Loved by a Dragon: A Paranormal Shifter Romance (Exiled Dragons Book 2)

by Stone, Sarah J.

  Loved by a Dragon

  (Exiled Dragons Book 2)

  SARAH J. STONE

  Copyright © 2017 by Sarah J. Stone.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded or distributed via the Internet or any other means, electronic or print, without the author’s permission.

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously, and are not to be constructed as real. Any resemblance to persons living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  Published in the United States of America

  Other Books in this Series

  Saved by a Dragon (Book 1)

  Want a free book? Sarah J. Stone is giving away a free copy of Exiled Dragons, the prequel to her Exiled Dragons Series (no strings attached). This book is exclusive to her newsletter subscribers.

  >>>Click Here<<<

  Table of Contents

  Loved by a Dragon

  Dragons of Umora (Bonus):

  1. Cole

  2. Alexander

  3. Peter

  Previews:

  Saved by a Dragon

  Saved by Alpha Bear

  About the Author

  CHAPTER 1

  Aaron looked around forlornly at the small group gathered in the chapel to say their final goodbyes to his father. His mother wept softly beside him, unable to look at the simple metal urn sitting on a pedestal at the center of the room ahead of them. It was hard to quell the anger that threatened to bubble over at any moment as he considered the long, hard road that had brought them to this point.

  As the family members began to file out of the church, Aaron handed his mother over to her sister to console and returned to the church. He stood, speaking softly to the metal cylinder that contained all that was left of his father, Liam Donnelly. His words were soft, but seething with the hatred he felt toward Aiden, the leader of their former dragon clan.

  “I am going to get our family home, Father. I know you brought us here because you thought it was best. You wanted to protect Mother and all of us, but I am not you. I can fight him. I can win back our place in our rightful land. We’re going home, Father. All of us, including you.”

  His words were cut off as they fell away into sobs, his grief pouring out of him in buckets. He had been strong for his mother, for his sisters and the others, but here, alone, he had become overcome with the emotions he had held back. His tears were filled with pain, but also fear and, mostly, anger.

  “Aaron?”

  He turned to see Kate standing behind him. She looked beautiful even in the simple black dress she was wearing. Kate knew his pain. Her own family had been driven out by Aiden several years before his. Their crime? Kate’s mother refused to be bedded by him after the recent passing of her husband. Rather than submit to his will, she had packed up herself and her daughter, fleeing to Kearney, a small village far enough away from their home in the Mournes to be free of him.

  “Kate, when is the last time you flew?” he asked her.

  “What? Flew? I haven’t flown in a while,” she replied.

  “How long?”

  “Five, six months.”

  “Why not?”

  “Too risky. Mum doesn’t want us to be seen.”

  “Same here. I’ve hardly flown for months. We couldn’t afford being seen by the locals, nor could we risk word getting back to Aiden about where we have gone. The only chance I’ve had to spread my wings is on those moonless nights when it was pitch black and some of us were able to take flight out over the water in the darkness. Aren’t you tired of lurking in the shadows like bats? Bats that can’t even take flight?”

  “Sure, Aaron, but this isn’t the place for such a discussion.”

  “It’s exactly the place, Kate. Look at what it’s done to my father, to my family.”

  “Your father was sick, Aaron. I know you feel hurt and angry, but there was nothing that could have been done for him.”

  “No, but he could have been at home. He could have been in our home. Don’t you remember it there, Kate? You and I used to play in the meadow behind our houses. We spent every day together until we were all driven out by Aiden. First, you and your Mum, and then my entire family. It is only luck that brought us back together.”

  “I know, Aaron, but there is nothing that will change what has happened. We have to move on, and to find a way to get on with our lives.”

  “There is no life for us here, Kate. We are dragon shifters, not humans. At home, we were free to be ourselves. No one blinked twice if they saw a dragon flying over the Mourne Mountains or out across the sea. Here, we are freaks – creatures to be feared and murdered by those that don’t understand us.”

  “Listen, Aaron. I know you’re upset. You have every right to be. Your family has been through so much hardship in these past few months, and you’re grieving your father. It’s understandable, but you can’t let it cloud your judgment. You can’t be ruled by your anger.”

  “Anger? Anger!? That’s putting it mildly, Kate. Aiden has taken everything from my family. I can’t even bury my father! Instead of being buried in the cemetery where every member of our family has been buried for centuries, I’ve had to have him cremated and sealed up in a metal jar until I can find a way to take him back where he belongs. My only option is to smuggle him in and spread his ashes across the land he loved so much.”

  “I know, Aaron, but what is done is done. You have to accept it and be strong for your family. You have to remember that, with your father gone, it’s even more important that you take care of them. They need you, and you need them.”

  “Kate, you’re my oldest friend, and I adore you, but I can’t just let bygones be bygones.”

  “Perhaps not, but today is not the day for this. Your mother is waiting for you outside. Take her home and help her get through this. Think about what all of this will mean for you if you can’t just let it go.”

  Aaron nodded solemnly. He knew that she was right. There was a time and a place for everything, and this was neither. Tears rolled down his face as his anger subsided and grief took over once again.

  “Come here,” Kate said quietly, pulling her close to him and holding him, letting him cry as she stroked his hair with her hand.

  They lingered there against one another until one of Aaron’s cousins came in and asked if he was ready to go. Pulling away from Kate, he looked at her bleary eyed and emotionally exhausted for a moment before turning to retrieve the urn that held his father’s ashes and walking quietly toward the door, his hand clutching Kate’s as if she were some sort of life line for him.

  CHAPTER 2

  Several days later, Aaron still found himself struggling to keep his emotions in check. His mother was devastated. Though she had known what was coming, having to face it here in this run-down cottage they had scarcely been able to afford with what money his father had managed to bring with them had taken an additional toll on her. It had been hard on all of them, but her more than all.

  His thoughts were disrupted by a knock at the door. Opening it, he found Kate standing outside with a basket of freshly baked bread. He smiled faintly and invited her in.

  “That looks delicious,�
� he said, reaching for one of the warm rolls she carried with her.

  “Mom has been anxious today. When she’s nervous, she bakes. You’ll find about three different kinds of loaf in here, plus those rolls.”

  “Why is she nervous?”

  “I don’t know. She just doesn’t always feel at ease. I can’t really get her to talk about it.”

  “I see,” he told her, before turning toward his mother in the next room. “Mom, Kate has brought us a basket of fresh bread. I’m going to sit it in the kitchen.”

  “Thanks, son,” she replied, barely looking toward them.

  “Kate, do you want to go for a walk?” he asked.

  “Sure, if you do,” she said, casting a worried glance toward his mother.

  “Mom, we’re going for a walk. I’ll be back in a while,” he called back as he nudged Kate toward the door.

  “Okay, son. Be careful,” his Mom replied as they stepped out the door.

  “Is she okay?” Kate asked after the door was closed behind them.

  “Not really. She just sits there, staring into space. She doesn’t know what to do without Dad. This isn’t her home. She’s just lost, Kate. I have to get her home.”

  “Aaron, I thought you were going to let it go,” Kate began.

  “No. I can’t let it go. I’m not going to let my mother die in some shitty little cabin in the middle of nowhere. Dad might have been okay with running, but I’m not. I’ve made up my mind.”

  “Made up your mind about what?”

  “I’m taking my mother home.”

  “Aaron, you can’t. Your family was exiled. They’ll put you all down in a dark hole if you return.”

  “No. We weren’t exiled. We never spoke to the Council. My father packed us up in the night and we ran away.”

  “What? I always thought you were sent away. Why would your father put you all into hiding like that?”

  “If you remember, my father was Aiden’s closest advisor. Even we don’t know a lot of things that he did while he was at work, but Aiden was constantly calling him to come in for this and that. It wasn’t until we were fleeing that he told us why.”

  “Why, then?”

  “He witnessed Aiden committing murder. Not only did he poison the dying former leader to hasten his demise, but he also poisoned and baited another shifter, the one in line to take over as leader. When the weakened shifter arrived to help him with his made-up emergency, he attacked him, finishing him off and leaving him to die on the beach below the cliffs at home.”

  “Oh, my God,” Kate replied, her eyes wide with fear now that she knew just what Aiden was capable of.

  “Right. My father kept his secret for years, but when he was terminally ill, he decided he couldn’t take it to his grave with him. He went to Owen and Connor McCord and told them the truth. He knew doing so would put us all in danger, but he decided he needed a clear conscious, I guess.”

  “Why didn’t the McCords go to the Council? Couldn’t they have just taken your father in with them and told them what happened?”

  “My father wouldn’t testify. He knew that Aiden would make sure that the lot of us were dead before a trial could commence and that the Council is afraid of him. So, he came home, packed us all up, and we fled. We ran like cowards, even though we had done nothing wrong.”

  “Your father was just protecting his family.”

  “Maybe, but he made his choice for all of us. He traded our safety for his peace of mind. Now, he’s gone, and we are left here to live with the consequences. Well, I’m not going to do that. I am going to fight back. It’s time someone did.”

  “What about the McCords? Why didn’t they do something about the man that killed their father?”

  “I don’t know. I heard that they took it to the Council and that Aiden exiled them, but I don’t know why they let him run them off. He’s strong, but he is getting older, and there are two of them. Maybe they are cowards.”

  “Whoever heard of a cowardly dragon? There must be another answer.”

  “There might be, but no one even knows where they are. I heard they fled the continent entirely.”

  “Maybe we should try to find them.”

  “It would serve no purpose. They chose to abandon their fight, but I won’t. I’m going to make this right if it’s the last thing I do.”

  “It might very well be the last thing you do, Aaron. It’s dangerous. Aiden is a killer. You said so yourself.”

  “I’m going to take him down, Kate. I’ve already decided. He’s going to pay for what he’s done to my family.”

  “Aaron, this is no good. You can’t do this. It’s murder. If you kill Aiden, how does that make you any better than him?”

  “Do you think I’m going to kill him just to avenge my father? I won’t lie; I do want him to pay for the way he has ruined my family’s lives, but I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. He’s a bad leader and not just because of what he’s done to us. Everyone back home lives in just as much fear as those who have escaped or been sent away. It’s time someone put an end to it.”

  “And why do you have to be that person, Aaron?”

  “Because I am the only one willing to do it, apparently.”

  “No. You are the only one hell bent on avenging your family.”

  “I’m the only one determined not to let Aiden ruin the lives of even one more family. Just look at what he has done to us! Not just you and I, but everyone who lives in fear of him. Something has to be done, Kate! He’s not just a tyrant, he’s a cold-blooded killer! We know about two people, but how many more has he killed for selfish reasons?”

  “I don’t know, and I don’t want to know, Aaron. I’ve gotten used to being here. Mom and I are fine. You and your family should do the same. Just accept that this is your home now and make the most of it. It’s safer.”

  “That’s the problem with the world, Kate. Everyone wants to play it safe instead of doing what’s right. At some point, someone has to stand up for the masses and put an end to the problem.”

  “I understand that, Aaron. What I don’t understand is why that person has to be you.”

  “Because there is no one else willing to do it, Kate. It’s that simple.”

  “It’s frightening.”

  Aaron looked at her softly and smiled. He could understand her trepidation about what he intended to do. Kate was no fool. She knew that taking on Aiden wasn’t something you walked away from. You either won the battle, or you lost everything. Aaron was willing to die if it came to that, but he wasn’t willing to live like he had been forced to live for the past six months.

  “Nothing frightens me as much as watching my mother, my siblings, and my cousins living in shitty little shacks and doing odd jobs to keep food on the table. We have perfectly good homes and jobs to go back to, and that is exactly what we are going to do.”

  “Well, I’ve known you long enough to know there’s no changing your mind. You were a stubborn boy, and you are an even more stubborn man.”

  “That I am. That I am,” he said with a somber smile.

  CHAPTER 3

  “I don’t know what to say to change your mind,” Kate told him.

  “There is nothing you can say. I know you don’t want me to do this, but I have to,” he replied.

  “I don’t think you do have to do it. I think you want to do it.”

  “Perhaps a bit of both. I do want to see justice for my father – for my family – but I also don’t want anyone else to suffer as we have.”

  “It’s not like there’s anything I can do to change your mind,” she said woefully.

  “No. There isn’t, but I want you to understand. I want you to believe in what I’m doing as much as I do.”

  “I don’t know if I can,” she replied.

  “Kate, finding you again was one of the best days of my life. You were the only thing that made being on the run even close to tolerable.”

  “I was happy to see you again, too, Aaron.”<
br />
  “If I didn’t care about you, I wouldn’t bother to try to explain myself.”

  “I know you wouldn’t.”

  “I’m going to be leaving to return to the Mourne Mountains. I won’t go back to the village, not yet anyway, but I will be nearby – close enough to make a plan and get on with it.”

  “When do you plan on doing that?”

  “First thing in the morning,” he replied, watching as her face fell.

  “That’s too soon,” she said, the words seeming to stick in her throat.

  “It’s not soon enough. Every minute, every second, that we do nothing gives him more power over those around him. If I am going to end this, I’m not going to hesitate. I’ll be leaving before sunrise.”

  “You’re flying?”

  “Yes. I’m a dragon. We fly. I’m done denying my own existence for the sake of those who don’t want to understand us or those who mean to harm us.”

  “Where will you go?”

  “Just outside of Newry. There’s an old cottage there that belongs to our family. It’s been abandoned for ages. I can hole up there while I make arrangements.”

  “I don’t like this, Aaron. I don’t like it at all.”

  “It has to be done. I wish things were different, but this is it. It is what it is.”

  “I’m not going to argue with you. It’s not as if I have any say in it, anyway.”

  Aaron studied her face. It was filled with some emotion he couldn’t quite put his finger on. She was obviously distressed. He had to admit he felt distraught himself, but there was no doubt in his mind that he was doing exactly what needed to be done. Still, not everything here had been bad, and that had been thanks to Kate.

  “Kate, listen. I don’t know what’s going to happen with all of this, but I want you to know that I’ve come to realize you mean much more to me than just as a friend. Under different circumstances, I would have tried to pursue things between us, but I don’t feel like I have anything to give you.”