FIRE IN HIS KISS

A POST-APOCALYPTIC DRAGON ROMANCE

RUBY DIXON

RUBY DIXON

CONTENTS

Fire In His Kiss

What Has Gone Before

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

Chapter 39

Chapter 40

Chapter 41

Chapter 42

Chapter 43

Chapter 44

Chapter 45

Chapter 46

Chapter 47

Chapter 48

Chapter 49

Chapter 50

Epilogue

Author’s Note

Fire In His Blood

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Ruby Dixon Reading List

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FIRE IN HIS KISS

Bloodlust and insanity rule my existence. As a fierce drakoni warrior, this strange new world I find myself in eats at my mind until there is nothing left. There is no light or clarity...until she arrives. I save her life, plucking her from the sky.

From that point on, she is mine.

But the human I have chosen for my mate - Sasha - is fragile and wounded. She does not trust me and fears my presence. I will not give up, though. I will do anything to give her my fires and bond us both in body and spirit. How can I convince her that I want nothing more than her happiness if she will not let me touch her?

How does a dragon woo a human?

Copyright © 2017 by Ruby Dixon

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

Cover art by Kati Wilde

Cover photo by Sara Eirew Photographer

Created with Vellum

WHAT HAS GONE BEFORE

In 2016, the world came to an end. Not with bombs, not with war, but with fire. One day, a Rift opened in the heavens and dragons poured forth, as terrible and violent as the beasts of legend. Like ants, they swarmed over the human cities, destroying everything in their wake. Buildings crumbled, and as they did, so did society. Mankind learned that their guns had no effect on the unearthly creatures from another dimension. Riots broke out as men were forced to fight not only for their survival against the dragons, but against each other.

The people who survived those first brutal days took to hiding. Eventually, small groups of survivors banded together and formed forts where they could live safely and securely. In the After, concrete is the building material of choice, and people freely give up their rights in exchange for protection for their families. The forts themselves are isolated and corrupt, run by a power-hungry militia. The guns they carry might not be useful against dragons, but they’re more than enough to keep the people of the fort in line.

For seven years, this goes on, and a new society emerges.

It’s in this world that Claudia Jones lives. She makes a hardscrabble living by scavenging and selling what she can on the black market to feed her sister, Amy. Sasha Kennedy isn’t a scavenger, so she sells what she has—her body. The three friends are able to scratch out a living for a time…until Claudia is caught and sentenced by the New Militia. Instead of exile, though, they choose to take her out into the Scavenge Lands, bait to tame a dragon. It’s a desperate effort for the failing fort that’s been besieged by violent attacks.

To Claudia’s surprise, though, she meets a dragon that’s unlike what she expected. Kael is fierce and possessive, but can also be kind and loving. She becomes his mate and decides to rescue both Amy and Sasha from Fort Dallas and its corrupt militia. In the process, Claudia and Sasha fly away on Kael’s back, only to have Sasha fall. She is immediately snatched away by Dakh, a crazed male dragon helping in the assault on Fort Dallas. Claudia has to decide to save Sasha or her sister Amy…and ends up choosing Amy. Sasha is whisked away by the wild dragon and lost to her friends.

Of course, there are two sides to every story. This is Sasha’s.

1

SASHA

T  here’s a dragon nearby, waiting in the darkness.

I’m terrified to breathe, to move, to do anything. I’ve never been so scared in my life. Fear has made the slow boil of nausea in my stomach turn into a tornado, and I’m covered in a cold sweat. Growing up and watching nature shows on TV, I never understood why the gazelles would freeze in place as the lion hunted them. I get it now. I feel very much like a gazelle about to be pounced on.

The gold eyes whirl in the shadows, watching me. The dragon shifts nearby, and it feels as if the whole room shakes with it. It’s so...large, beyond massive in size. I bet it could eat me in a single bite—

And that makes my panic climb a few more notches.

I cringe in place, waiting. I’m so scared I can’t even close my eyes, because I’m afraid he might see that subtle movement and attack.

The dragon lumbers forward another step, coming out of the deep shadows of the strange room and into a beam of light. I’m both awed and horrified at the sight of the creature. It’s the most beautiful, overwhelming, deadly thing I’ve ever seen. I hold my breath, hoping that he won’t see me.

But then those whirling, golden eyes fix on me, and I want to cry out in terror. Please, God, let me pass out so I don’t have to be awake when he eats me.

If God’s up there, though, he’s silent. Because I’m still conscious as the dragon moves toward me, one ground-shaking step at a time. I back up as best as I can, ignoring the pain that shoots up my broken arm and my wounded ribs. I hurt all over, but that won’t matter for much longer.

All I can do is stare at those hypnotically golden eyes and wait for the gigantic dragon maw to open up and eat me.

The enormous head moves in slowly, and I gaze at it in awe. I’m transfixed, like a cobra before a snake charmer. I try to remember what Claudia said about dragons, but I can’t think straight. All I remember is that hers was scary, but not as panty-wetting terrifying as this one. Maybe because he wasn’t looking me right in the eye like this one is.

Claudia. Oh God. Is she here? Is Amy here? Am I getting my dragons mixed up and this is hers? The friendly one? I look for familiarity, but this one seems darker than the last one, and when he leans in, I see one of the frill-horns on his head is broken. Claudia’s dragon didn’t have that. He wasn’t this darker shade of gold that’s so deep it’s almost amber.

A flash of memory slides through my terrified thoughts. Of Claudia, trying to hold me behind her. Of losing my grip and sliding off the side of the dragon. Freefalling through the sky into nothing, only to be snatched in mid-air before I hit the ground. The impact of it had knocked the air out of me and jarred my bad arm so badly it knocked me unconscious, but not before I saw a vague, massive shadow of a dragon.

Vomit rises in my throat. I fell off of one dragon and got snatched by another.

This is really, really bad.

I’ve never been so afraid. Not even when Tate lost his temper. Dealing with a soldier that likes to use his fists is different than a wild creature that wants to swallow me whole.

The dragon steps a bit closer, and then the great head lowers. It’s almost majestic—a cross between a snake and a cat, really, with elegant bones and a long muzzle that gleams golden in the low light. If I wasn’t so scared I’d be fascinated, because it looks just like the dragons out of legend, right down to the long wings, muscled legs, and wildly flicking tail. It leans in a bit closer.

Then I’m gazing right into the plate-sized eye, watching as it whirls from black to gold and back to black again. Watching me. Considering me.

“If you’re going to eat me, just do it,” I whisper. “Because otherwise I’m about to pee myself in fear and I won’t taste as good. Though I don’t know why I’m telling you that.”

The eye flares gold, and for a moment, the dragon focuses in on me again. It’s weird, but it’s almost like he understands me. Which he should, I guess, if Claudia is dating one. She said they were shapechangers. She also said that hers was interested in mating. I shudder. I can’t imagine anything more terrifying at the moment. Terror sweeps through me again. I hope he was in his human form when he and Claudia…when they…

Nope, I can’t picture it.

The eye goes black again, and the dragon rears back, head lifting. Oh God. Oh God. This is it. My mouth goes dry, and I stare up, unable to move.

But the head only moves side to side, almost undulating back and forth. It’s not shaking its head in an effort to communicate. I…I don’t know what the fuck it’s doing, and that’s just as terrifying as anything else. As I watch, he curls his mouth back, revealing jagged teeth, and then snaps at the air, like a dinosaur in one of the movies I used to love as a kid. I’m not loving it now. The scent of char washes over me, mixed with a strange, spicy smell. I sob, hunching over and wrapping myself protectively around my bad arm. My ribs burn with pain, and there’s a fresh injury on my leg that I’m too scared to look at.

“Just kill me already,” I sob. “Do whatever it is you’re going to do. Just quit torturing me.”

DAKH

My mate. Mine.

The thought tries to break through the darkness, but the bad thoughts keep flickering forward and I am unable to push them back. They are like ravens, flocking. No, like buzzards. They sense I am weak in thought, and they wait for me to die. I snap at the thoughts, the air, the buzzards, trying to make them flee. My teeth close on nothing, and the bad thoughts flutter close by again.

Kill things.

Kill her.

Destroy.

Hurt. Hurt like you are hurting. Take your anger out on her. Your world is destroyed. Your life, destroyed. Your people, destroyed. It’s her fault. Her, and her people. Over and over, the ravens and the buzzards repeat these things, moving closer and closer until the light that the human female provides is nearly blacked out once more. I curl my lips back, and I can feel the steam rising in my lungs.

Killing is so easy. It is what the voices want me to do.

But then the female sobs and waters from her eyes. She speaks, her voice soft and sweet and terrified. Like a splash of water in my face, consciousness returns and the ravens flutter back to mutter their evil in the back of my head. I do not listen. I am fixed on the human.

My human.

I rumble low in my throat, pleased at the sound of her voice. I want more of it. More of her. More of everything.

Mine. I want to curl my claws around her and draw her close to my breast. I want to protect her and hold her close. I want to bury my nose in that soft-looking mane of hers and breathe in her scent.

The fear-smell she is emitting makes me pause, though. I do not want for her to be frightened. I want her mating scent to fill the air. I want for her to snarl and confront me, to challenge me like a drakoni female would. If she challenges me, I can conquer her and mount her, claim her as my own.

Take her as my mate.

The thought fills me with a burst of joy, and I realize how long it has been since I felt…happy.

Kill her, the ravens mutter in my ears. Kill. Hurt like you are hurting.

But…looking at her makes me hurt less. Looking at her makes the maddening sounds, the constant cries of the birds pecking at my mind, go silent.

She is mine.

She is also frightened, and I do not know how to fix that. How do I please her and have her stop making the fear-smell and change to the arousal-smell? Drakoni females are aggressive. They find a male dragon and approach him, claws bared and fangs exposed. Perhaps she needs time to do so.

I settle on my haunches and wait for this female to show me a sign. A flash of claw. A hint that she will change to battle form. Something. Anything.

So I stare and wait.

Time passes. The small female continues to drip water from her eyes, her breathing gasping and choked. She sounds distressed, and this bothers me. Is she sick? Injured?

I watch her closely, looking for blood or limbs bent the wrong way. There is a darkness on one side of her face that concerns me, but it is hard to tell because her features are small and delicate. When she shifts her weight, pressing farther back against the wall, I see that one limb is bound tightly and she favors it.

She is injured.

Have I done this to her? Horror fills my gut. I have wanted nothing more than a mate all this time, and I have injured the female I have chosen as mine. Even a male challenging a female will not harm her. There might be light bites or pressure on her limbs to make her give in, but never injury. It makes no sense to harm the one you wish to carry your young.

As if sensing my thoughts, the ravens dive in again, their thoughts twittering in my ear. This one is weak, they cry. Kill her and choose another. Pluck another female from the human hive—one that is strong and brave.

Compelled, I step forward, lowering my head. The ravens talk sense. A mate should be bold in body and spirit. This one is not. Would it not be kinder to rid this world of such weakness and select another? I lean in, ready to bite, to destroy and dismember.

The female cringes back against the wall, averting her face and pushing flat against the stone. She closes her eyes and makes no sound, waiting. She knows.

I hesitate. The scent of her—female, gentle, soft—tickles at my nose. Even though she is weak…I like her scent. I rub my nose along her skin and find it soft and pleasant. Lust rushes through me, and I growl low in my throat with the pleasure of it even as the ravens scatter back again.

It does not matter if this one is weak. She is mine.

Mine mine mineminemineminemine.

I flick my tongue against her skin, tasting her, but the acrid scent of her fear overwhelms my senses. It fills me with frustration. Why is she so frightened of me? I watch as she twists her body, trying to get away from my touch, and as she does, again she favors her side. It is then that the scent of blood washes over me.

A sinking, awful feeling shakes me, and I rear back.

Is she afraid because I have injured her? It was me that caused her wounds? I try to think back to when I snatched the female from the air, of how I held her, if anything snapped, but the ravens and buzzards cry out in my thoughts, laughing at me, mocking me.

I wounded my mate.

I hurt her.

I almost destroyed her. She bleeds because of me. She hurts, because of me. The thought fills me with horror. Even now, the ravens urge their awful suggestions in my ears, telling me to harm her. To rid myself of her before others see how weak my mate is. She is small and fragile, wrong for one as strong and mighty as myself.

But…because she is small, should I not want to protect her? Even now, I feel a fierce need to shield her from the vultures in my thoughts. To keep her safe. I bite them back, snarling. I will not listen to their lies. Not this time. I take another deep breath of her scent. It is tinged with fear-smell, but underneath it is a sweet, pleasant scent that makes the bad thoughts retreat. I inhale deeply again, and the ravens scatter.

She will keep them at bay, I think. And once she is my mate and I claim her—like Kael claimed his mate—the ravens will go away forever.

I settle on my haunches to wait.

2

SASHA

He’s not leaving. The dragon just stares and waits, a few feet away from me.

I…don’t know what to do.

I ache all over, and my mind is a scattered mess. I feel dizzy, though I know a lot of it is because of fear. I can’t seem to catch my breath. I’m hysterical, my thoughts flying in every which direction, and I keep waiting for the dragon to move forward and eat me, but he doesn’t. He waits. And that makes me crazy with anxiety—what is he waiting for?

Calm down, Sasha, I tell myself. You’ve been in bad situations before. You’ll live through this, and if you don’t, at least you’ll stop hurting. You’ve survived Tate. You can survive a dragon. If he wanted to eat you, he would have done so already.

Strangely enough, that realization helps. I focus on calming my breathing, taking deep lungfuls of air. I don’t look at the dragon, because if I do, I’m going to freak out again, and I can’t do that. Calm, I remind myself. Relax. I exhale slowly and go to the place in my mind where I’m detached and safe, like I do when I have to visit Tate. I pull myself out of my surroundings. I tell myself that everything is temporary, and all I have to do is get through this. My breathing slows down and I calm. The tears stop pouring from my eyes and I’m able to think clearly.

I can get through this.

I’m strong. I will survive whatever this dragon wants from me. I’ve survived Tate. I’ve survived the Rift. I can survive anything.

I close my eyes and mentally assess my wounds. My broken arm is throbbing with pain, but I don’t think it’s any worse than before. My splint needs to be adjusted, but I can do that later, when the dragon’s not watching me like a hawk. Just the thought of the dragon so close by sends a tremor through me, destroying my Zen, and I take a few deep gulping breaths to try to get it back. When I settle my mind once more, I continue. My ribs hurt badly, but they’re survivable. I don’t feel as if my chest is collapsing, so they’re likely just bruises. My hip feels hot and painful, and my clothing is wet with blood. Okay, that means that I’ve been shot. It can’t be a bad wound, though, or I wouldn’t be conscious. I’d be dead. So it’s got to be insignificant. All right. I can deal with that.

I take another deep breath, focusing on the bigger problem at hand.

The dragon. Again, I shiver at the thought, but I force myself to stay calm. Rational. Claudia knows a dragon and she’s fine. She’s smart and I trust her judgment. If she thinks she’s safer with her dragon than in Fort Dallas, she must be right. Okay then. Not all dragons are bad.

There’s the sound of teeth clacking together again, and I don’t have to open my eyes to know the dragon’s biting at the air again. What he sees there is beyond me, but whenever he does that, I wither a little more inside. What if he gets tired of biting at the air and decides to bite at me?

But Claudia wasn’t scared of hers.

And if he wanted to eat me, he’d have plenty of time to do so already.

It’s time to be brave. Man, I hate being brave.

I swallow hard and open my eyes. The dragon’s still staring at me, intent. The eyes flick from black to gold as I watch, and I dig my fingers into my jeans, wondering if that means something bad. Only one way to find out.

“Hi,” I say softly.

There’s no response. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. He’s a dragon, of course. I’ve never heard of them speaking. Claudia said hers spoke when he was in human form. “Can you shift into human form so we can talk?”

The eyes blink at me slowly. I’m both fascinated and terrified by the whirling gold on gold of the dragon’s pupils.

“Anything? Can you understand me?”

The dragon shifts forward on its haunches, and the head zooms close in again. I inwardly cringe but force myself to remain still as the big nose runs up my arm and then sniffs my hair. I can feel his breath on me, hot and scary and smelling suspiciously of ash, and my mouth goes dry. His teeth are as long as my forearm and inches away from my face…

But he only sniffs me, and then the nose drops lower, pushing at my hip and the wound there. A low growl escapes his throat.

“Oh God, please don’t do that,” I whisper.

The eyes flick back to me, and the growl stops. He noses my hair in a manner almost like a horse. A really, really, really big horse. With fangs.

When I stop speaking, the head lowers again, and he inspects my wound, nosing at the blood-crusted denim. I suck in a breath as he examines me, then pushes at my side, knocking me over. I land on my bad arm and choke back a cry of pain, because the dragon’s busy being fascinated with my newest wound and I don’t dare push him away. So I lie still, twisting my torso slightly to keep the weight off my bad arm.

Something hot and smooth moves against my leg, and I yelp to see the teeth come out, the dragon’s lips curled back. He growls when I move, and so I go still again, biting on my knuckle to try to stay silent. Is he attracted to the scent of blood? Is that why he’s so fascinated by my wound? Is this the precursor to his attack? I barely hold back another whimper as the teeth scrape gently near my wound, and I close my eyes. I’m such a coward for not wanting to look, but I can’t. I just can’t.

The sound of ripping denim makes me open them again. I look up in surprise as the dragon tears at my jeans, already fragile and worn from years of use. The fabric tears with a mighty rend—all the way up to the belt—and then flies off my bad leg, and then my bottom half is partially naked.

The dragon’s head lowers again, and he sniffs at my skin. I can see blood all over my hip, and bruising. One of the bullets must have winged me. He growls once more, and then as I watch, his tongue flicks out and moves over the wound.

It takes everything I have to stay still. The tongue is hot and wet with saliva, and feels like sandpaper being rubbed over my skin. It’s not comforting at all. In fact, it’s making everything hurt worse. It’s not like I can stop him, so I close my eyes and mentally go to my “good” place. In my mind, it’s back to the world that was before. There’s no Rift, no dragons, no death. It’s just nice and quiet and peaceful. I picture a meadow full of birds and butterflies, flowers blooming amidst the grasses. Today, I decide there should be deer. Maybe there’s one with a fawn that’s frolicking amongst the flowers, and the sky is so blue, without the Rift in sight. It’s calm and soothing, and I imagine a nearby creek full of fish, the water gurgling.

Everything is bliss.

DAKH

I finish cleaning my mate’s wound with my tongue, and she does not move. My heart thuds heavily in my chest, and I nose her, alarmed. Surely that small action did not break her small body? But no, she breathes.

She is just…not responding.

I nose her again, but again she ignores me. Is she asleep? Perhaps she is tired. I inspect her, running my nose up and down her small form. Her leg is no longer bleeding, which is good, though I am concerned that her soft skin cannot withstand my ministrations. She is colored a deep reddish purple in the places I licked. I tried to be gentle, but perhaps I was not gentle enough. I touch my tongue to her skin again, exploratory. She tastes sweet, and part of me wishes that she still bled so I could continue to care for her wound, to continue licking at her delicious taste.

Eat her. Let her blood wash over your fangs.

The ravens are back, gibbering in my ears. I ignore them and take another deep breath of the human’s scent. It makes them go away again, for a little while. My female smells like the human hive, but underneath, I like her scent. I run my snout along her bared skin again and pause at the apex of her thighs.

I can smell her cunt.

Need washes through me, something I have not felt in a very long time. I am surprised at the intensity of it, and then I give in, letting it roll over me. Of course I lust for her. She is my mate. I have chosen.

Weak, the ravens cry out.

I ignore them. For the first time in a long time, it is getting easier to refuse them, to push them aside. It is because of her, and I welcome it. I would much rather focus on my human than on them and their terrible words and terrible wings. I run my nose up and down her body again and then press it against her thighs, inhaling deeply of her cunt’s scent. It is musky and pleasant. Not aroused—not yet. But in time, I will make her challenge me. I will welcome her attacks, and then I will subdue her like any good drakoni male.

And when I have conquered her, I will claim her as my true mate and give her my fire. Until then, I must be patient.

Reluctantly, I pull my nose away from her sweet scent and scoop my mate up in my claws. She is limp, and I raise her to my nose again to make certain that she breathes. When I am content that she does, I relax and settle on my haunches, tucking her body close against my breast. I will sleep curled around her, to protect her.

From now on, she is mine to watch over.

SASHA

It’s weird to wake up and realize that you’ve slept all night in a dragon’s claws. I don’t think I’ve slept a full night since the Rift itself, because there’s always something to intrude on my thoughts and keep me from relaxing into a deep sleep. Things like starvation or worry over safety. Things like Tate.

Things like dragons.

But…I slept. I don’t know what time it is, and I open my eyes, blinking at the daylight that filters into the chamber. It’s brighter than it was before, so time must have passed. I’m still resting on the dragon’s curled foot, the claws forming a cage around me. It’s warm here, and comfortable, but as I rouse to consciousness, the fear returns. I’m being held by a dragon, and I don’t know what to do.

I lie still, terrified. The dragon isn’t moving, but from the angle I’m at, I can’t see his face to know whether or not he’s asleep. Baby steps, I decide. I test the different parts of my body quietly, flexing muscles to determine how things feel. My hip feels like a big raw wound—no surprise there. My arm hurts, but it’s gone back to the low, dull throb of the broken bones instead of sharp pain. My ribs and face ache, but they’re better than yesterday. My neck is stiff, I have to pee, and my stomach is empty.

So pretty much it’s a normal day for me, except the dragon.

I wonder if he’s awake. I shift slightly in his grip, moving to the edge of the foot that holds me. He doesn’t move, and so I scoot a little farther to the edge, then land on my feet on the floor and glance back to see the dragon’s reaction.

He doesn’t move, his head tucked against his other paw. As I watch, one large, gleaming eye opens and regards me, the pupil a dark, smoky gold instead of the black it flickered yesterday.

The dragon knows I’m awake. He just watches me. Okay then.

“Hi,” I say softly. “I’m just stretching my legs.”

When the dragon makes no move, I get up and stretch, trying to make my motions as unassuming as possible. As I do, I scan the area. The edge of panic is starting to disappear. It’s clear the dragon doesn’t want to eat me. I don’t know what he wants, but it’s not my death, so I can focus on other things now. I decide it’s time to check out my surroundings.

It’s immediately clear to me that we’re up high. There are holes in the ceiling of the cavernous room, letting sunlight in, and the view of the sky through those holes is uninterrupted. Off to one side, there’s an enormous gap in one wall, where plastic sheeting flutters, and I can see nothing but open sky up ahead. An unfinished building, maybe? I look around, but there doesn’t seem to be furniture of any kind, just empty concrete floors and a few shattered walls. The room is big, bare, and full of dust.

There’s no place to sit, and it doesn’t look like there’s a toilet of any kind, so I rub my bad arm absently and begin to walk around. My hip burns with each step, but I ignore it. There has to be a way down other than just the hole in the side of the building. It’s clearly how the dragon got up here, but surely…

Surely I’m not trapped.

I move to the far side of the big, empty room and stifle a scream when the dragon rises to his feet, stretching, and yawns with an impressive show of teeth. He moves like a cat, all sinew and grace, and if I wasn’t so terrified of him, I’d be fascinated by that. As it is, I freeze in place and hug my arms close to my chest, waiting to see what he’s going to do.

The dragon moves to the edge of the ledge and lumbers there, tail flicking back and forth. He moves until he’s blocking the ledge from me and there’s no way for me to get to it.

Obvious dragon is obvious.

I get the message, though. I’m not to go out. It’s not like I can get very far anyhow—there’s no way I can climb the side of the building and get down myself. From what I can see, it looks like we’re pretty high up. I’m stuck here, unless I find a stairwell or a working elevator. I turn around and pace the rest of the room, and the dragon follows me as I do. The unease returns to my stomach, and it grows when, despite my survey of the room, I don’t find a stairwell. I do find a couple of spots where rocks have crumbled and the floor and wall are destroyed, and I suspect that maybe that was the way down.

Either way, I’m stuck here until the dragon decides to fly me down.

More distressing than that, there’s no bathroom that I can see. There’s no water, no toilets, no nothing. This building must not have been finished—even the ceiling is little more than bare beams in places. This is about the worst place to be held captive, and my throat’s starting to hurt and feel scratchy. My stomach growls, but I ignore it—I’m always hungry in the After.

I turn to the dragon and decide it’s time to try to communicate again. “Can you understand me?” I keep my voice low and smooth, because I don’t want to alarm him. When that elicits no response, I bite my lip. How the heck did Claudia communicate with her dragon? “I don’t mean to be a bother, but I need something to drink. Or a bathroom.”

The dragon just stares at me, watching me like a cat with a mouse.

I pantomime drinking as best I can with my good arm. “Drink? Water? Please?” When the dragon only stares at me, I bite back my sigh of frustration. I’m not getting anywhere, and I don’t know what to do. I glance around, looking for a different way to communicate, and see a piece of rock near my foot. I pick it up and begin to write on the concrete floor, the rock scraping against the cement to make poor lettering, but at least it’s lettering.

W A T E R.

I write it out and then point to it. “Can you read?”

He watches me, tilting his head ever so slightly, like a cat when it’s trying to understand something. I don’t think he’s stupid. I think I’m just not getting across to him. Again, I make a gesture for drinking water.

It’s no use, though. I might as well be asking a horse to bring me a Happy Meal. I press a hand to my forehead, exhausted. “Never mind. I guess taking care of your captive isn’t high on the to-do list.” I let the rock tumble from my fingers and retreat back to my corner, sagging against the wall.

3

DAKH

I  watch, confused, as the female collapses against the wall and sits down. She closes her eyes and sighs heavily. She looks exhausted by that simple movement.

I do not understand.

I want to go and nose her again, to demand that she wake up and speak some more. I do not grasp her words, but I like the sound of her voice and the babbles she makes. More than anything, I just want to hear her speak, to see her face move as she talks, to see her strange dark eyes fix on my face.

I want her to look me in the eye and challenge me. I want her to change to her battle form so that I can accept her challenge and make her my mate. Every hour that she is out here is another hour that she is vulnerable to being snatched by another male, hungry for a mate.

Just the thought makes me growl in frustration. This human is mine. I want no other.

At the sound of my growl, the air changes, and I can feel the fear-scent rolling off her again. Frustrated, I retreat a few steps to give her space. I do not know what I am doing wrong. Did Kael not get his mate to challenge him? They are mated, so she must have. His scent is all over her, his fire in her blood. I want this human to accept me as hers. But to do so, she must begin the mating process.

I study her, waiting to see if she shows any outward signs of changing forms. There is no reddish mating flush to her pale skin. In fact, if anything, she looks less healthy than before. No scales are in sight, either, nor a hint of wing. There is nothing to encourage a mating.

I don’t know what to do. Never have I encountered a female that did not challenge a male unless she was a fledgling…or already mated. I scan the female again. She is not underage, I do not think. Her body smells like that of a mature female. Nor do I scent another on her.

Kill her, the ravens whisper in my ears. She is no use to you. Destroy her.

I shake my head to silence them. I want this female. She is mine. Perhaps…perhaps it is I who is not giving the correct signals. Perhaps I am doing something wrong.

But what? My mind is muddy from years of violence and rage, and my memories are full of vultures. I cannot pick through them without encouraging my tormentors forward. Only my female keeps me sane. There has to be an answer.

Maybe…maybe humans think differently than drakoni. Maybe I am the one doing something wrong.

Lies.

I snap at the raven before it can say more, chasing it off. If my female’s signals are different, I need to learn them. But how? I think of Kael and his human female, but they are happily mated. I will not know how to recognize a courting signal in one that is already claimed. I need to see other humans.

I must go back to the human hive.

I rise to my feet and give my wings a satisfied flick. Of course. That makes sense. There are many female humans there. I can observe them and see what signals they give to males. Once I recognize it, I will know what to look for in my female. I reach out to her mind, to try to let her know where I am going, but there is no answer. Her thoughts are closed to me.

Not for long, though.

Once I mate her, she will hold nothing back from me. The thought is a satisfying one—of claiming my female’s body as well as her mind. I like this very much.

You will leave her? They laugh furiously at the thought. You are a fool. She will get snatched by another.

No, leave her, adds another. Leave her behind and get yourself a new mate at the human hive.

Leave her? they laugh at the thought.

Leave her! they demand, whispering insidiously in my ear.

I am torn. I cannot claim her as she is, but if I do not figure out how humans act, will I ever be able to claim her? But abandoning her is not the answer, no more than anything else. She is mine. It does not matter that I have not mated her yet. She belongs to me and only me. I contemplate bringing her with me to the human hive, but they carry fire spitters. The spitters do nothing to a drakoni’s thick hide, but my human is soft and fragile and already wounded due to my clumsiness. I will not put her in more danger.

Then…what? Someone will scent her, and if I am not here to guard her, they will claim her…

Scent her…

Through the incessant chattering of ravens in my head, I try to think. I need something to cover her scent. To put a male drakoni off, to confuse him so he does not realize she is there. The human hive stinks of waste, but I cannot go there and come back quickly enough to satisfy my protective instincts.

I need something to block her sweet scent. Something that smells terrible and pungent and that other drakoni will avoid.

And a moment later, I know just the thing. I plunge to the ledge, flinging myself out of the strange square nest I have claimed for myself, and swoop to the ground below. There, at the edge of the nearest waters, is a half-rotted corpse of a beast with horns and hooves. It has been there for several days, long enough for it to bloat and for the flies to set in. The stench of it is strong enough that it carries for a distance on the wind, and so I carefully scoop it into my claws and fly it back to my nest.

I can smell her lovely scent before I arrive, and not even the stink of the rotten creature in my claws is enough to stop the growl of need that rises in my throat. When I approach the ledge, I see that she has gotten to her feet and is wandering close to it as well. The sight of me returning makes her scramble backward, her eyes wide with fear.

The female says something, hugging her arms close to her chest. I do not understand her words, but surely she will know that I am doing this to protect her? I drop the dead meat at the edge of the ledge so the putrid scent of it can carry onto the winds and cover her lighter smell.

She makes a little cry, raising a hand to her nose and backing to the far side of the room. This, I am pleased with. Perhaps she does understand what I am doing, then. I bugle a call of affirmation to her. I want to grab her in my claws and bury my snout in her hair, but I dare not. I must go and watch the other humans at the hive so I know how to court mine. Every moment I waste is another moment that a male could rise to challenge me for her. I devour my precious female with my eyes, memorizing her slight form, and then reluctantly turn away, launching myself back into the skies.

I circle the large stone building that my nest sits atop of, but there is still the faint, delicate scent of my female in the air. I need more distraction. Frustrated, I return up to my nest, and flame, setting the rotten corpse on fire. A horrible stink wafts into the air, and the female makes another cry as I take to the breeze again. This time, when I circle the building, there is nothing but the smell of rotten flesh and char.

Excellent.

I take off for the human hive, beating my wings as quickly as possible. I need to go fast, because not only must I outrun my rivals, but the ravens that live in my thoughts, as well. Even now, I feel them waiting, ready to destroy my mind. They will close in again all too soon, so I must be ready. I focus on my female, my mate. I do everything for her.

The human hive feels as if it is an endless flight away, and before I even get close, I hear an annoying sound rising in the air. A faint stir of memories tells me that this loud sound also happened when I snatched my mate. It is a warning of some kind, then.

Destroy it, the ravens whisper. Destroy everything. Burn the hive to the ground. You have what you need.

Fire licks at my tongue, and my claws curl with the need to hurt, to maim, to destroy. It will please the ravens. I circle around, contemplating. The stink here is ten times worse than anything I have ever experienced, and it makes my head itch. It feels as if my thoughts are full of birds, all angry and fighting to get out. They grow stronger by the moment, and I can feel them pecking at my eyes. I am going to fail my mate.

My mate.

Just like that, the birds scatter from my mind, and I can think somewhat clearly. I glide over the hive, high enough to see the humans scurrying into hiding. This is not going to help my task. I need them out and about, acting like normal humans. They’ll never do so as long as a dragon is flying overhead.

I should change into my two-legged form.

The moment it crosses my thoughts, I realize I’ve forgotten entirely that I have a two-legged form. It has been so long since I have been anything but in my battle form, and suddenly my skin itches with the need to transform. I will be vulnerable if I do, but only if they catch me.

I will just not allow myself to be caught, then.

I fly a short distance away and land on a flat area. My wings beat slowly as my claws click on the smooth surface, leaves blowing about. I crouch low, and then I try to remember how to shift to my two-legged form.

A moment later, I am staring down at my hands, flat on the ground. Human-like hands. I get to my feet slowly, flexing as I rediscover the feel of my two-legged form. My balance is different like this, and I feel a great deal lower to the ground, but it is not a bad way to be. My head is quieter, and that is nice. I curl my hand, gazing down at the talons tipping each finger. So similar to the human form, but still deadly. Humans seem to be soft all over.

My mate. She is soft all over, too. I growl low in my throat, pleased at the thought, and turn, looking for the human hive.

It is there, distant, the strange barricade stinking of fire and metal. I walk purposefully in that direction, though it takes quite a bit longer to travel in two-legged form than battle form. I had to land a fair distance away to make the humans think I had left the area. Even now, the siren blares a warning that makes me grit my teeth.

By the time I get to the barricade, the jarring sound of the siren is gone, and I can hear the low murmur of humans once more. The scents of the hive are overwhelming this close—fire and waste and sweat and skin and meat and— I shake my head to clear it. No sense in picking out each one. Best to ignore them all. I take a deep breath through my mouth and begin to climb the barricade. My claws make it easy to find purchase, and within moments, I have scaled the top of the shaky, teetering wall. I crouch low so the humans do not see me, and wait.

It does not take me long to realize that most humans are stupid. Once their sirens cease, they crawl out of their houses, laughing and talking that loud, strange gibberish. Cookfires are started again, and within a short span of time, the hive buzzes with activity once more. If they realized that a dragon yet watched them, they would probably be less boisterous and more reserved.

I watch as a human wanders near. It smells female, but it is small, much smaller than my female. An adolescent, then. The little one skips to the nearest fire, where a male stands, stirring something that smells like roasted flesh. He smiles at the tiny female, chatters something, and then picks up a round thing and fills it with the roasted flesh, then hands it to her.

Food. Of course. My mate is probably hungry. I should feed her when I return. Eating is instinctual in battle form, but of course I must remember to feed my human. She cannot leave the nest and will need me to care for her.

The thought fills me with fierce pleasure and pride. To think that I will be feeding my mate. Mine. I have waited for her for so long…

A female wanders into view. This one is adult, and she smells…different than my mate. Unwashed and sweaty and carries the stink of other males on her. My lips curl at her stink. She saunters toward the male at the fire, watching with interest as he stirs. The male looks up and gives her a stare, then says something. She points at his meat over the fire and then gives her hips a little wiggle. He grins and leans in, pressing his face to hers. A moment later, he gives her a bowl, and she eats quickly. Then they both glance around, whispering, and move behind a pile of debris. As I watch, the male throws the female’s strange clothing up and pushes into her from behind. Faintly, I can pick up the sounds—and scents—of rutting.

The ravens peck at my mind, but I push them back. Not now. I am trying to make sense of the human actions.

I am confused by them. The female did not challenge the male. She did not turn a mating color. She did not wait for him to subdue her or to dominate her. She laughed and chattered at him, and even now chatters as he grunts and pushes into her. I have seen no mating signs, yet they are undoubtedly mating.

I think about the way they pushed their faces together. Is…is that a human mating sign? I think of Kael and his human mate, trying to recall if they shoved their faces together, but my thoughts are blurry. I focus on the thought of my mate again, with her soft brown eyes and the tangle of her hair.

Perhaps taking care of the human female by feeding her is enough to bring her into heat? The thought fills me with excitement, and I fling myself back down off the barricade, hopping to the ground on the far side. I have seen enough of these humans and their smelly hive. It is time for me to return to my nest.

To my human.

I shall feed her, and care for her, and then wait for her to press her face to mine in her mating signal.

Of course, now I need something with which to feed her. I think of the humans and their pot of flesh.

Hmm.

4

SASHA

I . can’t. breathe.

Or I suppose I can. I just don’t want to.

I cough into my hand then pull my T-shirt back over my nose and mouth, breathing through it. The stench in the room is unbearable. I’ve never smelled anything so bad as the putrid cow corpse, until he lit the damn thing on fire. Now it’s smoking down to nothing but charred, greasy bone, and the stink feels like it’s in my entire body. Heck, in my soul. It’s so awful and invasive, and part of me wonders what the heck kind of message the dragon was supposed to be sending with that.

I mean, Claudia said her dragon was a little crazy at times, but this is mega-crazy, where I’m concerned. I don’t know if it’s a warning to me, but I’m unsettled and on edge, waiting for the dragon to return.

Since he’s been gone, I’ve looked around for more stairwells, and there’s one area buried by rock that might be a likely candidate, but digging it out with one good arm means it’s a slower than slow ordeal. I’ve moved some of the rocks but stopped constantly, afraid that the dragon would come back and see me trying to escape.

But the stink is becoming pretty overwhelming. I want to kick it over the side of the ledge, but I’m terrified of how the dragon will react. Claudia’s so much braver than I am. I don’t know that I have a brave bone in my body. She’s brave, but…I’m a survivor, and that means that you’re not always brave. Sometimes you’re cowardly. I’ll do what it takes to come out the other side, just as long as I stay alive.

And if that means breathing in dead cow fumes while waiting for a crazy dragon to return, so be it. That’s what I’ve got to roll with.

I doze off on the floor, somehow, and when I wake up, my throat feels dry and my tongue feels like wool. I have a headache from lack of food, but the thirst is bothering me more. Is this how I’m going to die? Forgotten by a dragon and left alone to starve? It’s not how I pictured going out.

Funny, I always thought Tate would end up killing me.

Not that I want to die. I don’t. But I knew making deals with Tate was the equivalent of playing with fire, and I knew that it took more and more to satisfy him each time.

I was warned not to make deals with the militia. Claudia told me again and again that it was a slippery slope to whoring. But Tate seemed nice, and he offered me food in exchange for a “date.” And then he wasn’t as nice, and it wasn’t really a date so much as a quick, rough fuck. And later on, there was less food and more roughness, but I didn’t have a choice at that point. I was starving.

The thing with Tate was, if he’d just wanted sex, maybe it wouldn’t have been so bad. But Tate doesn’t get off on having his dick stroked like every other guy. Tate gets off on pain. When I agreed to let him do what he wanted with me in exchange for money or food, I knew what I was doing. When things got worse, I went with it, because a few slaps beat starving.

That’s how I got really, really good at blocking things out. I’d just think of my perfect place and zone out while he hit me and whipped me. Tate figured it out, of course. He didn’t like it when I went to my “Zen” place.

That’s how I ended up with a broken arm. I couldn’t block that out.

If this dragon turns out to be the same kind of bully as Tate, I’ll just deal with that, too. It doesn’t matter what he does to me as long as I stay alive. Maybe someday I can get back to Claudia or back to Fort Dallas. Back to safety.

As if my thoughts have summoned him, I hear the flap of wings.

I get to my feet. My bruises and aches protest the movements, but I feel more on guard when I’m on my toes. A second later, the massive form of the dragon descends onto the ledge. He steps forward, holding something carefully between his front feet, and as I watch, the head rises. His nostrils flare, and then he kicks the remnants of the charred cow-corpse off the ledge.

Okay, well that’s one way to clean house.

I huddle against the wall as he lumbers forward, his movements awkward. He uses only his hind legs to walk, which throws me off, until I see what he’s holding in his hands.

It’s…a bathtub with water in it.

That’s random. Does he want me to take a bath? I glance up at him, surprised, trying to read his draconic face.

He steps forward a few more feet and then gently sets down the tub, water sloshing over the edge. I’m so thirsty that I can’t help the whimper that escapes my throat at the sight of all that water splashing onto concrete. A second later, the dragon lowers his head and gently releases something he was holding in his teeth.

It’s a cookpot. One of the enormous ones from one of the Fort Dallas fires…and it’s still got stew in it.

Shocked, I stare at the dragon. He pulls back on his haunches and flutters his wings, settling in, and then watches me, waiting.

My mouth waters, and my throat feels so incredibly dry, and it makes me a little bolder, I think. I take a step forward and gesture at the tub and the stewpot. “Is this for me?” My voice is scratchy even to my own ears.

The eyes flick golden, and he nudges the stewpot in my direction. Okay, definitely for me. A tiny smile curves my mouth, and I rush forward, heading for the water. I’m going to drink my fill before this turns into a trick of some kind and it’s taken away from me. I lean over the edge of the tub. The water looks clear enough, even if there’s a bit of debris floating in it, and I don’t doubt that it was scooped up from one of the nearby rivers or lakes. Not the Trinity River, I hope, but I cup my hand and take a drink anyhow. The water’s cool and sweet…and has a hint of a fishy taste to it. I don’t even care. I gulp down mouthful after mouthful, water streaming down my chin. When I’ve drunk my fill, I collapse against the side of the tub, mentally exhausted.

Thank God I’m not going to die of thirst. One worry down.

I rest my cheek against the side of the bathtub, eyes closed. I’m so tired and weak. I need to get my strength up to eat something, but right now I just want to lie down and relax without this knot of tension in my belly. It’s not going away, though, not as long as I’m being held captive by a dragon.

The dragon. I can’t hear him.

I open my eyes and sit up again, curious. As I do, I see a naked man standing on the opposite side of the tub. The dragon’s nowhere to be seen. Panicked, I grab at the edge of the tub and shove myself to my feet. “Oh, no, you have to get out of here. You—you—” I pause as the man gazes at me steadily with the most intense gold-on-gold inhuman eyes.

This is the dragon.

Oh.

I feel a little stupid. Of course it’s the dragon. Claudia said hers turned human, too. I just thought…well, I don’t know what I thought.

It’s startling to see a man standing next to you when a dragon was once nearby, but it can’t be anyone else. Those gold-on-gold eyes flick with a little bit of black and then back to gold again, and I know it’s him. I can’t help but stare. I’m just so surprised at the sight of him.

He’s…handsome.

On second look, he’s not entirely human, of course. That doesn’t surprise me. His skin is a deep, rich shade of bronze that looks to be covered with a shadowy scale pattern of some kind. His body is bigger than any guy I’ve ever seen, and extremely muscular. His biceps are enormous and taut, and I notice that his lower arm seems to have draconic-looking spikes, even in his human form. The spikes continue along his hairline at his temples, neatly holding back the tangle of equally bronze-looking hair on his head. He’s gold on gold on gold, and he’d be breathtakingly beautiful if I didn’t know that he was a dragon.

His face is something else. His features are a little too strong to be completely human, with a nose strong and proud, high cheekbones, and a heavy brow. His jaw is chiseled, though, and his lips look like they’ve been sculpted by one of the greats, back when marble statues filled museums and society mattered. And even from here, I can tell he’s got long, thick lashes. He’s…really easy on the eyes. Really easy.

My eyes could easily travel all the way down the dappled six-pack on his abs, for example, all the way down to his—

I force myself to stay locked with his gaze and put a smile on my face. “So you’re human after all. I was starting to wonder if I was crazy. Or Claudia was crazy, since she was the one who told me you guys shift. But I guess she was right. Can I say I’m relieved?” Oh great, now I’m nervous-talking. It’s a bad habit of mine. I give him an anxious smile.

He smiles back, revealing long, thick fangs and pointed teeth.

Eep. That’s a little more sinister than I care to see. I keep smiling, but it’s a bit more difficult. They’re just teeth, Sasha. They don’t mean anything other than he’s a meat eater. Like, you know, sharks.

Yeah, somehow that doesn’t make me feel any better.

I remain in place as he comes around the bathtub and moves to my side. I can’t stop staring at him. I’m just surprised that he looks so very human…and so very not at the same time. It’s fascinating and a little bit eerie, too. Up close, the scent of him wafts over me, and he smells a bit like cinnamon and warm male skin. It’s an unnervingly appealing combination.

He leans in and sniffs me, hard.

I give a little jump of surprise. “Oh. I’m sorry. You just scared me.” I back up against the side of the tub. “I’m just…jumpy, of course. You would be too if you’d been left here with a rotten, burning cow all day.”

The dragon-man ignores my little jab and puts his hand in my hair. He runs his fingers through it, and I notice that his hand is tipped with these wicked-looking claws. Double eep. He lifts a handful of my hair to his nose and sniffs, and then rumbles low in his chest.

“I hope that’s a good rumble and not a hungry rumble,” I say, keeping a smile on my face. “Because I’m not much of a mouthful.”

He doesn’t seem to pay any attention to my words, just leans in closer.

“Boy, you’re not very good with personal space, are you?” I say nervously. I step back again, but I’m running out of room to step back in. A few more feet and I’m going to be against the wall. Still, if all he wants to do is sniff my hair…I’ve had worse.

The dragon-man does sniff my hair again. But then he leans in and buries his face against my neck, inhaling even deeper.

I muffle my little shriek of surprise and do my best to stay still, because I don’t want to make him mad. “This is just you getting to know me, right? Right. We’ll go with that for now.”

Of course, that thought goes out the window a moment later. He licks the column of my neck, long and hard, and I wince. His tongue is as raspy and sandpapery as it was when he licked my wound. It’s not entirely unpleasant against unbroken skin, but it’s awful friendly.

All of him is awful, awful friendly, including the hard dick that I’m pretty sure is pushing up against my hip. Yeah. I’m no innocent. I can guess where all this sniffing is going. Claudia said her dragon wanted a mate. I guess this one does, too.

And I don’t know what to do. I’ve sold myself to Tate in the past for money and for help surviving, but that was because I was desperate, and it was only one person. I hated myself each and every time I did. I’m not sure how I feel about selling myself to a dragon.

Scratch that. I know how I feel. I’m utterly and completely terrified.

He keeps sniffing at my hair, caressing my skin, and generally invading my space. It’s uncomfortable to be the object of such intense fixation, especially considering he’s naked. I don’t know what to do; I certainly don’t want to piss him off considering he can turn into a fire-breathing dragon. But I worry all this touching is going to head in an unpleasant direction if I don’t speak up.

I gently pull away, keeping a fixed, friendly smile on my face. “Thank you for the water. It’s really nice of you.” And when that doesn’t elicit a response, I take another step away. “So, do you speak English?”

He cocks his head, studying me, and then moves away. I rub my arms, relieved to see him go. That was a little too close for comfort, and he’s far too unpredictable. I wish he’d say something. Anything. It would take away a bit of the strangeness and uncertainty, but he’s completely silent.

As I watch, the dragon-man moves to the big stewpot and sticks his hand in. He scoops up a handful of congealed stew and turns, offering it to me.

Oh. Um. I guess we don’t have bowls. I put my hands out.

He ignores them and steps forward, raising his hand toward my face. It’s clear he doesn’t intend on passing off the food. Okay. I guess dragons feed their friends with their hands? Or something? I try to pick a chunk of meat out, but when he makes a low growl in his chest and pushes his hand toward my face again, I decide it’s not worth the fight and lean in.

This might be the weirdest meal I’ve ever had. I gingerly nibble at one of the larger chunks, but I’m starving and the stew is delicious, even if it’s cold. I soon forget that I’m eating out of a stranger’s hand and hold onto his wrist as I eat, wolfing down the food. By the time it’s gone, I’m still hungry and I have to resist the urge to lick the grease off his fingers.

His eyes gleam bright gold as he watches me. When I’m done, I take a step back, my cheeks flushing with embarrassment over what I just did. That was…strange. What’s even stranger is that I’d gladly take another handful if he offered it.

But he doesn’t. Instead, he moves forward toward me, and before I realize what he’s doing, he presses his mouth to mine.

Or rather, he presses his face to mine. It doesn’t feel like a kiss, not even remotely. Baffled, I stand completely still as he rubs the lower half of his face against mine. What is he doing?

Then he growls low in his throat, and the sound isn’t angry. Rather, it’s low…and pleased. He grabs me by the shoulders and turns me around, pushing me forward. I grab the edge of the tub to steady myself, and as I do, he tugs at the waistband of my half-torn-away jeans and rips them completely off.

Oh God. I know where this is headed.

I bite the inside of my cheek and stand still, my eyes closed. Dread and loathing fill my mind. This dragon wants sex—and I shouldn’t be surprised. Claudia said hers wanted a mate. It isn’t any different for this one.

Thing is, I’m not interested in a mate.

I hate sex. I hate being touched. I hate all of it, and I have Tate to thank for that.

But even Tate wasn’t like this. With Tate, I knew what I was getting into. It was my choice, every time. I was the one who walked to the barracks and sold myself. If nothing else, I was in control of that part. This?

I have zero control. I have zero say in the matter. He’s going to take me whether I want it or not.

And I’ve got a broken arm and bruised ribs and a wound on my side that aches even as he pulls me backward and positions my hips. This guy is a dragon. He’s taller than me, built with muscle, and incredibly strong. He’s got me captive up here. To fight him would be a death wish.

So I won’t fight. I need to stay alive.

Still, I can’t help the tears that slide down my cheeks. Just put up with it until it’s over, I remind myself. You can go to your happy place and zone out for a while. This won’t last forever, and it’s the only way to survive.

I feel him rub the length of his cock—thick, hard, and hot—against the crease of my backside. That invasive touch shatters any hope of going to my happy place. I can’t. I’m too freaked out. I gasp out a sob, unable to help myself.

The dragon goes still behind me.

I freeze, sucking in a breath. I’m terrified I’ve somehow made him mad with my crying. Tate liked tears, but what if this guy—this dragon—views it as an insult? I need to stop. I sniff and rub my face against my sleeve, trying to compose myself, but then a hiccup escapes my throat, and I can’t stop crying.

Even after all these years in the After, years of doing anything and everything to survive, I have my limits. I still feel small and unsafe and vulnerable, and I hate it as much as I hate his touch.

My humiliation grows when I can feel him drop to his knees behind me. He grabs my ass and buries his face between my thighs, inhaling deeply.

God.

But then he stands. Hands touch my shoulders. They’re scorching hot like the rest of the dragon-man’s skin, and he straightens me and turns me to face him. I flinch, expecting the worst.

The look on his face isn’t one of anger, but confusion. His eyes flicker black, and he raises a hand to my cheek, wiping away my tears with gentle fingers. He studies the wetness on his hand, then lifts it to his mouth to taste it and gives me a curious look.

“Sorry,” I sniffle. “I just…I’m scared. I know what you want, and I swear I’ll try to be accommodating, but I’m not ready. I need a little more time, okay?”

DAKH

The human female leaks from her eyes again. I know what it means now, because it is accompanied by her fear-scent.

She is scared. She is scared of my touch.

I smelled her cunt and there is not a hint of need in her body. If I touched her, it would not be because she wanted it. It would be because she was too afraid to say no.

I do not understand. I thought I did the human mating signal. I pressed my face to hers, and she accepted it. Why does she not wish to mate? Do I still do something wrong?

Her eyes water more, and she looks sad. It hurts me to see that. It hurts me to think that she is scared of me when I want nothing more than to please her. I caress her soft cheek and wonder what it is I need to do to make her welcome my touch. My cock aches and my fangs burn with the need to give her my venom, but I will not force her to bend to me. There is a difference between a mating battle and simply conquering a female without her permission. To do so is appalling.

The female says something in that soft voice of hers, and she sounds sad. I stroke her cheek again, frustrated. If we had the mental bond between mates, she would understand me and I her. But until we mate and I give her my fires, we are strangers. And as long as she is covered in her fear-scent, she will never challenge me.

Humans are…difficult.

Rid yourself of her, the ravens whisper, swooping into my mind once more. The human hive has more females. Take one of those. Rend this one with your claws.

I growl at them, because the very thought makes me angry. I would never hurt her. She is the female I have chosen. I want no other.

The female goes still, her eyes wide with fear at my growl. I have to bite back another one of pure frustration because it was not intended for her. Again, I wish for the bond in our minds. I must go to Kael, I think, and ask him how he brought his female into a mating heat when she will not change to battle form. I must—

Defend, cry the ravens, even as I smell it—an intruder.

An interloper.

Someone thinks to take my female from me.

The snarl of rage that bursts from my chest comes with flame.

5

SASHA

T  he dragon-man pulls away from me with an angry snarl and a rush of flame rising from his throat.

I draw back, startled, wondering what I did to cause him to change moods like that. A moment later, I hear a faint, angry cry—that of a dragon. And then I grow cold with fear.

Another dragon.

Before I can blink, the dragon-man takes two leaping steps away, and then he erupts into a flash of golden wing and lashing tail. He can transform so fast. I stare as he takes to the air, sailing off the ledge and out into the sky.

Almost immediately, I see a flash of red and another angry cry as the second dragon dive-bombs him.

I choke, stumbling backward. The need to hide, to protect myself, grows with every moment. After seven years of dragon attacks in the After, I don’t feel safe out in the open with a dragon nearby. I have to hide. I’m not safe here.

I look around the big, empty floor, but there’s no place for me to take cover. No concrete rooms or reinforced doors, no metal shelters to protect me from dragon fire. There’s nothing but empty, open floor.

I’m screwed.

I don’t know what to do.

A flash of wing tumbles past, and I gaze out into the open sky, shocked. The red and gold are intertwined, fighting nearby. Another horrible thought crosses my mind: What do I do if the gold dragon—my dragon—loses? Even if the other dragon flies away again, I’m going to starve to death up here, abandoned.

I’ve got to get out of here.

I rush to the ledge and grip the edge of the wall, gazing out. There’s no walkway, of course. No fire escape, not even a concrete lip that would allow me to drop down to another level, provided I had two good arms and a healthy amount of daring. But I don’t have either. Nor do I see the dragons—the sky in front of me is clear.

A terrible roar comes from overhead, and I feel a rush of flame sear at my curls. I scream and duck inside, backing away, my hand on my hair. It’s not on fire, but the stink of singed hair permeates my senses. I move away from the ledge, standing next to the bathtub full of water, when a dragon thumps down onto the floor, landing.

It’s the red.

My eyes widen in shock. It’s smaller than the other dragon, its muzzle slathered with white scars. Blood pours down its neck, dotting the scales with more pulsing red. Smoke curls from its nostrils, and as I watch, those great, black eyes focus in on me.

The dragon inhales.

Gold slams into it from behind, sending them both tumbling. Fire flies through the air, and I duck against the side of the bathtub, trying desperately to stay clear. The two dragons thrash, and there’s more fire, smoke filling the enormous chamber as they wrestle, claws and wings and tails everywhere.

The red spouts flame again, and it comes awfully close once more. My heart hammering, I realize that they could torch me even as I sit here, trying to stay out of the way. Even if I avoid their crashing bodies, I could end up a charred heap regardless.

I huddle against the tub and then realize what I’ve got.

Of course.

I climb into the bathtub, even though every inch of me is screaming to duck down near the floor again. I ignore the protesting throb of my broken arm and sink down into the water, and when the thrashing dragons spin closer, I suck in a breath and duck under the surface.

A brief moment after I do, heat crackles over the water, and I can feel the temperature rise in response.

Shit. That was too close.

I open my eyes underwater, letting up bubbles. I can’t see much, except the occasional lick of flame. I want to stick my head up and take another breath, but I worry I’ll pop up just in time to take a faceful of fire.

So I push my hands against the sides of the tub…and wait.

I hope I can hold my breath long enough.

DAKH

Tearing out the throat of the female interloper does not fill me with satisfaction. There is no joy in destroying another of my kind, especially a female. Not when I know she is as crazed as I am. The ravens shout in her mind as well as my own, making it impossible to think clearly. Her madness was overwhelming, and every attempt I made at communicating was drowned out by her own wild thoughts. She sensed an unmated female and wanted to destroy her, seeing her as a rival.

I could not let her harm my human. Never.

As her blood washes over me, I wait for the calm my human brings to my thoughts. I wait for my female to chase away the choke of birds fluttering through my head, for her presence to silence the litany of voices in my mind until I hear just one—hers. But there is only silence, and the fury in my mind continues.

I cannot calm.

The urge to destroy things—to destroy others—rocks through me. I cannot shake it—or the obsessive need to use my claws to rend and tear. Kill, the ravens caw. Hurt. Destroy like you have been destroyed.

But I cannot. Not without a mate to care for—

My mate? Where is she?

I send a bugling call into the air, but there is no answer. Panic makes the ravens attack, pecking at my eyes, my scales. They swarm over me, and I fight to push through the bad thoughts they loose in their wake.

My mate. I must focus on her. She is everything.

I scan the room, but there is nothing, no small human figure cowering in a corner. There is only the round container full of water with a shadow floating atop it…

With an angry bellow, I bound across the room and snatch my human from the water. She is limp in my claws, and I give her a little shake, nosing her as delicately as I can to try to rouse her. She hid in the water to avoid the fire of the female attacker? My clever, clever little human.

The female is still for a long moment, then begins to spit water, gurgling and coughing. She clings to my claws, and I pull her tight against my breast, protective.

She is not leaving my grip. Not now. Not ever. I inhale deep lungfuls of the foul air of this place, but I cannot clear my thoughts. All I can see is rage. Rage that the female dragon dared to attack my mate in her nest. Rage that the ravens continue to mutter their dark thoughts in my head. Rage that I am trapped here, in this terrible place. Rage that I almost lost my female.

Rage. So much rage.

My female says something, interspersed between coughs, and the sound of her raw voice just fuels my anger. She should not be hurting. She should be safe with me. She should be my mate at this point, and yet she will not give me a mating challenge. All of this fuels the fire burning in my belly, until smoke is pouring from my nostrils. I am a mere breath away from losing control.

She touches my claw and says something, but it is drowned out by the angry maelstrom of my thoughts. Her hand moves on my scales, but I am barely aware of it. All I can see is fury. All I can hear is anger.

Then, something soft and sweet pierces through the darkness. The dark clouds in my mind rise, and in their place, she is there.

My human.

Her voice is gentle, and she is making a strange little sound that is not quite speaking, not quite humming. It is calming and pleasant, and I feel the ravens ebb away as she continues to stroke my claw, making those soothing noises.

My mate.

I focus in on her, letting her noises wash over me and fill me with peace. She eventually stops and says something to me, the curious note in her voice telling me that her chant has finished and she is asking a question.

And the question…it sounds like my name.

I forgot I had one.

6

SASHA

When I finish singing the nursery rhyme to the dragon, the curls of smoke have stopped pouring from his nostrils.

Thank God.

It’s taken every ounce of courage I’ve had to remain calm and collected in the face of his— I don’t know, whatever fit he was having. His eyes had gone completely black, and smoke was coming from his mouth and nose, as if he were barely holding it together. The claws wrapped around me were tight. Blood and gore dripped from his muzzle, a reminder of what he did to that other dragon, who lies in a pool of blood entirely too close by.

This is the stuff of nightmares, but I can’t be upset that the other dragon’s dead. I’m too relieved that I lived. I suppress a shudder, thinking of the drowning feeling, of being underwater and too afraid to surface. I stayed under longer than I’d realized, because I must have blacked out. I woke up in the dragon’s claws, confused and lungs heavy.

It didn’t take long to realize he was on the verge of losing his shit, either, and so I had to think of what to do to calm him. The only thing that sprang to mind was singing, and so I started to hum the first thing that sprang to mind—Ring Around the Rosie. A song about ashes and death seemed appropriate enough.

The song worked, or maybe it was just the tone of my voice. Either way, the smoke has stopped and his eyes have gone from that awful, empty black to the whirling gold on gold again. I stroke his scales, doing my best to calm him. “You doing okay, dragon? Do we need to talk about the attack?”

His gaze fixes on me with uncanny awareness, and my skin prickles.

“Is it something I said?” I whisper, doing my best not to glance over at the nearly decapitated red dragon a few feet away. I don’t want to call his attention back to it, just in case his mind snaps and his eyes go black again.

But the dragon very gently, very carefully sets me down on the ground. I gaze up at him uneasily, wondering if this is a bad sign. A moment later, he’s human again.

Naked, but human.

He puts a hand to his chest, gazing at me with those odd, golden eyes. “Dakh.”

Oh my goodness. “Is…is that your name? Dakh?” I move forward and tap his chest, deciding to pointedly ignore the fact that he’s naked. “Dakh?”

He makes a gesture with his head that might be a nod. “Dakh,” he says again, and the way he pronounces it is fascinating. There’s so much more flavor to it when it comes from his mouth than from mine. It sounds a bit resonant, deeper, more vibrant. Having a name to put to things makes him more human.

“Hi, Dakh,” I say softly. “I’m Sasha.”

“Eyhm-sa-cha,” he mimics.

“Er, not quite.” I tap my chest again. “Sasha.” I want to say just Sasha, but I suspect this will derail into my name becoming “JustSasha,” and I don’t want to confuse him more.

“Sa-cha.”

I shiver, because he says my name in that deep, sonorous way he says his own. “That’s right. Sasha and Dakh.” I point at myself, then at him. “Do you know any other words? Can you speak anything else?”

“Dakh,” he murmurs, and then reaches to touch my chest. “Sa-cha.”

“Okay then, baby steps. We’re doing good with names.” I give him a bright smile. For some reason, I feel ridiculously pleased that we’re communicating, even if we’re not going beyond names. I study him, noting that his human form is just as spattered with blood as his dragon one was. “Are you…are you okay? Are you hurt?” I realize he won’t understand what I’m saying, so I point at my black eye and my bad arm. “Ow.” Then, I gesture at him. “Dakh ow?”

His heavy golden brows go down, and he moves forward, reaching for my bad arm. I have it splinted and wrapped, but everything’s kind of soggy and turned to crap since my dunk in the tub. “Ow?” he asks, a dark look on his face. “Sa-cha ow Dakh?”

“I don’t know what you’re saying.” I bite my lip. “I’m sorry.”

“Sa-cha ow?”

Oh dear. I’m afraid we’re getting stuck on the wrong things. I don’t want him to fixate on my wounds, not while he’s covered in blood and potential injuries of his own. I shake my head and take him by the hand, leading him to the tub of water. “Come on.”

There’s not much water left in the tub, and what is left is pretty filthy, thanks to my full-body dunk, but with a discarded scrap of my jeans and a bit of water, I start to wash the dragon. Dakh remains still so I can clean him off enough to see that the blood covering him isn’t his. He’s got a few small scratches, but other than that, it’s all gore from the other.

I force myself to keep smiling, though I’m a little disturbed as I hand the makeshift towel over to him and indicate that he should finish washing himself. He swipes at his chest absently, his gaze focused on me. All that blood. He killed the other dragon. I don’t know if it was necessary or if he just enjoys killing. I wish I could ask. Actually, there’s a lot I wish I could ask, but there’s too much of a barrier between us.

Mostly, I want to know why he’s picked me for his captive and if he’s ever going to let me go.

But there’s no sense in stressing, I guess. I’ll have to take things one day at a time, and today, at least for now, his eyes have calmed back down to the gold on gold. As long as they’re not black, I can relax.

And since he’s human and in a good mood, I feel like I need to ensure it stays that way. So I keep a bright smile on my face and gesture at the stewpot full of cold, leftover stew. “Should we eat?” Eating’s actually the furthest thing from my mind, with a gigantic dead dragon on the other side of the room, but I don’t know what else to do.

Stew it is.

DAKH

Night falls, and as it does, my human struggles to keep her eyes open.

It has been a long day for both of us. Despite her soft touches and pleasing voice, I have remained on alert, worried another dragon—male or female—will come by and view my unclaimed mate as a threat or a prize to be won. Either one will spur an attack, and my mate’s hair still smells of char from the last dragon. She cannot be safe until I claim her and give her my fires.

But she will not let me claim her. I am at a loss as to what to do.

So I return to my battle form and pace about my nest. My human tries to mend her rough, strange skins and put them back on her lower body, and then eats a few more bites of the food I have brought her. It is gone soon enough, and I am afraid to leave her side to hunt her more human things to eat.

But I cannot let her starve. Something must be done. What, I do not know. But she is my only concern.

I watch as she sags against the wall, asleep. She has been uneasy since the other dragon appeared, and only seemed to relax when I took the corpse and dumped it over the ledge and out of sight. There is still a large bloodstain and the smell of the invader everywhere I turn, and it makes me unhappy.

I do not want reminders that someone tried to murder my mate, to take her from me before I could even claim her.

I move to her side, feeling the need to hold her close once more. She does not wake, and I gently pick her up in my talons, cradling her against my scaled chest. She turns instinctively toward me, seeking my warmth, and my heart fills with pride. For once, the ravens and vultures seem very far away. It is…pleasant. Not half as pleasant as touching her, but a pleasant all its own.

I study her as she sleeps against me. She is so small and fragile, my human. The arm she has covered in strange wrappings—the “ow”—concerns me. It is clear she is injured, and I worry I have done this to her. I must be more careful than ever before, because the thought of harming her makes me sick. Her face is discolored on one side, and as I brush her hair off her face with a talon, I gaze down on her small features.

Will she ever look at me with encouragement, I wonder. Will she ever take her battle form? Or are humans too weak for such things? How can I possibly mate her if she does not invite me?

Returning her to the human hive is out of the question. Sa-cha is mine now. I say her name again, tasting it on my tongue. Sa-cha. Sa-cha. It even sounds delicate and fragile, like my mate.

Carefully, I run one claw along her good arm, caressing her. She sighs and snuggles closer against me, and I want to rumble with pleasure, except that will wake her.

It takes everything I have to remain silent. I stroke my claw down her soft skin again, petting her over and over. Touching her comforts me. It makes me feel peaceful inside my head.

And when she makes a little noise of pleasure in her sleep at my touch?

I vow that she will be mine. Whatever it takes, she will be mine, and she will make that very noise with my cock buried deep inside her as I am mounted on top of her, claiming her.

One thing is certain, though. My nest is not safe. It is too close to too many other dragons. The human hive is a magnet for our kind, and I must take my Sa-cha away from here. I will take her someplace where her scent will not carry to others.

Otherwise, she will never be safe.

7

SASHA

T  he next morning, I eye the nearly scraped clean stewpot and wonder if I’m hungry enough to scrounge for dried-on scraps. Dakh hasn’t shown any indication of leaving this morning like he did yesterday, so I wonder if I need to make the best of what food I’ve got. The little water I have left is cloudy and gross, and I strain it through my T-shirt before drinking a handful (not that my T-shirt is much better). I splash a little on my face, too, just because I feel kind of wrung out and grimy at the moment. I never thought I’d miss sleeping in our old, broken-down schoolbus back in Fort Dallas, but there I had blankets and an old mattress. Here, the only thing I’ve got is dusty floor and a dragon.

Thinking about the schoolbus makes me sad. I worry about Claudia. Did she find Amy? Did she live after the attack on Fort Dallas went south? Or did they both get re-captured by the mayor? Or…did my friends die? The thought makes me queasy. I don’t want to think about that. If I was a real friend, I’d be doing my best to try to save Claudia like she tried to save me…except I feel like I can’t even save myself.

If Dakh doesn’t remember to feed me and bring me more water, I’m in danger of dying. I’m trapped up here, and it makes me more and more nervous with every passing hour that I don’t have an escape route if something happens.

“Sa-cha.”

I turn around, surprised. It seems Dakh spends more time in his dragon form than his human one, but he’s changed on me again and is walking up to my side. It’s a little unnerving because he’s awfully naked. He moves beautifully, though, as graceful as a cat and twice as lethal as a tiger. I suspect I could watch him all day…if he wore pants. As it is right now, I avert my eyes every time his dick comes into view, because I don’t want to be caught inspecting it.

I don’t want him to get any ideas.

So I pretend to be really interested in my grubby, waterlogged sneakers that still haven’t dried out after yesterday’s dunking. “What is it?”

He moves closer—so close that his junk comes into view anyhow, eep—and leans over, trying to meet my eyes. “Sa-cha?”

I smother an awkward laugh. I suppose I deserved that. I look him in the eye. “Yes?”

He points at the windy ledge.

Immediately I panic, scuttling behind him. “Oh my God. Is it another dragon?” I’m afraid to look out from behind his shoulders, and I put my hands on his sides as if I can hold him in place like a shield.

Dakh rumbles low in his chest, and I don’t know if he’s laughing or pleased, but the sound is a happy one. He turns around and takes my hand in his, just like I did to him yesterday. Then he leads me toward the ledge.

Oh, it must be safe. I think I’m panicking because of yesterday’s unexpected visitor. “What is it, Dakh? What do you want me to see?”

He moves to the ledge and just stares out at the empty expanse of sky. I hold tightly to his hand—ignoring the fact that his fingers are tipped with claws—and gaze out, too. I see nothing but the ruins of Old Dallas in front of us, and it looks the same as it ever did. The streets are littered with wrecks of old cars, trash, and grass that has sprung up between cracks in the asphalt. Vines crawl up the buildings, and all of the skyscrapers are nothing more than shattered glass as far as the eye can see. Somewhere down below, I see a herd of cattle moving through one of the streets. It’s all familiar to me, so I scan the skies. I see nothing. It’s a clear day, the weather lovely and warm, without a cloud to be seen. The greenish-gray pulse of the Rift is in the same place it’s ever been, a jagged wound in the otherwise blue sky. “What am I looking for?” Not that I expect an answer, of course. It just feels better to say it aloud, like we’re having a real conversation. “Something specific?”

He doesn’t respond. But when I scan the skies again and still see nothing, I look over at him. Dakh’s gazing down at me with the most…intense, pleased look on his face. It’s like he’s just enjoying looking at me. It makes me blush and feel shy. When was the last time I felt that? Every time Tate looked at me, I felt ashamed. Every time one of the other soldiers looked at me, they’d jeer at me because they knew I sold myself to Tate. I was trash in their eyes because of what I did to survive. No one’s ever looked at me like I’m the best thing they’ve ever seen.

It feels strangely good.

“What am I looking for?” I prompt again, feeling embarrassed. I tuck a strand of hair behind my ear, wishing I deserved the intense look he’s giving me at the moment. I’m sure I’m a mess, my hair tangled and my face all bruised up. Of course, he’s a dragon, so I’m not sure why I should care, but I do.

All Dakh does is take my hand again, caressing it. He touches my other arm, the one in the sling. “Ow?”

Is he asking if it’s better today? “It’s fine,” I tell him. “A break takes a while to heal. Though I’m not sure why I’m telling you this other than the fact that I like my own voice. Just feels nice to talk, you know? Even if I do feel silly.”

He nods slowly, as if he understands all this. “Sa-cha…Dakh?” Then he gestures out at the open air again.

Not sure what he’s asking, but I shrug. “Yeah, sure. We can leave any time. I’m fine with that.”

Dakh touches my cheek, and before I can react to that gentle caress, he morphs into his dragon form. A second later, the big, black claws latch around my waist, and then I’m being whisked off the ledge and into the open air.

I’m too terrified to even scream.

Oh my God, how does Claudia do this? I dangle in Dakh’s claws, my hair whipping around my face as he beats his wings, flying higher. I feel completely unsafe. I feel like at any moment, he could drop me and I’d drop a hundred—no, a thousand—feet below and shatter into a million pieces. I cling to Dakh’s claws. “Please don’t drop me!”

In response, the dragon just pulls in his forelegs and cradles me closer to his big, burningly warm chest. That’s something, at least. I hold on to him as tightly as possible, my eyes squeezed shut. I don’t care that his skin’s so hot that it’s scorching my face, or that the wound in my hip is throbbing madly, or that clutching at his scales means that my broken arm is hurting—I’m not letting go for anything. They’ll have to pry me off first.

We seem to fly forever. At least, it feels like forever. Of course, it also feels like an eternity between each gasping breath I take, so I don’t know how long it’s been. Too long. I don’t like flying. Not in the slightest.

Eventually, though, I squeeze one eye open. The ground is still as terrifyingly far below as it was before, and I have to choke back a whimper of distress. But when Dakh wheels about, catching an updraft, I see the tall, broken skyscrapers of Old Dallas far behind us and getting even farther away. That makes me curious. Just where are we going?

Where is he taking me?

And how am I going to get back?

I look up at the big dragon that’s holding me in his claws, but it’s impossible to see much of anything except golden throat, golden wings, and golden scales. In fact, the scales I’m currently pressed against are so hot that it’s like hugging a frying pan. It’s scorching my skin, and I shift against his claws, trying to get comfortable.

He immediately loosens them slightly.

I shriek, holding on. “No! No! Don’t you dare let me go!”

I feel a low rumble move through his belly, and Dakh obligingly tightens his grip around me. The rumble continues, and I have a sneaking suspicion that he’s laughing at my hysterics.

“It’s not funny,” I retort up to him. I want to smack one of the claws gripping me, but I know not to bite the hand that feeds me. I’m not that comfortable with my dragon just yet.

Well, he’s not exactly my dragon, but he’s the dragon I know. I guess that makes him mine, in a way.

We continue to fly on, until the cluster of ruined buildings thin out, and then we’re flying along a highway, heading west with the morning sun at our backs. My muscles start to ache from being clenched with fear, and my wounded arm and hip both throb in unison. It doesn’t look like there’s anywhere to stop, though.

Then I see it. Up ahead, tucked in the trees, there’s a recognizable flat gray roof of a long, enormous building with an equally impressive parking lot. I know what that building is, and we’re so far out of the city that it might be more intact than the stuff near Fort Dallas.

It’s a SuperMart. One of those enormous stores that sells everything from groceries to sporting goods to cookware to televisions to everything in between.

I make a weird little excited noise in my throat at the sight of it. Dakh’s claws tighten around me in an unspoken question, and so I point ahead. “That building. Can we stop there?”

My spirits drop when I remember I’m talking to a dragon that doesn’t understand English, but I’m both surprised and pleased when he lowers, spreading his wings to glide in toward the building. Maybe my excited pointing meant something to him. Either way, it doesn’t matter. I’m thrilled at all the possibilities that the store represents.

I’d never gone scavenging with Claudia, but she told me tons about it. How the stores are looted and trashed, everything useful stripped bare. How she would sift through piles of garbage for hours, looking for a can of tuna that might have been missed, or a package that was unopened. She talked about the stink of the animal corpses when a bird or a rat or a deer would wander into the building and die. Claudia had all kinds of disturbing stories about scavenging in the After.

But I remember shopping in the Before. And I loved it. I’ve been without so many things for so long that I’m practically dizzy at the thought of new clothes or shoes—or heck, a bowl for my food.

Dakh dives down and flaps his wings, landing gracefully in the parking lot. It’s overgrown, and there are still a few broken-down cars scattered in old parking spaces. Rusty shopping carts are scattered and flipped on their sides. Everything’s covered with weeds and dead leaves, but the doors of the SuperMart are intact. Dirty, but intact.

I pat Dakh’s claw, indicating he should put me down now that we’ve landed. He releases me, setting me down gently on the asphalt, and watches, waiting to see what I do. Am I in charge? This feels kind of…backwards. But if that’s the case, I’m going to roll with it because I’m dying to see what’s inside that store. The possibilities have me ridiculously excited, though I’m guessing I’ll have to limit what we take with us since I have no idea where we’re heading next. I smile hesitantly at Dakh and don’t even mind when his big nose pushes against my hair in dragonish affection.

I approach the entrance of the SuperMart, and I’m a little dismayed to see that the sliding glass doors are cracked open about two feet. It’s dark inside, so I can’t tell if everything is messed up, but that’s not a good sign. “Looks like someone’s been here before us. I guess it’s not surprising, but I’m still a little disappointed.” I sigh and glance up at Dakh. “Let’s go in anyhow.”

At my side, Dakh sniffs, running his nose along the edge of the metal-and-glass doors. His nostrils twitch and flare, as if he smells something bad, and then he shoves his snout into the crack, trying to wedge the doors farther apart.

“Hey, hey,” I protest, putting a hand on his head. “You’re not going to be able to go in dragon-sized. You need to change to human-size.” I tug at him, then pull on one of his horns. “Change already.”

He pulls back and glances down at me, eyes whirling with gold.

“Change,” I instruct again, though I know he doesn’t understand the words. “Give me Dakh.” I gesture to indicate someone a bit taller than me. “Dakh.”

A flick of an eyelash later and the human-looking Dakh is suddenly standing before me.

I smile encouragingly. “That’s better. Shall we go inside?” I take his big hand in mine and start to go forward.

He growls low in his throat.

I freeze in place, my body going cold. Have I offended him somehow? “What did I do?”

Dakh moves forward, pushing ahead of me, and then steps between the crack in the glass doors. He walks in another step or two, scenting the air, and then turns back to me and holds his hand out.

Oh. I guess this is him checking the area out to make it safe for me. I feel a little silly now. “You’re kind of a chest-beating alpha male, aren’t you? All right, you can lead as long as I get to shop as much as I want.” I put my hand in his and step through myself.

Immediately, there’s a weird smell to the place. I wrinkle my nose and try to rub it before I remember that I shouldn’t use my bad arm. “What’s that stink? A skunk, maybe?”

Dakh leads me forward…and I realize it’s not all that dark in here. Most of the big fluorescent lights are out, but there are a few scattered in the ceiling that are on. Emergency lights, I think. That’s a relief. I can’t imagine what we’d miss out on if we were stumbling around in the dark.

Because ahead of me? It’s a scavenging wonderland.

I don’t care that the store itself is stinky, or everything’s covered with a layer of dust. Beyond the tangled scatter of metal shopping carts barricading the front entrance, there are cash registers. And beyond the cash registers are racks and racks of clothing. Beyond them will be housewares, and sporting goods, and everything else I can possibly imagine.

“This is just like Christmas,” I whisper to Dakh, and then give an excited little squeal.

His hand tightens on mine, and a draconic grin flashes across his broad features, and I feel a little quiver of happiness in my belly for the first time in what feels like…forever.

It almost feels wrong. I’m the captive of a dragon, I’ve just been snatched away from everything and everyone I know, and yet the sight of a SuperMart fills me with so much joy? I can feel my happiness fading and being replaced with shame. Shame that I should be so superficial as to be excited by stuff.

Dakh regards me with a solemn expression and then touches my cheek. He pushes a knuckle against the corner of my mouth and tries to raise it to force a grin.

He wants to see me smile again.

For some reason, that brings all of my happiness back, and I grin. “All right. I’ll take things one day at a time, then. For now, shopping.”

It takes a few minutes to push aside the tangle of carts to get to the other side, and when we do, I pull one out and try to right it. Of course, Dakh takes it from me, and then it’s another few minutes as I try to explain to him that no, the cart really does belong on its wheels and it’s supposed to roll. He’s mystified by the buggy and spends a few moments rolling it back and forth, an intense frown on his face. I want to snatch it from him and get going, but I force myself to be patient.

This store isn’t going anywhere. It’s been seven years since the Rift, and if this stuff has lasted this long, it’ll last one more day.

When he’s satisfied his curiosity with the cart, he turns to me. I do my best not to snatch it from his arms and push it forward. “Follow me. We’re going on a shopping spree, you and I.”

8

SASHA

T  he next hour is sheer bliss. I’d forgotten the joy of new clothing. In front of me, there’s an absolute wonderland of brand new clothes. Well, okay, not all of them are new. Some of them look like they’re rotting on the hangers, but polyester blends look as fresh as they did seven years ago. There are racks and racks of sundresses and T-shirts and jeans, and I want to grab them all and squeal with excitement. Living in Fort Dallas, where I have to sell myself for a bite to eat, there’s no money for new clothing. Even if there was, there’s not much clothing to go around. No one remembers how to make cloth, so a lot of the clothes people wear are scavenged or are weird, knitted monstrosities. I hold a baby-blue sundress up to my chest, sighing with pleasure. The Rift happened in the summer, and all these clothes are the wrong season. There are racks and racks of swimsuits and cover-ups, and pretty soon it’s going to be too cold for me to make use of these. Reluctantly, I put the sundress back and pick up a pair of jeans. I need to be practical.

Dakh growls low in his throat, and I turn.

He’s got the blue sundress in one clawed fist and holds it out to me.

“It’s not practical,” I tell him with a little sad smile. “I love it, but I don’t know how much we’re going to take with us, and I need to think about stuff like medicine and panties and—”

He shakes the dress at me again, a frown on his face, as if it’s important to him that I take it.

Shy, I nod and slip it off the hanger. I’m going to wear it today. Right now. I pull the material over my head and let it slither down my body, and I’m surprised at how loose it is. Even with my patchwork clothing on underneath, it’s like I’m wearing a potato sack. I slip the straps off, and the entire thing falls to the ground, so I scoop it up and check the size. It’s my old size…from Before.

I guess I’ve lost some weight.

I touch my face, wondering what I look like. It’s suddenly important to me, and I shove a few more of the blue dresses into the shopping cart, toss in my jeans, and then wheel the buggy forward, looking for a fitting room. There should be one close by. I turn the cart, and then…I see it.

A mirror.

And my reflection.

I suck in a breath at the sight of myself. I don’t recognize the girl in the mirror. She looks…ghastly. I touch my cheek, and it looks like a stranger is doing it. “Back before the Rift,” I tell Dakh, “I think I was pretty. It’s so hard to tell now.” I stare at my overgrown eyebrows, at my frizzy, unkempt hair that hasn’t been trimmed or styled or, heck, brushed in forever. It frames a face that’s dirty and angular, with hollow dark eyes and a smattering of bruises. I tug down the collar of my T-shirt and wince at the sight of how visible my collarbones are. I can practically see my ribcage, and when did my tits get so flat? Jesus. “That’s what happens when you go from eating three solid a day to, well, one or two.” And to think I feel lucky when I get those one or two. I noticed that Amy and Claudia had been looking thinner and more ragged over time, but for some reason, in my head, I was still robust, smiling Sasha Kennedy, not the scrappy, wiry survivor in the mirror. That Sasha was always looking to lose five or ten pounds.

“Funny how perspective works,” I mutter to myself, stroking my jutting collarbones. I could use those five or ten pounds right about now.

Dakh moves to my side and pushes my hand away, peering at my neck. He gives me a look of concern. “Ow?”

“Oh, I’m not wounded,” I tell him, gesturing at the mirror. “I was just looking at my reflection.”

He turns and sees the mirror—and jumps backward. There’s a crash, and racks of clothing go flying backward as he turns dragon, and even though I’m in danger of being crushed by a claw, I can’t help but giggle at his reaction.

His eyes flare black, and then suddenly it’s not so funny anymore.

“Dakh,” I murmur in my sweetest voice. I wave a hand at him, indicating he should come down and join me again. “It’s okay. I promise. Look. It’s a mirror.” I put my hand on the glass and tap it. “See? Sasha, Sasha.” I point at myself and then at the mirror. “It’s just a reflection. It moves when I do. It’s not a real person.”

The dragon’s great head moves in, and his big eye blinks at me, going from black to gold and then remaining gold. I breathe a sigh of relief at that. He peers at me, then at the mirror, and his nostrils press against the glass. It steams up, and he snorts. A moment later, he’s in human form again, pressing his hand to the mirror surface. “Dakh,” he announces after a moment, then points at me in the mirror. “Sa-cha?”

“That’s right. We’re just reflections.” I wave a hand at him. “See? It’s just showing an image of what is there.”

Poor Dakh’s clearly never seen a mirror before, because he has to inspect it, using his claws to pry it off the wall and check the back, and then checks the fitting rooms behind it to make sure that there’s no one hiding. The concept baffles him, and he pokes it again while I pick through the handful of dresses and find one in a much smaller size and slide it over my head. It fits, and I tug my worn, filthy clothing off underneath and let them fall to the ground.

It feels wasteful to discard my old clothes, because even though they’re trashed, they’d still bring in decent money back in Fort Dallas, when any scrap of clothing is used and re-used forever. But I’m surrounded by unspeakable riches right now. If I need jeans, I’ve got thirty pairs waiting on the next table. Seems silly to hold on to filthy ones that are held together by knots, thanks to Dakh’s claws shredding them beyond belief.

“Sa-cha,” Dakh says, abandoning the mirror to come and stand next to me. His gaze moves over me, and there’s a possessive, pleased look in his eyes that gives me a little flutter of pleasure, too. Maybe I don’t look so bad in this dress after all.

Of course, when did I start caring what my dragon captor thinks?

The moment he transformed to human and started becoming a person in my eyes, I suppose. He’s not just my captor—he has his reasons, and he wants to keep me safe. And really, that’s more than anyone in Fort Dallas has ever done.

Well, anyone that’s left in Fort Dallas, that is. Claudia, Amy and I always looked out for each other, but I don’t even know if they’re alive anymore.

I’ll take today as it comes, then. I grab a handful of the dress and give a little twirl. “You like?”

The rumble in his chest sounds like approval. I beam at him and glance at the mirror that’s now leaning against the wall—and eep! I get an eyeful of the dragon-man junk I’ve been trying so hard not to look at.

And okay, I can’t help but sneak a little peek. He’s completely hairless, the scale-like pattern on his skin seemingly tighter in that area, with a deeper golden color. His cock is…well, it’s a lot bigger than any human guy I’ve ever seen, and the entire thing looks disproportionate to my lady bits. I clamp my thighs tighter together in worry, because he’s also erect. “You know what, Dakh? I think we should shop for you, too.”

We head over to the lingerie department, and I grab a bra and panties, tossing them in the cart as we head to the men’s section. If I get a chance, I’ll come back and get more, but for now, it seems imperative to get Dakh clothed so I don’t have to worry about looking at his, ahem, bits when I need to focus.

Because his bits are rather big and very, very distracting. Even for someone like me, who doesn’t like sex.

“Here you go,” I say, racing the cart over to an endcap of underwear. I pull a package off the shelf and hold it out to Dakh. “Underpants. For you.”

He takes the package, studies it, then holds it up to his nose and sniffs it.

“No, it’s for wearing. Look at the picture.” I point at the faded cardboard ad on the front, of a chiseled model in underwear. It’s kind of staggering to see that Dakh’s way better built than this guy, and the dragon-man’s abs put this guy’s to shame. Huh.

Dakh studies it, and his brows come together. He gives it a fierce frown and points at the picture. “Dakh?”

“Yes. Dakh can wear underwear like that.” I give him an encouraging nod. “You don’t have to be naked.” He doesn’t seem to be in any particular hurry to try them on, so I pluck the package from his hand and rip it open. The aged plastic tears easily, and I shake a pair out then hand them to him. “Here you go.”

He takes it from me and eyes it with obvious skepticism. He plays with the elastic, stretching the waistband, and then it flies from his hands, zooming down the aisle. Dakh gives a snort of amusement.

“Here, take another pair.” I push them into his hands. “Just put them on, okay?” I point at the picture. “Like this, Dakh. Legs go in the holes.”

He regards the picture again, then glances over at me. “Dakh?” he asks, pointing at the man’s briefs.

“Yup. You wear them just like that.”

He tilts his head and then bends over and grabs the hem of my skirt, hauling it up.

I give a little scream, snatching it out of his hands. I know exactly what he’s doing. He’s checking to see if I’m wearing panties. “Oh no you don’t! I’m going to wear some, too, once I get a chance.” I wag a finger at him. “Just humor me, okay?”

He rumbles in his chest again, but this time it sounds rather grumpy. He studies the leg holes and tries to figure it out, studying the picture. While he’s focused, I rip open my own pair of panties and slide on a pair of cotton briefs under my long dress. Too loose again, but I’m thrilled to have fresh undergarments. It’s been years since I’ve had some. They’re definitely a luxury in the After. I study the bra I grabbed and then decide it’s probably too big and move over an aisle or two while Dakh has one leg—or both—in his underwear. I find a new bra—a pretty, lacy thing with pink satin panels and a delicate little bow that makes me feel happy and girly—and slide it on before I return to Dakh’s side a moment later.

The dragon-man’s figured out the briefs—finally—but he looks rather unhappy. He cups his dick, adjusting it, and shifts his weight back and forth on his legs, displeased.

“They don’t look too tight,” I tell him, amused. “Don’t be a baby. And you look good.” Though I have to admit that the sight of him in that underwear makes everything seem a little more pronounced. Heck, the guy on the package didn’t make them look half as mouthwatering as a dragon-man does. “If everything ever turns right side up again, you should look into underwear modeling. Not that there’s much of a chance of that happening.”

He still doesn’t look pleased but follows me when I turn the cart away, walking bow-legged. I’m really trying hard not to laugh.

I turn the cart down another aisle and see another endcap with a lonely can sitting on the end. A food can. A delighted little squeal escapes my throat, and I race forward, cart rattling, and stop to snatch the can. Pinto beans. Oh my god, I love beans. I grab the can of beans and blow the dust off, delighted. The expiration date is four years past, but I’m not picky. I hug the can close. I’m going to open it up and eat it. Even if it’s covered in mold, I’ll still take a chance. Food is food, and you learn not to care how awful or expired the food is when it’s the difference between starving and eating. “I love this place,” I tell Dakh wistfully. “I want to stay here forever.”

It’s paradise.

“Sa-cha?” Dakh comes to my side, eyeing the can.

“This is food, Dakh,” I tell him excitedly. I hold up the can and then make a miming gesture. “Food! We can eat this for dinner tonight.”

He takes the can from my hands, sniffs it, and then lightly flicks his tongue against it and gives me an odd look.

“No, no,” I giggle. “There’s food inside. We have to open it.” All of my gestures to explain that don’t seem to work all that well, though, because he just looks even more confused. “We need more like this! We have to find more.” I gesture at the can again. “More like this. Help me find them.” I circle the endcap, looking for more cans. Clothing suddenly seems less important if there’s food around. Because clothes are one thing, but food is vital.

Dakh starts to look around, too, and then races away a few feet. He returns a moment later, brandishing a can with a look of pleasure on his face.

I take it from him, delighted—only to see the picture of a German shepherd staring back at me. Yick. Dog food. But Dakh looks so happy to give me the gift that I suspect we’ll be having dog food with dinner tonight. “Thank you, Dakh. This is great.” I add the cans to my cart. “Let’s see what else we can find!”

As we head down one of the big main aisles, it’s clear that someone’s been through here before us. It’s not surprising, considering things. Most of the food endcaps are pretty picked over, or they’ve rotted away into inedible messes. A few boxes of cookies look like rats have gotten to them, because there are shreds all over the floor and counter, and not much else.

That’s all right, though. There’s an entire store to explore, and if we’ve found two cans of food, there’s bound to be more that we can eat.

As we venture on, I keep filling the cart. There’s plastic dishes. Forks. Knives. Hairbrushes. Sneakers. Warm, fuzzy socks. Sunglasses—I put them on just because it amuses me, and then Dakh steals them and tries to put them on himself. He looks a bit like a rock star in his tighty-whities and sunglasses and nothing else, until he does that tight, awkward walk that tells me he’s not used to wearing underpants, and then I start giggling again.

I’m still laughing as we turn down another aisle, and then I gasp.

Jackpot.

9

SASHA

I  move past the faded rows of magazines toward the paperbacks lined up on the shelves. My hand moves over the once-glossy covers, touching the images of glamorous couples in exciting landscapes. Romance novels. Oh my God, it’s been so long since I’ve read one, and there are dozens here. I clutch one to my chest, thrilled, and then grab another and stick it in the cart. A few of the books have been attacked by mice and rats, but there are plenty that are intact, and I start shoving them into the cart, pausing to read the back descriptions with sheer joy. Oh, a highlander romance. I love those. And there’s one with a sheikh, and a billionaire.

They might as well be fairy tales at this point, but I don’t care. I love them. I can’t wait to escape into their pages for a few hours.

Dakh picks one up, sniffs it—he seems to be sniffing everything—and then flicks at the pages. I hear paper tearing.

I shriek and jerk it out of his hands. “No! Dakh! Don’t rip them! They’re stories!”

Dakh looks surprised at my reaction.

I hug the book to my chest—precious, precious book—and frown at him. “You have to be careful with books. You can’t just rip the pages out or the story is ruined.” I hold the book out and show him how to delicately turn the pages. “See? Like this.”

He takes it from my hand and moves a page from left to right carefully, glancing at me. It looks tricky for him with his claws, but he’s trying. It’s something, at least.

I give him a nod of approval and then add the book to the cart. “We’re getting some reading material.” I’ll cull it later if I have to, in favor of needed supplies, but if I can take books with me, I want to. Seeing them has made me realize how much I’ve missed reading. I love a good story, and it’s been so long. I used to read all the time Before. And there are so many romance novels here on the shelf that it makes me giddy. I pick another one up and flip it over to read the text on the back, smoothing my hand down the cover. Billionaires. Seems kind of silly to read about billionaires now, but I’m game. I just want a nice, romantic story to take me away for a few hours. I add this one to the cart, too, and then pick another one with a bright blue cover off the shelf.

I’m so entranced by the books that it takes me a moment to realize that Dakh is sniffing at the air again, a frown on his face. I glance over at him, and then I smell it, too—a skunky, terrible smell. He glances around, then stalks down the aisle past me, searching for the source.

“Is something wrong?” I call out.

“Dakh,” he says.

“Right. I keep forgetting you’re not gonna answer.” I finish pawing the book in my hands and put it with my things, then turn the cart around. The dragon’s blocking the end of the aisle, so I push the cart in the other direction, and as I do, I see something move between two circular racks of clothing.

It looked human, too. Female.

Hmm.

“I’ll check in this direction, Dakh,” I call out, pushing my cart along as if it’s no big deal. As if I didn’t just see a woman duck past. “And I’m going to look for more books.”

He grunts something, acknowledging my words. I doubt he understood them, but he doesn’t move, still sniffing the air at the end of the aisle like it’s bothering him.

I push my cart down into the main aisle of the store, nearer to the rounded racks of clothing. I’m not afraid—the person I saw looked female, and if she’s hiding out here by herself, there’s got to be a good reason. Unless she’s not by herself, of course, but I feel strangely fearless. Maybe it’s because I’m with a dragon and he can toast anyone that threatens us.

The racks of clothing look innocent enough. I eye the garments hanging there. They’re nightgowns—ugly ones—and I pretend to consider them, fingering the material of one. “I saw you,” I whisper. “Who are you?”

Two of the nightgowns push apart, and a face gazes back at me. It’s a woman, about my age. She’s not as thin or dirty as most of the Fort Dallas natives, and her thick black hair is pulled into two clean, shiny braids. She’s wearing a shirt I passed on one of the racks from earlier. I don’t recognize her, and I wonder if she’s been here a while.

She glances over at the book aisle, where I left Dakh, and then back at me. “This is my home,” she tells me, lifting her chin in a defiant gesture. “I want you and your boyfriend to leave.”

My boyfriend? If only she knew what he really was. “I can’t tell him what to do, I’m afraid. And there’s more stuff here than you could possibly use. I promise we won’t take much.”

She gives a little shrug and straightens, standing up. “Take what you want. There’s plenty of clothing.”

Well, that was easier than I expected. I smile at her. “I appreciate it. I’m Sasha. I used to be from Fort Dallas. Are you…” I hesitate, trying to figure out the best way to ask. Nomads aren’t well thought of back at the Fort. They tend to be outcasts, murderers, or thieves that have gotten booted from their forts and have taken their lawlessness on the road with them. “Are you from the nearby Fort?” I ask politely, even though I know the answer.

The woman shakes her head. “I come from out west. There’s a fort near here?”

“Well, not too near. If you follow the highway it leads through the ruins of Old Dallas and there’s a fort there. But there are also a lot of dragons.” I glance around. “Are you here alone?”

She bristles, looking nervous. “Does it matter?”

“Oh! No, I was just curious.” I give her another friendly smile, because I can see myself in her eyes. She’s young, alone, and scared. Who hasn’t been there before? “I’m just shocked this place hasn’t been raided, is all.”

“Nomads come by every now and then, but I make sure they don’t stay long.” She sounds tougher than she looks as she says it. “Not too often, though—the highway’s pretty clogged with dead cars, and so it doesn’t get much travel.”

She’s got a point. I remember seeing lines of cars on the highway here. You don’t run into many with cars or motorcycles because gasoline’s non-existent at this point. Travelers that do have bicycles would probably avoid coming out this far. No one in Fort Dallas ever goes beyond the gates. Well, in theory. In actuality, the city still gets a fair amount of exploring, but it’s all on the hush. “I haven’t been this far out myself. Are there other stores?”

The woman shrugs. “If there are, I haven’t looked.” Her head tilts, and she studies me curiously. “I’m Emma, by the way. Emma Arroyo. How did you get out here without being eaten by a dragon?”

“What?” I’m a little nervous at the question, because Dakh is just a short distance away.

“They chase women,” Emma says flatly. “I’ve seen it with my own eyes. Saw a dragon tear open a building once just to get to the woman inside. And I’ve seen dragons snatch women out of nomad camps. They leave some chicks, and others, boom. Grabbed up by the claws.”

I stare at her, wide-eyed. Her description is hitting a little too close to home. “They…go after women?”

She touches the side of her nose. “I have a theory. They can smell ’em. That’s why I’m safe here. Been covering my scent.”

Oh, is that what Dakh’s been smelling? I’m surprised at her—and a little impressed at her ingenuity. “If that’s the case, then why are you out here alone?”

Her expression goes flat. “I wasn’t always alone.” Emma ducks her head and slides out from under the clothing rack to stand next to me. She fills out her T-shirt and jeans enough to tell me that she’s been eating well, and her skin is clean, her dark hair shiny, and I’m envious of her appearance. She’s also wearing, I notice, several knives strapped to her leg, and a belt with the same. A handgun pokes out of the back waistband of her jeans.

And again, I know I should be wary at the sight of her, but I feel like Dakh has it covered. Funny how that works. My captor won’t let anything happen to me, so for the first time in what feels like forever…I’m unafraid.

It’s a weird realization.

“If you’re asking how it is I’m safe, it’s deer urine,” Emma tells me.

“What?” I’m not sure I’ve heard her correctly.

“Deer urine.” She pulls a bottle out of a pocket and sprays a puff into the air. Immediately, the same stink we’ve been smelling perfumes the air, and I take a step backward, coughing. Emma just looks pleased at my reaction. “You want to know how I’m safe? That’s how.”

“H-how the heck did you get deer urine?”

“They sell it in the sporting goods department. I knew a hunter back when the Rift first hit. Told me he used it to disguise his scent from dragons. Apparently, they’re really keen on smells. He said he used deer scent to keep himself safe. I know it stinks. You get used to it after a while.” She shrugs. “I didn’t believe him, either, until my friend Antonia got snatched and I didn’t. Only thing I can think that was different was that I had a can of deer urine that busted in my backpack way back when, and so it smelled.” She shakes her head. “After that, I’ve been keeping a steady supply of the stuff. I—” Her eyes widen, and she stares behind me.

I glance over my shoulder. Dakh is there, and he…well, he doesn’t look happy. His jaw is tight, his fists clenched, and his eyes are whirling a deep amber and moving suspiciously towards black.

“Um, Emma? I know this is your place, but you might want to leave,” I murmur to her. “It’s not safe—”

Emma pulls out her gun with shaking hands and points it at Dakh. “W-what the fuck is he?”

I gasp, freezing in place at the sight of the gun. “He’s just a guy—”

“Bullshit! Look at his eyes!” She blinks, staring. “And horns. What the fuck?”

A low growl starts in Dakh’s throat. I’m both frustrated and worried. I wanted to talk to Emma longer, but it looks like that’s not going to happen. “Put the gun down, Emma,” I say in a low voice. “You don’t want to shoot him.”

“The fuck I don’t!” Her hands are shaking, and she’s making me nervous. “What is he?”

“He’s a dragon,” I say quickly, before Emma gets trigger-happy. “But not a bad one! I promise.” I might be lying about that, but I also don’t want Dakh to get shot. “And I can explain everything.”

“But…how…” Her gaze moves from him and back to me. “How can he be a person if he’s a dragon?”

“I’ve been asking myself that a lot lately,” I tell her, giving Dakh a wary look. The rumbling in his chest is increasing, and it’s not friendly. “I think you should get out of here for now, okay? Come back when we’re gone. It’s not safe for you. He’s really possessive.”

“But…”

Dakh flicks a hand out. Faster than lightning, he knocks the gun from Emma’s grip and it goes skittering across the floor. Her face goes pale, and she takes a shaky step backward.

Oh God. I can’t let him kill her. “I’m going to distract him. Run away when I do.”

Emma’s focus darts between us again, and then she nods, trembling.

“Dakh,” I say in my sweetest voice. I put a hand on his shoulder. “Pay attention to me, all right?”

But his eyes are murderous black, and I can see the smoke starting to trickle from his nostrils, even in his human form. This isn’t good. I have to think of something or Emma’s going to die. A memory of the red dragon and its torn-out throat flashes through my mind, and I swallow hard.

Wait. Emma said scent. Dragons were attuned to scents. And Dakh’s always sniffing my hair.

Oh God. He marches forward, claws raised even as Emma slinks backward, pulling a knife out of her belt. There’s no more time to think. I hike up my dress, shove my hand into my panties and rub, and then race forward, holding my hand out. “You want scent? Here you go.”

Dakh stops mid-stride. He turns toward me, and gold begins to fleck in with the black. The rumbling in his chest takes on a different tone, and I break into an immediate sweat.

Behind us, Emma darts off, racing between racks of clothing and disappearing into the bowels of the store.

“That’s right,” I whisper, half-surprised this worked so well, and a little alarmed that it did. “You like scents, right? I guess you like mine.”

He moves forward and grabs me by the wrist. His touch is surprisingly gentle for all that he’s a menacing dragon-man on the verge of attacking a stranger. He grips me tight and holds my hand up to his nose and inhales deeply. Then he licks my fingers, the rasp of his tongue moving over my skin.

I shudder. I’m torn between being terrified at that reaction…and a little aroused. I’ve never had control in a sexual situation before, and it feels forbidden and exciting.

Dakh licks my hand with sensual, long flicks of his tongue and then does the same to my palm. When he’s finally finished, his eyes are whirling amber as he gazes down at me, and his nostrils flare as he scents the air. “Sa-cha.”

“Right here,” I whisper.

He pulls me close against him and buries his nose in my hair again, inhaling deeply. I’m full of conflicting emotions as he does—I’m a little afraid of his ferocity, but I’m also attracted to it, and that makes me wonder if there’s something wrong with my head. He’s holding me captive. I shouldn’t like him any more than I like Tate.

But I think of the way he licked my hand and shudder again, because that was the most obscene and intense and oddly sweet thing I’ve ever experienced. “Emma’s gone,” I whisper to him. “It’s just you and me, okay?”

“Sa-cha,” he growls, tugging me tighter against him. My bad hip twinges, and I wince, wondering if I’ve suddenly bit off more than I can chew.

Because the intense look in his eyes isn’t going away, and I worry I’m going to have to trade sex for my safety.

Just like I do with Tate.

The thought fills me with self-loathing.

10

DAKH

M y Sa-cha is confusing me.

I rub my nose along the column of her throat, waiting for her to give me a signal that she is ready to mate. That she is challenging me. I thought she would, especially when she ran the other human female off. After all, does a female not scare off others before pursuing her male of choice?

And when I scented her cunt on her hand, need for my mate overwhelmed me. I forget everything but her and her scent. Let the other little human leave. What I want is right before me, her scent in my nose.

But once the other is gone, Sa-cha makes no move to challenge me. Her scent begins to take on a tinge of fear, and I am frustrated. What am I missing? What is it?

I hold her close, waiting. Hoping. If nothing else, I want her to put her hand between her thighs again and coat her fingers with the scent of her cunt. I want to lick it off her hand and see how she reacts once more. I want her to spread her legs and let me drink from the source.

I want all of this female.

But she only looks up at me with big, anxious eyes, and her scent grows more acrid with fear. I think of the last time when I tried to touch her, and she made water from her eyes.

I do not want that to happen again. Seeing her like that hurt me. But how do I make her understand that I want to claim her as my mate? That she is not safe until I do? That we cannot speak unless our minds are linked, and we cannot link until I have given her my fire? My cock aches with the need to claim her, and yet I will not touch her, not as long as she smells of fear.

I need to understand. “Sa-cha.” I put my hand on her cheek, touching her. I wish I knew the human words for mating, for challenge. But I only know her name, and so I try to show her with my touch. I encircle her with my arms and turn her, pressing my cock against her backside.

She goes stiff in my arms. She does not pull away, but she does not have to. I can sense her reluctance as clearly as her fear-scent.

I am defeated. I let her go, even though my instincts are telling me to claim her. To make her mine. But how can I claim her if there is no willingness?

I THINK on this for many hours. Sa-cha chatters brightly and speaks in a happy tone as she pulls things off of shelves and unwraps them. She spreads out something that looks like an animal hide but feels very different, and tosses a bunch of soft blobs onto the pile. I realize she is making such a pile to sleep in, and I bite back my snarl. My mate should sleep in my protective grip.

But…Sa-cha is not my mate.

She eats the foul-smelling food from one of the small rounded containers and makes happy noises. I let her eat all of it—I will hunt myself one of the four-legged beasts that roam this land for my own meal in the morning. I will have to take Sa-cha with me, because I do not dare leave her alone again. If she were my mate, I could leave her in my nest, confident she would be protected by the scent of my fire in her blood.

Right now, she smells too good, too fertile, too female.

I consider this even as her talk slows to a low whisper, and she clicks on something that has a small light and shines it on one of the squares with the crinkly white sheets. She flips them, caught up in whatever she sees, until her eyes begin to close. Eventually she clicks off her strange light and puts the square aside, then drifts off to sleep, nestled in her blobs. I cannot shift to battle form in here, not without knocking many things over and rousing her. So I move to the nest of hides she has made for herself on the floor and lie next to her.

Sa-cha only sighs and settles in deeper in the nest, her breathing even with sleep. She wears more of the strange skins that she has picked up this day. I do not understand why the humans choose to cover their bodies with such things—perhaps because they have no scales to protect them? She even gave me a skin—a tight-fitting one that feels as if it is pinching my sac with every step. Just thinking about it makes me reach down to adjust my cock, and I frown. I hate it, yet I will wear it if it pleases her. She covers her entire form with such things. I dislike them. I want to stroke her skin and feel it against mine, but all I feel are these strange layers.

She sleeps, content, and I study her as she does. She likes this place, this nest. Not just the strange skins with the blobs, but this entire structure. She grew so excited with the sight of each new thing that I have decided we will stay here, where it makes her happy.

The fact that there was another human female here perplexes me. I did not smell her, my senses dulled by the strange scents in the air. That reminds me of the stink of the humans in their hive. I do not like it, and I do not trust it. If the other human returns, I will destroy her. Sa-cha must be kept safe at all costs. What if there is another human hiding nearby with the same ability to mask his scent?

I pull Sa-cha closer to me, troubled at the thought.

She makes a little sound of pain, and her hip makes a rustling noise. I frown to myself. She wrapped her hip and her arm with fresh skins this evening and slathered a foul-smelling paste on her wounds. My female has many injuries, and I cannot help but worry that perhaps I have been too rough with her in the past, when the ravens were attacking my mind. Is this why she is afraid of me now when I touch her? Did I hurt her before and I cannot remember it? My mind is nothing but chaos when I am away from her, but when she is close, I am able to think clearly. I do not think I would hurt her, but I cannot be certain.

Nothing can be certain until I link my mind to hers and we can speak freely.

Sa-cha is so small and fragile. I touch her shoulder, wanting to pet her and stroke her, but not wanting to hurt her. She gives a little sigh in her sleep and moves closer to me, as if pleased by my touch. I am overjoyed at that small reaction and run my hand up and down her back, caressing her through the layers. She makes a contented sound, and I am surprised at how much pleasure I feel at her enjoyment.

When she sleeps, she does not fear me. And earlier, when I licked her scent off her hand, I imagined that I saw interest in her eyes. Heat. Anticipation. It went nowhere, but it tells me that Sa-cha would respond to my caresses, I think. If I could get her to challenge me, she would put up a small fight and then give in sweetly, allowing me to conquer her. Allowing me to mount her and claim her, to give her my fires.

To make us one.

I must make her challenge me. Somehow. A hint of a memory dances through my mind, a recent one. Kael and his human mate. She is small and fragile like my Sa-cha, and yet they have mated. Kael has said that they share mind-speak.

How did he get her to challenge him? I stroke my mate’s back, thinking.

Perhaps tomorrow, when I go and find food for myself, I will also go close enough to the human hive to connect minds with Kael. Perhaps I will ask him how he managed to get his small human to change to her battle form and challenge him.

I cannot wait much longer before my Sa-cha takes my fires. Every day we delay is another that her life is in danger.

I will not let another take her from me.

THE NEXT MORNING, Sa-cha eats a meal from another one of her round containers and puts on another layer of skins, including ones on her feet. I gesture at the entrance to this strange cave, indicating that I wish to leave with her, and she seems to understand. She nods and twists her long hair into a rope, puts on yet another layer, and then slips her hand into mine.

Just that small touch is enough to make me hunger for more. I think of her fingers, coated with her scent, and fight back the urge to growl my lust. I must be calm if I am to keep my mate’s scent free of fear.

Sa-cha picks up a heavy bag full of her treasures, gives a sad sigh, and then looks patiently at me.

I take the bag from her and set it down on the ground. We will be returning. She does not need to bring this with her.

“Dakh,” she protests, picking the sack up again. She rambles her garbled human language at me, full of melodic nonsense. And she tries to put the sack over her injured arm again.

Again, I take it from her. We will return, I try to tell her.

Only the ravens hear my thoughts. There is no link with Sa-cha.

Frustrated, I try to make gestures to indicate that we will stay, but she does not seem to understand them. Eventually, she leaves her bag on the floor, but she looks even sadder, her scent tinged with unhappiness.

I am failing her again, this time because we cannot speak. Frustrated, I lead her forward, and the moment sunlight touches my skin, I change to battle form and grip her gently in my claws. I flap my wings, soaring high into the air, and turn toward the dark stain on the edge of the horizon that is the human hive. Kael lives near there with his mate.

Sa-cha wriggles and turns in my claws, and I tuck her close to my chest to keep her safe. She says some more of her human words at me, but I do not know what she speaks. Eventually she gives up and goes quiet, and I resist the urge to nuzzle her with reassurance.

A herd of brown, four-legged creatures with horns wind through the flat, hard lands near the human hive. Since my claws are full of Sa-cha, I scoop one up with my teeth, throwing my head back to gulp down my meal. Sa-cha makes a squeal of horror, but I must eat, and her shiny round things with their mushy food will not ease a dragon’s appetite. I chase down two more of the beasts, swallowing them before lofting higher again.

As I do, I send my mind out, trying to touch Kael’s.

It is…difficult. The ravens are everywhere. Not just my ravens, but those of other drakoni who are lost to the madness. The endless hum and buzz of this place tears at the minds of all my people. When I reach out, I can feel other minds—or what is left of them. The males struggle with their sanity, and I can practically taste the rage and bloodlust ripping through their thoughts. When my mind brushes that of a female, I can feel…nothing at all. They are completely lost. I remember when our minds were as a connected web of warmth and companionship. Now there is nothing but a constant stream of confusion and anger, and it threatens to pull me under. The ravens sense a victory and circle ever closer, jabbering their nonsense.

Sa-cha speaks, and her small hand touches my claw. Even though I do not know her words, it is enough. I focus on her, and the ravens retreat once more to go nest in another drakoni’s head.

I must focus on my mate and retreat to our nest, where I can keep her safe. So I focus on Kael, the imprint of his mind, and sift for it in the sea of chaos around me.

Kael’s mind touches mine like a focused beam of light, and I am impressed at the clarity of his thoughts. There are no ravens, no buzzards, nothing waiting to attack his thoughts. He is clear of any madness, and I am envious.

My friend, he sends to me. Your thoughts are much improved.

It is my mate, I tell him. She is the reason.

Then you have claimed the human?

Not yet. Having her near is enough for now, but I must claim her soon. I circle a tall building and then alight on a perch at the top. The wind is high up here, the scents of the human hive not so terrible. Kael’s thoughts are still far enough away to keep him at a safe distance from my mate. Not that he would take her from me, but the possessive male that I am cannot stand the thought of another drakoni coming close when my female is unmated. I fly close because I seek your advice on human females.

Mine? I am intrigued.

When I touch my Sa-cha, her scent is that of fear. I wait and wait for her to challenge me, to change into battle form and attack so I can conquer her, but she does not. What do I do wrong? How did you get your female to turn?

Kael’s thoughts are amused. They are not drakoni, my friend. Remember this.

You think I do not know this? I am insulted by his statement. I fear I shall break her at any time if I hold her too roughly. She is soft and sweet and fragile, my Sa-cha. She is nothing like a drakoni female.

Then you must stop thinking of her as one, Dakh. Do not assume she is as we are. I have known my Claudia for many days and nights now, but it took me some time to realize that she does not have a battle form. No human does.

No battle form? The thought is astounding to me. But…how do they defend themselves? How do they challenge one another? Even as I am stunned to hear this, it makes sense. Sa-cha is weak and wounded. She prefers to be on the ground. Of course she has no battle form. I have been thinking so much of how a normal drakoni mating is conducted that I did not stop to think that humans would be different. I think of the ones I saw mating back at the human hive. So the signal to challenge…is it pushing my face against hers? Is that a challenge?

Humans do not want to be challenged at all, my friend. Kael’s thoughts are direct and strong. Human females are not to be conquered, not unless you wish to harm her.

Never!

Then learn how to make her crave a mating with you. They respond when a male touches them.

Touches them? I touch Sa-cha all the time. Even now, I hold her in my claws. I glance down at the small female in my grip. She does not look as if she wishes to mate. If anything, she looks as if she wishes to be down on the ground. She stares around her with trepidation and clings to my claws, clearly unhappy at our height.

Not a regular touch. A touch that will tell her you wish to mate. My Claudia prefers kisses and caresses. She likes for her skin to be stroked. She wants her body to be touched with tenderness. Make her feel good and she will give you her mating scent.

Bah. This seems…too simple. And a kiss? What is this?

You press your mouth to hers—

I have done that. Frustration leaks through my thoughts. Do you lie to me?

Never. Kael sounds amused, and it irritates me. My temper begins to rise. Does he think it is funny I have not claimed my female yet?

He mocks, the ravens whisper. He thinks you are not worthy of happiness.

Anger burns low in my belly. Send me an image, I tell him. So I can understand.

His mind immediately closes off to my own. I can feel it shut until we are only at the barest of communications. I am not going to send you images of me kissing my mate. Such things are private. My Claudia is still angry that you have stolen her friend. She will be upset that I have helped you.

Helped me? You have told me nothing!

I am trying to help you, old friend. Calm yourself and listen.

Even as he speaks, I feel the prick of another mind coming into range. Another male. A growl surges through me, along with frustration. You would leave my mate in danger by not helping me?

I am trying, Dakh. I value our friendship. I value being able to speak to another of my kind and not being overwhelmed by madness. You are already much improved.

Lies, the ravens whisper. He thinks to trick you and steal your mate away.

In the distance, against the horizon, I see a speck flying in the air. It might be a bird…or it might be the male dragon I sense, heading for my mate. Protective anger blooms in my mind.

Bring your mate to visit mine and—

Lies! You seek to take my mate from me! I fling myself into the air, spouting flame. I will confront that male. I will rend him limb from limb and—

Sa-cha cries out in terror, clinging to my foreleg. “Dakh!”

My mate.

How could I forget her?

How could I forget how fragile she is? She will never survive if I go into a fight with her in my claws. And yet I cannot set her down. If I do, I leave her vulnerable to other humans and to drakoni. Only in my grip is she safe. Only with me.

Reluctantly, I swallow my flames and wheel about in the skies. I will speak to you some other time, I tell Kael. For now, I must take my mate to safety. And I flap my wings with all my might, pushing off of a nearby building to gain strength. I must go high and fast to get away from the other, before he sees me. I pull back in my mind so there is nothing for his madness to touch.

And I will bring my mate back to her nest, where I can protect her.

I hug her close to my chest, making sure she is secure. Speaking with Kael was a mistake. Perhaps my mind is still too full of ravens for his words to make sense. Touch my mate. Bah. As if I do not touch her. As if I do not have her clutched to my scales right now.

Still, some of his words ring true. I ponder them even as we fly onward, back toward the nest I have claimed as ours. The long, low building comes into sight again, and my Sa-cha makes a joyful sound, patting my claws. I think she realizes I am bringing her back, and she is pleased. This makes me happy, as well. I have found a place for my nest that, while not perched high in the clouds, delights my mate. There can be no better home.

I set down on the roof of the building, but my mate exclaims and points at the ground below. She wants to go back into the nest itself. Very well. I hop down to the flat, hard ground and release my mate gently.

She makes another happy sound and hugs my foreleg, wrapping herself around it and pressing her cheek to my scales, all the while making talking noises. Her touch surprises me, as does her pleasure. When she lets go of my leg, I immediately shift to my two-legged form to see if she will grab me again. But she does not; she only beams up at me with obvious pleasure.

I decide I will put my arms around her, then. I move forward and embrace her, pulling her against my chest.

Sa-cha makes a startled sound but then giggles and pats my back, letting me hold her close. I rumble with pleasure, deciding that this is nice. I let my hand stroke up and down her back, and she makes a contented noise, relaxing in my arms.

Perhaps this is what Kael meant by touching my mate. Perhaps I should be stroking her and giving her pleasure. Perhaps he was not wrong after all.

I have much to think upon.

11

SASHA

“So, are we going to go inside?” I ask as Dakh continues to hug me in the parking lot of the SuperMart, his hand stroking up and down my back. I don’t even mind his touch. It’s nice to be hugged, and I’m just so thrilled to be back here that nothing could ruin this day.

I thought I was going to lose all of my new treasures when he made me leave my bag this morning. I thought we were leaving for good when he took me up in the air, and it made me sad. The SuperMart has everything I could possibly need for some time. Sure, it’s a little stinky in places, but it’s a paradise in these times. For bringing me back, he can have all the hugs he wants.

He doesn’t seem like he’s in a hurry to move, though, and I can’t help but smile to myself. “You’re sure into hugs, aren’t you?” I rest my cheek against his chest, deciding that I’m going to ignore the fact that he’s completely naked and any underwear he might have worn last night is completely gone. I guess it ripped apart when he shifted. Maybe that’s why he doesn’t seem to care about clothing—it doesn’t last very long. Well, if it’s not his thing, I won’t push it on him. I sigh and relax against him, figuring I can let the hug go on for a little longer. It’s…kind of nice. He’s hot against my skin, not quite uncomfortably so, but definitely warm enough to make me pink up and feel tender where we’re touching. Still, feeling all that warmth is kinda relaxing, and I close my eyes and figure I’ll enjoy for a bit longer. His hand rubs up and down my back in a soothing way, and I wonder if he’s been lonely and that’s why he’s so into this hug.

It makes me a little sad for him. Weird how I’m sad for a savage monster that eats people and flames cities, but I am. “The After’s kind of a sucky place,” I whisper to him. “I understand how you feel, though. Sometimes it’s just nice to be held and feel safe. That’s the rarest feeling in the world.”

Kind of like how I’m feeling right now. Huh.

Eventually the hug goes on for long enough that it starts to become weird. Or, weirder, I guess. I worry he’s going to take things to the next level if it goes on much longer, and I’m not ready for that. So I pull away from him and give him a bright smile. “Shall we go inside?”

He grunts assent, and when I offer him my hand, he takes it and leads me back in.

The store’s just as empty as when we left it. Part of me had hoped, I guess, for Emma to return while we were gone. I can’t blame her for not coming back, given that I’m accompanied by a rather unfriendly dragon and all. Still, I miss female companionship. I’ve spent the last seven years in the After with Amy and Claudia, and I miss them. I hope they’re well.

Heck, I hope they’re alive.

Troubled by my thoughts, I’m quiet as we head for the bed I made for myself in the linen department. The pallet of blankets on the floor is just as cozy as when I left it, and there are mountains of fluffy pillows to ensure that I’m comfy. I might try blowing up an air mattress tonight, because even with a bunch of blankets, the floor’s still hard tile, and it’s not great on my aching hip. To have all these things is a luxury, I tell myself. Enjoy them while you’ve got them.

After all, who knows how long we’ll be here? Best if I take everything the store has to offer and not worry too much about my friends back at Fort Dallas. There’ll be time enough for that later. I sit down in the blankets and glance over at Dakh. “So what are our plans for the day…?”

I trail off as I realize he’s picked up one of my romance novels and is studying the people on the cover intently. It’s a historical romance, with an earl and a half-naked lady necking on the cover. And, I’m a little embarrassed to see, the woman has dark, curly hair that looks a lot like mine. Dakh touches the picture and then stares at it even more closely, then glances over at me. “Sa-cha?” he asks, pointing at the cover.

“No, that’s not me.” I can feel myself blushing.

“Sa-cha…” He pauses and makes a strange expression, then gestures a bit more. I squint at him, trying to figure out what he’s asking. When he repeats it and then mimics the man’s hand on the woman’s waist, I realize that the weird facial expression he’s making? It’s the cover model’s O-face.

I don’t know if I find this hilarious or horrifyingly awkward. “I’m not sure what you’re asking,” I say, trying to keep a straight face. “I told you that’s not me.”

He picks up another romance novel and regards the cover. Then he turns it to me and points at the woman on the front. “Sa-cha?” He taps the picture of the man with his mouth on the heroine’s face. “Dakh?”

I gasp. Is he asking if we can make out? Or if I’ve made out with someone in the past and he wants me to show him how? “Whatever you’re asking, the answer is no. Even if it was yes, I wouldn’t answer that anyhow.” I glance down at his naked body to see if I need to be alarmed, but his cock is at half-mast. I breathe a little easier at that. It’s just an innocent question, then. “It’s a book about a relationship,” I tell him. “The people kiss in it, but there’s also a big adventure.” I get to my feet and pull the book from his hands, opening it to the painted stepback. This second book is a reprint of an old classic, and the inside cover is filled with images of pirate ships and swashbuckling duels as the heroine clings to the hero’s leg. “See? It’s excitement and romance, but I guess the sex is what sells it. I’m a fan of the entire story, not just the sex.”

Taking the book from him, I close it again and set it down on the bed. Part of me wonders if I should tear the cover off so he won’t get any ideas about sex—my least favorite hobby ever—but I can’t bring myself to deface books that have been so pristine for years in the After. They’re a treasure, and I plan on enjoying them repeatedly.

As I set the book down, I see my arms and hands look very dirty against the pale, clean sheets. Ew. I grab a handful of my hair and sniff it, and it smells greasy. I bet I stink. I glance over at Dakh. “Do we have more plans for going out today? Because if not, I’d like to take a bath.”

His brows draw together, and he studies me, silent.

“You know what? I’m going to roll with it and say that we’re not going out again.” I give him a bright smile. “And since we’ve got a whole aisle of shampoos, I want to take advantage of them. Come on.”

I get a shopping cart, and I spend some time picking out my soaps and shampoos. There’s bubble bath, too, and I grab some of it, along with some lotion. I’m going to have myself a spa day, I decide. Dakh can find something else to do if he doesn’t want to play along. Once I have all of the bath supplies, there’s the small problem of an actual tub. I head over to the summer supplies and pick out a kiddie pool. There’s a kitchen in the break room of the SuperMart, and it’s got a large sink in there, so I can attach a garden hose and use it to fill up my pool with water. I don’t know if the hot water will work, but I figure I have a dragon and that’s the least of my problems.

After I get the hose, some beach towels, and my pool, I turn my cart back toward the clothing section and pick out a swimsuit. I doubt Dakh is going to leave while I bathe—heck, it’s hard to get him to leave when I have to use the facilities—so better safe than sorry. I should pick a one-piece, maybe, but there’s a frilly pink gingham bikini that’s screaming at the girly side of me, and I can’t resist it. It’s been years since I had frivolous clothing, and who’s going to be here to complain if I wear something a little impractical? I won’t be naked, and that’s the important part.

Dakh watches me with an interested expression, as if he’s trying to figure me out. He follows along at my side, silent, as I steer my cart to the back of the store and push it into the employee area. The break room still has a fleet of chairs and folding tables laid out, so I have Dakh move them aside, since I can’t do much more than shove them around with my bad arm. When there’s enough clear space, I manage to get the pool set up (again with Dakh’s help) and hook the water hose to the sink. Then I retreat to the ladies’ room to change into my bikini.

It takes forever for the pool to fill up, so I get in the moment it gets hip deep and wince at how cold the water is.

“Sa-cha?” Dakh asks, curious. He’s watching me intently.

I rub my arms, indicating cold. It also helps hide the fact that my nipples are completely pebbled and obvious in my tiny, frilly bikini. Guess I didn’t think that one through. But Dakh doesn’t say anything about it. He leans over the plastic side of the pool, and before I can say anything, sticks his face in the water. Bubbles froth up, and I giggle at the sight, but then give a sigh of pleasure when I realize what he’s doing. He’s heating the water for me.

It gets unspeakably warm within moments, and I move closer to the water hose, where the cool water is pouring in. “Thank you.” I pull the bandages off my broken arm and set them on the counter nearby. I add bubble bath and use the hose to make it foam, then turn off the water and sink into the pool. The bubbles are a thick froth, and I’m waist deep in a hot bath for the first time in forever. God, it feels amazing. A sigh escapes me, and I close my eyes, relaxing.

A splash and a nudge against my foot make me open my eyes again. I sit up to see Dakh climbing into the pool on the opposite side of me. It’s not quite big enough for the two of us to stretch out, and the water slops over the edge onto the floor. Almost immediately, the water feels even warmer. That might be me blushing, though, considering I’m now sharing a pool with a big, naked dragon-man.

“I didn’t realize you were into bubble baths,” I say, and fling a handful of the foam at him to take away some of the awkwardness of the situation. For some reason, I had pictured me taking this bath solo. I hadn’t imagined that he’d join in with me. Guess that’s a mistake on my part, because of course he would. The man never leaves me alone for a second. “At least I don’t have to worry about the water getting cold.”

He plucks at the bubbles, trying to figure them out. I chuckle at that, amused, and lather up my hair and skin to get clean. It feels so wonderful I do it a second time, just because all this soap is a luxury that I plan on thoroughly enjoying. Dakh takes one of my bottles and sniffs it as I rinse my hair, and with a few mimes and gestures, I show him how it’s supposed to be used. He cleans his hair, dunks himself, and then looks thoroughly disgusted when the water streams into his eyes.

I can’t help but giggle. “Come on, do dragons not bathe where you come from? You don’t smell that bad, so you must.” I splash at him with my good arm.

Dakh makes a playful growling noise, and then he pulls me across the water and against his chest. I squeal, protecting my bad arm against my chest as he tugs me close, but he’s only settling me in against him. His arms go around me once more, and he touches my bad arm, a question in his gaze.

“It’s nothing,” I tell him softly. “At least, nothing I feel like talking about. And you can’t understand, anyhow.” It feels like Fort Dallas is a different part of my life now, an ugly past that I don’t have to think about. Right now, I’m living in the moment, and I plan on doing that and enjoying myself. I’ll worry about Fort Dallas and Tate and Claudia, Amy, and the future some other time.

With gentle hands, Dakh wipes a wet strand of hair off my forehead. Funny how he can be so very gentle given that his hands are the size of baseball mitts and tipped with claws, but I feel safe here with him. At some point in the last few days, I’ve realized that Dakh isn’t going to hurt me. More than anything, he wants to keep me safe. I think it’s because he views me as something that belongs to him, but whatever the reason, at least I’m safe right now.

He takes a handful of the bubbles and smooths them down my bad arm. He’s achingly gentle as he does so, his brows going down in a frown as he encounters my bruises. One claw skims my skin, and then he pauses. “Dakh?”

I shake my head. “I don’t understand?”

“Dakh?” he asks, and touches my temple, where the bruised skin is turning greenish-purple. Then he touches my hip, where my wound is still painful but scabbed over. “Dakh?”

Oh. He’s asking about my injuries. Asking if he was the one that hurt me. “No, it wasn’t you. It was someone else. Not Dakh.”

A look of relief crosses his face, and he strokes my temple again. I feel a twinge of pity for the dragon-man. Did he think he was the one that hurt me? No wonder he looks so sad when he stares at my wounds. “Dakh has been pretty good to me,” I tell him softly. Other than stealing me away and getting me almost killed by a red dragon, of course.

His eyes flick to a darker amber, and the look on his face turns sensual. He studies me and then cups my cheek with one big hand.

I shiver, uncertain where this is going.

12

SASHA

With careful movements, Dakh traces the pad of his thumb over my lower lip.

“I’m sorry you picked me,” I tell him in a low voice. “Because I think you’re a really nice guy for a dragon, but I hate sex. And I bet you won’t like it with me, either.” Ever since the After, when I’ve had to do questionable things to survive, I’ve learned to hate the touch of another. I don’t mind when Dakh hugs me or strokes my back, because it’s meant to comfort. Sex itself is a power struggle, and one I always lose. I’m going to forever associate it with distaste, all thanks to Tate.

And the ironic thing is that he’s never really wanted sex from me. When we did have sex, it was just because it was another way he could make me miserable. He liked my misery more than anything.

Dakh doesn’t seem like that. He seems different. He seems happiest when I’m happy, but I’m afraid the damage is already done. If he wants a human girlfriend who’s going to look forward to his touch, he grabbed the wrong girl.

Maybe my wariness shows on my face, because all he does is stroke my cheek. He doesn’t grab me and force me down or rip my top off. He seems content to touch my face. After a few minutes of no grabbing, I relax against him and tuck my body against his side, relaxing a bit. Maybe he just likes touching.

The dragon-man strokes my arm, sliding suds up and down the length of it. It’s…oddly relaxing, almost like a massage. His hand is incredibly warm, and combine that with the deliciously warm bath? I find my eyelids growing heavy, and I start to get sleepy.

“Maybe we should get out,” I tell him softly.

He just pulls me a little closer to his wet body and continues to stroke my soapy arm.

All right, well, if he wants to keep massaging a girl, I’ll let him. I close my eyes and relax against him. The gentle, stroking touches move over my shoulder, and I deliberately lean in against his chest so he can rub my back. He’s making that low, rumbling noise in his chest again and sounds like a contented cat. Heck, if humans could purr, I’d probably be doing so right now. If all he wants is gentle touching, I’m happy to oblige. I start to wonder if maybe I’ve read him all wrong. If he’s not wanting to have sex after all.

Then I remember him pulling me against him, ready to come into me from behind.

Yeah, I didn’t imagine that.

Suddenly it doesn’t feel quite so safe to lie here in his arms. I’m almost naked. He’s still my captor.

Still a dragon.

A little spooked, I push away from him and get up, wobbling in the slippery pool. “That’s enough bathing for me.”

He gets to his feet and immediately puts a hand to my waist, steadying me. I can’t help but notice that his bronzed body has water sluicing down his muscles—oh God, so many dang muscles—and that his cock is completely erect again. Time to put some distance between us again, I think. I get out of the pool, stepping onto the bath mat I’ve placed nearby for such a reason, and wrap a beach towel around me. It’s fluffy and delicious, and I snuggle it close.

Dakh comes up behind me and begins to rub the towel up and down my wet body, and it’s…well, damn, it’s really nice. I stand still for his ministrations, even though I know I should push him away. Part of me is worried that I’m going to push him away too much and make him angry, and part of me doesn’t want to push him away at all.

Part of me likes all this attention, even though I know what he’s going to want in the end.

“You’ve sold yourself for less, Sasha,” I mutter to myself as I slip on a pair of flip-flops. “Only this time, instead of selling yourself for some squirrel stew, you’d be selling yourself for an entire store full of stuff and a dragon that wants to protect you from everyone else. Might not be such a bad offer.”

And yet.

I don’t know what it entails if I give in to what Dakh wants. Does he want a quick fuck and nothing else? Or does he want to keep me hidden away forever? I don’t know anything about dragons, other than my really brief conversation with Claudia when she returned to Fort Dallas after escaping hers. I rack my brain, trying to remember what she told me.

Just that she touched his dick. That’s all I remember. Oh, and that he bit her. I’m suddenly filled with fear. I don’t want to be bitten. She looked really upset that he’d hurt her, and the memory of that makes my stomach clench.

I do my best to ignore Dakh at my side as I pad back to my nest of blankets. I can’t stop thinking about Claudia and her dragon. I’m a little panicked, but I have to be reasonable. When Claudia first told me she’d met a dragon, she was a little freaked out. She’d said he’d bit her and they’d had sex, and she didn’t look pleased. The next time I saw her, she wanted me to go with her and the dragon, and promised he wouldn’t hurt me. He must have regained her trust in some sort of manner, then.

Unless she had a deal with him like I did with Tate, where she agreed to do what he wanted in the bedroom as long as he kept her safe.

I…guess I could have a deal like that with Dakh, if I was being practical. Though it scares me to think about, it would also make sense. His protection would offer me a lot more than Tate’s would. And haven’t I been trading myself for such things already? It fills me with a little bit of despair to realize I’m back in the same situation, but I’ll do what I have to do to survive.

I’m just a little afraid of all the biting and what comes with having sex with a dragon. Then again, Tate broke my arm just to teach me a lesson, so I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t be as bad as that.

I shudder at the memory. I hope it wouldn’t be as bad as that. Right now I’m just assuming. But Dakh hasn’t been happy with my wounds, so I would think he would be a bit more careful with his playthings than Tate was.

All right then. By the time I make it back to the area I’ve set up as “home,” I’ve decided. If the dragon initiates sex with me again, I won’t pull away. I’ll let whatever happens, happen. And I’ll just deal with the fallout, like I always do. I squelch the feeling of self-loathing that threatens to rise up.

This is no time for me to be prudish. This is about my survival, and I’m just going to have to suck it up. Women have been trading their bodies for safety ever since the Rift. I’m no different from any of them at the end of the day.

When I return to my blankets, I convince Dakh to turn around so I can finish changing out of my wet clothes and into some dry ones. I know it shouldn’t matter considering he’s naked all the time, but it’s important to me that I not give up, even if it means being overly modest. I change into a pair of crisp pajamas, loving the way the cotton feels against my skin. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a real bath—the dunk back during the dragon fight doesn’t count—and I feel fresh and clean…and itchy. My skin is dry, and it doesn’t take long for me to start scratching. Annoyed, I dig through my new toiletries until I find lotion and begin to slather it on my legs and then my arms.

Dakh watches with interest, crouching across from me. I do my best to pretend he’s not there, but when he grabs the bottle and sniffs it, I patiently wait for him to return it.

Except he doesn’t. He squirts a bit on his hand and then moves closer to me, then rubs it on my bared arm. His hand has heated the lotion, and it’s not an unpleasant touch. I remain still while he smooths it over my skin. He just likes touching, it seems. Lots and lots of touching. If all he wants is that, I’m game. He rubs my arm all the way to my elbow-length sleeve, then slides his fingers under the sleeve itself, continuing to stroke my skin. Despite his claws, he’s very careful, and his touch is gentle. I close my eyes and relax because I have to admit, it feels pretty good.

But then Dakh growls, and I feel him jerk at my sleeve. I open my eyes to see he’s frowning at my clothing, and there’s more lotion on his hand. It’s clear he wants to continue the massage, even though every exposed inch of me is already lotioned up.

I swallow hard. This is the moment I was waiting for…and dreading. But there’s no sense in fighting the inevitable.

“Just a moment,” I whisper, and reach up to undo the buttons on my pajama top. My fingers are trembling a little, but I manage to keep myself calm and composed. I slide the top off and let it fall to the ground. My breasts are exposed, I’m completely naked from the waist up, and I wonder if he’s going to react in any particular way. Unease makes my skin prickle, and I can feel my nipples getting tight.

Dakh makes a grunt of approval and moves behind me, pressing one lotion-covered hand onto my shoulder, and continues his rubbing.

Okay, that’s not so bad then. Despite my initial anxiety, I relax as he continues his massage, kneading and lotioning every inch of my back. It actually feels really good. I can feel my body growing loose and the tension easing from my muscles as he continues to stroke me. His hands slide over my shoulders in a caress, and the longer he does it, the more languid I feel.

“Sa-cha,” he murmurs, his hand gliding down the back of my neck.

I feel a little shiver move through me at that soft way he says my name. Part of me wonders if he’s going to ask me to take off my pants next. And it’s weird how breathless and strange that makes me feel.

His slick hands move up and down my back, and then he kneads my sides. I have to bite back a little moan of pleasure, because god, that feels good. Any nervousness I felt about him touching me has been rubbed right out of my mind. I lean forward with a little sigh so he can knead the muscles of my lower back. “I don’t know if this is instinct or something that dragons do for each other, but it’s pretty nice,” I tell him sleepily.

Dakh just says my name again, gliding a slippery hand all the way back up to my shoulders once more. My eyes are closed and I’m feeling good, which is why it comes as a surprise when his front presses against my back and he reaches around to my front to knead my breasts.

I gasp at the sensation, startled. His hands slide over my boobs, rubbing them just like he did the muscles in my back, and I wonder if he realizes that this is an out-of-bounds area for women. Or are dragons different? Even as I contemplate this, he slides his fingers over my nipples, and a low moan tears from my throat.

Dear God, that…felt really good.

He rumbles low in his throat, and his hands continue to work my breasts, rubbing and plucking at my now-tight nipples. I can feel my pulse pounding between my thighs. I’m startled at my own response. It’s been forever since I’ve felt any kind of desire. It’s definitely what I’m feeling right now, though. There’s a deep throb low in my body, and as his hands glide over my breasts, I get breathless with excitement.

Dakh lowers his head and nuzzles at the juncture of my shoulder and neck. I can feel his breath there, hot and spicy, and when his thumbs drag over my nipples again, he licks at my skin and I feel my pussy throb once more in response. My breasts ache, and I push against his hands when he focuses on toying with the tips, rolling them back and forth between his thumb and forefinger, as if fascinated by their texture. God, I’m positively aching now. His tongue glides up the length of my neck, and I feel him flick it against my ear, and it sends new shivers through my body.

“Sa-cha,” he growls into my ear, and inhales deeply, burying his face against my hair. All the while, his fingers continue to work my nipples, claws dragging against my skin just enough to make me crazy with need.

I’m gasping for breath as he pets me, loving this exquisite torture. It’s the most delicious thing I’ve felt in a long time.

Dakh inhales sharply, interrupting my thoughts. He growls low in his throat again, and then his hands leave my breasts. He pushes me forward onto the blankets, until I’m on my elbows and my cheek presses against the floor. His weight rests atop mine, and I go stiff.

I know what’s coming next. Just like that, the pleasure I’ve been feeling bursts like a soap bubble. The self-loathing returns.

But it must be done. I suppress the sigh that rises in my throat. I won’t enjoy it, but sex isn’t the end of things. I’ll just let him do what he likes and pretend I’m enjoying it half as much. It’s not a big deal. I’ve had worse sex, I’m sure.

At least it’s not Tate, ready to break another limb. That puts things into perspective, for sure. Just thinking about it like that makes me resigned but determined.

It’s all about survival, after all.

13

DAKH

K  ael was right—my female wants caresses and soft touches instead of a mating challenge. I have done so, and now her mating perfume fills the air.

I’ve never smelled anything as good as Sa-cha’s mating scent. Thick and musky, I want to bury my face between her thighs and drag my tongue over her until I’ve captured every drop. But the urgency I feel inside me, the need to make her my mate? It won’t wait. I need to claim her as mine now and protect her. Anchor her to me. Give her my fires.

My mate.

Need threatens to overwhelm me, and my cock aches. I feel desperate to bury myself inside my mate. My fangs ache, filling with my fires. Sa-cha’s body is small underneath mine, and when I press her forward so I can mount her, she doesn’t resist. Mine, I think with joy. My mate is at last mine.

She still wears more of her strange skins, and I run my claws over her backside, trying to figure out how to remove them. With a growl of frustration, I rip my claws through the soft material, shredding it until it falls away from her. She gasps, and her fingers clench in the blankets, but she is otherwise still. I cast the destroyed skin aside and then run a hand over my mate’s soft body. Her flanks are pale, and her delicious scent is wafting up to me, making my mouth water with the need to claim her.

I will wait no longer.

I press against her backside, rubbing my length against her heat. She is wet, but not as thick with juices as I had hoped. It is no matter. She will grow wetter when I am inside her. I slick my cock with her desire, and then push into her heat. Sa-cha gasps again, her small body stiff under mine, and then I am lost to the mating heat. I pound into her, letting a cry of pure joy escape me as I bury myself to the hilt inside her. She is so wet and tight, my mate. Nothing has ever felt so good. Nothing.

I cannot help myself. I pull back and plunge deep again, and then again. Over and over, I pump my cock into her tight warmth. My fangs burn with the need to claim her, but I cannot stop driving into her, cannot stop spearing her cunt with my length. Her small body under mine is what I have needed all along, her sweetness given to me.

My body tightens, and I can feel my seed burning in my shaft. I slow down in my driving strokes, pacing myself. Though it is difficult to stop, I must give Sa-cha my fires first or I will burn her. The thought of pulling out and spilling my seed on her back—the drakoni ritual of rejecting her as a mate— It will not happen. She is mine.

Mine alone.

I lean forward, covering her smaller frame with my larger one. She trembles underneath me, and when I grab a handful of her hair and pull her neck to the side, I can hear her breathing, thick and rapid. “Sa-cha,” I murmur, and lick the cords of her delicate throat again.

She shudders underneath me, and when I turn her head to the side, her eyes are closed.

No matter. She is mine. I let my fangs elongate, let the fire surge through them, and then I press my mouth to her skin again. This time, I puncture deep and anchor my teeth into her. My fires pour forth, surging into her body, and she is silent as she takes my fires. There is no noise from my Sa-cha, only her endless trembling. She is brave, my mate. Look at how she accepts my fires now that I have conquered her. No male could ask for a more perfect female.

My fires surge out of me until my jaw aches, and I resist the urge to bite down, because I do not want to hurt my delicate Sa-cha. My heart sings with pleasure at the feel of her underneath me.

This is now mine, I realize. She is safe with me. She is mine. No one can take her, not the ravens, not the buzzards, not another male seeking a mate. Sa-cha belongs to Dakh, now and forever. My spirit is linked with hers.

Even as my fires dry up, the pressure in my cock builds. The need to fill her with my seed grows undeniable, and when my fangs finally retract, I let out a groan of relief. I straighten, adjusting my mate underneath me and spreading her hips wider. She fits perfectly under the palm of my hand, her small bottom pink and arched, her skin bright reddish where my burning flesh has pressed against her own. I watch in fascination as my cock disappears into her sheath when I thrust into her, and I can feel her tight body giving to mine. The time has come. I can give her my seed without hurting her. My next thrust into her is brutal in its intensity, but I cannot stop myself. Over and over again, I pump into my mate, harder and faster, until my body seems as if it is moving of its own volition. Sa-cha, I chant in my mind. Sa-cha. Sa-cha.

My release comes. I feel it rush through my muscles, my hands clamping down on her hips as my growl of pleasure turns into a low roar. With a possessive thrust, I erupt inside her. My seed spills forth, and I cannot stop moving, thrusting into her tight, wet heat until every ounce of my body has been given to her. Her channel is hot and slick with my cum, and I keep pumping into her, keep giving her more until there is nothing left to give.

Then the strength leaves my body and I collapse. I carefully roll to the side as I do, because I do not wish to harm my mate with my weight. I pull her against me, tucking her against my body so I can keep my cock buried inside her while I recover. I put a possessive arm around her shoulders and hold her tightly, burying my face in her wet hair that smells like flowers and water and Sa-cha.

My mate. Mine.

She is silent, quiet in my arms after our pleasure. I want to lick the wound I have left on her throat with my claiming bite, but I am too tired. Next time, I vow. There is no need for another bite, but I will lick her all over next time.

I like the thought very much. I relax and close my eyes, waiting for my strength to return. I knew that forging the mental link with a mate was exhausting, but I had no idea I’d be so tired. Perhaps it is more difficult with humans.

I breathe in Sa-cha’s scent, pleased to see that it is already changing. Though her skin still feels cooler than mine, I can smell my drakoni scent mingling with her human one. Soon she will have the spicy scent of my claim through her sweet blood, and I am eager to learn it.

I am almost as eager for that as I am for the mental bond. I push my mind at hers, waiting. There is not much there yet, but I feel something growing and changing, as if a light is gradually strengthening somewhere deep within. The ravens are silent in the wake of my mating, and I want to shout with joy over that small change alone.

Sa-cha has fixed my mind. She has saved me.

Meadows, comes a soft thought echoing in my head. Meadows with flowers.

Eh?

14

DAKH

I  test the mental connection again, seeking out her mind.

Meadows and flowers, I think. A stream. Some birds chirping. Maybe a picnic and some books, with the sun shining and not a cloud in the sky. Gosh, that would be great. Yeah. A picnic in a meadow. Nothing but peace and quiet and time to read my books. That’s my perfect place.

It is Sa-cha’s thoughts, calm and sweet and pure. I push against our mental bond, wanting more of this. Sasha, I realize as I touch her mind. She is Sasha Kennedy, and she is mine. I delve at her thoughts, exploring and curious about my mate’s inner workings.

A nice big thick book, she muses. I could set a blanket down near a rambling stream and...ow. She shifts slightly in my grip. Stupid arm. It throbs, sending an ache through her body. I hope he’s done with me soon.

Done?

There is no sweetness accompanying that thought, only…resignation. Curious, I lurk in the corners of her mind, waiting.

Against me, Sasha moves, flexing her leg. Her bottom presses against me, and even as I curl my body around hers, I can feel her thoughts. Sticky, she is thinking. And I just bathed. Oh well. Thank goodness that’s over, at least. I’ve had worse. And I’ve survived it, just like I’ve survived in the past.

Thank goodness it is over?

These are not the thoughts of a satisfied mate. I feel an uneasy clench in my gut as she mentally goes over her aches and pains, all made worse from the mating. There is a new rawness deep inside her from my eager mating, and her thoughts are full of how she is going to ache in the morning, not of shared pleasure.

She did not enjoy herself.

Sasha endured my touch. The realization comes as I brush against her thoughts. She did not want to mate with me. She let me enjoy her body because she felt she must. Even though there was a mating scent, she was not eager to mate with me. Even now, I feel a brush of her shame against my thoughts, and I am sick that she feels this way.

My mate does not want me to touch her?

My heart—joyful only moments ago—is filled with shame. How did I misunderstand her signals? Even as sleep overtakes me, I want to fight it. I want to understand my mate. I want her to feel what I feel—not shame. Not disgust with herself. Not self-loathing.

But if she will lie to me with her smiles, how can I trust her not to shield her thoughts from me? How can I trust that she will let me know the truth?

The answer is a simple—but hurtful—one. I must act as if there is no mental link at all.

SASHA

When Dakh is finally asleep, I slide out of his grip and get up from the floor. I’m aching all over, my knees wobbly and weak. I’m wet between my thighs from our mating, and my skin feels feverish and hot. In short, I feel like crap. So I pick up my beach towel and glance over at my dragon captor again.

He sleeps, one clawed hand twitching as if even in his dreams, he’s reaching for me.

I wrap the towel around my body and head to the back of the store, alone. It’s awfully quiet—too quiet. There’s nothing but my thoughts, and I’m not sure I want to be alone with them right now. Then again, I didn’t want to be alone with Dakh, either, so I guess I’m just impossible to please right now. I head for the pool and sink into the waters, not caring that it’s cold and the bubbles are gone.

I just had sex with a dragon.

I’m…not entirely sure how I feel about that. Part of me is kind of relieved that it’s over, because now I don’t have to worry about it anymore. I know what to expect. He’s got a huge dick, he’s a little rough even when he tries to be gentle, and he bites. Really, it could have been much worse. I think of Tate and all the times he made me feel terrible before doing his best to degrade me. I can deal with a slightly rough, biting dragon-man who has decided to claim me.

I’m a little disappointed in Dakh, too. Part of me was hoping he’d realize I was no longer enthusiastic the moment he pushed me down onto the ground, and that he’d stop. That we’d go back to the petting and stroking of my breasts. Because I’d enjoyed that—a lot—and it had surprised me. I thought I hated all sex. Now I realize I like being petted and caressed, but the actual sex act itself is just something to be endured, even with someone different.

I put a hand between my thighs under the water. My pussy’s throbbing, and I feel worn out. My neck throbs, too, and I realize I feel feverish all over—both inside and out. Is that because his cum was hotter than a human man’s cum? I could actually feel it inside me, like a hot splash over my insides. It was the strangest sensation. Maybe I can talk Dakh into wearing a condom, if they even make them dragon-sized. I’ll have to look at the pharmacy. My neck aches, too, and I rub it.

I can’t help but feel a little guilty that I’m back to trading my body for safety. I told myself that I’d never do such a thing, and then I met Tate. Granted, I mostly slept with Tate for a few bites to eat or some money, but being with him also gave me security from the other New Militia jerks. They knew I was Tate’s plaything and didn’t mess with me. And I told myself that if it was just Tate, it’d be different. But now I’ve gone and given myself to a dragon, and I feel a little ashamed.

I’ve always told myself I’d do what I have to do to survive, but sometimes getting my brain on board with the program is a little more difficult. I sink lower into the water, wishing I didn’t feel weird about this. Dakh’s been kind but…

This was never how I pictured my life, to be tossed between one man after another, nothing more than a possession.

DAKH WAKES up toward the end of the evening, and I do my best to remain normal around him.

I’ve been busy “improving” my house, trying to keep my mind off of what just happened between us. I blew up an air mattress and redid my bed, so now it’s nice and neat. I’ve found a battery-powered lamp and a few batteries with some juice left in them and have a small bedside lamp so I can read. And I’ve eaten an entire bag of stale chocolate chips, because I figure a girl can treat herself after a day like today. I’m in new pajamas since Dakh shredded my last pair, and my hair’s dry and fluffy. I have a good book in my hands.

I should be happy.

Instead, I’m nervous. Dakh comes over to my bed where I’m curled up, reading, and nuzzles at my hair, inhaling deeply. I give him a polite smile, but inwardly, I’m worried he’s going to want to have sex again. How often do dragons mate, I wonder. Maybe I’ll get lucky and it’s only a once-a-month thing. That’d be all right. I think I could endure monthly.

But all he does is rub his nose along my neck and then pads away.

I pick my book up again, but I’m a little weirded out. Is he…leaving me for good? Is he done with me now? I can’t tell if I feel rejected or relieved.

I’m so confused. I read for a moment longer, then put my book down and move to the end of the aisle, peeping to watch him. He’s heading to the front of the store, his stride calm and easy. This is also the first time he’s left my side voluntarily since he nabbed me, and I don’t know what to think.

“All right, Sasha. If he’s leaving you for good, you need a plan B.” I turn back to my bed and sit down, cross-legged. I rub my aching neck, thinking. There are pads of stationary a few aisles down, and I can write out a supply list. I could fill a backpack of things that could be worth money back at Fort Dallas and return there and live like a queen for a short time. Well, as long as no one robbed me, of course. But that would mean going back to Fort Dallas by myself, and I don’t even know that Claudia or Amy are there anymore. I have a few friends left there—like Melina, the local doctor, who’s seen me far more than she should. I could go back and stick with what I know.

Or I could live here alone for a while, like Emma did, and disguise my scent from dragons. I could hold my own and just suck it up in regards to the loneliness.

I could also go and look for Claudia and her dragon. That’s the most dangerous of the three options, because I’d be looking for dragons instead of running away from them, but I also feel obligated to my friend and her sister.

My head hurts because none of those options seem like good ones. I don’t know what to do. Miserable, I curl up in my bed and lie down. My arm hurts, too, the bones aching deep. My hip feels like poop, too. I’m just whiny and miserable. It’s the fever, maybe. I press my hand to my forehead and I feel hot. Ugh.

Maybe I’m allergic to dragon semen. Wouldn’t that just figure.

DAKH

My Sasha. I roll her name around in my mind as I return from my hunt to find her sleeping. She is curled up in her bed, beads of sweat on her brow. Her scent is heavily mixed with mine, so the fires must be raging through her. I move to lie next to her and pull her against me, wanting to feel her close to me.

Even for the short time I was gone, I missed her. Of course, I cannot take her hunting with me, but the sight of her, safe in her nest, fills me with intense pleasure.

My mate.

Her small form fits in my arms perfectly, and now that our minds are connected, I can feel that her wounds are hurting her. The fire moves through them as well, burning away impurities. Dragons heal quickly, and we do not sicken like humans do, and the fire works to fix my mate and make her stronger so she can bear my young.

It never occurred to me that Sasha would not enjoy being my mate, however. I have been troubled by this since I touched her, and my thoughts were a chaotic, muddy pool as I flew over the ruins and hunted. Now that I have returned to her side and resumed my two-legged form, I am able to think clearly. Sasha did not wish for me to touch her, but when I rubbed her body with the scented cream, her pleasure scent flowed. She enjoyed it after all.

I did not imagine her scent. And while she might not have enjoyed all of my touches, that does not matter. If she enjoyed one touch, I will learn others so she will come to look forward to all of my touches. I will not give up. I will not despair. Like Kael said, she wants to be caressed and coaxed. I was too stubborn to listen then, but I will take his advice now.

Whatever my mate needs from me, I will give her.

15

SASHA

T  he next morning, I wake up to see that Dakh is asleep beside me, his big arm thrown over my shoulders. I’m tucked against his chest, and my hair’s damp with sweat. I feel a little hungover, all wrung out and exhausted. Am I sick? I slide out of his grip and get out a small mirror, examining my neck. The bites that were there last night are gone. My cheeks are flushed with fever, but other than that, I look all right.

“Sasha,” Dakh murmurs. He strokes a hand down my arm, a silent question in his gaze.

“I’m okay,” I tell him with a faint smile. “Just feel kind of crappy.” I keep the cheery expression on my face, though I’m watching him warily as he gets up. I know some guys get morning wood and want to have sex. Is he going to be one of them?

But Dakh gets to his feet and pads away, and I sink back under the blankets, relieved.

He returns a few minutes later, and I’m surprised to see that he’s got a few items in his hands. One is the mug I’ve been drinking out of, and when he hands it to me, I realize it’s full of fresh, cold water. He watches me to make sure I take a drink, and when I sit up, he sits on the ground next to me and puts down a few more items, regarding me as he does: a can of beans, a jar of peanut butter, and a box of crackers that are probably stale as hell.

He’s taking care of me. Despite my mixed feelings about him, I melt at that. “Thank you, Dakh. This is really sweet of you.”

He touches my cheek and then tucks the blankets closer around me, then hands me one of my paperbacks. “Sasha.” He points at the bed, and even with that one word, I understand him. I need to stay in bed and recover today. I give him a genuine smile. “I guess I can do that.”

I drink my water, and as I do, I wonder if there’s a way I can make coffee or hot tea. Oooh. That’s something to try for the future, I think. For now, I gulp down everything in my cup, and Dakh immediately takes it and leaves with it for a refill. I skip the can of beans and inspect my crackers and peanut butter. The crackers are terribly stale, but I spread peanut butter on them with my fingers and eat anyhow. It’s the best thing I think I’ve ever tasted. When Dakh returns with my drink, I take a few more sips and then lie back down again.

He pushes my book into my hands, and I chuckle at that. “Never thought someone would demand that I read.” But I pop it open and return to my place, happy to lose myself in a book for a few hours.

Of course, it’s a little disconcerting that Dakh is hovering nearby. I’m aware of him even as I try to concentrate on my book. When he climbs into the bed with me, my senses go on high alert, but he only moves to sit next to me, and his hand strokes through my hair, petting it. Which is…kind of nice.

For a girl who’s sworn she hates to be touched, I sure do seem to be enjoying all these touches lately. Maybe it’s not the touches I hate, but what comes with them—sex. But getting my hair stroked is all right. When Dakh indicates that I should put my head in his lap, I do, and he continues to run his fingers through my curls. That’s all he does, though. He doesn’t do more, doesn’t push for more, doesn’t even talk. He seems content to hang out with me, as if he knows I don’t feel well and need to rest.

It’s surprising, but it’s also pleasant. How long has it been since I’ve had a day where I could stay in bed? Too long. I’m determined to enjoy it. I smooth my hand over one of the pages in my book and go back to reading.

DAKH

Sasha’s thoughts are full of pleasure. She is still wary every time I move, but she lets me pet her hair and touch her face as she stares at the thing she calls a “book” and loses herself in its story. And her pleasure makes me happy.

I do not remember things like “books” from my world. My vague memories are misty and polluted by ravens, but I do remember some things. Sitting at the feet of the elders and hearing glorious tales of battle is one of them, though I do not recall any of the specific stories. Perhaps that is like what Sasha feels when she looks at her book. It is telling a story in her head, instead of aloud. And because I am in her thoughts, I listen in on the story as well.

It is a strange one, full of humans and things called “ships” that float on the water. One human male courts a female, but because she is angry at him, he decides to woo her. This has my full interest, because I, too, wish to learn how to woo my female.

The door to Ophelia’s cabin opened up with a bang. She sat up in bed, clutching her nightgown to her heaving bosom.

What is this? I pause in my stroking of Sasha’s hair, fascinated. The words paint a story in her mind. I find this fascinating. More than that, I can feel how intrigued my mate is by the story. I settle in, curious.

Dirk swept inside, his gaze raking over Ophelia. In his hand, he carried a large bouquet of roses. “You asked me to show you my love? Well, I shall do so.”

Ophelia gasped, pleased. “Flowers? For me?”

“Only the best for you, my dearest.” He held the flowers out to her. She took them, and then he swept her into his arms, carrying her out of the ship’s cabin. He moved out onto the deck with her, and she blushed to hear all of the ship’s hands cheering them on. But Dirk did not stop. He continued off the gangplank with her and walked to the pier, and then onward. Ophelia swooned in his arms, aroused by his strength and the way he had swept her off her feet. So romantic. It made her hungry for him just knowing how strong he was.

I snort at that. I have carried my Sasha many times and she has never viewed it as romantic. This story is foolish.

Sasha pauses in her reading and glances up at me. “What?”

I stroke her hair.

“You just snorted. Is something wrong?”

I caress her cheek, acting as if I do not understand her words. “Sasha.”

She gives me a strange look and then settles back in, returning to her book. “Strange dragon,” she mutters.

Dirk carried her a ways away from the pirate ship and onto the sandy shore. There, in the distance, he’d set up a picnic blanket, full of delicious foods arranged on a lovely blanket. How thoughtful he was! How caring! To think that Dirk had done all of this for her, right down to the flowers. She felt loved and cosseted. She felt like he truly cared for her to make such a show of things. And it made her want to put her arms around his neck and kiss him until all of her worries about the future went away. This was the sweetest, most thoughtful thing anyone had ever done for her.

My interest perks. The male puts a blanket on the ground for the female and she wishes to mate with him? The mental images I am receiving from Sasha’s mind seem to agree with this. Is this another human ritual I have perhaps missed?

“My beauty,” Dirk told Ophelia as he laid her down on the blanket. “I have prepared a picnic feast for you, with all of the most delicious treats I could imagine, but none of them compare to the taste of your lips.”

“Dirk!” she cried. “How I love you! Take me in your arms and never let me go, ever again.”

In her mind, my Sasha sighs happily. She is pleased by this strange story, and as it goes on, I can see from the visual in her mind that the humans do, indeed, begin to mate. The descriptions continue, and I find myself getting aroused at the way my Sasha is picturing them—and how it affects her. When Dirk pulls the panties off of Ophelia and places his mouth between her thighs and Sasha gets excited?

It makes it very clear to me what I must do.

I must give my mate a picnic. I will find a shore, some flowers, and some food to lay down on a blanket. Then I will wait for her to press her mouth to mine and demand that I mate with her.

This sounds perfect.

THE NEXT MORNING, as I hunt my meal, I think about my mate’s picnic. It must be just right, I decide. I want my Sasha to be so pleased with her picnic that she cannot help but fall into my arms, her mating scent overwhelming.

Yes, I like that idea.

I start with the colorful plants she refers to as “flowers.” I can find none that match the visual image she had in her mind. Most of the plants are withered and brown, either from dragon-fire or the chill in the air. I do find a bush that is green, the leaves glossy. Surely this is the same thing. Pleased, I dig it up with my claws and carry it as I look for the next item. Food is simple. They ate a sort of bird in the story. I snap up one of the passing birds and swallow it, testing. It is no more than a morsel, but I suppose it is tasty if one does not mind feathers. I catch up with another group of them and flush one out of the air with fire. It drops like a stone to the ground, and I scoop it up.

Human females must be easy to please, I decide. This venture is not so difficult. Though “easy to please” is not how I would describe my Sasha. I study the roasted bird I carry in one claw, and the bush in the other. Perhaps I am getting this wrong? Mentally, I review the images I have in my mind after Sasha’s story. Plants. Food. Picnic. No, I am correct.

I fly off in search of the perfect spot to set up my picnic. Somewhere with water.

16

SASHA

I  yawn, stretching as I wake up from my nap. Whatever flu that seems to have knocked me out yesterday has passed, thank goodness. I feel much better today. Less achy, less tired, and I’m hungry again. I grab a sleeve of stale crackers and nibble on them as I sit up, looking around for my dragon. The store is quiet, and that means I’m all by myself at the moment. He must be out hunting.

Weird how I feel a little lonely at that realization. I must be needier than I thought. After Claudia got exiled, though, and Amy disappeared to go hunt for her sister, I felt abandoned and alone. I hated that feeling, more than anything. It’s not that I need people to feed me or take care of me, but…I want to matter to someone. Maybe that’s why I feel emotionally attached to the dragon even though he should be the enemy. When he’s around, he acts like I’m the only thing in his world. It’s…nice.

Of course, now that we’ve had sex, he’s flying off and leaving me alone, and I wonder if this means he’s one foot out the door.

I shouldn’t care about that. Really. But it would just be another checkmark in a long list of Sasha-abandoners. After a while, you start wondering what’s so terrible about you that makes everyone leave, and that’s not a good feeling.

I get dressed in a fresh pair of panties, a new bra, and another sundress and some sandals. Since I have a whole store full of clothing to use, I don’t plan on wearing anything a second time if I can help it. I straighten up my little bedroom area and sigh happily as I put away my books. Yesterday was so nice. I read and ate snacks in bed like I didn’t have a care in the world. When was the last time I had a full day just to be lazy and relax while someone else took care of me? Dakh waited on me like I was a princess and stroked my hair and skin while I read, just because he wanted to be near me.

I…wish he didn’t want sex. He’d be a great companion otherwise.

Of course, if he didn’t want sex, he wouldn’t have kidnapped me, so I guess there’s no use banging that drum. I tidy things up and then pull out a book of crossword puzzles, glancing back up at the entrance of the store. Still no Dakh. Huh. Normally he hunts quickly and then returns just as quickly. I thought it was because he didn’t like leaving me alone.

What if…what if he’s not coming back?

I swallow hard at the thought. What if I’m not worth the hassle anymore? I shake my head to rid it of such negative thoughts. Emma wouldn’t give a shit if she was abandoned. Neither would Claudia, come to think of it. Both of them would work hard to survive and kick ass no matter what. I need to be more like them.

Emma. I tap my pen on the crossword book, thinking about the lone woman. She hasn’t come back despite the fact that it’s been days. I thought—hoped—that she’d at least scope the place out and see if we’d abandoned it. I wouldn’t mind having another person to talk to.

Especially if Dakh’s abandoned me. But I don’t like to think about that.

Maybe Emma’s still around? I get to my feet and head through the store, looking for the stationary aisle. I find it and then find some pads of paper, and sit down on the floor to compose a note to her.

EMMA,

IT’S ME, SASHA, THE ONE WHO TOOK OVER YOUR STORE. I’M STILL HERE WITH THE DRAGON, BUT I PROMISE, PROMISE HE WON’T HURT YOU. HE’S REALLY NICE, AND HE’S BEEN GOOD TO ME, BUT I UNDERSTAND IF YOU’RE AFRAID. IF YOU WANT TO MEET TO TALK, OR IF YOU NEED SOME SUPPLIES AND ARE SCARED TO COME BACK, LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU NEED, OK? I’M INCLUDING SOME PAPER AND AN EXTRA PEN IN THIS ENVELOPE. PLEASE WRITE BACK IF YOU SEE THIS.

YOUR FRIEND,

SASHA

I put the letter and the supplies in a big envelope, seal it, and then write EMMA huge on the front and head to the store entrance. I’m going to tape it to the window and hope that she sees it.

Of course, the moment I finish attaching my envelope on the door, I hear the heavy beat of dragon wings and look up. My heart pounds until I see the dragon do a familiar whirl and dip in the sky that I’ve come to think of as Dakh’s. Thunder rumbles overhead, and the skies look ominously dark. I’m a little concerned, because should Dakh even be flying in poor weather? Or do dragons not have to worry about lightning? I stay close to the front doors, hugging my busted arm and watching as he comes in for a landing. I want to ask if everything’s okay, but of course I can’t. He doesn’t speak English.

The moment Dakh’s clawed feet touch the ground, he turns to his human form and bounds toward me, a toothy grin on his face. He looks so very pleased with himself that I can’t help but respond, and I begin to smile, too. As he approaches, he extends his hand in my direction.

“What is it?” I ask, and gesture at the sky just as thunder rumbles again. “It’s about to rain.”

I go to put my hand in his, but Dakh immediately changes forms, and then I’m being snatched up by the dragon and flown through the stormy skies. I swallow my cry of distress and cling to his claws. Not this again. I’m so tired of being hauled around like a piece of meat. And I hope we’re going back to the store and this isn’t the last time I’ll see it, because I’m not prepared. I force myself to push the negative thoughts away and hold on to Dakh’s claws. At the end of the day, I’m not in control. Best to just hang on and see where he takes me.

The rain starts pouring within minutes, and by the time Dakh lands, I’m soaked to the bone and shivering. “What the hell?” I tell him as he releases me and I stagger forward. I push wet hair out of my face, and my cute sundress is soggy and clinging to my body like a cold blanket. “Why are we here?”

Dakh transforms to human form, and I yelp as he grabs me in his arms, hauling me against him. I fling my good arm around his neck to hold on, mystified. What is going on? Why is he carrying me in his human form? Why are we out here in the rain?

Where the heck are we?

I squint through the driving rain, trying to figure out the location. Like most of Old Dallas, there’s a couple of wrecked cars in the wild grasses, one with a tree growing through the sunroof. The area is shrubby and unkempt, and in the distance, I can see a broken fast-food sign. It’s like we’re in a field…somewhere. But where and why?

I’m even more mystified when Dakh arrives at what looks like a murky, scummy pond. Well, ‘pond’ might be too kind of a word for it. With no one to run the city’s water systems, some sewer lines and man-made lakes have gone dry, and new ones have sprung up from leaks, turning low-lying areas into swampy miasmas. This looks to be the latter.

I swear I don’t know how this dragon’s mind works.

Dakh sets me down gently at the edge of a messy-looking…something. I wipe water from my eyes and stare down. It’s a long square of what was once white material. It…kind of looks like a huge car-dealership flag? But why it’s neatly folded up here on the banks of this greenish pond, I have no idea. It’s also completely soaked, thanks to the rain. I’m mystified as to what I’m supposed to think, and I turn to give the dragon a confused look. “Dakh?”

He gestures that I should wait, and races off. A moment later, he brings me…a bush. Not just any bush, but a bush with the roots dripping mud everywhere. He thrusts it out to me, a proud look on his face.

Am I supposed to take it? “Um, thank you?” I try to pick it up with my good arm, but it’s a little unwieldy and the leaves keep pricking against my skin. After a moment of wrestling with it, I just set it down and wipe my now-muddy hands on my dress. “I don’t know what’s going on, Dakh. I really don’t. I—”

I go silent because in the next moment, he’s holding a dead bird out to me. A dead, roasted bird, feathers and all. I look at it with horror, and he frowns at me, tilting his head as if he’s confused as to why I’m upset. He rips the head off the bird—I think it’s a dove—and offers it to me.

With a squeal of distress, I stumble backward. “Gross! No!”

He frowns down at the dove (and dove head) and tosses it aside, then moves forward and takes me by the shoulders and kisses me.

Kisses me.

I’m so surprised I stand completely still—I didn’t know that Dakh even knew what it meant to kiss! The last time he tried this, he just pushed his mouth against mine. This is different, his lips gentle against my own. He pulls away after a moment and then studies me again.

It’s like he’s waiting for something.

I stare at him, confused. I’m supposed to be grasping something from this ritual, I think, but what, I don’t know.

Dakh looks frustrated. He moves to my side and picks me up, then carries me onto the white material again. He picks up the bush again and offers it to me once more. It’s definitely a ritual of some kind. Maybe on his world, people give women bushes instead of flowers like they do here…

Flowers? I frown to myself, glancing down at the flag underneath my feet. It’s almost like a picnic blanket.

As if he can read my mind, Dakh grins and picks up the cooked dove and offers it to me again. “Is…this a picnic?” He carried me and gave me food. A flower—kind of. A kiss. It’s almost like my romance novel—

I gasp. This is the romance novel. Dakh brought me here like Dirk brought Ophelia to the shore. He’s giving me flowers and food for a picnic, and while this poor mangled dove isn’t chicken, the concept must be the same in his mind. He even kissed me, just like Dirk and Ophelia did.

How did he know?

It is because we are connected, a voice says in my mind, loud and clear as a bell—and the voice is wholly masculine.

Oh my God.

17

SASHA

T  he dragon is in my head.

In. My. Head.

I stare at Dakh like he’s the enemy. Because he is. He’s been spying in my head for God knows how long, and he’s just now thinking to tell me? I feel hysterical with the anger and betrayal that’s sweeping through me. This is the worst kind of privacy invasion. Not only has he kidnapped me, he’s taken my body…and now he’s taking hold in my mind. Is nothing going to be mine anymore? Not even my thoughts?

You are upset. The male voice booms in my brain, even as Dakh cocks his head, a perplexed expression on his face. I wish I understood why.

Because it’s my head. You can’t take everything from me. I put a fist to my brow, frustrated. “Shit, now I’m talking in my head, too.” I give myself a little shake. “How long have you been in there? How is this even possible?”

When I gave you my fires, it connected us. My soul is now anchored to yours. You are my mate, and I am yours.

“You didn’t ask me if I wanted to be connected!” And then the rest of it hits me like a load of bricks. “Wait, mate?”

Yes. You are my mate. His eyes gleam with that gold-on-gold luster. My sweet female, you are my reason for living.

I can’t help but be a little flattered at that. “I’m trying not to be angry, Dakh, but I don’t understand so much. Is…is this why you stole me?” I shiver, thinking of that horrible day back in Fort Dallas. “Is this why you were attacking the fort? To get to me?”

I attacked the human hive to help my friend Kael and his human mate. You fell from the sky, and I plucked you from the air. The moment I touched you, I knew you were mine. The gold in his eyes seems to get even deeper. You would be the one to drive the ravens from my mind. You would be the one to make my thoughts clear once more. The one I can depend on to calm me when the madness hits. It’s all true. You soothe me.

“Madness? Ravens?” There’s so much I don’t grasp. I feel like I’ve been left behind in an important conversation. “You said Kael had a human mate. Kael is…he’s the other gold? Claudia’s gold?”

I do not know the human’s name, but she is the one with fire hair.

That’s her. That’s my friend. I press a hand to my lips, worried. “Is she…alive? Did they survive the attack on Fort Dallas?”

She is alive. Kael’s thoughts are yet clear. If she were dead, he would be lost to the madness once more.

I stagger against him with relief, not caring that there’s rain slanting down on both of us. “So she’s okay? Amy too?”

I do not know. Shall I ask Kael the next time I fly into range?

“Oh my God, that would be wonderful.” I gasp as I realize he’s known all this time that she’s fine and I’ve been worried sick, and I smack his arm. “I can’t believe you’ve let me worry for so long! That’s cruel!”

Rain drips into my eyes, and before I can wipe it away, he is there, brushing my forehead with his knuckles protectively. We have only been bonded since we mated and you received my fires. I could not understand you before.

Oh. “That was still two days ago,” I protest. “Why didn’t you speak up?”

His eyes flash dark. Because I heard your thoughts and they were displeasing. I wished to understand you more.

My thoughts were unpleasant to him? “Well, that’s what you get for snooping. If you don’t want to hear what I think, don’t listen in.”

I cannot help it. I am addicted to your thoughts. I need them. I need your connection to keep me sane.

“Sane?” That’s the second time he’s mentioned madness. “What do you mean?”

He touches my face again, as if he cannot help himself. His fingers are tender, and he’s so careful. Those of us that came through have gone mad. When I touch the minds of others, I feel nothing but chaos. Even my own mind has been lost for so long that I cannot remember much. The ravens have taken it all away.

“Ravens?”

They live in my thoughts. His eyes go even darker. They tell me to do terrible things. They want me destroyed.

I don’t like how black his eyes are getting. I’m also starting to receive flashes of weirdness from his thoughts, like his mental cup is spilling over. “It’s okay,” I whisper to him and put my hand on his chest. “I’m here.”

Immediately, the storm I’m sensing in his thoughts quiets. The gold returns to his pupils. My Sasha. You are the only light in this world.

Even though I’m angry and confused, I can feel the heartfelt emotion bleeding through, and I soften toward him. I can’t be upset. He’s trying really hard, and his devotion…okay, it’s really flattering. “Dakh, I’m glad I can help you, but couldn’t we have done the mental bond in another way? If you can talk to other dragons, why not reach out to humans?”

I can only bond with you because you have received my fires. And now that you have, you can receive my seed.

Eek. I’m blushing, and when a wicked smile crosses his face, I can tell that he’s picking that up from my thoughts. “You…you came inside me. Is pregnancy going to be a concern?”

His eyes turn so brightly gold that it’s like watching the sun flare. I would find no greater pleasure than to watch you grow round with my young.

“Yes, well, I don’t know that I’m in a hurry for that.” My cheeks are still red at the thought. “You can’t just take me away and not ask permission. You’ve snatched me away from everything I know.”

You would have died if I did not catch you.

“You’ve got a point. But you could have set me down inside the city.” And…then what? Starve a bit longer? Have to go back to Tate and “trade” for more food? I’m getting angry when in reality, he’s saved me and brought me to a place that’s a post-apocalyptic paradise. I’ve got food and clothes and I’m safe, even if I’m still trading myself for sex. “Never mind. I’m sorry. I’m just freaking out because this is all new to me.”

I can feel in your thoughts that you are upset. I did not wish to upset you. His knuckle rubs along my wet cheek. I wish for nothing but your happiness. Ask me for anything and I shall make it yours.

“I know. It’s just…a lot to sink in.”

Do you need to sit?

“In the rain?” I laugh. “I just want to go home, back to the store.” I pat his chest, and he’s warm despite the chilly rain. Kind of makes me want to put my hands all over him. “I do appreciate what you were trying to do here. It’s sweet, in a weird, backward kind of way.”

His eyes gleam, and his hands go around me. He tugs at my sodden dress. You should lie down so I can seduce you like in your story.

I press a hand to his chest, pushing back. I’m blushing, but at the same time, I can feel a hint of fear spike through me. “I’m sorry, but I think you picked the wrong woman to grab as your mate, Dakh. I’m…” I suck in a breath, because it feels so awful to say out loud. “I don’t like sex. I don’t like being touched. Not like that.”

Dakh’s expression is impassive. His eyes eventually narrow, and he looks skeptical. When I touched you, I smelled your mating scent. You…did not wish to mate?

“It’s not that.” I bite my lip. “I knew what you wanted, and I, well, I figured I wouldn’t turn you down. It was okay at first, but…” I shrug. “I don’t enjoy things as they go on.”

I try to give his chest a pat, but he pushes my hand away. His eyes are dangerously close to black. You…endured my touch? You suffered mating with me because you did not wish to offend me?

Oh, he sounds really offended right now. The fear spikes again. “Dakh…”

And now you are afraid? His thoughts roar through my mind. Dakh shakes his head and then puts his hands on the sides of my head, cupping my face. I would die for you, my Sasha. How can you think I would possibly hurt you?

“Because your eyes are turning black,” I whisper.

I am angry and hurt that you let me touch you without your enjoyment. I want you to be pleased with my touch. I want you to crave me as I crave you.

“That won’t happen.”

But why?

Why? Do I tell him it’s because of Tate? Tate and his cruel hands and his way of making me feel like the smallest, sluttiest person on earth because I did what I had to in order to survive?

Before I can choose what to say, his eyes go wide and very, very black. Another male?

“You don’t have to worry about him,” I say quickly, trying to think of happy things. Hearts and kittens and rainbows. Anything but Tate. “I hate him.”

This male touched you?

Are we not letting go of this? Frustrated, I snap, “How do you think I broke my arm?”

Dakh’s nostrils flare. His eyes go black as night. Then he presses his forehead to mine. Give me an image of him.

His voice is so direct, so forceful in my mind, that I don’t want to, but it happens anyhow. An image of Tate flutters to the top of my thoughts. Tate, with that cruel, sadistic smile on his face, like the one he wore moments before he snapped my arm like a twig.

Dakh flings himself off of me and whirls around. He staggers forward and then drops to his knees, hunched over as if in pain.

I…don’t know what to do. I swallow hard, my throat dry. “Dakh?” My voice is a mere frightened whisper. I’m terrified. What if he’s losing control like he said he has in the past? It takes every ounce of my courage to step forward, but I put a hand on his shoulder. “Are you okay?”

For some reason, images of ravens and feathers fill my mind. Dakh turns and faces me, and his eyes bleed from black to a dark, murky gold. He straightens to his full height and brushes his knuckles against my cheek, ever so tenderly.

I am taking you home.

“Do we need to talk?” I’m worried about the look on his face. I can’t tell if it’s disgusted or murderous or both.

But he doesn’t say anything. He just turns to dragon form and launches himself in the air. I know what’s coming next, and I’m not surprised when the claws come down and he gently picks me up, flying off. Nor am I surprised when we return to the SuperMart a short time later, just as the rain lets up. Dakh lands and very carefully puts me down on the ground.

I glance up at him, waiting for him to turn human so we can talk more.

Instead, his eyes go black and he launches himself back into the air again, flying away.

That was…unexpected. “Dakh?” I call out, and when there’s no answer, I try it in my head. Dakh, are you there?

All I get are more ravens.

18

DAKH

I  am going to destroy every human in the hive.

All of them must die. Stinking, filthy, disgusting…humans.

In my head, the ravens laugh wildly. They mock me and my efforts. You thought you were so strong, so free. You are never free of us.

Never.

Never.

Nevernevernever.

My thoughts are black with anger. I hunger to dive over the human hive, to flame it to ash and char and to breathe in the greasy smoke left from the bodies. They deserve to be wiped out. Is it not the spoils of war for the conqueror to destroy the conquered?

It will not be enough that I find the human male—this Tate—and kill him.

I must make him suffer, like he made my Sasha suffer. I want him to know pain. I want him to know fear. I want to destroy everything he has ever touched, ever loved, ever even thought about.

All the while, the ravens laugh their delight. They are pleased to have me back. They love that my mind is no longer my own. They want chaos and destruction, and I am the one that will give it to them. I do not care that they perch on my shoulders and twitter their evil in my ears. I welcome it. They feed the black anger in my soul.

I fly over the human hive, low enough that they can see my shadow as I glide over. I take my time, relishing in the fact that they must be terrified. The klaxon goes off, warning them, and I throw flame from my throat into the air, deciding I will make them tremble with fear before I let them burn.

Below, a human woman races for shelter, her long skirts tangling in her legs. Her hair is dark and she is thin, and for a heart-staggering moment, I think she is my Sasha.

But my Sasha is safe back in her nest. This cannot be her. Even when I send out feelers to my mental tether, they feel distant. Sasha is a good distance away. She is not here in the hive.

Still, the sight of the female makes me wheel about abruptly, and I beat my wings to gain height in the air.

I need to think.

I circle the human hive once more, and then fly away.

Stay, whisper the ravens.

The sight of the human female has reminded me that I am drakoni once more, though. I have a heart, and it is with Sasha. I cannot be the mindless beast she thinks I am. I cannot kill innocent females and their young. I cannot murder and destroy all simply because I am angry at one.

This Tate will die. He will die slowly and painfully, but it will not be here in the human hive. He will not take others with him.

I must hunt him. Find where he lurks. Wait for him to come out of his hole. Once I have spotted him, I will snatch him in my claws and bring him to my Sasha so she can watch me rend him limb from limb.

Slowly.

This will require stealth. The humans will be on alert if they see a dragon nearby. I fly a good distance away, behind one of the tall, crumbling metal nests, and turn to my two-legged form. The ravens go silent once I do, and I walk resolutely toward the human hive—the place Sasha calls Fort Dallas. I ignore the driving rain and the mud that clings to my skin. None of it matters. I pay no attention to the stink of their hive, or the noise that seems to flow endlessly from the wild minds of my people nearby. I make it to the metal barrier and climb it, then lie flat atop one of the rusted hulks so I can watch the people below.

I scan the human faces, looking for one in particular. I will not rest until I find him.

His days are few. My claws dig into the metal at the pleasing thought.

SASHA

Dakh’s gone for hours on end and I’m alone at the store. I don’t know what to think. I’m miserable at the thought of being the cause of his mind to snap again. And I’m still upset that we’re mentally linked and he didn’t tell me. Most of all I’m scared, lonely, and frightened.

I hate this. I hate that even now, Tate’s ruining my life.

My note to Emma has been untouched, and I write her another just because it’s either that or another seventeen pages of Sudoku or crosswords. I need the distraction of speaking to another human being, even if it’s only on paper. So I tell her all about Dakh and what I know. That he’s my boyfriend—in a way—and he used to be crazy, but he’s better now.

Except I don’t know if that’s the truth anymore, so I end up wadding up the letter and throwing it away. Maybe being mated to me has driven Dakh to madness and I’ll never see him again.

I’m so terrified of being abandoned again. Once upon a time, if you would have told me that security was the most important thing in the world, I would have laughed. But it’s what I crave more than anything. I want to know that I’m safe and protected. I want to know that I’m loved. I want someone to hold me and tell me that everything’s going to be okay, and that it actually will be okay. That it won’t just be a lie.

That someone will love me enough to stay with me.

I curl up in my blankets and blow out the scented candle I’m using as a light source. I’ll have to figure out something to do, but for tonight, I just want to wallow. Claudia would tell me to get off my ass and do something about my misery, but she’s not here. I’m all alone.

And it’s hard to keep being strong after so damn long.

I sniffle, allowing myself to give in to tears. Here I was feeling fond of Dakh and it feels like he’s betrayed me and left me all over again. I wonder if he’s destroying Fort Dallas even now.

I return, Dakh says, his voice as clear as if he was standing next to me.

I sit up in my bed, staring around me. “Are you here?”

Not yet. Soon.

“But you can hear me?”

I sense your thoughts. I do not need to hear your speaking voice.

Oh. I can’t help but feel relieved he’s coming back. And a little worried, too. His thoughts were so dark earlier.

You do not need to worry. I am myself.

Yeah, but there’s a hard edge in his mind that I know I’m not imagining. I decide to give the mental speak a try. Are you…okay?

Hearing your thoughts helps.

That’s not really an answer.

You did not like my silence before. I am trying to be better.

Fair enough. I was worried you wouldn’t come back. That you’d abandoned me for good.

Never. The thought is so vehement it startles me. I will always come back for you, Sasha. You are mine and I am yours.

That’s a little hard to process, considering I didn’t ask for this. But at the same time, I like hearing it. It takes away a lot of my anxiety. Thank you, Dakh.

All will be well between us, Sasha. This is just something I must do.

Um, what exactly did you do? Can I ask that?

But his mind is silent once more. Whatever it is that he’s feeling compelled to do—flame the fort, murder everyone inside, something along those lines—he’s not sharing it with me. And I can’t help but worry.

A short time later, I can’t stand waiting and light my lamp again, then start to read. Even as I do, I hear Dakh as he enters the store. I hear him moving around, but I don’t get up from where I’m reading my book. I’m trying to play it cool.

You forget I am connected to you. I can hear your thoughts.

Shit. I did forget. So much for that.

I like that you worry about me, he tells me. A moment later, Dakh appears in the candlelight, all golden and perfect. He stalks forward, and I feel a little shiver of apprehension and excitement at the sight of him. But he only climbs into bed next to me and pulls me close against his chest. His warmth and strength move over me, and I relax against him with a little sigh. He buries his face against my neck and inhales deeply. I missed your scent, my Sasha.

I missed you, too. I didn’t like being alone. His arms feel so good around me, and I close my eyes, enjoying the feeling.

I did not want to leave your side. He rubs his nose against my hair. I would be with you at all times if I could.

That makes me feel better. And yet, with the way he’s holding me, I wonder if he’s wanting sex? Is this him pressing his case? I’ll have sex with him again if it means he won’t abandon me.

I want no part of it if you do not want it, comes the vehement thought. We will not speak of it again.

I feel a little guilty at the anger in his thoughts, but also relieved. It means I can relax. I sigh and settle in against him, sleepy. Before I know it, I’m fast asleep in the dragon-man’s arms.

In the morning, when I wake up, I’m all alone.

19

SASHA

T  hat’s how the next few days seem to go for us.

Every morning, Dakh is gone the moment the sun rises. His mind goes distant all day, and I’m all alone once more. It’s the week of the month that red dragons should be attacking Fort Dallas, but all is quiet here. I think of Fort Dallas, and how it must be right now, with the red dragons attacking over and over. They’ll be quiet for the next few weeks after this. Gold dragon attacks are more sporadic and happen throughout the month. I think they’re drawn to the city, though, because I haven’t seen any dragons since coming out here with Dakh. When I peek outside, there’s nothing but birds chirping and not a hint of ash on the air.

It’s like this is an entirely different land, and it’s a strange sensation. I keep myself busy, though. I finish an entire book of Sudoku, ten crossword puzzles, and start in on a coloring book. I write to Emma. I clean “house” and fill shopping carts with all the food supplies that are still good so I can have them all in one convenient place. I try on new clothes. I read books. I sleep. I bathe.

I’m bored.

I never thought that having a life of relative luxury in the After would mean that I’m miserable, but I’m lonely. Dakh only returns at sundown, and when he does, he’s quiet. He doesn’t want to do more than hug me close and breathe in my scent. His thoughts are closed off, and while he’s polite, things are strained between us.

I don’t know what to do. I feel like the mental bond has broken whatever friendship we had beginning between us. Now everything’s all messed up.

It’s funny. I’m safe and secure, just like I want…but I still feel abandoned.

DAKH

I have found him.

After days of stalking the human hive, I watch the human below me. He wears the same skins—no, clothing—that many of the others do. He carries a fire spitter. He has dark hair that has been shorn close to his scalp, and a smile that seems cold, even for these strange creatures. He stands by a building and talks to two other men wearing the same clothing. They laugh, but he only smiles.

I hate him on sight. This is the one called Tate. The one who hurt my Sasha.

It takes everything I have not to leap over the barricade and rend him limb from limb. I allow myself a moment of dreaming, my claws curling into the metal I lie upon. In my mind, I bite his arm off and watch with enjoyment as he screams. I will snap his other arm and then both his legs, one at a time. When he is in unimaginable pain, I will take him between my teeth and bite down. Not hard enough to kill. Just hard enough to hurt.

I savor these thoughts. I want him to hurt like he hurt my mate. I want him to suffer. Instead, I must keep him whole.

For now.

Which means I must stalk him. Sasha had no hate in her thoughts for the other humans, and it is because of her that I will not destroy them all. I wish for my mate to be happy above all else, and I know she worries about these other humans in the hive. Soon, I will make a gift of this one to my mate, and she will be pleased. She will worry no longer.

He will never, ever hurt her again. This I vow.

I wait for him to leave the side of the other humans, to walk closer to my hiding spot. The hive is cramped in many places, with the humans’ homes clustered together like piles. There is not much room for a drakoni to maneuver in battle form, so I must lure Tate toward me before I can snatch him into my claws.

I move forward and jump down from the barrier, into the human hive itself. The stink is overwhelming, the smell of unwashed bodies and waste, overpowering. How they can all live together like this in such filth, I do not know. I pace forward and someone pauses in a doorway nearby, then snickers at the sight of me.

Well, I will take laughter over the sirens.

I move forward, slinking between two buildings before the human can realize I am drakoni and not one of them. Up ahead, standing by the other human males is Tate, who has not moved from his spot. I hear his low, flat voice, and the others laugh again. He is telling a story, perhaps. I cannot make out the words, not without my connection to my mate. Sasha. I reach for her mind, but she is safe back in my nest, far away from the hive.

Tate will be coming back with us. I want Sasha to see his death. I want her to realize he can never hurt her again.

I watch and wait, but when the three males remain in their places and show no movement, I grow impatient. I am tired of being away from Sasha and hunting this human. He is within my grasp. I glance around and find a stone on the ground, then throw it at one of the males.

He immediately straightens from his slouch, a scowl on his face. He holds his fire spitter forward and then mutters a stream of garbled syllables at the other two men. Tate nods at him and indicates the alley I crouch in. With a nod, the human comes forward, approaching me.

I sigh in frustration. It is the wrong human. I wait, impatient. The human comes down the alley and then sees me. He cocks his head, looking me up and down, and then calls something to the other ones. He points his fire spitter at me and says something.

I have no time for this nonsense. I grab the human by his head and smash his face against the wall. He slumps to the ground, and his fire spitter falls from his hand. I kick it aside.

“Reynolds?” Tate calls after a moment. When there is no response from the fallen human at my feet, Tate glances at the other human and then moves forward, his fire spitter in hand.

Finally he separates from the pack. I can be finished with this soon. Good. I wait for him to approach me, and when he gets close enough that I can smell his unwashed scent, I cannot stop the grin that spreads across my face. When Tate sees me, I am smiling a cruel smile. His eyes narrow at the sight of me, and he lifts his fire spitter, barking words at me.

Let him bark all he wants. I flick his fire spitter aside with a blow of my hand and am pleased when he yelps in response. I grab him by the throat and my grin grows wider.

I hope he hates flying.

20

SASHA

I  return, my Sasha.

The strong thought rouses me from my lazy afternoon nap. I rub my eyes and sit up, pushing my tangled hair back off my face. “Dakh? Where are you? What time is it?”

It is still daylight. I am returning to you. Come to the front of the nest to meet me.

You mean the doors? Okay. I slip on a pair of slippers and head for the front doors of the store, still yawning and sleepy. Things have been strained and quiet between Dakh and I, but he sounds happy today. Maybe whatever he’s been going through has passed and he’s getting back to his normal self. Of course, I’m not entirely sure what that “normal” self would be, but I like a happy Dakh more than a moody one. And I’m really glad he’s home early, because it’s been a long, lonely week without him for company.

I wrap a blanket around my shoulders and head for the door. I have a happy little buzz until I hear the first scream.

Am…I imagining things? Or was that a hawk? I race down the aisles toward the front doors of the SuperMart and peer up at the skies through the dirty glass. There’s nothing except gold wings as Dakh lowers himself toward the parking lot.

But then there’s a second scream. And as the dragon comes closer, I see that Dakh’s got something clutched in his claws. Something wearing the uniform of one of the Fort Dallas New Militia and squirming in the dragon’s grasp.

Oh God.

My stomach clenches as I push through the glass doors and run outside. “Dakh! What are you doing?”

“Sasha!” The voice that cries out my name isn’t Dakh’s. It’s Tate’s. The dragon’s got Tate in his claws. Even now, I watch as Dakh settles on the ground. He releases Tate, and the soldier scrambles to his feet and starts to run away. Dakh immediately smacks him down with one forefoot and Tate screams again.

I brought you a gift, my mate. There’s such a pleased undercurrent in Dakh’s thoughts.

“A gift?” I stare at Dakh’s big golden dragon body. His eyes are a bright, whirling gold, not the scary dark. He’s pleased with himself at the moment. I look down at Tate, who seems so small perched between the dragon’s claws. One looks like it’s digging into his back, and Tate’s normally handsome face is contorted with fear and pain. He’s scratched up, and his skin is red from where it’s contacted Dakh’s scales.

Just looking at him makes my arm hurt. I feel a whisper of the old dread and fear that I associate with Tate’s presence, but it feels very small compared to how it’s felt in the past. He looks…pathetic under Dakh’s claws. I almost feel sorry for him.

Almost. Except my bruises are just now gone, my ribs still ache, and my arm’s still broken. So my sympathy meter is pretty low. He’s a terrible person.

But…he’s still a person. And this doesn’t feel right. “What are you doing, Dakh?”

“Help me, Sasha!” Tate calls out. He tries to squirm out from between Dakh’s claws. “The dragon has me!”

“I noticed,” I say, and shrug my blanket closer around my shoulders. “And I’m waiting for an explanation.” I give Dakh a patient look. “Well?”

“An explanation?” Tate yells. “Are you fucking kidding me? The dragon snatched me up—”

Dakh growls and lowers his head toward Tate. The man’s comments choke in his throat and he goes silent.

“Not you,” I say to Tate. “Him.” I shake my head at Dakh, my attention solely on the dragon. “Is this what you’ve been doing all this time? Hunting him?”

The dragon’s eyes whirl with pleasure. I brought him for you so you can watch him die. He will never hurt you again.

“I can’t decide if that’s sweet or bloodthirsty,” I murmur. “Either way, it’s all wrong. You can’t just snatch someone from the city because they were mean to me.”

“Are…are you talking to the dragon?” Tate is incredulous. His eyes are wide as he stares at me. “You tamed it?”

“Clearly not,” I say to him. “If I had, do you think I’d tell him to snatch you up?” I focus on Dakh again. “You know this is wrong, don’t you? Did you level the city to get him?”

I hurt no one. I knew you would not be pleased if I did. Dakh’s eyes whirl with gold. Everything I do is to please you.

I feel warm at that. It’s hard not to. “Oh, Dakh.”

Now tell me how you wish for him to die. He drags one claw over Tate’s arm. Shall I break his limbs like he broke yours?

I gasp. “I don’t want you to kill him.”

“What?” Tate cries.

Why not? Dakh demands. I can practically feel the scowl in his head. He hurt you.

He’s a person, and people matter, I tell Dakh, switching to head-speak so Tate will stop interrupting. And he hurt me, but I knew he was going to do it. He’s not entirely to blame. I am. I…said he could do it. Which is awful, but it’s also the truth.

Dakh’s thoughts flutter with ravens, and his eyes grow dark. Tate cries out in pain as the claw digs into his back again. You let him hurt you?

You have to understand, Dakh. I’m not proud of it. I hated it. But Claudia and Amy were gone, and I was starving. I didn’t have any way to make money. Every time I needed something, Tate would offer me food or money in exchange for…sex. Sometimes it wasn’t even sex. Sometimes he just liked to hurt me.

And this is why you do not like it when I touch you. There’s such deadly calm in his thoughts.

That’s right. But you can’t blame him entirely, because I knew what he wanted and I did it anyhow. I’m just as much to blame for my broken arm as he is.

You are not. You were desperate. He used that desperation against you. His thoughts grow angrier. I should have burned the human hive to the ground—

I’m glad you didn’t, I tell him quickly. There are bad people there, but there are good people, too. They’re people, just trying to make a living any way they can. I don’t blame them, and I’m glad you didn’t hurt them.

I never want you to worry about being hurt again, my Sasha. His eyes slide back to gold again slowly. You will always be safe with me. I will always protect you.

“I know,” I whisper softly. “And that’s sweet. I appreciate it. I really do.” I step forward, ignoring Tate, who’s still twisted under Dakh’s claws. As I pace forward, Dakh lowers his head, and when I reach him, I run my hand along his snout. He’s fearsome and terrifying, but he wants nothing but good things for me. How can I stay mad?

I still want to kill him, Sasha.

I don’t want that to happen, Dakh. Please. For me. He’s a person, and people matter.

Again, I feel his thoughts go dark, and images of ravens sweep through my mind. Not this one.

Even this one. I continue to stroke my hand along his scales, even as Tate watches. I know he must be thinking awful things, but I don’t care. I’m bargaining for his sorry life. You have no idea how many people died in the After, Dakh. All of humanity was destroyed. I don’t want his death to be my responsibility. I don’t want to live with that.

But I will be the one killing him.

Yes, but you’re doing it for me.

Also for me. There’s a shot of pleasure in his thoughts.

I laugh despite myself, then shake my head. I know, but I still can’t let that happen. I’m sorry, Dakh. Please understand. I’ll give you whatever you want.

All I want is for my mate to feel safe. His thoughts are growly and brusque, but I feel warm hearing that.

I do feel safe with you, but I feel safe when you’re at my side, not when you’re gone all day hunting this creep. If you want to make me feel safe, stay with me. And let me stay with you. Don’t leave me. I don’t like to be left behind.

I would take you with me, always, my Sasha. He presses his nose against my hand, like an oversized cat wanting petting. But I must leave to hunt for food. I will not steal yours.

Then take me with you, I suggest. Let’s make me a saddle like Claudia had and I can fly with you.

Perhaps. I want you to be safe, though. If it is not safe, we will not do it.

Agreed. I gesture at Tate. And you’re going to let him live as a favor to me?

I do not want to. His thoughts are like ground glass, and his eyes go dark again. Nothing displeases me more.

I can’t live with his death on my conscience. You wouldn’t even know he existed if it weren’t for me. I continue to stroke his nose. Please, Dakh. Don’t make me beg for this asshole’s life. I think for a moment, and then offer, we can have sex again.

The dragon’s head rears back, and his eyes go black. Not if you will not enjoy it!

It’s not like I’m actively trying to hate it! It just happened, okay? I freaked out.

I do not want you to freak out. I do not want sex if you are just “enduring” my touch. If you go to another place in your mind. I want you there with me. I want your cunt full of your mating juices. I want your mind filled with pleasure. The big head lowers again, and he gazes at me, right in the eye. Those are my demands, my Sasha. You want this sniveling piece of rotten flesh to live? There is nothing you can promise me that will make me want to release him.

Immediately I think, Well, there’s one thing.

His eyes flare a deeper gold. You would do that to save him?

I can feel myself blushing. I’ll do it. At least, I’ll try. But I can’t guarantee I’ll enjoy it.

I demand you enjoy it! The eyes whirl again.

It’s a little absurd that I’m arguing with a dragon over whether or not I should have enjoyable sex. Then you have to make sure it’s good for me before going on, okay? And if it’s not, we stop!

He relaxes a bit at that, and his eyes slide back to that languid gold. I can accept that. You will let me pet you and you promise to enjoy it?

I’ll do my best. How’s that? I’ll try really hard—

And I shall try really hard not to kill this one.

“The claws,” Tate howls as one digs into his back. “Sasha, help me!”

I sigh at Dakh. You’re impossible.

I want a mate in all ways. I want you in all ways.

It might take a few rounds to figure things out, I tell him. Meanwhile, I’m inwardly trying to figure out ways I can enjoy it. Masturbation? Getting really drunk? There has to be an option. Somehow.

I am fine with practicing, Dakh tells me, and his eyes gleam with pleasure. He leans in and nuzzles me with that enormous head of his.

And I feel a little like I traded with the devil…for Tate, of all people. Ugh.

21

SASHA

When Dakh finally lets Tate up, he’s not the least bit grateful.

In fact, he’s kind of a shit.

He picks himself up off the asphalt, straightens his uniform, and then scowls at me like I had something to do with this. “Is this where you’ve been all this time, Sasha? Cavorting with the enemy?”

“Don’t start,” I say, tired. “I was snatched away, just like you. I didn’t choose any of this.”

“I find that hard to believe.” He examines a tear in his sleeve and pulls away fingers wet with blood. The disgust on his face is obvious.

“I just saved your life,” I point out to him. “How about you cool it for a few minutes? We’re taking you back home, all right? This should never have happened, and I’m sorry it did, but I don’t control him. Dakh’s got a mind all his own.”

Tate’s brow furrows as he studies me. He’s very careful not to look over at the dragon nearby, which would almost be funny if the whole situation wasn’t so stressful. “His name is Dakh? Is he the one that’s been attacking the city? The king dragon? I thought Claudia was fooling around with him.”

“There’s more than one dragon that attacks Fort Dallas,” I tell him patiently. “As for Claudia, I don’t know where she’s at or who her dragon is. All I know is this one. And of course he has a name. He’s a person.”

The look Tate gives me is skeptical. “He’s a monster.”

And he is not? Dakh retorts.

Let’s just ignore him, okay? I beg Dakh as he nuzzles my hair again. He’s not worth the effort.

Are you sure I cannot tear him apart?

Tempting, but I’m sure.

Then let us return him to his hive so we can be rid of him and I can go about pleasuring my mate.

Eek. I feel a little apprehension as he tells me that, but I’m going to keep an open mind. If Claudia’s happy with her dragon, surely I can be happy with mine. Maybe I can learn to appreciate sex despite my past with Tate. I’m skeptical but willing to give it a shot. How shall we do this, then, Dakh? I don’t think you should leave me here, just in case you need a translator.

There is a wry note in Dakh’s mental voice. And you do not trust me not to rend him limb from limb.

Well, that too.

Tate’s watching me intently. After a moment, he asks, “Are you talking to the dragon? Telepathically?”

“Maybe,” I respond defensively. “It’s really none of your business.”

“If he kidnapped me, that makes it my business.” His eyes narrow. “Is that how he knew who I was? He’s picking through your thoughts?”

I shake my head, because I don’t want to answer him. I just want him to go away. “Are you ready to fly back?”

“You’re really going to pretend like this isn’t a big deal, Sasha?” Tate raises an eyebrow at me. “You’ve threatened my life, and right now you’re working with the enemy. That’s permanent exile by Fort Dallas standards. If I report you, you’ll be shot on sight if you try to return.”

“Then don’t report me,” I say lightly. “You won’t have a play partner if you do.” All of the whores in Fort Dallas are wise to his predilections.

He will never touch you again, Dakh growls, eyes growing black.

I know, I tell the dragon, but I’m uneasy at what Tate is threatening. Permanent exile from the only city I’m familiar with? The only city for hundreds of miles? The thought’s a terrifying one.

I will be with you, Dakh says. You have nothing to fear.

I nod absently, but he doesn’t really grasp what it means to be exiled. It’s a big step—a terrifying one. I’d have no safety net, no people to fall back upon. What if I run out of supplies? What if I get injured? There are so many what-ifs that Tate’s not-so-subtle threat makes me feel cold inside. “Let’s just get going, all right? Dakh, can you carry us?”

The dragon lowers his head, pushing between me and Tate. His eyes flicker black. There is no “us” with the two of you. You are mine.

“I misspoke,” I murmur. I’m secretly a little pleased he’s so possessive. For once, it feels good to be wanted.

Dakh leans over and casually grabs Tate in his claws, and I have to smother a cruel laugh when Tate’s expression is one of abject terror. I get the fear. I really do. I used to feel like that around Dakh.

You did not wet yourself like this one, the dragon tells me.

Oh my God. Tate peed on himself. My eyes go wide. Now I really want to laugh, but I bite it back. Tate’s a quietly vicious sort, and I don’t want to give him any ammo to use against me.

He will never touch you again, Dakh growls in my head.

Right. Sorry. It’s just taking a bit of getting used to. I think about Tate’s threat—about exile from Fort Dallas. I’m still scared even though Dakh says he’ll take care of me, and we’ve got a store full of goods. What if something happens? If there’s one thing I’ve learned in the After, it’s that everything can change in a heartbeat.

I can still kill him, Dakh offers, and his claws tighten around Tate’s militia uniform. Tate makes an awkward squawking noise and slams a hand against the dragon’s golden scales.

No, we have an agreement.

Yes. An agreement I am much looking forward to. He leans down to gently whuff his breath against my hair.

I feel a prickle of arousal at his words despite my fears. I’m going to try my hardest to enjoy, I tell him. But we’re not doing anything with Tate around. Can you grab me and let’s get going? I lift my good arm, indicating I want to be picked up.

I’m surprised when Dakh grabs me with his other foreleg, his claws gentle compared to the way he’s handling Tate. For some reason I thought I’d have to share space with Tate on the ride over.

Never, Dakh says, and holds me close against his breast as he unfurls his wings. I said he would not touch you again, and I mean it.

I nod absently, watching as the store recedes, and we take off into the air. I’m jerked around a little, but I know Dakh’s trying hard not to fling me about, because this is a much gentler ride than before. I feel a pang of regret that Tate knows where our store is now, because what if he gets a crew to come out this far and raid? I won’t be able to stop them.

I will, Dakh purrs in my mind. They will take nothing that is yours. But if it will make you feel better, I will circle around the human hive in a different direction to confuse him.

That’s a good idea. Thank you.

Of course, my mate.

I glance over at Tate, and he’s watching me instead of the ground, his eyes narrowed. I don’t know what he’s thinking, but I’m pretty sure it’s nothing good, and it sends a shiver up my spine. The sooner he gets back to Fort Dallas, the better. He’s out of his element right now, and if he’s vicious when he’s confident, I can only imagine what he’s going to be like if he feels cornered. I know Dakh says he’ll keep me safe, but it’s still hard to trust when I’ve known Tate and his ways for a lot longer.

The flight back to Fort Dallas does seem to take forever. We careen about in the skies over and over again, and Dakh definitely seems to be taking the long way back. He also wheels about and does cartwheels to throw Tate about. Since I’m clutched against his chest, I’m a little more protected from being flung about, though my stomach is still queasy at all the loops.

Not too much longer now, my mate. Dakh’s thoughts are comforting. Unless you wish for me to drop him and turn around now…

“No,” I say with a horrified laugh, and regret my outburst when Tate shoots me a dark look. He knows we’re communicating around him, and it’s clear he doesn’t like it. I wonder if I should say something or confront him, but I doubt I’ll get a real answer, not when he’s clutched between a dragon’s claws.

Dakh begins to circle lower, even though the fort itself isn’t in sight yet.

Are we stopping? I ask, curious.

We will not go closer. If I do, the alarms will go off and they will use their fire spitters. They do not hurt me, but you are vulnerable.

Oh. I didn’t think about that, but they would shoot at us for sure. The graze on my hip is proof of that. I see.

The human has two good legs. He can walk the rest of the way.

I manage to keep my response to myself. Tate probably won’t like that, but Tate probably hasn’t liked any of this. I can’t help but shake the feeling that letting Tate go is a bad idea, but how can I let him be casually murdered? Just because he hurt me in the past—and it was a hurting that I agreed to? He’s never approached me otherwise. He’s mean and a sadist, but that isn’t enough to kill someone over.

I hope I’m making the right choice.

Dakh settles gently on the ground and then releases me. I wobble forward, getting my balance. My legs always feel a little bit like butter after we land, no matter how long or short the flight. In the next moment, Dakh drops Tate onto the ground, far less pleasantly than the way he handled me. The soldier lands on the concrete with a mild splat, groans, and slowly picks himself up.

Dakh, naughty boy.

I am not killing him. That does not mean I have to like him.

I bite back my smile even as I move to offer Tate a hand up. He gives me a scathing look and pushes off the ground, battered and bruised. There’s blood in the rents on his uniform, and I’m sure when he goes back and tells the others, it’ll be all about how he fought the dragon valiantly rather than the fact that he pissed himself.

“I don’t want your help,” Tate snaps at me as he straightens. “You’ve got one last chance, Sasha. You can return with me to Fort Dallas and share your intel.”

“Share my intel?” I echo, baffled. “What are you talking about?”

He glances up at Dakh, who’s hovering protectively nearby, and takes a step farther away. “I mean exactly that,” Tate hisses. “You’ve been living with this thing for days now. You already know more about him than the rest of us. His strengths, his weaknesses, how you get him to communicate, everything.”

I feel my cheeks turning red. If he found out how the mind link was established…yeah, no. “Dakh’s not a bad guy, Tate. They’re victims of the Rift just as much as we are. Being here makes them crazy, I think. He’s better now that he’s linked with me.”

“Then come back and share what you know, Sasha. I am sure the new mayor will be quite interested to hear what you have to say.”

New mayor? I want to ask what happened to the old one, but it doesn’t matter. I’m not going back to Fort Dallas right away. Not after I’ve promised Dakh we’d have sex again in exchange for Tate’s life. “I can’t. I made a promise.”

His lip curls. “You know I have no choice but to tell them that you’re whoring for a dragon. You’re a traitor to your own kind, filth.”

Even though I know Tate’s just trying to hurt me, I still recoil at his harsh words. Whoring was the one thing I never wanted to do, and yet he’s right. In a way, I’ve been selling myself out to everyone for safety. It hurts, mostly because it’s true. But I’ve never thought of myself as a traitor.

The air suddenly smells like smoke. Dakh’s big head lowers, and his eyes are completely black. Tate takes a step backward even as Dakh takes another step forward, and it’s clear the dragon’s about to lose his mind.

“Dakh,” I whisper, putting a hand on him. “Don’t, okay?”

He is going to die. He hurt you with his words.

“He’s doing it on purpose because he’s a little bitch,” I say aloud, giving Tate a deliberate look. “He’s not worth it. And I don’t want you picking him out of your teeth.”

Tate’s pale face flushes, and he sneers at me, obviously sensing that he’s safe. “If you’re smart, you’ll never show your face in Fort Dallas again.”

“I guess I won’t,” I say, keeping my voice calm. I stroke Dakh’s scales. Like it or not, it seems I’ve made a decision. I’m a little terrified of what it means, but I won’t worry about it right now. In this moment, I need all of my strength to make Dakh uphold his end of the promise and not eat Tate. The dragon’s thoughts are black, and I’m getting the image of ravens again, which means he’s hanging on by a thread. “You might want to go before he loses control,” I tell Tate, and stroke Dakh’s scales again. “I don’t know how much longer he’s going to hold out.”

Tate blinks and then turns and runs, heading to the south and in the opposite direction of the fort.

I don’t correct him. Let him get lost for a few hours. Asshole.

Dakh’s muscles bunch in his shoulders, as if he wants to go after Tate. I keep my hand on him and lean in and press a light kiss to the scales on his cheek. “Remember what you promised,” I murmur.

I remember, Dakh tells me, his thoughts murky. He’s struggling.

Tate’s not worth it, I repeat, continuing to stroke at his scales. His threats are empty. So I’m exiled from Fort Dallas? I would have been anyhow, because I would never tell them about you. And I had nothing left there, anyhow. Not if Claudia and Amy are gone. I don’t want to go back to a life of starving…or worse. I let my fingers trail down his nose. You said you’d protect me, remember?

The glittering eyes focus on me. Gold flashes in them, albeit briefly. I remember.

Then let’s leave here, okay? You need a distraction, and staying here isn’t good for you. I give him a smile. I can feel your thoughts and how tangled they are at the moment.

They get better the more you talk. His thoughts are halting, but he’s right, they’re clearer. He gently scoops me up in his claws again and brings me to his scaled breast. You are right. This place is not good for me, or for you. And you have promised to mate with me again.

“I did promise that,” I say faintly. My heart’s fluttering at the thought. I don’t know why I’m panicking. I’ve had sex before. I’ve had lots of sex. It’s just that this is sex where I need to do more than expected.

I need to enjoy myself.

It’s the most ridiculous problem, and yet…

Dakh takes to the air. I’m not paying much attention to where we’re going until I notice that he’s heading directly for one of the tall skyscrapers in the remains of Old Dallas. Surprised, I watch as we move in on the old building. I know this place. It’s where he first kept me when he stole me.

A little flutter of alarm moves through me. We’re stopping here? We’re not going back to the store?

The dragon sets down on the ledge and carefully puts me on my feet. I can feel his thoughts, still murky and touched with chaos. Too far away, he tells me. I am filled with too much anger. The dark eyes focus on me. I want to return to the human hive and burn it to the ground.

No, you don’t, I soothe. That’s not you. That’s the madness you talked about. It’s trying to get you to do bad things.

How do you know it’s not me? I do not remember who I was.

You’ve been nothing but kind to me. If you were truly that cruel and uncaring, you wouldn’t be so careful with me. You wouldn’t care what I thought about sex. You’d just touch me and take what you wanted.

Like that human did? His eyes go pitch black.

Oh God. Just thinking about Tate is making him nuts. I need to get him back to himself. And I really only know one way that’s a surefire method. Are we here because you wanted to have sex? I keep the fear out of my thoughts.

Dakh’s attention rivets on me. His thoughts are sharp and pure, like a burst of light. Only if you want it.

I bite my lip. You have to make me want it, remember? I need your help.

And his eyes gleam with gold. I remember. And I will help.

22

DAKH

M y mate stares up at me with big eyes.

I can see her quivering as she stands before me, small but proud. Her scent is mixed—there’s a hint of fear in it, but also a hint of arousal, which is encouraging. Her thoughts are as chaotic as my own, and my concern for her allows me to stop and pick through them, trying to understand. She worries over me. She still hurts from the human’s words. And she is anxious over the thought of mating with me once more.

Such strange foolishness, this worry. I shift to my two-legged form and approach her. When I am this size, she is still small, but now I can hold her properly. I pull her against me and cup her face in my hands. Why are you afraid? Do you not like this place?

Her thoughts are startled. What? Here? I can tell by her reaction that she is surprised. No, this place is fine to stop if you need to stop. It’s not a home, but it’s not uncomfortable.

No bad memories?

Sasha’s small, dark brows furrow. Not really.

I trail my fingers down her arm. Yet you shiver.

“I’m nervous,” she admits shyly. “If you just wanted sex I wouldn’t care all that much—”

Yes, you would.

“Okay, I would,” Sasha agrees. “But I wouldn’t be anxious about it like this. You’re asking me to like it, and my response is going to determine how you respond, so I feel like I’m potentially ruining things for both of us. It’s much easier to assume that I’m not going to enjoy myself and just go with things.”

I touch her soft brow. We are connected here, though. In our minds. Now that I am in your head and you in mine, I will not have pleasure if you do not.

I can feel her flicker of anxiety grow. That’s exactly what I’m worried about. And then you’ll get rid of me, and I can’t go back to Fort Dallas, and—

Stop it. I graze my thumb over her mouth, the sweet pink softness there, and I can feel that she enjoys that small touch. You had pleasure when you saw your story in your head, did you not?

Sasha looks up at me, confused. Story in my head?

Dirk and Ophelia?

“Oh! The book!” Her cheeks turn bright red. “I can’t believe you spied on my head through that.”

I was curious. You felt pleasure when their mating was described. Can we not do as they did if you enjoyed it?

Her face turns even redder. “I don’t know if I remember all of it.”

How do most human matings start? You can tell me that.

“With a kiss,” she whispers, her gaze locked to mine. Her heart flutters, and I can feel both her excitement and nervousness. Her mind fills with images of mouths pressing together, of tongues flicking.

Ah. This kiss. I have seen it before. I did not realize it involved tongues. I am fascinated by the thought and stroke her lower lip with my thumb-claw. Do you know how to perform one?

“Perform one? I…yes? I guess so?” A little giggle escapes her at the thought, and the sound is sweet and enticing.

Then show me.

“Show you?” There’s a little flutter of worry in her belly again.

Yes. I wish to know how to do it correctly so I can give you pleasure. Do you like to kiss?

“I…I guess I do. It’s been a long time since I kissed someone because I enjoyed it.” Her thoughts grow dark, and flashes of the human move through her head again.

Do not think of him, I command, sending my thoughts surging into her mind. Think of me. Show me this “kiss.”

Her gaze goes unfocused and her attention fixes on my mouth. “Right. Kiss. Okay.” She puts one arm awkwardly around my neck and then leans in. She tries to pull herself closer to me, but her bad arm twinges with pain and she grimaces. “This is hard to do with just one good arm. You’re a little taller than I can reach comfortably to kiss.”

Immediately, I fall to my knees in front of her.

Sasha’s eyes widen in surprise, and she chuckles again. “Um. Not quite what I had in mind. Now I’m too tall.”

Ah, but I am a good height now, am I not? I pull her against me and nuzzle at her torso. She has covered her lovely breasts with these annoying skins—clothing—that humans wear. I want to put my mouth on her flesh and lick her all over, and I share that thought with her.

I can feel the pulse of heat that races through her, and I feel pleasure in her response. If nothing else, she likes my words. A moment later, though, her worry returns.

My Sasha is the opposite of me. When she thinks too hard, her worries arrive. When I do not focus my mind, the ravens arrive. We both must work to overcome our problems. I slide my hands up and down her back, gripping handfuls of the annoying clothing she wears. Should we be naked to kiss?

Her laughter is muffled. “It’s not required, no.”

But it will make things more pleasant, will it not? I use my claws on the strange material, rending it apart so I can touch the smooth skin underneath.

Sasha gasps and pulls out of my grip. “You’re tearing my clothing!”

So?

“Clothes are important. They’re valuable. No one’s making them like this anymore, so they all matter.” She pulls a shred off her back and frowns at me.

You have an entire nest full of them, I point out to her, pulling the cloth from her body. As I do, I can see she is wearing even more things underneath. A strange band of fabric with little straps covers her breasts. Can I rip this one?

“No!” She reaches behind her and moves her arms. A moment later, the material—a bra, according to her thoughts—goes to the ground, and my Sasha is topless.

I rumble in my throat, because this is much better. I can smell her lovely scent, and now I can feel her soft skin. I think you should never wear these clothes. They are a nuisance.

“I’m not walking around naked,” she tells me, and there is amusement mixed with her outrage. “Humans get cold when the seasons change. We don’t have fire in our veins like you do.”

Ah, but you have my fires in your veins, I tell her, my thoughts aroused and pleasant. I pull her against me again and bury my face against her breasts.

She goes stiff against me, and I know she is thinking too hard about that other human. Did he hold her like this, I wonder, and my mind is filled with gnawing jealousy at the thought. I growl low in my throat, wanting to rip him apart. I regret that I let myself be talked out of my vengeance. The rage threatens to boil over once more.

“Dakh?” she whispers. “Are you all right?”

I will be. Just let me hold you. I press my face against her skin and breathe in her scent. In. Out. Sasha. Focus on Sasha. She still wears clothes on her lower half, and I slide a hand down her bottom, tracing it. You will take these off?

“My jeans? I can, sure. Just don’t rip them, okay?”

I will not, but you must take them off. My claws long to touch all of you.

I can feel the quiver in her thoughts. She does not know how to take that, and it fills her with unease. So much unease. It frustrates me. Why does she think I will yet hurt her? Nothing would be further from my mind. She is everything to me.

She finishes removing her layers and then studies me, her eyes sad. “You’re mad at me.”

Not at you. I pull her into my arms again.

“You look unhappy.”

I am unhappy. My mate does not want my touch.

“Maybe you’d be better off finding yourself another mate.” Her voice is as sad as her eyes.

I want no one but you. My thoughts are fierce with my frustration, and I can feel her flinch against me, which only makes it worse.

“I told you it would be like this.” Her words are a mere whisper. “You’re asking something of me that I’m not sure I can give.”

I will not accept it. I know that she likes certain touches. I must discover which ones make her want to mate and which ones she pulls away from. Let us kiss, I tell her. Show me how to do it to please you.

“Oh. Well, um.” She puts a hand on my shoulder, and then her brow furrows. “With you on your knees, I’ll need to lean in to kiss you.”

What is the best way to do this?

“There’s no best way, really. Just what’s most comfortable. Our faces should line up, and that might be hard to do if you’re like this.” She gestures at the fact that I’m looking up at her.

I ponder this. If she sits down next to me, I will be taller than her once more, and I will not have the pleasure of touching her. An idea hits me, and I shift my weight until I am sitting on the floor, my legs crossed in front of me. Then, I pull her down against me and cradle her so she straddles my thigh. I can feel the heat of her cunt against my leg, and now I can put my arms around her. I like this.

Sasha’s thoughts are full of surprise. She leans forward against me, her hand going to the back of my neck as she struggles to keep her balance. Her bad arm is still bound with the wrappings she put on it, and she keeps it against her chest as she moves in. I am pleased to see that with her on my thigh, we are closer in height.

Is this better? I ask her.

“Are you sure you want to hold me like this?” She seems embarrassed. “I’m straddling your leg.”

I like this. I like feeling your cunt against me.

Her cheeks flush red, and I can feel the embarrassment sweep through her again. How strange that she wants to hide her body at all times. As if I do not plan on putting my mouth there shortly.

With her legs spread to straddle my thigh, her scent permeates the air and my mouth waters in response. I love the musky, delicious smell of her body, so feminine yet primal. I slide my hands down her back and then glide one over the healing wound on her hip. Does this pain you?

She shakes her head. “I barely notice it anymore. The healing ointments we have at the store help. And it’s really just a scratch.”

I am still upset that she hurts, though. I slide my hands forward, rubbing over her ribs. And these? Do they still pain you?

Under my touch, she squirms a little. “That tickles.”

I can feel the flick of desire rush through her at the touch, though. I say nothing. I want her to relax into my touch, and to do so, I need for her to let down her guard. So, demonstrate a kiss for me.

“Oh. Right.” She seems distracted, and I can tell from her thoughts that she is still thinking about how her thighs grip mine between them. How her cunt presses against my skin. Her attention is scattered, but she focuses and gazes at my mouth. “You want me to just…lean in and go ahead?”

I nod. Do as you like with me.

She scoots a little closer, narrowing the distance between us, and as she does, her cunt rubs against my thigh. I can feel the bolt of desire that shoots through her, though outwardly, Sasha shows no expression. Her fingers tighten against the nape of my neck. “I’m going to put my mouth on yours, and then I’m going to add my tongue, all right?”

You do not have to explain as you go, I tell her, brushing a strand of long, dark hair off her shoulder. We share thoughts. I will know what it is that you do.

“Right. I keep forgetting.” She smiles nervously at me. And I keep forgetting I can talk to you like this, too.

You can. I like that. Your thoughts are almost as warm as your cunt.

Oh my Lord. Don’t say things like that.

Why not? I enjoy your cunt very much. I want to explore it with my face.

Her eyes go wide.

I am distracting you, I tell her, amused at her response—and the quiver I know I felt inside her. Kissing?

Kissing! Yes. She leans forward and then pauses, her gaze meeting mine. It’s as if she needs reassurance before she lowers her mouth and brushes her lips across mine in the softest of caresses.

I remain very still. The feel of her touching me is like no pleasure I have ever felt before. She moves in a little closer, and her thigh brushes against my straining cock, but I do not care. My thoughts are entirely of that soft mouth as it grazes over mine again. Sasha gives me one light, fluttering kiss, and then another, and I can feel the pleasure spike through her. She likes these gentle, brief touches of her mouth to mine, and I will let her continue them for as long as she wants.

23

DAKH

I t grows more difficult to hold still as she kisses me, because I want more than just the light touches. I want to feel her tongue flick against mine like she suggested in her thoughts. I want to pull her against me and feel her breasts against my skin. I want her cunt to rub against my thigh once more. I want so many things from her.

But I cannot push too hard. I need her to lead until she is comfortable.

Her tongue grazes the seam of my mouth, and then I forget all vows to be silent. I groan, letting my thoughts flood her with how much pleasure that gave me. I can feel her startle, and then a faint burst of delight from her as her tongue meets mine. This tangling of tongues is pleasant, but with my mind connected to hers, it becomes a thousand times more erotic. I can feel how she feels, and because she is not adept at shielding her thoughts from me, I know what pleases her and what does not. I know that she likes it when my hand slides down her back and I pull her closer. And she likes it when our tongues meet and slide against one another. She’s a little frightened of my teeth, but I am careful as she playfully licks at me, and I play in return. My tongue feels different than hers—she is all smoothness—and I enjoy the texture as mine rasps against hers. Judging by her shiver of response, she does as well.

And because we’re connected in thought, we both know the moment her cunt grows wet.

Sasha gasps and pulls her mouth free of mine. “You can smell that? Smell me? On the air?”

I can, I tell her, and the rumble in my chest lets her know how much I enjoy it.

She leans in and buries her face against my neck. “I’m so embarrassed.”

Why? There is no scent I love more than that of your juices. I would lick all of them up and savor every drop.

I can feel her gasp…and the quiver that shoots through her body that tells me that my thoughts both shock and arouse her. Perhaps I am doing this wrong, then. Perhaps I should take control and give her no room to think.

Only to feel.

I cup her cheek and bring her face back to mine. I nuzzle her nose. You are my mate. I find every bit of you arousing. I would lick you from the tip of your toe to the top of your head. I would spend countless hours between your thighs, pleasuring you until you can take it no longer. When we mate, it is not about me, my Sasha—it is about what I can give you. Your pleasure becomes my pleasure because we are together in our minds. Do you understand?

She nods, her eyes wide and shiny.

I nip at her lower lip, unable to resist the tempting plumpness of it. She gives a little moan in response, and her mating scent grows thicker. I do not want you to just “endure” my touch. I want your cunt to be slick when I push inside you. I want you ready for me. I want your thoughts as heated as your blood. I kiss her with each declaration, letting my tongue play against hers. Sasha’s thoughts are focused entirely on our mouths and bodies, her pleasure overriding all of her fears.

Good. This is how I want her. This is how it should be between us.

I tangle my hand into her thick, dark hair and grab a fistful of it as I kiss her again. I want to put my mouth all over this body, I tell her, sending her a flurry of mental images that match my suggestion. My face buried between her breasts. My mouth on those tight little tips. My tongue trailing down her belly and then delving between her sweet folds.

She makes a soft little noise, and I can tell she is even more aroused at the images I send to her. I will do more than just send her my thoughts, though. I will prove it.

I rub my nose against hers and nip at her bottom lip again. Will you allow me to touch you? To do these things to you?

Her nod of agreement is shaky, but it is a nod. I am pleased. My mate is brave.

Instead of flinging her to the ground as I want to, I hold her close, sliding my hands up and down her shoulders. I remember the last time I touched her and her mating scent grew thick, it was because I caressed her. I will do so again, I think. It is as much of a pleasure for me as it is for her. I explore her delicate body with my fingers, smoothing them up and down the fragile line of her spine, the flare of her hips, the curve of her buttocks. She is different from a drakoni female. Her skin does not show a hint of scales; she is smooth everywhere, her skin tone even. Her hair is soft and curls against her shoulders, unlike my thicker, stiffer ruff. She has no horns, no claws, nothing to defend herself with. She is just soft and vulnerable everywhere. I should be dismayed by this, because it goes against everything that a drakoni female is.

In truth, I like it. Everything about her is pleasing. I lean in and rub my face against her neck, brushing my lips over her skin. Her scent is thick here, and I can feel her pulse racing through her skin. Touching her is a joy, and tasting her is even better. I trail my tongue along the cords of her neck, and when she shivers, it makes me hungry for more.

I am going to touch you, I tell her. Everywhere.

Her little tremble carries no fear, and she gazes up at me with huge eyes. Even if I don’t like it?

You will like it, I tell her. I will make it so.

A hint of a smile graces her lips. “You’re not very good at taking no for an answer, are you?”

I am not, but that is obvious to any that know me. A brief memory flashes through my mind, of sitting around a fire with friends, sharpening swords and laughing about my stubbornness. It is gone as quickly as it appears, and I kiss my mate again, focusing on her. Memories of the past are not as important as what is in my arms right now.

I continue to press light kisses to her soft skin as I lay her back on the ground. This place is hard and rough, I realize, as I set her gently on her back. I should have picked someplace better. Softer. Something like in her story, with the blanket on the ground by the water. It was only my impatience that made me pick this spot. I was not thinking of her, only of myself. Frustration flicks through my thoughts.

What is it? she asks, nervous. Your eyes are turning black.

I am upset that I did not pick a better place to woo my mate. I forget that you are not drakoni. That your skin is more fragile, your bones more delicate. I let my hand skim down her front, from her breasts to her hips. This is not a good place to mate.

She relaxes. “You’re thinking of me? That’s sweet, Dakh. I’ll be fine, I promise. Just don’t be too rough.” And that tiny flick of fear returns to her thoughts.

I would only be rough if you wished for me to be so. I lean over her smaller form and nuzzle at her throat again. I will be very careful with you. I have no greater treasure. I flick my tongue against the base of her throat. Shall I start with your cunt or your breasts?

I can feel her gasp. She is always startled by my frank thoughts. You’re asking me to pick?

Which one will give you more pleasure?

Her thoughts immediately flash to my mouth between her thighs, but the answer she gives me is different. Breasts, she tells me.

It is curious. Is she embarrassed to have my face in her cunt? Is that why she covers her body and disguises her smell all the time? Humans are an odd people. The drakoni celebrate all forms of mating. Our females have no body shame. But then again, our males would never snap the arm of a female that has made them angry. Just the thought makes my thoughts swirl with fury again.

Stay with me, Sasha tells me nervously. You’re going dark again.

I am, and I am glad she is here to pull me back. I bury my face against her neck and drape my larger, heavier body over hers. I am glad for your mind, my sweet Sasha. You are the only thing that keeps me whole.

Her hand goes to my hair, and she fingers the texture of it even as she gives me a small smile. I’m glad you get something out of this mating, at least.

I get everything out of this mating. You have no idea how you have saved me. Do not downplay your worth, my mate. I will not hear of it.

“All right,” she whispers. It is clear she does not believe me, but that is all right. She does not need to believe yet. She will know in time.

For now, the intoxicating scent of her skin pulls me back to the moment. I settle my hips against hers, pushing her thighs apart so I can press my cock against the soft folds of her cunt. I want to rub her scent all over me, but I must be content with going slower. Shall I press my face to your breasts, then? Lick them until your mating scent grows overpowering?

She sucks in a breath, and the look in her eyes is unfocused, her thoughts full of my hands, covered in lotion, plucking at her nipples. Ah, when I stroked her before. She liked it, even if she did not wish to admit it to me.

I use my elbow to prop my weight up over her, and very carefully place one hand over her small breast. Sasha bites at her full lower lip, and I want to bite it myself, to taste her again. Slow, I remind myself. Patient. I stroke my hand over her skin, enjoying the sheer pleasure of touching her. The contrast between us is great. My skin is a strong bronze compared to her paler one, my scales so tight in my two-legged form that they seem as nothing more than a pattern against my skin. She has no such markings herself, only the darker, duskier shade of her nipples. Even now they are budded tight, the tips pointed. Her chest moves up and down rapidly, and she quivers as if this is the first time she has ever been touched.

So very serious about mating, my Sasha. I am sad she finds no joy in simply touching another or letting herself be touched. I must change this. I receive no greater pleasure than touching her and want the same for her. I must show her that our mating can be good. That she will have no regrets as my mate.

I drag my claws lightly over her skin. I would never puncture her flesh with them, and I am always careful. Over and over, I simply stroke her, avoiding her sensitive nipples. She relaxes underneath me after a few moments, and her breathing slows from its anxious rasp. She finds it comforting to be touched, I realize, even if she does not care for the act of mating itself.

I must focus on touching, then, until she craves more. I lower my head and rub my face between her breasts, breathing deep.

She startles at this, but strokes my hair. She is silent, an odd sort of anticipation and dread building in her mind. I put my mouth on the tip of one breast and lick it, and she squirms underneath me. The hint of pleasure she feels diminishes, and her dread is growing overwhelming. In the span of mere moments, she has gone from pleasure to dismay once more.

This is not working.

I will not give up, though. I must find a way to make my Sasha stay with me, stay in the pleasure of the moment instead of retreating to her memories. I think back to what she responded to just a few short moments ago. She liked my kisses and she liked my forward words. Perhaps I need to take control away from her, to take her off guard. She is in her mind too much and I am letting her think too hard.

She needs to not think at all.

Perhaps I am going too slow when I should be going faster.

I sit up and give her a mental command. Spread your thighs for me.

Her eyes go wide, and her mind flickers. Again, I receive the startled mix of excitement and worry. “My…thighs?”

Yes. Hold yourself open for me. I want to look down on you.

Sasha’s mouth forms a circle in surprise, and I can smell her arousal on the air. Her thoughts are a tangle once more, but this is good. This means she is not focused on her dread. One hand slides to her knee, and then she hooks her fingers behind her leg, pulling it up. She spreads both of them wide, exposing her cunt to me, and her face is flushed with a mixture of awkward feelings and nervous arousal.

Seeing her like this is a glorious sight. I put my hand on her other ankle since she cannot, and press her legs farther apart until she is spread wide for me. Her folds gleam with a hint of wetness underneath the dark curls, and I enjoy the sight of it. I am going to put my face there soon, I tell her. I am pleased when I can feel her shudder.

I press my mouth to her ankle, licking the delicate bones and skin there. She squirms against my touch but does not pull away. I move my face down her leg, kissing as I do. The anticipation builds inside her, flooding her thoughts, and by the time I get close to the juncture of her thighs, she is panting, her scent perfuming the air.

My mouth waters with need. I want nothing more than to press my face there in her soft, slick folds and taste her. But she is expecting that, and I want to keep her off her guard, if I can. It takes everything I have to pull away. I stroke my fingers over her folds briefly as I sit up, and taste her sweetness off of my claws. Sit up, my mate.

“S-sit up?” Her thoughts are hazy. She blinks at me in aroused surprise, but does as I ask.

Yes. Sit up before me. I get to my feet, standing tall. My cock juts out from my body, the hard length of it aching with need. As she gazes up at me, she looks so tousled and soft and lovely that I want to fling her to the floor and mount her. I send the thought to her, and her breath stutters. Her nipples grow hard, and she shifts in her seat, aware of her own arousal and confusion. This is not how she expected things to go, and her thoughts are both pleased and full of surprise.

Good. I will keep surprising her. I want you to touch me.

Her eyes go wide, and she looks up at me with surprise. Touch you? Where?

Anywhere you wish. Anywhere you’d like to explore. It takes all that I am to keep my hands at my sides, but I somehow manage. I want her to see that my strength is not something to be feared, that it is there so I can protect her and be a good mate to her.

24

DAKH

I  expect my Sasha to protest more or to get to her feet and touch my arms or my chest. Instead, she remains kneeling and moves forward, putting her cheek to my thigh. The bolt of lust that flares through her matches my own, and I groan when her mating scent grows even stronger. Her mouth glides over my skin, and she traces the outline of one muscle with the tip of her small tongue. Her hand caresses the inside of my thigh.

This…I did not expect. A drakoni female is not giving in mating. She is defeated by the male that claims her, and fights him even through the mating. I do not expect…such sweetness. Such generosity. Such arousal at the thought of putting her mouth on me.

She kisses upward, and her thoughts flood with images of putting her mouth on my cock.

I am…shocked. And enticed by the thought. Is this something humans do? As a drakoni male, I have pleasured females all over, but I have never had such things reciprocated. To think that humans do these things, it seems like the most logical—and yet obscenely arousing—thing I have ever considered.

Sasha presses her mouth to the flat of my lower stomach and nips at the skin there. I can feel the pleasure in her thoughts—pleasure at touching me, at my heat, my scent, the hardness of my muscles, the size of my body. She is aroused by me and by touching me. It fills me with lust and longing.

My mate, I tell her. I want nothing more than to push you to the floor and drive into you. I send her a barrage of thoughts to accompany this fierce desire.

She moans against my skin but does not move away. She continues kissing and licking her way toward my cock, her arm wrapped around my thigh as if she must use me to keep herself steady. I’m stiff with anticipation as she moves ever closer, wondering if she will truly put her mouth on me, or if she is too shy to do so.

But in the next moment, Sasha wraps her fingers around my shaft and begins to kiss along one thick vein.

And I groan, unable to stop myself from touching her. I put a hand in her hair, and I can feel her pleasure explode at that little touch. I fist a handful of her curls, anchoring her to me. Owning her. Possessing her even with this small touch, and she loves it. She squirms, rubbing her thighs together even as she kisses along my cock and then licks the head.

I growl low, because never have I felt anything as good as the swipe of her small tongue over my cock. Again, I tell her, demanding it.

She does so and swirls her tongue over the tip, licking up droplets of my pre-cum. I can feel her surprise and pleasure at the taste of me; she didn’t expect it to taste so good. My flavor is spicy but sweet, and she likens it to something she has tasted in the past and enjoyed. With a little noise of delight, she squeezes the root of my cock and takes the head of me into her mouth, dragging her tongue over my flesh.

I close my eyes, lost to the sensation. Nothing has ever felt so good, so right. You like my taste?

My thoughts are so strong that they feel like a demand, and I wonder if I push too hard. But then the pleasure in her thoughts overflows to my mind, and she gives a little moan aloud. She loves it. She loves my hand in her hair, my cock in her mouth. She loves the…control I have over her. It’s making her wet, and in her thoughts, she is surprised at how turned on she is, how her cunt is so wet that her thighs grow slick with their moisture.

Another growl escapes my throat, and I open my eyes, watching as she feeds my cock into her soft mouth. The sight of her lips closing around my girth, her fingers stroking my shaft—and seeing how big I am compared to her—overwhelms me. My sac tightens, and I threaten to spill inside her mouth. I cannot, though. I want to come inside her, to fill her with my seed. To claim her as a mate should be claimed. Your mouth is too small to take all of me, I tell her. But I am just the right size to fuck your cunt, my sweet Sasha.

Heat blooms through her thoughts, and she moans around my cock again, even as she sucks on me.

Your tongue is smooth. Mine is rough. Imagine how it will feel when I bury my tongue in your cunt and fuck you with it.

My sweet mate gives a little whimper and shifts on her thighs again. You’re…distracting me, Dakh. Her tongue swirls over the head of my cock. Don’t you want me to continue?

I want to bury my face between your thighs until your pleasure wets my face. Then I want to sink inside you and take you hard. Don’t you want that?

She releases my cock from her mouth and rubs the tip against her lips, breathless. But—

No buts, I tell her, and pull away. I sink to my knees in front of her until we are facing each other. She looks up at me with dazed eyes, her mouth wet and pink and swollen, and I want to kiss her again.

I want to kiss her all over. You put your mouth on me, my Sasha. It is my turn. Get on your knees.

On my knees? Her thoughts are confused, and she sends me a mental image of her on her back. Shouldn’t I—

I send another image, a competing one, of her on her hands and knees, her bottom in the air. In the image, I grip her by the hips and push my face into her cunt from behind, lapping at her folds.

Sasha sways, and I can feel the desire surge through her at the image. She’s both shocked—and aroused—at the image I’ve sent. Dakh…

On your knees, my Sasha. I do not want her to think, just to feel.

Her thoughts are overwhelmed with all of her emotions, but none of them are fear. I keep sending her mental images of what I want to do to her, because I don’t want her to stop and think and worry. I want her to remain in the moment, to be with me in this. We are together, our connection strong.

But then she gets on her knees and presents her bottom to me, and it is the loveliest thing I have ever seen. Her skin is perfect and smooth, her hips rounded, and her cunt glistens with her arousal. Her thighs part, and then she is spread for me, pink and inviting and delicious.

A growl tears from my throat, and then I am on my mate like a ravenous beast. My mouth goes to her cunt immediately, and I drag my tongue over her gleaming folds, tasting her. She cries out, her body shuddering, but the thoughts in her mind are of pleasure and not fear, so I continue. Over and over I lick her with deep, claiming strokes, using my tongue to explore every bit of her. She tastes sweeter than I have ever dreamed, and I cannot get enough of her honey. I push my tongue into her core, frantic to have all of her.

“Oh my God. Dakh!” Her toes curl, and her legs tighten against me. She is both startled and aroused at my eagerness, any worry she had melting away as I drag my tongue over her again and again. The roughness of it is startling to her, but just enough to make her squirm with need.

My mate, I growl into her thoughts. So good. I want to do this forever. My tongue flicks over her folds and grazes the little button she thinks of as a “clitoris.” It is as if she has been stung. She gives a little wail, and her hands curl against the hard floor. Aha. I feel as if I have found the secret. I bury my face into her warmth again, seeking out that little nub. Her body jerks as I move my tongue over it, and I repeat the action. Over and over, I work that one spot, figuring out the best way to touch her. She cries out with little choked gasps as my tongue circles her clitoris, and her thoughts spiral out of control. I can feel the tension increasing in her body, and her urgency excites my own. I want to be deep inside her, claiming her, but I want her to take her pleasure first.

“Dakh,” she pants with every flick of my tongue. My face is buried against her folds, and it is the finest thing I can imagine. My hands hold her hips down, and I can feel every quiver that moves through her body, every shiver of response, every tensing of her muscles. She writhes against me, her thoughts desperate for more. She needs something to push her over, to make her come, and the longer it takes, the more she starts to think that something is wrong. I can feel the doubt creeping into her thoughts, sapping away her enjoyment.

I will allow none of that. With a surge of my thoughts, I push a series of images into her mind—her with her mouth on my cock, me with my hand in her hair, holding her there. An image of my face between her thighs, lapping at her juices. Me feeding my cock into her cunt. All the while, I continue to work her little clit with my tongue with slow, steady strokes.

It is enough. She jerks against me and then comes with a little scream. I can feel the release explode in her mind, and her thoughts seem to crash all around me. Her scream turns into a moan, but I do not stop in my ministrations—I want her to get every bit of pleasure she can. So I continue to lick and lick as she comes and comes and comes.

Eventually, her thoughts become less chaotic and more dazed. A lick of my tongue turns from pleasure to discomfort, and I reluctantly pull away from her sweetness with one last lick. My cock is throbbing, hard and aching with the need to release inside her. My entire body feels overheated with my fires, and I am desperate to come inside her. I push into Sasha’s thoughts, looking for apprehension or fear. There is nothing, only a languid wonder.

I lean over her, my body covering hers, and I grab a fistful of her hair, my other hand on her hip. My mate, I tell her with a possessive surge.

And I push into her.

She cries out again, but I can feel the euphoria crash through her thoughts as I penetrate her. She likes it. It feels good. And she wants more. I’m so deep into her thoughts that ours begin to blend together, and I feed her my own sensations as I pull from hers. I send to her how tight her cunt is, how perfectly I fit inside her. How good she feels. She shivers with arousal, and her climax begins to build again.

Good. I want more of that.

I rock into her again, my hand tightening on her hair, and she whimpers with need. She’s pinned down underneath me, helpless to do anything but receive my body, and her thoughts flood with how erotic she finds it. She loves that I’m in control. She doesn’t have to do anything except take what I give her, and she craves even more as I thrust deep inside her. I’m so focused on my mate and her pleasure that I lose track of my own. Each slam of my cock into her is to give enjoyment to her, each roll of my hips against her own so I can penetrate her deeper. My Sasha. Mine.

I’m lost in the need to give her everything when I realize that my body is humming, my sac tight and ready to release. I’m on the edge myself, but I don’t want to go there until Sasha does again. I sink into her thoughts, sharing my pleasure with her, and she moans, long and low.

Tell me what you need, my Sasha. I want to make you come again.

Her thoughts flutter even as I drive into her, thrusting over and over again. Her breasts bounce with every thrust, and she thinks of her nipples, tight and aching, and then the little bud—the clitoris—between her thighs. If I touch them, her thoughts suggest…

I release her hair and continue to pound into her with continuous, hard strokes. She’s so wet and my movements are so fierce that our bodies slap together with every thrust, and she’s titillated by the sound of our mating. I slide my hand along the curve of her waist and then under her, reaching between her thighs. I find the little bud of her clitoris and rub the pad of my finger against it.

She jerks against me, pushing back into my next thrust, and her thoughts go wild. Mine do as well, and then I am conscious of nothing but my mate and pumping into her. Through a haze of need, I remember to touch her clit as I pound into her, and when she screams with her second climax, I know it is safe for me to release, too.

With a roar, I release my seed into my mate, letting the satisfaction of claiming her again wash over me.

My Sasha. Mine.

25

SASHA

O h, sweet Jesus. A dragon’s boned me to death and I’m not even mad.

I lie with my cheek pressed to the concrete floor of the empty building. I’m pretty sure there’s a pebble under one boob, and I’m pretty sure my back’s at a weird angle with my butt still in the air. I’m also pretty sure I’m too boneless to move at the moment. Dakh pumps into me one last time as he climaxes, and then I feel sticky and hot as his semen washes over my insides. That’s definitely a…different experience than sex with a human guy.

I don’t even care. I never had an orgasm with a human guy. I just had two with Dakh, and I’m still reeling from them.

Dakh grunts as he slides off of me, and then a moment later, he pulls me against him as he lies on the floor. I let him arrange me against him like the boneless orgasm-noodle that I am, and try to sort my thoughts.

That was…yeah. I don’t even have words for it.

I told you that you would enjoy mating with me. Dakh’s thoughts are smug.

I reach up and push a hand over his mouth, as if that will somehow silence him. You be quiet. I need to process.

Your thoughts are amusing. He rubs my back, letting his claws drag up and down my skin in the lightest of scratches. It’s soothing. Our minds are connected now. Did you truly think I would mate with you and not care if you enjoyed yourself or not?

I don’t answer. I’m still getting used to the whole mental connection thing, and I feel like it was used as another sense in sex—not only were we tasting, touching, feeling, hearing and seeing each other, but he was in my head, directing how I should think. He kept me spinning off-balance, and as a result, I came harder than I’d ever imagined.

Still not mad.

I know some of it is the post-sex glow and that good sex doesn’t solve all your problems, but it definitely helps. It doesn’t change the fact that I’m probably exiled from Fort Dallas and can never go back, or that I’m cavorting with the enemy. But it makes the cavorting a heck of a lot more fun.

Dakh rumbles with amusement at my thoughts, and he slides a hand over my butt. We can cavort more, if you like.

I pat a hand on his chest. “Let a girl catch her breath,” I tell him sleepily. Then I sit up as I realize something, touching my neck. “You didn’t bite me this time.”

No need. I already gave you my fires. As long as you take my seed regularly, my scent will continue to mark you as claimed. No other can take you from me.

Well that’s a relief…I think. “So wait, I was in danger of another dragon snatching me? As a mate?” I’m freaked out by the thought.

Your scent will call others no longer. Now you smell like you have been thoroughly mated. He inhales deeply. And it is the most delicious of scents.

Oh jeez. I can only imagine what that smells like, and I blush again. “That’s a weird thing.”

It is drakoni ritual.

“Is that what you are? Drakoni?”

His thoughts are full of assent. I do not remember much from the time before, but it is trickling back now that I have you to anchor my thoughts, my Sasha.

I worry that he might remember something that will make him abandon me. “What about family? A wife? Kids?”

No mate before you. I can only give my fires once. It is a sharing of my spirit.

Oh. “And you saved up all this time for me?”

When I am around you, my thoughts are clear. You are fertile and young. They are all good reasons to choose a mate.

I shouldn’t be offended, but I’m a little hurt. “So basically any girl would do? Don’t I feel special.”

He caresses my cheek with those deadly claws. Do not be upset, my Sasha. I have had many opportunities to replace you with another, and I decided to keep you.

“Wow, you’re really giving Prince Charming a run for his money, aren’t you?” I say dryly. And because I’m feeling feisty, I give him a light punch in the shoulder. “That’s for considering other females, by the way.”

His lips twitch with amusement and he pulls me back down against him, ignoring my wiggling attempts to escape his grasp. I never wished for another after I saw you. The ravens tried to make me hurt you, but I ignored them.

The ravens? That’s what he means when he’s suffering from madness.

Yes. There is something in this world that makes it impossible to think straight. The ravens make me want to harm, to destroy. They get into my mind and feed me anger. I think they do so to others of my people. That is why they attack the human hive—they want to destroy it.

I shiver at the thought. I remember so many dragon attacks and the fear of wondering if this one would be the one that leveled what was left of the city. “Is there a way to get them to stop? The other dragons?”

If there is, I do not know it…other than to get them all mates.

I remember Claudia and how the militia sacrificed her to the dragon. Someone else out there knows that dragons want mates. I’m uneasy at the thought. Do the people running Fort Dallas know more than we think they do? It’s always been a mystery to people why dragons constantly attacked the city. We knew the how, but not the why. Dakh has the answers.

I just have to unlock them.

Of course, I don’t know what I’ll do with the information once I get it, since I’m now an exile, but there are people in Fort Dallas—good people—that still deserve saving.

I do not wish to save any of them, especially the one who hurt you.

“It’s a problem for another day, I suppose.” I pat his chest. “We’re not going to argue about this.”

There is nothing to argue over, he agrees, and pulls me against him so he can bury his face in my hair. Dragons sure do like sniffing, I realize. And not any female would do, he tells me. I am certain other females have crossed my path, but only you calm my thoughts.

I feel a little more flattered at that. “Why do you suppose that is?”

Perhaps we have a strong mental connection, and it only grows stronger when I anchor my spirit to yours. He rubs my backside again. Or perhaps I just liked your scent.

I yawn, considering. I don’t suppose it matters as long as I’m special to him in some way. For some reason, it’s important for me to matter. I guess because I’ve been abandoned by everyone for so long. Even Claudia and Amy had a bond that I didn’t. I’ve always been the third wheel, the extra. It’s nice to think that I’m first in someone’s eyes.

Even if it is just because I smell good.

If it makes you feel better, you did not smell good when I first snatched you from the skies. He nuzzles my hair. But I kept you anyway.

A muffled laugh escapes me. “No, actually, that doesn’t make me feel better.”

You are and will always be first in my heart, my sweet fires. Dakh holds me tighter. Never doubt this.

And for some reason, I believe him.

26

SASHA

I NOD off at some point during our post-sex snuggling, I think, because I wake up a short time later to find that Dakh’s back in his dragon form and we’re flying through the nighttime skies. I send a sleepy thought up to him, and he coaxes me to go back to sleep.

We are flying home. Rest. I will keep you safe.

I trust him—either that or I’m exhausted—because I fall back asleep and I don’t wake up until he’s carrying me into the store.

Sleep, he tells me.

I shake my head, rubbing my eyes. I need to bathe. I’m sticky and sweaty, and I don’t want to get into the blankets like this.

He changes course and instead of taking me to my blankets, he takes me to the kiddie pool I’ve got in the break room. The water’s from yesterday and still relatively clean but cold. Dakh takes care of the cold thing while I wait, and then I slide into the pool, and he holds me and washes every inch of my body with intent concentration. When I’m done, he towels me dry and then scoops me into his arms again, carrying me to bed.

“I’m able to walk, you know,” I tell him, and ruin my strong statement by yawning.

You can walk, but it is my pleasure to carry you. And his eyes gleam with the thought.

By the time we get to the bed, though, I’m pretty awake. It’s not that late in the day after all, and there’s still plenty we can—or should—do. It feels strange to spend all day lounging about, but there are not really many chores to be done. In Fort Dallas, there was always work—laundry, cooking, cleaning, or mending. Here, I have an endless supply of clean clothes, and I’ve got ready-made food. There’s really nothing for me to do.

You could read your story, Dakh tells me, climbing into bed and tugging me down against him. I would like to hear more.

“You would?”

He nods and pulls me so that my back is flush with his belly. His hard cock presses against my hip, and his hand goes to my breasts. I enjoy hearing of Dirk and Ophelia.

“I finished that book,” I tell him, picking up another romance novel. “But we can read this one?”

Do the humans mate in this one? Does he make her a picnic?

I giggle and show him the cover, with its passionate clinch. “This one is about a cowboy who rescues a woman from bandits. I’m almost sure there will be mating, if this picture is any indication.”

Then let us read on. He presses a kiss to my shoulder. I wish to learn more of human customs.

“Not sure a romance novel is the best way to do that, but we’ll go with it,” I tell him, and open the book to chapter one.

“I DON’T KNOW that we should stay in bed and read all day,” I tell Dakh when he puts another book into my hand the next morning. “It feels wrong.”

Why? He pulls me against him and rests his head atop my hair. His hands slide up my nightgown, and it’s pretty obvious to me that “reading” the book will involve more than just reading. You are fed. What else is there to do?

Oh, to have such a simple life where I don’t have to worry about anything except eating. I already feel lazy for spending most of the day yesterday having sex and reading.

Here at the store, I can relax. Here, I’ve got clothing by the truckload that doesn’t need repairs or even laundering. Here at the store, I’ve got all the food in the world that I want to eat. Granted, it’s all stale, but that doesn’t matter. It’s still edible. It won’t last forever, though. I need to start thinking about the future. I don’t know how cold it’ll get in this big, drafty store in the winter. I also don’t know how much longer the emergency lights will remain on, or if the water will continue working when it gets colder.

I don’t know if anyone’s going to come by this place and force me to defend it.

I need a plan. This place is nice, but I don’t know that it’s long-term nice. Not with a front door that anyone can open and me sitting on a vast fortune of food and clothing supplies. There’s even a ton of batteries in the electronics department, and hunting stuff in sporting goods. There’s so much stuff here that someone would easily kill me for any of it.

I will destroy anyone that tries to harm you, Dakh tells me with a fierce mental surge.

I pat the hand he puts on my stomach. “That’s sweet, but what if you’re not here? What if you’re flying off to get yourself breakfast? Or what if someone gets mad that we’re here and tries to torch the place? There’s a million scenarios, none of them good. We need to start thinking long term. And this stuff,” I say, picking up a box of musty crackers that I’ve been snacking on despite the fact that they’re hard as bricks. “Some of it needs to be eaten ASAP because it won’t last much longer, but there’s other stuff that can last indefinitely and we need to think about hiding some of it for emergencies and figuring out how to stretch more of the rest of the food to make it last. Just because the urgency to our survival is gone doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be practical. Even if it means we don’t get to lie in bed and read stories.”

He runs a gentle claw along the shell of my ear. We can skip the story and just mate instead.

I slither out of his arms with a tiny chuckle. “Somehow I knew that would be your suggestion. And that puts us back in the same situation that reading does—it doesn’t help us prepare for the future.”

Though after last night’s revelatory sex, it’s a whole lot more tempting now. I’m still reeling from the fact that I had not one but two intense orgasms. Exhausting orgasms, but amazing in every single way. I’m continually surprised by Dakh, not only that he’s more human than I thought, but he’s kinder and far cleverer, too. And he’s really, really great at sex.

I like these thoughts.

And nosy, I mentally add. Really, really nosy.

You think loudly.

I should, it’s my own damn head.

Why does it surprise you that I am good at mating or that I am more like you?

Oh, I don’t know. Because you’re a gigantic telepathic scaly creature of legend that breathes fire and has a huge crazy streak? Your kind completely destroyed our world, Dakh. I’m not saying that to be cruel, just pointing out the fact. I don’t think most people realize that you have another form, or that you can speak. They just look at you as giant, angry predators.

We did not choose to be here. He nips at my ear, sending shivers down my body. I care nothing for any of the native people here or their hives. I would conquer all of them if I needed to and take their corpses as spoils of victory.

Jeez, that’s a bloodthirsty, warlike thing to say. I slide out of Dakh’s arms, a little uneasy that that’s his idea of whispering sweet nothings in my ear. “Where did that come from?”

He tries to pull me close again. There is nothing wrong with being a conqueror. It is the preferable side of a war.

“Is that what you view this as? A war? It’s more like genocide to me.” I pluck his hand off of me and get to my feet, a little sensitive about the subject. “But maybe I’m touchy because I’m on the losing side.”

Dakh bounds to his feet and wraps his arms around my waist, dragging me against him once more and burying his face in my hair. Man, this guy loves touching. You are no longer on the losing side—you are on my side.

And I’m not sure that makes me feel better, because he’s the enemy, and if I’m now on his side, that means I’m turning my back on humankind. And while humankind hasn’t done much for me lately, it still feels wrong. I wonder if Claudia suffers these kinds of thoughts when she kisses her dragon or snuggles into bed with him at night. Or is mine the only warmonger?

Then again, I glance up at Dakh. “You compared this to a war. Is this a battlefield to you?”

He shrugs. Sometimes it reminds me of one.

My eyes widen. “Is that a memory? Of battle? War? From before you came through the Rift?”

The dragon-man’s eyes flare black. I…I do not know. If I try to think about it, I hear nothing but the call of the ravens.

I stroke his arm, worried about how dark his eyes are right now. “It’s all right, Dakh. Don’t think about it if it’s going to bother you, okay? Think about things that make you happy. Like…picnics.”

His eyes immediately flare golden, and the look he gives me is full of appeal. You wish to have a picnic?

“Maybe later,” I tell him, and can feel a blush rising. I’m still a little curious about his war thoughts and make a note to write them down in a journal to ask about in the future. Maybe at some point his mind will settle more and we can talk about such things. For now, we can focus on the smaller, day-to-day stuff. “Today, let’s think about our future, all right? If we’re going to stay here through the winter, I want to see about making the doors a little more defensible. There are the big glass ones in front, and the ones in the receiving bay, and the emergency exits on both sides of the store, as well as the garden center.” Just thinking about all those doors makes me feel a little more unsafe. I know Dakh will protect me, but I don’t want to get to that point. “I’d like to make those a priority, okay?”

Whatever you like, my mate. He grazes his knuckles over my cheek. As long as I spend the day with you, I do not care what we do.

“My dragon’s a romantic,” I whisper, teasing. The little caresses make me melt like butter and make parts of me feel like they’re about to turn to mush.

I only want what pleases you. What is so strange about that?

I laugh to myself. “Sometimes, I think ‘everything’ is strange about that. But I’m not going to complain. Let’s go check out the front door and get ideas, okay?”

He follows me as I head to the front of the store, and I keep my thoughts calm and pleasant, even though I want to think about what he said about war and conquest. I’m still not good at hiding things, so I’ll have to focus on that next time he goes hunting or he’s distracted. I eye the big dirty windows at the front of the store, wondering how I can possibly make an entire wall of glass safe, when I notice that my envelope is disturbed. The “EMMA” I scrawled on the front is now facing the inside.

Someone’s flipped it over.

My heart pounds, and I race for the door, then burst outside. As I do, I see that SASHA has been written neatly on the back of the envelope and it’s been flipped over so I’ll see it.

I have mail.

Dakh moves protectively to my side, his nostrils flaring. I smell the little human female. I recognize that foul stench.

Foul stench? I have to admit that I’m not-so-secretly pleased by that. I want my scent to be the only female scent he likes. Weird that I’m feeling possessive about a dragon, but I can’t help it. After last night, a lot has changed. I can feel my pulse starting to race just by thinking about that, and I know Dakh’s going to use it as an enticement to go back inside and “play picnic” some more.

Before he can suggest it, I grab the envelope and pull the paper out. There’s a note inside for me.

SASHA,

I’M OUT OF DEER URINE. COULD YOU BE SO KIND AS TO LEAVE ME A FEW CANS?

XOXO

EMMA

OH, right. I forgot about the deer urine. I laugh to myself. “I think it’s not Emma’s scent that you’re smelling, Dakh.” I wave the note. “She’s still using deer urine to disguise her scent.”

It makes my scales crawl.

I can’t help but smile at that. “I think that’s the point, Dakh. She doesn’t want dragon attention. Or any attention, I’m guessing, since she’s on her own.” The thought makes my guilty conscience rise. Even though Emma technically abandoned this fantastic store when we arrived, the truth is that we were trespassing. We scared her off. In a way, we’re kind of squatting on her territory. And I know how it feels to be alone in the world with no one to count on and no safety. I hate that we did that to her. I think for a minute and then decide I’m going to write her back.

I have to fix this.

EMMA,

HEY THERE! I’M SO GLAD TO HEAR FROM YOU AGAIN. I’VE BEEN CHECKING DAILY FOR NOTES IN THE HOPES THAT YOU’D RETURN, AND I’M GLAD YOU DID. DAKH AND I ARE STILL STAYING AT THE STORE, AND I WANT TO REASSURE YOU THAT YOU CAN COME BY ANY TIME YOU WANT AND GRAB ANYTHING YOU NEED. YOU CAN EVEN STAY AT THE STORE WITH US. I KNOW THAT SOUNDS LIKE AN ASSHOLE SORT OF THING GIVEN THAT IT WAS YOUR STORE, BUT YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN. IT’S HARD TO TELL A DRAGON NO, EVEN WHEN IT’S MY DRAGON.

LONG STORY SHORT, COME AND GET SOME DEER URINE. BUT PLEASE HANG OUT FOR A WHILE. WE’LL HAVE A BARBECUE THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW. I’LL BRING THE (FLAT) SODA AND (STALE) CHIPS, AND DAKH WILL BRING THE FRESH BARBECUED MEAT! IT’LL BE GREAT. I SWEAR YOU’RE SAFE WITH US. PLEASE, PLEASE COME BY. I WOULD LOVE TO CHAT, EVEN JUST TO SAY HELLO.

YOUR FRIEND,

SASHA

IT IS A GOOD NOTE, Dakh reassures me. But you should tell her it is not a trap.

I frown at him. “Uh, so you want me to write at the bottom, ‘PS this isn’t a trap’? That won’t go over very well.”

Why not?

“Because then she’ll really think it’s a trap?”

But you would tell her it is not.

“Oh, you sweet innocent dragon,” I tell him with a shake of my head. “Just trust me on this one. She’s going to have to take a leap of faith.” I put the paper back into the envelope and flip it back around to show “EMMA” on the front. “I hope.”

You are excited about this female coming to visit.

“I am.” I smile up at him. “I guess it’s part atonement for stealing her house and part wanting to have another friend—a girlfriend. I miss Amy and Claudia. It’s funny, because back in Fort Dallas, we lived in the back of this old schoolbus. We’d taken the seats out and sold them, but the entire thing was still kind of cramped. I used to gripe that we were never alone for a moment and dreamed about having a place of my own, but then they disappeared and I realized that being lonely is probably the worst thing possible.”

And then I left you alone for many days to go and retrieve the arm-breaker human. Dakh’s eyes turn flat black again. I made you unhappy.

“You can’t be around me all day every day,” I tell him, reaching out and caressing his shoulder. “You have to hunt. I know this. And yeah, finding Tate probably wasn’t the best use of your time, but it came from a good place. I know I should learn to be more independent, but I like company. I can’t help it.”

There is nothing wrong with you. His eyes gleam a deep gold. You are perfect in every way.

I shiver at the wealth of emotion in his thoughts. It’s clear to me that he’s eager to have sex again. I am, too, but I’m also a little worried about it. Not for the same reasons, either—last night was so good there’s no way it can be that good again. Maybe it’s a fluke, and I’m worried I won’t be able to give him a repeat performance. I don’t want to get my hopes up only to have them dashed all over again.

So I’m stalling. But now, I have a really good reason why.

“I know you’re thinking about picnics right now,” I say, and his thoughts flare with lust. “But if Emma’s coming to visit, there’s so much we need to do.”

Do?

“Yes!” I beam at my dragon. “We’re having a barbecue, and we’ve got to get ready.”

27

DAKH

F or the rest of the day, my sweet human mate obsesses over the fact that the other human we drove out will be coming to eat with us. At least, that is what I gather from Sasha’s scattered thoughts as she scribbles on things to compose her thoughts and takes stock of her food supplies. She’s even more excited when the note she left disappears the next morning. That tells her that the human got her message.

Now the only thing to do is to wait and see if this human will show. Sasha’s mind is a flurry of excitement. She wants everything to be “perfect,” she tells me, so I push the strange metal contraption called a “shopping cart” while she gathers things.

Her thoughts are focused on the human Emma, but I know much of it is a diversion. She is distracted by me and the mating we had last night. She has many confusing thoughts over it, and she does not want me to know that she is anxious. So I pretend that I do not notice and let her have her privacy for now.

My Sasha worries far too much.

I thought that by mating with her I could remove all her fears, but she has new ones. It will take time, I think, for my mate to become comfortable with her bond. It is new to her, and it does not sound like it is something humans share. So she will need time to adjust.

I will give her time. And if she wishes for the foul-smelling human to come and visit? I will endure the stench.

Sasha holds up a small, brightly colored packet. “Look! Strawberry lemonade! We’re totally going to make this! Emma will love it.” She adds it to the cart and then drums her fingers over her mouth, thinking. “Now we need sugar. And a pitcher.”

I pick up the packet and sniff it, curious. It smells…fruity. Familiar. Is this what you put on your hair when you wash?

Her eyes go wide, and then she giggles. “No! That’s shampoo. This is just a drink.”

There is a difference? I let her take it from my grip and say nothing as she continues to fill her cart with many items. I want to tell her that it is one human she is expecting, not a dozen, but I will not spoil my Sasha’s plans. If she wishes to fling gifts at this human, I will not say a word. Perhaps it is a human custom.

“There is definitely a difference,” she tells me, and then adds another thing to the cart. “I’m going to need you to go hunting first thing in the morning while I set up for our barbecue.”

Hunting? I am curious now.

“Yes, and you can’t eat it.”

Then why would I hunt?

“You’re going to bring it back so we can cook it over a fire. It’s called a barbecue, just like I wrote to Emma.” Her smile is brilliant—she is so excited over this.

It seems cruel to carry a live animal in my mouth only to roast it to death in front of her, but if this is what my mate wishes…

She blanches, picking up my thoughts. “God, no. Not like that! You can bring it back dead.” She puts a hand to her forehead. “Perhaps this barbecue isn’t a good idea.”

You can come hunting with me, I suggest. So I know what to get and what to do to it. It seems she is particular about how I should handle this food, and I do not wish to disappoint her in her curious human ritual.

Sasha wrinkles her nose. “Maybe that’s best. Or maybe we should just give up on this.”

She looks so disappointed that I ache for her. If you wish to have me bring back dead animals without eating them, I shall do so, I vow. I will bring you back a dozen.

A lovely smile spreads across her face. “That’s the sweetest thing you’ve ever said, Dakh. I think.” She shrugs and studies the shelving near us. “And we only need one dead animal. We really should eat some of this other stuff, too.” Sasha looks worried and then turns to me. “Do you think she’ll come, Dakh? What if she doesn’t want anything to do with us?”

The human female will come, I tell my mate. I will go and hunt her down if she does not.

SASHA

The next day, I sit nervously at a picnic table at the front of the store and wait. We’ve dragged a patio set from the much-overgrown garden center of the store out here into the parking lot, and a big green umbrella shades the table from the sunlight. I’ve made pink lemonade, though there’s no ice, and every bag of sugar I found was one hardened chunk. There are bags of chips and crackers, and I’ve even found a few bags of Oreo cookies that weren’t torn into. It wasn’t hard to figure out that Emma had a sweet tooth—the candy and cookie aisles of the store were nearly demolished. I’ve brought a few of the treats in the hopes of enticing her, along with the last canister of deer “spray” on the shelves.

Dakh waits in a nearby seat, scratching at the sweatpants I’m making him wear. I’ve got on a new dress, and my clean hair is braided into a little crown atop my head for this party. I feel fancy, ready to entertain and feed and just talk with another human being who knows the same situation I’ve been in.

And I’m anxious my guest won’t even show.

It’s been over a day, and I know Emma got the message. It just depends on if she trusts me—no, correction, trusts us—enough to come by. I’ll understand if she doesn’t, but I’ll still be disappointed.

Dakh shifts in his chair next to me. I know he’s frustrated by the clothing and can feel my nervousness. I have him waiting to get the “meat” part of the meal until our guest shows. I don’t like the thought of sitting by a dead animal for hours, waiting to cook it.

She will be here, Dakh tells me. Be patient.

I shoot him a twitchy smile. How are you so sure?

Because I can smell her stench on the breeze.

“Oh!” I smooth a hand over my hair nervously. “That’s wonderful.”

It takes everything I have not to jump to my feet and run for Emma the moment she appears on the far edge of the parking lot. Flinging myself at her will probably scare her, so I force myself to sit and make it seem as if it’s a casual sort of thing. No big deal, just your everyday afternoon barbecue in the apocalypse.

Shall I leave to go get the meat?

I reach across the table and grab his hand. “Not just yet. If you change into dragon form right now, you might scare her. Wait until she sits down with us.”

I’m pretty sure I hold my breath as Emma slowly makes her way forward in the parking lot. She’s got a baseball bat over one shoulder and wears a few weapons at her hips. Her jeans are torn, and her shirt is dirty, but she looks good. She doesn’t look like she’s starving, which is a relief. I cling tightly to Dakh’s hand. What if she hates me? What if she resents that we’re here in her store? I know how territorial people are in the After. All your stuff matters, especially when you don’t have much.

But she’s here, and I’m going to feed her and be friendly. It’s the least I can do.

She approaches, glancing around nervously the entire time. As she gets closer, I see she’s wearing something that looks like a bright yellow fireman’s vest under her zippered hoodie. Smart. They’re fire resistant. I’ve seen lots of people wear them during dragon attacks. That—and the baseball bat—tell me that she’s worried she’s walking into a trap.

Her smell makes my eyes water, Dakh tells me in a grumpy voice. She does not need to worry that another will snatch her as a mate. He would have to have no nose in order for that to happen.

Hush, I tell him, suppressing my laughter. You stole me and I smelled bad.

No, you smelled strong. Not bad. There is a difference. She smells foul.

I’m still smothering my giggles when Emma walks up, and then I can smell her, too. He’s right—she does smell awful. It’s that strange, musky, skunky smell that the store reeked of when we first moved into it and that I’ve practically drowned out at this point with some sprays and scented candles.

“Hi,” I tell her enthusiastically, jumping to my feet. “I’m so glad you’re here!” I gesture at my bad arm. “I’d offer you a hand to shake, but I’m still recovering.”

She nods slowly, the look on her face suspicious as she gives me an up-and-down look, then peers at the front of the store behind us. “Is there anyone else here?”

“Just us.”

“Mind if I go look inside?” The look on her face is wary.

“I don’t mind,” I tell her. I turn and gesture at Dakh. “This is my, um, boyfriend, Dakh. I think you met him before.”

Emma just stares at him. “The dragon. I remember.”

“Dakh’s going to go get us some fresh meat, aren’t you, sweetie pie?” I give him a bright smile.

Sweetie pie? His tone is disgusted.

If I wasn’t so nervous how Emma would take it, I’d laugh. I’m trying to make her comfortable. Just roll with it.

Very well. I shall endure this sweetie pie. He gets to his feet.

Emma jerks backward, clutching at her bat.

“It’s okay,” I tell her. “He’s just leaving. You’ll be back soon, right, dumpling?”

That is worse than sweetie pie. Why are you calling me by strange food names?

It’s a human thing. Come give me a kiss and be on your way.

Dakh’s eyes flare bright gold. He stalks over to my side and puts an arm around my waist, hauling me against him before he claims my mouth in a fierce, tongue-slicking kiss that isn’t quite the sweet little peck I had in mind to demonstrate to Emma.

You said a kiss. You did not specify more than that. I prefer kissing you this way.

So I didn’t. When he releases me, I’m weak in the knees and lean against the patio table to stand. I watch as Dakh stalks a short distance away and then rips off his sweatpants, revealing taut bronzed buns.

“Oh dear,” I murmur. “I guess I should have been more specific with him about the clothing stuff.” I watch as he transforms and takes to the air, massive wings beating. I glance over at Emma and see that she’s gone pale, her grip on her bat white-knuckled.

She looks over at me, and her expression is slightly incredulous. “You’re not scared at all, are you?”

“Nope. Dakh’s a good guy. I promise.”

She eyes me. “He the one that bruised you up and broke your arm?” Her tone is openly skeptical.

Oh, of course. No wonder she’s so wary. “No, actually. Dakh saved me from the guy responsible for this.” I pat my arm in its sling, now fresh and clean and made from a pillowcase. “I know that Dakh looks scary as hell, but I swear he would never harm me. His customs are a little different than ours, but now that I understand him, I’m not afraid anymore.” Even as I say it, I realize it’s true. There’s a lot of things to be afraid of in this world, but Dakh’s not one of them. I feel secure and safe with him. It’s wonderful to realize.

Of course you are safe with me. Dakh’s thoughts drift through mine, and he sounds a little insulted.

It takes time for these things to filter through my mind, I tell him. You’ll have to be patient with me if I still get surprised by it now and then.

And you’re sure I cannot kill the one that broke your arm? His thoughts are grouchy.

I’m sure. I refocus on Emma, who’s watching me with a curious look. “You said the dragon wouldn’t hurt you, but what about me?”

“As long as we’re friends, I can assure you that Dakh would never hurt you.”

She rolls the bat on her shoulder and gives me an exasperated look. “Do you know what a loaded statement that is?”

I grimace. “I know. I didn’t mean it like that. But you have to understand that Dakh’s a pretty singular sort of guy. Er, dragon. His focus is on his mate and that’s it. Nothing else matters. So as long as I’m happy, he’s happy.”

Emma brightens. “But that means I can give up on the deer urine if he’s happy, right?”

“I don’t know,” I admit. “He’s got a very keen sense of smell. I think most dragons do. And they can smell things from a long distance away. If another dragon decides that he likes your scent…”

She raises a hand in the air. “Say no more. I get the picture. I’ll continue to stink myself up with deer urine. Speaking of, did you bring me some?”

I gesture at the can on the ground, since I didn’t have the heart to put it next to the food I’ve laid out. “This was the only one I could find.”

“Beggars can’t be choosers.” Emma snags it and jogs away from the table a good distance, then lifts one arm and sprays the deer urine under it, then repeats for the other arm. Then, she pulls out the waistband of her pants and sprays her panties as I watch in horrified fascination.

I’m repelled by her actions, but at the same time, I understand them. You do what you have to do to survive.

Emma wrinkles her nose as she finishes, tugging at the collar of her shirt as if to air out. “Sorry. You get used to it after a while.” She thinks for a moment and then adds, “Actually, no, you don’t. You just tolerate it because it beats dying.”

“Now that, I understand,” I tell her. “But there’s only one can left. What are you going to do when it runs out?”

A flash of worry crosses her face. “I don’t know.”

I drum my fingers on my lips, thinking. “What about perfume? We could have Dakh tell us which ones work and which ones don’t.”

Her eyes widen. “You’d do that for me?”

“Of course. I still feel bad we more or less ran you out of here.”

“Well, don’t feel too bad.” She starts to reach for one of the bags of potato chips, then sniffs her hand and grimaces. “I ran the last person out of here, and I’m sure someone will run you out after a time.” She shoots me a skeptical glance. “Though maybe not with a dragon. I’m thinking dragon trumps all.”

I laugh. “It’s a pretty good defense system, I have to admit.”

“You got some hand sanitizer?” Emma asks. “I’m starving, but I don’t want to eat unless I wash my hands.”

“Of course. And some soap and water, too. Come on. We’ll go in the store and clean up while we wait for Dakh.” I nod in the direction of the doors, and we head inside.

We walk through the shadowy aisles quietly. I’m brimming with questions, but I don’t want to make the already skittish Emma even more nervous. I know this is all a big leap of faith, so I’m content to let her start the questioning. I’m sure there will be plenty of them.

In the sink in the break room, she eyes my pool-slash-tub with longing. “Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve had a bath?”

“Probably almost as long as me before I got here,” I say with a chuckle. “I lived in Fort Dallas before Dakh and I…got together.” That seems the best way to describe our meeting. “They charged for baths because it was hard to spare the water. There’s nothing so nice as being clean.” I gesture at the tub. “You can take a bath if you want.”

The look on her dirty face is wistful. “I shouldn’t. I just reapplied my stink.”

“I understand.”

She washes her hands in the sink and glances over at me as she lathers them up. “I thought this was a trap, you know.”

“Yeah, I thought you might. I know if I were in your shoes, I’d have thought the same thing. But I promise you, Dakh and I mean you no harm. We were just flying out of the city when we came upon the store here.”

Emma nods. “This is all kind of weird for me, you know. A barbecue with a dragon and the girl who booted me out of my home? Very strange.”

I laugh, because she has a point. “It’s all weird for me, too, believe me. Some mornings I wake up and wonder how I got to this.”

“Well, since you bring it up, that’s a great question. How did you end up shacking up with a dragon? And how did you know that he’s human?” She shakes the water off her hands and dries them with a paper towel, then folds the paper towel neatly and sets it in her pocket for re-use later. “I’ve never seen a dragon turn human before. Then again, I’ve never seen a dragon this close before, either.”

“I didn’t know he was human, either. It was a shock to me, too, when I was told about it.”

“Then how did you meet?”

“‘Meet’ might be the wrong word for it. Dakh was attacking Fort Dallas, and my friend Claudia was trying to escape with her dragon. She pulled me up behind her on his back, but I couldn’t hold on because of my bad arm.” I gesture at my sling helplessly. “I fell off the back of the rescue dragon, and Dakh snatched me from the air. Next thing I knew, he’d taken me away.” And made it abundantly clear he wanted companionship, but I avoid saying that part to Emma.

Why? It is an honor to be your mate. Dakh’s thoughts sound a little distant, like they’re coming from down a long hallway instead of right in my ear. There is nothing to be ashamed of.

I’m not ashamed, I tell him. I just don’t think most people would understand. Sometimes I’m not sure even I understand, and I know you.

Bah. If you have any doubts, I can show you when I return.

No doubts! That wasn’t what I meant. And no showing is necessary. I can feel my face growing hot even as Emma watches me. “So um, where were we?”

“You okay? You seem distracted.”

I debate telling her that Dakh is telepathic, but it seems like something I should keep to myself for now. I don’t want her to feel like we’re plotting against her silently. “Just thinking. It’s been a bit of a wild journey.”

“I’ll bet. So tell me more about Dakh. How did you find out he was human instead of dragon?”

“That’s the thing,” I tell her as I wash my own hands. “I’m not sure that he’s a human that has a dragon form as much as he’s a dragon that happens to have a human form. The way he thinks and his beliefs…they’re just very different from ours.” I wipe my hands off and give her a rueful smile. “And I found out he had a human form when he changed in front of me. I probably wasn’t as shocked as you because my friend Claudia had told me about her relationship with a dragon, but it’s still startling to see for the first time.”

“Your friend hooked up with a dragon, too, you said? Claudia? How did she meet him?”

I bite my lip, wondering how much I should say. “Claudia was exiled from Fort Dallas and left in the Scavenge Lands for him to find.”

Emma’s face goes dark. “Forts are shitty places,” she tells me. “The worst of what’s left of humanity. I was booted from Fort Tulsa. I hope it burns to the ground.”

“You were? What happened?”

The look on her face grows vague. “What always happens when you’re a woman in the After. Someone suggests something and you can either take them up on it or you can take action. I’d rather not talk about it.”

My heart squeezes with sympathy. I’ve been where she’s at. We all have. It’s hard when you’re a woman alone. “I understand. At first when I got together with Dakh, I was terrified of him. Then I realized that the only thing he wants is my happiness. Now I feel safer with him than I ever did in Fort Dallas, surrounded by tons of people with guns. Funny how that works, isn’t it?”

“I’m not surprised. You’ve got the biggest badass on your side. It’s hard to think about just forgiving everything they’ve done, though. In my head, dragons are still the enemy. They still slaughtered millions of people.”

“I’m not forgiving it,” I tell her as we head back to the front of the store. “I just understand it a bit more after knowing Dakh.” Her words are making me uncomfortable, though. In the eyes of humanity, I’m shacking up with the enemy—the monster that destroyed our world. I’m now the enemy, too.

“How can you understand it? What’s there to understand?” There’s remembered pain in Emma’s voice. “We lost everything.”

“So did Dakh,” I tell her. “It doesn’t excuse it, but he and his people had no choice when they came through the Rift. Something about this place destroys their minds and makes them crazy. I’ve seen how hard he fights to beat it. The only thing that helps him is talking to me. If I’m not there, he’s just as insane as the rest of them. It’s not something they can help. I don’t even know if they’re aware of what they’re doing most of the time. I think their minds are just…gone.”

“But how can you be sure? How do you know that he’s not just telling you what he thinks you want to hear?”

Because I can see into his mind? But I don’t share that with Emma. It feels like a betrayal of Dakh. “I guess I have to believe in someone, so I choose to believe in him.”

“You’re a braver woman than me.”

“I don’t think there’s a bit of bravery involved. We’re all just trying to survive the best way we know how.”

“I don’t know what I’d do in your situation,” Emma admits. “I don’t know if I could ever get past the fact that they’re the enemy.”

Sometimes you have to go with your gut, though. I don’t know if Emma will ever understand my situation unless she meets up with a dragon herself. “I don’t know if you’ll ever be in my situation,” I tease her. “Dakh tells me you smell really, really bad.”

Her face lights up with a grin. “That’s the idea.”

We sit down at the table of food, and Emma’s eyes light up at the sight of a package of cookies. “Where did you find this? I thought they were all gone!” She holds it to her chest and closes her eyes, delighted. “This alone is worth the trek.”

I chuckle at her reaction. “I found a couple of them stashed behind some of the soft drinks. You’re welcome to that package.”

“You’re the best.” She slings her backpack off of her back and tucks the cookies in there. “Should we wait for the dragon to start eating?” She glances at the food spread out on the table.

“Not at all! He doesn’t eat this stuff. He grabs himself a nice fresh cow or deer every morning.” I pick up a sleeve of crackers—my personal favorite—and open a jar of peanut butter. “Help yourself.”

She immediately tears into the bag of chips, grabbing a handful and cramming them into her mouth. I don’t judge; food probably has been harder to come by for her lately thanks to the fact that she’s had to leave the store. I feel a surge of guilt over that. “How are you faring? Where are you staying?”

Emma shrugs as she chews. “Found an old gas station up the road. No gas, no food, but it’s got a roof and no one else is squatting there, so it’s mine.”

I slather peanut butter on a cracker to cover the stale taste and chew on it thoughtfully. “You’re welcome to come here any time you like and get some supplies. There’s more than I can eat by myself, you know. And ditto on the clothes and soaps and anything else you can think of.”

The smile she gives me is grateful. “Really? People would kill to have all this crap back in Fort Tulsa.”

“I know, but we outcasts have to stick together. Besides, what am I going to do with an entire aisle of frying pans?”

“Cook up whatever Dakh brings you?”

I laugh, about to make a crack about how Dakh pre-cooks his food with his breath, when a shadow passes overhead. We both stiffen and look up, and I can see the panic cross Emma’s face.

Is that you? I send out automatically.

Yes, Dakh replies. I did not want to interrupt your conversation. I bring back meat for you. He sends me a mental image of a cow with really long horns. It is dead, but I did not breathe fire on it. Shall I drop it to the ground?

Wonderful—yes! Thank you, Dakh! I turn to Emma. “It’s Dakh. He’s back.”

“How can you tell?” There’s a nervous note in her voice.

“Oh, I recognize the scales,” I tell her blithely. “Come on. Let’s see what he’s got for us to cook up.”

28

SASHA

Dakh drops a gigantic full-grown steer in the parking lot, and Emma and I spend the next few hours trying to figure out how to butcher it properly. It’s a disgusting, messy task that requires gloves, aprons, knives, and a great deal of squealing with horror. Dakh helps out by doing some of the more onerous lifting and stays in his dragon form - I suspect because he doesn’t want to wear pants. By the time we get our hunks of meat skinned and spitted over the charcoal firepit, I’m exhausted and filthy.

I’ve also had so much fun.

Emma’s hilarious. She’s got a great sense of humor and isn’t afraid to jump into a difficult task. As we work, she tells me all about Fort Tulsa, her adopted godfather who taught her how to take care of herself in the After, her terrible wastrel of a brother who set off and left her alone, and a dozen other little stories that are funny and charming and sad all at once. It’s clear that Emma’s missed out on female company almost as much as I have, and the time passes swiftly.

When the meat’s prepped and roasting over the coals, we wash up and then pick through the perfumes. There are a few that smell very strong, and we test those out with Dakh. So we don’t let Emma on that our minds are connected, I make a big show of explaining things to Dakh and ask him to demonstrate which perfumes are the least appealing to a draconic snout. We manage to find a few scents that actually are worse for him than the deer urine, and the relief on Emma’s face is palpable.

“He’s sure?” she asks over and over again. “He really can’t smell me underneath all this?”

I am sure. My nose may never recover. And he rubs at his scaly snout with one clawed foot, as if disgusted.

“He’s sure,” I agree, reaching up to pet Dakh’s nose. “I’m probably going to hear about it for days.”

Emma just gives me a strange look. “He must be more of a talker when I’m not around.”

“That’s exactly it,” I lie. “Did you want to go bathe since you’re here? There’s a bunch of soaps by the pool in the break room, and I refilled it yesterday with fresh water.”

“Oh heck yes! You sure you don’t mind?” She looks more excited over the bath than the meat roasting in barbecue sauce a short distance away.

“Positive. We’ll be out here watching the food.”

With a little squeal of happiness, Emma races into the store. I chuckle at the sight of her bounding inside.

You do not worry she will take your things? Dakh asks, nuzzling at my neck. I know you value them greatly.

“They’re not really mine. And there’s more stuff in there than I can possibly know what to do with. She’s welcome to as much as she wants. I’d feel terrible to have stolen her home and then not even give her the smallest of items to help her survive.” I stroke his scales idly. “It’s hard to be a girl alone.”

Shall I reach out to some of my brother drakoni and find her a mate to protect her?

I gasp and put a hand over his enormous muzzle. “Bite your tongue. She doesn’t need a man to protect her! She just needs people to not be assholes.”

It will be easier to find her a mate, my dragon tells me wryly.

Well, he’s got a point there. “No. Absolutely not. I can’t imagine doing that to someone.” I shudder at the thought. “If she’s anything like me, she’s had enough choices taken from her over the course of time that doing such a thing is terrible to even think about.”

Dakh is silent.

By the time Emma emerges, smelling fresh and reeking only oh so slightly of a strong floral perfume, the meat is ready, and I’ve talked Dakh into changing into his human form and wearing pants once more. Emma’s dressed in new clothes and tosses the tags into the fire. “I really appreciate how generous you guys are,” she tells me, shooting a curious look at the shirtless Dakh. “I didn’t expect this, I have to admit. I thought I was going to walk into a trap, but I needed the spray.”

“Well, now you don’t need the spray,” I say brightly, my heart aching for her. “And you can get just as much perfume as you want, because I have no need for it.”

The smile she gives me is broad and genuine, and I feel like maybe we can truly be friends.

“Let’s eat, shall we? I’m starving,” I announce, and hand out paper plates.

Carving the food ends up being a little trickier than anticipated. Neither Emma or I have ever butchered a cow before, so none of the meat looks much like it did from grocery stores back in the day. But it’s fragrant and smells of the thick barbecue sauce we’ve slathered onto it, and my mouth waters. I fork a huge chunk of meat onto my plate and sit down to eat.

The taste is indescribable. I make a groan of pure joy with the first bite, and Emma follows a moment later.

“Oh my God, this is so good,” I say between chewing. It’s been forever since I’ve had beef of any kind, and while Dakh has offered to hunt for me before, I never took him up on it when there was packaged food to be had. But this? This is a game changer.

“Amazing,” Emma agrees.

You are enjoying yourself?

Absolutely, I tell him as I lick my fingers.

I can tell. His thoughts are a low purr. You make the same noises as I do when I am between your legs, tasting your cunt.

Just like that, arousal floods through me. We haven’t had sex again since that last time, and I know I’ve been keeping him at arm’s length while I got used to the idea of being his “mate.” It was easy to focus on the barbecue because that was safe, and Dakh’s been patient, not pushing me. I know he wants me to be eager for him, and so I’m going to have to be the one to initiate sex this next time.

And with his simple thought, I’m thinking about it. Hard. I press my thighs together tightly to stop the scent of my arousal from reaching Dakh.

Too late.

You did that on purpose, I think to him.

I did. I like the scent of you. I like licking your cunt. I like seating my cock deep inside you, where it belongs. This is how it should be between mates. You should be as hungry for me as I am for you.

Well, mission accomplished. Because now I can’t lick the barbecue sauce off of my fingers without blushing and wanting to squirm in my seat. I force myself to chew quietly, ignoring the fact that my nipples are beaded tight and hard against the fabric of my sundress. I wish I could ignore the heated looks Dakh gives me as he picks up a hunk of meat and licks a smear of sauce off of it. But I can’t. My pulse flutters at how gold his eyes are.

“You think it’ll keep?” Emma asks, nibbling on a rib.

“Huh?” I blink and look over at her. It’s hard to concentrate, especially with Dakh all bronzed and shirtless across from me. Part of me wants to fling my plate aside and go crawl into his lap and rub myself all over his chest.

Do it, Dakh tells me, his thoughts full of amusement and lust.

Absolutely not, I tell him primly. I’m barely listening as Emma talks about how we can store all this cooked meat and how long it’ll last without a refrigerator of some kind. Then she looks over at me, waiting for an answer. “Whatever you think is best,” I say faintly, then nudge Dakh’s leg with my sandal under the table. Stop distracting me.

Dakh grabs my sandal, trapping my foot, and begins to rub my ankle. So soft.

Stop it! Eat your food.

It is not half as juicy as you are. I would rather bury my tongue somewhere else.

I shift in my seat. I can feel my pulse pounding between my thighs, can feel the heat growing there. I can already tell I’m wet between my thighs, my pussy slippery with arousal.

I can smell you even over her stink, Dakh agrees. You lust for me strongly.

“You okay?” Emma asks me, glancing at Dakh and then back at me. “Your face is all red.”

“Just got a spicy bit,” I lie, choking out the words. I grab my plastic cup of lemonade and chug it, all the while Dakh’s fingers trace patterns on the inside of my ankle.

“So what do you want to do?” Emma asks. She glances up at the sky. “Sun’s probably going down soon, so I should head off before it gets dark.”

“Will you be safe?” I ask, forgetting about Dakh for a moment.

“Oh, absolutely.” She pats her pocket. “I have pepper spray and my bat, and at some point I’m going to find another gun. There are still bullets in the store, but no guns, sadly.”

“If you’re sure. I don’t want you to feel like you have to run off,” I hedge.

If she stays, she can listen to you scream with pleasure as I push into you—

I cough, sputtering into my pink lemonade.

Emma reaches over, patting my back. “I’ll be fine. And you’re not running me off. My gas station is safe, and if you don’t mind me grabbing a few things, I’ll be on my way.” She gives another wistful look to the enormous amount of barbecue still roasting.

“Oh, my gosh, of course! Take everything you need. And take as much of the meat as you can carry.” I wiggle my foot out of Dakh’s lap and get to my feet. “Let’s get it wrapped up and get you taken care of, okay?”

I hurry back to the entrance of the store with her. Dakh is silent, and I can’t help but glance back at him to see what he’s thinking. There’s an amused half-smile on his face, but his eyes are glowing bright gold, so hot I can practically feel them scorching me where I stand.

Do not think you can run from me, little mate. Dragons love to chase. And when I catch you, I intend to hold you down and lick you until I’ve had my fill.

I shiver, my body covered with goosebumps at the mental image. Not only because it’s an erotic one, but because I know he’s going to be able to see it in my head and know what I’m thinking. That makes things twice as bad—and twice as titillating.

A short time later, Emma has a shopping cart full of essentials, plastic containers full of as much meat as she can possibly eat before it spoils, and some fresh clothes and blankets. The perfumes are carefully bundled up—she’s got several bottles of the smelliest kinds and left some of the others for an “emergency” supply back on the shelf.

I’m a little sad to see her go, but at the same time, I’m practically crawling out of my skin with anticipation of Dakh touching me. “You sure you’ll be okay?” I ask for what feels like the hundredth time. “I hate to send you off.”

“You’re not. I’m fine. I’m used to being on my own.” Her smile grows wider. “I really appreciate everything though. This was…nice. It made me realize it’s been a long time since I’ve had friends.”

“I lost mine recently, so it’s good to see another female face around. Please say you’ll come by again, all right? I’d love to hang out some more, even if it’s just for you to grab some more supplies. There’s plenty for both of us. And Dakh can hunt if you need meat. You just have to ask, all right?”

Emma nods. “I will. Thanks again, Sasha. I appreciate it. And tell Dakh thank you, too.” She nods at the dragon, who’s still seated at the table back by the food, watching us. “He’s kind of weird, but I can see that he cares for you.”

“He does,” I agree softly. “Thank you for understanding.”

“Oh, I’m not saying I understand,” she teases. “But he’s got a certain appeal to him.”

I laugh. “Well, like I said, feel free to come by anytime.”

“I might, but I’m probably going to leave a note to announce my visits a few hours ahead of time. Wouldn’t want to walk in on anything.” She winks at me and turns the cart onto the old, torn-up service road to the highway. “See you later, Sasha.”

I can feel myself blushing. “Bye, Emma. Talk to you soon.” I guess we were obvious.

Maybe she could smell your arousal like I can.

She cannot, I tell him firmly. Don’t even say such things.

It is a potent scent, Dakh tells me. I would bathe myself in it if I could.

And there’s a mental image I’m going to never be able to get out of my head. Thanks for that.

You make noises that you do not like my attentions, but I know you do. I am in your head, remember?

I never said I didn’t like them! You just startle me. I’m not used to someone picking through all of my thoughts. It’s a little unsettling. Makes me feel naked.

I enjoy when you are naked.

Somehow I knew that was coming. But I can’t help but laugh. Even if his jokes make me feel squirmy and make me blush, I like them. It’s fun to tease and to feel light and carefree once more. I didn’t realize how…beat down and old I felt back in Fort Dallas. Back then, I was just existing.

Now I feel alive.

29

SASHA

T  he moment Emma disappears down the road, Dakh’s thoughts flood through my mind, full of lust and promise. He’s been patient long enough.

And really, so have I. I know my panties are soaked from the play between us, even if it was all mental. I know just thinking about what’s coming up makes me prickle with awareness and my pulse starts to race. I don’t even have to turn around to show Dakh how turned on I am at the moment.

He knows. He knows because he’s in my thoughts, and because I can feel his, too. The way he hungers to touch me. The stream of images of how he plans on touching me. The need that batters at his willpower. He’s been fighting hard against his desire to drag me to his side and pull me against him, under him.

But now there’s no need to fight it.

No sooner do I think that than Dakh grabs me by the waist and swings me into his arms. He’s mindful of my sling as he tucks me against his chest, striding for the table. He sets me down on the edge of it and then sweeps the paper plates and empty cups off to the side, making a mess.

“What are we doing?” I ask, breathless.

I am going to taste my mate, just like I have wanted. His eyes gleam bright gold at the thought, lighter than his bronzed skin.

“Right here?” Nervousness is in my voice, but so is need. There’s something outrageous about the thought of having sex outside, even if there’s nobody around but us. A dragon could fly overhead and see us. Emma could return. Nomads could be hiding in the distant trees. All of these things are unlikely but add an edge to the hunger I feel. I’m both appalled and aroused at the thought.

Is this not where I would taste my mate? Here on this table? You made such sweet sounds as you licked your fingers. Now it is my turn.

“You’re going to lick my fingers?” I tease, even as he cradles my head and tilts me back on the flat, wobbly surface of the patio table.

No. It is my turn to do the licking. I am going to lick you everywhere. I hunger for you, my sweet Sasha. And I will have you. He tugs at the long skirt of my sundress, his claws flexing. He thinks for a moment, and then remembers that I don’t like for my clothing to be ripped, and pushes it up, past my knees. A moment later, his head disappears under the bright floral skirt.

I give a surprised little squeal at the feel of his hot skin brushing against my inner thigh. A moment later, I feel his nose press against the crotch of my panties, feel his teeth and tongue press against the material. I hate these, he tells me, thoughts full of my scent and my arousal. They block me from my favorite part of you.

I moan, squirming at that strangely erotic touch.

His claws gently move against my skin, and then I feel him push aside my panties. In the next moment, his tongue drags over my sensitive folds, and a cry rips from my throat.

Hush, or you will bring your human friend back here, wondering what terrible things the drakoni warrior is doing to her.

Drakoni…warrior? That sounds badass and yet sexy. “Is that what you are?”

Your drakoni warrior, he tells me between fierce licks of my pussy. A male eager to claim his mate.

Just hearing that fierce, possessive growl in my thoughts makes me even wetter, and I squirm as his tongue lashes over my sensitive folds, dragging back and forth. He’s not focusing on any one particular spot, which is both deliciously teasing and aggravating at once. I want him to push a finger inside me. I want him to suck on my clit. I want all kinds of filthy, dirty things from him and he’s taking his sweet time.

Impatient, he chides as he gives me another slow, torturous lick. I thought you wanted to wait?

“Changed my mind,” I pant, pushing my hips up against his mouth.

Shall we go inside? You do not like the table, I think. He starts to raise his head.

I put a hand on his thick, wild hair and hold him there. “No! Stay there.” I’m panting with need. “Don’t you dare move.”

His thoughts rumble with amusement, and then he gives me another deliciously slow lick. I think I like it when my mate is demanding. What would you like for me to do, my fire? His tongue drags over my clit. Taste you here? He licks lower. Or here? Even lower, and his tongue rasps against my core, then penetrates me. Or here?

I give a little whine, because it’s not fair that I have to pick. I want all of it. Did I feel weird about being on the table before? Right now Emma could show up again and I would make her wait until I was done with Dakh. I need this. I didn’t realize how badly I needed it until he touched me. I’m wild with arousal, and it’s like the fire he calls me is licking through my veins. “Tongue,” I rasp between panting breaths. “Clit.”

His mouth immediately descends on my clit, tongue stroking over it in the way that drives me absolutely crazy.

I whimper, tugging at my skirts because my view is blocked. It’s both exciting and frustrating to not be able to see what he’s doing. He’s making me utterly crazy, and as a result, I’m getting closer and closer to the orgasm I so desperately need.

Of course, the moment I start to think about it, it begins to slide out of my grasp. It’s like being aware that I’m having pleasure means my brain needs to sabotage me, to turn me back into the Old Sasha, who didn’t enjoy sex. The rasp of Dakh’s tongue against my clit becomes too sensitive, and this time, when I squirm, it’s to get away. “Dakh, wait—”

Do not think, my mate.

“Oh, easy for you to say!”

Just enjoy. Do not think about the past. Think about me here, with my mouth on you, giving you pleasure. Relax. His thoughts are a soothing balm over my own increasingly worried ones. Let me be in charge. Let me control your pleasure. Nothing is required of you except to lie back and let me touch you.

My nipples get hard at the thought, and I moan breathlessly. There’s something so erotic about being completely out of control of the situation. It’s like as long as he’s in charge, I have permission to let my body react any way I like, and how can I not like the wet, insistent rasp of his tongue against my clit?

That is right. Let me pleasure you.

A moment later, I feel something large and insistent press against my core. I gasp when it penetrates me shallowly, because that small touch amplifies everything I’m feeling. “Oh God…what-what are you doing?”

I can feel him nuzzle my clit with his lips, and I nearly come off the table. I am giving you what you wanted—I am giving you everything.

“Not the claws, I hope,” I breathe, thinking of the deadly, talon-like claws tipping his fingers.

Never. He sends me a visual of his knuckle as he pushes it into me, and that mental image is incredibly erotic. I moan again, and when he pushes into me once more, it starts to send me into overload.

Give yourself to it, Dakh encourages, sending a flurry of erotic thoughts through my mind. Claim your release. He thrusts into me again, even as his mouth continues to work my clit.

It’s too much. With a small cry, my muscles tense, and I come. It’s a small orgasm, but it feels fantastic. Waves of bliss rush over me, and I lose myself to the sensation, the feel of my body clenching with the burst of pleasure. So good.

From under my skirts, Dakh pushes his head up, and then I see his face. His mouth is gleaming, wet from my juices, and he’s so gorgeous, his eyes a vivid gold with emotion. He presses a kiss to my knee and then gives me another heated look. Turn over so I can claim you right here.

I wiggle on the hard table. “I don’t know if it’s a good idea with my bad arm. I might hurt things more.”

His sexy expression immediately changes, and he helps me up. Are you in pain? Did I harm you?

“No, I mean, not right now.” I chuckle, feeling sated and toe-curlingly good. “I just mean that this is probably the wrong place to finish things. We can go inside to our bed,” I say shyly. It feels strange to be the one encouraging a man. I could probably push him away at this point—I’ve had an orgasm, after all. I’m good. Thing is, I don’t want to. I want him to come, too. I want to see his pleasure. I want Dakh to lose control.

A smile dawns across his face, and he looks so heart-stoppingly sexy that my toes curl again. Whatever my mate wants.

“I want you,” I tell him, and extend a hand so he can help me sit up.

Instead of taking my hand, he gathers me in his arms, carrying me inside. I feel a little guilty about the mess outside, but I figure what the raccoons and coyotes don’t get to, I’ll clean up in the morning. For now, I just want to be with Dakh.

You must tell me if I hurt you at any time, he insists as he carries me through the store. I am much stronger than you, and I do not want to harm you thoughtlessly.

“You’ve never hurt me,” I reassure him. No one’s ever been so careful with my safety.

It is because you are the most precious thing in my world, he tells me. Without you, I am lost. Without you, I am alone. With you, I am whole.

My eyes blur, because it might be the nicest thing I’ve ever heard. And it encapsulates how I feel about him, too. I know it’s fast, and I know he’s the enemy.

I just…don’t know that I care anymore. With Dakh, I’m safe and protected and happy. With Dakh, I never feel like I’m not enough for someone. That I’m a problem or a burden or forgotten. I feel like I belong. Like I matter.

I might be addicted to my dragon. I’m okay with that.

I put my good arm around his neck as he gently lays me down into the swirl of blankets that serves as our makeshift bed.

Comfortable? He nuzzles my neck.

“Yes, thank you.” I smile up at him.

Take your clothes off and turn over then, my mate. His eyes gleam with promise.

I caress his strong, square jaw. “I’ll undress, but this time, why don’t we have sex face to face? Not that I don’t like it the other way. I just think it would be nice to have you on top of me.”

He looks surprised at my suggestion. Do humans mate in such a way?

“Um, yeah? Do…” I struggle to think of the word he used earlier, “drakoni not do such things?”

Our matings tend to be quick and brutal. I have always taken a female from behind.

Great, and now I’m feeling jealous, wondering how many drakoni women he’s had sex with. “I see.”

He leans in and presses his mouth against my neck. I do not remember. I do not remember anything about them. Not their faces, not their bodies, not their scents. They were nothing. I remember no female before you.

And that makes me feel a little better. I rub my fingertips along his jaw, tracing the lines of it. “Then let’s stay face to face this time. I like the idea of being able to watch you as you come.”

If it pleases you, we shall try it. He rubs his nose against mine and then claims my mouth in a heated kiss, his tongue flicking against mine. There’s a slight musky taste to his mouth, and I realize I’m tasting…myself. Strange.

You taste remarkable, he tells me. There is nothing strange about it.

I give him another kiss and then tug at my dress. “Help me undress? I want to feel your skin against mine.”

He pulls at my dress, and between the two of us, we manage to wriggle it off of my body, and then my bra and panties. After a moment’s consideration, I replace my makeshift sling back over my neck. I don’t want to harm my arm more than it’s already hurt. “I’m ready for this to heal up,” I grumble as it twinges painfully.

Humans take a long time to heal, even with my fire in your blood. How long until it gets better?

“I don’t know,” I admit. “Maybe another month? It’s my first broken arm.” I grimace. “And I’m just as ready as you for it to get better. It’s annoying to not be able to use both arms.”

I do not care about annoying. I care about you hurting. He caresses my shoulder with a frown. I do not like the thought of you in pain.

“I’m fine,” I tell him softly. “I promise.” I lie back in the bedding and trail my fingers down his long, hard abdomen and then brush them over the head of his cock, outlined by the too-tight sweatpants he’s wearing. “I don’t like for you to be hurting, either. And it seems like this must ache, just a little, hmm?”

It aches to be inside you, he tells me. And it aches to be out of these ridiculous skins.

I chuckle at that. “It’s clothing, not skins. It’s made from plants.”

It is useless. He drags his claws through the material, shredding it in his haste to remove it. No drakoni worth his paint would wear such a thing.

Worth his paint? I file that note away to ask about later. For now, I’m too fascinated with watching Dakh claw his way through the material, revealing bronze skin underneath, the dapple of the scale pattern practically undulating over the six-pack on his flat belly. I am a lucky, lucky girl, I decide, because I get to touch this. I let my hand slide lower, caressing the slick head of his cock, dragging my fingertips through the pre-cum there. I get to touch all of this.

He groans low in his throat, and then his big body pushes over me. I part my thighs, inviting him to rest against the cradle of my hips, and he glances down between us, as if studying how our bodies fit together. He takes his cock in his hand and drags the head of it up and down my slick folds, wetting it. I catch my breath, surprised again at how good that feels. How good everything feels with him.

Dakh fits the head of his cock against my core, and then he pushes forward, penetrating me.

I gasp at the sensation—he’s thick and broad, and even though I’m wet and ready for him, it’s still a breathtaking thing to feel. I reach for him, stroking my hand up and down his arm as he slowly feeds his cock into my body, his gaze riveted to where we are joined. He watches as he pushes into me, and then when he’s seated fully, leans in over me, his chest pressing to mine, and gives me a light kiss.

I think I like this.

“You do?”

His hand caresses my jaw, his gaze locked to mine. I can watch your face as I pump into you.

I suck in a breath, because as he says it, he thrusts into me. Sensation spirals through my body with his movements, and I hold on to him, trying to raise my hips to meet his when he rocks into me again. His movements are slow and sure, but as I relax against him, he picks up speed, his thrusts taking on urgency.

The look in his eyes is possessive as he pumps into me, over and over again. My Sasha, he sends to me, and a low growl builds in his chest. My mate.

“Yours,” I whisper, trailing my fingers over his skin, trying to touch him everywhere I can.

He buries his face against my neck, and his thrusts take on a fiercer edge. He’s close to coming—I can tell by the spin of urgency in his thoughts, his need boiling over into my mind. His excitement fuels my own, and the harder he drives into my body, the more the friction seems to heighten my own pleasure. I’m surprised as I feel the slow stir of another orgasm start to build in my belly, and I gasp when his next thrust is followed by a swivel of his hips against mine, because that makes everything that much more exciting.

“Keep going,” I tell him. “Don’t stop.”

Not until you have your pleasure again, he vows, and nips at my neck with those sharp, wicked teeth of his.

I gasp at the sensation, locking a leg around his hip to increase the depth of his penetration. Faster and harder he claims me, and I cling to him, closing my eyes and holding tight as the elusive orgasm builds inside me. It’s almost there, but I need more, need something else to give me that little push—

Dakh gently bites at my neck again, and even as he does, I feel his hand slip between our bodies. His thumb presses through the folds of my pussy, finding my clit, and remains there. When he pushes into me again, it rubs against my clit.

That lights me up like a dynamite fuse. I cry out, digging my nails into his shoulder. He thrusts into me again, and I can feel my body clench around him, my pussy tightening in response to the orgasm that’s building. The growl continues to build in his throat, and he pumps into me harder, our bodies coming together so roughly that my back is sliding across the blankets and onto the floor. I don’t care. The only thing that matters is Dakh. Dakh’s burning skin, his burning golden eyes, the heat of him against me, pounding into me—

And then I’m coming. Everything shatters inside me, and I give a choked little cry as everything clenches and releases, the orgasm battering through me. He growls my name—aloud—and then I feel him shudder as his own release finds him, the heat of his seed sweeping through me. It’s such a strange—but pleasant—sensation to feel that.

Dakh thrusts into me again, shallowly, and then buries his face against my skin once more, licking at the hollow of my neck. My sweet mate. Take everything I have to give you.

Always, I mentally whisper to him, stroking a hand over his shoulder. Always.

30

SASHA

I t takes a while to come down, and I’m in no hurry for him to get off of me. I love the feel of his warm skin against mine, the almost peppery taste of his sweat. The slick fusion of our bodies together. I love this. I could stay like this forever, I think. Just the two of us, alone in the world, the weight of him pressing between my thighs. Heaven.

You would starve, he says, and nips at the hollow of my neck again, then licks away the sting. And I would need to leave your cunt at some point to feed you.

“I didn’t say it was practical,” I tell him with a sigh. “Just that I liked the thought.”

I continue to touch him, tracing up and down his back, thinking. There’s so much to unpack and figure out. Bits of his memories are starting to return, I think. He’s said that he doesn’t remember much about his life before coming through the Rift, but in certain moments, hints of his past slip out. He mentioned drakoni and warriors. It’s not the first time he’s talked about battle. I relax into his thoughts, trying to peek into his mind.

All you have to do is ask, he tells me languidly. No sneaking is necessary.

I guess I’m not very stealthy, I tell him as I run my fingers through his thick, almost wiry hair. Do you want to try to focus on your past? See what we can figure out if we can work on it together?

He shifts against me, his weight sliding off of my body. We’re no longer joined, and I feel a sense of loss. A moment later, he puts his arms around me and holds me close against his side, mindful of my bad arm. Does the past matter? he asks. I am here with you now. That is all I need.

But maybe if we figure out your past, we can figure out how to get you back there.

I have no wish to return.

None at all? Even if this place fries your mind?

He strokes my cheek. Not if I have you here.

Sweet words, but I feel it’s a little too pat. I want him to know where he comes from so he can make informed choices. If he has an option, I want him to be able to take it. I know what it’s like to be trapped in a world gone hellish, and if I can prevent that from happening to one other person, it’d be a good thing. So tell me, I say into his mind as I stroke his chest. What are drakoni? Is that all people, like all humans? Or is it only certain people?

All my people. His thoughts are sleepy, buzzed pleasantly with the afterglow of sex. Drakoni is who we are. It is the fire in our blood. Our spirits are drakoni. It is where we come from, even if we no longer live there.

I make a mental note of that. Because you live here now?

No, even before we came here to this world, we no longer lived in drakoni lands. There’s a faint darkness around his thoughts, and the swirl of feathers that tells me that I’m pressing too hard. We lived…elsewhere…

I stroke his skin, tracing the scale patterns over his pectorals. Don’t worry about it, baby. Another time.

Baby? I can hear his amusement, as clear as day. Is this like the pie thing you called me?

It’s a term of endearment.

To call me an infant?

Yup. Just roll with it.

I shall. My sweet, sweet infant of a mate. His lips brush over my forehead.

I laugh at that. Uh, not quite the same thing.

Our thoughts mingle pleasantly over small nothings as he holds me close. I keep smoothing my hands over his scorchingly warm skin, touching and comforting until he falls asleep. The moment he does, I extract myself from his grip and creep over to my journal.

DAY ONE OF PROJECT DAKH’S PAST, I WRITE DOWN. DRAKONI. NO LONGER LIVED IN NATIVE LANDS. SPIRITS ARE DRAKONI. MENTION OF “WARRIORS” IN THE PAST.

I MAKE my notes and then close the journal, then tiptoe back into bed with him and rest my cheek against his chest. It’s a puzzle, and one I’m determined to figure out. If he can’t remember his past, maybe I can help him piece it together and we can figure out who he was and where he came from.

It might take a while, but we have nothing but time.

31

DAY THREE OF PROJECT DAKH’S PAST. NOT MUCH PROGRESS. TODAY, WHEN I TEASINGLY CHALLENGED HIM TO A DUEL OVER SOME SEXY STUFF, HE LAUGHED LIKE IT WAS THE FUNNIEST THING EVER AND KEPT SAYING “WHERE?” MAYBE DUELS MEAN SOMETHING ELSE TO DRAKONI? MAYBE THEY HAVE THEM IN SPECIFIC PLACES? THINGS TO PONDER.

DAY SIX OF PROJECT DAKH’S PAST. SAW ME CLIPPING MY NAILS AND WAS HORRIFIED. SAID IT’S A MARK OF SHAME FOR A DRAKONI. WEIRD.

DAY EIGHT OF PROJECT DAKH’S PAST. RED DRAGONS OVERHEAD TODAY AS SCHEDULED. I WAS WORRIED, BUT HE SAID THEY WOULD IGNORE ME BECAUSE I WASN’T A THREAT. NOT SURE WHAT THE DIFFERENCE IS BETWEEN REDS AND GOLDS?

DAY NINE OF PDP. REDS ARE APPARENTLY FEMALES AND CAN SMELL THAT DAKH HAS A MATE. LITTLE WEIRDED OUT AT ALL THE SMELLING GOING ON. MAKES ME WANT TO DO LAUNDRY.

DAY ELEVEN OF PDP. WAS HAVING SEX WITH DAKH AND FEELING NAUGHTY. SUGGESTED HE COME ON MY FACE AND HE ACTED SHOCKED AND NOT IN A GOOD WAY. GUESS DRAKONI DON’T DO THAT. SAID I WAS HIS MATE AND “DESERVED” HIS SEED. OOOKAY.

DAY FOURTEEN OF PDP. MEMORY REALLY BAD TODAY. HE’S RESISTING ALL ATTEMPTS TO ANSWER MY QUESTIONS. LOTS OF RAVENS IN HIS HEAD. POOR THING.

DAY SIXTEEN OF PDP. DAKH IS SO SWEET TO ME. IT HURTS WHEN HE HURTS. TODAY WE TALKED ABOUT FAMILY. I TOLD HIM MINE DIED IN THE RIOTS AFTER THE RIFT. HE COULDN’T REMEMBER HIS, AND I COULD TELL IT BOTHERED HIM. MY POOR DAKH. I DO THIS JOURNAL FOR HIM.

DAY EIGHTEEN OF PDP. BREAKTHROUGH? I HOPE! DAKH WOKE UP THIS MORNING WITH A MEMORY OF MOUNTAINS. HE DOESN’T REMEMBER MUCH MORE THAN THAT, OTHER THAN IT WAS VERY WARM AND SANDY. SOUNDS LIKE A DESERT WITH MOUNTAINS? I’M GOING TO FLIP THROUGH THE TRAVEL MAGAZINES AND SEE IF WE CAN FIND SOMETHING THAT MATCHES HIS THOUGHTS.

DAY TWENTY OF PDP. SAW ANOTHER DRAGON OVERHEAD, THIS TIME A GOLD ONE. DAKH SAYS HE DIDN’T KNOW HIM, NOT LIKE HE KNEW KAEL BEFORE. I WASN’T IN DANGER FROM THE DRAGON, BUT IT BEARS TO MIND A QUESTION—IF DAKH KNEW KAEL AND NOT THIS OTHER, WERE THERE DIFFERENT GROUPS OF DRAGONS? FOR SOME REASON, I THOUGHT THEY WERE ALL TOGETHER. MAYBE NOT? ALL THE DRAGONS I’VE SEEN SO FAR SEEM TO BE SOLITARY CREATURES. EVEN DAKH’S QUITE HAPPY TO “NEST” WITH JUST ME.

DAY TWENTY-THREE OF PDP. EMMA’S SUGGESTED THAT I THINK ABOUT FANTASY DRAGONS AND THEIR HABITS AND SEE IF ANY OF THEM APPLY TO DAKH. SHE ALSO ASKED IF IT WAS POSSIBLE HE CAME FROM AN ALTERNATE UNIVERSE, SOMETHING VERY LORD OF THE RINGS. IT’S POSSIBLE, BUT ANYTHING’S POSSIBLE. I TOOK A BUNCH OF COINS OUT OF THE OLD CASH REGISTERS AND SOME OF THE GOLD FROM THE JEWELRY DEPARTMENT AND MADE A “TREASURE” BUCKET. TALKED ABOUT IT IN FRONT OF DAKH AND MADE A BIG DEAL ABOUT HOW VALUABLE THEY USED TO BE. HE WAS MORE INTERESTED IN HAVING SEX. SO THAT’S A BUST, THOUGH THE SEX WAS PRETTY AWESOME.

DAY TWENTY-FOUR OF PDP. ASKED DAKH HOW HE BREATHES FIRE. IT SEEMS TO COME FROM HIS GUT, BUT IT DOESN’T BURN HIS THROAT. HE CAN FLAME ON COMMAND AND NEVER RUNS OUT. SAYS IT IS SOMETHING THEY ACHIEVE IN A RITE OF ADULTHOOD. I’M FASCINATED AT THE THOUGHT, BUT HE CAN’T TELL ME MORE THAN THAT. HE GETS A DISTRACTED LOOK IN HIS EYE AND HIS THOUGHTS GO MURKY. IT’S ALMOST LIKE SOMETHING ON THIS SIDE (AKA EARTH-SIDE) IS STOPPING HIM FROM THINKING CLEARLY.

DAY TWENTY-SEVEN OF PDP. NO PERIOD. I PANICKED A LITTLE AT THAT. I DON’T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT HALF-DRAKONI HALF-HUMAN BABIES. ARE WE TALKING LIZARDS? I SUPPOSE I SHOULD BE GLAD THEY DON’T GET FIRE UNTIL ADULTHOOD, BUT MAYBE WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT CONDOMS.

DAY TWENTY-EIGHT OF PDP. NOTHING TO DO WITH DAKH’S PAST, BUT THOUGHT IT WAS WORTH MENTIONING THAT THE CONDOMS HERE ARE ALL WAY OUT OF DATE, AND THE MOMENT THEY TOUCH DAKH’S HOT SKIN, THEY GET BRITTLE AND BREAK. SO THERE GOES THAT. GOOD NEWS IS THAT THE PREGNANCY TESTS ALL SAY I’M NEGATIVE. UNLESS THEY’RE OUT OF DATE, TOO.

DAY TWENTY-NINE OF PDP. NOPE, NOT PREGNANT. NOT SURE HOW I FEEL ABOUT THAT. KINDA RELIEVED BUT ALSO KIND OF SAD. DAKH IS SAD. IT’S SWEET THAT HE WANTS TO BE A FATHER, BUT I WORRY ABOUT BRINGING A CHILD INTO A WORLD LIKE THIS. PLUS, MAYBE IT’S SELFISH, BUT I LIKE IT BEING JUST ME AND DAKH RIGHT NOW. NOBODY TO WORRY ABOUT BUT US.

DAY THIRTY-ONE OF PDP. DAKH CHASED OFF ANOTHER RED DRAGON TODAY. SAID SHE WAS SO CRAZED SHE DIDN’T EVEN REALIZE HE HAD A MATE. WHATEVER IS IN THE AIR HERE THAT MAKES THE DRAGONS GO NUTS, IT’S REALLY BAD FOR THE REDS. REMEMBERING THAT THE REDS ARE FEMALES MAKES ME FEEL A LITTLE WEIRD, BECAUSE I REMEMBER THE DRAGON THAT ATTACKED US BACK IN THE SKYSCRAPER WAS A RED, AND DAKH TORE ITS THROAT OUT. HE SAYS SHE WAS GOING TO CHALLENGE ME FOR HIS ATTENTION, WHICH I GUESS IS A DRAKONI THING. BATTLES ARE VERY BIG FOR THEM. FEMALES CHALLENGE OTHER FEMALES FOR THE RIGHT TO APPROACH A MALE, AND THEN THE FEMALE ALSO CHALLENGES THE MALE. IT MAKES ME WONDER ABOUT THEIR CULTURE. WHAT WERE THEY LIKE IN THEIR HUMAN FORMS? DID THEY JUST GO AROUND CHALLENGING EACH OTHER ALL THE TIME?

DAY THIRTY-TWO OF PDP. NO WRITTEN LANGUAGE FOR THE DRAKONI, IT SEEMS. DAKH STILL FINDS IT WEIRD THAT I READ “MESSAGES” IN BOOKS. I ASKED HIM HOW THEY WOULD GET MESSAGES LONG-DISTANCE, AND HE SAID SOMETHING THAT DIDN’T MAKE SENSE. SAID THAT IT WASN’T NECESSARY AND THEY ALWAYS ANSWERED “THE CALL.” WHATEVER THAT MEANS.

DAY THIRTY-THREE OF PDP. I THINK THE MORE I LEARN ABOUT DAKH AND HIS PEOPLE, THE MORE I WORRY WE’RE NOT COMPATIBLE. THEY SEEM SO DIFFERENT FROM HUMANS. NOT THAT WE’RE GREAT, OF COURSE. BUT I WAS READING A BOOK—A ROMANTIC SUSPENSE—AND THE BAD GUY WAS TAKEN IN TO THE COPS AND SENT OFF TO JAIL. DAKH WAS INCENSED THAT THE HEROINE DID NOT “HONORABLY” KILL THE BAD GUY. SAID IT WAS HER DUTY AS A PROTECTOR AND THAT THOSE THAT ARE A THREAT TO THE NEST ARE DEALT WITH AT ONCE SO THEY DO NOT BECOME A THREAT AGAIN.

I TRIED EXPLAINING TO HIM THAT PEOPLE JUST DON’T KILL PEOPLE WILLY-NILLY, AND HE DIDN’T SEEM TO UNDERSTAND WHY. I GUESS I’M LUCKY THAT HE LOVES ME AND I CARE FOR HIM, BUT I WORRY. WHAT IF WE RUN INTO OTHER PEOPLE AND DAKH DECIDES HE DOESN’T LIKE THEM? IS HE GOING TO STRAIGHT UP MURDER THEM BECAUSE HE WANTS TO “PROTECT” ME? WHAT WILL I DO?

SOMETIMES I LOOK AT HIM AND HE’S JUST SO HUMAN, AND SOMETIMES I WONDER IF I’M OUT OF MY MIND, BECAUSE THERE’S NO WAY HE’S EVER BEEN HUMAN. NOT EVEN CLOSE. HIS EYES AREN’T LIKE MINE. HIS SKIN ISN’T LIKE MINE. HE BREATHES FIRE. I KNOW HE LOVES AND TALKS AND LAUGHS JUST LIKE I DO, BUT I WONDER IF I’M ATTRIBUTING TOO MUCH TO HIM? MAYBE HE’S TOO WILD AT HEART TO EVER TRULY UNDERSTAND WHAT IT IS TO BE HUMAN. MAYBE I NEED TO QUIT TRYING TO SEE HIM AND THE DRAKONI AS MISPLACED HUMANS WHO HAPPEN TO BE STUCK HERE ON EARTH.

MAYBE I NEED TO SEE THEM AS THEY ARE—DRAGONS THAT HAPPEN TO SHIFT INTO HUMAN FORM FOR MATING.

DAY THIRTY-FOUR OF PDP. I ASKED DAKH IF DRAKONI EVER MATED IN THEIR “BATTLE FORM,” WHICH IS WHAT HE CALLS THE DRAGON FORM. HE SEEMED APPALLED AT THE THOUGHT. MAYBE HUMANS ARE THE FREAKS, BECAUSE I’M PRETTY SURE IF WE HAD A SECOND FORM, SOMEONE WOULD BE OUT THERE GETTING THEIR ROCKS OFF LIKE THAT. SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT, I GUESS.

DAY THIRTY-NINE OF PDP. BEEN A QUIET FEW DAYS. KINDA STORMY, SO HAVEN’T SEEN EMMA A LOT LATELY. JUST DAKH AND ME, WHICH MEANS LOTS OF SNUGGLE TIME, LOTS OF SEX, AND LOTS OF ME TRYING TO PROD HIS MEMORY. DAKH DOESN’T CARE FOR IT, I THINK, BECAUSE IT MAKES THE “RAVENS” APPEAR IN HIS MIND. I THINK THAT’S HIS WAY OF SEPARATING HIS CRAZY—IT COMES IN THE FORM OF RAVENS. WHICH MAKES ME THINK THERE ARE RAVENS IN HIS WORLD, BUT I SUPPOSE THAT’S NEITHER HERE NOR THERE. HE ONLY TOLERATES MY QUESTIONS BECAUSE HE LOVES ME AND WANTS TO MAKE ME HAPPY, BUT I KNOW MY ENDLESS HARPING ON THEM UPSETS HIS MIND. I CAN FEEL IT. I’M STARTING TO WONDER IF I’M NOT BETTER OFF LEAVING THINGS AS THEY ARE. IF WE’RE HAPPY TOGETHER, WHY DOES IT MATTER WHERE HE CAME FROM?

I GUESS WHAT MATTERS IS WHERE WE’RE GOING TOGETHER.

32

DAKH

M y Sasha is writing in her “journal” again. I move behind her and put my arms around her waist, nuzzling her neck from behind. I love her scent, love the way she gasps every time I touch her, as if it is a surprise that I wish to caress her. Our days are full of joy, but I am starting to hate the journal. With it comes questions that make my mind hurt, and it allows the ravens to circle once more.

She puts it aside as I drag my tongue over her neck, sighing with pleasure at the touch. “Done hunting already, baby?”

Done, I agree. I still find it amusing that she picks strange things to call me in an affectionate way. I always call her the same thing—my mate, my fire, my Sasha. Never my infant. Never my pie. Come to bed with me, I tell her. I missed you.

“You were gone for an hour,” she says with a giggle, but her arousal perfumes the air. Now that my Sasha is used to my touch, it does not take much to produce her mating scent. She likes it when I caress her, and she especially enjoys mating. I make it a point for us to touch every day, even the days when she is bleeding. She does not like that, but I will eventually convince her that her body is beautiful to me, no matter what happens.

It was a long hour, I tell her, tracing my tongue over her ear. And there is a storm on the way. It will rain soon.

“Oh no, is it?” She pulls out of my arms, concerned. “Emma’s coming by later. I hope she doesn’t get rained on.”

Do you wish me to go fly her here? I can track her by her smell. Though the stink has changed, the overpowering scent of it has not. It irritates my nose, but I endure it for my Sasha, who loves visits from the other human. She comes by on a regular basis, often enough that she does not blink when she sees me naked.

Which is good. I do not enjoy wearing the “pants” that my mate likes to insist upon when the human visits. Human customs are strange.

“No, I think she wouldn’t like that.” When I caress her throat, Sasha nips at my thumb-claw. “She’s still scared of you, you know.”

It is because I am a fearsome drakoni warrior. Of course she fears me.

“Well, try not to ‘warrior’ too much at her when she comes over. She said there should be some tomatoes ripe in the garden center, and we’re going to try to figure out how to can them for the winter.”

From her thoughts, I can tell she is talking about preserving food. My Sasha is obsessed with food. Since she has become my mate, she has filled out, the hollow look gone from her eyes. I can no longer count her ribs, and enjoy the rounded curve of her bottom now more than ever. Do I not feed you enough? Shall I go and get meat for you?

“You feed me plenty. It’s just that we need to be prepared in case things run low.” She pats my arm. “Just humor me, babe.”

Very well. I know she worries over foods and having enough. It will take time for her to realize I can care for all her needs. I rub my nose along the column of her neck. Tell me what to do so I can help.

“Just your company is enough for now,” she tells me with a bright smile and then impulsively reaches up and kisses me.

Her spontaneous affection is a gift. I rub my nose against hers, locking my hands around her waist. Your friend is not here yet. We have time…

Sasha chuckles, but I can smell the bloom of her arousal. “Maybe…maybe just a quickie.”

THE HUMAN EMMA arrives a short time later, and my mate still smells of my seed, her cheeks still flushed from our quick, intense mating. I have put on the annoying pants that she requested, and scratch at them absently as Sasha hugs Emma in greeting. They chatter, my mate’s thoughts scattering here and there as they talk about a red fruit and things to eat. Emma is another obsessed with food. I suspect it is because humans are poor hunters.

They head to the back of the store, where the vines grow so thick that they come through the broken glass and spill onto the floor. I trail behind, keeping an eye on my mate as she and the other human talk. They enter the overgrown chamber and pick through the plants, exclaiming when they find one that they like. There are orange things called “pumpkins” that they grow excited over, and green long things called “zucchini.” There are flowers and vines and a scatter of black plastic pots. In Sasha’s mind, this is a garden center, and I wonder at the people that built this. The gardens I remember were full of fountains and stone walkways and…

I frown to myself, rubbing my neck at the memory. I do not remember more than that. Even that small fragment causes the ravens to flutter close, hovering in wait.

You okay? Sasha’s thoughts burst through my murky ones.

Just a strange thought.

About gardens? I saw the image. She works busily next to Emma, acting as if we are not talking in our minds. It is still a secret from the other human, because she does not wish for her to feel isolated. Maybe it was the place you lived before, Sasha suggests.

No, I did not live there. I recall an image of it, but never entered it. The dark thoughts swell, and I push them away. Is this garden to your liking?

It has potential, Sasha tells me, and her thoughts are cheerful. She picks up one of the green things and shows it to Emma. “Look at this one!”

Emma says something about learning to like the taste, and Sasha giggles. Most of Emma’s words are nonsense to me—I still have not bothered to learn the human language. I pick up her thoughts through my mate’s mind, and that is enough for me.

“There are so many veggies,” Sasha exclaims, her mind brimming with all of the foods they have gathered. “Have you ever canned anything before?” When Emma makes a sound of dissent, Sasha grows sad. “I don’t know how to do this.”

Emma suggests books, the story containers that Sasha loves so much.

My mate lights up at the thought. “A bookstore! Surely there’s one around here somewhere! We could find lots of books on how to prepare food. I bet we could find lots of books about survival, too. Maybe we could pick up some hints from them.”

Emma likes the idea and gestures at the store. A visual of something with wheels—a bicycle?—flashes through Sasha’s head.

“We can do better than that,” my mate tells her and beams at me proudly. “Dakh can fly us.”

I can feel the stark terror coming off of Emma. The stink of it clouds over her normal stench. She does not like the idea.

“It’s safe, I promise. It’s not fun, but Dakh would never drop us. Right, baby?”

I would never drop you, I tell her. Her, well…as long as she is your friend.

Going to ignore that, Sasha tells me with amusement. To her friend, she says, “It’s totally safe. I promise.”

They talk about it for a while longer, and then a short time later, we are at the front of the store. I rip off my pants and change to battle form even as the females secure the bags they have on their backs and talk about where to find the books they want. A library, they decide, or a bookstore. As long as we follow the long, paved path called a “highway,” we should find one.

How is your arm? I ask Sasha as she approaches. Does it ache?

It’s good, she tells me, and flexes it. She only stopped wearing her sling yesterday. It has taken her a long time to heal, and I worry that she is too fragile. I’ll let you know if it hurts, she promises me. I won’t overdo it.

I nuzzle her. Good.

“He’s going to grab you, Emma,” Sasha explains to her friend as I get to my feet and spread my wings. “But don’t be scared. Just hold on tight, all right?”

The human female is pale, but she nods.

I scoop up my Sasha first, holding her gently. I am always careful with my delicate human, though she prefers most times to stay on the ground instead of riding with me. She does not like being in my claws. She must want these books badly to volunteer a flight. I pick the other human female up, and her fear intensifies.

“It’s all right,” Sasha reassures the other. “You’re safe. Now, are you secure? Hold on, because the initial launch is a doozy.”

Emma tells her that she’s ready to go.

Ready when you are, honey, Sasha tells me.

Hold on tightly, my infant, I tease her. Sasha’s laughter is torn away as we launch, and Emma screams aloud. Both humans clutch at my talons, but I have a good grip and would never drop either. I make my ascent as smooth as possible, beating my wings slowly as I take to the air. When I catch an air current, I glide along the highway, tracing its route back toward the broken stone ruin that Sasha calls Old Dallas.

Look for bookstores, Sasha tells me, her thoughts faint and overwhelmed. She sends me pictures of things to look for. I’ll check for them, too, since I know they might be hard to find.

Should we go by scent? I ask her. Your stories have a very specific scent to them. The pages have a dusty, almost musty sort of smell to them, and I know I would recognize it on the air if there were a lot of them.

Oh, that’s a great idea, babe! You’re so smart! Her thoughts are full of pride and affection.

It makes me want to do more for her. I swoop lower to the ground, ignoring Emma’s newest little scream of alarm. I will find you these books, I promise my mate.

I know, babe. That’s why you’re the best.

Careful, or you will make me land so I can fill your cunt with my seed again.

Dakh! I can feel her embarrassment, and her small hand smacks at my scales. Behave!

I want to nuzzle her hair and pull her close so I can smell her, but her little friend is quivering and frightened in my claws, and we are supposed to keep our communication a secret. So I send my Sasha my thoughts and focus on sifting through the stink of the old human hive. There is an overwhelming smell of metal and filth, along with the far more comforting scent of char. I flare my nostrils as I glide over the rubble. At first it is spaced widely apart, with a few of the square human dwellings here and there along the highway. As we grow closer to the human hive, though, they grow more and more clustered together, until they are everywhere, bleeding their scents into the air. Rotten things, ash, metal, dung—all of them mix together, and I have to concentrate to hunt for the one particular scent that my Sasha wants. The dry, dusty scent of her beloved books. I circle wide, find a hint of what I’m looking for, and veer off in a new direction.

The scent grows stronger, and I know I am on the right path. “Over there,” Sasha calls out, pointing. I see her focus—a large square box with a green roof and many glass windows covered in dust. Her excitement bleeds through her thoughts, and even Emma makes a happy noise. “You found it, Dakh,” my mate calls, pleased. “That’s fantastic!”

I am pleased to make you happy, I tell her with a low rumble, gliding lower.

Do you smell anyone around other than us? Any other humans? A tinge of worry crosses her thoughts.

I check the air before I land, but it is devoid of human scents. There is nothing. You are safe. I land on my hind legs, my wings fluttering as I settle down, then tuck them against my body. I gently uncurl my claws and release my humans.

Both Emma and Sasha stagger and wobble forward. Emma drops to her knees on the ground, heaving, and my Sasha looks pale.

I nudge at her hair with my nose. Not feeling well?

Just disoriented, she tells me, putting a hand to her brow. Being under you and flying makes my stomach turn quite a bit. I wish I had a saddle like Claudia did. She didn’t seem as queasy riding on her dragon’s back.

Where can we get such a thing? Tell me and I shall go retrieve it.

That’s just it. I don’t know. She offers Emma a hand up and then glances over at me. I was in such a hurry back when Fort Dallas was being attacked that I didn’t pay much attention. I don’t know where she got a saddle or even how it was set up. I don’t know how she managed it. I wish she were here so I could ask her.

Shall I fly you to Kael’s nest so you can talk to his mate?

“Huh?” Sasha is so startled that she turns and gazes at me, brow furrowed.

“What is it?” Emma asks.

“Oh, um, nothing.” Sasha looks flustered. “I got confused. Let’s see if we can get into the bookstore, shall we?”

The humans approach the front of the store, where the double doors are chained, and Emma pulls out something jingly and begins to mess with the locks. Lockpicks, I pick up from my Sasha’s thoughts.

Don’t change the subject, Sasha sends to me. What do you mean, fly me to Kael’s nest?

I send her a mental image of the drakoni male and his mate. Do you want to talk to his human? I can take you there.

She glances up at me, shock rippling through her thoughts. You…you can take me to see Claudia?

If you like, yes. Do you want to go now? I reach for her again.

Sasha puts a hand up. Wait, no, I mean, we can’t go right now. Emma and I need to grab these books. But…I’m just shocked. It never occurred to me to ask you to take me to them. We’ve just been so busy…and now I feel foolish. But you can hunt them down, can’t you?

It is as simple as getting into range and opening my mind to connect with Kael. I will do so for you.

Oh wow. I can’t believe I never thought about connecting to them. I’m so silly. I feel ridiculous for not even thinking about it.

Emma looks over at my mate. Through the filter of my Sasha’s mind, I know that Emma is asking if she’s okay.

“Just thinking about something,” Sasha admits. “Dakh and I are going to visit a friend tomorrow.” To me she sends, Is tomorrow all right?

Of course, I tell her. We can go now, if you wish.

No, I want to stay and finish up with Emma. I don’t want her to feel abandoned. We’re all she’s got.

Friendship is very important to my Sasha. I understand. Tomorrow, then. I settle in to watch the females as they work.

Emma replies, and her tone is friendly, but the look on her face is strained. She is instantly wary. She does not like change, this one.

Sasha smiles at Emma, oblivious to the other’s body language. “Yes. My friends that I used to live with back in Fort Dallas—Claudia and Amy. Claudia is, ah, dating another gold dragon. I haven’t seen her since they left the fort.”

Dating. As if they are not bonded at the spirit. I am amused at my mate’s delicate way of putting such things. Is that how you view our bond? A “date”? From her thoughts, I can tell that a date is a casual excursion, a fun way of flirting with another. Date, indeed.

Erm, no. She flicks a glance over at me. But I’m not going to go around telling her that you’re my mate. That’s just weird. Humans don’t say that.

What do humans say, then?

You would be my husband, but we’re not married. There was no ceremony. And it feels weird to say “lover” because then it implies we’re only in it for the sex. So “date” it is.

Humans are strange.

Emma is talking again. She looks surprised at Sasha’s words—picking up on “date” as well, I see—and asks a question.

“No,” Sasha says, chuckling. “It’s not common at all. In fact, I’m pretty sure it’s against every rule in the book. But I didn’t ask them, and I’m not going to. I don’t know if I’m ever going to return. Fort Dallas is…different. Less free.”

The other human replies, and her tone is full of anger. She rips the now-unlocked chain off the door, and her eyes narrow as she spits words into the air.

I tense, ready to tear her limb from limb if she even breathes the wrong way on my Sasha.

It’s all right, Sasha tells me, though she is surprised by Emma’s vehemence as well. She’s just upset. I think talking about the forts triggered a few buried emotions for her. She’s just telling me how much she hates them and how they’re not a good place to live. Then, aloud, she says, “I’m not a fan of forts, either. What did they do to you?”

Emma answers negatively, shaking her head. She holds open the door and says something else.

She’s changing the subject, Sasha tells me. I won’t pry, though I’m curious now. “Well, one way to find out if it’s been raided.” My mate ventures a smile and then says, “You know, you’re welcome to come with us if you just want to get to know a few more safe, friendly people. I promise you, Claudia and her sister are really great. I’ve known them for years. We all banded together after the Rift and looked out for each other. They’d treat you well because you’re a friend of mine.”

Emma shakes her head. Judging by the sideways look she shoots me and the images that fill Sasha’s head, she has concerns about me yet.

“Dakh? He’s harmless.” Sasha sends me a thought full of amusement.

Emma mutters something, and an image of me stripping off my pants fills Sasha’s mind.

She giggles. “It does take some getting used to. Clothes just aren’t a big deal for him.”

Emma’s grumpy expression and response are unintelligible to me, but Sasha collapses into a fit of laughter. I try to interpret the meaning from my mate’s thoughts, but all I get are strange images and an emphasis on my “big deal” and how Emma is tired of seeing it.

Humans are odd creatures.

33

SASHA

I ’m a bundle of nerves as Dakh scoops me into his claws the next morning for a “visit” with Claudia and Amy. I’m a little worried that Emma’s going to think I’m abandoning her. We’ve become close over the last few weeks, and it’s nice to have a female friend nearby. After our enjoyable book-scrounging adventure yesterday, it just confirms how tight we’ve grown in our friendship. On the other hand, I’ve missed Claudia and Amy desperately, and I can’t wait to see them. I want to see for myself that they’re alive and well and healthy.

And I guess I want to know why I was abandoned.

It feels weird to have that traitorous thought, but it’s climbed in my head overnight and now it won’t go away.

I tell myself that I’m being too hard on them. That I could have easily found them with Dakh’s help. That perhaps Claudia and Amy didn’t know where I’d gone. Except…Claudia has a dragon, too. She knows Dakh stole me away. And she’s been with her dragon longer, and her dragon knew that he could talk to Dakh…

There’s just something about it that doesn’t add up, and it makes me uneasy. I mean, if Claudia wanted to find me, she would have looked a little harder, right? We’re not exactly hiding.

You are worrying too much, Dakh chides me. Do you not wish to go?

“No, I want to go,” I tell him as he extends his wings, ready to launch into the air. I’m clutching a gift-wrapped box of tampons—a present and apology for dropping in unannounced, and I’ve fixed my hair and even put on a bit of makeup, which made Dakh get very confused. He didn’t understand why I was painting my face if I wasn’t going to war.

Which is another tidbit I need to add to my journal when we get back.

Then why are you so worried? I thought you wished to see your friends.

“I do! I just…I don’t know.” I guess I feel like if they really cared about me, they would have found me. Maybe that’s my self-doubt speaking, but I can’t help but wonder about it. Claudia moved heaven and earth to get Amy back, and I know they’re sisters, but she couldn’t have tried a little harder to find me? Really?

Perhaps her mate is being overprotective, Dakh suggests as he takes to the air. Or perhaps she does not wish to leave her sister unguarded. If she is a female alone, her scent will draw other male drakoni to the area.

Oh my God. Of course. Claudia’s still protecting Amy.

I immediately feel like an asshole. That has to be why she hasn’t come for me. I pat Dakh’s claws. “Wait. Before we go, let’s go back. I want to bring some perfume for Amy. She needs to mask her scent like Emma does, and there’s enough to go around.”

Ten minutes later, I have the presents in a gift bag and I’m back in Dakh’s claws. His words have filled me with a sense of relief, and I’m looking forward to seeing my friends once more. I let my own lack of self-esteem get in the way of our friendship, and I’m just being silly. I send affectionate thoughts to Dakh, so happy for his support and his presence.

He nuzzles me as we fly. Do not think so strongly at me or I will land us early and take you to a quiet corner so I may claim my mate and cover her with my scent.

I giggle to myself, because I know what that means—and I don’t hate the idea. But I’m anxious to see my friends again. Maybe on the way back, I tell him. Just stay away from Emma’s gas station. We don’t want to traumatize her more than she already is by seeing your “big deal.”

You say one thing, but your thoughts indicate something else. It is very odd.

I just laugh and laugh.

Some days, the world is full of promise and excitement, and today is one of those days.

We fly high for a time, and Dakh amuses me by flying through some low-hanging clouds and then flaming them away. He’s like a cat with a toy, and I don’t point out that the clouds and their dampness are ruining all the care I spent on my braids this morning. It seems like a silly thing to fuss over when we’re having such a great time. We descend lower, and I can see the tall fingers of the buildings in Old Dallas. Dakh tilts a wing, and we swing about, circling low as we drop closer to the ground.

I have let Kael know we are coming, Dakh tells me.

Okay. I try not to be too nervous about that, or the fact that I see a dragon take to the air in the distance, golden scales glinting. That has to be him.

It is him, Dakh agrees. Though he says there have been other dragons in the area lately. He has had to chase several off, their minds completely gone.

That fills me with prickles of worry. Reds or golds?

Both.

But you said they wouldn’t attack if we were mated. I start to feel a little more vulnerable, even though I’m protected in Dakh’s claws, held tight against his breast.

They will not attack you, he agrees, tone soothing. But Kael also protects his mate’s sister, and she casts a faint scent.

Oh no. Poor Amy. Can you smell her? I ask, curious.

Faintly. She is trying to hide it, but a more determined male will still follow the scent.

That’s not good. I’m more glad than ever that I thought to bring some perfume. Hopefully we can help with things, I tell him.

You have a kind heart, my mate.

She’s a friend. I’d do anything to help her. Claudia, too.

Kael is my friend, but with the drakoni, it is different. I would battle next to him, but if you were even in the slightest hint of danger, I would abandon him to save you.

Aww, that’s sweet. I…think.

We arrow in toward the building with the gold dragon flying around it. I grow more nervous as we get closer, my gaze glued to our surroundings. It’s one of the taller towers in the old ruins, with a lot of the windows on the lower floors broken out. One side of the building looks like it has a giant hole in it, and inside, I can see a plume of smoke and what looks like house furnishings and a rug. This must be the place.

We circle again, slowly, and I’m brimming with impatience by the time Dakh folds in his wings and lands gently on the ledge. The other gold dragon lands next to him a moment later, and I’m momentarily freaked out at the sight of another dragon so close. This one’s a paler gold than my Dakh, though, and has a scar on his muzzle. I stare at him for a moment, but his eyes are a cool gold, so I relax.

“Sasha!”

My name is practically ripped away on the high winds, but I don’t need to hear it. I see Claudia standing below, her red hair whipping in the breeze. She’s thinner than I remember, and pale. My heart squeezes at the sight of her, and I hate that I ever doubted her for a moment. She’s my friend. Tears spring to my eyes, and by the time Dakh gently sets me down, I’m openly weeping.

That’s okay, because Claudia’s crying, too. “Sash!” she cries out, flinging her arms wide as she staggers toward me.

“Claud! Oh my God. It’s so good to see you!” I hug her close, burying my face against her neck. She smells…different. Spicy. Her skin feels warm against mine, and I know she’s been changed like I have.

She squeezes me tight and then gives a little hiss of pain. “The side’s still healing.” When I pull back in surprise, she rubs her ribs and makes a little grimace. “Got shot by the mayor when our little visit to Fort Dallas went south.”

I gasp, a hand going to my mouth. “You’re okay though? And you got Amy?”

“I lived, though Kael brought Melina out here for a few weeks. I’m just now getting out of bed again.” She gives me a wry smile. “You look amazing, though. Captivity agrees with you.” Her gaze moves over me, and she touches my arm. “No more sling?”

“No, I’m better now.” I give my arm a little flex and twist my wrist, just to show her. “Where’s Amy?”

“Downstairs in her bunker. Not safe for her to come up on high wind days. It’s probably better we go down there to talk.” Her smile is bright. “I can make you some coffee!”

I don’t point out that I have all the coffee I could possibly want back at the store, because that would be impolite. “I brought you a gift,” I tell her, thrusting the bag in her direction.

She looks surprised, and even more astonished when she pulls out the bottle of perfume.

“For Amy,” I explain. “Tell you more in a bit. The other part is for you. It’s tampons.”

A strange look crosses her face, and she glances over my shoulder, back to her dragon.

What’s that all about? I wonder.

She is with young, Dakh tells me. I can smell it.

Oh my God. I keep smiling, though. Seems impolite to point out that my dragon spilled her secret. Are you going to be okay if I go downstairs and have coffee with the girls?

I will wait here for you. His thoughts are full of affection.

Going to hang out with Kael and have some guy talk?

His thoughts are puzzled. No. Should we?

I smother my laughter. Not if you don’t want to. Is that not a thing with drakoni?

I…do not remember. His thoughts brighten. I should ask Kael what he remembers.

There you go. I’m a little wistful I won’t be able to pick those bits out of his mind, but Claudia’s putting a hand on my arm and gesturing that I should follow her, so I focus on my friend.

“You get used to it after a while,” Claudia says as we head down the stairs.

“What?” I ask, curious.

“The mental conversations. Juggling them. You’ve been quiet for almost a minute straight, and I recognize that thoughtful look on your face. Amy says I have it all the time.” Claudia grins. “Actually, she says I look constipated, but I thought I’d be nice.”

I laugh, and everything feels so bright and sunny.

34

SASHA

“I  can’t believe you’re here and you’re well. I was so worried about you, Claud,” I exclaim. “You have no idea. I’ve been so stressed. For the longest time, I didn’t know if you or Amy made it out of Fort Dallas alive. All I knew was that I’d fallen and I woke up with a different dragon.”

Her expression is full of sympathy. “You must have been so scared. I’m so sorry, Sasha. If I had known that you would fall off of Kael’s back, I never would have tried to take you. They were just shooting at us, and I had to make a quick decision, and Dakh wasn’t paying attention to our battle plans—”

“He wasn’t?” I immediately feel defensive for Dakh. “He must have had a reason.”

“He forgot everything the moment he got close to the city.” She waves a hand. “I’m not trying to be accusing. It was just something we should have anticipated. Without a mate, their minds are like Swiss cheese—full of holes.” She gives me a curious look as we turn down the next flight of stairs. “How is Dakh, by the way? When I last saw him, he was super, super crazy.”

“He’s great,” I tell her. “Ever since we, ah, bonded, his mind has been really clear. The ravens have almost completely gone away.”

“Ravens?” Claudia looks confused. She pauses in front of a heavy iron door. “Is that what he sees? Kael shared his ‘crazy’ with me once, and it was just like a television with all the channels turned on at once. Just an endless flood. But Dakh sees ravens?”

I nod, curious about this. “He does. Says that they perch on his shoulders and tell him bad things. But they’ve gone away, more or less. He still has a hard time remembering anything about before he came through the Rift, though.”

“Kael, too.” She looks sad. “I feel like there’s so much we need to know, and it’s all missing.” She bites her lip, frustration evident on her face as she puts a hand on the door. “I’ve never said anything to Amy, but sometimes Kael will tell me something one day and forget it the next. It’s like all of his past, his history, it just slips out of his head without an anchor.”

It sounds heartbreakingly familiar. “The same with Dakh. I’ve been keeping a journal of everything Dakh tells me. I’m hoping I can piece it together.”

Her eyes widen. “Oh my God, that’s such a good idea. I need to get notebooks the next time Kael goes out.”

“I can bring you some,” I tell her.

Claudia beams and knocks on the door three times. “Amy’s going to be so shocked when she sees you!”

I feel a little uncomfortable at her praise. Do I look that different? I know I’ve filled out from my days back in Fort Dallas, when there was no money for food and no hope at all. With Dakh, I have fresh meat if I want it, and I’ve been steadily working away at the less-expired foods on the shelves back at the store. Heck, just the other day Emma and I got out a cookbook and made fresh bread in a Dutch oven over a fire. I feel a little guilty that I don’t have it harder anymore.

Do not be foolish, Dakh tells me from afar, his thoughts full of affection. A struggle to eat is not something to be proud of. And your body needs to be healthy so my seed can grow inside your body, like Kael’s mate.

Erm, one thing at a time please. I’m still getting used to the dragon-spouse thing. Let’s not throw a baby in the mix just yet. I’m not sure I’m ready to have an egg.

An egg? I can hear the laughter in his thoughts. Not likely. Drakoni children are dropped from the belly onto the hot sands and scream their anger at their mothers before the cord is even cut.

Well that sounds charming. Let’s hope they keep the fire-breathing to themselves until adulthood.

Not until they have the ritual. Dakh is amused. I cannot imagine we are much different than humans in that aspect.

Zero fire-breathing with humans, I can assure you. And I’m glad to hear that there are no fire-breathing babies.

Not at all. They take from the mother’s fire and it supports the child until he or she reaches an age to produce their own. Once our child is born, you will have to take my fires again to replenish yours, but it will be a pleasurable experience, I think.

“Boy, he’s a chatty one, isn’t he?” Claudia mentions, grinning at me. “Kael’s pretty quiet. I think he just likes to spy on my head.”

I can feel myself blushing. “There’s just a lot going on that he likes to comment on, I guess. I’m sorry. I’m not trying to be rude.”

“You’re not at all.” The look on her face is knowing. “It’s hard to concentrate on the people around you sometimes when you have a very persistent dragon in your brain.”

“You aren’t kidding.”

I hear the sound of locks coming undone and then a deadbolt being slid back. A moment later, Amy peeps out the crack in the door. “Come in.”

“Amy,” I say warmly in greeting. “It’s so good to see you!”

“Go inside quickly,” Claudia tells me. “We’re trying to keep her scent to a minimum.”

We rush inside, and the women quickly latch the door behind us again. Immediately, Amy moves to a shelf and lights a scented candle with a long-stemmed lighter. “All good,” Amy says after a moment, and then extends her arms for a hug. “Now come and give me a proper greeting, Sasha!”

I give her an enthusiastic hug, mindful of her bad leg. “You look amazingly well, Amy! How is the new home?”

“Quiet,” she says in a soft voice, and her smile is bright but doesn’t quite reach her eyes. Uh oh.

Kael says the sister is troubled. She worries she is a burden, and their nest is attacked regularly. She must hide away constantly.

Poor Amy. “Well, it beats Fort Dallas, doesn’t it?” I take her hands in mine and squeeze them. “I don’t know about you, but I’m enjoying being away from that schoolbus we used to live in. It would get so darn hot on the sunny days. You’re nice and cool down here.” I gaze around me, admiring Amy’s living quarters. It’s a big room—maybe once a meeting room of some kind—and there’s a futon against one wall and a shelf full of books along another. There’s sewing and a few folding chairs scattered around, and scented candles. Lots of scented candles. Amy’s always loved pretty things, so I see bright, colorful scarves draped along the walls in a riot of random color and a bunch of cheery throw pillows on her bed. “I see you guys have been scavenging for decorations,” I tease. “I like the pops of color.”

“I like it,” Amy says shyly. “It helps that it’s pretty down here when it’s sunny and nice outside and I can’t go.”

“But you’re safe here,” I say firmly. “That’s what’s important. You’re with family and you’re safe.” Over to one side, Claudia looks relieved that I’m agreeing with her. Amy must be feeling a little stir-crazy trapped here. I don’t blame her, but it’s about survival right now. “Have you guys been back to Fort Dallas since you left?”

“Nope,” Claudia says, and rubs her ribs again. “Been busy healing. I’m fine with never going back, though. There’s nothing for me there. Here, sit down and let’s make some coffee, shall we?”

I sit down in the seat Amy gestures at, curious how they’re going to make coffee without electricity. There’s no fire down here, which is how Dakh, Emma and I normally make our coffee back at the store. But Claudia grabs the coffee pot and fills it with water, then gestures at the door. “I’m going to run up and have Kael blow some fire on this. Be back in a jiffy.”

Well, that’s how, it seems. “All right.”

She disappears out the door, shutting it quickly behind her once more, and I turn to Amy. “Your sister looks thin. Is everything all right?”

Amy’s smile is tremulous. “It’s better than it was. She was touch and go for a while.”

I hate hearing that. “So she was injured that badly?”

“Yeah, she was.” Amy twists her hands in her lap. “Kael made sure she had a doctor, though. He takes really good care of her. I don’t want you to worry over Claudia. She’s doing much better, I promise.”

“I know Kael will take fantastic care of her if he’s anything like my Dakh.” I feel sad for Amy, because she seems a little lost. Funny how I’ve always been a little jealous of the bond she and Claudia had, and now that Claudia’s with her dragon, Amy probably feels a little edged out. Added in with the strange circumstances of her place here outside of Fort Dallas and she probably doesn’t feel like she is safe anywhere. Not that Claudia would let any harm come to her baby sister, but I absolutely understand the uncertainty she must be feeling. “And how are you? How are you coping?”

“I feel like a burden, of course.” Amy shrugs. “How can I not? They have to protect me and keep me in this room at all times, and we still get attacked by others. I can’t help with much of anything. I worry my sister’s going to start resenting the fact that she and Kael are stuck here…with me.”

“Never,” I tell her. “Your sister loves you. She’ll always look out for you.”

“That’s part of why I feel so guilty, I think,” Amy says. She picks at the hem of her long tunic top, not meeting my eyes. “I’m always the problem, never the solution. I feel like I can’t do anything to help out. And everything changes on a day-to-day basis. I…I just don’t know what the future holds.”

I reach out and grasp her hand. “It’s going to be okay, Amy. I promise. If you need to, you can come live with me. Dakh and I have set up in an old SuperMart on the outskirts of the ruins. We don’t get the dragon attacks that Old Dallas does. And we have lots of perfume and you can disguise your scent, just like my friend Emma.”

“Emma?” Amy’s brows furrow.

“A friend I’ve made,” I tell her. “She lives alone, and she disguises her scent from dragons so she’s safe.”

“Who’s safe?” Claudia asks, returning to the room, the coffee pot in hand. Steam rises from it, and the scent of brewed coffee fills the air.

“Emma. I met her when Dakh and I stopped at a SuperMart off of one of the old highways. It’s out quite a ways, but quiet there.” I tell them all about how we met Emma and how Emma disguised her scent with deer urine at first, and now perfume. “There are ways to do it,” I tell them eagerly. I want to give Amy hope, and I know she must be struggling right now. “Emma hasn’t been on anyone’s radar. Her scent is well hidden. Dakh says she smells awful to him. If we can make Amy smell awful, then she’ll have a bit of freedom, too.”

The sisters exchange a look.

“It’s a nice offer,” Amy says, her fingers still picking at her hem. “But what am I going to do even if I have the freedom to move around? I can’t go anywhere with my bad leg. I have to sit all the time.” She shrugs. “It’s probably smartest just to continue on as we have been.”

I hate hearing such defeat in her voice, but I can’t force her to be braver. “The option is there, at least.”

“It is. Thank you.” She smiles at me. “And can I just say how amazing it is to see you again, and looking so healthy? After we didn’t hear from you, I feared the worst.”

Claudia pours coffee into a mug and hands it to me. “I admit, I’m curious as to what happened. I’d love to hear your side of things.”

35

SASHA

I  take the mug from Claudia and sip it carefully, thinking about what I should say. I don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings. “I remember falling. I think I passed out, because the next thing I remember, I was waking up in a strange place with Dakh staring at me.”

“You must have been so scared,” Amy murmurs, sympathetic.

Claudia says nothing, but the look on her face is miserable, as if she’s aching for me. She pours a mug of coffee and hands it to her sister, then makes herself a cup and sits to listen.

“I was scared,” I admit. “I didn’t know what was going on, and Dakh wasn’t very…focused.” Sorry, babe.

Do not apologize. But you are wrong. I was focused—focused on you.

Okay, good point. I smile at the others. “Dakh says he was focused on me. Anyhow, he treated me well enough, but I was scared because we were attacked by another dragon, and we were up high and there was nowhere for me to escape to. I was trapped with him, and even though I knew, thanks to Claudia, he could turn human, it was still really unnerving.” My cheeks heat as I recall our meeting and how Dakh reacted. “It was also very obvious that he wanted one thing in particular.”

Claudia makes a strangled noise.

“What?” Amy asks, curious.

Oh boy. My face grows hotter. “Um. A mate.” I sip my coffee, letting the cup hide my embarrassment.

Amy looks embarrassed. “Of course. I should have realized that.”

“You can’t really realize what it means until you meet a dragon face to face,” Claudia says sympathetically. “Even talking about it doesn’t really do justice to how…intense of a meeting it can be. How singularly focused they are.”

I nod, because she’s right about all of it. “It was definitely overwhelming. It’s very intimidating at first, but then you figure out that all they want is to take care of you, and the fear starts to go away.” Unless you’re afraid of having sex, which I was. That brought a whole different level of fear to the mix.

You are no longer afraid, Dakh tells me with a bit of smug pride in his thoughts. You are crawling all over me every morning when—

“That’s enough,” I murmur, embarrassed. Both Amy and Claudia look at me, and I feel even more silly. “Sorry, just responding to Dakh. I forget sometimes because his thoughts are so clear in my head, it’s like he’s talking to me.”

“You guys seem happy enough,” Claudia says, her expression guarded. “Are you?” She gives me a thumbs up and then a thumbs down, her expression curious.

It takes me a moment to realize she’s asking me to give her a thumbs down if I’m miserable and don’t want Dakh to know. I’m both offended and flattered. It’s sweet that she wants to help me, but does she think I’d really betray my dragon?

I am pleased you think so highly of me now. Dakh’s thoughts are practically a nuzzle all their own. Just a short time ago you feared my touch.

Of course I think highly of you. I love you. You make me feel safe. You treat me like no one else does.

His thoughts are full of affection. Do not be upset at your friend, my mate. She wants only the best for you. It is amusing that your small human females think they could fight me to protect you.

They’d probably just send Claudia’s dragon after you.

Bah. I would not fight him, and he would not challenge me over a human. We are brothers in scales but nothing more. A drakoni’s mate is sacred.

“Dakh is great,” I say when I realize they’re both staring at me, waiting for an answer. I give Claudia a thumbs up and a nod. “Like I said, I was scared at first, but I’m not scared anymore. He’s really wonderful. I’m never unsafe with him, and he keeps me well fed.”

“Someone feeding you isn’t enough to stay with them,” Claudia tells me, a worried look on her face. “Is he…gentle with you?”

Amy makes an embarrassed noise.

“Oh come on, we’re all adults,” Claudia says. “Let’s not pretend that we’re saints. Sasha’s had some terrible shit in her past. I just want to make sure she’s truly happy, because she deserves it.”

I’m touched. “I’m happy, Claudia. Truly. Dakh and I, we’re really good together. I’m happier with him than I ever thought I would be with anyone. And if you must know, the sex is…orgasmic. Nothing like with Tate.” I hear Dakh growl in my mind at the mention of Tate’s name. “He, um, tried to kill Tate, you know.”

Claudia’s eyes widen. “He did?”

I tell them how Dakh picked through my thoughts to find Tate and hunted him down and brought him to me to kill. Amy’s relieved that we let him go, but Claudia isn’t as pleased.

“You should have killed that dickface when you had the chance,” she tells me. “He broke your arm. He hurt you deliberately.”

I like this one, Dakh tells me. She says smart things.

Hush, you. “Just because he’s an animal doesn’t mean we have to be. I don’t want to live with his blood on my hands.”

“Mm. I’d be all right with it. I’ve wanted to kill him a few times myself.” Claudia sips her coffee again. “At any rate, I’m glad you and Dakh are doing well. I was worried you’d gone from one bad situation to another, and when I met Dakh…he wasn’t the sanest of dragons.”

“He gets better every day,” I say with a smile. “Remember the journal I mentioned to you? I’ve got a fair amount of stuff but I haven’t had a chance to piece it together.”

Claudia’s expression grows envious. “Kael can’t remember much at all.”

I glance at Amy, who’s quiet through our conversation. I don’t want her to feel excluded, but she looks lost in her own thoughts. I shrug at Claudia. “I’ve learned a bunch of random bits and pieces, but I don’t know that I have any answers yet.”

“Anything would be more than I have,” Claudia tells me, and the frustration is apparent on her face.

“Because of…the baby?” When she looks shocked, I add, “Dakh says he can smell it on you. That’s one thing I’ve figured out. They can smell everything.”

“Boy, no kidding,” Claudia mutters. She looks over at Amy and gives her a wan smile. “Surprise.”

Oh no. I look over at Amy, horrified that I’ve spilled the beans. Amy’s mouth is open, but she recovers quickly. “I figured something was up. You’ve been a little stressed over the last few days. I thought either you were about to have your period…or it wasn’t coming at all for another reason.” She wraps her fingers around her mug. “Guess I wasn’t far off the mark.”

“I’m a little stressed, yeah.” Claudia straightens and puts down her mug, grimacing. “I don’t know anything about babies. I don’t even know if I should be drinking coffee. Hell, I don’t even know if I’m having an egg or a baby.” She looks ready to burst into tears, which is surprising given how strong Claudia normally is.

“Dakh told me it’s a baby,” I tell her. “If that helps things.”

Claudia’s eyes go wide. “Seriously? He remembers that much?”

“Well…yeah. Kael doesn’t?” I’m genuinely surprised at that. She’s made mention of how “crazy” Dakh was before, so I thought for sure Kael’s mind would be “stronger” than Dakh’s. It made me a little defensive on behalf of my poor dragon. But I can’t help but feel a little bit of pride for him that he’s got more under the hood than Kael does.

It’s a small, silly thing to be proud of, I guess. And I feel petty for even making things a contest. But it’s still nice to know we’re not totally behind the curve.

“I’ve asked Kael and he never has answers. His memories are pretty faint.” She puts a hand to her abdomen. “Does…does Dakh remember anything else? Can you ask him?”

“He told me earlier that it’s a baby. Not an egg. And he’s told me in the past that there’s no fire-breathing until they pass a rite of passage into adulthood, so you don’t have to worry about that, either. And, let’s see…” I think for a moment. “Something about the fire in the blood being passed along to the baby? But it was vague.”

She slumps, visibly relieved. “That’s all right. As long as I know I’m not having a flaming egg, that takes a lot of the worry off of me.” Her hands tremble as she presses them against her stomach, and then she exhales deeply, as if releasing all of her tension and stress. “You have no idea the nightmares I’ve been having.”

“I can imagine.” I don’t know how I’d feel being the first one to have a half-human, half-drakoni baby.”

No? You do not wish to carry my young? Dakh’s thoughts press into mine.

You would pick up on that, wouldn’t you?

Of course. I hear all your thoughts. I enjoy them.

I didn’t say I don’t want a baby. I just don’t want to be the first one to figure things out.

What is there to figure out? You are my mate. His thoughts are full of affection and lust. It is all very natural and right.

I’m sure it is. But until you remember a bit more about being drakoni, I would rather let someone else play guinea pig first.

Our child would never harm you. I would not let anything harm you.

I know. And it stands to reason that if you can make me pregnant, it can’t be a bad thing for me. It’s just…a little scary to think about.

Do not fear. I am strong and can keep both you and our young safe.

I’ve no doubt about that, babe. I promise. I send him warm thoughts to appease his feelings, just in case.

“Well, I’m really glad you came by,” Claudia tells me, and the worry seems to have smoothed away from her brows. “I’ve been wondering about you for weeks now. I felt guilty that I couldn’t save you both.”

“It’s all right,” I tell her as I take another sip of coffee. “I feel silly because it never occurred to me that Dakh could reach out and say hello. He mentioned it yesterday and it was a real forehead-slapping moment.” I grin at them. “The moment I realized we could get in touch I came by. Having a dragon as transportation and communication is still pretty new to me. I didn’t think about it, and I feel like we’ve lost out on weeks.”

Claudia gives me a rueful smile. “The important thing is that you’re happy and healthy. And you can come visit us regularly! Or we can visit you!”

“One of us can, at least,” Amy says gently.

Claudia winces. “Okay, yeah, one of us can. Though I can’t exactly leave you behind…” She looks at me, a helpless question in her eyes.

“We can visit,” I assure her. “I might even be able to convince Emma to come along at some point, but she’s still not used to dragons. I’ll just have to figure out a better method of flying.” I shudder, thinking about repeated trips in Dakh’s claws.

“Aha.” Claudia gets a triumphant look on her face and sits up straight. “Now that, I can definitely help with.”

36

SASHA

A  short time later, Dakh’s on the concrete floor of Claudia’s apartment, his tail lashing back and forth with impatience. Amy sits nearby on a chair, stinking of rose perfume, her face turned up to the fresh air as Claudia and I argue over the saddle buckles.

“You have to knot it here,” Claudia tells me.

“But wouldn’t a cinch be better? I don’t want to pinch Dakh’s skin.” I stroke a hand over Dakh’s scales, worried.

“He’s a dragon, you dork. You can’t pinch him.” She gestures at the ropework criss-crossing his torso. “And you need to make sure your knots will hold or you’ll slide right off the side. Not that you have any experience with that, right?”

“Oh, sarcasm. How I’ve missed you,” I tease, and do the knots as Claudia shows me. To Dakh, I send, You okay, babe? Not too tight?

Not at all. Tie it tighter if you must. I do not want you in danger of falling.

Don’t you worry. We won’t lift off if it’s not safe. I take another set of cords and look to Claudia for instruction. We’ve been practicing the saddle rigging all afternoon, because I’m going to have to learn how to do it on my own. The moment Dakh changes to human, it doesn’t matter how tight my knots are, because they’ll all fall off of him. So I need to make sure I know how to put things on and take them off easily. Claudia’s been patient with me, demonstrating on Kael how she has her saddle contraption set up, and then removing it, over and over again, so I can practice on Dakh. She’s given me her back-up saddle gear, promising that we can get more in a few days.

I’m pretty excited at the thought of flying on a saddle, but I’m also worried that I’m going to mess something up and careen right off the side again.

I will watch for you, Dakh promises. And I will not let you hit the ground. I will catch you long before you even get close.

That’s thoughtful of you, babe, but I’m not sure I even want to get to the “falling off the side” part at all. I need to get this right. I concentrate on the series of cords and winches, the belts and stirrups. It’s a tangle, of course, but Claudia’s methods make sense. I can see why she did things this way.

Eventually I’ve triple-checked all my straps and adjusted the body harness I’m wearing. Claudia tells me it’s from a bungee-jumping platform that she raided. All I know is that they hook into the saddle, which is strapped onto the dragon, which makes me feel a heck of a lot safer. “I think I’m ready to give this a shot.”

“It’ll be fine, I promise.” Claudia gives me a cheery look. “And Kael and I will be right beside you.” She pats her dragon’s flank and shoots him a happy smile, sharing a conversation I can’t hear.

Oh sure. She makes it seem like no big deal.

It is no big deal, Dakh reassures me, nosing my hair. Kael tells me he and his mate fly daily. She loves it.

Yeah, but Claudia’s always been a lot braver than me. I tighten the straps across my chest one more time. “Okay, let’s do this.”

“Here,” Claudia tells me, and holds out a pair of swim goggles. “You’re going to need these. And keep your mouth shut, because I have swallowed far too many bugs.”

I smother a laugh at that and put the swim goggles on. My hair’s braided tight already, and I turn to glance over at the others. “How do I look?”

“Stylish,” Amy calls out as she gets to her feet. “If you guys are heading out, I’ll go downstairs.” She limps to my side, eyeing the dragons nervously, and then gives me a hug. “It was wonderful seeing you again, Sasha. I’m so happy you’re safe.”

“Thank you,” I tell her, and give her an enthusiastic hug back. “I’ll come back and visit very soon, I promise.”

She nods and then heads back to the door on the far side of Claudia’s apartment, heading back toward her bunker. I want to help her. It’s clear she feels trapped, not just by her situation, but by everything. The sad look never leaves her eyes.

Dakh noses me. I can hear your thoughts, my infant. You cannot fix her problem. She is safe this way.

I chuckle to myself, as I always do when he calls me “infant” instead of “baby.” Fine, fine. We’ll solve one problem at a time. He lowers his shoulder, and I put my foot into the stirrup, grabbing at the straps hanging down from the pommel to help me mount him. A moment later, I have a leg flung over his back and I’m seated in my saddle. I test the bicycle handlebars screwed into the leather, and then get to work adjusting my leg straps as Claudia gets on Kael’s back and does the same. She’s made things as easy as possible. Each strap is a different color, and so it’s easy to figure out that the red strap ties to the red strap, the green buckle goes to the green buckle. By the time I’m done, I’m a little mentally exhausted by all the buckling and harnessing, but I also feel very secure.

Test it, Dakh tells me. Try to fall off.

I do, bouncing in the saddle and then leaning over heavily. I pull on the straps, and move wildly in the saddle, seeing if anything budges. Nothing moves. I’m solid. “I think we’re good.”

“All right!” Claudia gives me a thumbs up and then pulls her goggles down over her eyes. “Let’s take a turn around the building, shall we?”

I nod and put a pair of gardening gloves on, then grip the handlebars. “Let’s go once around the building, Dakh.”

As you wish.

Maybe I’m expecting him to gently ease forward, or for things to be slow, but my dragon flings himself into the air. My head snaps back, and I let out a screech of surprise. I cling to the handlebars and squeeze my eyes shut, waiting for certain death.

You are safe. Nothing has shifted. Dakh’s tone is amused. You can open your eyes.

And you can quit laughing, I tell him primly, and force myself to look out. The world is spread open before us, Dakh’s wings open wide to catch a breeze. He dips his head, and my view is clear. It’s…breathtaking. From up here, Old Dallas is green and gray, concrete and overgrowth, and being on top of Dakh instead of flung about in his claws feels powerful.

Well? What do you think? My dragon asks.

There’s a lot less jostling, I tell him, and dare to lift my hand long enough to put it on his neck. And you? You’re comfortable?

I am. Even if I was not, if it was what you needed, I would endure.

You’re sweet.

You are my mate. Why would I not want the best for you? He sounds puzzled.

It’s just nice to hear, I tell him.

Then I need to tell you such things all the time.

You already do. I send him a burst of affectionate thoughts and then take a deep breath, gazing out at the horizon stretched before me. Funny how perspective changes when your ride does. Here on top of Dakh’s back, I feel like the world is open to us. Maybe it’s not a crazy thing to fly away from Fort Dallas and see the world. Maybe we could search out other cities, nicer places to live, places with more survivors… Maybe we could see the world, or what’s left of it. The Grand Canyon would still be there. Yellowstone, too. Niagara Falls... The possibilities are endless. Heck, the beach. I love the beach. Just the thought makes me wistful. I went there on vacation with my family only a few weeks before the Rift struck.

Memories hit me like a wall, and I suck in a breath, blinking back tears. I can’t cry. It’ll fog my stupid goggles.

Do you wish to go to the ocean? I will take you. Point me in that direction and we will go. I will leave this instant. Dakh’s thoughts are full of comfort and concern. Only do not be sad, my sweet fire.

I love you, babe, I tell him. I’m not sad, I promise.

I am in your head. I can sense your sadness.

Just thinking about the past. I lost my parents when the Rift tore open. They died in one of the very first dragon attacks.

I am…sorry.

I’m not blaming you, sweetie. I stroke his neck scales again. Whoever attacked couldn’t help it. I’ve felt your thoughts. I know they’re overwhelming. It’s not just me who suffered. Everyone did. You did, too. I send him comforting thoughts. Did you lose anyone when you came through?

There is a long pause in his thoughts. He tilts his wings, and we turn a corner around the large building. Nearby, Claudia gives me another thumbs up, Kael flying a short distance away. I give her a little wave to let her know I see her. Then Dakh answers. Yes…I think I did. I do not remember a name, but I seem to recall…a sibling. A brother.

Oh my goodness. And he’s here? Or back on the other side?

He came through. I do not know what happened to him after that. I do not even know what happened to myself. His thoughts are wry. And the more I try to think about it, the harder it gets.

That’s okay, I tell him quickly as he swoops toward Claudia’s apartment for a landing. The fact that you remembered at all is incredible! You recall a lot more than Kael does, you know. I can’t help the pride that filters through my thoughts.

Dakh is amused at my pride. There is nothing to be proud of, my mate. If he remembers less, he was probably more affected by the madness. It has eaten away too much of his mind.

That’s terrible to think about. I feel a little guilty as we land and Claudia slides off Kael’s back, giving his nose a caress before looking over at me expectantly. I get down from Dakh’s back, albeit a lot less gracefully than Claudia does, and pull my goggles off.

“What did you think?” Claudia asks. “Does anything need to be adjusted?”

“It was great,” I tell her enthusiastically. “Much better than flying in his claws.”

“So everything worked?” Claudia moves to the saddle, and she checks my cords again, and we talk about possible improvements and what gear I’ll need in the future. I’m only half paying attention to the conversation, though.

I keep thinking about Dakh and his lost brother, and how much he’s lost overall. His home is gone, along with his friends, his family, and good chunks of his mind. It makes me feel guilty for even thinking humans were the only victims.

Guess the flight did more than change just one perspective.

37

DAKH

T  he day wears on, and as it does, I sense my mate beginning to droop. Her thoughts grow pleasantly fuzzy as they do when she is sleepy, and though she makes no attempt to get up and leave, I know she is exhausted. The other females chatter at her, and she listens to them talk, her smile constant. When they sit down to eat a meal, I nuzzle my mate’s hair. Finish your meal, I tell her, and then we will return to our home. You are tired.

Oh, I hate to leave. I feel like I’ve been away for so long. She spoils her thoughts with a yawn and then a sleepy grimace. Okay, maybe I’m a little tired. And I need to see if Emma left a note. To the others, she says, “We should probably go soon.”

They make sounds of protest, but Kael noses his own mate’s hair, and I can feel the current of his thoughts even if I cannot hear them. He is likely telling his mate the same, that she is tired and needs her rest.

It has been a good afternoon. We hunted for the females and spent most of the day roosting in the sunlight, idly conversing as our mates caught up. Kael is content with his human mate, even if most of his thoughts of the past are gone. I cannot be unhappy, he tells me. I do not like this place, but I like what it houses—my mate.

And I feel the same way. My Sasha has been trying to learn about our past. I cannot tell her much.

I can probably tell her less, Kael agrees. Sometimes I think it is for the best. Perhaps we are meant to leave it behind and forge new lives here.

Perhaps. But I am not entirely convinced.

The females say goodbye, and the fire-haired one pulls my Sasha aside one more time. She asks her if she is truly happy.

“Of course,” Sasha tells her, a curious note in her thoughts. “That’s the second time you’ve asked that today.”

Through the mind-link with my mate, I can tell that Kael’s mate replies that she just wants to be sure.

“I’m positive.” Sasha smiles at her and gives her another hug. “And we’ll see each other again very soon. I promise.”

The females hug one last time, and then my mate sleepily straps herself into her contraption on my back. She double-checks everything before we take off, and I lift into the air as gently as I can. The skies are streaked with the pink and orange of sunset, the air filled with a hundred different scents. I can pick out the terrible, pungent smell of Kael’s mate’s sister, who is wearing the scent-disguiser perfume. And I can pick out the scent of another dragon nearby, though the smell is distant and grows more so with every moment that passes. He is uninterested in myself or my mate, and touching my mind to his reveals nothing but ravens.

Did you think that was odd? my Sasha asks sleepily as we fly home. Her thoughts are of Kael’s mate—Claudia—and her questions. She kept asking if I was happy. It was almost as if she didn’t like—or expect—the answer she got.

Mm. Perhaps she just worried over you.

I guess. It just seems strange to me.

She is pregnant. Those females are always strange.

Laughter tinges her sleepy thoughts. I think you’re right about that. Maybe I’m making too much of things.

I send her comforting thoughts. But you enjoyed yourself today?

Oh yes. Her thoughts are filled with happiness. And this saddle is nice, too. And handlebars! She thought of everything.

I am glad you like it. And I meant what I said—anywhere you wish to go, we will go there.

I know, babe. Her thoughts are pleasant and dreamy. Right now I’m just happy to be where we are.

By the time we make it home, I can feel the exhaustion pressing on her thoughts. It has been a long, emotional day for my Sasha, and she needs to rest. I wait, trying to hide my impatience as she fumbles with the straps on my back.

“Sorry,” she whispers over the buzz of nighttime insects. “It’s dark and I can’t see so well.”

I wish I could help, I tell her. Do you want me to flame something so you can see?

“Nope, I’m good.” She tugs at the straps a bit more, and then everything is loose. “There we go.” She slides gently off my back, landing with a little hop onto the hard pavement. “Ooh, my legs always feel like mush when I get off of you, no matter how I ride.”

I immediately shift to my two-legged form. The saddle and its straps fall to a heap at my feet, and I kick them aside.

“Oh,” Sasha says, fatigue making her voice soft. She points at the mess on the ground. “We should pick that up and sort everything, make sure the straps aren’t knotted—”

Later, I tell her, and put a hand behind her knees, pulling her into my arms. You are tired. For now, you will go off to bed. I will retrieve your saddle once you are under your blankets and comfortable.

She rests her head on my shoulder. “Mmm. All right. I like how warm you are.” She buries her face against my skin. “So yummy.” Her tired thoughts drift absently between a few things, landing on nothing. “Check for a letter from Emma, will you?”

I shall, I promise her. I enter the nest—the place Sasha calls a “store”—and flare my nostrils, looking for new scents. There are none but our own. Not even that of her Emma. No one has been by this day to visit, not even a stray bird. I carry my mate through the dark building and find her comfortable little nook she has made herself. I kick the covers back with one foot and then gently lay my mate down amongst the pillows and blankets. Rest.

She reaches for me even as I straighten. “Don’t go, babe. Stay with me.” The smile she sends up to me is sleepy but full of promise.

I will retrieve your saddle first, I promise her. And then… I send her a flurry of images.

Her toes curl, and she gives a happy little sigh. And then you’re going to come back and lick me all over. You naughty, naughty thing. She pulls a pillow close and hugs it against her. Don’t take too long. I don’t want to fall asleep before I get to have sex with my dragon.

I will wake you, I tell her fervently. I want to climb into the blankets with her, to push her sweet thighs apart and sink my cock into her warmth, but her saddle must be seen to. I do not want it to be ruined by weather—or curious creatures. Her safety is the most important thing. So I jog as quickly as I can back outside to where I dumped the gear and bring it in. I pass by the place where she leaves notes for Emma, but there is no fresh scent, so there is no need to check.

I dump the saddle into one of the shopping carts that are scattered near the front and then head back to my mate’s side. She is already drifting into sleep, her thoughts distant and peaceful. I should let her sleep, I decide. She is tired. I can mate with her tomorrow morning, when she is rested. My cock aches at the thought, but it will subside soon enough. I climb into bed next to her and tuck her against my chest, like I always do.

Her arms go around me, and she gives a happy little sigh. Her eyes stay closed. “My Dakh.”

Sleep, I tell her.

She rubs her face against my chest, and her lips graze my nipple. “Mmmm.” Her hand slides lower, and she finds my erect cock and strokes it. “Someone’s not entirely sleepy.”

Pleasure bursts through my body, and it takes everything I have to pull her hand away. I am not tired, but you are. Sleep, my Sasha. I will claim you fiercely in the morning. You are fatigued.

Not that bad. Her thoughts are already spinning toward arousal, and when she reaches for my cock again, this time I do not push her hand away. I let her stroke my hard length, loving the way her soft hand caresses me. I ache for my mate’s touch, and when she reaches for me, it always feels like a gift. Her mouth presses to my skin, offering little kisses to my chest as her fingers curl around my cock and she strokes me.

I groan at the sensation and reach for one of her full breasts. Since becoming my mate, my Sasha’s curves have filled out and her small breasts have grown larger. I love her at any size, but her full breasts with their dark nipples are fascinating to me, and I roll the tip of one between my claws, careful not to damage her fragile skin.

She moans, her head tilting back. “God, you have the most amazing hands for a dragon. Man. Dragon-man. Whatever.”

A rumble of laughter rises in my chest. Her thoughts are still vague with sleepiness and are now being overridden with lust. I like that she loses herself to my touch so quickly. Even now, the scent of her arousal is filling the air. You like all of me, I tell her. Not just my hands. I push her back onto the blankets and lower my mouth to her throat. You like my lips and my tongue. I slide a hand between her thighs, seeking her wet cunt. You like my fingers.

“God, I love your fingers,” she whispers, spreading her legs wider to receive me. She moans when I stroke a finger through her folds, dragging her wetness up and down, slicking her sensitive skin. Her thoughts grow excited when I carefully rub one finger in a circle around the nub of her clit, and then her fingernails are digging into my shoulders. “Dakh!” she cries out. “So unfair. I wanted to touch you.”

And you did. I claim her mouth with my own, nuzzling her before plunging my tongue into her mouth and taking her with a sweeping stroke. And now I am touching you.

She makes a soft little whimpering sound as I rub her clit with even, slow strokes. I know just how she likes to be touched now and what will give her pleasure the fastest. She bites at my lower lip, frantic, when I do not speed up. The endless, slow drag of my finger against her clit makes her writhe, arch, and then she comes a short moment later, with a frantic cry and a burst of wetness against my hand.

I growl low in my throat, enjoying the pleasure that radiates from her mind. I push her thighs apart and slide my bigger body between her legs, fitting my cock at her entrance. My mate. Mine to claim. My Sasha.

She’s slick with need, and I rub the head of my cock in her juices, wetting it so I can glide into her with ease. She moans and writhes as I draw it over her folds, back and forth. I want to sink into her, to claim her…but the sounds she is making are so sweet that I cannot help but drag out the pleasure a little longer. Do you want me inside you, my sweet fire?

“Dakh. Please. Now.” She reaches for me.

I capture her hands in mine, pinning her. It only makes her more aroused, and she begins to pant, her eyes heavy with desire. I keep her hands locked above her head as I slowly push my cock into her cunt. Her little moan of pleasure makes my body tighten, and I bite back the snarl that threatens to erupt.

My mate. Mine to claim. Mine to take.

Once I am seated deep inside her, I lean down and claim her mouth with another hard kiss. She meets it eagerly, squirming under me, and I thrust into her. She is tight, her fierce heat gripping my cock in a delicious grip. Over and over, I pump into her, my strokes growing more demanding with every little cry she makes.

By the time she is crying out my name, I am near to losing control. I manage to keep it for a short time longer, though, focused entirely on her and her pleasure. I like that I can make her come again just by pushing her to her limits. I send her intense thoughts, of all the things I want to do to her, all the ways I want to taste her, all the places I want to put my mouth, and she comes with a low cry, her body arching underneath me.

It is enough. Even as her cunt clenches tight around my cock, I find my release. As I pour my seed into her, I press my forehead against hers, my claws tangled in her hair.

Seeing Kael and his mate today made me realize that while I have my Sasha, I still crave one more thing to have total contentment: I want her body rounded with my child.

I want her to carry my young.

I want a family.

If that means I will take my mate hard and often, it is a task I will gladly perform.

My Sasha is too sleepy to pick up on these thoughts, though. She gives a happy little sigh, and her eyes drift closed, tired. I slowly pull out of her and tuck her body against mine. After a moment’s thought, I push her legs together and slide a knuckle over the seam of her cunt, where she is wet with my seed.

And I push the wetness back into her. I want her to take all of me. To be claimed by all that I am.

Mine.

38

SASHA

O ver the next week, Dakh and I visit Claudia, Amy, and Kael three more times. Each time I go, I bring a bag full of presents for Claudia and Amy. They’re my friends, and I have a wealth of things, of course, but more than that, they’ve been kind. Claudia’s given me her spare saddle and spent countless hours teaching me how to rig the saddle and how to sit so I don’t get jerked around nearly as much. She’s been a great mentor.

I wish I could shake the sense that something’s…not right.

Everything is fine between me and Dakh. We’ve never been better. We make love all the time, I’m getting better at riding on his back, and I’ve never been so happy.

It’s something about my reunion with Claudia that bugs me. There’s a weird undercurrent that I can’t put my finger on. It’s like she’s…waiting for something. It’s strange, and I can’t figure it out, and the longer it goes on, the more it unnerves me. Sometimes I tell myself it’s my imagination, that I’m mistaking mental conversations she has with Kael for something else.

But the thought sticks with me and won’t go away.

I pack a few pretty scarves and a pair of pajamas into a backpack for Amy. For Claudia, I found a copy of What to Expect When You’re Expecting. It’s not the drakoni version, of course, but it might ease some of her worries. They go into the bag, along with jars of my precious peanut butter and some pickles.

Ready to go? Dakh asks, striding past me with the saddle gear slung over one shoulder.

I watch him as he saunters away, his tight bronzed ass flexing. Mercy. He’s determined to distract the hell out of me, I think. You just walked past like that on purpose, didn’t you? I tell him, zipping the backpack shut.

He just grins at me over his shoulder, his expression playful and oh so human. I know you enjoy watching my ass flex.

I snort. I may or may not have bitten it last night in bed. Big deal.

Oh, you did. You definitely did.

No need to throw it in a girl’s face, I tease back. Or I might never bite it again.

I rescind all that I said.

I shake my head, chuckling to myself as I trot out the double doors after him. Out of habit, I check our “mailbox” for a note from Emma. The envelope was replaced a few days ago by a waterproof Tupperware container with a rock at the bottom, and I can leave items for Emma even if I’m not home.

Today, just like every other day this last week, there’s no message. My last two are sitting at the bottom of the box, and I frown at them. Either Emma’s reading them and leaving them, or she’s not even been by to check them. “Do you think she’s okay?” I ask Dakh as I put the lid back on it. “Can you smell her anywhere?”

There are a lot of foul smells, but I do not know which one would be her.

Har de har har. I sigh as I head over to his side. He’s bending over to put the saddle down, and damn it all if his ass doesn’t look super biteable. I just worry about her, I tell him.

You worry over her, he agrees, and turns to cup my face. His thumbs stroke over my cheeks. You also worry over Amy. And Claudia. And if another female showed up on our doorstep, you would worry over her as well.

I give him a little smile. Can’t help it. I like for everyone in my little family to be happy.

I purse my lips, thinking as I consider the lack of communication from Emma. I’m not her mom, of course. She’s an adult and can do whatever she wants. But all this quiet is…strange. After the friendship we’ve built, it’s odd to just not hear from her at all. I hope she’s not mad.

You worry too much, Dakh tells me.

So I do. With one last glance at the “mailbox,” I go to Dakh’s side, where he’s waiting for me to buckle my saddle on. Maybe we’ll catch a glimpse of Emma as we fly over the city.

CLAUDIA’S happy to see me again, as always, though I still feel a bit of niggling guilt that I haven’t been ‘home’ much this week to spend time with Emma. We take another gliding flight over the city, circling wide around the distant Fort Dallas. I can smell smoke in the air and see the glint of red scales in the distance. It’s that time of the month, when all of the red dragons seem to have their targets set on Fort Dallas and are determined to destroy it. The sight fills me with mixed emotions. I worry over the people there, trapped in their homes as they wait for dragonfire to cease, and I also feel sad for the dragons, that are out of their minds with what this place has done to them.

No one’s winning this situation.

We glide around the city, and I manage to stay on Dakh’s back as he dives for a fleeing cow and snaps it up in one gulp. I try not to be grossed out by it, because I know he has to eat, but my stomach still does a queasy little jump when a few drops of blood catch in the breeze and spatter my goggles.

I will try harder not to let it bleed on you, Dakh tells me. Perhaps next time I will not bite, just swallow whole.

Oh, for Pete’s sake, just bite the damn thing. It’s not your fault I’m squeamish. I chuckle to myself, amused at the thought of a dragon trying to change his habits for a puny human like myself. I can’t expect you to live on peanut butter and crackers like me. Ahead of us, Kael swoops and grabs another cow in his claws, ripping the head off before tossing it back in his throat. And at least you didn’t do that. Yeesh.

His mate is not bothered. You should not be either.

Maybe after I’ve ridden on you for a while, seeing you get your beef in the raw won’t be a big deal. For now, it’s still shocking. I’ll get used to it. It just takes time.

Then…you do not mind if I eat another?

Not at all, babe. Just let me know when you’re zooming in so I can close my eyes.

After the hunt is done, we re-alight back onto the “perching ledge”—as I’ve come to think of it—over Claudia’s open-air end of her enormous apartment. Amy’s nowhere to be seen, hiding downstairs in her bunker since dragon activity is high today. We dismount, and Claudia rubs a hand over her dirty face. “Want to go wash up and have a coffee before you go?”

“Sure.”

I follow her into the bathroom stalls. This building once housed offices, I think. Claudia and Kael have cleaned out any remnants of cubicles, and Claudia’s set it up like a cozy living room on the far end of the building, with patio furniture on the open-air side. I don’t know if I could live with a gigantic hole in the roof on one end, but it is rather sunny and breezy compared to the stale, dark store I’m living in. The bathroom itself is similar to the one back at the store, with a row of sinks and a broken mirror, and several toilet stalls, though most seem to be out of order.

“So what do you think of riding?” Claudia asks, picking up a bar of soap and turning on one of the taps in the sink. She scrubs at her hands and then soaps up her cheeks, dirty with ash and blood. “Best way to travel, isn’t it?”

“It does take a little getting used to, but it’s better than the alternative by far.” I take the soap from her and lather up, washing my face free of grime. Ever since I left Fort Dallas, I’ve been addicted to being clean. With free soap and water at hand, I never want to be as filthy as I was before. It’s the little things you appreciate, and gosh, do I appreciate a fresh-smelling bar of soap. I don’t even care that bar soap is bad for my face—I just like being clean.

“Are you guys going to stay out at that store? Or are you going to move closer to Old Dallas?” Claudia’s tone is casual, but I suspect there’s a lot more behind that simple question. She won’t look me in the eye in the mirror’s reflection. Strange.

“We haven’t given it much thought,” I tell her honestly. Or I have, but we haven’t really decided anything as of yet. I don’t want to leave Emma behind, not when we’re her only friends. “I’m still getting used to the idea of being able to go anywhere and be safe.” I pause, thinking. “I actually considered going south with Dakh, to the shore. See what the world is like down there. See if the oceans are all burned away or if there’s another fort near Houston. Maybe there are more survivors and we just haven’t heard from them. Maybe it’s nice and peaceful there. We don’t know because every time Fort Dallas sent a runner, no one ever came back, but I’d love to find out. And I’d love to see the ocean.” I sigh happily at the thought. “I wonder if Dakh’s ever seen it? He’d be so surprised to see all that water. And I’ve got a zillion bikinis, thanks to the store.”

“The beach, huh?” She looks a little disappointed. “I was hoping you’d want to move closer. We could pool our resources. Use our dragons for good and not evil! Keep Fort Dallas in line and all that.” She wiggles her eyebrows at me. “We could be superheroes. Kind of. Or you know, more like cops. With dragons. Keeping our neighborhood clean of corruption and the like.”

I shake my head at her. The longer I’m out of Fort Dallas, the less grateful I am to the city for “giving” me a place to live for the last few years. A place that left me trapped and forced to depend on others for survival, maybe. But I wouldn’t call it a living, and I feel sorry for all the others trapped in the same situation. “If you would have asked me a month ago, I probably would have said yes. But I’ve been on my own and scavenging with Dakh, and…the longer I’m away, the less I think they deserve help. They treated you like shit, Claud. They tried to take Amy hostage. And no one would help me at all.” I shake my head. “Or you want to help Tate make things safer? Tate who likes to break things? I’m actually kind of shocked that you would suggest helping the fort after what they did to you.”

“Tate’s absolutely an asshole,” Claudia tells me. “There’s no changing that. The militia are creeps. But there’s a lot of people stuck there with no hope, and there are young kids and families that deserve better.”

She’s right, but that’s too simple a view. “How would we help them? They’d be terrified of the dragons.”

“I don’t know.” She flicks the water off her hands. “Maybe we could fly in supplies. Or help chase off the reds when they attack. Something. I’m not sure what yet. I just know that if I turn my back on all of humanity, I’ll feel like I’m as responsible as the militia is for how shitty things are.”

“I guess.” I dry my hands on a small towel she has on the sink and then pat my face dry. The girl that stares at me from the broken mirror is a completely different Sasha from a month ago. The hollow, haunted look is gone. The dirty, hunted girl from before who felt like she had no hope is a thing of the past. And maybe it’s selfish of me, but maybe I don’t feel much like helping those who wouldn’t help me. Maybe I just want to stick with my friends for now. “It’ll take some time to wrap my brain around the thought of sticking around instead of going to the dang beach.”

She laughs. “Well, just think about it. Nothing has to be decided overnight. And I don’t have any plans yet myself. Just ideas.” She crosses her arms and glances over at me. “I just don’t want to sit by and do nothing, you know? Not when this is the world I’m bringing my kid into. If I have a chance to make it better, I want to.”

“Mmm.” I’m not entirely convinced. “I’ll talk with Dakh and see how he feels.”

You know my answer already. I want what you want.

“All right.” Claudia opens the door and glances back at me as she heads out to the main room. “You know, it always surprises me that you and Dakh get along so well.”

“Really? Why is that?” It seems a curious thing.

She shrugs. “I just wasn’t sure what to think when he grabbed you from midair. I’m glad it all turned out okay.”

What?

39

SASHA

I  feel like I’m in a slow-motion vacuum. All of the air has been sucked out of the room. Every second, every breath, stretches for an eternity.

I just wasn’t sure what to think when he grabbed you from midair.

She saw that? Claudia saw that?

She knew Dakh had me?

I mean, of course she knew he had me. I’m shocked to think that she didn’t bother to try to help me escape him, though, if she saw he was the one that grabbed me.

Come to think of it, she’s never asked how I ended up with Dakh. It was as if she already knew…

Sasha?

I ignore Dakh’s alarmed thoughts and try to calm my own frantic ones. “What do you mean?” I’m amazed at how even my voice sounds, how cool. “You saw Dakh snatch me when I fell? When you were attacking Fort Dallas?”

Her expression changes—first surprise, then guilt. She realizes what she’s said. And I realize it, too. All this time, she’s been so careful, so delicately trying to make sure that I’m happy, I’m really happy, when she knew she’d abandoned me to Dakh all this time.

She knew, and because I’m okay with him now, everything’s all better.

My Sasha, why are you so upset?

Was this part of the plan? I demand of him. All along? Was it that they were going to snatch me just to hand me off to you? It was never a rescue for me, was it?

I do not know what she planned, but I know I made it quite clear to Kael that I wanted a human mate. You fell into my claws and I knew you were mine.

And they knew it, too, didn’t they?

Kael connected his mind with mine and tried to convince me to bring you back. I did not.

So they knew. They knew all along that I was with him, and they left me. I feel staggered. Shocked. Hurt.

Betrayed.

I’ve been betrayed by everyone. Claudia’s ready to charge out and save Fort Dallas, but she couldn’t be bothered to try to save me when I was scared and alone?

It’s the icing on the cake, and I’m done.

Claudia looks upset. “Sasha—”

I raise a hand. “I don’t want to talk to you right now.” My voice breaks. “You left me.”

“I didn’t know what to do!”

“You did! You had a choice, and you left me—let a dragon carry me off because you wanted to rescue your sister. You knew what Dakh wanted. Was there ever a plan to rescue me?”

“It was a risk,” she says softly. “But I thought you would be safer with him than with Tate—”

“Oh, well, I’m so glad you decided my future for me,” I snap at her. “Next time how about you let me have a little say in it?” I storm past her, snatching my goggles off of a patio table. I feel used. I feel so, so betrayed.

I feel so stupid.

How did I ever think these people cared about me? That they were my friends? Of course Claudia put her sister above me. Of course she never came after me. Not if she knew I’d be just fine and dandy being cuddled by a dragon. And stupid me, I never stopped to question any of it. I just worried over Claudia and Amy like they were my friends and I wasn’t being stabbed in the back.

I march to Dakh’s side and grab the straps, hauling myself onto his back. Take me home.

“Sasha—” Claudia begins again.

“I don’t want to talk to you,” I bark out at her. “Not right now!”

She is upset, Dakh tells me. Kael is angry that she is upset.

You can tell Kael to shove it up his ass, I send back, seething. Let him just try and eat me. He’d get nothing but a mouthful of salt because I am so, so bitter right now.

He will never harm you, Dakh tells me vehemently. I would never let him close enough. And buckle in and I will take you away.

It feels like forever to fix all the straps correctly, and all the while, Claudia just stares up at me with hurt eyes. I can feel her gaze boring into me, and I don’t care. I just focus on fumbling each buckle into place. When they’re all finally in the right spots, I put my hands on the handlebars and stare straight ahead. I’m ready. Go.

You are upset? Dakh asks, a strange note in his thoughts. Because you are my mate?

Because they gave me no choice. No one ever bothered to ask me what I wanted. Not you, not Claudia, not Claudia’s fricking dragon. No one ever stopped to think how I’d feel being tossed over to a dragon instead of staying in Fort Dallas. Everyone just assumed they knew what was best for me. And that is why I am angry. I clench the handlebars tighter. Go, please.

Should we talk? I do not like your tears.

Am I crying? I don’t even care. Just go. Right now I don’t even want to talk to you.

I can feel the shock in his thoughts. You are upset at me?

I am. Right now, I’m just upset at everyone. Please leave me alone.

There is a long pause, and I can tell that Dakh’s trying to figure out what to do. I know every instinct he has tells him that he should comfort me, but I really, really want him to fly away right now. I want to get away from Claudia’s sad, guilty eyes, because if I stay, I’m going to say things I regret, and I’m going to hurt even more. I just want to crawl into a dark corner and lick my wounds.

At least Tate only broke me on the outside. He never hurt me on the inside. I could get away from his awfulness because I knew it was just temporary. It was a thing to be endured.

I don’t know how to cope with this. Even my normal method of going to my ‘happy’ place doesn’t work, because when I try to pull up a mental image of clear meadows and flowers, I think of Dakh and his flag of a picnic blanket and the way he tried to give me an uprooted bush, as if it was the same thing as giving me a bouquet.

My thoughts are a mess the entire long flight home.

40

SASHA

When we get to the store, I don’t even stop to wait for Dakh to unstrap. I unbuckle quickly, slide off his back, and storm through the double doors, heading for my bed.

Sasha, wait.

Just like I did for the entire flight, I ignore him. I push my way inside, stomping my way toward my bed—and hopefully a bit of privacy—as quickly as I can. I don’t want to talk. Not right now.

I do not understand. Why are you angry at me? His thoughts are bewildered. I did not betray you.

You never told me, I accuse him. You knew they sold me out to you and you let me just blitz in there, all happy like they were my best friends and not thoughtless jerks. Like I’m not just a warm body who fills a convenient need. That’s all I was to them, and maybe that’s all I am to you.

Dakh’s mind is suddenly a flurry of angry ravens. Never say such things. You are my fire, my heart. You are my mate.

Only because I conveniently “fell,” I point out to him as I rip my shoes off and toss them on the floor. Right into your arms. I climb into bed and pull the blankets over my head. Now go away.

Go away?!

I can smell his scent, and I can hear his footsteps as he approaches. That’s right. Go away. I want to be left alone. I realize I’m still talking in mental speak, and that makes me even more frustrated. I pull the blankets down and glare up at him. “I know I’m being unreasonable, but I need time to process this and get it out of my system.”

He gets down on his knees next to the bed, concern making his eyes flick between gold and black. Tell me how to help you, then.

“I don’t want you in my thoughts.” I press my palms to my forehead. “It’s too crowded, and I can’t think straight knowing you’re in there, picking through every little idea I have. I want to be able to have my anger without you spying on every single moment of it. I just want an hour of peace and quiet.”

I can feel his thoughts grow stubborn. No. I do not wish to leave you.

“And I didn’t want a dragon in my brain, but we don’t always get what we want,” I retort. “I don’t want you in here,” I press my hands to my forehead. “I just want peace and quiet for five damn minutes.”

Five minutes? He perks up at that. I can give you five minutes.

Ugh, far too literal. An hour, I tell him. I want an hour.

Very well, I will be quiet.

As he settles down on his haunches, I realize he’s not getting it. I sit up. “No, Dakh. Even if you’re here, it doesn’t matter if you’re quiet. You’re still here.” I point at my brows. “The only way I get quiet is if you go away, go out of range for a bit.”

He gazes at me, eyes dark, but I don’t sense the ravens. There’s only a deep disappointment. He gets to his feet, slowly. You are still my heart, my Sasha.

That makes me feel like crying. “I know, Dakh. And I still love you, okay? I just need to lick my wounds in private for a bit.”

I will lick your wounds. He reaches out and brushes a knuckle over my cheek.

For some reason, that makes me want to both laugh and weep. “You can do that after I’ve had a good hour to stew, okay? I just feel really betrayed and hurt, and every moment that you’re lurking in my head makes it worse, because I can’t stop focusing on that.”

I understand. He brushes his knuckle over my cheek again and sends me a bolt of pure, sweet love in his thoughts. Then he turns and walks away. I will leave you to your thoughts, though I do not agree with them. I understand that you want quiet in your head. I know this feeling very well.

Yeah, I guess he would, after years of his “ravens” attacking his mind. “Thank you,” I whisper. “I really appreciate it.”

I know.

With that, he’s silent, and I hear him go outside. I don’t hear him take off, but my mind is silent. It’s what I wanted. It’s…weird, too. It’s the first time in a long time that I’ve been completely without my connection to Dakh. Lately when he’s hunted, he’s kept in range so he could touch my thoughts. Right now, I feel like I’ve kicked him out. I test our mental connection, trying to find that bright little “spark” in my mind that’s my dragon, but it’s gone.

I’m not entirely comfortable with it. It’s not as relaxing as I thought it’d feel. Instead, it just feels lonely, and that makes me feel worse.

Well, I seem determined to make myself miserable, don’t I?

I flop back on the pillows and stare up at the faint glow of the emergency lights in the ceiling. I hate this. I hate that I don’t know who to trust.

I hate that after a month of happiness, I feel like I’ve skidded back into the “No One Loves Sasha” zone. I feel abandoned all over again. I guess it hurts worse this time around because I wasn’t expecting it. My guard was down. And I’m in love, and now that I find that Dakh was involved—however marginally—just makes me feel like I’ve lost the only person I could trust. After all, he knew that Claudia deliberately didn’t go after me and he’s never said a peep. Granted, he probably didn’t understand the difference, but I do. It makes a big difference to me.

I hug one of the pillows close and let my tears fall. Why is nothing ever simple? Why does nothing ever work out for me? Why does no one ever want me for me? Why am I always just an afterthought?

I MUST HAVE FALLEN asleep while crying, because I wake up a short time later, my cheeks wet and my head aching. It feels unnaturally quiet in the store, and I blink, trying to rouse myself. Dakh?

There’s no response. He must still be out of range.

I shouldn’t have driven him away. Now I’m irritated at myself as well as everyone else. His big, bronze chest would be nice to snuggle up against and have a good cry. I’m not mad at him. Heck, I’m not really mad at Claudia anymore.

I’m just really, really disappointed in everyone. I wish I didn’t care so much, but I do.

I close my eyes, about to drift back off to sleep when I smell something…awful. Skunky and rotten and a little too familiar. It reminds me of Emma’s deer urine scent, except she said she was out. I open my eyes, frowning.

And then I hear voices.

Male voices.

“You’re sure the dragon’s gone?”

“Yeah, he flew off a while ago. That’s why we’ve got to be fast. Come on. She’s this way.”

My body grows stiff with fear. That low, cold voice sounds like…Tate. But why is he here? And why is he disguising his scent? I reach over the side of my mattress, looking for a weapon. There’s nothing but books and crackers. With Dakh around, I have no need for a weapon, ever. I’ve been so careless, not thinking to equip myself…

And sending my dragon away. God, I am such an idiot. I sent him away and now Tate’s back.

Is he…here to murder me? I clutch a thick paperback, ready to chuck it at his head the moment he comes around the corner. I get to my feet, padding a few steps forward. If I can get over to the next aisle, my kitchenware stuff is there, and I’ve got a knife…

“Oh no you don’t,” says another voice, right behind me.

Before I can turn around, something thick and heavy is tossed over my head and I’m flung to the ground. I cry out, my cheek banging against the hard floor.

“Got you,” says the voice, and something—someone—heavy lands on my back. He grabs one arm and twists it behind me brutally, then the other. A moment later, handcuffs are put around my wrists, tight and painful.

“Who are you? What do you want?” I call out, frantic. Under the bag, it’s hot and musty, and I feel like I can’t breathe. Dakh, I mentally scream. Dakh! Hear me!

“You got her? Good.” I hear Tate’s voice again. “She’s heavier than I remember.”

“Guess sucking a dragon’s dick feeds her better than you did,” guffaws another.

“Very funny.” Tate’s voice is as cold as ever. “Unless you want to suck the dragon’s dick, you’ll shut up and concentrate on getting her out of here. No one’s going to want to be around when he gets back and figures out his little girlfriend is missing.”

“Shit no,” says another, laughing. He sounds young and reckless—he’d have to be, if he’s helping Tate out.

“Let me go,” I beg them. “Please. I haven’t seen your faces. I won’t tell him you were here. Take whatever you want from the store. I won’t say anything, I promise.”

“All right,” Tate says, and my heart skips a beat for a moment. Is he really going to let me go? “You boys heard her talking.”

For a moment, I’m shocked. Did that work?

“She’s a yapper,” Tate continues. “That means we need to shut her up in case the dragon can hear her.”

Shit! No, no no no no. “Please—”

“Who’s got the spray?” A pause. “Rick, do your thing.”

Spray? Thing?

A hand touches my face through the burlap bag over my face, and I splutter.

“Hold still, girlie.”

A moment later, something hard and heavy hits me across the back of the head. Red fireworks bloom behind my eyes, and then everything fades to black.

41

DAKH

A n hour without my mate passes endlessly. I sit atop one of the crumbling nests in Old Dallas, waiting. I do not know how long it has been since she sent me away, but I hate every moment of it. I want to feel the touch of my Sasha’s mind. I want to hear her laughter. I want to breathe in her scent.

I want her. All of her. I want to make her tears go away. I want her to realize how much she means to me. How I am nothing without her.

Instead, I must sit here and wait for her to finish crying, alone. I test the faint bond in our minds, but it is too far away for me to see how she is feeling, only that she is there. Growling in frustration, I fling a rock off the ledge of my perch and watch it fall to the ground far below.

Dakh…is that you? Kael’s thoughts are faint, but surprised. Why have you returned?

My mate is angry.

Ah. So is mine. Kael’s thoughts are tired. She is hurt that we did not go after your mate. She feels that your mate will think she is betrayed. My Claudia has been raging and weeping all night. She will not listen to reason.

I sigh. My Sasha is the same. She sent me away because she did not wish to have me in her head.

Having a mate is difficult at times, Kael agrees. I have tried explaining to my Claudia that we did not chase you after that fight because she was gravely injured. She nearly died. Yet she still feels she has let your mate down and is upset.

I vaguely remember him telling me such things before. It was not something I remembered, but perhaps it would ease my Sasha to be reminded of this. Then again, perhaps not. She knows your mate was injured, I tell him. Her feelings are hurt. I will try to calm her when I go back. She feels betrayed right now.

Then how do we fix this? How do we calm our mates?

My friend, if you think I knew how to calm an upset mate, would I be out here in your territory, hiding from mine?

I can feel Kael’s rumble of tired laughter. You are right. He pauses. I have not told my mate that we need to find her sister a drakoni mate. The girl’s scent grows stronger every day that passes, and our nest gets more and more interest—from both angry females and interested males. I cannot keep them away forever, and I cannot send her back to the human hive, so I must find her a mate. Somehow. My Claudia, she will not like this idea. She wants to protect her sister always.

Does she not realize that the best way to protect her is to find her a strong drakoni mate? He will keep her safe from all others.

My mate will not hear of such things. I suspect this is what humans call a “blind spot.” She has far too much emotion to think logically about such matters.

That sounds like my Sasha, tonight. All hurt feelings and betrayal. Then I shall save you a spot here on my perch. It sounds as if you will need it soon enough.

Ash take you, Kael sends back. They are emotional, but I would not trade my Claudia for anything in this world…or the one we left.

I know his feelings. I am the same with my Sasha. She thinks I did not pick her, but how can I explain that she has been my heart since the moment I laid eyes on her? The moment she made my thoughts clear and free from madness? I knew she was mine in that instant. That I was changed from that point on.

Perhaps…you should tell her just that?

Perhaps.

His thoughts touch mine once more in a faint goodbye, and then he is gone.

I lift my head and catch the scents on the breeze, checking for prey. Perhaps I should eat something before returning to my mate, but there is nothing that appeals. I am not hungry while she is miserable. Her happiness is tied to mine. When I can wait no longer, I extend my wings and launch myself into the air, determined to fly back to my mate. I will tell her how much she means to me. I will fill her head with sweet thoughts so she knows that she is loved, and then I will claim her fiercely, over and over, to show her just how deep my feelings for her are.

I will leave her no doubts that she is everything to me.

My wings beat fast, and I am eager to return to her side. I picture her in our bed, alone, her dark hair falling across her cheek as she weeps. I will kiss away her tears and push her down on the bed as she likes. I will send her fierce, carnal thoughts that will leave her in no doubt to how her Dakh feels about his mate.

I fly into range and realize that my Sasha is yet silent. My mate? I send out to her, testing. Her mind is there, but there is no answer, her thoughts a quiet drift. She is asleep, then. This pleases me. I will wake her up with my tongue.

But as I approach the place we have made our nest, it is not my Sasha that I smell on the breeze.

It is another. A stranger. The scent is thick with the awful musk that the human Emma uses, and I cannot tell if it is one stranger or many. All I know is that the scent is all over our nest, and rage boils through me, coming with a burst of ravens and darkness.

Kill him, they cry. He dares to approach your mate. She is unsafe.

This time I do not push the ravens away. I welcome their dark thoughts. These humans will get no mercy from me. To invade a drakoni’s nest? To come after his mate in their lair? It is unheard of, and for that he will pay with a violent, painful death.

Yes, the ravens whisper. Do it. Make them pay.

Someone dares to invade my nest, and my Sasha sleeps, unaware? In a haze of rage, I fly as fast as I can, fire pluming from my nostrils. I cannot contain my flame, not when my mate’s safety is at stake. Sasha, I call out again, determined to rouse her from her sleep. Wake!

But there is no answer. There is never an answer, no matter how many times I call to her.

I slam to the hard ground in front of the double doors, landing so hard that the glass in them shatters. I do not care. My only thought is for my mate. Sasha! I reach out to her mind, but there is still no answer. I lift my head, seeking her scent.

It is old. Stale.

With a bellow of fury, I charge into the building, still in battle form. Shelves crash and fall over. Carts are flung about madly as I rush inside, and I do not care. All that matters is my Sasha. My Sasha, who I cannot reach and whose scent is cold.

When I get to her bed, it is empty. She is gone, her smell faint and polluted by the stink of the other who has stolen her.

Someone has touched my mate.

Stolen her.

He will die, the ravens assure me.

I bellow my outrage to the skies and let loose my flame.

42

SASHA

M y head feels like it was cracked open.

A little involuntary moan escapes me as I rouse to consciousness again, my thoughts groggy. Dakh? I try, but there’s no response. It takes me a moment to realize what happened. Tate came back, and he brought thugs with him. They knocked me over the head, and I don’t know where we’re at now or where Dakh is. I test my wrists, locked tight behind my back, but they’re still cuffed. I’m lying on my side on something that feels a bit like a sofa, and there’s a blindfold over my eyes, blocking my vision. And I still smell deer urine.

This is all really, really weird.

Why all the big fuss to kidnap me? I don’t understand. I’m trying not to be scared. I need to be calm, to figure things out. If they wanted me dead…I’d already be dead. So there must be a reason behind this. “Hello?” I call out, and my voice is dry and cracked. My mouth feels like I’ve been chewing on a dirty sock. “Is anyone there?”

“Shut up,” Tate growls somewhere close by. That must be where the deer urine scent is coming from.

I stiffen. “Why did you kidnap me, Tate? What the hell is going on?”

“I said, shut up,” he hisses again. “Or you’re going to call them over here.” There’s a clink, and I can hear his weight shift, and it confuses me. Is he…is he chained up, too?

I test my cuffs, and sure enough, they make the same sound that Tate’s clinking does. If that’s the case, then why would I listen to anything he says? “Tell me what’s going on. Why steal me away? Why—”

“Sasha, goddamn it,” Tate’s voice is low and fierce. “I’ll tell you what I can, just keep your fucking voice down, all right?”

He sounds a little…scared. Weird. And alarming. “All right,” I whisper. I twist my wrists in the cuffs, trying to see if I can loosen them or squeeze my hand out, but no dice. “Tell me what’s going on. Who’s in charge here?”

“Nomads,” he says flatly.

That makes me a little alarmed. No one likes nomads. In this day and age, “nomad” means lawless thugs who don’t play nice with others. That’s the very reason they’re nomads. In a land full of lying, cheating thieves, they’re the worst of the bunch. “Why are you working with nomads?” I whisper.

“I’m. Not.” He grinds out the words, and I hear the clink of his cuffs again. “They captured me before I could get back to Fort Dallas, thanks to your dragon boyfriend dumping me in the middle of nowhere.” His weight shifts. “I made a deal with them—I’d give you to them in exchange for my freedom.”

“Wow, aren’t you a fucking Prince Charming,” I mutter. “If this isn’t working with them, what are you doing?”

“They betrayed me,” he snarls. “They were supposed to let me go after they nabbed you. That was the exchange. Fucking bastards grabbed you and then tossed me in here with you.”

Good, I want to bite back at him. But I need more answers, and as long as he’s talking, I need to try to get them. “Where exactly is ‘here’? I can’t see anything.”

“That’s because they don’t want your dragon to find you.”

I’m startled by that. How does he know that I can communicate with Dakh telepathically? I never said anything to Tate. “What are you talking about?”

He sighs. “I don’t fucking know. They said he can see through your eyes or something.” Tate rustles again. “So if you want to call your scaly boyfriend over and have him rescue us, that’d be fantastic. And sooner better than later.”

“Why? What happens later?” I don’t point out the fact that my Dakh wouldn’t be keen on saving him, or that I can’t hear Dakh at all right now. I try to send my mind out to reach my dragon, but all I’m getting is silence, and I’m scared. What if they’ve done something to him? I want to kick myself for sending him away. My Dakh. I had the best, most wonderful partner ever, and I pushed him away because I was angry.

Never again, I vow. If my feelings get hurt or if I feel betrayed in the future, I’m going to suck it up and deal with a dragon in my head. The thought of anything happening to him is utterly unbearable, and I have to fight back more tears. My Dakh.

“Why do they want him? What do they think they can do with a dragon? A very angry, very unlikely to cooperate dragon?”

“I don’t know,” Tate is saying. “I told you, I don’t know anything.”

“You know more than I thought you did. How did you know to mask your scent?”

“All these guys do,” he tells me. “It’s a little trick they have, among others. Listen, Sasha, you need to get your dragon boyfriend here, and quick. These guys have some sort of plan, and I’m sure it’s not a good one. I—” He goes silent abruptly.

“What?” I ask. “What is it?” I tilt my head, trying to see from under the blindfold, but all I can make out is a faint line of light.

No response from Tate.

There’s a sound like a door opening.

I lift my chin, as if raising my head will somehow help me figure out what’s going on.

Footsteps. Several of them. My skin prickles with awareness, and I realize there’s a strange smell, like thick, spicy cologne. It’s not unpleasant, unlike the smell covering Tate. It’s actually familiar and comforting, though I can’t exactly place it.

“I see our newest little friend is awake,” comes a strange, smoky voice. His accent is odd and thick, as if English isn’t his native language. “Hello, Sasha.”

I sit upright, doing my best not to let my confusion show. “Who’s there?”

“No one important,” the man says with a small, amused chuckle. “How is your head?”

“It hurts,” I say guardedly.

“They really shouldn’t have hit you over the head with a bat. Humans are so very…fragile.”

That sounds awfully familiar. My skin prickles again, and I squint through the blindfold, wishing I could see. “Do I know you?”

“I’m afraid not. But I look forward to getting to know you better.”

That sounds…ominous. Most men who want to get to know a woman better only want one thing, and I’m not willing to give it. “Then can I have my hands uncuffed?”

The stranger makes a sympathetic noise. “I’m afraid not. We do need to keep you blindfolded to keep your location a mystery. I’m sure you understand, my dear.”

“Azar, we had a deal,” Tate interjects. “I’d show you where to find the dragon’s girlfriend, and in exchange, you’d let me go back to Fort Dallas.”

I mentally file the name away. Azar. Azar. I’m going to remember that.

“Yes, we had a deal,” Azar says in that curious voice of his. “And you did an admirable job of retrieving the female for us. But how can we be sure that this is the dragon’s mate? She does not look like the type to entice a gold dragon.”

“I swear she is. He attacked me—hunted me down because I had a relationship with her in the past. Trust me, it’s her.”

I snort. I can’t believe I was ever afraid of this douchebag.

Azar chuckles. “You do not agree with his statement, Sasha?”

“I just thought it was interesting how quick he is to run his mouth and sell me out,” I comment, keeping my tone light. “Thanks for that, Tate. I’m sure all of Fort Dallas will sleep better tonight knowing you’re going to be around to protect them from Big Bad Sasha.”

“Aha. So it seems I am not the only one to notice your lack of loyalty,” Azar continues in that smooth, accented tone. “And that is why you find yourself here, my friend. I truly do wish you could return to Fort Dallas, but how do I know you will not tell them all about me and my band of men? About our tactics for avoiding dragons? That would interfere with any plans I have, and I do not think I could allow that. Not after I have been so careful.”

“If you want me to beg, I’m not going to beg,” Tate says coldly.

Azar chuckles again. “No, I do not want you to beg. Rand?”

Before I can ask who Rand is, a gunshot goes off in the room, blasting my eardrums and making my head ring. I recoil in shock as something wet splatters my face.

Oh.

My.

God.

43

SASHA

“T  ate?” I whisper. I can barely hear myself. My head’s still reverberating with the gunshot in such close quarters. My ears ring. Fear makes me pant, and I’m sweating with nervousness. Someone here has a gun.

Someone just got shot.

“He will not be answering,” Azar tells me.

My body grows cold. Oh my God. Tate’s…dead?

“And I do not think anyone else will be running their mouths anytime soon,” Azar continues. “It is such a dangerous thing to do, selling out people.” He moves forward, and his hand touches my face. He tilts my chin up, and even though I can’t see him, I feel scrutinized. “I do not want you to be alarmed, Sasha. You are my guest.”

I want to retort that Tate was his guest, too, but I’m too distracted. His hand is hot against my skin, and the spicy smell is thicker now that he’s standing closer, and I realize where I’ve smelled that before.

On a dragon. On Dakh.

Is Azar a dragon? But how? He’s talking in English, and even though his accent is strange, he sounds human. And sane.

Or a little insane, but nothing like Kael or Dakh. I don’t understand.

He taps my cheek. “Interesting that you are his mate. I would not have guessed it by looking at you. But Tate says he did not lie.”

“What if he did?” I reply, voice hoarse.

The air shifts, and I can tell Azar is leaning in. The heat of his body is close to my face, and the intense spice smell of him grows thicker. “We both know he did not,” Azar murmurs to me. He straightens and steps away. There is a pause, then footsteps. “Someone get him out of there and wipe her face. She is our guest. Now, I am going to go and take a nap. Wake me up when the dragon figures out where she is.”

TIME PASSES. I feel like I’m stuck in limbo. I’m uncomfortable because of the cuffs and my blindfold, but I’m not really sure what else to do other than sit here. I’m thirsty. I’m tired. My head is swimming.

But at least I’m not dead.

It’s been hours, I think, since Azar left. Hours since someone came in and wiped my face with a wet towel, getting rid of the spatters of Tate’s blood. Hours since someone showed up and mopped the floors of whatever mess Tate left. I don’t like to think about it.

I focus instead on Azar.

The hand that touched my face was hot. The scent of him was familiar. If I could have seen him, maybe I would have noticed claws or golden skin and golden eyes. The question is, why is he so different? How does he speak English so well? How is he not completely insane unless he has a mate, too?

He must…but who?

And if he has a mate, what does he want with me and Dakh?

There has to be an answer I’m overlooking. Something obvious. Something that will pull this all together and make sense. I just haven’t found it yet.

The door opens, and I lift my head, body going on alert once more. “Who’s there?”

“It’s me, Emma,” comes a whispered voice. Footsteps pad across the floor. “Keep your voice down so the guards don’t hear us.”

Emma?

I’m shocked. Of all the people I expected to hear from in this place, Emma isn’t it. But as she nears, I smell the rose perfume that she’s been wearing since that day in the store when we swapped her deer spray for a more pleasant scent. “You…you’re working with these guys?”

A second later, gentle hands lift the blindfold from my eyes. She gazes at me with a haunted expression. It’s Emma, all right, but there’s a giant bruise across one cheek, and her chin is scratched up. She’s dirty, and there are circles under her eyes. She looks miserable as she sets down a tray of soup on a nearby table. “Bathroom?” she calls loudly. “Okay, come on then.” She puts a finger to her lips and takes me by the arm, helping me to my feet.

I have no choice but to go. Even as I do, I glance around, making note of my surroundings. What I can see doesn’t tell me much—it’s a hotel room of some kind, but the carpets have been torn up and there’s nothing but bare floor showing. The sofa I was sitting on is filthy and worn, and there’s a stained mattress in the corner of the room. The one window in the room is covered with cardboard so I can’t see outside. There’s a bathroom off to one side, and Emma steers me in that direction, her expression tense.

I head inside, and she immediately locks the door, and then it’s the two of us in the tiny bathroom with not much room to stand. “Not to get too fresh,” she whispers, “But I’m going to pull up your skirt and it’ll probably look more legit if you actually use the bathroom. Take your time, though, so we can talk.”

“Uh, okay.” I try not to get weirded out as she hikes my skirts up and pulls my panties down for me. I sit on the toilet, and she sits down on the lip of the old, chipped bathtub next to me. “What’s going on? Why are you here? Are you all right?”

Emma crosses her arms over her chest and hunches over. “Define ‘all right’? I’m alive and haven’t been raped yet. That’s about all I’ve got going for me right now.” The smile she gives me is wintry.

“Are they holding you captive?” I shift on the toilet seat, because I didn’t think it was possible to be more uncomfortable in a pair of cuffs, but I guess I’m wrong. The toilet is hard and uncomfortable, and I can’t seem to sit in a way that doesn’t pinch my arms against the tank.

“Yes and no? I don’t want to be here, but I don’t have a choice.” She rubs her hands over her forehead. “These nomads, they’re kind of a gang. Most nomads split up after robbing each other and go their own way. This bunch sticks together and looks out for each other. I guess they’re able to get more shit done that way. Anyhow, they passed by my gas station about a week ago. Lucky me. And guess who was there with them? My brother, who got my butt kicked out of Fort Tulsa with him two years ago.”

“Your brother?”

“Long story short, he’s an asshole. He’s…not a good guy.” She wrings her hands. “When we got booted from Fort Tulsa, I tried to stay behind. I didn’t want to go with him. But because I’m an Arroyo, too, they made me leave the fort with Boyd. I ran away from him a couple weeks later when it became obvious that when we ran out of money, I was going to have to hustle for him.” She shakes her head and tucks a strand of dark hair behind her ear. “I never wanted to see him again. Finding him here was bad luck. Finding out that he’s one of Azar’s right-hand men? Worse luck.”

“This Azar guy,” I say softly. “You—”

“I know,” Emma replies, glancing at the door. “I think he’s a dragon.”

44

SASHA

Emma twists her hands as she says the words. “No one else has figured it out yet—that he’s not one of us. I knew it the moment I saw him. He’s got that weird monochrome look that Dakh does, but he’s a lot paler. No horns. Long hair. Heard someone joke that they thought he was an albino, but I think he’s a dragon. He’s got weird fingernails, and he just seems…strange.”

“He is a dragon,” I tell her with a nod. “You’re right. Have you seen his mate?”

“I don’t think he has one.”

“How is it possible that he’s not crazy if he doesn’t have a mate?” That goes against everything I’ve learned about dragons.

“There aren’t many women traveling with this bunch. I’m the only one under the age of menopause.” She twitches, nervous. “And if I don’t start putting out for someone soon, it doesn’t matter that I’m Boyd’s sister. They’re going to get rid of me for not playing nice.”

“Emma, I’m so sorry.” I twist my hands in the cuffs, frustrated. “They know about the scent disguising.”

Her smile is brittle. “I know. Boyd. That fucker.”

I shake my head, trying to focus. I need to think about Azar. “He has to have a mate. What about…what about guys? Is there a particular man he might be involved with? If dragons can have female mates, surely they can also have male ones.”

“No, that’s just it. I don’t think he’s close to anyone. Azar’s always alone.”

Well shit. “What do we do?”

“It gets worse,” she tells me, a look of despair on her face. “They have another dragon.”

I stare at her in horror. “They…what?”

“I know.” She bites her lip, her face haunted. “He’s shifted into his human form and they have him all rigged up in these special chains so he can’t change back. He’s totally crazed, Sasha. We have to help him.”

“How are we going to help anyone?” I jerk at my cuffs, then wince at the shot of pain that rolls up my arms. “And what does this guy want with a dragon?”

“I don’t know. I worry he’s going to attack the nearest fort and take it over. Isn’t that what every power-mad idiot wants? More power?”

“He can have the fort,” I tell her, shifting uncomfortably once more. “I don’t want anything to do with them.”

“I can’t just let him take over. Who knows how many more people he’s going to kill?”

I think of Tate and shudder. Of the families still living there. No, I guess I talk a big game, but I don’t want them to die, either. “What do we do, then?”

“I don’t know,” she admits. “But as long as I’m ‘with them—’” she makes quotes with her hands “—they let me work with prisoners and do shitty jobs around here. I found out about that Tate dickhead yesterday. They’d been messing with him for a while now, making him act as their slave, doing shit jobs for them, all kinds of unpleasant stuff. The moment I joined them, I found out he’s been blabbing about dragons and you, and then the next thing I know, we’re heading in your direction and Azar has a plan. I don’t know what the plan is, but he’s really excited about it. My brother says this is the most excited he’s seen Azar since he met him.”

“What do you think it could be?”

“Something with Dakh,” she tells me ominously. “If you hear from him, you need to tell him to stay away. That’s why they kidnapped you. They want to bring him in and use him.”

“Use him? No one can use a dragon.”

“Azar thinks he can,” she says. “And that’s the part that scares me the most.”

Me, too.

We talk for a bit longer, but Emma has to go before the others start to suspect our friendship. She bandages my wrists with a bit of fabric so the cuffs don’t cut into my flesh, replaces my blindfold and leaves it high enough so I can see a bit underneath, and apologizes over and over again.

“I’ll be back as soon as I can,” she promises as she leads me back out to the couch. “Until then, just hang tight.”

“We have to get out of here,” I tell her, worried. “Please. You have to help me.”

“I know. I will, I promise. I just have to figure out the best way to get us both out of here without getting killed.”

“Tell me where we are and I can direct Dakh. I can have him come in and start flaming—”

“And get captured like the other dragon?” She shakes her head. “If he’s got a way to capture one dragon, he’ll capture yours, too. And then he’ll have two dragons at his beck and call and no one will be able to stand in his way. I’ve learned enough about Azar to realize that he’s not interested in what’s good for the common people, Sasha. He’s out for Azar and Azar alone.”

“Then what do you suggest?”

She thinks for a moment. “The best thing we can do right now is figure out a way to get you out of here and back to him, and he can fly us both the fuck out of Dodge.”

I nod. “I’m trusting you.”

She moves me back to the couch and helps me sit down, then picks up the bowl. “You don’t know me,” she whispers. “I’m just the girl that serves you soup.” Then louder, she holds up a spoon. “Open wide. Let’s make this feeding quick or you’re going to be wearing this stuff.”

45

DAKH

T  he ravens are my companions as I wheel about in the skies, endlessly searching for my mate. I never realized until now how big this world is, how much land there is to cover.

How small one human female can be in all this.

It has been an eternity since I felt her thoughts, and with every moment that passes, my despair grows and the ravens fly thicker. Already they cry terrible things, encouraging me to flame this building as I pass, or to destroy this barricade. Turn this tree to ash, that field to dust.

But the field is full of flowers, and I know my Sasha loves them, so I land there and wait, hoping against hope that her mind will connect with mine. That I have just somehow missed her and she is there, waiting for me. That she is safe.

That she is not hurt, or in pain.

I know she is not dead. The tenuous thread of her mind is there, and I have followed it as closely as I can, trying to make it grow larger, to increase the connection. To hear her thoughts pour into my head. So far, there has been nothing.

I am failing her, I realize with despair. Failing my sweet mate, who I should have protected. SASHA, I call again, my thoughts raging. I pump all that I am into the thrust of my mind and force it forward like a bolt. SASHA, I AM HERE.

There is only silence. Not even the ravens dare to speak up.

Furious, I launch myself from the field of flowers and take to the air once more. I will not stop until her mind touches mine again. She exists. I just have to find out where she is and save her.

And I will take great pleasure in destroying the ones who have stolen her from me.

I use the long ribbons of hard concrete—Sasha calls them “highways”—as markers. Once I have coasted as far along a highway as I can, I turn back and go in another direction. They continue on for what seems like forever, but I remain close to the ruins of Old Dallas. She is here. Somewhere. I do not want to think what will happen if whoever has stolen her takes her farther away while I sleep and I lose the thread of her mind entirely.

I will not sleep until I find her once more.

SASHA, I call out as I turn in another direction, swooping low to follow along another highway.

Dakh?

The thought is faint but beautiful. HERE, I call to her, as forcefully as I can. I AM HERE. WHERE ARE YOU? I alight atop a building so I can concentrate on sending her my thoughts as clearly as possible. Tell me where you are and I will come for you!

I…I don’t know where I’m at. The people that took me, they’re keeping me blindfolded. I’m in an old hotel, but there are dozens of those all over the city, Dakh.

Ravens flutter in the edges of my vision, and anger burns. They think to keep her from me? From her mate? From her protector? They will burn. I will find out which building, I vow. I will follow your scent—

They’ve sprayed me with the scent-masking perfumes, Dakh. They don’t want you to find me yet. They’re up to something. You can’t come for me. It’s too dangerous.

I do not care if it is dangerous. You are mine to protect.

Dakh, no. Stop and listen to me, all right? Please.

Even though it is the most difficult thing I have ever done, I force myself to stop, to pay attention. The ravens circle about, waiting, but I push them back. My Sasha is the most important thing right now. Nothing else matters. Speak, and tell me why I cannot come for you.

There’s something weird going on here, she tells me. Emma’s here. Tate was here, too, but they killed him. He’s the one who told them where to find me.

Who is it that has you? Which humans? Are you at the hive? My legs tense, and I am ready to spring into the air once more.

No, I’m not. I don’t know where they have me. Someplace hidden. They don’t want you to find me. Or rather, they do, but not right away. I think they’re setting a trap and it’s not ready yet. That’s why they’re keeping me blindfolded and masking my scent. They want to wait, and then they want me to bring you in.

So I can destroy them? I put flame behind the thoughts.

That’s just it—I think they want to capture you. They’ve got another dragon they’re holding captive, Dakh. And their leader? I think…I think he’s drakoni. His name is Azar, and he’s pretending to be human. He smells like a drakoni, and his skin is hot, but he sounds like any other human, and he’s not crazy. It’s so weird—

Rage boils through me. I let out a massive rush of flame and crisp a nearby tree. She has felt his skin? He has touched you? He will DIE.

Not like that, babe. I promise. Please, please listen. You can hear me, right? Concentrate on my voice. Calm down. Think about me. Calm. You can’t lose your shit, babe. I need you to be focused. I need us to be in this together. I need to be able to count on you. Can you stay calm for me?

I growl low in my throat. Every instinct I have tells me that I must go and rescue my mate. That I should ignore her words and follow her scent and mind until I track her down. I can flame every building from here to the ocean. I will find her. I am strong enough to defeat any other dragon.

But there is an anxious note in her thoughts that keeps me from charging forward. She is truly worried for me.

Of course I’m worried. They’re setting a trap for you. It’ll destroy me if you get hurt, Dakh. You’re the only thing that’s keeping me from losing it.

Her rising panic makes me realize that what she says is true. They have my mate. They took her deliberately in a ploy to attack me. They know how I will lose control if she is in danger, and they are counting on that. Even though it goes against everything that I am—and everything the ravens caw in my ears—I must listen. This is…difficult. I will try.

Relief swims through her thoughts. Thank you, babe. You can do this. If we’re smart, we can get out of this. I know we can. Emma says she’ll help me. Her mind fills with a scatter of sensations—scents, sounds, the feel of a hand, the sound of an accent—that I realize must belong to the one that has taken her. Azar. I pick through her memories, discarding the pleasure I feel at Tate’s death. Now is not the time.

Do you know who he is? she asks. This Azar?

The name is unfamiliar to me, and she has no face to go with it. The ravens say nothing, but they never do. He does not sound familiar, but perhaps that is not his drakoni name.

I’ll see what I can find out. Dakh, I know it’s hard, but I need you to stay away.

My Sasha—

No, listen to me. Her thoughts are firm. We can stay connected like this, but I don’t want you to come closer. Not until I know what’s going on.

He will hurt you, I send to her, my thoughts boiling with buried anger. Just the thought of her being in danger makes me crazed.

He will not, she tells me firmly. If he wanted to kill me, he would have done so already. They’re going to a lot of trouble to make sure that I’m here and I’m safe. They’re feeding me and letting me go to the bathroom. That means they want something. Until I figure out what it is, I want you to stay away.

A growl builds in my throat.

I’m sure you’re growling right now, but you know I’m right. If I’m not in any danger, you can’t play into their hands.

I miss you, my sweet fire. I worry over you.

I can feel her sadness, her worry. I know, babe. I’m scared, too. But we’ve got to be smart about this. If we just run around crazy-headed, we’re no better than all the dragons that attack Fort Dallas, you know? We’ve got to be strong. I love you. Just remember that.

Even if I am in your head?

I miss you when you’re not. Even when I sent you away, I regretted it. I can feel her thoughts fill with a wry, sad amusement. I really regret it now.

My heart feels as if it is being squeezed from my chest. If they harm you in any way…

It’s going to be okay, Dakh. I promise. Her thoughts are full of love. Stay where you are and talk to me, okay? Just talk. Keep me company. It’s not so miserable now that you’ve found me.

My claws dig into the concrete, but I do as she asks.

46

SASHA

I t’s a long night. I try to settle in on the couch and get comfortable, but my arms ache from being pinned behind me with the cuffs. Dakh sends me a steady stream of thoughts, all of them urgent and anxious, even when he’s just more or less sending me images of where he’s at. I know he’s on the verge of losing his shit—there’s a lot of ravens in his thoughts—but he’s trying really hard. I force myself to remain calm, because I know if I panic, he’s going to come knocking on my door.

And I can’t have that. Not until I figure out what this Azar guy wants.

Sometime in the middle of the night, someone shows up, rousing me from a fitful sleep. “Hello?”

“Food for the guest.” The door rattles, but I recognize Emma’s voice “I was sent to check on you.” She shuts the door behind her, then pulls down my blindfold and smiles at me. She’s got a bottle of water, the key to the handcuffs, and a bit of beef jerky. She moves to my side and unlocks the cuffs. “They told me I can uncuff you now. Whatever they’re working on is in place.”

“A trap?” I whisper. I’m both glad I’m getting the cuffs off and wary. Azar must be up to something.

“I think so, but no one will tell me what it is. I’m supposed to hand you this, though.” She holds out a piece of paper. It’s a faded pamphlet for a hotel. This one, probably. It just confirms that I’m supposed to lure Dakh here.

Drawn by my thoughts, Dakh is instantly alert, nudging me mentally. I have to concentrate on Emma, though. I push his thoughts aside for the moment. “I told Dakh to stay away,” I tell her. “I don’t want him coming until we know what’s going on.”

“Smart. Tell him I said hi and we’re going to get you out of here.”

Dakh pushes into my mind again. Tell your friend I am glad she is there for you if I cannot be.

Will do. “He’s glad you’re with me.”

“No offense, but I wish I wasn’t. There’s some serious shit brewing, and I’m scared of what’s going to happen when it all blows up.” She shakes her head. “The other dragon guy—the captive one—is losing his mind right now. You should see him. He’s all blood and fury.” She looks miserable at the thought.

“Maybe we’ll be able to save him, too. Until then, keep your perfume handy,” I caution her. “And keep a weapon on you at all times.”

“Girl, I’m the only young female in a band of two dozen nomads. You think I’m not prepared?” She pats her hip, where a suspicious-looking knife-shaped lump rests. “I can take care of me. You worry about you. They have to be planning something. I’m going to see what I can find out today. In the meantime, you lie low. Tell Dakh that it’s not clear and I’ll see what I can find out.” She glances at the door, then back at me. “I need to go before they wonder why it’s taking so long. I’ll try to be back as soon as I can.” Emma squeezes my arm. “Stay strong.”

“I will,” I whisper. “Thank you.”

She nods and then heads for the door, shutting it behind her. The guards say something, and she laughs, and I hear the click of the lock.

I get to my feet, rubbing my wrists. I try the doorknob, but it doesn’t move. I figured as much. I glance out the peephole and see that Emma’s still standing in the hallway, chatting with one of two guards. They look like they’re both carrying guns. Okay, so no going out the front door. I back away and drink from the water bottle as I move to the window and peel away the cardboard to peer out. I’m high off the ground—five, maybe six floors up. Not a ton, but nothing I’d survive if I fell. There’s no balcony, no fire escape, not even a rain gutter to climb down.

I’m stuck.

All part of Azar’s plan, I’m sure. He doesn’t want me to get out. He just wants me to get comfortable so I can call Dakh. The pamphlet, the uncuffing, the removal of the blindfold—all is so I can show Dakh just where I am.

I would come if you called, my dragon assures me. Even if it was my death.

And that’s exactly why I won’t call him.

I settle in on the couch with the jerky and take a bite, curling my legs underneath me. After a moment’s thought, I pick up the pamphlet. They’re not very sneaky, I tell Dakh.

It is as you said—they are not interested in sneaking.

Yep. They want me to scream like a terrified girl and have you come sailing in to my rescue. As much as I would love for that to happen, we’re not playing that game.

So we wait, he confirms.

We wait, I agree, studying the pamphlet again.

You recognize those images? You know where you are? he asks.

Sort of. I recognize the highway names and the hotel chain itself, but I don’t know exactly where in the city.

I could find you from the images in your mind, he tells me. From the view outside your window and from following your thoughts.

But you won’t.

I can practically feel his sigh. But I won’t.

SOME TIME LATER, the door lock clicks and I sit upright on the small sofa, yawning as I wake up from my latest nap. Dakh’s thoughts are affectionate as I rouse, and I’m distracted by them. I expect to see Emma walk in, but instead, it’s a man.

A strange man.

He’s covered in long clothes from head to toe, so much that at first glance, I can’t see a bit of skin. He wears a dark hat over his head, covering his hair, and sunglasses covering his eyes. Under his hat, he wears a scarf over the lower half of his face as if to protect from dust, like cowboys did in the old Western movies when they were about to rob a train. He also wears a long duster jacket despite the fact that it’s still warm enough to feel like summer. Behind him follow two goons carrying rifles.

I sit up, unnerved. “You must be Azar.”

He pulls down the scarf over his face and grins at me, showing blunted, almost too-square teeth. They’re…odd. If they were once pointed like Dakh’s, he’s filed them down. Maybe he’s trying to look more human.

As if sensing my thoughts, he laughs. “You’ve figured me out. I am indeed Azar.” He bows in greeting. His voice is smoky and thick, just like I remember it. He’s also pale. Pale pale, and I can see why the others think he’s an albino. I know he’s not, though. He’s just a really, really pale gold. I’d be willing to guess that his hair and eyes are the same shade and that somewhere on his body, he’s got the scale pattern that Dakh does.

Ravens flutter in my mind. I can practically hear Dakh growling.

Calm, Dakh. Be calm.

Azar tilts his head, and his smile grows wider.

I can feel his mind, Dakh tells me. He is reaching out, trying to communicate with me.

That makes me panic. I don’t trust him! Don’t talk to him. What if it’s a trap?

I will shut him out. Do not worry. Dakh’s thoughts turn crisp. You are the only one I will allow myself to connect with for now. I will trust no other.

Good.

“Am I interrupting?” Azar asks.

“How can you interrupt? I’m your prisoner.” I give him my sweetest smile and fold my hands in my lap. If we’re going to start a game of nicey-nice, I can play, too.

“Ah, no. You are my guest. And as your host, I’d like to invite you to dine with me.” He extends a hand to me. “Join me, please?”

I gaze at him warily.

I do not want you alone with him, Dakh growls.

Dakh, babe, I don’t have a choice. If I say no, they’re just going to make me go. They have guns. I get to my feet, gazing pointedly at the two bodyguards. “All right.”

Azar flexes his hand at me, waiting for me to put my hand in his.

Ugh. I wonder if I can get out of this. I can feel the ravens fluttering at Dakh’s mind, his helpless rage. I suspect Azar’s doing this because he knows Dakh will hate it. “My dragon doesn’t really like it when other people touch me,” I tell him, keeping my expression innocent. “It affects his control, and I’d hate for him to lose it when he struggles so hard to keep it.”

Azar ponders this and then snaps his hand shut. His grin widens. “Yes. Control is very important. Very well, then.” He turns and nods at his guards, then strides down the hall, leaving me no choice but to follow. The two guards continue to watch me until I step forward, and then fall into step behind me. As I suspected, it was less of an invitation and more of a demand.

I pad after him down the hall. I don’t have shoes on—I was kidnapped in my bed, after all—but the floors are relatively clean and swept, and I wonder how long this gang of “nomads” has been hanging out at this hotel…or if they took it over from someone else. I don’t like to think about what might have happened to that someone else.

They lead me down several flights of stairs and into the main lobby downstairs, clean and mostly bare of furniture. There’s a set of glass doors, and the two guards rush ahead to open them for Azar, who sweeps in like he’s a king. I follow, a little amused by this. He thinks he’s hot shit.

Dakh’s thoughts are an indecipherable swirl.

Calm, babe. We know his game. He can’t surprise us.

Do not trust.

Of that, I have no worries. I do not trust Azar in the slightest, which is why I’m not making a break for it.

47

SASHA

T  he guards hold the doors open, and as I step through I realize we’re entering what used to be the dining room. All of the tables have been cleared away, one very large table left in the center of the room. It’s covered in white, fresh linen, and as I get closer, I realize it’s not one table but several pushed together to make it seem like one of those long feast tables from medieval times. Azar sits at one end, and I wait, uncertain where I should sit. There’s only one more chair left and it’s right beside his, but that seems a little too…cozy for me.

Azar takes his hat off and removes his scarf, tossing them on the table, and then gestures that I should sit next to him. Hmm. I move forward and pull the chair back a few feet so I’m not practically in his lap while eating. I sit, and Azar just laughs, amused by my stubbornness.

“You are very loyal to your mate,” he comments as I fold my hands in my lap and stare at him. “It is not a trait I expected.”

“Because I’m human?”

“Because I thought if a drakoni had taken a human mate, he had stolen her away.” He takes off his sunglasses, and just as I’d suspected, his eyes are completely gold. He watches me skeptically. “Or did you challenge him?”

Aha. So he knows drakoni culture and he’s not even hiding it. “I did not challenge him. And I love…my dragon.” I almost spilled his name. I need to be more careful, I realize. Azar’s invited me to breakfast to get information out of me, I think. I need to take this time to get as much out of him as I can.

You are clever, my Sasha. You can do this.

Thanks, babe. I love you. I send him a surge of affection and keep my expression placid as someone comes out of the kitchen with a plate of food.

It’s Emma, and she looks startled as she approaches Azar with his breakfast. “I-I didn’t know you had company this morning.”

“It’s all right.” He waves a hand at her. “Bring another plate for my guest, unless she’d prefer to eat from my hand.”

“Another plate is great,” I say politely. I don’t even look at Emma. I can’t.

“Sure. Right away,” Emma says, and rushes back into the kitchen.

I study Azar as he picks at a bit of canned fruit on his plate. He’s eating a wealth of food for anyone in the After—a bowl of fruit cocktail, pancakes, and a bit of fresh meat. Whoever these nomads are, they aren’t starving. Azar looks healthy enough—he’s tall, but he’s not as thickly built as Dakh, who seems to be nothing but muscles and bronze skin. I study the differences between them, noting how Azar has hidden his drakoni features. His eyes are drakoni gold, of course, but I never see a hint of black fleck through them. Whatever makes the other dragons mad, he’s got this under control. The horns that Dakh has at his brow are missing on Azar, though there’s a hint of scarring on his forehead hidden by faint tattoos. His thick, pale hair has been cropped short, and his “talons” have been cut into blunt, thick nails. If you ignored his coloring and his eyes, he might be human.

“You watch me closely,” he comments.

“Just noticing how you’re able to hide in plain sight.”

He grins. “I cannot fool you, can I?”

“I knew what you were the moment you introduced yourself.”

His eyes gleam, and the charming smile on his face seems a little more strained. “Go on. How did I give myself away?”

I’m silent as Emma returns with a second plate of food. She sets it in front of me without a word and then hustles away again, and then it’s just me and Azar once more. I reach for a fork.

Azar puts a hand over mine, stopping me. “How did I give myself away?” he repeats, each word enunciated slowly.

There’s no mistaking the menace in his tone, or the demand. I feel a skitter of fear. Dakh growls inside my head, and I know I have to remain calm. I lick my lips and slide my hand out from under his. “Your scent. You smell like a dragon.”

He relaxes, leaning back in his chair once more. “Is that all? Easily fixed.” He seems pleased once more and gestures at my plate. “Eat your food.”

My appetite has soured, but I’ve learned that you eat whatever is put before you. I pick up my fork and take a bite. I’m silent, waiting for Azar to lead into what he really wants from me. There’s a reason he has me here with him. He seems like the type that is quite proud of himself, and I hope that means he’s going to run his mouth a bit and tell me more about him and this situation. Knowledge is power, and if he’s going to pump me for information, I’m going to do the same to him.

“I’d prefer that the others don’t find out about my true nature,” Azar says casually as he bites into a grape. “They don’t know the truth of who I am and prefer to see me as a strange human instead of the enemy.”

I shrug. “There’s no incentive for me to tell anyone anything.”

“Precisely. And I would so hate for you to have an accident when I feel we can work together.”

And there’s a threat. Lovely. My skin prickles with alarm, but I force myself to remain calm, cutting my pancakes. “Work together?”

“Yes. It’s clear to me that you’re not like the others. You’re clever. You’d be surprised at how rare such a thing is in this human world.”

I ignore the vague insult and decide to spin things on him. “You’re not like the others, either.”

He’s intrigued, I can tell. He pauses in his picking at the fruit and gazes at me. “Do go on.”

“You speak really good English, for one. And you’re not crazy. As far as I can tell, you don’t have a mate to anchor your thoughts, so clearly whatever it is in this world that makes the others insane doesn’t affect you. I’m rather curious as to how that’s possible.” I decide to lay it all out on the table so he can see how much I do know. “My dragon won’t speak aloud, and he hasn’t shown the slightest inclination to learn my language. He’s also not interested in blending in, but you seem to have that under control. It’s just interesting to me how very different you are.”

“Why wouldn’t we be different?” The arrogance practically oozes from his thoughts.

“You’re drakoni, too, aren’t you?”

Azar’s lip curls slightly. “Not like your mate.”

That makes me pause. “There’s more than one type of drakoni?”

“And are there not many kinds of humans?”

“Actually, no, I thought there was only one kind.”

“You have humans who wear uniforms in your little fort, do you not? There are leaders, and then there are followers. There are fighters, and there are the ones who stay at home and rear the young.”

Ah. So he means class instead of race. Are you following any of this, Dakh? Does it sound familiar to you?

I…I do not know. Dakh’s mind feels distant, as if he’s turning inward on himself. It does not sound wrong, but I am looking for memories of it and I find nothing but ravens.

It’s okay, babe. He could be lying.

I do not think he is.

“You seek to see if I am telling the truth? Does your dragon remember, then?” Azar’s gaze is laser-focused on me.

For a moment, I think he’s snooping in our thoughts. But I’ve probably just paused for a long, quiet moment and he figured it out. “He doesn’t remember,” I tell him, figuring that’s safe enough to offer. Which is another thing, but I don’t want to change subjects. “So you’re not like the other drakoni because…why? Because you’re not a fighter?”

“I am not,” he agrees, inclining his head. “The drakoni that you know of serve my kind. We took them out of the deserts where they huddled in their mud huts and squabbled like children and brought them up to serve us. They are our warriors, our defenders, our troops.” His smile grows broader, even more smug. “No, I am not like them at all.”

Deserts, Dakh says thoughtfully. I remember this. We serve…his kind. Not willingly, but we serve.

What are his kind?

They inhabit a place called Salorian. It is like your Fort Dallas but much larger. And strange.

Interesting. I decide to try and toss this back at Azar. “So his kind are a desert people that you, what, enslaved?”

“They have a unique ability that is lost to my kind.” He takes a sip of water and picks at his pancakes, less interested in eating than he is in talking to me.

“Dragon form?”

He makes a pfft noise, as if I’ve insulted him. “I can change to battle form if I choose. I am not as skilled at it as they are, as I am not, ah…” He ponders, considering the right word. “Bred for it.”

“Ah.” Well this conversation just gets more and more distasteful.

“The drakoni are brought up to be warriors from the time they are born. They train for it and have rituals. They do not care how much blood they shed. And they breathe fire, unlike myself. It makes them far more effective when they berserk.”

So he can’t breathe fire. Good to know. Another word pricks my attention, though. “Berserk?”

“Yes. One of the reasons why they are so prized as fighters is their ability to easily slip to berserk. It is something they are taught at a young age. When they are challenged, they can berserk and lose themselves in a fight. I think it is why they are so crazed now, here in this world.” He gestures with one pale golden hand. “Something here triggers their ability to rage, and there’s not a good way to turn it off.”

He does not know of what he speaks. The rage is brought on by mating lust.

So he’s wrong? About everything?

Not…everything. The words he is saying sound familiar. My people are controlled by his—the Salorians. I am remembering more now. I do not like him. Or his people.

I understand. “So you use them because they berserk,” I say, focusing on Azar in front of me. “You can’t do it? Salorians can’t?”

His brows go up. “So you know what I am.”

“I know a little,” I tell him. “But my dragon doesn’t remember much.”

“Not a surprise. This place eats at their minds.” He sniffs and picks at one of his pancakes. “Perhaps if I switched to battle form, I would be as affected as the others are in this foul land. I will not risk it, though.”

“Is…is that why you know so much? Why you remember and the other dragons don’t? Why you’re sane?”

Azar nods slowly. He taps his brow. “When the Rift opened up and pulled us through, I was on the back of a drakoni warrior, leading my troops to protect our borders. My people—the Salorians,” he clarifies, giving me a pointed look. “Do not change to battle form. It is considered, how do you say in your language…ill bred.” He shrugs. “When we were pulled through, my mount lost control. He crashed to the ground, knocking me from his back, and left me stranded while he flailed about like a mad thing. I thought it was just him at first, but when I looked up, I saw others falling from the sky to this place, and none could respond to my orders. It was chaos.”

I listen without interruption. I want to hear more of this, to understand. Even Dakh is silent in my mind. I think he does, too.

“I was broken and abandoned when the disaster struck, and I went into hiding as my troops went mad, destroying everything in their path. No orders worked on them. Their minds were gone. As time passed, I realized that if I were to blend in with the humans here, I would need to learn their language. To look like them. I rid myself of my horns and my claws. I filed my teeth down to these ineffective squares. “He bares them at me in a half-snarl. “And I learned to mimic humans. It has served me well all this time, but I grow weary of these games, and this place.”

“Is that where I come in?” I cross my arms over my chest, ignoring the food in front of me. “What is it you want?”

“Your dragon, of course.” His smile is thin. “I thought that was obvious.”

“Uh huh.” I wait.

He just smiles enigmatically.

When he doesn’t go on, I start to get irritated. “You already have a dragon, buddy.”

Azar’s brows go up, and I have to admit, it feels good to take him down a peg. “Someone’s been spreading rumors it seems,” he murmurs. “I have a dragon, yes, but he suffers from the same madness as they all do, so he’s no good to me right now. Yours, however…” His eyes gleam, and he leans forward. “Yours is perfect.”

I resist the urge to shiver at the quiet menace in his gaze. “You can’t have mine.”

“I figured you were talking to him when he did not come charging in to rescue you, as I expected.” He shakes a finger at me, and his little smile returns. “That was when I knew, this one had potential. This one could hold back instead of going mad. This one could do the trick. And since I have his mate, I assume he’ll want to do as I say.”

I force myself to show no expression, no alarm. “What is it you want?”

“I want him to go through the Rift, of course. I want to see if it’s even possible.” He gives me a fake benevolent smile. “That’s all that I ask—that he fly to it and see if he can pass through.”

“You can turn into a dragon. You have a battle form. You do it.”

“And risk turning into a mad, frothing creature like the rest of them?” Azar chuckles. “I think not. It’s far too dangerous for me to contemplate. Until I know that it’s safe to switch forms, I am stuck as a ‘human.’” He says the word with obvious distaste and picks at his food once more. “That is why I am interested in your friend. He can fly up there and try to go through.”

“Is that safe?”

He shrugs. “All the more reason to have someone else test it other than me.”

If it were easy, would we not have already tried it? The Rift is very high up. I do not know if I can make it without injuring myself.

I don’t even want you to try, I send back to him quickly. Azar’s attitude is freaking me out. Easy to be casual when you’re not the one risking your neck.

I can attempt it, Dakh tells me.

And what if you go through and can’t come back? I panic at the thought. I don’t want you to leave me here alone. Just the thought terrifies me. You can’t leave me, Dakh. Not when we’ve just found each other. The thought of spending the rest of my life without him seems…unbearable.

“You are discussing it, I can tell,” Azar says smoothly. “What are your thoughts?”

“We’re going to decline,” I tell him. “There is zero incentive for my dragon to risk himself trying to fly back through.” I shake my head. “We don’t know that he’d be able to make it back.”

“Ah, but you are his mate. If there is a chance to come back, he would take it to be at your side.” He gives me another one of those strange smiles. “It is yet another reason that your dragon is far more optimal than my own. He has a reason to return.”

“No. Just no.”

He picks up a piece of pancake that he’s shredded with his fingers. “Perhaps I’m not expressing myself well. It is so difficult to do so with spoken words instead of thoughts.” His eyes narrow at me. “You can tell your dragon that if he does not fly to the Rift and report back, I am going to kill his mate. Horribly.”

I stare at him, shocked.

“I’m afraid I grow tired of playing nice.” His little smile is polite despite his awful words. “I know you think to outsmart me, my dear, so let me, as you humans say, put all the cards out on the table. I know you are holding your dragon back.”

I say nothing.

He arches an eyebrow at me. “Come, I know your little game. I know drakoni instinct. I know he should have charged in here, breathing fire, looking to rescue his sweet little mate from our clutches. And when that didn’t happen, I figured you were either stupid or bargaining with him. So I had my men free you. Give you information about this place, just in case you were too dull-witted to figure things out on your own. Still no dragon, which tells me that you think you can beat me at my own game.” The look he gives me is scornful. “I am Salorian. Why do you think your precious drakoni serve us? It is because we are far more intelligent than them. They cannot hope to beat us in games of wit or skill. They are our brute force. And humans are certainly no match for us.”

“Well, all of this really just makes me want to help you,” I tell him, glad my voice doesn’t wobble when I reply. I’m terrified, though. I don’t know what to think of this guy—he’s polite one moment and coolly cruel the next.

“I don’t care what you want. You are simply a tool. I want your dragon to come here and give himself over to me. If he wants you to live, he will do so before the sun rises tomorrow.” Azar points a finger at the tabletop. “If he does not, I will start by cutting your limbs off. First your hands. Then your feet. Then I will move up your arms, slicing my way as I go and cauterizing the wound each time so you do not bleed out. Then we’ll move on to your legs and keep cutting upward. It is a very long, very painful way to die, and he’s going to experience every moment of it with you. Do you understand me?”

Frightened, I nod. My body is cold with sweat.

“Good.” He sits back in his chair. “Eat your food. Supplies are harder to come by every year.” He grins at me, showing those oddly square teeth. “That’s a human saying I’ve picked up. Quite effective, don’t you think? I say that and they all think I’m one of them.” He chuckles. “It’s almost too easy.”

I just stare at him. Wordlessly, I pick up a pancake and take a bite out of it, chewing. My mind is racing. I don’t know what to do. I don’t know what to think.

We have to figure out a way out of this, Dakh.

There is a simple answer—I will come for you.

No! I won’t have you risk your life for mine! That’s craziness! I fight back a surge of exhaustion. I can’t let you.

All he wants is for me to fly to the Rift in exchange for your safety. I can do so.

And what if you’re fried the moment you get close? What if you can’t come back? What if he decides that he doesn’t want just that? What if he decides he wants you to be his pet murdering dragon? He’ll keep using me as leverage against you. There’s no winning this.

I won’t leave you, Sasha. The thought is unbearable. His mind is full of anguish and rage. Ravens flutter blackly in his thoughts, so loud I can hear them cawing.

We have to think of something. I continue shoving pancake in my face so I don’t have to talk to Azar, who’s watching me closely as I eat. We just need time. God, I’m so tired, but there’s no time for that. I have to focus. My thoughts feel strained with exhaustion.

I must be there before the sun rises. You heard him. I cannot risk you, my Sasha. You are my heart. You know this. I will connect my mind to his—

No! Babe, don’t. For me. Please. I don’t trust him not to have some crazy juju that will take you over. We’re going to figure a way out of this, I promise. Just give me a few hours to think of a plan. Maybe Emma will come back and we can work something out—

“My,” Azar drawls. “You certainly are thinking hard, my little Sasha.”

I hate this man. I hate everything that he is and everything that he stands for. “Not your little Sasha.”

“No? I suppose not. It’s clear you’re holding the reins when it comes to your dragon, though. Your silence tells me a lot, you know. It tells me that you’re frantically trying to think of a plan.” His brows go up, as if challenging me. “Am I wrong?”

I’m silent. I hate that he’s able to read me so easily. I tear off another piece of pancake and chew angrily.

“Given a full day, perhaps you would have time to form a good plan.” Azar relaxes in his seat and picks at another piece of fruit cocktail. “Which is why I’ve drugged your breakfast.”

I stop chewing immediately. “What?”

“You’re going to be falling asleep very soon, and I imagine you’ll sleep right on through until morning. This is so you can’t convince your poor, crazed drakoni that my plan is a bad one.” He gestures at the half-eaten pancake in my hands. “Might as well finish that, you know. The damage is already done.”

“You bastard.” I fling it down on the plate, mentally testing myself. I feel sluggish, but I thought that was because I hadn’t slept well.

“Remember.” Azar points his fork at me. “Your dragon has until morning or you die in pieces.”

Dakh’s growl of frustration in my head is overwhelming. I am coming for you.

No! Please don’t. He can’t kill me—he needs leverage.

He threatens your life. I will not sit and watch! You are my mate! Mine to protect! I can feel his rage. I feel his anger and frustration. I feel…

Sleepy.

No no no. Dakh, please. Love, do as I say. Stay away. We’ll think of something. Just don’t give yourself up. Don’t—

My thoughts grow fuzzy, and I weave in my chair.

“Mmm, that was faster than anticipated.” Azar leans back and studies me. “When your dragon gets here, I’ll tell him he made the right decision.”

I manage to shove my middle finger into the air before I slump over.

48

SASHA

Sasha…

Wake up Sasha…

Something cold splashes on my face. “Wake up, Sasha!”

I rouse with a sputtering gasp.

“Thank God,” Emma breathes, putting aside a bucket. “That’s the third dunking I’ve given you.”

Even now, my eyelids threaten to slide back shut again. “Drugged,” I manage thickly.

“I know. I found out afterwards.” She grabs me under one arm. “Come on. Sit upright. You need to walk this shit off.”

It feels like monumental effort to get to my feet. I stagger, leaning heavily on her. “Wh…what are you doing here?” Even my mouth feels tired.

“Brought you food. We have to break you out, though. Shit’s going down.”

Shit? I blink at her.

Sasha! Dakh’s voice feels very close, which is odd. My mate! You are awake!

Dakh! I’m so relieved to hear him, though I’m a little worried about how near his mental voice seems. I’m sort of awake, I reassure him. I glance around, trying to figure out my surroundings. I’m back in the hotel room, and the cardboard is hanging off the side of the window. It’s dark outside. Shit. How long have I been asleep?

A long, long time. I get an impression of smoke and ash, just as the sound of someone screaming touches my ears.

That wakes me up. “What’s going on?”

“Your dragon’s attacking.” Emma puts an arm around my waist. “Azar’s thugs are waiting for him to swing close enough so they can throw some fireproof nets over him and bind his wings, like they did with Zohr.”

“Zohr?” I rub my forehead, because I must be more out of it than I realized. “Who’s Zohr?”

“The other dragon.” She hauls me up against her side when my legs wobble. “You need to walk this off, girl, because we don’t have much time. Tell Dakh not to come closer or he plays right into Azar’s plan.”

Babe, why are you here? I send out, miserable at the thought. I told you to stay away.

Because I will not let them hurt you. The thoughts are dominant, strong. Proud. Brutal. You are mine, and I am taking you back. I do not care if he is Salorian. He has no control over me in this world, not if I do not tap my mind to his and give him control. I will take my mate back and we will get out of here. Show me which window you are at.

“He wants to come to the window,” I tell Emma. “Where are we at?”

“He can’t,” she emphasizes again. “Are you listening to me? They expect him to come for you. There are men waiting in the rooms above, below, and to the sides of this one with nets. If they get his wings, he’ll fall to the ground, and then Azar will have him. He needs to stay high in the air until we figure out how to get you out of here.”

Oh. Right. I communicate this all to Dakh, who isn’t thrilled with the idea. We can’t risk Emma, I tell him. Or you. We’ll find a different way.

Then I will keep attacking, he tells me. But the moment you are in danger…

I know, babe. I promise, I’ll be safe. I pat Emma’s shoulder. “I think I’m awake now. What’s the plan?”

She hands me a can of what looks like an old energy drink. I pop the top and gulp it down, grimacing at the awful taste. I don’t know if it’ll even work considering that it’s seven years expired, but I’ll give it a shot. “There are two guards outside this room. We need to create a diversion and then distract them and steal their weapons. Once we do, we can try to sneak out of the building. Then I want to go and save Zohr.”

The other dragon—she knows his name. “Are you and him…did you…”

“What? No!” She looks startled. “But it’s my fault he’s here, so I feel responsible.”

“We can’t save him,” I tell Emma with a shake of my head. “If we let him loose, he’s going to attack everyone and everything. Dragons are dangerous—”

“You think I don’t know that? My family died because of dragons! Well, except for my dipshit brother.” She puts a hand to her forehead and makes a sound of distress. “Okay. How do I save him? How do I make him not crazy?”

I stare at her. “Emma…there’s only one way to make a dragon un-crazy. You know how.”

Her face turns bright red. “You know what? Scratch that. We’ll figure something else out for Zohr. Right now we just need to get you out of here. One thing at a time.”

“Okay,” I breathe. “Tell me what to do.” In the distance, I can hear the dragons roaring, and I smell smoke and fire. Be safe, Dakh.

His thoughts are nothing but a jumble of flame and anger.

Emma paces, hugging her arms to her chest. She thinks for a moment and then races back to my side. “Here’s what we do. I’ll lie on the floor and pretend to be unconscious, and you can scream for the guards. When they come in and check on me, try to take the gun from at least one of them and we’ll wing it from there.”

“What if they both come in at the same time?”

She wrings her hands. “I don’t know! We’ll figure it out. Do you have a better idea?”

“I can barely think straight,” I tell her. I’m still groggy from the drugs.

“I wish we could flip it and have you on the floor, but they won’t care if you’re still unconscious.” She twists her hands again and then gives her body a nervous shake. “Let’s just do something before we second-guess ourselves into being found out. Hurry. They still think I’m checking in on you.” She moves to the floor and lies face down, then gives me a thumbs up.

“Okay,” I whisper. I can do this. I can do this. Call the guards in. Steal a weapon. Figure shit out from there. No problem. I head to the door and pause.

“Hurry,” Emma whispers. “We can’t let Dakh land or he’s screwed.”

God. She’s right. I can’t keep wasting time. I suspect that Dakh’s sanity hangs by a thread, and the longer I stall, the more I risk his life. I send a surge of affection to him. I love you, I tell him. Just in case this all goes south.

My fire, he replies, sending back his own fierce surge of love.

All right. No more fucking around. I glance over at Emma one more time and then give a little scream. I bang on the door. “Help!”

I can hear the guards moving on the other side. “What do you want?” one calls through the door.

Uh, this isn’t working like I planned. “The girl that came to bring me food…she’s dead!”

“Dead?” Emma whispers. “The fuck?”

“I don’t know,” I hiss back. “Shut up!”

“Dead?” The guard calls through the door.

“Yeah,” I call nervously. “She handed me my food and then just fell over. I think she OD’d on something.” Actually, that sounds pretty good to me. Lots of people OD on cheap-ass drugs as an escape from fort life.

“Goddamn it,” I hear a guard mutter, and then the sound of the lock in the door turning.

This is it. I hover, worried, as the door swings open. I take a step back as a short, stocky man covered in tattoos pushes his way inside. He’s got an assault rifle in his hands and gives me a dirty look as he steps past me to stand near Emma, who’s doing a great job looking dead. She’s facedown on the floor, and I can’t even see her breathing.

A second later, the second guard starts to come in through the door, and I panic. If both of them come inside, we’re screwed. I don’t know what to do. As I see the gun barrel of the second guard move through the doorway and his hands on it, I take a risk.

I fling my weight against the door, slamming it shut.

The guard bellows in pain, and I can hear the crunch of bones as his hand gets caught in the doorjamb. The gun clatters to the floor, and I snatch it up, scrambling back a few feet.

The other guard whips around, gun in hand, and we have a standoff. I’m pointing my gun at him, and he’s pointing his gun at me. My eyes are wide and I’m full of panic, but I can do this. They need me alive. “Drop your weapon,” I tell him, my voice trembling.

“Fuck that,” he tells me, incredulous. “You drop your weapon!”

“Umm, no.” I keep my hands on it, and my finger itches near the trigger. “I’ll shoot you if I have to. Azar’s not going to care if you’re alive, but he’s sure going to be pissed if you kill me, because that tanks his plans.”

He continues to stare at me, but he’s not moving. I can see hesitation on his face.

At his side, Emma gets to her feet and puts her hands in the air. When I give her a confused look, she winks at me. “Please don’t shoot,” she begs, sounding pathetic. She turns to the guard. “She made me work with her! She said she was going to have her dragon eat me if I didn’t do what she said.”

Need some fire and scary dragon action right about now, babe, I call out.

The building shakes with a blood-curdling roar, and fire crackles along the windows. Oh, wow, he’s really close. Time to use that. “I’m going to have him kill all of you if you don’t listen up,” I say firmly. “Drop. Your. Weapon.” I point my gun at the man in the hall, who’s cradling his busted wrist, and gesture. “You. Join them.”

He moves over to the others.

The guard with the gun hesitates and then lowers the muzzle.

“You,” I say to Emma. “Bring that to me.”

She grabs it out of the guard’s hands and moves to my side, handing it over.

“Both of you, into the bathroom,” I say, nodding at the small room off to the side. “Go.” I glance over at Emma. “You’re going to be my hostage.”

“Please don’t take me,” she begs, sounding tearful enough that I almost second-guess myself.

“Go lock them in,” I command her. Heck, I sound pretty boss even to my own ears.

She jumps to do my bidding and locks the two men into the bathroom, securing the door behind her. The moment she turns around, she gives me a silent thumbs up, mouthing “Yessss!” She races to my side, and I hand her the second gun, and then we head out of the room. Emma pauses to lock the hotel room door, latching it on this side. “That should slow them down for a few. That was awesome, Sasha. Good job!”

“Let’s not celebrate yet,” I tell her warily. “How do we get to the roof?”

“This way,” she tells me, pointing down the hall.

We race to the stairwell, and outside it sounds like chaos. I can hear the crackle of flame, can hear the sound of guns firing and things crashing to the ground. Dakh roars over and over again, and I can hear another roar in the distance.

“Hurry,” Emma pants as we race up two flights of stairs, and then I pause, breathing heavy. I’m still dragging from the stuff they gave me to knock me out, and hauling up the stairs feels like trying to run through water. But I nod at her and plod forward. I’m close to Dakh. Close to my love.

I am waiting for you, he tells me. His thoughts are triumphant, a mixture of rage and anger and joy. Come to me!

On my way, I tell him, clinging to the railing as I try to make my legs move faster. Don’t leave me!

Never. Never never. I will burn this world to the ground before I would let you go.

Is it weird that such a violent statement makes me want to weep with joy? Because it does. I can’t wait to see him and then this awful nightmare will be over. I drag myself up another few steps, panting.

You are close, he soothes me. You can do this. I wait for you.

“Here! We’re at the top!” Emma cries as she heads up the next landing. “Come on!”

Finally. I’ve never missed elevators so much. I use every last bit of my strength and push forward while she waves me on.

When I make it to the landing next to her, she grabs the door handle. It clicks. “Oh no,” she breathes, and then jerks on the handle again. “It’s fucking locked! They locked it! No!” She bangs on the door, frustrated. “We’re so close!”

Bullshit it’s locked. I’m not about to let a door stop me from getting to my dragon. “Step back,” I tell her, lifting my gun.

“No, Sasha, don’t! It’ll ricochet—”

“You got a better idea?” I ask her.

Her eyes widen, and she stares at me, then races down a few steps. “I’m taking cover!”

“You do that.” I wait for her to get a safe distance away, then close my eyes and pray I don’t make a huge mistake. I open them again, find the trigger, and let loose.

It’s like the bullets leap from the gun. It fires off several rounds before I even realize it, and they slam into the metal, gouging holes where the door handle used to be. I drop the gun and then grab the door handle, pulling on it. Something snaps, and then it creaks open.

Wind rushes inside, along with cool night air.

We’ve made it to the roof. “Come on,” I call to Emma.

“Coming,” she yells back, and joins me at my side a moment later. She grabs my hand, and we race out onto the roof together.

49

SASHA

I  gaze out at the night. Flames seem to be dancing everywhere, the skies lit up as the buildings nearby burn. Somewhere in the distance, a gun fires with a rat-tat-tat-tat, but it sounds distant. There’s no sign of Azar or his people. Either they’re still waiting for their trap or they’re retreating. I hope it’s the latter.

I come, my dragon tells me, and I tilt my head back, gazing up.

A moment later, the wind whips my hair about my face as enormous wings beat heavily, and Dakh lands on the roof beside me.

“Dakh!” I cry out, racing to his side. I put my hands on his muzzle and press my cheek to his snout. “Oh my God, I love you so much. You’re not hurt, are you, baby?”

No. Quickly, get on your saddle, he tells me. I want to get you out of here.

I look at his back, and sure enough, my saddle’s there. “How did you—”

“Boyd,” Emma calls out in a warning note. She freezes at my side, and her hands go in the air. “Don’t.”

I turn, and there’s a man on the roof. He’s young, with a baseball cap on his head and a scraggly beard. He’s come out behind me and Emma, and stands in the doorway of the stairwell, blocking any way back. He’s got a gun in his hands, and it’s trained not on me, not on Dakh…but on Emma.

“What the fuck are you doing, sis?” he yells out.

“Boyd, just put the gun down, okay?” she replies.

“You fucking humping on a dragon just like this slut?” He gestures at me with the gun, then trains it back on Emma.

Dakh growls. He threatens your friend. Shall I eat him?

I cling to Dakh’s nose. Don’t move. I don’t want him to shoot her. We need to wait until he’s distracted and steal his gun. I can’t let him hurt her. “Emma, come stand by me,” I tell her softly.

“No, Emma, don’t you fucking move,” Boyd calls out. “Or I’m going to fill your head full of holes.”

“Boyd, please,” Emma says desperately. “I’m your sister.”

“You’re a fucking traitor. I should have guessed.” He shakes his head. “Working against your own kind. My own sister. Who would have thought? It’s unreal. I’ll be doing the world a favor by shooting you.”

“Please don’t.” Emma doesn’t move.

Behind Boyd, a shadow rises. I stare in shock as another dragon glides through the sky, zooming in on the roof. A moment later, it swoops in, diving.

“Boyd!” Emma cries out, and then flings herself to the ground.

I turn and push against Dakh’s body, and his claws go around me protectively. I squeeze my eyes shut.

Snap. Crunch. There’s a wet sound and then the flap of draconic wings.

A moment later, there’s an exasperated feminine sigh. “Dammit, Kael, I am not kissing you if you’re gonna go around eating everyone. What the fuck, baby.”

That’s…Claudia.

I open my eyes in surprise. For some reason, I’d thought the dragon on the roof was the stranger Emma mentioned—Zohr—but in the darkness I can just barely make out a small female form seated between the dragon’s majestic shoulders. It’s Claudia. My friend. “Oh my God,” I whisper.

Dakh nuzzles my hair. I brought company. When I could not touch your mind because he made you sleep, I went to them. They wanted to help. I do not think this bad Salorian—this Azar—expected two dragons to show up. We have ruined all his plans. His thoughts are smug. Now climb on my back and let us get out of here.

Wait, I have to see to Emma.

I step away from my dragon and move to Emma’s side. Nearby, Kael lets out a burst of flame that might be the draconic equivalent of a belch. “Are you okay, Emma?” I crouch next to her, touching her shoulder.

“I’m okay,” she says in a dull voice.

“I’m so sorry about your brother—”

“Don’t be. He was an asshole.” She shakes her head and gets to her feet. “Boyd’s always been a shitty person. I guess I’m just shocked he would have shot me.” She rubs a hand across her forehead. “I should have expected it. And tell your friend thank you for saving our lives.” She looks over at Kael and Claudia.

“That’s what friends are for,” Claudia calls out.

I feel a surge of affection for my friend. Dakh, can you tell Kael to tell Claudia that I’m not mad at her anymore?

She knows, he assures me. There will be time to talk about it later. For now, we must get you and your friend out of here. Kael says Azar’s men are waiting and will be arriving with fire spitters soon.

“We need to get a move on, Emma,” I tell her quickly. “More guys are coming with guns. You can ride behind me, and—”

“I can’t go,” Emma says softly. “Not if Zohr’s stuck here.”

He is guarded heavily, Dakh tells me. We will risk much if we try to save him, and even so, he will attack us if we free him. His mind is nothing but chaos. I try to reach out to him and he does not understand. He is still lost.

“Dakh says our lives will be in danger if we try to free him,” I tell her. “He’ll attack me and Claudia, and the dragons don’t want to risk it.”

She nods, her eyes sad. “I know. But I can’t leave him knowing that it’s my fault he’s stuck here.”

“Emma…”

“I know. It’s okay. I want you to leave me behind.” Her smile is brave. “I just wanted to rescue you. And once Zohr is free, I’ll get away from these losers myself. Until then, I need to stay.” She gives me a quick hug and then turns her back to me and points at the back of her head. “I need you to knock me out. Give my hostage story some credibility.”

“Are you sure?” I hesitate. I don’t want to leave her here, not if it means her life is in danger.

“I’m sure.” She gestures at her head again. “Be quick.”

I grab a nearby rock the size of my fist. There’s a huge knot in my throat. “This feels wrong, Emma.”

She gives a little teary laugh and sniffs. “What about this world has been right since the Rift happened? I’ll be okay.”

Hurry, my mate, Dakh urges. I can hear humans coming with their fire spitters.

I give Emma another impulsive hug from behind. “You’re the best of friends,” I tell her quickly. “And if you need help, you tell me and I’ll come for you. I promise.”

“I know,” she says softly.

“I’m sorry in advance,” I tell her, and then slam the rock into the back of her head.

She goes down instantly, crumpling to the ground, and for a panicked moment, I worry I’ve hit her too hard.

She breathes, Dakh tells me. Quickly, now. Climb on my back.

I throw the stone down and race to my dragon’s side. Within moments, I’m yanking on straps and fastening Velcro. I have three straps left when Dakh’s muscles bunch underneath me. We are going, he tells me.

I’m not ready!

The fire spitters have arrived, he tells me, even as we launch into the air. Nearby, Kael lets out a thunderous roar and angles his body away, protecting Claudia as gunfire opens up. I cling to the handlebars and hunch low. Emma! Is she okay?

They will not harm her, he assures me. They shoot for you and for me. I should flame them all. His thoughts are filled with frustrated anger. But I will not fly close enough for them to get a chance to shoot you. We will go. Our revenge will come another day.

“All right,” I say softly, glancing down at the world below as we fly higher and higher into the air. It’s so dark that I can’t see Emma, and I hope desperately that she’s okay.

She made her choice, but it doesn’t mean I’m okay with it.

50

DAKH

T  here is no joy quite like the fierce pleasure of Sasha’s small weight on my back. She dozes in the saddle, slumped over the handlebars, and I hunch my shoulders higher protectively so she will not fall if her straps fail her.

Your mate is well? Kael asks. She suffered no injuries?

She is healthy. I thank you and your mate for your help.

I would have had to tie my mate down to prevent her from coming after yours once she heard she was taken. Kael’s thoughts are full of dark amusement and then grow sober. I do not like the thought of this…Azar. I remember Salorians, but only vaguely, and the memories I have are…not pleasant.

Neither are mine. But he cannot control us here. Do not touch your mind to his and you will remain free of him.

And if there are others?

Then we will deal with them. For now, I am going to focus on my mate and take her home.

Agreed. It is a problem for another day. He changes the angle of his wings in the sky, veering toward his nest. Do you wish to bring your mate to our nest for the evening? It is much closer.

I want her home and in our bed. She will want to visit your mate soon, I suspect, to talk.

I understand. Be well, my friend, and say if you need anything.

You have my thanks, Kael. It feels strange to have a friend again after so long. Before tonight, Kael and I had a wary sort of truce—awareness of each other, but our memories are clouded and it is hard to trust. After this battle, though, and his help in retrieving my mate? I would trust him with my life, and would gladly go to war at his side once more.

I wheel about in the sky, heading toward the store that is our home as my Sasha sleeps on. She is exhausted, her thoughts numb with sleep, but I can smell her and feel her, and it is enough for now. It calms the wildness that threatens to spill out of my thoughts once more. It pushes the ravens back and reminds me that I am drakoni. A warrior and a protector. I am not like the Salorians, who use and scheme. Like Kael, my memories of them are sharp with distaste as well. I want this Azar’s blood pouring down my throat, but I must choose my Sasha’s safety tonight.

She is the only thing that matters.

Eventually, our nest comes into sight, and I land as gently as possible. She rouses from her sleep, and with gentle coaxing and mental nudges, manages to unstrap herself and slide off my side. “I’m sorry,” she mumbles. “I think it’s all catching up with me.”

Rest, I tell her. I have you. I shift to my two-legged form and catch my mate before she falls over, kicking aside the saddle and its multitude of straps. I will retrieve it when she is safely tucked into her blankets.

I carry my Sasha through the store, my nostrils flaring with the stale scent of the intruders. The reminder makes my belly burn with anger once more. We need a new nest, I think. A better one. I have destroyed much of this one with my rampage in my urgency to find her. Shelves have been knocked down, carts are everywhere, and the doors are broken.

Not only that, but the strangers that stole her know this place. We cannot stay here.

Tonight, she will rest in her bed, and tomorrow we will pack up all the things she wants and search for a new home. One with high walls and no doors, one that no one can snatch my precious mate from.

But that is for tomorrow.

MY SASHA SLEEPS HEAVILY.

I do not. I only watch her, making sure that she is safe and protected. I have no need for sleep, not now. Not with my mind aflutter with thoughts. It seems that as a layer of madness peels away, things grow more and more complicated. My world was simple when there was nothing of the past and my only focus was feeding my mate.

But now there are Salorians here, in this strange land. I do not recall much of them, but just knowing they exist leaves a bad taste in my mouth. They are masters of trickery who can overwhelm a mind with a simple mental touch. I remember them as our overlords in the old land…and I remember hating it. I remember the oppression we lived under, the burning anger.

Perhaps we are more free in this terrible land than we were in our old home, with its beautiful red deserts and golden mountains.

Even so, if there is one Salorian here in the human world, there will be others. And if we do not want to fall under their rule again, we must work together—all drakoni with their minds intact—to ensure that we are safe.

Both our people and our human mates.

I hold my mate close and breathe in her scent. As I do, I notice it is…different. Subtle, but changed. It is warmer now, the spice of our mating fires deeper. I know what this means. She carries my young.

My heart surges with joy, and I clutch her tightly to me. My sweet fire. My Sasha.

“Mmm. You’re squeezing a little tight, babe.” She doesn’t open her eyes, just sighs and presses her nose against my chest. “You okay?”

I am just…thinking. I stroke her cheek. I will not tell her just yet, I think. She has had enough to stress over lately.

“Thinking about the baby?” she asks with a yawn.

I am surprised. How did you know?

“You were thinking a little hard about the change in my scent just now.” Her smile is wry. “Are you happy?”

I rub my thumb across her soft, soft skin. Beyond happy. The thought of your body full of my young fills me with joy. But you…

“I like the thought, too,” she says shyly. “I wasn’t sure at first, but I think I’d like to be a family.” Her smile is sweet.

I touch her stomach reverently. It will be a while yet.

“I’m in no rush. It gives us plenty of time to figure out where we’re going.”

I am surprised to hear her say such a thing. You wish to leave?

“Part of me wants to get as far away from everyone as possible. Just get on your back and keep going, as far as the ocean and never turn back.” She yawns. “Maybe we can find a private island away from everyone else.”

And what of your friends? Emma and Claudia and Amy? Will you abandon them?

“They can come visit our beach house. We can have a play date for our kids there.” She sighs and opens her eyes, gazing up at me. “I guess that’s a pipe dream, isn’t it?”

We can go to the ocean if you wish. I continue to stroke her soft cheek. We can raise our young by the ocean if you like. But it will not solve anything. No one is safe while there are Salorians in this world. I think…I think Kael and I should work together more. See what we can do to help our people. I cup the curve of her chin. And I think I should start by finding you a safer nest, one where others cannot wander in and steal you away from me.

“I actually don’t hate that idea.” Her hand slides down my side. “Someplace safe and quiet would be nice. Though I’d hate to leave all the stuff here behind.”

When I discovered you were stolen, my rampage was fierce. I might have destroyed a great deal of your store. I apologize, my mate.

She chuckles. “I don’t mind that. I’m just glad to be back.” She snuggles closer to me, pressing her cheek against my chest. “Thank you for coming for me.”

I will always come to save you. Always. You are mine and mine alone.

“I like being yours and yours alone,” Sasha says softly, and her hand slides down to my cock. “I love you.” Her mind flashes with dark images, and I catch a hint of the worry she’s felt over the last few days. “I didn’t know if I’d ever see you again…”

I do not like her sadness, nor the catch in her throat. Hush, I tell her. I would destroy much more than a band of nomads if it meant I would get you back to my side. I would tear down fort after fort. I would rend a hundred humans to pieces. Nothing matters but you.

“Such sweet talk,” she says, gripping my length and stroking me. “It’s enough to make a girl want her mate on top of her, deep inside her.”

I growl low in my throat, because her mind is filling with new images, images of the two of us mating, me pumping into her. You want to be claimed, my Sasha?

“Oh, I do.” Her voice is a breathless whisper. “I’ve missed you so much. I’m so sorry I sent you away. I didn’t realize how much I’d miss you until you were gone, and then my head was so, so silent. I hated it.”

I push up her skirts, seeking her heat underneath them. Her clothes smell of ash and strangers, the men who stole her. I grab a handful of the fabric and rip it off of her, tossing the remnants of her skirt aside. I want their stink off of you.

“I want that, too.”

Good. I continue to shred her clothes with my claws, careful not to mark her tender skin. I fling the shreds aside, and then my mate lies underneath me, soft and sweet and smelling of my fires. I slide my fingers over the folds of her cunt and find that she is wet for me, the perfume of her scent thick and heady.

“Dakh,” she breathes, wrapping her arms around my neck. “Take me.”

I claim her mouth in a searing kiss, stroking my tongue against hers, conquering her. She moans against me, hitching one leg around my hips and pressing her cunt up against my cock in a blatant request. She does not want to wait. My Sasha does not crave a slow seduction, not this time.

She wants her fierce mate.

I am never leaving your side again, I tell her as I push her thighs wider apart.

Never, she agrees.

Our minds will never be apart. When I go hunting, I will take you with me. Always together, never separated. I slick the head of my cock in her juices, dragging it up and down her folds.

Her little moan is so satisfying to hear. Always together, she agrees. I don’t want to leave your side ever again.

I push into her, enjoying her gasp when I seat my length into her warmth. She is tight, her walls gripping my cock like a slick fist. I lean in and take her mouth again, my hand cupping one rounded breast. You belong to me in all ways, my Sasha.

“All…ways,” she breathes. “Oh God, Dakh. You feel so good.” Her nails dig into my shoulders, and she closes her eyes, pleasure evident on her face. “I love you so much.”

I love you, I tell her, though drakoni do not use such words like humans do. We show it in our actions or express it in our thoughts. And as I claim my mate, I send her an endless chain of these thoughts, letting her know all the ways I love, appreciate, and adore her.

She is mine, forever. It does not matter where I am, as long as I am with her and she is with me. We can find an island by the beach or we can find a nest next to Claudia and Kael.

What matters is that my Sasha is with me, always.

Always, she sends back, her thoughts as full of love as my own.

EPILOGUE

EMMA

“Hold still,” a gruff voice tells me. “Yer squirming.”

“Sorry,” I say meekly, and cringe when Old Jerry pushes the needle through my scalp again. Glad I can’t see what he’s doing. I force myself to sit still in the chair. “Fucking hurts, that’s all.”

“Next time, don’t get taken hostage,” Old Jerry tells me in a curt voice. He tugs on my head, and then I hear a snip. A moment later, a thick bandage is wrapped around my head. “There you go. Good as new.” He laughs at his own joke.

“Thanks, Jer.” I get to my feet, wincing. My head feels all tight from the stitches, and it throbs like the dickens. I guess I shouldn’t have told Sasha to hit me in the head quite so hard, but at least it’s believable. No one’s questioned my loyalty, especially not since I’ve spent the entire night weeping over my injuries…and my douchebag brother.

I hated Boyd, but Boyd was safety, in a sense. He was family. Now I’ve got no one. Nothing. Not even my friend Sasha.

I pull a couple of old granola bars out of my bag and offer them to Old Jerry as payment for the stitches. His weathered face lights up, and he beams at me, his smile full of gaps. Jerry’s the nicest one in this gang of nomads. He’s still a bloodthirsty killer, but sometimes there’s a hint of a fatherly attitude with him. He snatches up the bars and gestures at me. “You tear those open, you come see me again.”

“I will. For now, I guess I’d better get back to work, though.” I pat the bandages on my head and sling my pack over my shoulder, then head back out the door of the little building Jerry’s set up as his infirmary.

Outside, the nomad camp’s still in chaos. Buildings are smoking, others completely destroyed. There are dead people everywhere, and I estimate that Azar lost about half of his men in last night’s raid. That’s bad for me, because he’s going to be on a real rampage over the next while.

But I’m glad Sasha and Dakh got away safe and sound.

I won’t think about Boyd. I’ll just start crying again. I don’t even miss him. Not really. I think I’m just…sad for the past. He was my last connection to it.

Now I’m truly alone.

I can’t think about that, though. Instead, I study the smoking surroundings. The old hotel is mostly intact, but one side of the building is charred. A few other buildings are still on fire, and men rush around, trying to save what they can. Azar stands near them, looking like a displeased ghost. I shudder at the sight of him and slink away to the hotel entrance.

Last thing I want is Azar’s attention.

I push through the double doors of the hotel and instead of heading to the kitchens, I turn down a side hall, toward the area that was once an indoor pool. Sasha’s words of warning are ringing in my ears.

Emma, there’s only one way to make a dragon un-crazy. You know how.

Oh boy. I’m either the biggest idiot in the world or…well, no, just the biggest idiot. There’s no “or” out there. Of course I know how to make a dragon un-crazy. I’m not keen on the thought, but…

But I have to do what I feel is right, and none of this feels right.

I push my way into the indoor pool area. The windows are filthy but mostly intact, and the room is wide open and spacious. The pool itself is empty, like a giant concrete bathtub. In the center of the pool, chained to the bottom, is a man. He’s definitely not human, his eyes as black as night and his body covered in the same scaly pattern that Dakh has. His arms and legs are spread-eagled, held down by cuffs. He can barely move his body, and I know he has to be in agony. The bindings are designed so that he can’t change forms, of course. The moment he tries to change back, he’ll decapitate himself or shred his wings—or both. Azar’s taking no chances. The terrible-looking contraption around his head and neck looks excessively painful, and I don’t like to think about the spiky things pressing into his golden back.

One thing at a time.

Kurt’s guarding the dragon-man’s “prison.” I enter the pool room and gesture behind me. “Hey, Kurt. Azar needs more volunteers to put out a fire in one of the outbuildings. Told me to come in here and watch the dragon since I’m no good right now.” I gesture at my bandages and grimace. Guess this knock on the head is a great cover story.

Kurt scratches his fat belly and sniffs. “Fuck. Why do I gotta do all the manual labor?”

I manage a meek, “Sorry,” and take the gun he hands me. He cusses under his breath and storms out the door, jogging a little faster than I’ve ever seen his fat ass move. No one likes to keep Azar waiting.

I watch him until he’s gone and then shut the glass double doors to the pool area, locking them behind me. That done, I set down the gun, rip the bandage off my head, and fluff my hair as best I can around the painful wound. I don’t want to look like an invalid, which is kind of silly, I guess. I don’t think Zohr will care.

I grab the metal ladder that leads into the pool and climb down to the bottom. I’ve done this a few times before to feed the dragon-man, since he’s chained so firmly that he can’t do more than move an inch or two. My footsteps are loud on the cracked plaster, and he turns to gaze at me, eyes flicking black and then to gold as I approach.

“Em-mah,” he grits out.

“Hi, Zohr,” I say softly. “I’m going to help you. Just…trust me, okay?”

Emma, there’s only one way to make a dragon un-crazy. You know how.

And I begin to undress.

AUTHOR’S NOTE

Dear reader,

Thank you so much for sticking around for book two of Fireblood Dragons! I hope you enjoyed Sasha and Dakh’s story as much as Claudia and Kael’s. With each story, we’re going to spin outward on the world a little more and watch it unfold. I’m having a lot of fun revealing tidbits and exploring the ‘After’ and I hope you are, too.

As I wrote this, it became clear to me that Emma’s story would come before Amy’s. It’s not that Amy’s story is less important, it’s just that Emma pushed her way in and demanded screen time ahead of her. We’ll get back to Amy and she’ll get a book, I promise! In fact, she’s probably book four. Emma will be book three and it’ll be out later this summer.

I’m blown away by how much people enjoyed the first book in this series. I hope this one doesn’t disappoint, and if we continue as the first one did, there will be many more books in the series to come. These won’t come out as fast as the Ice Planet Barbarians, mostly because the books are a lot longer. This one’s almost twice as long as some of the IPB novels, for example! I want to be able to give a little bit of variety between the worlds, and I hope you’re enjoying the change of pace. I like being able to flip between series, because it helps keep my brain ‘fresh’. Anyone that writes prolifically will probably tell you that bouncing between projects keeps you from getting burned out. If you have to write sixteen sexy cowboys in a row, you’re going to get tired of sexy cowboys, no matter how much you love them! But writing a sexy billionaire in between sexy cowboys? It keeps the dream alive. ;)

I have had people ask me/tell me that they worry I write too fast and will burn out. Please don’t worry about me! I take days off just like everyone else, and when I’m not feeling it, I don’t write. I spend my time reading or playing video games, or cleaning house, just like any other person. My husband likes to joke that I don’t know how to take a break, because the moment I finish one book, I’m poking at another. It’s difficult to walk away from the writing when it’s both hobby, job, and passion. As for writing fast vs writing slow, you find your natural speed and go with it. Mine just happens to be faster than some. And I always wish I was faster than I am!

As far as what’s coming next…more books! This novel was a hefty chunk of story so I’m going to rest on Fireblood Dragons until Emma’s story. In the meantime, we’re going to have BEAUTY IN AUTUMN - my short, steamy novella that comes out this Friday (and might already be out by the time you get to this author’s note).

After that, we’re going back to Ice Planet Barbarians…minus the ice planet part! Chloe’s story is coming - she’s the girl that was captive at the same time as Kate and is mentioned briefly. The moment I started writing this book, Chloe’s story popped into my head and I knew I wanted to write it. So hers will be coming out in May and will be entitled PRISON PLANET BARBARIAN. Three guesses what it’s about. After that, we’ll go to Summer’s story and swing back around to Emma.

Until then, come say hello on Facebook. Love to hear from you guys! <3

Ruby

FIRE IN HIS BLOOD

BOOK 1 OF FIREBLOOD DRAGONS

Years ago, the skies ripped open and the world was destroyed in fire and ash. Dragons - once creatures of legend - are the enemy. Vicious and unpredictable, they rule the skies of the ruined cities, forcing humanity to huddle behind barricades for safety.

Claudia's a survivor. She scrapes by as best as she can in a hard, dangerous world. When she runs afoul of the law, she's left as bait in dragon territory. She only has one chance to survive - to somehow 'tame' a dragon and get it to obey her.

Except the dragon that finds her is as wild and brutal as any other...and he's not interested in obeying.

What he is interested in is a mate.

Click here to borrow or buy!

ICE PLANET BARBARIANS

Does a big brutal alpha male possessing his delicate human female make you as happy as it makes me? If you liked FIRE IN HIS KISS, I’d love for you to give it a try. As always, my books are free to read in KU!

BOOK 1 OF ICE PLANET BARBARIANS

YOU'D THINK BEING ABDUCTED BY ALIENS WOULD BE THE WORST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN TO ME. AND YOU'D BE WRONG. BECAUSE NOW, THE ALIENS ARE HAVING SHIP TROUBLE, AND THEY'VE LEFT THEIR CARGO OF HUMAN WOMEN - INCLUDING ME - ON AN ICE PLANET.

AND THE ONLY NATIVE INHABITANT I'VE MET? HE'S BIG, HORNED, BLUE, AND REALLY, REALLY HAS A THING FOR ME...

CLICK HERE TO BORROW OR BUY!

RUBY DIXON READING LIST

ICE PLANET BARBARIANS

Ice Planet Barbarians

Barbarian Alien

Barbarian Lover

Barbarian Mine

Ice Planet Holiday (novella)

Barbarian’s Prize

Barbarian’s Mate

Having the Barbarian’s Baby (short story)

Ice Ice Babies (short story)

Barbarian’s Touch

Calm(short story)

Barbarian’s Taming

Aftershocks (short story)

Barbarian’s Heart

Barbarian’s Hope

Barbarian’s Choice

Barbarian’s Redemption

Barbarian’s Lady

BEDLAM BUTCHERS

Bedlam Butchers, Volumes 1-3: Off Limits, Packing Double, Double Trouble

Bedlam Butchers, Volumes 4-6: Double Down, Double or Nothing, Slow Ride

Double Dare You

BEAR BITES

Shift Out of Luck

Get Your Shift Together

Shift Just Got Real

Does A Bear Shift in the Woods

SHIFT: Five Complete Novellas

WANT MORE?

For more information about upcoming books in the Ice Planet Barbarians, Bear Bites, or any other books by Ruby Dixon, like me on Facebook or subscribe to my new release newsletter.

Thanks for reading!

<3 Ruby

Table of Contents

Fire In His Kiss

Copyright

What Has Gone Before

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 34

Chapter 35

Chapter 36

Chapter 37

Chapter 38

Chapter 39

Chapter 40

Chapter 41

Chapter 42

Chapter 43

Chapter 44

Chapter 45

Chapter 46

Chapter 47

Chapter 48

Chapter 49

Chapter 50

Epilogue

Author’s Note

Fire In His Blood

Ice Planet Barbarians

Ruby Dixon Reading List

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