The Dragon Legion Collection(19)

And she knew now that he could defend himself against any man.

She recognized that his principles would stand between them, along with her marriage vows. As long as Cetos lived and Alexander was uncertain of his future, he wouldn’t touch her. He’d defend her and talk to her, but no more than that.

Katina wanted more. She had to find a way to solve this.

“When will you know about your future?” she asked.

“After I ask the Pythia.”

“We have to go to Delphi, then.”

He nodded.

“The flames, in the sanctuary,” she guessed. “When we first met. I saw them spark between the two of us. I thought it a sign.” Alexander nodded agreement. “It wasn’t a trick, was it? It didn’t have anything to do with the Pythia or the fumes in the temple.”

“It was the light of the firestorm,” Alexander admitted. “The firestorm burns when one of my kind meets his destined mate.”

Katina smiled with new hope. “Then we were destined to be together.”

Alexander shrugged and Katina sensed that, once again, he would protect her from some painful truth. “It’s not such a romantic idea as that. The destined mate is the woman who can bear the Pyr’s son. The flame burns until their match is made.”

Katina looked away, disappointed that the magic of their first encounter had only been about the conception of Lysander. “Did I have a choice?”

“There’s always a choice.”

Katina remembered the heat of the firestorm, the power of her desire and the connection she had felt with Alexander in that potent moment. She remembered the consuming attraction she’d felt for him and wasn’t sure she could have resisted him then, not for any price.

She stole a glance at him and acknowledged that hadn’t changed. She hadn’t been able to resist him on this day, even without the spark of this firestorm.

And she didn’t want to resist him now.

Suddenly, she realized the implication underlying his words.

“Bear his son,” she echoed. “That means Lysander...”

Alexander fixed her with a cool glance that reminded her of the dragon within. “Will be like me,” he confirmed with a calmness that seemed undeserved. “Understand, Katina, that if I hadn’t pledged to serve, then I would never have answered the summons.” His eyes darkened as he watched her, his voice softening. “But if I hadn’t pledged, then I wouldn’t have been in the sanctuary of the temple at Delphi the night you arrived there. I wouldn’t have missed that for all the world.”

There was a lump in Katina’s throat. “No matter how it ends?”

“No matter how it ends, I can’t regret having been with you.”

Katina reached out and took his hand in hers again. “I have no regrets, either.”

Their gazes locked and held for a long moment. That familiar heat rose between them, reminding her that they had never stopped with one mating. She saw the spark of desire brighten in Alexander’s eyes and dared to hope that he might soften in his resolve. She made to take a step closer, to encourage him with a kiss, but Alexander caught his breath sharply.

His entire body stiffened in alarm. His eyes narrowed as he scanned the valley and she saw that faint shimmer of blue around his body.

“What is it?”

“Terror,” he said softly. “Danger.” The blue shimmer brightened and Katina knew what was going to happen.

She tightened her grip on his hand, not wanting to be left behind. “Take me with you.”

His expression turned stubborn. “I won’t endanger you...”

“You said there’s always a choice,” Katina said firmly, interrupting him before he could say more. “I’ve made mine, Alexander. Take me with you.” She stretched up and touched her lips to his, tasting his surprise.

Then he smiled, his eyes glowing. She had a chance to smile back at him before he took a deep breath. She wasn’t alarmed to find her fingers locked around a dragon’s claw. Wings stretching high overhead, he tipped back his head and roared with savage power.

Then Alexander swept her into his embrace and leapt into the sky, his wings beating hard as the ground fell away. His every move was filled with urgency and she guessed that he feared they would arrive too late. She knew he wouldn’t drop her, but she held him tightly all the same. The wind whipped around them and the night air turned cold.

It was when she moved to lean against his chest that she saw the gap in his armor. One scale was missing from the mailed splendor of his chest, leaving a tiny increment of skin exposed.

Katina touched the spot with her fingertip and felt an involuntary shudder roll through Alexander’s body. She looked up to find his gaze locked upon her, his expression all the more intense when he was in this form. She smoothed the spot with her fingertips.

“Does it hurt?” she asked, thinking her words would be snatched away by the wind. To her surprise, Alexander heard her—but then, he had admitted to his sharper senses. He shook his head, so dismissive of the idea that she feared he suddenly had the power to hide the truth from her.

What did the missing scale mean?



* * *



Alexander had smelled Slayer.

Just one tantalizing whiff, as if someone had lifted the lid from a fine hot stew and let one tendril of its scent waft into the room. It was a tease and a temptation.