The Dragon Legion Collection(104)
“Not sir,” Drake said hoarsely. He took Theo’s hand and shook it, liking the firmness of this young man’s grip. “I would have you call me Drake.” And then he embraced Theo, glad beyond belief that the darkfire had brought him this gift.
* * *
The repair of his scale was a wonderful moment, and one Thad would remember forever. He couldn’t have imagined how any part of it could have been improved.
The sun was setting, the western sky painted with brilliant streaks of orange. He could see the stars overhead and feel a cool breeze from the ocean. He smiled, wondering if it was a friend of Aura’s. The tree with the silver leaves tinkled in the breeze, as if to make music to celebrate their bond.
The firestorm had faded, but the weight of Aura’s hand in his own still brought a lump to Thad’s throat. He was surrounded by friends and comrades, each of whom had found love through the firestorm. He was amongst his own kind and would be with Aura for the duration. He dared to believe that thanks to their efforts, the Pyr in the future would triumph over every obstacle.
He felt like the luckiest Pyr in the world.
“There must be a token, freely given,” Katina said to Aura.
“She has surrendered her immortality,” Thad said with pride.
“Something tangible,” Petra insisted. “Something that is a measure of her link with the elements.”
“She is air and I am fire,” Thad said.
“But what are your secondary elements? The four must be divided between the two of you, or you wouldn’t have had a firestorm,” Alexander explained.
Thad met Aura’s gaze. She smiled at him. “You must be earth for your practicality,” she said and Thad sensed that she was right.
“And you would be water, for your empathy.”
Aura’s smile turned mischievous. “Or for my love of sensual delights.”
The others chuckled at that, but Thad couldn’t look away from Aura’s shining eyes. He would show her sensual delights, once they had a moment of privacy together. He smiled and she blushed a little, as if she’d guessed his thoughts.
Her eyes widened suddenly and she reached into her tunic. To Thad’s surprise, when her hand was revealed again, she held a golden apple. It was perfect, not missing a single bite, and he wondered if she had stolen another one.
“A gift from Hera,” she said with a smile. She glanced up at the peak where the garden was hidden. “A wedding gift.” She lifted the golden fruit and offered it to Alexander. It looked like it was made of gold, more like a piece of jewelry than fruit.
Alexander accepted it with a slight bow. “I never thought I’d hold one of these myself,” he said with awe. “It will more than suffice.”
Thad felt Alexander change shape beside him and glanced at the dark dragon Alexander had become. Damien shifted shape next and he nodded acknowledgement of that. The dragon known as the Heartbreaker had changed, and the transformation was more than the color of his scales and of his hair. Damien seemed more focused and less restless. Thad knew it was because he was with Petra, his destined mate, once again.
Thad smiled at Aura, then summoned his own change, reveling in the way it surged through him with such strength. The firestorm had made him more than he had been, Thad was sure of it.
The wind lifted Aura’s hair and swept through her tunic as she offered Thad’s lost scale to Alexander. Alexander held it in his claws and breathed fire at it. Damien stepped forward and breathed his dragonfire on it as well. It heated to a golden glow before Thad’s eyes. They turned their fire on the apple and it turned molten on one side before their surprised gazes. Alexander pressed it into the scale and the two merged together, so that the golden apple sat on the surface like an emblem.
“Fire,” Alexander intoned as he pressed the hot scale against Thad’s chest. Thad gritted his teeth at the burning sensation of it against his exposed skin. He heard Aura gasp and saw her eyes fill with tears of sympathy.
“Water,” Aura whispered, lifting a tear from her cheek and placing it on the scale. It sizzled on contact and evaporated.
“Earth,” Thad said, and pressed the scale more deeply into his own chest.
“Air,” Aura concluded, blowing against the hot scale as sweetly as a summer breeze. Thad caught her close and spun her around, his heart bursting with pride that she had given so much to be his mate. He swept into the sky and flew around his fellows, then spun to land on his feet, in human form, with Aura in his arms. He bent to kiss her, but she gasped in wonder as she looked past his shoulder.
“Twins!” she said with delight. “Thad, we will have twin sons!”
There was only one good way to celebrate that news, as far as Thad was concerned. He caught Aura close and kissed her soundly, knowing that this particular night would be filled with the exploration of sensual delights.
And so it would be for all their entwined future.
Thad couldn’t wait to begin.
* * * * *
The Dragon Legion Novellas are also available in a print collection.
The Dragon Legion Collection includes
Kiss of Danger
Kiss of Darkness
and
Kiss of Destiny.
Available at online book retailers.