Dragon Heat 2 - Red Hot Dragon (11 page)

weight of drug-induced sleep. In the back of his mind, he

knew he’d taken too many tranquilizer darts. The overdose

of the medication the Knights used to subdue dragons for

capture and interrogation made his lungs burn and his heart

stutter as it fought to beat.

The vision of Avani as a serpent danced before him. As

if conjured from thin air, she’d suddenly appeared from

around the corner in a flash of milky white and mossy

green. He’d never seen such coloring on a snake in the

wild.

He’d been momentarily taken aback by her size and

strength. She wasn’t nearly as big in her shifted form as he

was in his, but she’d started from a smaller human frame.

The way she’d moved with such striking finesse had

stunned him. For all her talk of fighting her Naga side, she

seemed so natural and at ease in that form. Or maybe she’d

simply given in to animal instincts in her desperate need to

protect him.

Even facing certain death, he’d been too taken with her

exotic serpentine beauty to think of anything else. The

darts hitting his chest and arms had dragged him back to

reality.

She’d depended on him to protect her, but he’d failed

her.

Refusing to let her die at the hands of the Knights, he

fought against the poison coursing through his veins.

Slowly, he became aware of a shocking, burning pain on

the right side of his belly. He twitched as incredible

suction tugged on his injured tissues. His vision morphed

from the black sea of unconsciousness to spotty blurs of

movement.

Blinking rapidly, he finally regained his eyesight but

couldn’t move his limbs. The aching suction on his belly

eased but a moment later the agony returned as two sharp

fangs punctured the left side of his chest. The painful

pulling sensation made his heart race. He gulped air into

his oxygen-starved lungs and finally managed to move his

fingers.

His hand moved with aggravating slowness. When he

touched the scaly flesh laid across him, Griffin realized

Avani was biting him—and taking the poison from his

body. Panic punched him in the gut. What if it killed her?

What if she was just as vulnerable to the powerful drugs

used by the Knights? What if it hurt the child they might

have already conceived?

Terrified that she would die or harm their possible

child, he pushed at her, but she clamped down on his hand.

She surprised him with her strength. He fought harder this

time, shoving at her body and trying to dislodge the mouth

fixed tightly to his skin. Her tail slithered closer and

smacked at his free hand, but he wouldn’t be swayed. She

had to stop before she’d taken too much of the poison into

her.

As they grappled on the floor, Griffin grew aware of the

pulsing dragon signatures drawing closer and closer. He

recognized Stig and Ignatius approaching Mad’s house in a

blast of speed. After his earlier phone call, they’d

promised to stand guard. No doubt they’d felt his pain and

panic as the Knights had descended and had rushed to

reach them.

Like two planes coming in for a crash landing, the pair

of dragons slammed into the front porch. Wood splintered

and drywall exploded as the two burst into the living

room. A moment too late, Griffin recognized how the

scene must have looked as a Naga, his blood enemy, sank

her fangs into his flesh. Before he could stop Stig, the fire-

breathing dragon let loose a burst of wicked flames that

skimmed Avani.

Hissing with pain, she jerked off him and reared up into

a frightful striking stance. Fangs extended and dripping

with his blood, she snapped forward to bite Stig but the

other dragon whacked her with his wing. The impact

knocked her across the room.

“
No!
” With a surge of anger, Griffin regained control of

much of his body. He rolled onto his belly and pushed up

on shaking arms. Stumbling toward Avani, he shielded her

from Stig. “No!”

Shock filtered across Stig’s face as Avani coiled

around Griffin’s leg and nuzzled her serpentine face

against his bleeding belly. He protectively curled his wing

around her body, simultaneously shielding and reassuring

her. Her forked tongue flicked against his skin. Unable to

speak, she communicated with him in the only way

possible. He understood her message loud and clear and

placed his hand along her side.

Meeting Ignatius and Stig’s curious gazes, he cleared

his throat and tried to speak. Talking in this form was

difficult so he chose the simplest words. “She is mine.”

He glanced down and held her gaze. Even with her face

distorted in that snakelike way, he read the love expressed

in her eyes. “And I am hers.”

Chapter Eight

Gripping Avani’s hand tightly, Griff led her down into

the bunker beneath her home. Ignatius had remained behind

at Mad’s place to clean up the mess and wait for

reinforcements. Stig had accompanied them, but Griff’s

Scandinavian friend remained upstairs to stand guard,

giving the couple some much-needed privacy.

He tugged her along behind him and straight into the

bathroom. Dazed from the violence she’d witnessed and

her first—and hopefully only—kills in her shifted form,

she didn’t protest when he began to strip her. He dragged

her soiled clothing from her shaking, shivering body and

dropped it on the floor.

When they’d returned to human form, they’d hastily

dressed and left the ransacked and badly demolished

house. She’d gathered so much blood and debris on her

skin and clothing during their hurried escape. Getting her

clean and washing away the evidence of the horrific attack

they’d barely survived topped his priorities.

She didn’t fight him as he pulled her into the small

shower stall and into his arms. Clinging to his solid form,

she burrowed tightly against him. Only then did she finally

break down and begin to sob hysterically.

Guilt gripped his heart like a vise. This whole mess

was his fault. He should never have put her at risk by

taking her to Mad’s house. If she hadn’t been able to shift

or dig deep to unleash her primal instincts, she would

have been slaughtered alongside him in Mad’s living

room. The thought of losing her cut him to the very core.

Suddenly, he was reminded of the way she’d wanted to

be a single mother. Her motives at the time had been to

protect their offspring from the painful childhood she’d

experienced. He’d considered it a selfish move at first,

before he’d gained an understanding of her fears and the

strong maternal instinct to love and cherish that she

already displayed. Now he had to wonder if
he
was the

selfish one.

Was it selfish to want to keep her in his life even though

his work with the Brotherhood would always be so

dangerous? Was it selfish to mark the family they were

trying to create with a massive target for retribution?

His gut churned as he faced an impossible choice. The

desire to love and bind Vonny to him forever was too

strong to deny—but his desperate need to protect her

threatened to force them apart. If anything happened to her

because of him, he would never forgive himself. She was

the last of her kind and very precious.

“Griffin, please don’t pull away from me. Not now,”

she whispered. “I couldn’t bear it.”

The anguish filling her voice slashed at his heart.

Embracing her even tighter, he dipped his head and buried

his nose in the soft, wet strands of her hair. “If I stay,

you’ll always be in danger, Vonny.”

“I’m already in danger,” she murmured. “Your

membership in the Brotherhood adds some additional risk,

but let’s be real. The Knights nearly annihilated my entire

species before I met you. It was only a matter of time until

they tried to finish me off.”

“If they find out what we’re attempting to do—”

She pulled back just far enough to meet his worried

gaze. The love reflected in her dark eyes radiated through

him. Caressing his jaw, she said, “You’ll be here to

protect us.”

Us.
The word filled him with such hope. For so long,

he’d been alone. Yes, he’d had his Brothers and Mad—but

it wasn’t the same as what he’d shared with Avani during

their short time together. He couldn’t imagine never again

waking up with her cuddled in his arms and burrowing

into his heat.

For the first time since joining the Brotherhood, he

dreamed of a life that had seemed almost too far-fetched to

exist—a family of his own. The family he already

belonged to, the Brotherhood, came to mind.

“I can’t walk away from Ignatius and the others,

Vonny.”

“I’m not asking you to do that.” She brushed her

fingertip around one of the bruised bite marks she’d left on

his body. “I know they come as part of a package deal. I’m

okay with that.”

He studied her beautiful face to see if she truly meant

what she’d said. She seemed wholly honest. “And what

happens if I’m not here to protect you against the Knights

because I’m off with the Brotherhood?”

She quietly traced shapes on his skin. “Tonight helped

me understand that I’m not so weak after all. I intend to

train more and hone my skills so I’ll never be at a

disadvantage ever again.”

“You were so brave tonight.” He bent down to capture

her mouth in a lingering kiss. “You saved us both, and I’ll

never forget it.”

A playful smile slanted her mouth. “No, I’ll make sure

of that.”

He chuckled softly and gently applied pressure to her

shoulders to turn her. The shower stall was a tight fit with

the two of them, but they made the best of it. Lathering his

hands, he spread soapy foam across her skin before

tackling the long strands of dark hair clinging to her wet

back.

When he’d finished washing her, she returned the favor.

He delighted in the feel of her slick hands gliding over his

skin. Though it aroused him, he wasn’t chasing sexual

release at the moment. After coming so close to losing

their lives, he wanted to reconnect with her. The way she

touched him, her hands sliding across his chest almost

reverently, showed that she shared his desperate need: to

remind themselves they were alive.

The familiar vibrations of Ignatius’s imprint rumbled

through his chest. He glanced toward the ceiling and

decided they only had a few minutes of privacy left before

their ancient leader would want to question them. Back at

Mad’s place, Ignatius had been much too concerned with

cleaning up the scene and keeping any humans out of the

crossfire. Now, he would want to know all about this

arrangement ’Griffin had made with Avani.

Taking full advantage of their last few minutes alone, he

trapped Avani between his chest and the tile wall. He

nuzzled her neck and kissed a slow, teasing line along her

jaw before finally claiming her silken pout. Their mouths

mated in a long, erotic dance that he was loathe to end.

Touching his forehead to hers, he murmured, “Ignatius is

here. He’ll want to talk.”

She sighed heavily. “Let’s get it over with, Griffin.”

He tipped her chin and peered down into her dark eyes.

“He might be annoyed that I didn’t tell him I was coming

here with you, but he won’t try to separate us. He

supported Stig and Cora.”

“That’s a slightly different case.” She stepped out of the

shower and onto the mat. “Their families weren’t engaged

in a centuries-old blood feud.”

He’d all but forgotten about that ridiculous spat

between their families. It seemed so trivial now. Grunting

with frustration, he wrapped a towel around his waist and

pressed his lips to the top of her head. “Wait here. I’ll get

you something to wear.”

Out in the living area of the bunker, he discovered Stig

and Ignatius waiting patiently at the small dining table. He

shot them an annoyed frown. “No, please, make

yourselves at home.”

Stig snorted but had the decency to look chagrined. “We

didn’t want to interrupt you—just in case.”

Griff narrowed his eyes at the pair before grabbing

some shorts for himself and a nightgown and robe for

Avani. “We’ll be out in a few minutes. Make yourselves

useful and put on a pot of tea.”

“Sure.” Stig headed for the small kitchen, but Ignatius

still hadn’t moved or said anything. He seemed deep in

thought. Griff doubted he was going to like what their

leader had to say.

Back in the bathroom, he found Avani combing out her

hair. She reached for a hair tie from her toiletry case but

he stopped her. “Leave it down for me.”

She eyed his reflection in the mirror. An indulgent smile

curved her lips. “All right.”

He kissed her bare shoulder. “Thank you.”

When the two were dressed, they emerged from the