies, tiredness came crashing in.
His wounds might have healed, but they’d still spent an eternity slogging through a snow maze. The bond was thrumming with the awareness of his mate’s exhaustion, and all of a sudden it was all he could do to fight down his dragon’s urge to shift right here and fly Claire up to his bedroom.
“I really need to look in on Dylan,” Claire said. “I hope he wasn’t worried when we didn’t show at the snowball fight ceremony...”
Raul chuckled and nudged her. “Look down there.”
Beneath the balcony, the garden filled with ice sculptures was lit by lights. They could make out the faint throb of a distant beat—something hard and fast, not at all the rhythm of the waltz they’d once twirled to on the balcony.
But the kids gathered downstairs in the garden didn’t seem to miss that sort of entertainment at all. In the light of several multi-colored spotlights, kids and teenagers were bouncing and jumping, a few of them singing along.
And there, close to the tiny stage where a DJ stood, Dylan and his crush were bouncing along to the beat together, their hands in the air as they giggled and twisted.
“Oh good,” Claire breathed, then laughed. “That’s what you’ve got coming in ten years’ time,” she told Micah with a grin. “Looking forward to it?”
“Ten? More like twenty. Thirty! Or perhaps—never,” Micah said with a grimace, then chuckled. “But I guess if it has to happen, it couldn’t happen in a better place. Everything’s running so flawlessly here. It’s the best family vacation I’ve ever had. Now, if you’d offer a summer program as well...”
“Absolutely no alcohol down there,” Claire said, “and all the kids will be back in bed before midnight.” She relaxed a little. “I guess I really don’t need to worry about Dylan right now.”
Raul smirked, leaning over the railing and waving to someone downstairs. “Especially not with Mrs. Henderson signed on as supervisor until the party ends.”
At his words, Claire relaxed further. “Good. But I’ll send him a text nevertheless...”
“Tell him to text you back when he gets in,” Raul suggested. “I know you won’t be able to sleep otherwise.”
“Good idea.” She gave Raul a relieved look.
The tiredness was obvious in her voice now, and even Micah seemed to finally become aware of it.
“Long day for you two, hm?” Micah said. “I won’t keep you. Thanks again for the great day. I hope we’ll get a rematch one day.”
“Definitely,” Raul promised, and then he took hold of Claire’s elbow, firmly steering her inside, before any of the other parents came their way.
Chapter Nineteen: Claire
Claire stretched when she woke in the morning, finally feeling rested. Yesterday, they’d napped for two hours, then taken a long, hot bath together. She’d briefly dressed to check in on Dylan, who’d been too busy posting selfies of him and his crush to Instagram to even realize that Claire and Raul hadn’t made it out of the maze with the other parents.
For once, she was glad that Dylan assumed that she’d been working all day again. And so far, that hadn’t been wrong. She had been working an awful lot. To a teenager like Dylan, it probably looked like she did nothing but work or argue with him over the time he spent on his computer.
Well, that’s going to end now.
With the morning sun shining down onto her naked skin, she stretched again, a warm glow of anticipation filling her.
Things were going to change. She wouldn’t work quite as much anymore. And at the end of her workday, she’d get to curl up with someone.
No more lonely TV dinners. No more filling all of my days with work, work, work.
“Hey,” Raul said throatily, stirring next to her. He smiled as he turned to his side, one of his strong arms wrapping around her chest. “Sleep well?”
“For ten glorious hours,” she sighed, turning her head to press a kiss to where his biceps bulged. “I haven’t managed that in years.”
“You needed it,” he said. His hand trailed up her side, until he could bury his fingers in her hair and tug her up for a kiss.
She sighed at the touch of his hot lips, moaning when he slowly explored her mouth with his tongue. When they parted, she found her heart racing, her own hands combing through his hair. She stroked her thumb along his strong jawline, enjoying the sensation of stubble and the heat of his skin.
“You’re always so warm,” she said in appreciation.
“I can do more than just keep you warm now,” he murmured, and then he raised his hand. “Watch.”
At the tip of each finger, a tiny flame appeared, dancing there until Raul closed his hand. When he opened it again, a tiny ball of fire was turning over his palm, giving off so much heat that Claire could feel it against her bare skin.
“It doesn’t burn you?” she asked in awe.
Raul shook his head. “It feels like it’s a part of me. My dad used to do little tricks like this to entertain me when I was a child. I didn’t know how much I missed it...”
“I don’t know anything about dragons, and I loved you just as much when you couldn’t shift.” Claire gently touched his arm, feeling the warmth that rose from his skin. “But I’m glad you won your powers back. You looked incredible. And you saved me. If you hadn’t trapped Malcolm—”
“Oh shit,” Raul said, the fireball plopping out of existence. “I forgot all about him! He’s still trapped in a little prison of fire.”
Claire began to laugh as she imagined the uncomfortable night he must have had. “It’s hard to feel sorry for him. At least he won’t have been cold. But I guess he can’t stay there...”
“I’ll call the sheriff down in Christmas Valley. Malcolm’s human, so we can’t really put him into a shifter prison.”
“And he did try to steal money that belonged to Henrik’s uncle,” Claire pointed out. “In fact, we should probably hire another accountant or two and look into what exactly he’s been up to. If Alistair originally hired him, I wouldn’t be surprised if Malcolm’s involved in s
ome shady things connected to Alistair’s money.”
“Which would be enough for a human judge. It’s not like they’d believe any stories about dragons.” Raul laughed softly, then tightened his hold on her waist to pull her against him.
His lips found her breasts, kissing her until she was breathless in his arms, her nipples tight and aching for his touch.
“My dragon wants to mate you,” he said, his voice dark with desire as he looked up at her.
His tousled hair fell into his eyes, and she swallowed as she reached up to brush it out of the way. “And you?”
“Oh, I want it too. More than anything. I want us to be mated. I want to claim you. And I want to spend the rest of my life by your side—whether you want to go to Dubai or Iceland.”
His words caused her to laugh softly, even as her body was throbbing with hunger for him. She’d never even told him about that failed Dubai interview.
“You’d go live in Iceland for me?” she asked. She smoothed her hand along his hard pecs, enjoying the way his heart was beating in a powerful, quick rhythm against her skin. “That’s probably the sweetest thing a fire dragon ever said. But I don’t want a glitzy Dubai hotel. That was never the sort of career I wanted. I wanted a place just like this. Where I can plan events for kids and adults that make a real difference. Where I know everyone by name. Where people like Micah tell me that they wish they could come back in the summer.”
“Hmm,” Raul murmured, his brow furrowing for a moment as he looked up at her. “A place like this, but geared more towards summer tourism... Sounds like it would make a fine home for a fire dragon.”
“Yeah?” she asked softly, allowing some of her hope to shine through. “I don’t know if such a place exists, but I wouldn’t mind taking some time off after this gig to look for a job like that.”
Raul hesitated for a moment. “There is someone I’d like you to meet,” he finally said. “It’s been a long, long time since I saw them—and by now, the place might have been torn down—anyway. I will look into it. And perhaps, after Henrik and Dara return and you’ve got some time off, we can visit and see if that’s the sort of job you’d like.”
