Dragon Fire (The Forbidden Love Series)

by Danielle James

  At the end of the hall there was a door marked “Private.” She tried to turn the knob, but it was locked. She used her exceptional strength to break the lock, knowing someone would hear it. The door opened and she pulled Dylan inside.

  She found the service elevator easily and shoved her man inside.

  “Hey,” he protested. “I can look after myself.”

  “Not today you can’t,” she warned him. “If they find you without me, you’re dead. End of discussion. No happily ever after, no do-overs. Dead.”

  Dylan sighed. She was right. Unless he wanted to unleash the whole of his powers, he had to listen to her. He could easily protect himself, but this was far more entertaining. It was nice, he thought, to have someone to worry over him and to try to protect him. It was a completely new sensation. It made his heart warm and brought a smile to his face.

  Or he could defend himself, risk hurting someone, and encounter the wrath of his father. Nope. Not doing that.

  When the elevator finally touched the ground floor and the doors opened, Toni yanked Dylan along behind her as she ran for the exit. The pair exploded through the doors and found themselves in the courtyard.

  “How purdy,” Dylan drawled, gawking at the excessive gardens. “Remind me to fuck you here next time.”

  Toni spun around to look at him. She reached for the hood of his cloak, but he stopped her. His hand wrapped around her wrist and pulled it back down to her side. “If you see my face, then what is to stop them from reading your mind?” he asked her. “It’s safer for us both.”

  “I hate this,” Toni admitted. Now she knew what Jade had meant about the night being a life changer. She had a pretty heavy suspicion that Dylan was her mate. She hadn’t even seen his face. But she had to fight off the urge to mark him. He affected her like no other ever had, and she feared no other ever would.

  “It will be okay,” Dylan assured her.

  “They’re almost here,” she whispered.

  Dylan dropped his lips to cover hers. He kissed her hard and fast, claiming her. If this was the only time, he wanted to make sure he left an impression she would never forget. He sucked her tongue into his mouth, committing her taste to his memory. He broke the kiss just as suddenly and walked to the fountain in the center of the courtyard.

  “What are you doing?” she asked.

  He kept his back to her as he shed his cloak, laid it over his arm and stepped over the concrete walls of the fountain.

  Toni gasped as she got the first look of his body. She had explored it with her hands and her mouth, but not with her eyes. Under that cloak, he was only wearing a pair of snug black pants. No shirt. She drank in the sight of his broad shoulders and muscular back. On his golden skin, a dark blue tribal tattoo covered his back. It reminded her of the waves of the ocean. It fit. He smelled like the water. His dark hair was too long, in her opinion, but she wanted to touch it just the same. She wanted to grip it in her hands and hold him to her and never let go. She wished he would turn around, but he did not.

  Dylan splashed his way into the fountain and called on his magic. He kept his back turned until he was certain she couldn’t see his face as he became one with the water. To anyone who was looking, he had disappeared. He saw the way Toni’s eyes widened, but he could offer her no explanation. He should have left immediately, but Dylan couldn’t help but to stay just another second longer. The vampire security team was hot on their heels and he had to make sure Toni was going to be safe. He shouldn’t have cared, but he did. He stayed within the movement of the water, completely undetectable to anyone. Except, Toni was still staring at him. Not at the water, but at him. He knew she couldn’t see him, but something told him that she knew he was still there.

  As the security team rounded the corner and the fountain came into their view, Toni finally turned from the fountain. With her back to him, she snarled at the approaching vampires. Dylan’s heart thundered in his chest and he almost made himself solid again. That was, until she showed her secrets.

  Grey fog surrounded her and she roared. Not a scream, not a shout, but a roar. It was so loud that the ground shook and the vampires took pause. The fog grew taller and thicker until it reached all the way up to the clouds above. Then, it dissipated. Where Toni once stood, a huge dragon took her place. It was at least two stories from the ground to the top of her head. Her skin had been replaced with midnight black scales with golden swirls down her face and neck, just like the light golden skin around her human face. The dragon reared her head back and roared again and then dropped her head to the level of the vampires. Dylan watched in amazement as the security team backed away from this magnificent creature. Toni hadn’t needed his help, she could take care of herself.

  The massive dragon turned her head toward the fountain and when he saw the yellow eyes, he knew without a doubt that it was Toni. Those same eyes studied the water as if she just knew he was there.

  I don’t know if you’re still here, her voice said in his mind, but if you are, get out safely.

  Dylan smiled. Yes, this woman was as magnificent as he had originally thought, and there was no way he was going to let her get away. His father was going to be pissed, and it would be centuries before he let Dylan out again. Sometimes, he hated who he was. He was a demigod who lived under the thumb of his father, Poseidon. His father felt that it was important that no mortal knew they actually existed, therefore, Dylan was forbidden to leave their ocean palace to walk on the land. No, it was better to just let her go. His father would never allow it, and would likely kill her to keep their secret. Dylan knew that Toni was no threat to him. He could feel it, but he would not risk her safety by being selfish. He would keep her memory close to his heart always. Dylan knew he would never meet another like her and all it had taken to change his whole perception was one dragon kiss. He had known he was lost to her after one kiss, but he couldn’t change who or what he was. Dylan couldn’t change the facts. He was probably never going to see her again, and his heart broke in his chest. The demigod knew what he had to do. He started to flow with the water to make his escape but before he could go he thought at her, Goodbye Toni.

  Toni snarled at the horde of vampires that had stalled their approach. Back off, she demanded of them. She could see the confusion on their faces. Angel had ordered them to find the intruder and take him out, but they also knew better than to tango with a pissed off dragon.

  Jade came running out of the hotel, and unlike the vampire guards, she ran straight to Toni’s side. She placed a gentle hand on Toni’s massive hind leg, rubbing it gently. “Is he gone?” Jade asked her.

  Toni looked down at the petite vampire. She was the only one who had never feared Toni, or her mother, for that matter. Toni huffed and called on her magic just as the rest of her family caught up.

  “Where did he go?” Rebel asked her.

  Toni shook her head as she took her human form once again. “I don’t know. One minute he was here, the next he was gone.” Not a lie. And, she really didn’t know where he went.

  “Find him,” Rebel barked. The vampires scattered to continue checking the property and probably the entire city as well.

  Jade put her arm around Toni’s shoulder. “So?” she asked.

  Toni didn’t need her to explain. She knew exactly what Jade was talking about. “Life changing,” she whispered. “You knew.”

  “I knew you were meant to meet him,” Jade told her. “What you did with it was up to you.”

  Toni deflated as she watched the retreating backs of her family. “Yeah. Meant to meet. I don’t even know what his face looks like.”

  “But there is more, isn’t there?” Jade asked with a knowing smile.

  Toni drew in a deep breath and let it out with a sigh. “Yeah. I think Dylan, mystery man extraordinaire, the man who I don’t know what he looks like, no last name and no way to find him, is my mate.”

  6

  Dragon Fire…

  Dylan let the water carry him through
the workings of the fountain and through the pipe system until he was well off the property of the hotel. Only when the drain emptied into a stream did Dylan take his human form again. He stepped out of the flow of the stream and walked up the bank, allowing the water to slide off of his body. He was completely dry before he reached the first tree. He really should have gone back to the ocean where he belonged, but he couldn’t. Not yet.

  As he leaned against the tree, he noticed that the bark was quite dry. Not unusual for this part of the world. California was a dry place. But still, he could feel the tree’s pain and couldn’t stop himself from assisting. He reached out his hand in the direction of the stream and commanded the water out. A small trickle of the liquid moved on his command, coming closer until it reached Dylan’s hand. “Nourish this tree,” he told the water and it swirled around his hand before jumping over to the tree. The water encircled the trunk, weaving in and out of the ruts and crevices. It worked its way up through the branches to the leaves, filling them with precious moisture. Dylan could almost hear the tree sigh in relief when it was done. He dropped his hand and the water returned to the stream from which it had come.

  He climbed up several branches of his new friend and parked his ass on a thick limb. He had to think a few things through before going home. Toni was a dragon, one of only two left in existence in the entire universe, and he had found her. Not that he had been looking. No, his intentions for going to the Clan Leader’s Halloween party had been to spite his father. Toni had been a happy bonus. In his mind, he repeated to himself that he should just let her go; he should keep her memory and the memory of their short time together a secret. But even Dylan knew what a bad liar he was and he was lying to himself. He would see her again. The thought of never being close to her or touching her skin ever again caused a panic in his chest that Dylan was not prepared to examine just yet.

  Perhaps he could convince his father that she was okay. Poseidon didn’t want humans to know of their existence, but Toni wasn’t human, was she. He shot the idea down just as fast as it had formed. His father kept humans in their palace, but only as servants or for sex. They were never permitted to leave, not that any of them wanted to.

  A small tug on his sleeve got Dylan’s attention. He turned his head to see a squirrel sitting next to him, looking up at him. “Hey little guy,” he said, reaching over to scratch the top of the animal’s head. “I’m afraid I don’t have any nuts.”

  The squirrel made a sound suspiciously like a snort.

  “You know what I mean,” Dylan laughed. “But there is a tree about ten yards over there,” he pointed out, “That one’s got lots of nuts.”

  The squirrel ducked its head and scampered off to the tree Dylan had mentioned. Sure, he could talk to animals, both sea and land, but he couldn’t talk to his father. What kind of demigod was he, anyway? Not a very good one, he admitted to himself.

  Dylan dropped from the branch and took off on foot. He could have gotten back into the water and rode it home, but he needed the time and fresh air. It wasn’t far before the trees ended and the city began. Los Angeles was one of those human cities that never slept. The closer he got to the water, the brighter the lights became. Dylan ditched his cloak in an alley where a homeless man slept. He knew the man would wake and find it and Dylan hoped that it would give the man some much needed warmth at night. He didn’t have any use for it anymore so someone should get some use out of it.

  Dylan kept his head down as he approached Ocean Boulevard. The less people saw of him, the better. He could change his appearance, but he didn’t want to. He didn’t like being someone he wasn’t. His looks, however, did tend to get a lot of attention.

  Dylan breathed a sigh of relief when his feet finally hit sand. He walked straight to the water and only stopped long enough to admire the stars before trudging into the water. There weren’t many people on the beach and those that were present were all partying and not paying attention to him. He walked until the water was waist deep before dropping under the surface.

  A school of clown fish gathered immediately to welcome him home. He made it a point to swim with them every day, but right now, he had to go and face the music. “Hi, guys,” Dylan said to them with a wave. “I can’t play now. I have to go home.”

  They all made identical sad faces at him, but swam away. Dylan started to swim at a leisurely pace, enjoying the view of the ocean at night. Even without the natural light from the sun, everything was bright and clear to him. The coral was glowing under the moonlight and he was surrounded by everything that he loved.

  It was time to get to business, so Dylan sped up. His body sliced through the water easily as he moved at a pace no mortal could keep. Soon, he was truly in the center of the Pacific Ocean. He dove down, further than any human could hope to travel, into complete darkness. Dylan was not intimidated by the complete lack of light, though. This was his home. In the deepest part of the ocean, where not even sound carried, he finally saw a light. He dove toward it.

  The light grew brighter until he could see the palace clearly. It was encased in a bubble of sorts, a magical shield that separated the water from the air. His father had done this centuries before to allow his servants fresh air to breathe. Dylan approached the entrance and waited. The water rolled back from the door, sliding away and off of Dylan as well. Then, once the air was dry, the door opened. Dylan walked inside, ignoring the door when it closed and the ocean that concealed the entrance once more.

  He didn’t make it to his wing of the palace before his father found him. “Where have you been?” Poseidon demanded.

  Dylan looked up to his father’s face. Inky black hair over sea blue eyes glared back at him. Dylan knew them well, because they were his eyes too. “I was out,” Dylan answered.

  Poseidon slammed his trident down to the floor, causing the entire palace to shake. “I smell sex on you,” he growled. “Have you been with humans again? We have discussed this.”

  “No, not a human,” Dylan answered. Not a lie. “She is a dragon.” He didn’t miss the way his father’s pupils dilated at the word dragon, but he quickly masked it with an expressionless face.

  “Did you at least wipe her memory of you?” his father demanded.

  No. “Of course I did,” Dylan answered.

  “Why do you bother trying to lie to me, Son?” he asked. “I will handle it. Again. You will stay here.”

  Dylan couldn’t allow that. “NO!” he barked out too loudly. “I mean, no, Father, I’ll handle it. I wasn’t able to before. I had to get out before I was discovered. I’ll go back and I will take care of this myself. It’s my mess, I’ll clean it up.” Perfect excuse to see her again and not a lie. Not really.

  Poseidon considered his son’s words carefully. “I will give you one week to fix this,” he finally said. “Then I will do it myself.” He turned his back on Dylan, effectively dismissing his son.

  Dylan breathed a sigh of relief once his father was gone. Yes, he would see Toni again, but it wouldn’t be to wipe her memory. Not before he had one more night with her.

  7

  Toni twisted her dark hair up into a loose bun on top of her head. “I don’t see how it matters what I look like,” she grumbled to Jade who was making her get dressed and put on her makeup. “I wouldn’t know him if I saw him anyway.”

  “That’s the point I am trying to make,” Jade told her. “If he were to walk down the street right now, you wouldn’t know it was him. But he would know it was you. Do you want your mate to see you looking all frumpy?”

  “If he’s really my mate, it won’t matter,” Toni said with an arched brow.

  Jade couldn’t really argue the point. Mates were like that. It wouldn’t matter if Toni looked like a homeless person who fell out of an ugly tree, her mate would still think she was the prettiest creature ever created.

  “What even makes you think Dad would let him within a hundred yards of me anyway?” Toni continued as she applied mascara to her very long la
shes.

  “Let who near you?” Rebel, her father, rumbled from the doorway. He was leaning against the frame with his arms crossed over his chest. He looked to be at ease, but everyone knew he was very dangerous when provoked. Dangerous to everyone, except his family.

  Toni shot Jade an accusing glance. “No one, Dad,” she said cheerfully. “We were just talking boys.”

  Rebel cringed, almost imperceptibly, but it was there. He didn’t like the idea of his daughter with any boy, and especially not with one she thought he wouldn’t like. “So who is it?” He didn’t really have to ask. He already knew. Ever since the party a few days earlier, Toni had been different. She and Jade had more than one private chat party. Of course, Rebel had discussed the matter with Leigh, Toni’s dragon mother, but she was no help.

  Toni sighed, like she was very content with herself. “It’s no one, Dad,” she finally told him. “It doesn’t matter. I don’t know how to find him anyway.”

  “Well,” Rebel said, pushing himself off the door frame. “Let me know if I can be any help.” It was an empty offer, they all knew, but sweet just the same.

  Toni walked over to him and planted a kiss on his cheek. “Thanks, Dad.”

  “You girls headed out?” he asked.

  “I’m taking Toni out dancing tonight,” Jade answered. “I’ll have her back by dawn.”

  Rebel grumbled something unintelligible before wandering back down the hall. “Are we going dancing?” Toni asked softly when her dad was out of earshot.

  The smile that split Jade’s face sparkled and showed her fangs. “Of course we are!” she exclaimed.