Billionaire Dragon's Bride(40)

The kiss seemed to go on forever but was cut short much too fast when they were disturbed by heavy footsteps and a gush of wind from Cillian Greenmeadow landing on the roof beside them. He tucked his big wings by his sides and considered the couple with curious and somewhat amused eyes. Unlike Remington, he didn’t fill Gemma with fear or worry. There was something mischievous about the way he carried himself, but more than that, she felt that he was… good. Wicked but good, like Devon.

You’re playing with fire, Cillian’s voice echoed in her mind, the metallic tone reminiscent of emerald serpents and ancient secrets.

“I am the fire,” Devon replied, a smirk tugging at his lips.

Gemma grinned at his remark. Yes, if nothing more, he was certainly that. She considered the large dragon before them thoughtfully. He had golden horns twisting out from the top of his skull, giving him an even more fearsome look than Devon’s. His scales glistened golden-green, and he was as big as Devon, if not even larger.

He held himself differently, though, with a little more looseness to his posture that made Gemma imagine he could leap faster but not farther than the Bluewing. The way his maw curved made him seem like he was constantly amused by something, which Gemma thought to be an interesting look on a dragon.

That could very well be, Cillian agreed. It felt odd to have his voice in her head, like he was intruding on something that should have been kept just between her and Devon.

I guess I will have to get used to a lot of things that are a little bit weird, Gemma thought, squeezing herself closer to Devon, as if by her presence alone she could wish away his wounds.

This must be the bride that we have heard nothing about, the one that has brought all of this trouble. Pleased to meet you. A woman capable of bringing centuries of embers into a fire this big must be a remarkable person. I am Cillian. The dragon bowed his head slightly, bringing his muzzle almost to the ground in front of Gemma.

She inclined her head as well, her stomach twisting at having him so close. One did not get used to beasts so large that the eye could barely comprehend them quite that easily, and communicating with them was another matter entirely.

“Gemma. Pleased to meet you.”

Likewise, Cillian’s voice said, softer for a moment, before growing sterner again, his attention turning to Devon. I sent Apollo for Remington’s wife and brothers. I suggest you not be here when they arrive. I don’t think I have the stomach for another show like that today, Cillian’s voice rung in her ears, Devon growing immediately stiffer against her. Devon threw a glance at Remington’s body on the mountainside, Alexander Goldplains guarding over it, his large wings flexed to provide a makeshift cover from the boulders of ice and snow that sometimes still trundled down the mountainside.

She watched as his mouth twisted in irritation.

“I will take them on as well, if need be,” Devon said defiantly, and there was no doubt in Gemma’s mind that he would attempt just that, and because of his wounds and their greater numbers, fail miserably. That dragon stubbornness…

“Devon, no. Let’s go,” Gemma said, curling her fingers in his hand and releasing her grip on him, wanting to urge him to go. She didn’t want to think about even the option of losing him. She wouldn’t live through it, this much she knew, even though there were plenty of worries and questions swimming around in her head about everything else.

“Is he…” Devon asked, a sigh of relief going through him as Cillian shook his head ever so slightly.

No, but he will wish he was. I think it is settled now. He would be a fool to try again. You’ve given him his life. It is the highest form of mercy. We cannot wipe him from our kind, not these days… Not when there are so few of us. But I am sure his family will not leave things as they are. I suspect there will soon be a new Redblade elder.

Cillian inclined his head slightly, and Gemma nodded. She agreed, it was the right way to leave things, and Devon was in no state to take on another fight. He needed rest and time to heal. She did as well. And time seemed to be the most valuable commodity just then.

“Fine, I will go,” Devon finally agreed reluctantly, draping an arm around Gemma’s shoulder. “Please let me know, Cillian. And… Thank you. For stopping me. I wouldn’t have…”

I know. I would not have either.

Nor would have I, Gemma thought darkly.





CHAPTER TWENTY

Gemma



Gemma stirred slowly, awoken by soft murmurs outside the door. Her sleep-ridden eyes opened with far more difficulty than she had expected, and when her hand instinctively reached for the spot next to her where Devon had been resting for the past few days, there were nothing but cool covers there. That woke her up with a start. For a second, she thought she was back in Remington Redblade’s mountain lair, her wrists shackled and her fate in everybody else’s hands but her own.