Charred Hope (#3, Heart of Fire)

by Lizzy Ford

  She cracked one eye open then the other, amazed at how far she was able to see. A glance at her wings told her she was a color of dragon between Chace’s teal and Gavin’s dark blue. Her talons appeared huge, her thick legs almost stubby. Her center of balance was much lower to the ground than when she’d been a cat, and her tail was heavier.

  “Amazing,” Chace said.

  Skylar lifted her head to see him and tested her ears, making them flicker. When she stood up, her head would reach the top of the tree line around the meadow. She stayed hunkered down, with her belly on the ground, uncertain if she was ready yet to stand.

  Chace approached and ran a hand down her side. Skylar shivered, not expecting her thick dragon hide to be so sensitive to touch.

  “You’re about my size,” he said. “Looks like if we ever get in a spat, we better be human.”

  She snorted. Heat warmed her throat and mouth, and smoke spiraled out of her nostrils.

  “Fire is like coughing. Just don’t do it here. We can’t set the forest on fire,” he advised. He finished circling her and stood in front of her, gazing up at her with no short amount of satisfaction. “How do the wings feel?”

  Skylar stood cautiously and then stretched them out on either side of her. They were light and thin enough to be translucent. She’d never thought of Chace’s strong wings as being delicate, but they were, compared to the size and strength in the rest of her body.

  “Flying is about balance and control. Your wings will always carry you, but you have to know when to adjust and when to let the wind guide you. It becomes instinctive after a while but can be a challenge at first.”

  They feel like tissue paper. She began to doubt her wings would hold her, even if they did stretch the length of the meadow.

  “Give ‘em a whirl,” he instructed.

  She eyed one doubtfully then lifted and lowered them. They didn’t move straight up and down like she expected but at an angle. The simple movement lifted her a few inches off the ground. Her belly dropped the way it did when she drove too fast over a hill.

  “Good. Take it nice and slow,” he said.

  Skylar did it again. She hovered in place for a moment, understanding what he meant by balance. The two wings had to move in sync and her legs had to be still, or she tilted one way or the other.

  “Keep your head in place.”

  Cautiously, Skylar pulled her huge body a few more feet off the ground, focusing on her balance.

  “Good. I’ll show you a few things.” He trotted away to put distance between them. “Trust your wings. They feel flimsy until you’re in the air.”

  Skylar dropped to the ground, watching in interest as he slid the sweats down past the tight globes of his ass, thick thighs and lean calves. She grimaced and looked away when he changed shape, now knowing just how painful it was.

  When he was done, he unfurled his wings and shook them out then approached her, nuzzling her with his long snout.

  She rubbed her cheek along his and down his neck, fascinated by the sensitivity of her skin and the feel of his smooth scales gliding beneath hers. Chace nudged her in return then took a step back, lifting himself into the air above the meadow with ease.

  Skylar studied him, watching how he held himself and balanced. She tried to do the same and climbed tentatively into the air, not at all certain she wanted to be so far from the ground. She was wobbly at best, her balance little better than it had been when she tried rollerblading once before. She focused hard on keeping her wings moving as a unit.

  Chace lifted himself higher and began circling. Skylar did so as well, her heart flipping in her chest when the first wind current knocked her off balance. She teetered, eyes on the ground a few meters below, and then caught herself.

  Flying clenched in Chace’s or Gavin’s claws was frightening enough. Knowing she was the only thing standing between her and falling? Terrifying. She didn’t feel in control enough of her new body to perform any of the aerial feats she’d seen Chace do.

  For hours, she followed his lead, learning to balance her body weight and use her wings to maneuver through the sky. In early afternoon, she caught a whiff of something that made her snort.

  Chace was already looking in the direction from which the smell came, and he hovered in midair, assessing.

  Skylar wasn’t able to identify what it was. An animal of some sort, she guessed, but she couldn’t pinpoint what based solely on smell. It was difficult for her to tap into her Protector senses when her focus was on staying in flight. She wasn’t able to figure out if it was a shifter, let alone identify the signature of which shifter it was.

  Chace tossed his head towards the cabin and wheeled, soaring back in that direction. Skylar followed him, nose wrinkling at the scent. He circled the meadow and landed gently. She followed suit.

  Sensing he wanted to talk, she concentrated on shifting quickly. It seemed slower when going from animal to human, and she closed her eyes, waiting for the pain.

  Hot agony spun through her. She didn’t fight it but descended into a haze of pain. It left her exhausted and relieved a few minutes later.

  “You really gotta shift faster,” Chace advised. He knelt beside her, clothed once again in his sweatpants. “It hurts less that way.”

  “I’m working on it.” She sighed and sat.

  He handed her a t-shirt, and she tugged it on, eyes falling to his muscular chest. Instinctively she reached out to touch him, loving the way his skin felt beneath her fingers. His scent was intoxicating, a sweet, smoky perfume that wrapped around her senses and made her want to climb into his arms.

  “What was that?” she asked, glancing upward.

  Chace took her hand and held it. “Griffin.”

  “They smell awful!”

  “Definitely.” He snorted. “They’ve been hovering around for a while. They can sense us outside the cabin. We need to leave before they work up the nerve to attack us.”

  “Um, no,” she said, eyeing him. “We’re supposed to do the opposite. I need to stop Dillon.”

  Chace’s eyebrows went up. “How?”

  “I want to talk to him first.”

  “So you’ll just ask him to stop whatever it is he’s doing?” His gaze was intense, his doubt clear.

  “I’ve got to start somewhere,” she said. And I will find out what happened to my mother. “Besides, things are different now that you have your magic back and I have a better idea what I can do.”

  “Skylar.” Chace’s frown was deep.

  “This is what I’m supposed to do,” she replied firmly.

  “Put yourself back in the line of fire? You barely survived him the first two times, and it’s going to take time for you to learn to use the skills each shifter has.”

  “I’m the Protector, aren’t I?” she said with an upbeat smile. “Besides, you’ll be there with me.” Without waiting for any more objections, she rose and walked back to the cabin.

  Chace followed, his unhappiness palpable. Skylar pulled off her shirt to put on a bra. His muscular arms wrapped around her, and he pulled her into his solid, warm body. He’d taken off the sweats, and she felt his thick, hard arousal pressed against her backside.

  “I can’t let anything happen to you again,” he whispered into her hair.

  She sighed and rested her head against his shoulder for a moment, tracing her fingers along the roped muscles of his forearm.

  “It would kill me, Sky.”

  “I know, Chace. We’ll work together this time. There’s nothing that can take down two of us,” she said. “But I know we have to do this. We have to protect those who deserve it and put those to sleep who threaten that peace.”

  “You are the sweetest and bravest person I know.” He squeezed her closer. “I’ll go to the ends of the earth with you.”

  You just may have to.

  “Or to the shower,” he added with a hungry growl.

  Skylar’s body was already humming with need for her mate. Twisting in his arms
, she gazed up at him, astounded she had this to look forward to every morning she awoke for the rest of her life. His noble, chiseled features were softened by the tenderness of his blue gaze, and she tucked a lock of his blond hair behind his ear. Lust and dragon fire were in his eyes, but something else was, too, an emotion so deep and warm, it made her tear up.

  “You do love me, don’t you?” she whispered. “I can see it.”

  “Maybe a little.”

  She laughed in delight.

  Chace captured her mouth with his, his hot kiss deep and demanding.

  Skylar melted against him, loving the way his muscular frame felt beneath her fingers. Skimming his body with her hands, she reached between them to stroke his dick hard.

  He groaned. “Shower?”

  “Yeah,” she said breathlessly.

  With a wolfish grin, Chace grabbed her hand and pulled her into the bathroom. The shower was small for two people, but she knew the point wasn’t to get clean anyway. The cabin had turned it on for them in advance, and the mirror was already fogged up.

  Closing the glass door behind them, Chace pressed her back against the wall, moving his hips against hers. The shock of cold tile and warm water made her gasp and shiver, the sensations in her body more intense than ever before.

  His kiss was hard, his hands traveling down her body to her ass. He lifted her, and she wrapped her legs around his hips. Pressed between him and the tile wall, she circled his neck with her hands and waited for the pleasure she knew was coming.

  Chace entered her slowly, inch by inch, pushing her against the wall while kissing her deeply. His hot tongue explored her mouth then traveled over her lips before he began pressing kisses down her jaw.

  “Oh, god yes!” she groaned when he was all the way in. “You feel incredible!”

  “So do you,” he replied huskily. “Always so wet.” He moved inside her a few times, and she gripped him hard with her arms and thighs. One of his hands slid between them to stroke her clit.

  Skylar shuddered at the exquisite pleasure the light touch caused. She moved against him, needing him too much to think of anything else. Nibbling on his ear, she clung to him.

  “I love you, Chace,” she whispered.

  His movement stilled, and he pulled back far enough to see her face. He smoothed her hair away from her features, his intense gaze burning.

  “Do you really?” he asked. “Even after everything?”

  With him inside her and their bodies pressed together, she’d never felt surer of anything.

  “I do.” She traced the planes of his face with her fingertips.

  Water poured over them. Chace eased out of her then stepped back.

  Uncertain how to read his actions and sudden quietness, she lowered her legs and gazed up at him, her arms around his neck.

  “Will you say it again?” he asked hoarsely.

  Skylar smiled, understanding fluttering through her. Her dragon, the most incredible man in the world, had never known the love of another or what it was like to share something like a heart or soul. He’d been alone his entire life. Until now.

  “I love you, Chace.” She said it more loudly and looked him straight in the eye. “You’re my dragon.”

  He rested his forehead against hers, his eyes closing. They stood in the shower in intimate quiet, the tension between them thick, but the emotion even thicker.

  “You’re my Sky.” His voice was uneven and thick. “I love you, too, Skylar.”

  Sensing how vulnerable he was in that moment, she slid her palms up to take his face then kissed him hard. Desire quickly turned into something more intense and primal. Their tongues tangled desperately, their hands roaming each other’s bodies with urgency.

  Chace spun her and pressed her against the wall with his upper body weight, entering the depths of her body quickly. The jarring cold of the tile startled her into greater awareness of the sensations filling her body. One of his hands traveled down her wet body to her clit and began stroking her lightly, fast.

  “Say it again,” he ordered in her ear, thrusting into her with the desperation she, too, felt.

  “I love you!” she cried.

  Her orgasm rose hot and fast, egged on by the friction of his dick against her G-spot and the tickle of his fingers around her clit. He filled her in a way unlike any she’d ever experienced, completed her world as if he’d always been there.

  “I love you, too, Sky,” he said, his breathing ragged.

  She moaned, his honey-bonfire scent and the wicked movement of his fingers driving her beyond herself.

  Seconds later, she shattered. Waves of intense pleasure flew through her, wringing a throaty shout from her.

  Chace withdrew and spun her once more, hefting her onto his hips again. He kissed her hungrily and plunged into the seizing depths of her core hard and fast while pressing her back against the wall.

  Skylar groaned once more, her orgasm extended by the friction of his hard dick inside her sensitive sheathe. She clung to him, clawing at his back and forcing his body closer with her legs.

  “I … love you, too … Sky …” he said a split second before he, too, gave a cry of release. He slowed but continued to pump then buried his dick deep inside her and stayed.

  Panting, the two of them were still as warm water cascaded down from the rain showerhead in the ceiling. Chace’s body quivered from his release, his fingers gripping and releasing her ass as he worked through his pleasure.

  Skylar didn’t have to hide her tears of joy in the shower. She let them fall and hugged him to her hard, breathing in the scent of a dragon while clinging to the frame of a man.

  “We’re doing this every morning,” he said at last without lifting his head.

  She laughed, unable to identify a time where she’d felt so comfortable.

  Like I’ve found my home.

  “And maybe every evening, too,” he added.

  “I think we need a vacation when this is over. You still owe me a pizza date,” she reminded him.

  He raised his head and gazed down at her, the glow in his eyes making more tears spill. She smiled.

  “Was I too rough?” he asked, concerned. He released her and withdrew, stepping back until he had enough room to wrap his arms around her.

  “No,” she murmured. Skylar hugged him hard. His soft skin was warm, the hard muscles beneath it strong and solid. She rested her ear against his heart and listened to it beat, knowing she was the reason it did so.

  “You’re shaking.”

  “I’ve never been this happy before, Chace,” she told him and buried her face into his shoulder.

  He held her more tightly.

  “I love you. I don’t want to lose you. Ever,” she whispered. “It makes me fear what’s coming even more.”

  He lifted her chin and gazed down at her. With the tenderness was a new emotion: resolution.

  “You have nothing to fear. We have each other, and we know what we’re supposed to do: put the shifter community back together and take care of everyone,” he said firmly. “I love you with every ounce of my soul. I’ll always be there for you, no matter what happens. You can trust me, Skylar.”

  “I do.” She smiled, touched by his words.

  “We have a world to conquer.” His thumb drifted across her plump lips, and his gaze dropped to her mouth. “Then we’ll come right back here and fuck until we can’t walk anymore.”

  Skylar laughed again. They stood in comfortable silence for a moment, enjoying each other’s presence.

  “Come on,” he said reluctantly. “Let’s get the show started, so we can spend more time together.” He opened the door to the shower.

  Skylar grudgingly went. She dried off then left the bathroom, headed to a pile of her clothes. As if to remind her of how serious their awaiting adventure was, the lasso sat in the center of her clothing.

  Her thoughts sobered quickly at the sight of it and the thought of what they had to do. She glanced towards the bathroom and fo
und Chace in the doorway, studying her.

  “You okay?” he asked gently.

  “Yeah.” She smiled quickly and started to dress. “I want to help everyone, Chace. I know my father didn’t believe that, but I think we can.”

  “I think you’ll find there are some people beyond reason.” He moved towards his dresser as he spoke.

  “Like Dillon?”

  “I imagine there are others as well. Your father wasn’t budging from his view of the world. Some people are too entrenched.”

  “Or too motivated to get their ways,” she murmured, thoughts going to another dragon. Skylar pulled on her shirt. “Like Freyja.”

  Chace froze for a moment then resumed dressing.

  Interesting. “She’s behind all this. Brainwashing me, causing the war between shifters.”

  “I guess I’m not surprised.” His tone was measured. “Gavin was right about someone trying to push the strong shifters out of the way?”

  “Yes. Mason won’t tell me everything, but he did say she hasn’t give up on her plan, even though the initial one didn’t work.” Skylar pushed her feet into her boots then bent over to tie them.

  When she straightened, Chace’s features were hard to read. He seemed pensive, troubled almost.

  “Is that an issue?” she asked, disappointed to know there was some emotion remaining after so long.

  “Not for me,” he replied. “Might be for us, though. She’s not the kind of person who is going to change her mind. And she was able to reach out to others enough to strategize when she was supposed to be in hibernation. It means we may not have much of an option, if she refuses to back down.”

  “You think we’ll have to kill her.” Skylar’s voice was hushed.

  “I think it’s possible.”

  Not quite what I was expecting. “Dillon, too, maybe.” She grew still. “I’ve always known I might have to kill someone. I thought it’d be a shifter, back when I thought they were my enemies. Do you think we have any sort of obligation to try to work things out in a way that spares people’s lives, even if they really deserve to be taken out?”

  Chace glanced at her.

  “I mean, because we’re leading the community now,” she added.