by Meara Platt
She knew it was foolish to peer through the window, but she had to know his dogs were safe. The breath rushed out of her in a sigh of relief as she saw them tearing through the courtyard toward the main gate. The men-at-arms hurried to raise the gate, allowing Charon and Styx to cross the drawbridge and run toward the distant woods. In the next moment, an unearthly shriek filled the air.
Georgiana fell to her knees, trembling.
The dogs had found the assassin.
But she had no time to feel relief before the red sky suddenly turned dark and a great roar split the air. She covered her ears and peeked out the window in time to see two black dragons charge at each other. She knew Lord Bloodaxe was the smaller dragon, yet what he lacked in size was more than made up for by his speed and agility.
To Georgiana, they both appeared enormous and fierce.
Angry roars filled the air, and when they snapped their tails, she felt the cracks as sharp as bolts of lightning shoot through her own body.
Lord Bloodaxe suddenly soared high above Brihann, then turned and dove straight for him. Brihann avoided him and turned his body to do the same. Each spread his enormous black wings and soared effortlessly in and out of the clouds, but Bloodaxe was more adept and relentless in pushing Brihann away from his fortress and back toward their shared borderlands.
In truth, Bloodaxe almost seemed to be toying with Brihann. He was flying circles around him, bumping him off balance, and not a moment later, swooping across the border onto Brihann’s land and emitting bursts of fire aimed at Brihann’s minions.
He was skilled at that tactic, the bump and swoop accomplished with a balletic grace. However, she knew better than to impute nobility in his actions, for just like Brihann he was a hunter, a skilled predator and killer.
She covered her ears once more as Bloodaxe turned to face Brihann and roared to proclaim his dominance. Brihann roared back, and then both snapped their spiked tails. They reminded her of two knights preparing to joust, their tails serving as lances and their dragon scales used as protective armor.
They hovered motionless in the air for a long moment, then with a great roar and a quick flap of their wings, the two dragons flew toward each other. The ground beneath Georgiana’s feet shook as each dragon landed a solid blow.
This jousting battle waged for a few minutes, although it felt like an eternity to Georgiana. Violent tremors rocked the solid fortress each time their bodies collided. Suddenly, Bloodaxe got the angle he desired and was about to sink his teeth into Brihann’s thick neck, when the yellow and green dragons appeared. Their roars sounded more like shrieks of alarm than cries of war. But they managed to slam their dragon bodies into Bloodaxe and kept doing so in a frenzied onslaught until Brihann escaped.
Once their High King was safely away, they fled as well.
It suddenly turned quiet.
Only the smaller black dragon remained, his wings outstretched in a challenge no other dared take. “Bloodaxe,” Georgiana whispered with relief, knowing it must have taken much out of him to battle three dragons. If they hurt him, he’d never show it. He was too proud to show his pain.
He’d fought for her.
He’d risked his life to save her.
Perhaps he’d been commanded by the Stone of Draloch to do this, but she indulged in the notion that he’d done it because she meant something to him.
After taking a majestic turn across the red sky, he flew toward the fortress, his sleek body gliding low. He landed silently on the parapet immediately above her chamber. Georgiana knew he would come to her as soon as he’d shifted back into his human form.
She hurried to the door, about to lift the latch to allow him in when it suddenly lifted by itself. “Lord Bloodaxe?” Was he using his magic to raise the latch with the simple wave of his hand?
She stood back, expecting him to storm in, cursing and in a temper. He did exactly that, striding in with ten of his soldiers beside him. To Georgiana’s surprise, they were disciplined men and did not so much as blink an eyelash upon seeing her standing in the center of the room.
Bloodaxe paid her no notice as well as he began to command his soldiers, giving them more orders. Some were to secure his fortress and realm, while others were to push Brihann’s forces back. “You have my authority to cross into his realm. March deep into his territory, as far back as his castle. But do not attempt to breach it. Lay siege to it. Keep him occupied, defending himself.”
“Aye, my lord,” several of his men said at once.
“Go now.” He looked to his steward. “Give them all the supplies they’ll need. Do not disturb me unless we are once again under attack.”
He kicked the door shut in frustration once Thomas and his men had disappeared downstairs. “Bloody demented faerie!” He winced as he landed the kick and clutched his side.
Were his ribs broken?
Georgiana hurried forward. “Let me see.” But she knew better than to touch him without his permission. Not that she was being obedient. She merely needed assurance that he hadn’t been cut by Brihann’s dragon tail. She had no desire to be infected by his soul trappers. “May I?” she prodded when he failed to immediately reply.
“Hell, no. I’m fine.”
She rolled her eyes. “I can see that you are in the pink.”
He growled to mark his annoyance, but took only a moment to calm. He managed a wincing smile in response to her dripping sarcasm. “Perhaps I’m not at my best just now.”
She nodded. “Are you bleeding?”
“No. Just bruised.”
“Will you let me see? Take off your shirt. Can you manage it without my help?”
He chuckled. “Georgie, are you asking me to strip for you again? I know how much you delight in seeing my body.”
She meant to frown, but was too worried about him to be riled by his teasing. “Truly, my lord? You’re hurt. Let me help you.”
He shook his head again, this time quite serious. “No, you mustn’t touch me just yet.”
“Oh.” She clasped her hands in front of her. “Then you are bleeding. I don’t see where.”
He ignored her and turned away, his gaze now falling on the headboard and the arrow protruding from it. He turned back and noticed the shattered window. “Where are my dogs? What happened here?”
“Someone tried to kill me again. Charon and Styx pulled me down in time, and the arrow merely sailed over my head.” But she knew there was nothing harmless about the incident, and by his darkening expression, he didn’t consider it harmless either. “They ran off in search of the assailant. I think they found him. They’re not back yet. Perhaps still chasing others.”
He leaned out the window and gave a whistle.
In the distance, two dogs barked.
He nodded and then turned back to her. “They are safe. But you’re not.” He waved his hand toward the window and the shattered panes of glass were suddenly repaired.
“What did you just do?” Her eyes widened in confusion. “Can you repair your tower bedchamber as easily?”
“Yes.”
She fixed her gaze on his hands, wondering whether lightning bolts would next shoot from his fingers. “Then why did you not simply do it? Why make your subjects toil on repairing the stonework?”
“Because this is a dark magic to be used sparingly. I should not have used it just now, but I was still enraged and could not stop myself. I have no wish to become what Brihann is, but I know it is my cursed fate. These tasks I assign to my subjects help to remind them and me of the men we once were. Brihann has lost the memory of his heritage. Look at what he has become. I will not go willingly down that path.”
He stepped closer and ran his thumb along her cheek. “Perhaps you are the one meant to keep me from this dismal fate. Will you lead me down a new path? Or will you be the one to send me tumbling to my soulless destiny?”
“I would never hurt you.” She meant it with all her heart. He was her protector, but he was so much dearer to her than that
. That his every touch set her body tingling was only a small part of what she felt for him. He called to her heart, and perhaps had already conquered it, but she dared not answer to his call yet. “Come, my lord. Sit on the bed while I see to your injuries.”
To her surprise, he did as she asked with no more than a deep, throaty grumble. She helped him off with his shirt and immediately noticed the reddened welts along his ribs. These would soon form bruises.
She was about to step back while he tended to himself, but he took her hands in his and set her hands, with palms down, upon the welts. “What are you doing?” she asked, immediately responding to the warmth of his skin and the sensual tautness of his body.
“Finding out if you have the power to heal me.”
The notion was ridiculous, but he did not appear to be in jest. She nodded. “I suppose there’s no harm in trying.”
He arched an eyebrow and frowned. “Let’s hope not.”
He drew a long, obviously painful breath and closed his eyes.
Georgiana did not know what she was supposed to do. Just touch him? That was easy enough. However, she knew there was nothing special about herself. She had no wizard’s magical powers. Surely, she would have noticed it by now if she had.
At first, the tingling in her hands was the same sensation she always experienced whenever she touched him. Then the warm tingles began to spread through her body in gentle waves. Still, she thought nothing of it.
He had a splendid body.
Any woman would respond to him this way.
He grinned. “I see you’re enjoying yourself. Immensely.”
She gasped. “I am not. How dare you–”
She had no chance to finish the thought before her entire body was suddenly sent atilt by a powerful, fiery surge that would have dropped her to her knees had Lord Bloodaxe not caught her in time.
He drew her up against him to steady her. “By the Stone of Draloch! Georgie, you’re pale and trembling.”
She tried to pull away from him before he was drawn into this maelstrom of sensations, for the room was spinning all around her and sparks were shooting back and forth between his body and hers. Her heart was pounding, its beat intense and frightening. Her limbs were tingling and her throat constricted so that she could hardly speak. “Am I hurting you?” she asked, her voice so hoarse she wondered if he understood what she’d said.
“Hold onto me, Georgie. Don’t let go.” He held her tightly against his chest as the room continued to spin and gusts of warm air swirled all around them with the force of a typhoon. Her hair whipped wildly about both their shoulders, the loose strands blowing into his eyes. She closed hers and hoped he’d done the same with his. She didn’t want to hurt him.
“My lord, what’s happening to us?” She held onto him desperately, as though her life depended on it. No doubt, it did. She felt tossed upon a stormy sea, and he was her saving anchor.
He responded by burying his fingers in her hair and tipping her head upward so that her lips met his. His mouth pressed down on hers with blazing urgency, sending the room into a faster spin. Or was she the only one spinning? He dipped his tongue between her lips and then began to swirl it within the warm cavity of her mouth. The movement of his tongue matched the crests and ebbs of her own body with such fervent yearning, that moans of desire suddenly exploded within her and she could no longer keep silent.
She moaned against his mouth, crushed her lips and body to his and would not let go.
“Georgie, I have you. Be still, my beauty. You’re safe.”
Mother in heaven. Her heart would never be safe from him. She wanted to draw him inside of her and share the intimacy that should only be reserved for a husband and wife. But he didn’t want her as his wife.
Nor should she want to be a dragon’s mate.
She circled her arms around his neck. If she was going to lose him, then she wanted this moment together. He wanted it as well, she could tell by the gentle desperation in his touch and kiss.
In the next moment, he broke that kiss and stared at her. His eyes were wild and smoldering so that she knew this thing that had passed between them had affected him as deeply as it had her.
He eased her arms away, giving each a light caress as he set them off his body. “Forgive me,” she said. Heat shot through her cheeks now that her mind was clearing and she realized how wanton her behavior had been. “I didn’t mean to be so, um… frenzied.”
He grinned.
She melted a little inside. “Are you healed?”
To her dismay, he wasn’t. The red welts still ran along his ribs and were beginning to form purple bruises. Her shoulders slumped, and she responded to his grin with a look of dismay. “It didn’t work.”
“It did, Georgie.” He tweaked her chin and kissed her lightly on the nose.
“You’re only saying that to make me feel better. It’s obvious that I failed miserably. Not a single red welt has disappeared.” She traced her finger along the outline of one bruised rib. “See.”
His hand still rested on her chin, but he now moved it up to cup her cheek. “Georgie, you healed the part of me that needed healing most. The injury to my ribs is nothing and will quickly repair on its own.”
Her eyes widened. “Then what part of you did I heal?”
He lifted her off his lap. How had she gotten there? No matter, she watched him move away to walk to the window. “There’s a secret passage out of this fortress. We’ll leave upon the darkening of the two moons. We’ll travel by foot. No magic will be used for Brihann to track us. Charon and Styx will remain here for now. Brihann knows I never travel without them. Their presence here will distract his spies long enough so that we can escape unnoticed.”
“I healed your dragon heart, didn’t I?” she said in a reverent whisper. “That is the part of you that needed healing most.”
He turned back to her, his handsome face expressionless. “We will travel by night and hide by day so that we are seen by no one, not even my own loyal subjects. Brihann cannot torture information out of them they do not know.”
He must have noticed the anguish in her eyes, for his expression softened a little. “My soldiers have already been stationed along the borders of my realm and throughout the hamlets that populate it. Brihann’s soldiers will not slip in without notice. They’ll be stopped before they can hurt anyone. My captains can be trusted to crush them if they dare trespass onto my land.”
He paused a moment, and then a grin spread across his finely shaped mouth. “As for Brihann, I heard the crunch of bone as I slammed into him. He may have bruised my ribs, but I’ll wager I broke his.”
“You almost had him by the throat. Would you have killed him had the green and yellow dragons not arrived in time?”
Bloodaxe nodded and his expression turned serious once more. “Yes. I’ll kill anyone who tries to harm you. I’ll smash the Stone of Draloch to bits if that is the fate it intends for you.”
Georgiana moved to stand by his side but did not touch him. She did not dare after the intense exchange that occurred when she’d placed her palms on his skin. “That’s an awfully passionate declaration from the lips of a soulless creature. Are you certain that I’m not your dragon mate?”
She sensed his anger, although he did not show it. “Do you wish to be my mate?” He gave the low, throaty growl she was coming to recognize as a mark of his frustration. “Mine for eternity?”
“No,” she said with a shake of her head. “Not unless you love me.”
He peered out the window as though studying a distant point. “Get some sleep, Georgiana. We will be up all night and traveling fast. I need you to be alert should we encounter a problem.”
“Then you don’t love me.”
He took her by the shoulders and gave them a light shake. “By the Stone of Draloch, have you been sent here to plague me? I’m a demon, not some mewling beau paying court to you. Forget your fancy balls and elegant tea parties. Love has no place down here. I do not
love you. I will not love you. Have I made my meaning clear?”
She turned away. “Not in the least.”
Chapter Seven
“Time to go, Georgie,” Bloodaxe said in a whisper, gently shaking Georgiana awake. The red moons were now dark and not a sound could be heard in the fortress, at least none that could be detected by his finely tuned dragon senses.
She was curled in a little ball upon the large bed, like a kitten and purring as well. “So soon? It can’t be morning yet.”
He’d fashioned a pallet for himself by the unlit fireplace and spent the hours wide awake, hoping she would come to his side again and curl against him, but knowing it was the worst thing she could possibly do.
Fortunately, she hadn’t.
“It’s the middle of the night. Remember? Wake up, Georgie.” He scooped her off the bed and into his arms, always a dangerous thing to do since he never wanted to let her go. “Here, put on your gown.” She’d taken it off earlier and slept only in her camisole.
Sweet temptation! The sheer, white fabric hid nothing of her delectable body. Part of her camisole had ridden up to her thighs so that her long, slender legs were on display. The bodice was twisted so that her breasts would spill out if she turned the wrong way. She’d left her hair unbraided and flowing loosely so that it now fell over his arm in a silken wave of gold.
He loved the softness of her body, the warmth of her skin, and her wildflower scent.
He set her down. “Stand still. I’ll put it on you.”
Her eyes had yet to open. “Put what on?”
“Your gown, my beauty.” Indeed, she was that and so much more to him. He eased it over her head, smoothed it down her body, and then tied the lacings. “Sit down.” He nudged her onto a nearby stool and knelt beside her to help her on with her boots.
She finally opened her eyes, and he was momentarily stunned by the smile with which she graced him. “Good morning,” she said with a soft laugh. “Or should I wish you good night? I’ll only need a moment to braid my hair.”
She combed her fingers through her wavy tresses and began to work the strands into three parts. Once finished, she tied off the result with a thin, gold ribbon. “Lead the way, my lord.”
