by Jess Haines
She’d designed it to detect carnivorous Others. The consequence of trying to pass wasn’t as deadly as someone not keyed attempting to cross his wards, but it would be painful enough to send all but the most determined Others seeking less dangerous prey.
He couldn’t have been more proud of her.
Then she forced her shoulders back and sauntered toward him in a way that lit an unexpected spark of desire in his blood. The smug little smile she gave him said without words that she knew very well just how easily he had expected to walk through her wards and that she had planned from the start to show off.
Xander had asked for her help with enchantments for good reason. Illusion wasn’t the only formidable skill in her magical repertoire.
Before she could reach him, the centaurs surrounded her to thank her, shaking her hand and singing her praises. Though they looked like people—people running exceptionally fast—he could feel the thunder of hooves as a small group broke off behind the line to race around in a joyful display in the safety of their circle. The kids were quick to join them, prancing around the adults, all of them radiating relief and delight. She tried to brush it off as nothing, but those who stayed behind wouldn’t let her, insisting she let them give her some money, food, and other gifts.
Then Cormac went very still as she said something that froze the blood in his veins.
“Thank you for everything! I’m afraid I do need to take up the offer for a familiar though. Can one of you meet me at Blackhollow Academy on Monday morning?”
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
“Kimberly,” he said, gritting the words between his teeth, “can I have a word with you?”
She turned a frown on him. “No.”
Then she did the unthinkable. She ignored him in favor of the centaurs.
It took everything he had not to burst out of his skin in a jealous rage. They picked up on his displeasure, many of them edging back over the line of the circle, their fear only making his desire to shift and tear something apart with claw and fang grow stronger.
He went back to the car and stared up at the distant horizon, concentrating on calming himself down. There had to be a reason she would spurn his offer to give her everything she wanted. That she would turn him down in favor of a centaur for a familiar was beyond belief, and quite possibly one of the most insulting things that had ever happened to him.
He couldn’t grasp her motivations. He couldn’t understand why she wouldn’t accept his offer. He didn’t get why she didn’t want his money, his jewels, his power.
He couldn’t figure out what in the nine hells a centaur had that he didn’t.
It was driving him daft. She was driving him daft.
And he didn’t care. As long as she let him into her life, he would let her do whatever it was that made her happy.
It was a strangely calming realization. If he had to suffer her having a centaur for a shadow, so be it. It was a small price to pay considering how badly he had wounded her pride.
Pride. That stirred something. He wasn’t sure what the connection was to what she was doing yet, but he’d give it some contemplation when he wasn’t so riled or had the distraction of her twisting his every thought to what else he could do to please her and make amends for hurting her.
As she wrapped things up with the centaurs, he took note of the one who promised to be her familiar. Eddie, one of the bucks, he was more than a little displeased to see. The boy looked like he belonged on a farm somewhere, with his tan and sun-streaked hair, and more muscular build than the one Cormac had chosen to use for himself. It raised his hackles to see the way she touched the centaur’s arm and smiled up at him.
Telling himself that it meant nothing didn’t do a thing to quell his desire to shift and snatch her up to fly off with her somewhere nice and private. At some point he would drive home to her that he meant everything he had said. He had never intended to hurt her. He wanted her like he’d never wanted anything. Not all the jewels and gold and precious valuables in his hoard meant a thing if he couldn’t have her.
Some of the tension in his muscles eased when she waved her goodbyes and came back to his side, smiling up at him.
“Thank you for helping with the demonstration. That was very nice of you to keep an eye on things.”
He nodded, his lips twitching despite his efforts to maintain a stony and aloof expression. He just couldn’t do it when she was looking so happy. That happiness was infectious, and ruining his image of being the biggest, baddest monster in town.
Perhaps he should do something about that.
“And thank you for not flipping out about the familiar thing. I know you’re not happy about it.”
His own smile widened at that. “Oh, I wouldn’t thank me yet. Would you say you’re finished here?”
“I guess so—oh!”
He barely waited for the words to finish leaving her mouth before grabbing her and throwing her over his shoulder. She gasped at the treatment, smacking his back.
“Put me down!”
“In a minute.” He turned to the centaurs clustered together in a group, gaping at the two of them. “Clan Archer, thank you for your hospitality. If there’s nothing else, we’ll be leaving now.”
Damaris was the first to find her voice, though it still sounded a bit high and strangled. “Kimberly, will you be all right?”
“I’m fine,” she muttered, giving Cormac another thump with her fist. “See you guys on Mon—”
Cormac didn’t wait for her to finish. A shriek was startled out of her and the centaurs were stampeding away in terror as the monster hidden by human skin burst free. Kimberly threw her arms around one of the growing spines on his back, panting in fear as her sneakers fought for purchase against slick scales. His wings spreading impossibly wide to blot out the sun as he shifted into his draconic form, bunching the muscles near where Kimberly was trying to hold on, making it easier for her to find purchase and steady herself.
It only took seconds for him to change, though he took care to ensure he didn’t brush up against the walls of Kimberly’s circle or do anything to damage the cars in the lot. The obfuscation spells he typically used to hide himself from mortal eyes when in his native form snapped into place, sending a tingle of magic and sheet of blue-white sparks racing over them both.
Once he was settled in his own skin, he arched his long, sinuous neck to peer back at her, the deep blue orbs glinting with what she was certain was amusement at her expense. With a grunt of effort, she heaved one leg up to hook behind the iguana-like spine that towered higher than she was tall, seating herself properly on his back as she clung to him for dear life.
“That was very rude,” she told him, voice shaking as much as the rest of her.
Cormac snorted, a little puff of smoke drifting up from his nostrils. “Proper comportment is the least of my concerns at the moment. Hang on tight…”
Her fingers dug deep into the cartilage of the spine she was clinging to as he took to the air in one powerful leap. Muscles and scales heaved under her legs, rising and falling with every flap of his wings.
“Sorry!” she yelled down at the centaurs rushing pell-mell for the trees. She didn’t think they could hear her over their own pounding hooves.
Once they were high above the trees, he steadied into a glide as he rode a thermal taking them back over the Sound. The jarring movements tapered off and Kimberly was able to swallow her heart out of her throat.
As badly as Viper had frightened her on the last flight she was conscious for, this time she had a hard time being scared for long. It was an entirely different experience on dragonback. She had to hold tight with her arms and legs, but it wasn’t anywhere near as uncomfortable as being carried and near crushed by a set of razor talons. Soaring with the birds had her stomach bouncing between her shoes and the back of her tongue, but the wind rushing through her hair, the panoramic spread of the Sound and distant city before her, the fresh seawater scent, and the sun on her face fill
ed her with exhilaration.
Knowing Cormac wouldn’t let her fall made it easier to slip into the moment and enjoy the rush at the occasional dips and dives he took with the shifting air currents.
Kimberly looked all around, trying to take in everything at once as Cormac flew them over the water. She had to shield her eyes and squint against the wind, and it was colder than she was dressed for, but the view took her breath away. When they reached the city, he slowed down and angled his wings to take them in low. He started to bank to one side as if preparing to go sideways between a row of skyscrapers, but he altered his angle to go around them instead when her grip tightened as she went rigid.
He circled the Wild Hunt once, twice, then a third time, before landing on the rooftop with as much care and delicacy as he could muster. When he arched his neck to peer at his passenger, Kimberly was looking radiant with excitement. Her hair was a total bird’s nest, windblown and tangled, and her cheeks were red from windburn, but she was smiling and her green eyes were aglow with pleasure.
Taking his time shifting back to his mortal form, he took care not to let her slip and fall, twisting at just the right moment to catch her in his arms so they were eye to eye. Her breath caught in her throat as she wrapped her arms around his neck and twined her legs around his waist. It pleased him enormously that she clung to him so tightly, but more that she met his gaze without any sign of fear or anger.
Though he knew a single flight fell far short of what he needed to do to prove himself to her, he hoped it helped his case to show her he could carry her wherever she wanted to go. Whether that meant across an ocean, to the stars, or to a better life, he would endeavor from that point forward to support her in any way she would let him.
“That was amazing,” she said.
He grinned, lifting a hand to smooth some of her hair out of her face. “So were you, in more ways than you know. You never mentioned you had such talent with wards and enchantments.”
“I guess we both have our secrets,” she replied before huffing in exasperation. She ran a hand raggedly through her hair—hissing as her fingers got caught in the windblown tangles—before tugging them free and pressing her palm against his chest to put some distance between them. “Which I think we need to talk about. Can you give me a little more warning next time you plan on flying me somewhere? You scared those poor centaurs half to death. And Damaris could have driven us back here.”
Cormac set her on her feet with a low, satisfied growl, his hands lingering on her hips. “Among other things, yes. As much as you might enjoy the company of those centaurs, Damaris’s driving skills left something to be desired and I am running short on patience. Tell me what I can do to keep you to myself.”
Kimberly pulled away, folding her arms and regarding him with a mix of amusement and exasperation. “Did you forget that I’m mad at you? A little time on dragonback is not going to blow those memories out of my head, and it’s going to take more than a simple apology to make me trust you again. You can start by letting me make my own decisions about my future. Like picking a familiar I know won’t get cold feet to get me through my finals.”
He ducked his head, baring his teeth in a grimace. It was perhaps a bit more fang-filled than he meant to display, but Kimberly was not in the least bit intimidated. She regarded him steadily, and Cormac sidled closer to cup her cheeks in his hands.
“I will earn back your trust. I swear it. If I have to step aside for now, so be it—but I expect you to let me take that twice-be-damned donkey’s place as soon as you graduate. Sooner, if I can talk you into it.”
She snorted. “Donkey? Really?”
He bared his teeth in something that might have been a grin. “I would have called him a horse’s ass, but I was trying to spare your sensibilities.”
That got a laugh out of her. “Oh, Cormac. Eddie’s not that bad.”
“Maybe not, but I’ve never been the type to share. Not to mention that I find your choice of a centaur over a dragon to be more than a little peculiar.”
“The herd owes me the favor, and all I need is to get my graduation certificate. I don’t need a dragon to do that, I just need to prove I can bind a familiar. What’s the big deal? You can help me in other ways. Like finding me a new job.”
Cormac’s eyes flashed with blue-white light, and though his expression was fierce, Kimberly didn’t flinch away. With a snarl, he began pacing before her, his hands clenching and unclenching as he fought the animal instinct to change again and carry her far away from the city and all of the competition for her attentions.
“The big deal? The big deal is that I’ve wanted you as long as I’ve known you. Longer. Centuries have left me bitter and alone, never knowing a part of me was missing, waiting for you to complete me. All I want is you. All I’ve ever wanted was you.”
Kimberly hugged herself tight, for the first time finding herself unable to meet his gaze. “I don’t know how you could feel those things about me.”
He slowly reached out, giving her time to pull away if she wanted to. The constriction in his chest eased when she accepted his light touch, leaning into the fingertips brushing over her cheek. He moved closer to fold her into his arms, breathing a sigh of relief into her hair before answering her.
“Because you’re a shining star on the inside, burning away the darkness inside of me. You were always kind and gentle and funny, and wouldn’t let me be anything less with you. It shattered the heart I didn’t know I had when you turned me away.” He took a shaky breath, tightening his hold on her. “I’ll make up what I did to you. If it takes a thousand years, a thousand lifetimes, I’ll become the dragon worthy of calling himself your familiar. You’ll never be alone again. I’ll be your sword, your shield, and anything else you would have of me. Let me be there to catch you when you fall. Let me be yours.”
“You and your melodrama,” she mumbled against his chest.
The salt of her tears on the air sent knives of guilt into his heart, piercing him with shame for ever hurting her, filling him with remorse for being the reason for those tears. Frowning, he set his chin on top of her head, savoring the warmth of her as she relaxed against him.
“I mean it, you know. I can never be sorry enough for how I treated you. For letting Viper hurt you. Please, Kimberly. I’ve never wanted anything—anyone—like I want you. I can wait for you to accept that. Forever if I have to. But I can’t stand by and leave you unprotected. Let me be your familiar.”
“What if I said no?”
The faint sound he made in his throat was choked off by the lump that appeared there like magic. Then he realized that she wasn’t trembling in his arms because she was crying—she was laughing.
Her fingers twined in his shirt as she arched back to look up at him. Her eyes shone, her lips trembling with a shaky smile.
“How about you just try being my friend?”
He growled, his own eyes twinkling as he grinned down at her. “I don’t know if I can handle that. I want so much more. To be your guardian, your confidant, and your lover. I want to be yours forever.”
Her jaw dropped, cheeks turning pink. He closed his eyes tight and bowed his head in comical contrition, giving a theatric sigh as one hand dipped low on her hip, toying with the waistband of her jeans. That delicious heat she was radiating grew hotter under his touch.
“…but seeing as I managed to screw things up so badly, I suppose I can be patient for a bit longer for you to give me a chance to be more than friends. I’ve waited lifetimes to find you, after all.”
Shoulders shaking with suppressed laughter, she squirmed a bit to give him a good poke in the side. “Stop trying to guilt your way into my bed. I’m supposed to be mad at you.”
“You can be mad. Angry sex is always good.”
Gasping, she flushed right down to her toes, heart pounding a staccato rhythm. “You really are a beast.”
His smile turned wicked. “Surely you’ve heard the tales of how we dragons have voracious�
� appetites.”
“I don’t know about that. Greedy, possessive streaks a mile wide…”
“If wanting to keep you all to myself forever makes me greedy and possessive, guilty as charged.”
She buried her face against his chest again, groaning. “If you don’t stop being so charming, I’m going to forget that I’m supposed to be mad as hell. It’s not fair.”
“Does that mean my dastardly plan to lure the gentle maiden off to my lair is working? I’ve heard dragon flights off into the sunset are considered romantic by some…”
“Yes, damn you,” she said, laughing. “As long as you don’t carry me around in your claws like a sack of potatoes. And give me some warning next time before you try carrying me off.”
“As my lady commands.”
With that, he leaned in to kiss her, gentle at first. The moment she melted into him, he deepened it into a fierce, possessive assault, chest vibrating with a hungry, animal sound of need. Her hands slid up his chest, tangling in his hair as she kissed him back, her hunger and desperation made all the more satisfying by her sweet tears.
Before he lost his mind, he needed to be sure of one last thing.
Lightly nipping her lower lip, he withdrew just enough to whisper against her cheek, his lips trailing over her skin in a delicious tease that had her shivering with need in his arms.
“Does this mean you’ll bond with me?”
A frustrated noise escaped her as she tugged lightly on his hair to pull him back down to her. “Only if you keep kissing me like that. Don’t stop.”
With a satisfied growl, he obliged her.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
Cormac led Kimberly back inside once he realized she was still shivering. He made a mental note to purchase her a set of goggles and warm clothes to fly with him in the future. Once they reached the kitchen, he put on a pot of coffee and leaned against the counter, holding his arms open for her. She leaned against him, gratefully settling into his warm embrace as they waited for the coffee to finish brewing.