Saved By Her Dragon (34 page)

“That’s not the point,”
she whined,
embarrassed at her weakness, but seriously scared she wasn’t going
to able to change back.

“Anya, open your mind completely to me. Just like it was when
you first transformed,”
Devon commanded,
and without thought she obeyed.

“See the image of me in human form?”
he asked with his tone less stern.

“Yes.”

“See you standing next to me?”

“Yes.”

“Now, feel the path my magic takes.”

She
felt, as well as saw his dragon magic travel along an invisible
thread and fill the picture with life. Her magic followed the same
path, and from one breath to the next, she turned from dragon to
woman and found herself in the arms of her mate.

After
showering, eating, and making love on every available surface, they
fell asleep on the couch, only to be roused by a knock at the door.
Grumbling about people showing up uninvited and unannounced, Devon
opened the door to Aaron, Lance, and Rory with only a towel around
his hips. Thankfully, Anya had kept the robe she’d worn after their
shower close by and had thrown it on while her mate searched for
his towel.

Not waiting to be invited in, Aaron slipped past Devon and
plopped down on the couch right next to her. “So how’s life,
vibria
?” He asked in a
chuckle.

“Vibria
?”

“Female
dragon. You know…. your newest soul mate?”

She
hadn’t thought about it that way but she guessed he was right.
There was a feeling of another consciousness residing in her soul
and she stored that information along with several questions away
for the next time she and her mate were alone. Not sure she should
share the fact that Devon had found a small tattoo, the exact
likeness of her dragon on the back of her left shoulder, she
decided to wait. But she still smiled when she remembered how the
marking had raised and moved against her skin as he had kissed
it.

Remembering Aaron was waiting for an answer, she hurriedly
said, “It’s cool…weird…but cool.”

“Yeah, I
bet.”

Devon’s
shout interrupted their conversation, “What the fuck? When were you
gonna tell me? The shithead is loose?”

Lance
backed away, raising his hands in surrender as Rory answered,
“Don’t kill the messengers. Rian heard the traitor’s thoughts for
just a second right after you put out the call that Anya was in
trouble. He ran off to follow the trail as soon as he saw your
mate’s dragon. Rayne and Aidan followed when you sent us all
away.”

Lance
picked up the explanation, “The three of us have been hanging out,
pretty much driving Sam and the girls crazy, waiting for
information. Aidan finally sent word that they have a scent, so we
headed this way to see if you two had come up for air.” He paused
and turned to Anya, “The girls said to pack a bag and head over
whenever you’re ready. And I should warn you that Sydney is about
to go nuts waiting to ask you what it feels like to be a dragon, so
be prepared.”

“No
worries,” Anya laughed and looked to Devon. “You better get ready
and go catch yourself a traitor.”

He shook
his head as he walked towards her, sitting next to her before he
responded, “Nope. I’m staying with you. We were just mated
yesterday. You found out you were a dragon shifter and went through
your first transformation. There is no way I’m going anywhere. My
place is at your side.”

Turning towards him until she was almost in his lap, Anya
looked right into his eyes and said, “Devon Walsh, you
will
go with your Force
and hunt down the stupid son of a bitch that has caused so much
pain and hurt so many people.” He started to interrupt, but her
index finger on his lips stopped his retort and she continued, “I
know exactly what we’ve been through in the last twenty-four hours,
but that does
not
negate the fact that the little shithead needs to be stopped
and you guys are stronger when you work together. I’ll be fine. You
can even drop me off at Lance and Sam’s on your way out and
I
promise
to stay
put until you get back, deal?”

“Deal,”
he reluctantly agreed, his eyes promising they would continue the
conversation when they were alone.

“Great!”
Aaron clapped his hands as he stood and walked towards the door.
“We’ll meet you lovebirds at Casa de Kavanaugh,” he called over his
shoulder. “Head ‘em up and move ‘em out,” he said as he pushed Rory
and Lance out the door, shutting it as he went.

She and
Devon looked at each other and in unison said, “Something’s up with
Aaron?”

Devon
barked out a laugh as he pulled her onto his lap, kissing her neck
before she could react. Still giggling, Anya pushed against his
chest, “Hey, we’re supposed to be getting ready to go.”

“Yeah,
yeah, yeah…in a minute,” he mumbled against her neck in between
kisses. When his lips touched her mating mark, heat shot directly
to her pussy and all thoughts of anything but the delicious man she
was destined to spend her life with evaporated. She sighed, letting
her head roll to the side to grant him greater access. The bell on
the beautiful necklace he placed around her neck jingled at the
movement.

She felt Devon smile against her neck right before,
“See, told ya…”
floated
through her mind. Followed by,
“
Is breá liom tú anois agus go
deo”

Life just did
not
get any better…

It had
been two weeks since Devon had bellowed his distress call across
their mindspeak, fearing his mate was dying. Two weeks since Aaron
had made a lame excuse to the woman he knew was to be his and had
sped away into the night to help a brethren, only to see the first
female dragon in nearly a thousand years. Two weeks since he had
shared an incredible kiss with his mate. And…more importantly…two
weeks since the one the Universe had made for him had run away,
traumatized from what she had just witnessed and knowing the most
guarded secret of his entire clan.

Aaron
had been happier than he thought possible when Dr. Charlene
Gallagher had agreed to dance with him during the reception
following Devon and Anya’s mating ceremony. The party was still
going strong even though the couple had fled hours earlier. Dragons
liked to party and especially if it was in celebration of something
as monumental as one of their own finding his mate and making it
official.

Aaron
had spent the majority of the evening watching the good doctor,
Charlie as she like to be called, while trying to work up his nerve
to speak to her. He had repeatedly yelled at himself for being a
coward and his dragon had all but roared in his head demanding the
man at least get close so he could scent the one meant to be
theirs. Finally, when he was afraid the party would end and so
would his chances of even talking to her, he had made his way
through the party-goers and asked for a dance. His heart had almost
left his chest when she readily agreed. The feel of her in his arms
was something Aaron would never forget. Then she had truly blown
his mind and said yes when he asked if she would like to take a
walk away from the noise.

Charlie was smart and witty and had a voice like fine whiskey
that rolled all over and through him. He knew he would hear that
voice in his dreams as she screamed his name while he gave her more
pleasure than she had ever known. He hadn’t planned on kissing
her.
Hell
, he’d
been having a hard enough time keeping up his end of the
conversation. But there was just something about the way her dark
blonde hair and deep blue eyes shone in the moonlight that had made
him lower his lips to hers. She must have felt it too because she
met him halfway and when they touched, sparks flew. An electrical
current ran through his body making him wonder if he glowed with
the feelings this one woman brought out in him. And then Devon had
called and Aaron had taken Charlie back to the party making some
stupid excuse for having to leave. Never in his wildest dreams had
he imagined she would follow him.

He knew Charlie was hiding out in the cottage Sam still owned
and had lived in prior to meeting Lance. The brief kiss they had
shared had started the mating call, which allowed him to keep track
of her…to make sure she was okay. About twenty times every day he
walked towards his Harley, prepared to go to her and explain
everything
, and every time
he lost his nerve. Part of him thought maybe this stupid shit would
wear off, but then the part of him that remembered their kiss,
remembered what it felt like to have her in his arms kicked in, and
he knew sooner or later he was going to
have
to make things right.

Aaron
had never really wanted a mate. He knew every other Guardsman did,
but it was just not something he really ever thought about–when he
did, it gave him the willies. It was not until he had glimpsed Dr.
Charlene Gallagher that he actually considered a life with another
person. As it was, just the very thought of her drove him crazy and
his dragon had gotten damn near impossible to deal with.

After
the first week, he had gone to Sam for advice. She had laughed,
explaining that her best friend was hardheaded and had a terrible
temper to boot. Her suggestion was to give Charlie time to cool
off, time to come to terms with what she had seen, and then
Samantha was sure her friend would come to him for answers. He saw
the sadness in his brethren’s mate’s eyes as she explained that Dr.
Charlene Gallagher had also cut communication with her, only
calling to tell her she had taken vacation from the hospital and to
ask if she could use the cottage. The tears he saw in the young
doctor’s eyes and heard in her voice when she said Charlie had
asked not to be disturbed tore at his heart. Never one to be overly
emotional, Aaron chalked it up to the mating call, thanked Sam, and
left to go lick his proverbial wounds.

Any
other time he would have talked to Devon and Royce, they were the
brethren with the most level heads and best advice. However, Royce
was off with Kyra searching for her mother and Devon had his hands
full with a mate that just transformed into the first female dragon
in nearly a thousand years, AND was a dragon from a long lost clan.
So...there was no way Aaron was bothering either of
them.

He had considered talking to his twin but once again, Aidan
had his own issues. Aaron’s brother and his mate were pregnant with
twins, the first in almost a hundred years, and Aidan had gone into
hyper-protective mate and dad mode. Although it was absolutely
hilarious to watch, it didn’t help with Aaron’s problems. He was
close with all his brethren, but he wasn’t ready to relive the
whole story again so that left just one thing…
training
. Andrew was out there on the
loose, planning only the Heavens knew what. It was the perfect
opportunity to focus all of Aaron’s anger and frustration on the
little brother he had grown to hate.

Since it
was still early and the younger Guardsmen were busy with the tasks
Rayne and Rian had given them, he shoved his earbuds into his ears,
blasted Metallica, and started off on his run. Running had always
been something he hated, especially after his years in the service,
but the longer he went without Charlie, the more the solitude of
tearing across the countryside fit his mood. He emptied his mind of
everything but the music blasting in his ears, the sights and
scents around him, and the rhythmic pounding of his feet against
the ground.

Passing the ten mile mark and still going strong, lost to his
thoughts, he damn near ran straight into the huge lake in front of
him when the scent of roses punched him right in the gut. Shaking
his head, Aaron looked around, only to realize he had run straight
to Black Lake, which coincidentally was less than a mile behind the
cottage his mate now occupied
. Dammit, this
Fate will not be denied shit really sucks!

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

Hiding
out in the same cave, on the same mountainside where his
resurrection had occurred almost two years ago, should have seemed
poetic. But he was starving, injured, and without any resources
whatsoever, making misery all Andrew knew. The hunting trap he had
stepped in on his hurried escape across the wheat field had torn
the muscles and tendons in the calf of his right leg, and without
proper nutrition, even his returning dragon abilities were
struggling to heal the wound. Thankfully, the cave had a small
stream running through it, so he could stay hydrated and keep his
cut clean. The few small animals that used the creek as their water
source had become his only source of food, but the supply was
dwindling as the word spread about the predator hiding in their
midst.

His only solace was the ancient text he had taken with him
when he had escaped from the ruins of the mansion. With little else
to do, he divided his time between translating the old dragon
language and plotting his revenge against everyone that had been a
part of all he had suffered, including John’s death. John was the
only person in nearly eight years Andrew had dared let close, and
the fucking dragons had taken that from him too. Sadness filled him
as he pulled page after page of his assistant’s notes from the
book. His spirits lifted slightly when he found one page in
particular that detailed all they knew about the prophecy.
It was only bits and pieces, but he would do
whatever had to be done to find the whole prophecy and use it to
destroy anyone that got in his way.