Only For Her Dragon (Dragon Guard Series Book 6)(2)

Heading for the kitchen, they leaned on each other to stay upright. Charlie heated up a couple slices of pizza while Sam grabbed Diet Pepsis. Eating in silence for a few minutes, Charlie felt the buzz of the alcohol wearing off. She wondered if they were ever going to address the elephant…make that dragon, in the room.

Two bites later and unable to hold back any longer, Charlie blurted out, “All right, spill. I’ve seen the dragon. Know some of the secrets. Tell me what’s really going on.”

Sam stopped chewing and sat completely still. Charlie watched as her best friend blew out the breath she’d been holding. Several more seconds passed before Sam finally said, “Well…”

Their eyes met across the table and it was Charlie’s turn to hold her breath. The staring contest lasted almost ten full seconds before Sam spoke again. “I think it would be better if you asked me questions. I honestly have no idea where to start or how much you want to know.”

Charlie rolled her eyes and sighed, but saw the honesty on her friend’s face and decided to play along. “All right, one of your messages said something about Anya being a dragon and that being a big deal. Was she who I saw in the clearing?”

Sam nodded. “Yes, that was the first time she had ever transformed. She’s the first female dragon in hundreds of years. The females were all killed during their war with the hunters and wizards.”

Charlie held up her index finger, signaling Sam to stop speaking, already realizing there was so much more than she could’ve ever imagined. Standing, she walked to the counter, grabbed a notepad and pen, and returned to her seat. After a deep, cleansing breath she said, “Go on.”

Sam smiled and started again. “The dragons have two main enemies in the world that have been around almost as long as they have. They’re the hunters and the wizards, and these assholes have taken damn near everything from dragon kin. First of all, the hunters are a fanatical group of killers’ hell bent on destroying anything supernatural. And before you ask…yes, there are more things out there than just dragon shifters, but that’s for a different day.”

After a sip of her soda, Sam continued, “The wizards are just bat shit crazy. That’s the best description I can give you. I’m happy to say the ones that were in this area all blew up with Andrew’s mansion.”

Charlie wrote…mansion?...blown up? on her list.

“Andrew is Aidan and Aaron’s younger brother and also belongs in the ‘bat shit crazy’ column in your notes. He turned traitor about eight years ago when he was captured and tortured by a group of wizards. He blames Aidan for what happened and Aaron too to some extent…at least, I think. Everyone thought he was dead, but then he reappeared when Kyndel met Rayne. Since then he’s tried everything possible to kill all the guys. He was in the mansion when it blew up, but Rian, Royce’s brother, found a tunnel under the rubble and scented Andrew, so they’re sure he’s still alive somewhere.”

Just the mention of Aaron’s name made Charlie’s pulse race. She pushed all thoughts of the irritating man to the back of her mind and focused on everything she had learned in just a few minutes. Making a few more notes, she looked up to find her friend studying her as if she was one of their patients. “I’m okay,” she chuckled, hoping Sam believed her lie. The truth was she was freaking the hell out and wondered where it would all end, or if it ever would. No matter, she had to know the truth.

“Are you sure?” Sam questioned, reaching across the table and squeezing Charlie’s hand.

“I’m sure I want to know. I’m not promising that I won’t have a million questions when you are done. Or that I won’t need to lose my shit every once in a while. But I want to hear it all.”

“Okay, if you’re sure. What’s your next question?”

“You called Lance your mate. Isn’t he your husband? And is this whole dragon thing the reason I couldn’t be your maid of honor?”

Sam laughed out loud and Charlie couldn’t help but smile. Replaying her question in her mind, she realized she sounded like a petulant child. Thankfully, they’d been friends for so long Sam just laughed it off and kept going.

“Yeah, that’s why and you know I’m still sorry about that. The dragons have a special ceremony for everything. The mating ceremony is very private. Only Lance’s brethren, the guys that he calls brother, the Elders of their Clan, and I could be there.”

“He’s my husband,” she laughed. “But in their culture we’re mates. Actually, we’re soul mates, destined by the Universe to be together. They have a Holy Book that better describes mates and what they mean to each other than I ever could, and I’m sure some time or another you’ll see or hear more about it. The best I can do is tell you that from the moment I saw him, I just knew. I felt it in my soul. We’re supposed to be together forever.”

Sam had a dreamy look on her face and Charlie could actually feel the love her best friend felt for her hus…mate as she spoke. Charlie knew there would come a day when she would feel that way about someone…anyone. At that thought, Aaron’s face, complete with shit-eating grin, appeared in her mind’s eye and her lips warmed just as they had when he’d kissed her.

Not wanting to think about him anymore than she had to, Charlie teased her friend. “You always were a hopeless romantic, Dr. Malone.”

Sam feigned annoyance, complete with a furrowed brow, and pouted before grumping, “If I remember correctly you were the one with the Backstreet Boys poster that had to be kissed every night before bed.” Sam barely had the words out of her mouth before she was laughing out loud, causing Charlie to laugh right along.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah…whatever. I’m not the one waxing poetic about the man of her dreams.”

“I think the lady doth protest too much, but I’ll let you live with your denial for a bit longer. I know you have a million more questions, so ask away.”

“Are they born dragons or is it magical or what?”

“They’re born as dragon shifters now, but when it all started back in Arthurian times there were still real dragons. The poor beasts were hunted and on the brink of extinction when some powerful magical guy found a way to combine the soul of the dragon with the soul of the man. All the men the dragons picked were Knights of the Round Table, very respectable and honorable, men they had fought alongside for years”

“Lance said there were twelve in total when they started out, one from each of the clans. The clans, just so you know, used to be divided up by their colors, but now they all coexist since their numbers never truly rebounded. There are more than there were in total, but some of the clans were wiped out altogether. Lance is a golden dragon. He’s the last of his kind. I hope someday we have a boy to carry on the beautiful color and history of his father’s clan. But for now we have Syd, and Heaven knows she’s one special little girl.”

Sam stopped; once again looking right at Charlie, letting her know what she was about to say was very important. “And when I say special…I mean special. Devon’s mom, Siobhan, is trying to figure out exactly what makes my girl the wonder that she is. Siobhan is an Elder Healer in the Clan and a super intelligent woman. I’ve learned so much from her already. More on that later.”

Charlie made a little note to remind her to find out more about her niece another day and almost missed what Samantha had gone on to say.

“Anyway, like I said, the guys are born as shifters but can’t ‘call their dragon forth’, that’s what they call it when they transform, until they’re like seventeen or eighteen. Until then they just have the marking of their beast somewhere on their torso.”

“So those aren’t tattoos? I just figured since they all rode Harleys and looked like models they were inked.” Charlie chuckled.

“You would think, right?’ Sam laughed. “But no, they have them from birth. It darkens as they get older, then really pops when they transform for the first time. At least that’s what they all tell me. Their dragon glyphs kinda remind me of the marks on your back. Speaking of that, have yours ever moved?”

“Not that I can remember. They itch or tingle sometimes but nothing much more than that. My mom always said they were birthmarks. I’ve often wondered if my birth mom had them too. If they were a family thing…ya know? But, hey, I never really think that much about them.” She hurried on, not wanting to open the whole adopted kid discussion that Sam always wanted to have with her. There would come a day when she would look for her birth parents again, with hopefully better results, but it wasn’t in that moment and she didn’t want to think about it.

Charlie pondered why Sam had asked and thankfully, her friend didn’t make her wait long. Samantha leaned closer and whispered conspiratorially, even though they were alone. “Lance’s marking moves when I touch it.” Then she did something Charlie only remembered her doing a few times in all the years she’d known her…she winked and giggled like a schoolgirl.

Giggling? Oh, I’m saving this for just the right moment.