Fated Mates: Paranormal Romance Series Starters Boxset

by Hariharan, Laxmi

  Aaron's head cracked against the floor, even as the pressure on his chest increased. Leaping back on his feet, pushing past the force holding him down, he managed to break free long enough to throw himself at the barrier, and again, trying to break through.

  Each time he hit the wall, it shuddered but didn't give way.

  Each time the telekinetic power of the barrier smashed into him, it broke a rib. Blood dribbled from his mouth. Still, he didn't stop.

  The third time he rammed into the barrier, it flung him off. Aaron's body arced through the air before hitting the hard ground with such force that white pain slashed through him. A groan tore out of him as he lay there.

  Above him, the skies were blue, the sunlight bleaching everything white…except for a speck in the sky which grew darker and bigger. It was heading for them.

  A harsh cry echoed around the space, and then a dragon's shadow swirled over him. A gust of wind lifted the hair on his head. The dragon tucked her wings back and flew straight at them.

  44

  Hope

  The unmistakable purple and gold of the dragon's feathers told Hope who it was. "Eve.”

  Her sister was here. Her alpha was strong enough to defeat the Elysian.

  Once more, Hope’s dragon tried to break free, to soar up and greet her alpha. But the Elysian's force was back, pushing her down, forcing her to double up in pain.

  Another screech from above. The dragon opened her mouth, and fire poured out.

  Tibor jerked, his attention fixed on the dragon.

  Hope sensed the Elysian raise his arm.

  The air around her grew thin as his telekinetic power gathered. He pulled it all in to bring it to focus and shoved the telekinetic power at the dragon.

  The dragon screamed in pain. Her body shook. She spiraled out of control. Plummeting toward the oil rig, she crashed into a raised tower at the far end.

  The force of the impact had the tower breaking off and tumbling toward the water.

  The dragon plowed onto the platform, her body coming to rest at the very edge.

  The entire rig vibrated, pieces of rubble breaking free and plunging into the sea below.

  No! Fear twisted Hope’s heart.

  Tibor shouldn't be able to take down a dragon in one stroke, not like that. Not unless his telekinetic powers were stronger than he'd been letting on. That, along with the fact that Tibor could penetrate dragon shields, made him very dangerous.

  She strained against the hold Tibor had on her, sweat running down her spine.

  Teeth gritted, Hope pushed through the grasp of his telekinetic force and broke free.

  Eve had distracted Tibor enough for her to move.

  Her lungs constricted making it difficult to breathe. Her stomach heaved. Hope's strength was ebbing. She couldn't take Tibor down on her own.

  There was only one way out.

  Closing her eyes, Hope reached for Aaron on the psychic plane.

  45

  Aaron

  Aaron recognized Eve from the colors of her scales and knew the alpha was going straight for the Elysian.

  When the dragon had screamed and spiraled toward the ground, fear shuddered down his spine.

  Not even Eve was strong enough to survive a crash from that height. While Eve was not his alpha, he had come to respect her leadership and knew she'd make for a valuable ally.

  If Eve herself was no match for the Elysian, then none of them stood a chance. But Aaron was not giving up.

  He was not letting them die at the hands of an Elysian.

  Anger thrummed through his blood, breath coming in short gasps. Aaron curled his fingers into fists. He had to help Hope.

  Gritting his teeth, he fought to get back to his feet. Pain racked his side. Darkness closed in on the edges of his consciousness, and yet he kept going.

  Reaching inside, into the psychic web he shared with the Ascendants, he drew on the energy pulsing there, letting it fill him and push away the pain, helping him focus. Riding the momentum, he smashed against the invisible barrier…and broke Tibor's hold.

  Eve had distracted the Elysian enough to weaken his hold, enough to give Aaron a small window in which to try to overpower Tibor. But he couldn't do it alone. Not even the combined strength of the Ascendants was enough to overcome this Elysian.

  The thought ran through his mind just as a feeling of overpowering want poured through the mating bond. He knew it was Hope. He could sense her. Not just her dragon, but he felt the woman—her essence. Her soul reached out to him.

  Something knotted inside him dissolved, and with it, the control he'd held over his psychic senses.

  Aaron opened his heart. Hope's dragon bled into him. The mating bond snapped into place, and the green and gold of her spirit poured into him.

  He was filled with such peace, a sense of such rightness. He felt invincible.

  Nothing could to take Hope away from him. Not when they were one. He'd just found her, and he wasn't going to lose her. No Elysian, however strong, was going to hurt her.

  That feeling evaporated into a churning rage.

  Adrenaline jumped through his system, propelling him to his feet. Reaching toward the bond, he let the power of Hope's dragon rip through him.

  The green-gold of his dragoness twined with the cobalt blue of his immortal spirit and gushed through his veins, pushing him to his feet.

  There was no more Aaron.

  No more Hope.

  There was just the two of them moving in sync.

  46

  Hope

  The cobalt blue of Aaron's spirit wrapped itself around the green-gold of her dragon fire on the psychic plane. It felt so right, like she'd been waiting for this her entire life.

  She wondered how she had ever doubted their union. She knew she would never be alone again.

  Her rational mind told her she shouldn't have been able to break the hold of the Elysian. But her heart knew she was stronger, more powerful. That the mating bond had already changed something in her. The adrenaline charged through her.

  Her eyes snapped open, and then she was moving toward her mate.

  Aaron met her halfway, his hand reaching for hers. Desire and want and the need to protect streaked through him and into her. And above all was the need to protect what was theirs.

  As one, they turned to Tibor.

  Hope's dragon surged out of her, but she didn't transform.

  Her energy flowed through the mating bond and into Aaron, sparking the connections that joined him to the other Ascendants.

  It was as if the psychic web the Ascendants shared had amplified their joint energy then thrown it back at them. It was a surge of such magnitude that it lifted Hope off her feet.

  She reached for Aaron, threading her fingers through his.

  Their joined fist lashed out at Tibor, connecting with his face.

  An echo of silence thumped through her ears.

  Tibor's body flew through the air. He hit the ground next to Freya and didn't move.

  The surge of power receded back through their joint fist, up her fingers, her arms, and straight into the psychic plane, until it swallowed itself up.

  Sweat ran down her neck between her breasts. A gust of wind rolled over her skin, flinging her hair over her cheek.

  The warmth from Aaron's fingers still flowed into her, tugging her attention to his fingers wrapped around hers. She turned to find his cobalt-blue eyes already on her face.

  As the rational thinking part of her mind kicked back into gear, terror poured through her. Her guts twisted with fear, with exhilaration.

  Her dragon had broken through her shield and into the mating bond she hadn't even known had formed between her and Aaron.

  Aaron was going to get hurt. He wouldn't be able to take the force of the mating bond.

  Yet it wasn't just the dragon who wanted this. She—Hope, the woman inside—wanted this bonding. Longing filled her, mixed with a piercing need.

  All of it flowed through
the bond, and she was helpless to stop it. Not when she felt like she was going to shatter into a million pieces with the agony of the feeling that filled her being.

  It was like when she transformed into a dragon, the fire sweeping through her blood, the heat pushing sweat through her pores, and below it all, a pleasure so intense it was like making love to herself…only this time he was there with her.

  "What have I done?" Her voice grated through a throat that felt like it was coated with sand.

  Aaron's hold tightened.

  His eyes sparked blue with gold flecks shimmering in them, gone so fast she wondered if she had been mistaken. The essence of her dragon was entwined with his. A shiver of pleasure, of fear, pulsed through her.

  "It's as it should be." His head moved closer, his breath fanning over her cheek.

  Just as his lips touched hers, her senses prickled.

  Tearing her lips from his, Hope turned.

  The air around Tibor's fallen body shifted.

  A woman in a jumpsuit appeared, dropping to her knees next to Tibor. The teleporter cradled his head in her arms. Then she looked up to train her blazing gray eyes on Aaron before sliding her gaze to Hope.

  Next to Hope, Aaron swore. "Telekinetic." He took a step toward the woman who'd just appeared.

  The air displaced again, and the next moment, both the woman and Tibor were gone.

  "Whoever she was, she cares for him," Hope mused.

  Aaron ran his fingers through his hair. "Neither she nor Tibor are going to stay down for long. They are going to come back for us," he said, voice grim. "The immediate danger is past."

  A groan had Hope swiveling toward the far corner of the terrace, where her sister's dragon had crashed onto the platform.

  "Eve." Hope ran toward the dragon shifter who had regained her human form.

  Dropping to her knees, Hope stifled a cry.

  Her sister's leg was bent at an awkward angle, and blood poured from a gash on her side.

  Eve's eyes fluttered open. "Hope, you are safe?"

  Tears slid down Hope’s cheek, but she did nothing to stop them. "You came at just the right time. How did you find us?"

  "I followed you. I wouldn't have sent you off without backup, would I? Not that you needed my help." Eve looked up at Aaron, who'd dropped down next to them. "You had an Ascendant watching out for you." She coughed, spitting out blood.

  "Don't talk, Eve. Save your energy." Hope blinked away the sweat that stung her eyes, gripping Eve's hand with hers.

  Eve's lips trembled. "Take care of her." Her gaze locked with Aaron.

  A look passed between them.

  Eve shut her eyes.

  Her skin was pale, she seemed so still, that terror crushed Hope's heart. "She can't die."

  Aaron's grip tightened, strong and steady on her shoulder. "We won't let her die."

  She hoped not.

  Aaron shrugged off his shirt and wrapped it around the unconscious Eve. Bending, Aaron lifted the fallen dragoness into his arms with such care that it brought tears to Hope's eyes.

  Her immortal would always be there to take care of her and her family.

  "Get Freya," he told Hope.

  Soldiers from the Council rushed onto the platform.

  47

  Aaron

  As the last rays of the sun turned the horizon crimson, Aaron carried Eve to the helicopter the soldiers had arrived in.

  Hope followed with Freya in her arms.

  It was dark when they landed in Bombay. Both Eve and Freya had been rushed to the infirmary.

  Vance had rushed Eve into the operating theatre, leaving his assistant, a junior doctor, to attend to Freya.

  Aaron knew their injuries were more serious, yet he couldn't stop himself from growling at one of the nurses to see to Hope.

  She didn't protest when they took her into an adjoining room.

  He'd never seen Hope so quiet, so docile. He wanted to ask her if she was okay after what had happened.

  On the psychic plane, her emerald-green essence was twined with his.

  There, at least, they were together.

  On the physical plane she didn't speak to him.

  She didn't even acknowledge his presence as he stood in the doorway, making sure she was being treated.

  The nurse finished bandaging the cuts on Hope's arms and beckoned him over once. "You need to take your mate home. Let her recover from the ordeal."

  Aaron nodded, not trusting himself to speak. The nurse was a wolf shifter who must have scented the connection between them. It would be useless to deny it.

  "Why don't you sit down so I can stitch your wounds?" She gestured to him to take a seat. "You may be immortal with the ability to heal fast, but you need to stop the bleeding." She pointed to his forehead.

  Aaron sank into the chair next to the examination table where Hope lay, eyes closed.

  When the nurse poured antiseptic on the wound, he huffed out a breath.

  Hope opened her eyes and, reaching over, slipped her hand into his. If she meant to distract him, she succeeded. His gaze flew to her face.

  She was pale, but her eyes were clear.

  He held her scrutiny. His gaze caressed her features. She made to pull her hand away, but he held on, curling his fingers around hers.

  Spots of red streaked her cheeks, but she didn't resist.

  He felt the pulse fluttering at her wrist.

  He leaned forward, only to jerk when a sliver of pain cut through his forehead.

  The nurse frowned, clucking her tongue. “Stay still so I don't scar your beautiful face further."

  Aaron winced as her needle rose and fell, threading the gaps of the cut closed.

  Yeah, he'd just been beaten up by a dangerous enemy, but the stitches hurt just as much. Perhaps he’d wanted to draw a reaction from the woman sitting silent, who held his heart in her hands.

  The nurse cut the thread to the stitches and stepped back to survey her handiwork. "There," she turned to Hope. "He's still as pretty as ever."

  Hope glanced at his face. "You're right. The scar will only add to his dashing good looks."

  "You think I'm dashing and good-looking?" A smile tugged at his lips.

  "Forget I said that." Tugging her hand out of his grasp, she got to her feet and made her way out of the room.

  She was hurting.

  His emotions twisted as he wondered what do next. He wanted to take care of her, if only she'd let him.

  "Go after her, Aaron." The nurse patted his arm. "She's far away from home and must be feeling lost, poor thing."

  He made to follow, when the nurse's voice stopped him.

  "The dragon shifter needs you. She's just too proud to let you know. She'll want you with her, especially when her sister is in a coma."

  Acknowledging her words, Aaron followed Hope into the waiting area outside the operating theatre where Vance was still with Eve.

  Hope sat in the chair, facing the operating room. The wind from the sea blew in, lifting her hair and flinging it over her shoulder, but she didn't seem to notice. Her fingers were clasped together in front of her, the tips of her knuckles white.

  When he walked up to her, Hope didn't look up, her gaze unwavering on the door as if she were willing it to open. Slipping into the seat next to her, he felt the tension coming off her in waves.

  Aaron knew all he had to do was reach out through the mating bond to comfort her, yet he hesitated.

  He could feel the mating bond throbbing through him. Could smell her scent of vanilla and spice that wrapped around his mind.

  There had been no indication from her, that she acknowledged the bond.

  Her dragon brushed up against his senses, trying to coax him into pouring his feelings toward her.

  Reaching out, he placed his hand on hers.

  Aaron couldn't trust himself to speak, couldn't have spoken the words if he wanted to. He let his emotions bleed through his fingers, trying to tell her how much he wanted to hold her
, that he was there for her.

  Hope's fingers gripped his. "I'm sorry." She swallowed. "I shouldn't have accepted the mating bond. But, right then, it was the most natural thing to reach out to you, to face the enemy together." She bit her lip. "My dragon just broke through my shield and completed the mating bond."

  "Liar."

  "What?" She turned to him, green eyes widening.

  "You heard me, baby. You are lying to yourself if you lay all the blame on your dragon."

  "What the—?" She tried to pull her hand out of his.

  He held tight. He wasn't going to let her go, not yet.

  It satisfied him to see color back in those cheeks, those eyes snapping with flecks of gold.

  He'd meant to distract her. He'd succeeded.

  He wasn't pretending his anger when he said, "Is it so difficult to tell me how you feel, when I can feel you in my heart, in my soul?" His heart hammered. "You are in me, Hope. Your dragon breathes fire in my blood."

  48

  Hope

  He was killing her with his words. That look in his eyes echoed everything she was feeling.

  He'd saved her life and helped her save her race.

  She could tell him what she felt for him. That much she could do.

  She swallowed, her stomach fluttering. "Since I saw you at Alex's bar, I knew it was you. My dragon accepted you at once…and I resisted it for so long." Her lips parted. "With Eve hurt and the Elysian overpowering both you and me, it was the most natural thing to accept the bond."

  She leaned forward, breath quickening.

  "I had to join with you to overcome the threat. I don't regret it, Aaron. But you must know, I never meant to hurt you. By accepting the bond with you, I put you in danger."

  Her fingers tingled where they touched his.

  And Aaron? Those beautiful cobalt-blue eyes of his darkened. He was looking at her as if she was the most precious thing in the world.

  The dragon inside her stretched in sensuous pleasure, bathing in the attention of her mate.