Treasure Lane Dragons: Complete Series (BBW Paranormal Dragon Shapeshifter Romance) (45 page)

So, he had done what any sensible man would have done and took charge of the situation. On their way back from the restaurant the previous evening, he’d arranged to take Jade for a walk along the riverside and tell her a bit about the Goldplains heritage.

“Just a friendly walk and a chat,” he’d said, trying to be as nonchalant as he could.

He had to physically stop himself from skipping a little when she said yes. And now here he was, nervously awaiting her arrival. It was both as sweet as hell and the bitterest thing he’d had to do in a while. Any moment away from her was brutal, despite not even knowing her for that long.

All the things his mother and fathers had told him about the bond between a dragon and his mate turned out to be true. How his whole perspective would shift in a matter of moments, and how he would only truly know what kind of man he was when his mate was in danger. He’d thought all those things silly at best – finding a mate to match both him and Apollo had seemed little more than a pipe dream, something that would obviously never happen.

Alexander smirked to himself, thinking of the intense change his little brother had gone through. As if by magic – which it certainly partially was – the womanizing bad boy had been collared and made behave, and he seemed to be enjoying it immensely. Alexander couldn’t remember a night in the last five or ten years when Apollo wasn’t drunk and out partying with one nameless bimbo after another. Yet here he was now, mostly sober, completely blind to any other woman but Jade, and fully committed to making sure that she became theirs – it really made a dragon proud.

“I’m so sorry. I slept through most of the afternoon. I don’t know what kind of mattresses you guys buy or if you sprinkle sleeping dust in the vents, but whatever it is, I love it! I haven’t felt this rested in forever,” Jade said, exiting one of the backdoors that led out to the gardens.

“No worries. I didn’t wait too long.”

Even if it felt like a lifetime. Dragons above, you’re in deep,
Alexander thought, reaching out his hand to Jade.

To his great pleasure, she took it without hesitation. However, as they started their walk deeper into the gardens, she seemed to consider the way they held hands as something surprising – as if she’d only just realized what she’d done. Alexander didn’t let himself be bothered by that. He was sure she’d grow used to it soon enough, as would he. Provided they were given enough time, that is.

“So, you said you’d tell me a little bit about the history of this place,” Jade started as they made their way through roaming rose bushes and lovely lengths of flowers, all kept in pristine order.

“I did,” Alexander agreed.

They made it to the place where the river snaked past the mansion, and he guided them down the narrow path that led downstream. The road, worn into the lush grass by generations of Goldplains, was adorned by the clear, blue-watered river on one side and heavy green oaks on the other, creating a sort of alleyway hidden from prying eyes. That’s just what he wanted – a bit of privacy.

“I think it’s fair to say we’ve been here for just about forever. Treasure Lane – an area that now comprises Colorado and parts of the surrounding states – was founded by dragons long before humans were even a speck in time. We’ve always ruled here; it’s just that there used to be more of us. While you couldn’t walk a straight line in the old days without stumbling upon a dragon, we now only have four families in Treasure Lane. At least officially. The Goldplains are one of them.”

“And the Blackscales aren’t?” Jade asked, catching a leaf from a tree and twirling it between her fingers as they walked.

“No, and they haven’t forgiven us for it. They were the original owners of Gold Way, according to our family history. But it was common practice to challenge other families for their areas back then, and so we did. And we won. The Blackscales have threatened us with war a few times over the centuries, but we’ve never got along.

There have been a few challenges, but nothing big enough to warrant an all-out war. Dragons have always shared the feeling that any drop of dragon blood wasted is a drop too much. But of course, there are always those who do not agree,” Alexander said, trying to keep the grimness from his tone.

“You think Cameron and Colt would go that far? Try to… fight you?” Jade asked, her voice getting smaller.

Alexander squeezed her hand tighter, watching the late afternoon sun bounce off her raven hair and make her fair skin glow. She looked sexy as all hell to him even when worried.

“I think they wouldn’t mind a chance for some trouble. I don’t know how far they’d go. The Blackscales and the Goldplains haven’t been in the same business since the gold rush ended – that’s helped alleviate some tensions. They’re not in the same area, but I know they still think they deserve a spot on Treasure Lane’s council. Now that we’re both fighting one another on the charts too… well, I wouldn’t be surprised if that was just the push they needed.”

Jade worried her lower lip, and Alexander stopped, pulling her in and against him. He stood tall above her, and he loved the way her breath hitched a little as he kept her close, loving every little shudder that went through her. His body hummed with need, and his dragon was urging him further, but he didn’t want to rush it. Things were far too confusing for Jade, and while Alexander could count on his dragon to tell him what was right and wrong, she only had her gut feeling. It would be unfair to pile more on her so quickly.

Still, he could enjoy it a little, couldn’t he? He traced the outline of her jaw with his thumb, keeping himself painfully clear of her inviting ruby lips. Alexander imagined what it would feel like to kiss them, to kiss her all over. What she would feel like when he pushed into her for the first time. Would she moan? Would her nails rake across his back in ecstasy? Would she be screaming his name, and Apollo’s?

“I can’t say this any other way. Do not worry. What will happen, will. There is nothing we can do about it now, and worrying about it won’t help anyone. Relax. Things will work themselves out, and I have a feeling that the Blackscales and all their darkness can’t stand up to our light if we have you by our side.”

“I can’t help but worry,” she admitted. “I don’t want to cause trouble or heartache for anyone, whether they’re scary-ass dragons or your fans or the people here. All my life, I’ve been trying to leave as small a footprint as I could, and now it feels like things are out of my hands and every step forward means someone has to take a step back.”

“Don’t look at it that way,” Alexander said, somewhat surprised at the conviction the dragon put in his words.

Whenever Jade was vulnerable, his dragon wanted to lash out immediately and take care of whatever it was that was making her feel anxious. But how could he dare to ‘fix’ a heart as good as hers? Though rebellious, there was drive in her and a need to do the right thing that matched his own. It immediately attracted both him and his dragon and made her all the more irresistible to him.

“Life is bound to have its ups and downs. I can tell you with all my certainty that having you with me and Apollo has made us reconsider our lives in a big way. In a good way,” he rushed to add, seeing the question in her eyes.

“How?”

He didn’t want to let go of her yet, so he didn’t. If anything, he dipped his head lower to be even closer to her. Her maddening scent filled his nostrils, and despite the emotionally loaded situation, he felt arousal taking deep root within him. Dragons above, this woman… So much like him and yet different to a fault. Like the perfect step between him and Apollo – wild and uncontrolled in life and always striving for the right thing and the right means internally.

He didn’t think he would ever find a woman he could love as intensely as he clearly saw himself loving Jade. He was thankful that life had proven him wrong.

“Apollo and I, like Cameron and Colt, are dragon twins. With twin shifters, especially with dragons, it is imperative that they find their third, the missing part of their whole to help them reach their full potential. It is called a triad. Me and Apollo, we would form an Alpha Triad.

We are the eldest in our family, and I am the leader of the Goldplains. If the triad remains unfinished, I will only grow weaker. However, if it is completed, the Alpha Triad would rule as the elders of the family, and our powers would be three times what they are individually.”

“And if the triad isn’t finished. If you don’t find your… mate?”

The word rolled off her tongue like the dirtiest secret. Hearing her say it made him want to push her down on the soft grass and make love to her until she couldn’t think of anything but being with him and Apollo for the rest of her life. It took all his self-control to not do it, but he couldn’t stop the low rumble of a growl that burned in his throat.

“Then we would slowly lose our powers until we are only husks of what we are now. It has already begun, and it is growing worse by the day. Since you arrived in our lives, it has slowed down, but still… Until you are our bride, mated to us, we cannot be whole. That is why we need you.”

Jade seemed to consider this, though her eyes were growing hazy with the same need that Alexander was feeling. It was unmistakable. He could read her like a book, and he could only assume she could sense the desire in him as well. How could she not? He was close to vibrating because of the sheer intensity of it.

“How do you know that I’m the one?” she asked finally.

Alexander smiled, letting his hand slip behind her neck and his fingers curl through her black hair, loving the silky feeling against his skin.

“I just know. My dragon knows. There’s no doubt in my mind.”

The look in her green eyes, those jade pools that seemed to promise him infinity… He couldn’t keep himself contained any longer. When she slightly parted her ruby lips, he stole them away in a kiss that made the world stop spinning for a moment and focus only on the two of them.

Jade’s hands wrapped around him, squeezing her against him as they tasted one another, Alexander’s tongue tracing the line of her lower lip and then dipping into her mouth. She tasted even better than she smelled, and his dragon growled its approval, the low rumbling noise thrumming through both of them.

Unabashedly, he let one hand slide down the curve of her back and rest there, while he fisted her hair expertly with the other and made her bring her chin up higher. He kissed her deeper, their lips as if made for each other, and the heat threatening to scorch even Alexander.

Finally, and with more regret than he could put into words, Alexander pulled back. She was breathing heavily, and though the kiss had been broken, he couldn’t let her out of his arms quite yet. It was too soon, and he wasn’t willing to let that heavenly feeling drift from him.

“Is that enough proof?” he asked, grinning.

Jade nodded, and a killer smile curved those delicious lips of hers, making him want to kiss her over and over again. And now, he was certain he would do just that, as often as she would let him.

“For now,” she said with a cheeky grin. “But I might need more convincing really soon!”

“Can’t wait.”

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Apollo

So, what’s a man to do when his entire worldview gets upended with the addition of just one person into his life? Apollo was a man not quite lost, but not entirely sure where he was going either. The last few weeks had been a blur, starting with Jade making her first appearance, all the way to coming to Gold Way and telling her with his full conviction that he and his brother would marry her.

If that wasn’t just about the most insane thing he’d ever heard, he wasn’t sure what was.

He knew Jade was special from the first moment he met her. There was something there that made his dragon stand up and take notice, right along with the man. Shifters always preferred women with healthy curves, though Apollo’s tastes had grown less discerning over the years, but one look at Jade made all those eons of lust come flooding back to him. Yup, he definitely wanted a woman with curves. Especially
that
woman.

His mouth watered at the merest thought of her, and while being away from her was brutal, being near her was even worse. Apollo seemed to be grappling with himself whenever he was near her, trying to convince himself that throwing her on the floor and fucking her senseless wouldn’t be the most gentlemanly thing to do in their situation.

With each day, it was becoming harder and harder to make that understanding stick.

Never in his life had he been quite as conflicted about what he should and shouldn’t do. Apollo was reactionary to a fault, and finding himself actually plotting and planning, trying to direct his actions so they might impact her only positively, was something he was still trying to get the hang of.