Emma (Dark Fire) (5 page)

Her eyelids fluttered, but refused to stay open.

Something curled around her bared midriff, sending curls of warmth through her.

Licking her lips, they tasted salty like blood. Blood?

Oh, crap! Dragon!

Fear surged through her and her eyes snapped open.

A worried face hovered above her. She squealed and scrambled backward, coming to a resounding halt at the base of a big oak tree.

“Emma, please don’t be afraid. I’d never hurt you,” he said fervently, grimacing as she flinched away from him.

She shuddered in relief, beyond thankful he appeared human for the moment.

Warily, she watched him, while trying to wrap her mind around the impossible. Honestly, she didn’t understand how the gorgeous young man could change into a fire-breathing monster.

Scooting around the tree, moving away from him, she struggled to speak. “That was you?” she demanded, never taking her eyes off him.

He nodded.

Disbelief warred with what she’d seen. “You’re in the same clothes, why didn’t they shred? The dragon was huge! Where did all the extra mass come from? There’s no way a human body can change into something a hundred times bigger. It’s scientifically impossible. That’s not even taking into account the scales and horns. Your skin...” she snapped her teeth together, huffing in frustration. “Oh, good grief, I’m rambling like a lunatic.”

The longer she spoke, the darker Tyler’s scowl grew. “That’s just the way it is. Why is that so hard to believe?”

“Hello?” Emma asked sarcastically, curling her heart-shaped face into a look of incredulity. Strangling her fear, she stomped toward him, waving her hand in front of his face. “This is Earth. There’s no such thing as dragons.”

She paced back and forth. The top of her head barely came to his shoulder. “Are you going to answer me or just stare at me?” Emma demanded, scowling up at him.

A multitude of emotions flickered across his face. “We haven’t had access to Earth in over a thousand years,” he said, shaking his head. “You must’ve hit your head a bit too hard.”

“My head’s fine,” she grumbled.

He snorted. “Right, sure it is. You say you’re from Earth. That’s not fine, that’s delusional.”

“I just got the wind knocked out of me. Come on,” she marched to the middle of the stream bed, flicking her fingers toward the large open space, “change. If you’re a drag…” Her sarcastic demand stuttered to a halt.

In less time than it took to blink, his golden tan disappeared and his human body morphed into a huge black dragon.

Black scales covered his body. Thick hind legs bulged with muscles. A single forearm landed in front of Emma’s feet, causing the ground to tremble. Even though his leathery-wings folded above his back, his body seemed poised to take flight. He lowered his long, curved neck, twisting around to meet her eyes. The dragon’s rattlesnake shaped head tilted toward her, two long, black horns curved up, and along the top of his head. His snout, filled with very sharp teeth, paused in mid-air.

After a moment of hesitation, he leaned in close, moving slowly. The tip of his snout, which had a slight upward point, halted a few inches from her.

 She inhaled, enjoying the same spicy scent as earlier. Only this time, it seemed richer, more vibrant. How could a person smell like hot summer sunshine?

Hesitantly, she reached to touch him. The forward momentum of her slender hand froze in mid-air as if she hit an invisible barrier. Belatedly, she remembered the creature in front of her was not human, not in the normal definition of the word. Shaking her head in disbelief, she swallowed. She wasn’t sure if she should be terrified or excited. The whole experience was so unreal.

Hand half poised, she asked the obvious question, “You’re not going to bite me or anything are you?”

He growled, gently nudging her suspended hand with his muzzle.

Startled, she jumped, but didn’t jerk her hand away. His muzzle was soft. The scales covering his head were thimble-sized, much smaller than those covering his body were. She rubbed his warm snout, enjoying the surge of dangerous excitement that flooded through her.

“You can’t read my thoughts or anything can you?” she asked, tilting her head in question.

He snorted and shook his head no.

Well, that was a relief. She didn’t want him to realize how attracted she was to him, and she definitely thought he was hot. She mentally overheated just thinking about his gorgeous bedroom eyes and sexy body. He’d been dressed in midnight, from his tight black pants and knee-high boots to a silk shirt and belted sash. She couldn’t seem to move past the fact he fulfilled every girl’s hidden dream, especially hers.

He was a temptation beyond anything she’d ever encountered; a sinfully dark temptation like a bowl of ice cream drenched in dark fudge and whipped cream.

She wanted to drown herself in him. Snorting silently, she didn’t dare give into her urge. There was no way he would ever look at her that way.

She knew a lost cause when it crossed her path. Talk about a major case of instant infatuation. She hoped he never became aware of it. She’d be mortified. No way did she want Mr. Dark and Dangerous to realize how besotted she was with him.

“Well, that’s good. I don’t like the idea of someone rummaging around in my head,” she said with a smile. Rubbing the top of his muzzle, she focused on enjoying the moment, not wishing for a pipe dream. She continued up between his eyes, relishing the feel of his scales. “The scales are so warm. I thought they would be cold, but they feel almost like sun-warmed coins.”

His rumbling chuckle brought another grin to her face. She pulled her hand away just as he changed to his human shape. “Dragons have multiple layers of scales. The under layers are much thicker and stronger. The top layers are much softer. I’m only seventeen so I’ll grow more layers and they’ll get tougher the older I get.”

He gave her another heart-stopping smile, eyes gazing steadily into hers. “Now that I’ve proven I’m dragon, I don’t suppose you can prove this is Earth?”

She snorted and said, “Nope, not unless you want to go back home with me. Either way, I’ve got to get home.” She headed toward the small trail behind Tyler. “If blue bushes and dragons popped up all around the country Uncle Keith will be worried sick about me.”

“What about your mom and dad?”

“Dad died when I was four. Mom cashed-in dad’s life insurance, dumped me on Uncle Keith’s doorstep, and disappeared for nearly ten years.” Ignoring the dull pain her words caused, she told him about the one good thing that came from her mom’s cold actions. “It took years, but after proving she abandoned me, Uncle Keith adopted me. He treats me just like his own daughter, Alyssa. I know he’ll start hunting for me, and when he finds the dead vampire, he’ll totally flip-out.”

Close on her heels, Tyler followed her. “You didn’t kill Lester. The bloodsucker was gone when I went through the meadow.”

“Oh,” she said, sighing in relief. “I was afraid I’d killed him.” Vampire or not, she really didn’t want to kill anyone.

She glanced up at him, wondering how far he would follow her. Not that she was complaining. A dragon would be handy to have around if she stumbled across another vampire.

She didn’t understand what was going on in the world, but if weird things appeared everywhere, there would be chaos. Yep, no doubt about it, people would totally freak-out.

She must have made a sound, because he asked what was wrong.

“Just thinking,” she said, waving her hand at the outlandish blue bush to her right. “Do you have any clue what’s going on?”

“I wish,” he said with an abundance of exasperation. He pointed to the sky peeking through the trees. “Whoever heard of a blue sky this time of year?”

Emma’s mouth dropped open and she blurted, “You don’t have a blue sky?”

Tyler chuckled and a line of worry creased his forehead. “Not in late spring with so much faerie dust in the air. Depending on the variety, faerie dust is purplish-black, sometimes purplish-red. Either way, the dust gives the sky a purple caste.”

“Faerie dust?” she asked, snorting as she laughed.

He raised an eyebrow in question, making her laugh even harder.

“I hate to admit it, but maybe I am on Earth or maybe a new version of Earth. From what little I’ve seen of the forest, it looks like Tuatha Dé Danann somehow meshed with Earth.”

“Meshed?” Emma grinned, enjoying teasing the gorgeous teen. “I guess that’s as good a word as anything. But if that’s Earth’s sky then I’d guess the people and plants and things from your world were somehow transported to Earth.”

He groaned, rubbing the back of his neck. He looked nearly sick. “If this happened everywhere, people will panic. The Enforcers will have people from every small village and town converging on Capital City.”

“Well, if they’re anything like the people of Earth I can guarantee you’ll have a bunch of them screaming the world is coming to an end. I suppose if the sky suddenly turned purple, I might’ve freaked and screamed the same thing.” She chuckled, looking up at him with a sheepish look covering her face. “Well, I guess I did freak out.”

Tyler growled.

She jerked to a halt. Glaring at his chest, she leaned forward, cocking her head a bit to the side as she listened to him. An odd feeling of wonder filled her. “I’ve heard of people growling, but you really growl?”

“I’m dragon.”

“This is going to take some getting used to. People will either want to be your best friend or kill you out of fear.”

For a few minutes, they walked in silence. With every step, his face grew darker. “If the people of Earth don’t believe in dragons will our sudden appearance make them think we’re some kind of invasion?”

“Oh yeah, most definitely,” Emma said, nodding her head as she agreed with him. Her face twisted in dreadful understanding. “The government will think dragons are monsters or aliens. They won’t see you as human so I doubt they’ll even try to negotiate. They’ll strike with missiles and bombs and ask questions afterward.”

He growled softly.

It had to be hard for him. On Tuatha, she bet dragons were at the top of the food chain. On Earth, they’d never stand a chance. At least, she didn’t think they would, especially against the military.

She wondered if his world was high tech or medieval. If it was the latter, she doubted if he understood the true danger. “Do you understand what technology or gun powder is?”

“Technology?” Tyler slowly repeated the unfamiliar word, frowning he shook his head. “I keep getting flashes of weird metal beasts and boxes with wires. Pixie bites are great, but the meaning of a word doesn’t always translate.”

“It’s like smart machinery. Technology is advanced and very powerful machinery. Unless someone can talk to the U.S. government and make them understand you aren’t here to invade the U.S., they’ll send flying machines that will shoot missiles. A few missiles can wipe out – destroy – an entire town.”

Tyler shrugged, seeming unconcerned. “Emma, it’s okay. We can defend ourselves until they’re willing to listen. If they’re anything like us then I’m sure we’ll want to sign a peace treaty, but the Alliance won’t submit to anyone.” He shook his head, waving away what she was trying to say. “The enforcers have been in countless battles, we’ve never come close to losing.”

“I don’t think you understand.” As soon as the words left her mouth, she grimaced, realizing there was a lot she didn’t understand either.

They neared the meadow in silence. It was the first time, since the creek bed, that she had a clear view of the sky, a sky filled with dragons. Some of the dragons had adults and children clinging to their backs, while others seemed to be acting as guards.

A lion with golden wings flew across the sky.

Her eyes widened in shock. Her day just kept getting weirder. She had a feeling humans were about to get a dose of high fantasy whether they wanted it or not.

She tilted her head, curiosity killing her. “The lion is really big. I mean, how is it staying airborne?”

“Lion?” he choked on a laugh.

She looked up into sparkling blue eyes, eyes filled with laughter and warmth.

He chuckled. “I can’t wait to rib my clan brother, Zach, about being a lion.”

At her confused look, he sobered a bit. “They’re called gryphon, or cats in joking, but not lions.”

“A gryphon is supposed to have an eagle’s head and bird feet. At least in Earth’s mythology they do.”

Her words set off another round of chuckles. He shook his head. “I’ve never seen one that does. They’re vane and cock-sure as a rooster, but other than the wings that’s as bird-like as they get.”

“What’s a clan brother?” she asked, more curious about him than the new creatures around her.

His smile warmed her from the inside out, pulling at something buried deep within her. She leaned closer. As soon as she realized what she was doing, she stiffened and took a small step backward.

He didn’t seem to notice her odd behavior. “I attend school at the Academy. After a student reaches twelve, we’re required to live on campus during the week.”

At her frown, he hurriedly explained. “That’s not a bad thing. My clan sibs agree with me. We’ve hung together since we were toddlers. Well, most of us have. We’ve added and lost a few other clan sibs over the years. Our dorm is like a big apartment with a central kitchen and a gathering room.”

From the look on his face, she gathered more from his words. “They’re like family?”

“Yeah, absolutely. They’re like blood sibs.”

She nodded her head, completely understanding at least part of his world. “It sounds like what I have with my best friend, Kayla. She’s at my house more than her own.”

“I look forward to meeting her,” he said, implying he’d be around for a while. Now, that definitely sounded promising.

Tyler gently touched her shoulder, gaining her attention. “I need to talk with the other dragons, but for them to hear me I need to shift into my wér form, which is part dragon, part human.” He gave up his fight not to laugh. “I didn’t want to startle you so soon after your brush with lions.”

His smile was contagious. She couldn’t help but smile back at him. “Thanks, you’re all heart.”