Legend of the Forbidden (16 page)

A laugh escaped his lips, and Maya wasn't sure what was so funny, but she humored him and joined in. He took her hand in his once more and began to walk with her down the street. “My boss is going to love this. He's heard a lot about the Inero girl, and the Terran boy, and all of the drama behind their union.”

“So you know about all of it?” she asked, surprised.

“It's part of my job.”

“And that is?”

“Like I already said—to find you.”

For a moment she watched him and tried to read his face. It was a mixture of what appeared to be absolute glee and something sinister, because he still smirked. His eyes lit up in the moonlight and were large with excitement, yet something about the smirk made her nervous. As if he could sense this, he wagged a finger in front of her. Then he kissed her, long and deep, and she no longer had a care in the world. In fact, her mind went completely blank.

 

 

Dani took in another deep breath, to calm her nerves. The night was coming to a close, and it was just about time to leave her home permanently. Being on her own sounded scary.
But I have Ethan, and he'll keep me safe, right?
There were other things to be nervous about as well, though. The retaliation of Lord Bolton was one of them, and even more so was the thought of making love to Ethan. Of course she wanted to do it, to be close with him, to be one. But the idea was still a little scary. She'd heard a lot of stories. What would it be like? Would it be magical? Hurt? What if her being a female dragon changed things? How would her magic react to his? So many factors for her to weigh.

If I'm not ready, we won't have to,
she decided.
He'll understand. We'll figure it out together.
Dani glanced over at him from across the dinner table. They'd just finished eating with her family one last time before heading out. Where they were going, she didn't know, but Ethan had mentioned having it taken care of. She trusted him.

“You ready?” he asked, putting a hand on hers. There was still some apprehension there, almost as if he were still trying to get used to the idea of touching her in such an intimate way. It was new for her too.

She nodded, smiling up at him, and then glanced at her parents. Her mother was crying, and her dad, per usual, was a bit hard to read. He wore a smile, but his body was tense from his head down to his toes. Something had to be bothering him, and that alone made her nervous.

Dani walked over to her parents and hugged them. “Thank you,” she whispered.

“Call us?” her mother asked.

“As soon as we get there,” she said, not knowing where 'there' was.

Her father stroked her hair. “Be careful.”

“I will, promise.” She leaned up and kissed his cheek.

Then she went to Tyson, who collected plates from the small celebration. Dinner had been quick and simple. Her mother had baked chicken, made a lot of scalloped potatoes smothered in cheese, and salad. For dessert there had been some store-bought cookies. Not something most would consider a grand wedding feast, but for Dani it was more than enough. Neither her nor Ethan were familiar with the tradition to begin with, so she didn't feel as if she'd missed out on anything. In fact, even having a ceremony was more than enough for her.

When she got to Tyson, she hugged him from behind. He jumped a little and then faced her, so he could return the hug.

“Are you sure you're going to be okay?” she asked.

“I'm fine, please, stop,” he insisted. “After you head out, I'm going to try to find Maya. Kind of surprised she hasn't come back by now, so I'm a little worried.”

Dani forced a smile, not sure how much she should say. She didn't know how much he knew about what had happened between Maya and Ethan, or how he would react to it. So she kept her mouth shut and hugged him, praying silently for the best. Hopefully everything would work out well for them all.

“She's fine, I'm sure of it,” Dani said softly.

Tyson smiled. “And so am I. No more worrying. Focus on being happy, okay? That's the whole reason we're doing this. You constantly asking me if I'm sure and okay, is taking away from the moment.”

“Sorry.” She laughed. “Okay, I won't say anything again. Promise. And I want the same things for you.”

“It's why we'll always be best friends.” He kissed her cheek. “And relax, because you have nothing to be scared of. You're like a bottle about to burst open or something.”

“Trying,” she admitted. “It's not so easy.”

“I know. I'll call you tomorrow some time to check up on you both. Then I can tell you I told you so.”

“Is there something I don't know about?” she asked.

Tyson shrugged. “Just trust me when I say he knows what he's doing.”

What is that supposed to mean?
Tyson's statement could be taken a number of ways, and her confusion must have showed because he started to laugh. He didn't say anything, though. Hugging her one last time, Tyson then dried his hands so he could join her family in seeing her and Ethan off.

She returned to her husband's side and couldn't help but grin like an idiot. Husband, not something she'd ever imagined having. Even during the time she was arranged to be with Tyson, she'd never thought the day would actually come. Ethan being her husband was too good to be true. And while it felt right inside of her, it also didn't feel as if that was the correct definition for their relationship. They felt like something deeper than husband and wife, but she couldn't find the right word to describe the connection they had.

Ethan once more put his arms around her. “I got your stuff with mine. We'll get all of it later.”

After promising one more time to call her family as soon as they arrived, the newlywed couple walked out the door hand in hand. Dani leaned into Ethan, and exhaled contentedly.

“Where are we going?” she asked, her curiosity overwhelming her.

“I know a great spot. It's not far, and well worth it.”

“And from there?”

He glanced down at her. “What do you mean? We'll be honeymooning for a few days, right? Where else would we go?”

“I meant after,” she said.

“I guess I assumed we'd be going back to Oceina City,” he said quietly. “Unless you had another idea?”

She shook her head. “Not outside of staying here on the island, but part of me feels like the point of getting married is to do your own thing.”

“Good point,” he said, and nodded slowly. “Then maybe not Oceina City. Maybe another city there? Unless you'd rather stay in Inero.”

“Not particularly. I didn't like Inero City the couple of times I've been there. Plus, it's not an 'us' kind of place. We can visit a few places and find one that's perfect. Maybe it'll be in your home nation, maybe it'll be mine, or maybe it'll be someplace we've never seen before. I think we should start with Oceina City though, if only so we can see your parents. You shouldn't leave things in such a sad state between you and your family,” she said, and rubbed his hand with her own.

Ethan rolled his eyes. “I know you're right, but I don't like it. Can it wait a few days? This is supposed to be a moment we can enjoy. If we go see them now, they'll only rain on our happiness. I told you how ticked off my dad was, right?”

“Vaguely,” she said with a laugh. “Okay, we'll worry about it in a few days. Besides, right now I want to get used to the idea that I get you all to myself.”

“I want to get used to the idea of having you, period,” he said softly, and then kissed her lips. “My biggest fear is that someone is going to take you from me forever. Which is part of why I wanted to go to Oceina City. I feel safe there, maybe because of my dad, or it might be because it's familiar surroundings.”

She grabbed his face in her hands and forced him to look her in the eyes. “Like I said, we'll talk about it in a few days. For now, how about you take me to this awesome place you have picked out for our…” Her cheeks instantly felt hot as she thought about what could possibly be coming next.

“Honeymoon?” he supplied for her.

“Yes.”

“All right, this way.” He took her down to the beach where they had been wed less than an hour ago. “Stand back.”

She watched him walk to the water. The waves washed up around his ankles. His blue eyes closed and he began to transform into his dragon shape. Dani didn't see him take the form often. Usually, the magic to do so tired him out a great deal. When he'd said they'd fly to their destination, she had thought he'd arranged for a ride on a relative, friend, or even an airplane. It touched her that he wanted to take her himself, but she wasn't sure if it was a good idea given the weak condition of his heart. She had to trust him to know better than to put himself in danger.

Ethan's body grew longer. When it came to his dragon form, he wasn't large in size, like many of the other Oceina dragons she'd seen. His snake-like body was maybe fifteen feet in length, which could be the equivalent to a child-sized dragon of his kind. Large enough for her to get a ride, but nothing impressive. Even his father was larger at around thirty feet long, and rumor had it that he was small in size as well.

His skin turned into hard, blue scales that shimmered in the moonlight and made him look like he was covered in large sapphires. So beautiful, it took her breath away.

“Okay, I'm done,”
he said.

Dani walked toward him and placed a hand on his back, so she could lift her body onto it. He was only around five feet tall as well. It took a little effort, but she was able to hoist herself on top without his help. She could never get over how soft his scales felt. They were strong and tough in appearance and function, but also had a smooth silky texture to them much like snake skin.

With a push from his magic, they were airborne. She clung to him, scared of falling off. There was no doubt in her mind that Ethan would catch her, but she didn't want to press her luck either. He hadn't been kidding when he'd said the flight would be short. They flew for around fifteen minutes before he landed again on a neighboring island. One she'd never been to.

Once he was settled on the shoreline, she checked to make sure no one was around. The beach by her house was always secluded, so it kept the secret of the dragons safe. She wasn't so sure about this place.

“No one should be here. It's forbidden for the humans to set foot on this island without a Dragon Lord's permission,”
he explained. “
In fact, if someone is trespassing, I'm obligated to kill them on the spot. So I hope it is empty.”

“Yeah, killing someone would be a huge mood killer. But where are we?” she asked as she took a step toward the tropical jungle in front of her. That was all she could see either way she looked down the beach. Tall palm trees with coconuts, some large and brightly colored jungle flowers, and off in the distance a large mountain covered in vegetation. It was more tropical than Shanrea, which had more cliffs and sand along its beaches. But they couldn't be that far away, could they?

Ethan slowly transformed back to his human form again, and she noticed how out of breath he was. He must have flown harder and faster than she'd thought, or he was still weak from his previous traveling. She went to his side, offering herself up for him to lean on if needed. He did, stumbling into her, nearly knocking them both to the ground. He was drenched in sweat.

“We should sit so you can rest,” she said, worried. Dani knew he didn't like to be babied, but he was her responsibility to care for now.

He shook his head. “I'm okay, and no, I'm not just saying that to get you off my back. Let me stay in the water for another minute or two, then we can go and relax for real.”

Dani stood with him in the shallow water along the shore, wincing slightly as the element conflicted with her fire magic. The sting didn't last long. “You didn't tell me where we are,” she said.

“It's a sacred island in association with Little Oceina Island. It's where they keep the sacrificial altar for the wedding ritual. Because you know that Oceina men choose their bride, and then they're thought to be sacrificed in a religious ceremony, right?” He glanced down at her briefly, and she nodded. “This is where the girls are brought for this region.”

“But they aren't sacrificed,” she said.

“No, they aren't. Remember, it's just a cover-up. Otherwise there'd probably be a lot of drama since the humans don't know, nor can they know, about our secret. Anyway, the island is uninhabited, but there's a house here,” he said.

She raised both of her eyebrows. “A house? Why? I mean, if no one lives here.”

“It was built by one of my great-grandfathers. I guess he needed shelter. It's not anything fancy, but it has a beautiful view.”

“How did you find out about it?”

He glanced down at the ground. “My dad showed it to me on one of our trips. Said if I ever needed it, that's why it was there. I thought it would be nice. Then we can go to the island, explore it a little bit. Apparently, it's where my mom is from. Could be fun.”

She nodded. “Lead the way.”

Silently, he walked her into the jungle. There was a small path through the trees that led to the base of the mountain. They walked for several minutes, and for what felt like at least a mile. Off in the distance she could barely make out a small house made from wood. Ethan took her to the front door and turned the knob slowly.