Cowboy Dragon (Dragon Isle Book 7)

by Sophie Stern

  That did it.

  She ripped the tarp off and glared at the giant man.

  “I’m not a doll!” She said.

  “Ah, so you can hear,” he said with a growl. “Mind telling me what the hell this is all about?” He waved to the little tarp and to her hiding spot in the boat. Her backpack was next to her. She was still sitting next to it. She should stand up to defend herself, to talk to him, but her leg was asleep from sitting for so long and she was worried she’d fall right into the water.

  Wouldn’t that be embarrassing?

  Holly frowned at the dragonman and tried to stay angry. It was hard when she was looking at a cowboy, though. From his worn boots to his faded jeans to the flannel shirt, she was smitten. Even his cowboy hat looked perfect on top of his head, and she wondered why she had to get the boat with the sexy dragon.

  Why did she have to get the boat with the hottie?

  Weren’t some dragons ugly or smelly?

  Why couldn’t she have gotten one of those?

  No. She had to get the boat with Mr. Fuck-Me-Harder.

  She had to get the boat with the badass.

  “I want to go to the island,” she said finally, but her voice didn’t seem to be working right. She was whispering and she was shaking. She was suddenly so nervous she felt like she might throw up. Her bravery was failing her, but failure wasn’t an option.

  She had to get to Dragon Isle. She had to talk to Emerson, to warn him, but she couldn’t get close to the clan leader unless they’d permit her to come onto the island. Dragon Isle was known for its secure location. They didn’t have guards on the beach, from what Holly had been able to tell, but they knew every boat that landed. They knew every person who left the Nellenston harbor. They had dragons who flew over the island and patrolled regularly.

  Word on the street was that they even had a dragon who could become invisible.

  Wouldn’t that be something?

  “And what business would a little human such as yourself have on Dragon Isle?” The man asked, and Holly’s mouth dropped open as she looked up at him. Did he just get bigger? Did he just grow in size? Or was she just feeling more afraid than she had been a few minutes ago?

  He was huge.

  His broad shoulders made him seem almost as wide as the boat. That wasn’t the case, of course, but he loomed over her and she felt even smaller than she usually did, and Holly was a small person.

  At barely 5’2,” she struggled to make herself heard in the world. She struggled to have her voice heard. She had to speak loud and stand up straight and be bitchy. That was how she made people pay attention to her. At work, she was a bit of a geek, but if she followed her personal rules about never letting anyone see her have a moment of weakness, she seemed to be okay.

  She seemed to be all right.

  She needed to pull herself together right now. She needed to convince this guy she was strong. She needed to convince him that she needed to go to Dragon Isle, which was true. She did need to go there.

  She didn’t have to tell him her reasons. That was definitely none of his business. She needed to talk to the clan leader. Emerson. That was the guy she needed to talk with. She needed to get to him and tell him what she knew before it was too late.

  That guy they had on patrol?

  He was no match for a set of rowdy fucking poachers with death on their minds. He was no match for people with weapons, with bad intentions, with no morals.

  He was no match.

  And Holly wanted to save the dragons.

  “Please,” she said, breaking her rule not to beg. “I need to get there right away. It’s important.” She took a deep breath. “It’s life-or-death.”

  The dragon stared at her for what felt like hours. He stared at her and she did her best to stare back, but it was hard. He was so big and she was so small. He seemed to look at her and just see right through her. How did he do that?

  For most of her life, she had felt tiny, but she hadn’t felt like people could see into her soul. Holly had worked hard to make herself seem bigger, stronger. She had worked hard to make sure that when people looked at her, they saw a badass. They didn’t see a scared little girl who didn’t belong with the big kids. They didn’t see someone who felt like she would never be strong enough to make it. They didn’t see a woman who had been bullied most of her childhood. They didn’t see the emotional scars those bullies had left behind.

  But now, standing before this big beast, she felt like she might break. He could see her: all of her. It frightened her. She had the feeling he could tell she was desperate. Hell, he could probably smell her desperation seeping out of her pores, but she needed him. He was her only shot at saving the dragons. She had to get to Emerson and tell him herself. She had to get to him before it was too late.

  She had thought about trying to convince Liam, about trying to tell him what she knew, but what if he didn’t believe her? This was too important to take any chances on. If Liam didn’t believe her, if he sent her away, she would be screwed.

  No, this man before her was her only shot. She had to get to the island.

  She had to save them.

  He stepped forward in the boat and looked down at her, then reached up and rubbed his chin, as if he was contemplating whether he should throw her overboard or eat her alive. For a second, Holly wondered what it would be like if she ate him alive, if she positively devoured his big dick. It was definitely big, she thought. Her eyes kept wandering to his crotch. She felt like such a weird pervert, but she couldn’t help herself.

  She was curious.

  She was desperate, and she was curious.

  She hadn’t been with a guy in a very long time and she’d certainly never been with anyone who was a shifter. She’d never been with anyone who was so much bigger than her. She was always so careful about that. She chose guys who were small, like her. She chose guys who couldn’t hurt her.

  She knew far too much about getting hurt, far more than a woman her age should know about, and Holly took steps to protect herself now. She couldn’t save herself when she was little, but she was grown. She could save herself now.

  Only, as she stared at the dragonman, she had the sinking feeling that she had already lost to him.

  Finally, he stopped rubbing his chiseled jaw and nodded curtly.

  “All right,” he said. “I’ll take you.” Her mouth dropped open and she started to thank him, but he held up his hand. “One condition, love.”

  “Anything,” she promised quickly.

  “You have to sit on my lap the entire way.”

  3

  What the hell was wrong with Colton?

  “You have to sit on my lap”?

  Who talked like that?

  Fuck, who thought like that?

  Here she was, this sweet, tiny, scared little human, and he was already thinking of ways to touch her. He was already coming up with ways to play with her, to keep her close to him. He was thinking of ways to get his hands on her because he wanted to. He wanted his hands all over her soft, creamy skin.

  He wanted his hands all over her entire body.

  The little human looked flustered when he told her the terms. One lap sit for a ride wasn’t such a big thing, was it? He tried to convince himself it wasn’t, but he knew he was asking a lot. They were strangers, the two of them. He didn’t even know her name, didn’t know anything about her except that she was gorgeous and sweet and she looked curious.

  Instead of looking scared when he asked her to sit on his lap like a dragonish Santa Clause, she looked surprised. She looked confused. She also looked like she just might say “yes.”

  Oh, he wanted her to say she would.

  He wanted her to climb up and straddle him and sit with him until they docked at Dragon Isle. He shouldn’t. This was a bad idea. She wanted to go to the island and she obviously didn’t want Liam to know about her plans. Why was that?

  Colton knew the dragons were selective about who was allowed on the is
land. Humans couldn’t just come over and roam free. It wasn’t a tourist destination, after all: it was a sanctuary. Most shifters had communities they lived in where they could be themselves. They had places they could live and enjoy the world and just be free. The dragons were no different.

  Dragon Isle was a place where the beasts of the air could find solace and quiet. They could find companionship and peace. They could find love and strength. Dragon Isle was a place where the dragons could live without worrying that people would think they were crazy or weird or dangerous.

  It was a place they could relax.

  Why did this little human want to get to the island so badly? Colton planned to find out, but first, he wanted to touch her.

  “What’ll it be?” He asked. He tried to keep his voice even. He didn’t want her to know how hopeful he suddenly was. He hadn’t felt this excited and intrigued by a woman in a long time. He hadn’t been this turned on in months, maybe even years.

  It had been a long while. Something stirred inside of him now. Something deep inside of him sparked to life and he wondered what she was going to do, what she was going to say.

  Did this tiny little pixie have the guts to climb on his lap and let him hold her?

  Did she have the courage?

  He couldn’t be sure, but he sure as hell hoped she was going to give him what he wanted. It was selfish, of course, but he had to try.

  She moved slowly, carefully. She was cautious: that much was obvious. Her jeans molded to her hips and thighs, and Colton fought back the vision of them kissing, fought back the fantasy of him peeling those jeans from her soft body.

  When she began to walk toward him, her hips swayed. Did she know how sultry she looked? Did she know how seductive she was? Her bright red hair was frizzy and wild. She had pulled it back in a ponytail, but bits of it had come loose while she was hiding. How long had she been squatting beneath that tarp? How long had she been hiding?

  She was determined; he’d give her that much. She was desperate or stupid and he wasn’t sure which. The woman moved closer to him. He could smell her curiosity, could scent her excitement and intrigue. He could tell she was nervous, but he wasn’t sure if it was about him or about her secret mission to the island.

  When she was finally right in front of him, he looked at her eyes. He was proud of himself because if it had been up to him, he would have looked at every inch of her body. He wanted to touch her hips. He wanted to run his hands over the soft curves of her breasts. He wanted to grab her ass and squeeze. He wanted to turn her on, arouse her.

  Could he do that?

  Would she be responsive to him?

  His breathing was heavy, but he noticed right away that hers was, too.

  “All right,” she said to him. “If it will get me to Dragon Isle, I will sit on your lap.”

  He was a little surprised, but tried not to show it. Actually, he was a lot surprised. The little minx had caught him off guard. He thought she would protest, that she would say something about propriety or dignity or appropriate behavior, but she didn’t.

  Instead, she stepped a little bit closer, placed her hands on his shoulders, and sat sideways on his lap. She snuggled up closer to him. It wasn’t straddling, but it would do. She smelled amazing and he tried not to sniff her hair. Still, the scent wafted up to his nostrils and he breathed deeply.

  “You’re full of surprises, little human,” he murmured.

  “I could say the same thing about you, dragon,” she retorted.

  “What kind of surprises do I have?” He asked.

  “Well, you didn’t throw me out of the boat, for one thing,” she said. “Or eat me.”

  “Do you want me to eat you?” He asked, lowering his voice.

  “What? No,” she said, but her voice was a whisper, and he could tell she was suddenly very aroused. Wasn’t that interesting? The little human had a sex drive and, apparently, she had a thirst for big, bad dragons.

  “You don’t think that would be delicious?” He asked. He wrapped his arms around her. He’d have to move his hands in a minute to get the boat moving, but for right now, he just wanted to hold her, wanted to touch her as much as he could while he was allowed to. He ran his hands through her hair and pulled it free from the ponytail holder. It bounced loose and wild, framing her face. He liked it.

  He liked her.

  Colton lived alone. He had a ranch, but he lived alone, and he spent way too much of his time prowling around mountain caves. He was ridiculous, he knew. He craved the touch of a woman, yet he himself was isolated from humans, from people who could offer him warmth and comfort.

  He was isolated from people who could offer him joy.

  And here was a little human, curled up against him, and she was bringing him more sweetness than he’d felt in a very, very long time.

  “I do,” she said. “I taste quite good.” She looked up at him, blinking those long eyelashes at Colton. “And I’m certain that if you tasted me, dragon, you wouldn’t ever be satisfied with anyone else.”

  His dick was hard instantly. He knew she could feel it pressing against her bottom, but instead of wiggling or feeling uncomfortable, she just laid her head back against his chest and snuggled up to him.

  Wasn’t that something?

  “I have no doubt that you’re correct,” he murmured. Maybe it was instinct or maybe he just didn’t want to deny himself anymore, but Colton reached for her hair once more and began to pet her softly. He didn’t continue their banter, didn’t say anything else because he heard a noise.

  Glancing over, he saw Liam heading toward him from the guard shack.

  “Everything all right?” Liam called out.

  “Just fine,” Colton said, starting the engine. “Ready to head out now.”

  “Good luck!” Liam said.

  “Thanks, brother,” Colton looked down at the woman in his arms. “I’m going to need it.”

  4

  The man smelled good.

  Not a man.

  Dragon.

  He was a dragon and she was on her way to save his kind. At least, that’s what Holly told herself. That was how she justified what she was doing. It was wrong, she thought. She shouldn’t feel so comfortable or so safe or so intimate. She shouldn’t feel so at ease with this stranger because that’s what he was: a stranger.

  He began driving the boat and soon they were on their way to the island she’d been seeking. It hadn’t been as easy to find Dragon Isle as she thought it should have been. It’s not like they had a website or anything. It was simply word-of-mouth and calling in favors with her shifter friends that had gotten her the information she needed.

  Now, she worried she would be too late.

  She couldn’t be.

  She just couldn’t.

  “Your heart is racing,” the man said. “You feeling nervous about something?”

  Everything.

  She was feeling nervous about everything. Her entire life was one big, horrible, terrible bundle of nerves and she wanted a break. She wanted a rest. She wanted a chance to relax, to not have to worry so much. She wanted someone to lean on.

  Then again, wasn’t that what everyone wanted? Didn’t everyone want that companionship? That comfort? Didn’t everyone want someone who made them feel like they weren’t so alone in the world?

  Didn’t everyone want someone who made them feel like they were flying?

  Instead of answering him, Holly ran her hands over the man’s chest. It was hard beneath his shirt. Maybe he worked out or maybe dragons were just hard. Were they hard like rocks, though, or were they hard like eggs? If she cracked him open, would he be gooey on the inside?

  “What’s your name?” She asked him. It didn’t really matter. She didn’t really need to know, but somehow, she desperately wanted to. She wanted to know his name so she would always remember the man who helped her get to Dragon Isle. She wanted to remember the man who helped her save the world, if she was actually able to save it.

&
nbsp; She wanted to remember the man who had helped her conquer her darkest fears and biggest dreams.

  She wanted to remember her first dragon.

  “Colton,” he said.

  “It suits you,” she whispered.

  “What should I call you, little lady?”

  “Holly.”

  “Beautiful.”

  “My name?”

  “You.”

  She blushed. He couldn’t see her in the dark, or maybe he could, but she blushed. It had been a long time since anyone called Holly beautiful. That wasn’t her.

  Nerdy. Geeky. Bookworm.

  Those were the things people called Holly. Beautiful wasn’t her. It never had been. Her hair was too frizzy and too red and too weird. Her eyes were too big and her head was too small and her body just didn’t have the curves it should.

  There was a lot wrong with Holly, but right now, she clung to the word “beautiful.” The way he whispered it to her made her almost believe it could be true. She almost believed he could really think that about her. She almost believed that she could be beautiful to this dragon, that she could be a darling to him.

  “What brings you to the island?” He asked, but she shook her head against his chest. She didn’t mind sitting with him this way. It was a little weird and a little unconventional, but it didn’t bother her. Maybe it should have. Maybe she should have been uncomfortable with the dragon. He loomed over her, after all. He was big and wide and thick. He was practically a giant, but he didn’t scare her.

  He should have, she thought.

  All of the men she’d been with before had been so small. They’d been tiny. They hadn’t been big enough to hurt her because Holly wouldn’t allow herself to be hurt again. Colton seemed different than the other men, somehow. Her brain was screaming at her to freak out, to be scared, to be afraid, but her heart wouldn’t let her.

  “It’s between me and the clan leader,” she told him. That was all she could say. That was all she would say. Even though something in her wanted to trust Colton, she couldn’t. She couldn’t allow herself to trust anyone because she didn’t know who was in on the scheme. She didn’t know who was bad and who was good and who she could count on.