The dragon’s eyes twinkled, and she was sure she could still see Braxton the man in there somewhere. She had known this was coming, but it didn’t make it any easier to digest.
Braxton was a fucking dragon.
He could burn her to a crisp, rip her to shreds with his gigantic jaws… He could end her and everyone in Bridge Hollow if he wanted, and yet he was bound to protect it.
Instead of moving away from him, she stopped and slowly raised her hand toward him. The dragon took another step closer and began to lower his head, bending down on his front legs and closing his eyes.
Elizabeth’s heart was practically in her mouth. She stepped closer to him and let her hand rest on the end of his nose, rubbing his long muzzle and feeling the coldness of the scales beneath her red-hot skin.
She almost jumped at first, but she let her hands caress him, and the dragon seemed to moan, enjoying the touch and affection. When he opened his eyes and stared into hers, she couldn’t help smiling.
She had the trust of this creature. She had the trust of Braxton. And now, she had to trust them both to keep her safe.
“Okay,” she said.
The dragon nudged her slightly with his nose, and she reached up to grab his huge, thick neck before climbing onto his back. She felt as if she were already high in the sky as she straddled him the best she could. She had no clue how she would hold on, she was just going to have to do her best.
“Keep me safe on this flight,” she whispered to herself. “Hold me close and see me to the top.”
She chanted the incantation, over and over, as the dragon began to breathe in and out quickly, rising to its feet and preparing to take flight.
When he pushed up, and they left the ground, it was the strangest sensation. Elizabeth felt the ground falling away as they began to soar into the clouds and moonlight. The stars were twinkling high above them, and as they broke through the clouds and headed toward the very peak of the mountain, she could barely believe what an incredible view she was experiencing.
Below them, the town of Bridge Hollow was lit up and looked like a fairy town. Tiny lights twinkled and the air whooshed past her ears as she gripped Braxton’s neck and prayed she wouldn’t fall. It was exhilarating but it was also terrifying. She was so high, moving so fast, and the creature giving her the ride was so powerful and dangerous. She clutched him tighter and closed her eyes to shield herself from the biting cold of the air around them.
She blinked away a tear as she felt another begin to roll down her cheek. She breathed in deeply, the icy mountain air filling her lungs.
When she felt Braxton begin to slow, she finally dared open her eyes again, and she saw that he was about to stop on top of the mountain. He flew around in a circle, over the top of a clearing, and when her eyes adjusted to the darkness up there, she almost couldn’t believe what she was seeing.
Braxton had mentioned a private estate… But she had never in her wildest dreams thought it could be anything like this.
From the height they were flying, she could see high, heavy walls bordering a huge section of land at the top of the mountain. Trees and snow dotted the area, apart from the breaks between where she could see the rooftops of a set of magnificent houses.
Houses?
No, not houses…
These were absolute mansions.
She could see turrets and the vast expansion of roofs. She could see winding driveways − but no cars, only snow mobiles − massive homes and even bigger gardens, all covered in snow. They were protected by the border wall, and she could see a tall, ornate gate which was closed, and no doubt locked, keeping them tucked safely inside.
Braxton circled once more, and Elizabeth got to see it all again. She could count five houses in total, all of them huge and spectacular, completely out of this world and like nothing she ever had expected.
When he had said he lived on a private estate at the top of the mountain, she had imagined a little collection of small homes, maybe a fence around them, but this was something else entirely.
This was something special.
It must have been worth a fortune.
She continued to hold him tightly as he took them to the ground, and when his feet touched the snowy earth, he let out a huge, deafening roar that seemed to shake the forest around them and made the snow fall from the branches of the trees.
The dragon bent forward and rested its chin against the ground, and Elizabeth swung her leg over and slid down the side of his scaly torso, until her feet hit land with a thump.
She shivered and wrapped her arms around herself. They had made such a quick exit from the bar that she didn’t have her coat, and she was beginning to feel the cold deep in her bones.
The dragon rose to its full height and looked down at her, its chest heaving, and smoke billowing from its nostrils. He roared again, so loud and ferocious that it blew the hair away from her face, and its hot breath seemed to lick at her skin.
Elizabeth was momentarily warmed, and she smiled. He had known she was cold, and he was trying to help her.
Suddenly, the dragon backed away, and she could see a familiar expression flash across its face as it began to shake and convulse. Braxton was coming back to the surface. She watched as he changed back into a man, and when she couldn’t bear to hear the cries of pain as Braxton’s skin began to cover the scales any longer, she shielded her eyes and ears, and wished for him to be all right.
It sounded so agonizing. As if each time he changed, he was putting stress on his body.
When she opened her eyes, she saw him there, naked and slumped in the snow, and she ran to him and fell to the ground, cradling him in her arms.
“Braxton?” she gasped as she shook him, trying to wake him.
His muscles were tight, and he looked so peaceful, and then a little smile played across his face.
“That’s good,” he said dreamily as he finally managed to open his eyes. “You’re still here… I didn’t scare you away…”
Elizabeth laughed and smiled.
“Of course, I’m still here,” she said as she ran her fingertips down the side of his face. “I’m not going anywhere…”
14.
She helped him to his feet and had to use all her willpower not to gawk at his incredible body as she helped him out of the clearing in the forest and toward one of the biggest homes on the private estate.
“That one is mine,” he said as he strode forward, his taught butt looking good enough to bite.
He was completely naked, and the dragon heat rolling off his skin was sending steam into the air, but he didn’t bat an eyelid.
Elizabeth was completely entranced with him; his muscles were so rock-hard and perfectly sculpted. Now, she knew what he must have done with all those years up here. He must be constantly working out.
The house Braxton was heading for was tall and impressive. It was dark, and had two large turrets poking into the night sky and all the windows were wonderfully-colored stained-glass. From the light behind them, the colors were cast onto the snow, making it look like the white was blue, red and green in parts. It was like something out of a fairy tale, and she was having trouble believing it had been hiding there all along, so close to her and her own home, and she had had no idea. None of the residents of Bridge Hollow would have any idea. It was a completely secluded paradise, high above all the ski runs and walking paths, hidden away just for the dragon clan.
The house was at least three floors, and it rose into the night like a force its own. Two snow mobiles were parked at the bottom of the stone stairs leading to the front door. Either side of the staircase, on top of columns, was a sculpture of a dragon. It made her smile, but it also made the butterflies in her belly flap away and her nerves were beginning to return.
This was such a risky thing to be doing. Heading into a dragon’s home… What was she thinking!?
Braxton reached the back of one of the snow mobiles and flipped a storage case open on the back. Within sec
onds, he had pulled out what looked to be a pair of ski pants, which he quickly slipped on. He smiled at her, and she couldn’t help being a little disappointed. She had been enjoying the view, but she still had his incredible abs to keep her entertained. His heat was still rising, sending steam into the air, making it look like he was literally smoking hot.
When Braxton closed the case, he stepped closer to Elizabeth and held out his hand.
“I can sense your fear,” he said. “But you have nothing to worry about here. This house is mine and my father’s. You can cross over the threshold and no harm will come to you.”
Elizabeth waited for a moment, looking at the mansion in front of her, and at the incredibly handsome man holding out his hand, wanting her to go with him. What a crazy few days it had been, and yet, already, it felt like this had been her whole life.
She let her hand slip into his, and his heat engulfed her. She had been so cold, but the moment Braxton touched her, he transferred his fire to her, and she warmed from the inside out.
Her spine tingled, and she stepped closer to him, looking deep into his eyes, never wanting this incredible moment to end. There was the magic she had known as a witch, and then there was magic like this…
This felt like it overcame everything. This moment she was sharing with her dragon shifter, at the top of the world, and in this amazing place, it was like a dream.
Braxton pulled her gently toward the staircase, and they glided up it hand in hand. The snow was slippery underfoot, but with Braxton showing her the way, she wasn’t afraid of falling. She knew he would keep her safe.
When they reached the door, Braxton cleared his throat and reached for the huge, silver knocker with the image of a dragon’s face billowing fire from its nose and mouth. He rapped on the door several times heavily and then they waited for whatever was going to come next.
Elizabeth gripped his hand tight; she wasn’t cold anymore. He looked down at her and smiled, and she smiled back at him. She was calm and content, and ready to face the reality of his world. She was ready to see what it really meant to be a dragon.
When she heard heavy footsteps on the other side of the door and locks began to twist and turn, she looked up at him again, and he gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.
“Don’t worry,” he said warmly. “There is nothing to fear. You are safe here with me.”
The door opened slowly, and an older gentleman emerged. His eyes were the same color as Braxton’s, but he looked to be in his fifties, with salt and pepper hair. He was so devastatingly handsome, it was plain to see Braxton had got his good looks from this man.
This man had to be his father.
“Braxton,” the man said gravely. “Come inside, quick.”
He stood back and looked at Elizabeth with curiosity, but without saying a word, and as they stepped inside and he closed the door behind them, Elizabeth sensed he knew more than they did, and it wasn’t going to be good.
They stood in the hallway and looked at each other. Braxton’s father was clearly intrigued by the woman his son had brought home to the mountain. And she knew he would be, even more so, that she wasn’t a shifter.
“Braxton?” he said as he turned to face his son.
“Dad,” Braxton ran his hands through his hair, “it’s all gone to hell down there. We weren’t prepared enough. The gateway was breached.”
His father nodded slowly and sighed.
“How many casualties?” he asked as if he had been expecting it.
“Too many,” Braxton said sadly.
His father turned and looked at Elizabeth, and his face warmed slightly. He smiled and held out his hand.
“I’m Bishop,” he said, “Braxton’s father.”
Elizabeth took a step forward, and they shook hands.
“I’m Elizabeth,” she said.
Bishop had the same heat in him as his son, and she could see his dragon beneath the surface of his skin, but his was a lot more faded than Braxton’s. As if the dragon was aged and weary.
Bishop smiled at her, and when he let go of her hand, he put his on his hips and studied her.
“Now, now, now…What are you…?” he mused.
Elizabeth laughed, and so did Braxton.
“Believe me, Dad, we have so much to catch up on.”
Bishop winked at Elizabeth and then held out his arm and welcomed them both into the house.
“Come on,” he said warmly. “Let’s get by the fire with some good wine and examine what we know.”
Elizabeth sat in the floor on a plush rug, under an incredible chandelier and in front of the most amazing, roaring fire. The fireplace was large and ornate, made from marble, and covered in patterns and swirls.
The entire house was like something out of her dreams. Everything was gold and silver, deep red and plush purple, and all the furniture was exquisite velvet. It felt like she were royalty, and it wasn’t long before she caught on that Braxton and his father were the head of their dragon clan.
She cradled a glass of wine, sipping it slowly, glad of the dulling of her senses to take the edge off all she had been through in the past few hours.
“A vampire came back,” Braxton said as he sat behind her with his hand resting protectively on her shoulder. “I can’t believe it’s true, but he did. I believe it to be the exact one the bears and wolves defeated in the forest all those weeks ago.”
Bishop sighed and leaned forward. He was sitting in a grand armchair by the fire and he looked into the flames. They caught on his eyes and shone into his soul. Elizabeth could see his dragon more prominent now, and it made her skin tingle.
“We have to seal the gateway for good,” Braxton said. “We can’t risk this happening again.”
Bishop nodded.
Braxton drained his glass and slipped into the floor next to Elizabeth, wrapping his big, muscular arm around her shoulders. He kissed the top of her head, and she felt the sparks between them.
“I will contact the other packs,” Bishop said. “Tell them we will be down, by morning.”
Braxton nodded.
“We need to find a way to seal the split between the two worlds,” he continued. “We need to figure out what their weak point is, and how to exploit it.”
Elizabeth’s brain was firing on all cylinders, and she couldn’t stop thinking about her own knowledge and power, and what she knew she was capable of.
She kept her mouth closed, but she knew she could help them. After all, this was her hometown too.
Bishop rose to his feet and wished them good night before he walked slowly out of the grand living area and disappeared down a long, dark hallway.
Elizabeth looked at Braxton, and he gave her a weak smile.
“This place…,” she said. “It’s… Intense…”
Braxton laughed.
“I know,” he said. “Imagine what it’s like to never leave.”
She smirked.
“We’ve had such similar experiences in life, and yet so different,” she said. “My cottage in the woods was nothing compared to this.”
“This is unique,” he agreed. “And it’s the result of hundreds of years of dragon dynasty… And a little bit more.”
She raised her eyebrows and leaned in.
“Do tell…,” she smiled.
Braxton topped up her wine glass and then breathed in deeply, as if he wasn’t sure he should tell her what was on his mind.
“Okay,” he said finally. “I’ll explain it all… But I want you to keep an open mind.”
Elizabeth nodded. If there was one thing she had learned over the years, it was that the more open your mind could be, the better.
“Okay,” he said. “Here we go…”
15.
Her eyes were wide, and he stroked her face reassuringly as he began to speak. Just having Elizabeth there with him, in his home on top of the mountain, was mind-blowing enough, but now, to be sharing hundreds of years’ worth of secrets with her… He knew, in that moment, th
at he loved her and was joined to her in a way he never thought possible.
He steeled himself, ready to speak.
“It’s okay,” she reassured him with innocent eyes. “It’s not like anything you could tell me now is really going to shock me, is it?” She laughed, and so did he.
“I know,” he said as he stroked the side of her face. “It’s just that this is the kind of thing that stays within our clan. But I trust you, Elizabeth. Since I first saw you, I had a feeling about you… I think you and I are supposed to come together. I think it’s fate, and I think, when all is said and done, somehow, we will be the ones to change everything.”
She smiled again and waited. He was so full of nerves over sharing with her all he knew about Bridge Hollow, but at the same time, it had been a weight around his neck, and he was ready to shake it free. In the back of his mind, he had wondered, for some time, if he and the other dragons had done such a good job of keeping things from being out in the open, that maybe they were partly to blame for everything going disastrously wrong.
“What I mentioned earlier about the mine,” he said.
Elizabeth nodded, hanging off his every word.
“Over a hundred years ago, there was a terrible accident here in town. A lot of people died.”
She nodded again.
“My father, he was here at that time, he was a young boy, but he remembers it all.”
A look of confusion spread across Elizabeth’s face, and Braxton couldn’t help laughing.
“Your dad?” she asked as she cocked her head to the side. “Bishop? The man who was literally just with us?”
Braxton nodded.
“Elizabeth,” he continued. “My father is over a hundred years old.”
He saw her mouth sag open and her eyes grow wide.
“Dragon shifters don’t age like anyone or anything else,” he said. “Our magic is so powerful that we can live for hundreds and hundreds of years.”
She mouthed wow, and then sat back and waited for him to continue.
“When the mine collapsed, that’s when something happened here in Bridge Hollow. Something dark sprang forth. A veil was pierced between two worlds, and terrible things had a way of entering ours.”
Bridge Hollow Shifters: The Complete Collection Page 49