“Retching in the streets,” someone added behind Galen. The dragon-shifter stepped forward to make himself seen. “Whipped into a frenzy of dancing and screaming. And they laugh as they spill their pickled insides onto the streets.”
“We have faced that challenge and have proven ourselves,” Galen said, touching the man’s arm in a comforting gesture. He then turned back to Drake. “Help us to understand this world.”
“Drake?” Lori asked out loud. She couldn’t understand his native language. The dragon-shifters turned to face her in unison.
Drake let his body shift into human form. Using the Earth language, he said, “May I introduce to you my wife, Lori.”
“Wife,” the men repeated as if awed by the very word. They too shifted into their human forms as they eyed Lori intently.
“Then it is true. Earth has women for us.” Gerard pushed his way forward. He’d worked taking care of ceffyls in the royal stables and normally kept to himself. Since he’d worked in the palace, his English was much clearer. “Lady Lori, you will show us how to capture women and make them our mates? You will show us which villages to raid, so we do not get plague carriers?”
Lori opened her mouth and made a weak noise before saying, “Uh, well, I think you’re thinking of the medieval period, and I, uh, well—”
“I am an honorable man,” another dragon-shifter interrupted enthusiastically. His English was thickly accented, much like Drake imagined he’d sounded when he’d first arrived. “When the portal again opens, I am to meet my brothers. There are seven of us. I would like to find a woman who will give me many children. And my brothers will need wives as well. We will live together in the forest as we did on Qurilixen. You will find me a woman who is not like those in the giant board drawings?”
“Giant…?” Lori looked helplessly at Drake. The men edged closer to her.
“Models,” Drake supplied. “I believe he means billboards. He doesn’t want a…” Drake paused and drew his hands up and down in front of him in a straight line. “He wishes for a woman with…” Drake gestured as if to draw voluptuously curved hips in the air.
“Oh,” Lori said in surprise as she got his meaning.
“I am trained in combat. You can find me one to protect? I would bring a woman to my home and lock her there where she is safe,” Galen said. “The royals have said how fragile human women are. That is why they do not want us coming here to get them. But I promise I will not let her out of the home so she cannot be injured.”
“Oh, all right,” Lori said in an authoritative tone. She lifted her hands with a decisive air to stop them from talking. “First, welcome to Earth. I’m sorry you had to enter through the French Quarter—”
“City of plague,” Drake supplied.
“Which is not a city of plague,” Lori continued. “It is a place of celebration where college kids go to party and woman take off their shirts in exchange for, you know what, never mind. As far as you’re concerned, it’s a city of plague. Stay away from it. We’ll find you a nice church picnic or something to try first. In fact, you might want to stay out of most towns until you get a little more acclimated to the planet. Baby steps.”
“I would like babies,” the man with seven brothers inserted.
“As would I,” another added.
“And I,” said another.
“I would be happy just to have a woman,” Galan said. “And babies if she is not too delicate to be filled with the dragon seed.”
“Ok, ground rules time,” Lori said, touching her rounded stomach. “No one says the words dragon and seed together in a sentence.”
“As you wish, my lady,” Galen said. “So you will help us?”
Lori looked at Drake. He couldn’t help the happiness he felt when he looked at her. Telepathically, he said, “They have nowhere else to go, chere. Look at them.”
Slowly, Lori turned at the request to eye the tattered gathering of dragon-shifters before her. They had clearly been traveling for a long time and were tired. “You can stay here for now until we figure something out. We can’t have you running about the countryside like a swarm of bayou lizard men. The last thing we need is Janice at the Plantation Inn to get wind of your existence.”
“I will make this Janice a fine husband,” one of them said. “Janice is a woman?”
“First things first. Come inside. Eat. Sleep. And tomorrow we will discuss—”
“Plans for the village raid?” Galen inserted eagerly.
“Earth etiquette,” Lori corrected.
“And I will speak to Ursa about making you all Cajun,” Drake stated. “I hope she has enough moonshine to perform this many ceremonies.”
“Oh, I’m sure she’ll figure it out,” Lori said, chuckling. She waved the men into their home. “Find a place to rest. Try not to break anything.”
Drake met his wife on the porch and pulled her into his arms. “They heard tales of my coming through the portal and followed. I do not wish to turn them away. They didn’t even think to hide their dragons from you. I cannot let them roam around like that. And I cannot send them home after they defied royal orders not to come to Earth.”
Lori slid her hands up his chest to rest them on his shoulders. “Drake, I would never ask you to send your friends away. They need us. And Earth women clearly need us to protect them from some very well-meaning but terribly misguided Romeos.”
“They are dragons, not Romeos,” Drake said, confused.
“My mistake,” she answered, leaning up on her toes to offer her mouth for a kiss. It was an offer he gladly accepted.
“Lady Lori,” Galen called, “we found this box with women in it. You will take us to find them?”
“Box…?” Lori gasped. “My photos. They’re in my office. I had those proofs organized for the book, oh my God, stop!” She rushed into the house.
Drake smiled as he stood alone on the porch and listened to the chaos inside. This was how life was supposed to be—filled with love, purpose, and family.
The End
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About the Author
New York Times and USA Today Bestseller
Michelle M. Pillow, Author of All Things Romance™, is a multi-published, award winning author writing in many romance fiction genres including futuristic, paranormal, historical, contemporary, fantasy and dark paranormal. Ever since she can remember, Michelle has had a strange fascination with anything supernatural and sci-fi. After discovering historical romance novels, it was only natural that the supernatural and love/romance elements should someday meet in her wonderland of a brain. She’s glad they did for their children have been pouring onto the computer screen ever since.
Michelle loves to travel and try new things, whether it’s a paranormal investigation of an old *crane Vaudeville Theatre or climbing Mayan temples in Belize. She’s addicted to movies and used to drive her mother crazy while quoting random scenes with her brother. Though it has yet to happen, her dream is to be in a horror movie as 1. A zombie or 2. The expendable screaming chick who gets it in the beginning credits. But for the most part she can be found writing in her office with a cup of coffee in pajama pants.
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Determined Prince
Captured by a Dragon-Shifter
by Michelle M. Pillow
A Modern Day Dragon Lords Story
Dragon-shifter Prince Kyran has studied the Earth people and is ready to assimilate. Female shifters are all but going extinct on his planet of Qurilixen, and his people are desperate for mat
es—so much so they’re taking matters into their own hands. What better place to capture a woman than Earth? After all, dragon-shifters had come from there centuries ago. Surely a human female would be honored to be selected by one as fine and fierce as himself?
While on Earth, Kyran stumbles upon the most beautiful woman he’s ever imagined, singing something the natives call rock ’n’ roll. His blood simmers and he knows Eve is the one for him. But taming this feisty female is going to take much more than his training prepared him for.
To find out more about Michelle’s books visit www.MichellePillow.com
Rebellious Prince
Captured by a Dragon-Shifter
A Modern Day Dragon Lords World Story
Cat-shifter Prince Rafe knows that technically he’s supposed to be going to Earth to find a bride, but he doesn’t see the need to rush things. While his dragon-shifter neighbors appear all too eager to claim their mates and settle down, he’s all for putting that final moment off and enjoying his little trips through the portal. Yeah, yeah, eventually he’ll have to marry and set a good example for his people because on his planet females are rare and they need to have children and blah blah blah. But honestly, cat-shifters are known to embrace their feral side and it would take a very impressive female to tame his.
Then he sees Jenna Kearney and all bets are off.
To find out more about Michelle’s books visit www.MichellePillow.com
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Stranded with the Cajun (Captured by a Dragon-Shifter Book 3) Page 8