“I am one of these Dragon Souls like you? Part of my DNA developed from when the dragons seeded the planet with the souls of their ancestors?”
“That’s right. Cato did an analysis on you while you were still captive and determined you’re a Dragon Soul. Unfortunately, the vampires can also recognize Dragon Souls and prefer to feed on them. The guys are really protective of humanity, especially Dragon Souls. So, they went to rescue you.”
“How did you become Kian’s mate?”
“Oh, yes. Me and Kian,” she said with a wistful sigh. “Each dragon has a fated mate. It's the woman who is perfect for him in every way. And I am Kian's fated one. And he is mine. He knew it from the start, he’s told me. But they have to do this thing called a genetic match with their computer.”
“What about the vampires?”
“Oh yes, I forgot about them. Well, I guess the vampires were the dragon’s ancient enemy before they left their planet. When they woke up, they found that their old enemies were here. They did some computer analysis and figured out that without the dragons there to stop them, the vampires probably devoured every creature in their home quadrant.
“They would have had to find a new place to live. So maybe ten thousand years ago, the vampires ended up here. Nobody knows where the vampires were between when they devoured their quadrant and when they ended up on Earth. There's a few theories. Maybe that they were caught in a black hole or they were devouring some other planets. But Cato doesn't have any answers for that.”
“That's very interesting,” Aria mused, feeling more and more nervous with every word Everly spoke. “What about this whole mating thing?”
“I know Dax believes you are his.”
“Dax thinks I'm his mate?” Aria said, fear tingling down her spine. “Is he going to expect me to…mate with him?”
“I shouldn't have said anything about that,” Everly said, biting her lip.
“What will he do if I don’t want to mate with him?”
“I’ve heard it theorized that if they don't find a mate at some point, their inner dragon will cause them to go insane, if not die.”
“Dax is going to die unless I mate with him?”
“Well, probably not. I mean they don't know for sure. It’s just their theory.”
Aria sat down in the chair, taking in everything Everly had said.
“This is too much.”
“Just focus on taking care of yourself and making yourself comfortable. I know that's what the guys want. Nobody is going to force you to do anything. Dax can be a little uncivilized. And he’s been acting really aggressive since he first saw you. But nobody will take advantage of you. I promise. We're all going to be looking out for you.”
“I appreciate that,” Aria said, feeling a tight ball gather in her stomach.
This couldn't be happening. Everly seemed nice, but everything she’d said was really frightening. Aria felt a certain sort of attraction to Dax, but she’d just been kidnapped by vampires and then kidnapped again by dragons. The dragons were definitely nicer. But it seemed to her that she'd never be able to go back to her old life again. She missed the old folks in the nursing home and wanted to go back to helping them.
She didn't want to live a life trapped in a mansion. It was a really nice place and Everly did seem sweet. Ember was adorable. But none of these things had been her choice or her decision. As nice as everything was, she couldn't accept that these creatures were making all her decisions for her now.
Chapter 7
“She is mine,” Dax growled to Cato and Kian as they pulled him into the basement.
“You can't just have her,” Kian said. “We have to do the mating test first.”
“I don't want to wait,” Dax said. “I want to claim her now.”
“We made this decision when Kian found Everly. And it won't change for you. Plus, the girl doesn't even know you. You can't just go take her and make her yours. She's a human. She just learned dragons exist. Give her time,” Cato said.
“My inner dragon cannot be contained,” Dax said.
“We need a bit of her DNA to run the analysis,” Cato said.
“Here,” Dax said, pulling a strand of light brown hair off his shirt, stuck there from the flight. “This should be enough to run the analysis.”
“Now Dax, you need to control yourself. If you scare that girl and she runs off, we’ll have much bigger problems on our hands.”
“I'm not letting her get away,” Dax said.
“You may not have a choice, if you ruin things,” Kian said. “She is a human. And we can't hold her here against her will.”
“She is my mate,” Dax said. “Why would she want to leave?”
“Dax, you know nothing about human women. You have to woo her gently,” Kian said.
“I have no idea how to do that. I need to just go tell her that I need her. That she is mine. That she belongs to me.”
“I'm afraid that won't work. You need a subtler approach,” Kian said.
“Like what?”
“Spend time with her. Be kind to her. Be gentle with her,” Kian said.
“Gentle?” Dax said. “I'm a warrior of the First Order of the House of Flames. I have never been gentle in my life.”
“Now is the time to learn,” Cato said. “You’ve been extra aggressive lately. If you can't manage your mating impulse, then I suggest you don't go near her.”
“You both suck,” Dax said.
“Suck?” Cato asked, giving Kian a quizzical expression.
Kian shrugged.
Dax snarled and stormed up the stairs. He wanted to go to her room to tell her that his dragon demanded her body and soul. She belonged to him forever. She was his eternal mate. She would bear his young, for the glory of the House of Flames. They would live together in the passion of his dragon. But his commander told him not to. And so had Cato. The two of them together in agreement was too much for him to dismiss.
He needed to get out of the house. The scent of her body lingered on everything. He stormed past Aiden, who was strumming his acoustic guitar in the living room.
“What's up with you?” Aiden asked.
“None of your business,” Dax barked.
“Is this about the human?” Aiden called after him. “Aria?”
Dax turned on his heel and charged at Aiden. He grabbed his collar and snarled in his face. The smaller dragon put his palms in the air.
“Whoa,” Aiden said.
“Don't ever say her name again,” Dax said.
“Get off me, Dax,” Aiden said, shoving Dax away with his full force.
Dax went stumbling backwards and bared his sharp teeth at Aiden. Kian appeared in the doorway and barked at them both.
“Enough,” Kian barked.
“Dax, go outside and cool off. Aiden, stop antagonizing him.”
“I didn't do anything. He's lost his mind,” Aiden said.
“His mating impulse has taken over. He believes the girl is his mate,” Kian said.
Dax roared angrily at the mention of Aria, but instead of charging at his commander, he left the room and stormed out the back door into the yard.
They didn't understand the pain he was in. The deep need he felt. His dragon roared within, bashing back and forth inside his mind, clawing his eyes and blowing fire all around. His brain felt like a burning building, ash and smoke and burning embers falling to the ground. It was unbearable pain. The only thing that would quench the fire was claiming the girl.
Aria. A song.
She was so beautiful and delicate and kind. Her curves were magnificent, gorgeous, soft and supple. He needed her. More than he had ever needed anything. More than he needed air to breathe. Food to eat. His dragon wailed, and Dax clutched his temples with his hands.
He hurried to the basketball court and grabbed his ball off the rack. It was sprinkling rain from the low gray clouds, and he pulled off his shirt, throwing it on the ground. He dribbled the ball with such force, he feared the ball
might pop, but he was unable to control himself.
He sprinted back and forth across the court and threw the ball into the air. It fell through the basket with a swish and bounced back to him. He continued the routine over and over, but his energy did not abate. He needed something else, something more, and he knew what that something was.
Only her.
He felt the hairs on the back of his neck prick, and he glanced behind him up at the window of her room. She stood with her hand on the glass, the little bird on her shoulder.
He snarled, clenching his teeth. He couldn't tear his gaze away from her. Everything about her was lovely. Soft. So very soft. Saving her from the vampires was just the beginning. Now he had to save her from himself.
Kian had said he needed to be gentle, to woo her. But Dax had no idea how to do that. He had never been trained in the art of romance or seduction. He was a warrior. He was the one among them who took all the blows, while the other dragons peeled the enemies off one at a time. He could take on two dozen vampires at once without feeling a thing. The thick armor of his hide was that strong.
But when it came to Aria, he was lost. He knew nothing. All he knew was that he needed her. The growling inside his mind intensified and he finally ripped his gaze away from her form. Dribbling his ball, he continued to shoot, running back and forth across the court. Finally, the tingle of her gaze on his skin became too much. He slapped down the ball and shifted into dragon form. He had to get out of here.
If he couldn't have her, then he needed to run off this energy and calm down. There was only one option left to him. He burst into the sky. He beat his broad wings until he made it high into the air.
“Activate stealth mode,” he said.
“Where you going, Dax?” he heard Kian through the mental link.
“Away from here.”
“There are many resources available to you for learning how to woo a human female,” Cato said through the mental link.
Dax couldn't even respond. He just growled and continued flying.
“Uploading resources now. Maybe you can take a look once you cool down,” Cato said.
Dax didn't care about Cato's resources right now. All he cared about was getting away from the mansion. He had to get away from the scent of her skin and the innocent look in her eyes. He had to get away, so his dragon wouldn't try to force him to grab her and kiss her on her pretty heart-shaped mouth until she was breathless and moaning with need.
He had never been so at odds with himself in all his many long years. He flew on through the sky, headed west toward where they had risen from the deep ocean waters.
The day they had emerged and realized that Dragon Souls existed on this planet he had never imagined that the mating impulse would do this to him. He was not a leader like Kian or a genius like Cato. And he wasn't subtle and sneaky like Aiden.
He had never felt so much agitation and anger in his life. Dax was usually an easy-going dragon. Cooperative and ready to work as a team. But now he felt beside himself. He wasn't even quite sure who he was anymore.
His dragon raged as he flew through the sky. It drowned out his rational mind until it was a mere whisper. The dragon charged toward the ocean, rolling in the air, angry and breathing fire.
He didn't even care who saw him. He dove into the waves, wanting to cool his hot blood. Fire dragons couldn't breathe water, but they could swim. He dove deep, holding his breath in the dark, cool waters of the Pacific Ocean.
He glimpsed the massive bodies of whales drifting by in the deep. They were larger than him, but not nearly as strong and powerful. For a moment he considered charging at them, biting their necks, tearing them to shreds. The violence played out inside his mind. But the rational spark of the man inside him held him back. Cato had said these creatures were dying out in this world. He pulled himself back, twirling up out of the water as he ran out of breath.
He barreled up into the sky, spinning around as the water flew from his scales. He soared straight up, toward the sun, batting his wings harder and harder as the air became thin. The beast needed to wear itself out.
The part of him that was still rational was just along for the ride. Finally, as he was approaching the edge of the atmosphere, Dax managed to say deep inside the mind of the dragon, “Maybe we could watch some of that material Cato sent.”
The dragon roared, breathing fire. The flames blew out in front of him as he approached space. Finally, he leveled out. The tips of his wings heating at the upper edge of the atmosphere. He felt the pain of heat and began to swoop gently down toward the earth again.
“Maybe it would be a good idea to learn how to be romantic,” Dax said to himself. “How to take things slow. To get her to like me.”
The dragon shrieked, roaring loudly above the cloud line. But slowly he descended, and came into agreement with himself by the time he hit the ground.
“We'll learn all about romance and how to get a human woman to agree to mate,” Dax told his dragon as he shifted.
“When are you coming back?” Kian asked him.
“Shut off mental link,” Dax said.
He ran his fingers over his wrist and brought up a holographic screen.
“List wooing resources,” Dax said.
A folder full of romantic movies, articles, and books came up on the screen in front of him.
“Bethi, recommend the best resource for my current situation.”
“I recommend this movie for you, Dax,” Bethi said.
He sat on a log and watched the holographic screen as the movie began to play. It was a romantic comedy about a man and a woman who didn't know they were perfect for each other. Dax gritted his teeth.
Slowly but surely, he began to learn. He learned about flowers and chocolates and dates and taking his time. As he progressed through Bethi’s suggestions, he learned what women wanted in the bedroom. When the sun began to set out on the ocean, he felt more prepared to be the man that Aria needed him to be.
“Open mental link,” Dax said. “Kian, I'm coming home.”
Chapter 8
Aria watched out the window as Dax charged across the basketball court. He slammed the basketball so hard that she could hear it all the way on the second floor.
“He seems angry,” Aria said to Everly, who was playing with Ember on the floor.
“I don't think he's angry,” Everly said. “He's just frustrated.”
“Was Kian like that with you?”
“A little bit, but Kian is a different dragon. He has more self-control than Dax. Dax is the sweetest though. The mating impulse has really changed him.”
She didn't know how she was supposed to respond to a man becoming so aggressive over her. She gazed down at him, admiring his physique. He was very attractive. And the way he threw the basketball through the hoop impressed her. She had watched basketball with her father when he was still alive, every Sunday during the season. It reminded her of how much she loved him.
“I suppose I could give him a chance.”
“He might not even be your mate,” Everly said. “They need to do a mate test to confirm it.”
“Then why is he acting like that?” Aria asked.
“These guys have been through a lot. They’ve been sleeping for a million years. You’ve got to expect there's going to be some glitches.”
She watched Dax’s muscles as he charged back and forth across the court. Sweat dripped from his wavy blond hair. His green eyes gleamed. He was so freaking hot. That was no glitch.
Aria glanced back at Everly. She was glad that Everly was here. If she hadn't been, Aria would have been terrified. She wasn't sure what was more terrifying, being kidnapped by vampires or being re-kidnapped by dragons.
“Can I leave here if I want to?” she asked Everly as Dax shifted into a dragon and tore off into the sky.
“Of course you can,” Everly said in a shocked tone. “The guys aren’t going to keep you here against your will.”
“I just thought…”
“The dragons are not like the vampires. They're here to protect the human race. The vampires feed on humans and Dragons Souls like us. They would feed on the dragons if they could get ahold of them. But the dragons try to protect the innocent, those who are weaker than they are. They're trying to do the same for you. That's why they went to rescue you.”
“I thought they rescued me to be Dax’s mate.”
“Dax was very insistent that they get you, but that isn’t the reason. Dax needs to cool off. His mating impulse is making him crazy.”
“So, I can leave?” she asked.
“You want to go ask Kian if we can borrow the car and drive you home?”
“Sure,” Aria said.
Everly picked up the baby and they walked downstairs to find Aiden playing his acoustic guitar in the living room.
“Where's Kian?” Everly asked.
“He's in the basement with Cato.”
Everly ran her finger over a bracelet on her wrist and a hologram came up in front of her. This was all so strange. Aria was surprised she hadn’t fainted.
“Kian, can I speak with you upstairs?” Everly asked.
A moment later, Kian appeared in the doorway of the living room.
“Aria wants to go home,” Everly said to Kian.
“You want to leave?” he asked. “Is something wrong?”
“She's afraid she's being kept against her will,” Everly explained.
“We aren’t keeping you against your will. We’re trying to protect you from the vampires.”
“I understand that,” she said.
“Maybe we can go into the city and get some of her things. She might feel more comfortable that way.”
“Would you like that, Aria?” Kian asked.
“I don't know if I want to stay here.”
“Why don't we get some of your things, and you can stay here for a few days. I think Dax burned down the vampires’ mansion. Maybe they will finally realize that we won't allow them to feed off Dragon Souls and will leave you alone.”
“Okay then,” Aria agreed.
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