Heart of the Dragons: Bad Dragons 2 Page 3

  Oh my God, what is it with dragons and dropping people?

  I hang on tight to the basket, sure I’m about to die as wind rushes by me, whistling scarily. But then I land on something smooth and silky, covered in giant scales I can feel but not see.

  As we slowly rise, I can feel wings beat on either side of me.

  Rainier.

  I move forward, feeling for one of his spikes and trying not to fall off. When I miss a step and nearly tumble off, I feel his wing lift up to nudge me back to the center.

  I sit there deciding that if I can’t hold a spike, it’s best to just stay down and hope for the best.

  Then I hear a Rainier laugh, a low rumble that sounds like thunder. Could be thunder, given the dark, foreboding sky.

  “You won’t fall,” Rainier says. “I won’t let you.”

  And as I try to relax and hold on to his scales, I believe him. Above all, he’s competent. Whether he’s locking up other dragons or getting me to agree to play chess, he’s always in control.

  Sometimes that’s a nice feeling. Especially since everything has felt so out of control lately.

  Wait. No, he definitely kidnapped you, I remind myself silently. He is not your friend.

  But as we fly, soaring up through the gray clouds where the rain doesn’t hit us anymore, it’s hard to remember that.

  The wind kisses my face, and I breathe deeply, glad to be up in the sky. I extend my arms to feel the cool air, wanting the moment to never end.

  Being in this world has been stressful, but when I’m flying with one of the dragons, I feel totally free and more alive than I ever did in the other world.

  When Rainier dips into the clouds again, I let out a sigh of disappointment because I’m not ready to go back to the ground.

  “Wait ‘til you see where I’m taking you,” he says in that quiet rumble of his dragon’s voice.

  When we come out of the clouds, I gasp at the sight in front of me.

  We’re at the edge of the ocean, flying along a ridge of cliffs that overlook the turbulent gray sea. The ocean is filled with whitecaps, the waves frothy and violent as they crash against the beach below the cliffs.

  Rainier flies lower, lower, passing the cliffs and down toward the ocean. I’m wondering if he plans to drown us both when he suddenly turns in toward the cliff.

  I put up my hands and let out a scream as I wait for death, but then I hear him land, skidding across something rocky, and look up to see we’re in a cave.

  Well, not exactly a cave. A big sunken area in the cliffs that overhangs the ocean. It looks like someone took their hand and scooped out the side of the rock wall to make the perfect place to rest, sheltered from the storm, the water, the sky.

  I look over to see Rainier getting up in his human form, dusting off his hands.

  The cavern around me is dark like the cliffs, but light enters easily since the whole face is one big entrance. The floor is flat and scattered with little rocks and bits of dust.

  But there are a couple chairs and what looks like a sleeping mat.

  “What do you think?” Rainier asks, and his expression is almost shy as he looks around the cavern.

  I look up at the rock and then out at the ocean, marveling at the view I have here, all gray waves and wide horizon. And that odd sun gleaming behind gray clouds.

  “It’s utterly beautiful,” I say. “How did you find it?”

  He stands beside me, folding his powerful arms as he watches the surf. “I made it.”

  I turn to gape at him. “How?”

  He shrugs, but I can tell this place means a lot to him. “It just took time. And talons.”

  I look back at the ocean, and my thoughts are as turbulent as the sea. He made this, and I try to imagine it, him as a big silver dragon, throwing himself against the cliff over and over, trying to make a place to find peace.

  The image makes me realize that Rainier is just as lost as the rest of them, despite his nice house and his fancy language. Why would he work so hard for a place to escape everything if he was actually as fine as he pretended to be?

  “Oh, I’m not fine,” Rainier says quietly, leaning over and running a finger down my arm, until he hooks his pinky into mine, holding my hand in the smallest way possible.

  Standing here with him in a place that is clearly special, I don’t have the heart to reject him.

  Besides, a part of me doesn’t want to. The same part that hoped for Griffin to soften toward me, that believes in Seth, also doesn’t want to give up on Rainier.

  If it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t be here.

  “All I did was supply the portal,” Rainier says. “Now I’m wondering if I should have even done that.”

  “Why?” I ask, turning toward him, trying to ignore the warmth of his hand in mine. “Why would you do it if you were going to regret it?”

  “Because I want you more than I thought,” Rainier says quietly. “Because I thought it would be cold between us, like a business transaction. But then I started looking forward to seeing you again. After that kiss in the library, I couldn’t get you out of my thoughts. I’m not like that. I don’t feel things. People say I’m cold or fake, but really, I’m the one who doesn’t understand them.”

  I look up at him. “I find it hard to believe that.”

  He shrugs. “I understand what they want and how they act, but I never really understood feelings. How people could be so illogical. But then I saw you again, and everything went haywire.”

  “What do you mean haywire?” I ask, leading us back over to the chairs. I want to just sit and watch the waves and hear him talk.

  He pulls the chairs over to the edge of the cavern and helps me get situated. Then he sits, staring out at the waves.

  “I built this because I wanted to see you. The dragon in me wouldn’t let me rest until it was done.”

  “It’s beautiful,” I say honestly because it’s the kind of place in nature I truly love. Isolated, wild, rough.

  “When Lee wanted me to help him, at first I was detached. I thought I would repay a debt owed by helping you get here for whatever he wanted. But then he kissed you and it inflamed me, and I had to kiss you also. Still… I thought when I saw you again, I would be calmer.”

  I glance over at him. “But?”

  He rubs his hands together and then splays them on his legs as if he’s trying to keep them busy. “But then I saw you in the courtyard, being threatened. Griffin was fighting for you, but someone was touching you…” He trails off, staring at the sea with gaunt eyes. “I nearly lost it right then. I wanted to kill everyone and take you back with me, but I didn’t.”

  I swallow nervously. I had no idea Rainier hid such deep feelings behind his cool mask. “I’m glad you didn’t.”

  “I don’t want to hurt the other dragons,” Rainier says. “I was just going to give Seth serum and talk to them for a while, but then the only serum I had was a tranquilizer and it made me think…”

  “Why would it be a tranquilizer?” I ask curiously.

  Rainier’s eyes shutter for a moment. “Because sometimes Seth needs to be put down. Or he may need it in the future.” He rubs his hands on his jeans. “But that’s a talk for another day.”

  “So if you didn’t mean to, why did you end up kidnapping me and imprisoning them?”

  “I lost control of my dragon,” Rainier says. “When I went to kiss you and you thought of Griffin.” He sighs. “You have to understand I hate the red dragon. I always have. He is the opposite of everything I am. If you chose him, then I…” He faces me, and the silver rings around his irises match the silver lining of the sun behind the clouds in the sky. “Then you would never want me.”

  I wet my lower lip, which is dry from nervousness. “I don’t see what that has to do with imprisoning my friends.”

  He shrugs. “I was just angry. I’m angry about a lot of things. And when I get angry, I snap. So I locked them up and put you in that room with a cuff on, and then I went t
o my room and had a mental breakdown because what I had done was so wrong.”

  “I see.” I fold my hands in my lap. I’m still not sure what to say about all of this. “Why didn’t you free me, then?”

  “I did,” he said. “I came in the morning. I meant the tea and chess to be a way to talk to you. To be honest, I planned to read your mind, see if there was a better way to win you.”

  I look up at him, flushing slightly. “You won me with your kiss in the library.” My eyes drop to his lips, and I chide myself and divert my gaze. “Then you screwed everything up.”

  “I’m sorry for that.” He stares back at me for a moment, his eyes dipping to study my mouth, but then he turns back to the ocean. “Griffin is too angry for me to free him now, but I promise I will. And as for Seth… I would have given him serum even if you didn’t come.”

  “You shouldn’t keep tricking people,” I say quietly. “You don’t need to trick people to make them care.”

  He still screwed up, but everything he said made sense to me. And he’s trying to make it up to me now by coming clean.

  And the view in front of us helps with that.

  “How are you going to make up with Griffin?”

  “I don’t know if I will,” Rainier says. “I’ve never gotten along with anyone but Lee. So I do mean to release him, but if he wants to fight me for you, I will fight him.”

  I put both hands on my head in exasperation. “I don’t want you to fight each other. Why can’t you all just be friends?”

  Rainier looks off at the waves again, but this time, his expression is heavy. “We ruined that possibility years ago.”

  I glance at him nervously. “What do you mean?”

  His eyes meet mine, hold them. “Kiss me, and I’ll tell you.”

  I scoot my chair forward, desperate to hear the story of why these dragons fell apart. And in a way I’m still a bit ashamed of, I’m desperate to feel his lips on mine again.

  He leans in and, when our lips are a breath apart, flicks out his tongue to lick my lower lip.

  I gasp, and he closes the distance, kissing me gently while ocean waves crash all around. The cool breeze counters the warmth of his lips, his tongue, and for a second, it’s just heaven.

  And then I pull away. “So I’m free? You aren’t imprisoning me?”

  He shakes his head. “But I think you would be safest at my place.” He eyes my lips again, but I put up a hand.

  “You were going to tell me what happened to ruin your friendship.”

  He sits back, looking somewhat stiff. “Right. To be short about it, the six of us fought bitterly. One of us was badly hurt, and we were punished. We should have chosen each other and made pairs that day. Pairs that would have fought and chosen a mate together. But we didn’t. We fought, and we stupidly threw away everything. That’s the short version.”

  “And the long version?” I ask breathlessly as he leans in, placing his lips close to mine once again.

  “The long version is too long when I want so badly to kiss you again.”

  He reaches out with his strong arms, and I let him pull me into his lap, holding me close.

  I know it’s wrong. I know I should be worried about Seth or Griffin. But for once, I want to do things in this world in my way. And I want to be close to Rainier after all he has shared.

  I close the distance, putting my lips to his, enjoying his soft gasp of surprise and then the way he relaxes in pleasure.

  For once, this impossible dragon and I agree.

  Chapter 5

  Anna

  I let Rainier kiss me for several seconds, listening to the sea breeze and the rhythm of his breathing.

  It’s all so surreal.

  But then I think about Griffin. About how upset he was downstairs. About Seth needing serum.

  I pull back from Rainier nervously, still enjoying the warmth of his lap.

  “I feel bad doing this, knowing my friends are locked up.”

  He peers down at me quizzically. “They are fine. In fact, this is probably a much better place than Griffin has with his bears. And Seth is always ailing.”

  “Right, Seth is always ailing. Why can’t anyone do something about it?”

  Rainier looks out at the sea again, avoiding my gaze. Then he sighs and looks down at me. “That’s another very long story.”

  “We have all day.”

  He groans, depositing me back in my chair where I’m a little relieved to be, honestly. Being too close to him can be dangerous to my heart.

  “This wasn’t what I meant for you to earn Seth’s serum,” he says. “I wanted to relax.”

  “And kiss me?”

  He slants a look at me, silver eyes glinting. “I would hope you would do that without any exchange.”

  I nod. “You’re a good kisser. I’m just not sure you’re a good person.”

  “True,” he says. “I don’t really know either. I know I haven’t landed myself in trouble, unlike Griffin or the others who came here. I haven’t been banished.”

  “But?”

  He runs a hand through his hair, and the strands are so thick, silky and beautiful. A few of them lift in the wind. “But I might as well have been after everything happened.”

  I feel like I’m close now. To the history behind the dragons. To figuring out what went wrong.

  But Rainier hesitates. “If I say this… if we talk about it, it might change things.”

  “I know,” I say. “But I’m getting involved now. Don’t you think I should know?”

  Rainier sighs, tall figure straightening as he stands and begins to pace. “In your world, dragons like me work in pairs, in a group of six in many regions.”

  “Okay.” I’ve heard that much before at least.

  “Well, our group didn’t get along. As I said, we screwed it up.”

  “Who did?”

  He thinks for a minute. “All of us. You’ll have to forgive me, but this is something I often try to forget.”

  With his mind, I’m surprised he ever wants to forget anything.

  He looks at me. “When something ruins your life, you want to forget it.”

  “Ah, that makes sense.”

  His hands are behind his back as he paces at the entrance to the alcove. “Griffin lost his temper. So did Byron, as I recall.”

  “You can’t just remember?”

  “It all happened fast,” Rainier says. “Griffin was angry at Byron, and then Van got involved…” He lets out a grunt. “Anyway, we fought.”

  “Like how?”

  “Like full-on dragon fight.”

  “You too?” It’s hard to picture this aloof man losing it and fighting.

  There’s shame tinging the tops of his cheekbones pink as he nods at me. “I wanted to try and do it alone as well. I didn’t want to be partnered.”

  “Why do you have to be partnered?”

  “Seth is the perfect example,” Rainier says. “He needs the blue dragon for healing, and his poison can protect the partnership, as he’s the most powerful.”

  “Who would you have paired with?” I ask curiously.

  “Griffin,” he says. “At least according to the usual order.”

  “Why?”

  He shrugs. “Brains and brawn.” He taps his foot as he faces the horizon. “I suppose I didn’t want to pair with Griffin. I suppose none of us liked the idea of having to depend on one another.”

  “Or share a mate?” I ask, wondering if jealousy precipitated all of this.

  “No,” Rainier says quickly. “I don’t think that was the problem. We don’t love like you humans do. And as our whole life is spent in jeopardy, just having someone to come home to is everything. With other supernaturals trying to hunt us for our blood and others coming to steal our mates, it’s nice to have another dragon watching out for the one we love.”

  I nod because it’s foreign to what I’m used to, but it makes sense.

  He faces me, and the wind whips his magnificent hair b
ehind him. He looks like an old-fashioned warrior, though he’s still in jeans. “Do you love Seth and Griffin?”

  “I don’t know,” I say quickly. “I care about them, as friends.”

  “Have you… copulated with them?”

  My cheeks go flame red. “No.”

  His eyes narrow in on me. “But?”

  “But we’ve done other things… maybe.”

  He walks forward a step. “Like what?”

  There’s something in his gaze that makes me hotter. Something slightly predatory but safe at the same time.

  “Make out.”

  He walks all the way over to me and grabs me by the hands, pulling me up against him. Then one arm comes around my waist to hold me against him as the other cups my head to tilt my face up. He brushes my hair back with his thumb and then lowers his lips to mine.

  I’m unable to say no to him. I don’t want to. My body wants him. My heart… finds all of this confusing. How love works. How I can want multiple men. How I can begin to have feelings for all of them.

  “Mmm.” I moan against his mouth because right now, I feel so safe and supported that all I can think of is Rainier.

  “That’s right,” he says softly, moving his lips to my neck as his hand presses my face to his shoulder. “Think only of me.” His hand trails down my waist, making my hip tingle where his fingers are resting.

  Then he comes up to kiss me again, and his lips are everything as they part mine and his tongue dips in to caress me. I’m tentative at first, letting tension build in me as a delicious ache starts to form between my legs.

  Then I join him in the kiss because I haven’t promised anyone anything. I’ll bear the consequences later.

  He grabs me under the thighs and hefts me against him, wrapping my legs around his waist. Then he backs me up against the side of the alcove wall so we’re kissing on the edge of the ocean, but I’m fully supported and safe.

  As we break apart, I’m breathless as I stare at the ocean. So beautiful, so wild. So like this dragon in front of me.

  I love how my hips are against his taut abdomen, how I can feel his ridged abs against my clit, even through the jeans. After so much stress, I’m desperate for release, and as I grind against him, I let out a little mewl at just how good it feels.