Her Dragon's Fire (3 page)

He had relived every gory detail of that fateful night for every day of his dreary existence, until the moment Andrew was unmasked on that hillside six months ago. The shock had left him mute and dumbfounded during most of the altercation that had injured his Commander’s mate. When he finally got his shit together, Aaron, his twin, had their younger brother wrapped in silver chains and Rayne was in dragon form, preparing to carry his bleeding, unconscious mate to the healer of their clan.

The anger at what his younger brother had done was all-consuming. To think someone that shared his blood, a man he had helped raise and had trained for admittance into their Force of the Dragon Guard, had sided with their ultimate enemy, the hunters; the one group in the entire world determined to destroy all dragon kin. It was unfathomable and completely unacceptable. Aidan had tried to reason it out, tried to find a way to excuse his brother’s actions, but the fact still remained that Andrew had ultimately betrayed them all. He had escaped the wizards, killed all in that coven, and set out on his own, choosing not to come back to the clan. He instead blamed his family, his Force, and the Dragon Guard for what had happened to him. Most of all, he blamed Aidan. In his warped and broken mind, he decided his only course was revenge, and decided he would get it by joining the hunters and leading them against the Dragon Guard.

The black magic he had acquired mixed with his dragon magic somehow enabled Andrew to hide not only his scent, but his true nature; his dragon. He appeared as only a magical human to all of their heightened dragon senses, nothing more. Fortunately, after all these months of searching and analyzing all the information he had collected from every source available, Aidan had learned several things he was going to use to his advantage to trap the traitor. Apparently making the choice to hide his dragon for so long had left Andrew unable to call him forth at all. It made sense that if he still possessed the ability, he would have done so when he was falling to the ground after escaping Aaron’s talon. Andrew also could not mind speak with any of his brethren. In a few of his weaker moments, Aidan had called out to his brother, using their specific link, but felt absolutely nothing, not even a spark, through their connection. He had no clue how any of it was possible, but knew that it was definitely happening. Hell, no one knew, not even the Elders. The oldest among them had never heard of a case where a bond as strong as theirs, one of a blood relation, children of the same parents, and the blood bond shared by all Dragon Guard, had been subdued or broken. The bond Aidan shared with his brothers, Aaron and Andrew, was so strong that even when they shielded their thoughts from one another or were great distances apart, there was still a buzz, almost like a cell phone vibrating in a pants pocket. But since the night that he believed Andrew had been lost forever, there had been nothing at all. That reason and that reason alone had been why Aidan had been so sure his brother was dead. Even when he “reappeared” into their lives, it was like that bond had never existed, not something that should have been possible, especially for he and his baby brother.

He could remember back those many years, to the day his younger brother was born. He and his twin, Aaron, had been ten years old. They were out gathering wood for the fire and playing in the forest. Everything he and his twin did was an adventure. On that specific excursion, Aidan was the commander and, Aaron, his faithful second. They were scouting the area for scavengers that would pillage and loot their clan. They used long sticks as swords and swung at every branch and bush. It was the best of times for the brothers. He was parrying with a particularly evil, low hanging vine when a buzzing began in his head. He immediately recognized it as another of their blood; it was so like the connection he shared with his twin, only a bit different at the same time.

His new brother, fresh from their mother’s womb, was unable to form words or sentences, but was reaching out to his older sibling, sending feelings and foggy pictures of his new surroundings. Aidan could
feel
his happiness, combined with contentment and the feeling of being incredibly loved. He told his twin their new brother had arrived and the race to get home began. Their journey had been filled with tales of all the things they would teach him and the pranks they would play on the other unsuspecting children of their clan now that there were three of them. When they arrived home, every member of their clan had lined up to pay tribute to his father, mother, and new brother. It took over an hour for the twins to make their way into the family home. As the eldest, having been born two minutes before Aidan, Aaron went forward first and paid his respects to their parents and the new baby.

When it was Aiden’s turn, he walked slowly toward the bed that held his mother and baby brother. He knew in his soul that the new addition to their family would irrevocably change his life. He knelt beside the bed, placed a kiss on his mother’s cheek, and glanced at the bundle lying against her bosom. He was the tiniest thing Aidan had ever seen. The smile that spread across his face was pure joy as he reached down to move the blanket for a better look at the baby’s face. Baby Andrew grabbed his finger, meeting his gaze straight on, with one piercing blue and one amber eye. This amazing gift to their family had the mark of a
Special One
and Aidan was the first to experience the wonder and awe of that stare. The connection between the brothers was immediate, one that only grew stronger until that fateful day six years ago.

Aidan had felt like the most blessed dragon shifter in the Universe; not only did he have a twin with a connection that could only come from sharing a womb, but he also had a bond with his younger brother that was forged only a few hours after the young one’s birth. Unfortunately, that had all been blown to hell six years ago. No matter the years and the bond, he would do whatever he had to do to catch his brother and deliver him to the Elders for the Tribunal. The personal cost he would pay did not matter. Andrew had to answer for the plots against dragon kin and the mate of his Commander. The day he believed his brother dead had changed him, inside and out. He knew more changes were coming now that Andrew was back, but none of that mattered. He had to be caught. Years of training had taught Aidan to channel his pain and anger into the fight. He was a dragon shifter, part of the most elite Force within the Dragon Guard, and
this
would not beat him. It would drive him to be stronger, fiercer, and to never again have regrets. He found solace in the fact that his parents had long since gone to the heavens and were not here to witness their youngest son’s betrayal of all they held dear. He would succeed at bringing the traitor back to the clan. Failure was not an option.

He shook himself back to reality, knowing he should get a shower, something to eat, and then some rest. The hunt for the traitor had to continue. Not to mention, Lance and Royce would be arriving early the day after tomorrow to accompany him to his meeting with the local werepanther pack. He hoped they had information that would prove useful in his search. The big cats were able get into places he and his kin could not. Max and his pride had been valuable allies over the years and he hoped their natural curiosity paid off as well this time as it had in the past. He really needed to put this whole crappy mess behind him.
HA!
Like that would ever happen. But he knew there were answers to be found when he could actually talk to Andrew, answers that could help them eliminate the threat to all dragon kin once and for all. His biggest fear was that he would not get to his brother in time and there would be more needless suffering. After witnessing the depravity of the one he once knew as well as he knew himself, he feared for all he held dear. His clan and lair were his first priority, but he could not ignore the fact that there were others out there that needed protection from the lunatic as well.

He thought of his home and everything it meant to him. The last time he had visited the lair, Rayne and Kyndel had announced they were pregnant. If possible, the couple looked even happier, and his Commander had become even more protective of his mate. He had to laugh out loud at the way Kyndel would not stand for Rayne’s overbearing attitude about her safety. She cocked her eyebrow, smacked his arm, and told him she would do whatever she wanted. The last he had seen of them, Kyndel was over Rayne’s shoulder, giving him hell, as they headed to their home. They were definitely made for each other; the Universe did not make mistakes. A shudder ran up his spine as he thought of protecting a mate and child. He completely understood Rayne’s attitude. If someone dared to threaten what was his, he would lose his mind. There was only one in the entire world that could complete him and his dragon, and he would do whatever it took to protect her and any children they were blessed enough to conceive. His mate would be his world.

His mate?
His thoughts stopped dead. Yes, he knew she was out there. Had known she was close by for the last six years, but could do nothing about it. He had learned in the last six months that she was the best friend of his Commander’s mate, and
still
there was nothing he could do to meet her. He had
family
business to attend to first. Andrew had been right about one thing on that hillside six months ago; he accused Aidan of going off half-cocked the night they were ambushed and that was the absolute truth. He had been looking for his mate. He knew she was young, barely of legal human age at the time, and that she was studying some kind of law. He had heard bits and pieces of her conversation with another student while they were walking back to their dorm the night everything went to hell. He had lost touch with her after Andrew’s “death” until the day he walked into this very apartment and her scent hit him like a ton of bricks. The apartment of his Commander’s mate that they had graciously let him use while he was leading the search for Andrew.

He leaned his head onto the back of the big overstuffed couch in Kyndel’s apartment and closed his eyes, bringing the picture of his beautiful mate immediately to his mind. He knew she had been in the apartment while he had been away. He deeply inhaled the lingering scent of vanilla and honey floating on a spring breeze. He knew from the hundreds of incredibly vivid dreams starring his beautiful mate, that when she was aroused, it was as if her tantalizing aroma had been warmed by the sun. If he concentrated, he could taste it on his lips.

He dreamt of running his hands through the long black waterfall of hair that hung almost to her waist; knew it would feel like heavy silk sliding through his fingers. He wanted to gaze into her eyes, bluer than the sky he used to soar across on a clear summer day, and have her grace him with a smile that lit up his entire world. His hands itched to explore her womanly figure, exploring every curve and inch of silken skin. As he thought of her amazingly round ass and her long shapely legs wrapped around his waist while he drove into her, his hand rubbed against his erection as it pushed against the zipper of his jeans.

He was lost to his daydreams of the woman meant to be his, unable to stop his mouth from watering at the thought of tasting the nipples that tipped her full perky breasts and knowing they would be a beautiful shade of deep rose when aroused. He knew one taste would never be enough and he had plans to spend a lifetime worshipping her, body and soul. She was everything sweet and fresh in the world to him. He unbuttoned his pants and lowered his zipper. His fully erect cock sprang free and his fist automatically wrapped around his hard length and began to pump harder and faster the longer he thought of her…
Grace
. Even her name was perfect.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Good Lord she was tired. It was 10pm and she needed to be back at the office by 6:30 tomorrow morning. She was mentally and physically exhausted, not sure that she had the energy to drive the forty-five minutes to her house. One thing for sure, she was absolutely
not
sleeping on that damn couch in her office another night. She’d had her assistant run out to pick up her dry cleaning at lunch. She hated asking Alice to run her errands, but the wonderful woman said she didn’t mind, said she had clothes to pick up as well, so Grace had paid for her cleaning to ease her guilty conscience. Now she was beyond tired and wanted nothing more than some food, a shower, and a bed in any order she could get them. She thought about Kyndel’s apartment sitting there empty, only ten minutes from her office. She had stopped by yesterday when she escaped work for a few minutes and Rayne’s mysterious brother had not been there, but his unmistakable scent had her aroused within minutes of opening the door. She wondered if he was there now. Maybe she should just go to her house. How would she explain to him that she was “stopping” by in the middle of the night?

Grace stopped mid-stride. Why the hell did she care what he thought? Kyndel was
her
best friend. She had known her a hell of lot longer than he had. If she wanted to stop by at three in the morning she could; it was only ten in the evening and she was tired. Kyndel had told her she could stay there any time she needed. She was not going to drive all the way to her house and risk an accident just to avoid the man that made her hot and bothered by the scent he left in his wake. With her resolve strengthened, she closed and locked her office door and headed towards the elevator. On the way down she continued her internal debate, deciding beyond a reasonable doubt that she had every right to stay at Kyndel’s. Exiting the elevator, she waved good night to Johnny, the night watchman; he smiled, waved, and radioed the watchman in the garage that she was on her way out. Her steps faltered for just a moment with second thoughts, but she saw her reflection in the mirrored glass of the lobby and was reminded of a promise she made to herself all those years ago. She was Grace Kensington, a prosecutor for the State. She had always handled anything that came her way and
this
was no different. With shoulders squared and spine straightened, she made her final decision. She
was
going to Kyndel’s and if Mr. Smells So Good was there, maybe she could get answers to some of her questions, but not before she had a shower and something that didn’t come out of a vending machine to eat.