by Abigail Owen
Still, Tineen must’ve seen something in Finn he decided to trust because he put his palm to the scanner on Hall’s cell and punched in a series of numbers on the pad. A thunk of the bolt sliding back, and Hall was free. A few minutes later, all four of them walked out of their cells. Titus with a little help.
At Finn’s command, they followed him wordlessly out of the dungeon, up a winding staircase roughly cut into the granite. They burst from darkness into the blinding light of blue skies. Brightness after the windowless room had Aidan squinting against the assault. From there, they passed through a long, narrow chamber that skirted a narrow ridge connecting a lower peak to the higher peak.
Even with his body protesting every move, Aidan buzzed with the need to go find Sera. Only he couldn’t. They would certainly be under surveillance for the foreseeable future. It might be months, years even, before he could safely go to her.
“How long have we been here?” he asked in a low voice. It had been difficult to tell in that hole with no windows.
“A week,” Deep muttered.
Fuck. Sera.
Tineen led them through a winding labyrinth of chambers and hallways, most dragon sized, until they came to a large room filled with equipment Aidan recognized. This had to be where the Alaz team trained. At the end of the massive cavern, a dark opening stretched away.
Tineen waved toward it. “You know the way out,” he said to Finn.
Finn indicated with a nod that they should all go ahead, but Aidan stopped in front of Tineen. “Have you or any of your team mated?”
The large Alpha narrowed golden eyes. “Not yet.”
Aidan shook his head. “I wish you luck when you or one of your men finds one.”
“We trust in the mating process.” Tineen shifted an unimpressed stare to Finn. “Something your team obviously does not. With a leader from the Blue Clan, I can’t say I’m surprised.”
“We are loyal to our kings and the laws,” Aidan declared. Because he had to. “Or we wouldn’t be here.”
Tineen regarded him for a long moment before clasping his hands behind his back. “Of course.”
Yeah. Aidan’s first thought had been right. Total asshole.
Turning, Aidan shifted as he walked toward the black hole in the wall. Following Drake, he extended his wings and took off. Good thing Levi wasn’t here. His massive gold body might not have fit.
The tunnel leading out of the mountain was endless. Eventually a pinpoint of light showed they were nearing the end. The last part tipped upward to angle out of the mountain, a precarious fall of rock along the bottom making it damn hard for humans to get into the caves. Smart.
He burst out into that clear blue sky, the fresh air in his lungs like drinking water after a week in the desert. The dungeon had been stale, like they pumped oxygen in there as an afterthought. Which was probably true.
Every instinct in his body dragged at Aidan the moment he flew into the freedom of open skies. “I have to find them, boss.”
Titus’s growl had all of them craning their necks to look. “Fuck, Aidan. When are you going to give this up?”
Finn’s voice stayed Aidan’s urge to rip Titus’s throat out. “I know.”
“She’s my mate, Finn,” Aidan insisted.
“Took you long enough to figure that shit out, rookie.”
Aidan snaked his head around to regard his Alpha with shock. Finn bared his teeth in a dragony grin. “Delaney convinced me.”
“You won’t know for sure until you push your fire into her, and she doesn’t die screaming in pain as she turns to solid ash,” Titus said.
“What’s wrong with you?” Aidan barked. Yes, the man had lost a mate that way, but he almost sounded like he wanted the same to happen to Aidan.
“Just telling it like it is.” Titus curled his lip, a taunt that, had this been any other moment, Aidan would’ve taken as a challenge.
“Feel free to keep that shit to yourself.” He swiveled his head to Finn on his other side, who’d listened to the exchange in silence. “They won’t let me have her.”
Even thinking the words had his dragon rumbling a low growl. If he didn’t find her soon, the beast inside him would lose it.
“Hall and Drake have been filling me in. They don’t think so, either,” Finn said.
“I am in agreement,” Deep joined the conversation, his thickly accented tones edged with a darkness Aidan hadn’t heard from him before. But of anyone who might be on his side, a dragon who’d found his mate and understood the soul-deep connection, the imperative to protect, would get it.
“I don’t want to put the team in jeopardy. Let me go off on my own. Tell them I went rogue.”
“Request denied.”
What the hell? Of anyone on the team, Finn had to know what he was going through. He was about to crawl out of his scales with the need to find and protect Sera and Blake.
Gods. Blake. “Bears took Blake. Sera has to be frantic.”
His gut clenched at the thought of her, held in secret, not knowing where her son was, her small face pinched with worry, lips pale. He had to find them.
“That was Rune, too.”
Relief slammed through Aidan, his heart contracting with the knowledge. Except that wave of relief was swiftly followed by cold suspicion. How could Finn know all of this? “The bears were with Rune? How do you know?”
“He came to me.”
Holy. Fucking. Shit.
The grim reality of that statement lay heavy in Finn’s voice, but Aidan didn’t blame his leader. He blamed himself. I did this. I put my team in this situation.
But he could no longer deny his mate.
“Are they okay?” That was most important.
“They’re safe.”
“Where?”
“You’ll need to be patient, rookie,” Deep cautioned.
Screw patient.
Before he could voice that attitude, Finn growled a warning, smoke trailing out of his mouth. “Trust us.”
Only Aidan could tell that Finn was speaking to him alone now. He couldn’t feel the others in the mental connection. Why was Finn leaving them out?
His dragon settled. Barely. “I do trust you. When can I see her?”
“Soon.”
…
Sera opened her eyes and for a lovely moment almost believed she was back in her renovated farmhouse at the winery. Only the ceiling above her was missing the wooden beams, and the window was to her right instead of her left in this house. She swore she’d heard Aidan’s voice calling her name, like a lover. Like her mate. But she hadn’t been able to find him in the haze of her dreams.
Blinking her eyes to clear the fog of sleep, she took a moment to remember where the hell she was.
Oh. Right.
Somewhere in Montana.
She sighed and threw back the covers, shivering as her bare feet touched cold faux-hardwood flooring. At least this home was safer for Blake, being more fireproof. And prettier. If she wasn’t out of her mind with worry, she could happily stay here for a long time.
After dressing quickly, in newly provided clothing—white shorts paired with a navy and white striped top—Sera headed out to the kitchen, taking a closer look around the fourth residence she and Blake had been brought to in as many days as she went. At least they weren’t still holed up in that mobile home in the desert. That had been more like a tomb.
This was more like…a secret getaway.
The modern cabin was built to blend into the gorgeous scenery deep in the wilderness. The best part? If she wanted, she could walk right off the front porch and down a set of cement steps into her own private mountain pond, the water so still the surface reflected the splendor of the mountains all around them, and so clear, if she looked closer, she could see the browns and grays of the rocks and pebbles at the bottom in detail. Across the pond, a copse of tall, white-barked aspen trees stood tall, their green leaves trembling in the breeze, the shooshing sound reaching across the water.
A sharp knock at the door made her jump, coffee sloshing over the side of her mug and onto her shorts.
“Dammit,” she whispered. She ignored the sting of the hot liquid seeping through to her skin. Heart clanging against her ribs, she hurried to the door.
Rune had not told her anyone would come. Should they even be able to see the cabin? Was it warded like the other safe havens she and Blake had been taken to?
“Sera?”
That was Rune. Sera relaxed, though her hand still trembled when she unlocked the door. She swung it wide and froze. Even her gasp jammed in her throat.
A grim-faced Rune stood on the small landing outside the door, and just behind him, was Aidan, his expression a cocktail of desperate and eager and elated. Before even thinking to do it, Sera was out the door and throwing herself in his arms, hers curled around his neck. His citrus and smoke scent soothed her in a way no other thing could.
Aidan grunted with the force of her embrace but wrapped his arms around her and buried his face in her neck, inhaling. “Thank the gods.”
“I wasn’t sure I’d ever see you again,” she whispered.
“And that bothered you?” he teased. She could feel his lips form a smile against her skin.
If all these days alone had taught her anything it was not to waste time. The way her heart had ached more every day, even after she had Blake safely with her, told her what she needed to know. So did the way that ache lifted the second she discovered Aidan on her doorstep.
“I can’t let you sacrifice everything you’ve worked so hard for. And the team? This will only make it harder—”
“Stop.” Aidan stilled in her arms, not breathing. “You’re so determined to put others first—Blake, your parents’ winery, now me. But I’m telling you that’s my job now. And you come first, always.” He pulled back slightly to look down at her, those bright blue eyes holding every promise she’d ever need. “There is nothing more important to me than you and Blake.”
Blake’s screech broke them apart. “Aidan!”
Aidan lowered her to her feet just in time for her son to barrel into him, still in pajamas with his bare feet slapping the floor. Laughing, Aidan hugged Blake, the relief in his expression doing funny things to Sera’s heart.
“Isn’t this place cool?” Blake started in on Aidan, face alight with exuberance. “Maybe we can fly around and look at stuff?”
“I’ve been grounded for a while, bud.”
The fall of Blake’s face was almost comical, and Aidan lifted his eyes to share secret amusement with Sera. “But I’ll go hike around with you. Tomorrow, maybe.”
“Why can’t Rune take me?” Blake asked.
“Me?” Rune looked about as excited at that prospect as getting a root canal.
Sera raised her head to blink at him. At least he appeared to have gotten rest since she last saw him, the dark shadows under his eyes more lavender, rather than eggplant. She had no idea when, given how much coordination had to go into orchestrating this moment.
Rune stared at Blake, then at her and Aidan. He gave a little frustrated growl. “Fine. I’ll add it to all the favors you owe me.”
“We owe you favors?” Aidan snapped. “I figured this was your way of apologizing for being an asshole for years.”
Apparently, Rune hadn’t entirely made up with the team. Sera put her hand on Aidan’s arm. “Blake and I are safe because of him.”
Rune raised his eyebrows, but otherwise didn’t comment. “Come on, Blake.”
With a whoop, Blake followed him out the door.
“Get dressed first,” Sera called.
Blake swung around with a scowl. “Aw, Mom.”
“Shoes at least.” Sera held back a grin at the disgruntled expression on Blake’s face. At least he ran back into the house. Before she could thank Rune or say much of anything, her son was back outside, shoes on, but laces untied.
The second they disappeared into the shadows, Aidan turned her to him, staring down at her with a mix of awe and need. “I couldn’t let myself believe you were meant for me.”
She could see the truth of his words in his eyes. He’d said the same before, but her own doubt and confusion was out of the way now, letting her see. He’d been ripped to shreds for months, just as she had.
“And now?”
Aidan smiled, those blue eyes lighting from within, making her catch her breath. “Now you’ll never get rid of me…” He placed his hands on either side of her face, his thumbs feathering across her jaw. “If you want me.”
“I want you.” Nothing had ever felt so right. Not even with Devlin.
Aidan’s shoulders dropped as a slow, sexy grin spread across his lips. “Thank the fates,” he murmured before lowering his head to kiss her in the sweetest way. Her heart took off in joyful fluttering. Flying. Soaring.
He stopped, and she chased his lips. “Hold on, Sera.”
What now? She reluctantly opened her eyes.
“Rune thinks we should mate as soon as possible.”
For all those good intentions about not letting the doubts in anymore, Sera couldn’t control the snap of ire that zipped through her. “Rune says?”
Aidan closed his eyes. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I just—”
He took her by the hand and led her into the house. Sera followed, waiting for him to finish that thought. He stopped inside the kitchen and released her. She watched, eyebrows slipping higher and higher, as Aidan paced.
Finally, he stopped in front of her. “All I could think about in that dungeon was if you and Blake were safe. I couldn’t stand not knowing. Not”—his voice cracked, and he ran his fingers through his hair in a quick agitated tug—“not being here to protect you.”
Any ice left around her heart thawed, melting at the sincerity in his eyes, the truth evident in the way he moved, like an animal caged. “You were in a dungeon?” she asked softly, taking a step toward him.
Aidan raised his gaze to her, watching her with a wary hope that only turned up the heat and melted her heart faster. “They held us. Interrogated us.”
For her and her son? “Are you okay?”
He shrugged one shoulder, searching her face. “Nothing that won’t heal.”
They’d hurt him a lot then.
“Show me.”
Aidan shook his head. “You shouldn’t have to—”
“Show me,” Sera insisted.
Keeping his gaze locked on her, he pulled his shirt over his head, draping it over the back of a kitchen chair. Sera covered her gasp with her hand at the ugly, deep purple bruising crisscrossing his chest. She closed the distance between them and did the only thing she could think. Pressing a soft kiss to the center of the worst one, right over his heart.
Aidan threaded his hands into her hair, though he didn’t restrain her. Almost like he was holding on for the ride as she kissed each bruise she could find.
“I’m sorry you were hurt because of me.”
He applied pressure, bringing her head up so she could see his face. “I’m not. You and Blake are safe.”
Her and Blake.
“Aidan…why do you want to mate me?”
If he said only to keep her safe or because the fates told him so, she might contribute to the bruises marking his body.
“It’s like we’re air,” he said slowly.
“Air?” Where was he going with this?
Aidan nodded. “Like you’re hydrogen, and I’m oxygen. By themselves they’re important elements, critical to
lots of functions.”
Okay.
“But together, they create water. A different thing altogether, and one just as critical to life. Maybe more so.”
Wow. She dropped her forehead against his chest. “That might be the sweetest thing anyone’s ever said to me. But…”
“But?” he frowned.
“When’d you get so geeky?” she teased.
Aidan chuckled, which made her smile.
“And Blake?” Sera held her breath. Even if Aidan was her destined mate, Blake was her life.
“It takes two hydrogen molecules with one oxygen to make water.”
Could he hear the way her heart had picked up speed, trampling other organs to get to this man who said the sweetest things?
“Be my mate?” he whispered.
Not a command, or a task to check off, or even to keep them safe. A question. One filled with hope, and fear, and…longing.
She closed her eyes and allowed herself to just feel, to let the emotion of the moment fill her up. Their time together may have only been dreams, but the bond they’d formed, the emotional connection, was more real than anything she’d ever known. Except maybe her love for her son.
This was what coming home felt like.
“Yes,” Sera whispered.
She opened her eyes to find a shocked grin spreading across his face. “Yes?” he asked, as if unsure he’d heard her right.
Sera nodded. “I’ll mate you.”
She squealed as Aidan picked her up, squeezing her tight. “Thank the fates. Again.”
Somehow, saying yes, giving in to what they’d both been skirting for what felt like eons released her from any need to hold back.
Weeks, hell, months, of anticipation and worry and repressed need only released in the bonds of sleep exploded between them. He kissed her the way a starving man would approach his first meal, devouring her, and she was just as greedy.
Hands under her ass, he hauled her up his body, and Sera happily wriggled closer, using her arms to hold him tighter.
“Wrap your legs around me,” he ordered between kisses on the edge of out of control.
She obeyed, reveling in how that lodged the thick, hard length of him against her core, already pulsing for him.