Kiss of Destiny (2 page)

Its quest was done. Drake was cast into the future to stay.

The darkfire crystal had brought him here as its last act, because its rightful place was in the hoard of the leader of the
Pyr
. Drake pushed to his feet wearily, only having the strength to rise because he knew he would be able to sleep as long as necessary within the protective barrier of Erik’s dragonsmoke boundary.

And that was a greater gift than he’d ever expected the darkfire to give him.

Chapter One

His firestorm!

Thad barely managed to contain his excitement. He was surrounded by a dense white mist, a fog that obscured everything beyond an arm’s reach. Even so, the fog was lit with a radiant orange light, the light of his firestorm, and he spun in place, trying to discern which direction was brightest.

She would be there.

He could see the rocky path beneath his feet and feel the chill of the air, but not much more than that. In three steps, he’d lost Drake completely.

Suddenly, a blue-green flash of the darkfire illuminated the fog behind him. It grew to blinding brilliance then disappeared completely. Thad swallowed, knowing that Drake was gone.

He was alone.

But the firestorm’s light meant he wasn’t really alone. Its golden glow shimmered on his fingertips. He lifted his hand and turned in place and, just as earlier, the firestorm sparked to flames that leapt from his fingertips to guide him to his destined mate. He felt a heat in his body and a tingling of desire, one that reminded him of the earthly aspect of the firestorm. The sparks leapt from his fingertips, as if to urge him to hurry. He took a step, saw the flames build a little higher and felt the heat increase in his body.

What did she look like? What was she feeling? Would he fall in love with her immediately, or would it take time? Thad was desperate to know. He summoned the change in his body with impatience, wanting to have the fullness of his dragon powers for this moment of moments.

Even the change seemed to be fueled by the firestorm. It swept through his body with a vehemence he’d never experienced before, making him feel so powerful that he might have been invincible. In his dragon form, Thad breathed fire at the sky in triumph. He was delighted that even his plume of flames bent in the direction of his mate. Could she feel the firestorm? Was she waiting for him? He took flight, using his keener dragon senses to try to discern more.

The fog was impenetrable, but his heart skipped at the faint scent of perfume. It came from the same direction as the firestorm’s sparks led and was wonderfully feminine. It smelled of flowers and made him think of soft warm skin. Thad closed his eyes and took a deep beguiling breath of it, then flew on at reckless speed.

His dream was coming true.

Before he and his fellow Dragon’s Tooth warriors had been enchanted, he’d had few expectations about the once-in-a-lifetime mating experienced by his fellow
Pyr
. The sparks flew to identify the woman who could bear the child of the dragon shape shifter in question. For most of the
Pyr
Thad had known then, a firestorm was the chance to create a son and not much more. His own mother had been loving and kind, but as a child, Thad had always felt the household was incomplete. He hadn’t been able to name the omission until he came of age.

Thad had met his own father when he’d been collected from his mother’s household and taken to Delphi. Theirs had been a short acquaintance and not a talkative one. His father had believed in leaving the training of young dragons to those who did it best. His obligation to his kind had been fulfilled by satisfying the firestorm, creating a son, then bringing the son to be trained when he came of age. Even though Thad had felt a yearning to know more about his father and to build a connection, his father hadn’t shared his dream. After their arrival at Delphi, Thad had never seen his father again.

Drake had been different, even when Thad had first met him. Not only was Drake an experienced and respected commander, but he had married his mate and lived with her and his son. He was the first
Pyr
Thad had ever met who had made that choice. The notion of having Drake as a father and knowing him, of having the ongoing opportunity to learn from him was incredible to Thad.

But so enticing.

He supposed he shouldn’t have been surprised that the
Pyr
like Drake were drawn to his command. Alexander was another who had made a commitment to his mate. After the enchantment had been broken, Thad and his fellows had found themselves in a future. There, the
Pyr
who followed Erik Sorensson made permanent relationships with their mates. They were partners, not just biological parents, and worked together to fulfill the mission of the
Pyr
to defend the earth and its treasures. Some of those dragons had multiple sons, which was remarkable to Thad. The
Pyr
almost invariably had male children, since there was only one female of their kind at any given time, but for a dragon shifter to remain with one woman and create a family was a modern notion. The contentment of those
Pyr
was clear to even a new arrival like Thad.

He had yearned to feel the spark of his firestorm in that world.

Yet mingled with the promise of such a partnership was a fear that the Great Wyvern had forgotten the old firestorms or the more ancient
Pyr
. In being enchanted, Alexander and Drake had been separated from their mates. Thad had worried about this. Was it a sign that the firestorm wasn’t forever? Did it mean that the Dragon’s Tooth warriors were different? Did it mean that the firestorm’s promise could be fleeting?

When the darkfire crystal had cast them through space and time, it had been Thad who discerned the truth and Thad who had been most relieved. Now, his own firestorm sparked at the end of his talon. He would do anything to see it satisfied and pledge whatever was necessary to the woman who would bear his son.

His chance to do all that and more was only moments away.

Thad couldn’t wait.

* * *

Aura considered the sparks that danced in the wind with suspicion. They erupted nearby in a sudden flurry, then swirled around her like tiny brilliant orange lights. When they were extinguished, as sparks loosed from a fire are, even more replaced them—yet there was no fire to create the sparks. While she observed them, she felt a strange heat fill her body.

How could sparks create lust? Aura didn’t know but these ones did. She felt her skin warm and tingle, then a flush spread over her body. She thought of pleasure and sensation, hot kisses and ardent nights. She imagined a man, a handsome young man, with dark hair and dark eyes, watching her with a smile and an answering heat in his eyes. His chest was bare and his body muscled to perfection, his skin tanned, his intent clear. Aura swallowed, even as her body responded to this vision.

Who was he?

Even though she only saw him in her mind’s eye, Aura knew she’d never seen him before. His clothing was strange, but she was more interested in the man himself. She’d remember a man that handsome, no matter how long it had been. And why was she seeing him? As a nymph, Aura had the power to see through the guises taken by deities and shifters, to see all of their realities at once.

He had something to do with the sparks. Were the sparks one of his guises?

Aura decided to disperse the sparks. She built herself into a gust of wind, one so violent that it shoved back mist and cloud. The blue sky was clear overhead after that one breath, and the rocky mountaintop bared below.

The sparks, to her surprise, didn’t fade.

In fact, they followed her.

Aura blew down toward the mountain. She shifted shape in a glitter of silver and took human form, the hem of her white tunic rippling around her bare feet. The fog still dissipated around her, visible on all sides but at a distance. She could see a golden glow of light in one direction, and sparks spilled from it. One fell toward her, then flamed more brightly as it touched her. Aura caught her breath as lust shot through her, and she felt her nipples tighten. The spark extinguished itself but not before the man in her mind’s eye came closer. She saw the handsome stranger bend to kiss her, saw his hand rise to cup her breast, felt his breath against her cheek.

She wanted him with a vehemence that surprised her, even though she was a nymph with healthy appetites.

Aura stepped back and eyed the sparks. They weren’t borne by any breeze she knew, and Aura had thought she knew them all. A hot wind could have been her uncle Notus, but it wasn’t him. He was much older than the man in her thoughts and not nearly so alluring. Aura took a deep breath, and the sparks moved in response, changing their direction as if they would have her swallow them.

She hoped by Hades that the sparks—and the man—weren’t divine. She’d seen enough nymphs possessed by a deity in disguise then left to raise a half-divine child—or worse, cursed to take the form of a tree or animal. Aura didn’t want any part of that, but the gods could make themselves so irresistible that a nymph had little choice. The gods understood the desires that existed in every nymph, the love of pleasure, the affection for adoration. It was so much easier to never be noticed, but she’d succeeded at that long enough that she knew she was due for a challenge.

The sparks smelled of earth and fire, of a magic not common on Mount Olympus.

Aura felt her own body turning against her better judgment. She was tingling in anticipation of his appearance, already yearning for a kiss, even before he stood before her.

Who was he? Aura concentrated and a dragon replaced him in her mind, a dragon touched by a fire similar to the sparks that surrounded her.

He was a shape shifter?

Like her?

Aura had never met another shape shifter, other than the nymphs who were her relations. They were all women. A handsome man who could become a dragon, who created sparks from his presence and filled her with lust? This was a dangerous possibility, all the more so because it fascinated Aura. She should run, she knew it, but she wanted to see this marvel.

The sparks brightened suddenly, burning hotter and more yellow than orange. To her dismay, an answering heat filled her body, making her yearn for a man’s touch.

Not any man, though. Only the one in her thoughts. He was more clear to her, almost as if he stood before her, and she knew he was drawing closer. This was her last chance to flee.

Curiosity might be her undoing, and even knowing that, she didn’t run.

She heard him then, a creature flying through the mist without the least bit of caution. What drove him? A quest? A message? Or simple lust? With every beat of his wings, the passion within Aura grew and the sparks multiplied in number. She was overwhelmed with thoughts of pleasure. The air filled with a radiant and golden glow, one that seemed to Aura to be filled with anticipation.

A dragon of deepest black popped out of the mist in that moment. The golden light surrounded him and caressed the edges of his scales, making him look gilded. He hesitated in his flight, evidently startled to be out of the fog, and surveyed his surroundings.

He was magnificent, so graceful and noble a creature that one sight of him could never be enough. His wings were large and black, spread high and wide above him. His scales were deepest black but gleamed with golden lights. His eyes were like burnished gold, nearly glowing with intent. A strange flame illuminated his body, the orange color of the fire making him look even more primal and powerful than he would otherwise.

He was the handsome stranger in other guise. Aura could see his two forms overlapping each other when she eyed him, the one he had chosen more dominant but the other still there. Aura yearned to caress him, a desire that frightened her with its intensity. It wasn’t natural, even for a nymph, to burn with such lust from only one glance. She wanted to know how his scales felt. She wanted to feel the strength of his body. She wanted to touch him in both guises. The sparks were filled with a kind of magic. Already she knew the desire would only be sated by this stranger.

She peered into the mist, seeking a sign that she could indulge herself without repercussions. To Aura’s enormous relief, she saw no child.

She could have him.

With that conviction, there was no question of fleeing.

Aura felt his gaze as surely as a touch. His glance swept over her and he flew closer, seeming to savor his first look at her. His eyes glowed and he breathed fire, as if in anticipation. The glow heated to brilliant white, making Aura burn in a most primal way.

She stood with her head thrown back as the black dragon flew around her in a tight circle. His obvious awe made her want to preen.

It certainly made her smile.

The sparks were getting hotter.

Aura was getting hotter. She felt a lust building in herself that was beyond anything she’d experienced before. She was a nymph, not a vestal virgin, but this desire was sizzling.

It was a spell. It had to be.

Aura hoped it would last for more than just one taste of him.

The dragon flew closer, and Aura couldn’t help but admire his grace. He changed his posture to land right in front of her, and the light crackled as it became brilliant yellow. They were caught in an orb of sizzling heat when she saw a flicker of cool blue. It was almost like a lick of lightning, gone so quickly that her eyes could have been deceived.