"No, Riley. Stopping Mitro is my responsibility. It always has been."
Silence speared between them. Riley wasn't sure what to do. She wanted to comfort him but wasn't sure how.
"What was the choice you made?" she asked instead. "When you were trapped in the volcano with Mitro, you said you made a choice ... one that caused these red sparks that flicker around you at times, especially when you're moving fast. What was it?"
"Mitro and I weren't the only ones trapped in the mountain. A fire dragon had chosen that volcano as his final resting place long before we arrived. When Mitro was trying to escape, the dragon offered to merge his soul with mine in order to give me his strength and abilities."
"You mean dragons are real?"
He laughed. "I tell you I chose to merge my soul with a dragon's and you're more interested in the fact that dragons are real?"
"No ... well, yes. Really? They're really real?"
"They were. I don't know if any still live. The one I found had been there for millennia. His body had crystallized, becoming part of the mountain."
"So you're telling me that right now your soul is mixed with a dragon's, and as a side effect from time to time these sparkling red and gold flecks appear." She shook her head and laughed in disbelief. She couldn't help it. What else did he have in his life? "So if I ask why you're so sexy, are you going to tell me your mother was a goddess from Mount Olympus? That she ensnared your father, after a shooting star fell to the ground on a starless night?"
Dax laughed again. "My mother was a sweet woman whom my father loved very much. Although, it's true my mother did claim to ensnare my father, and he did claim he saw stars the first time he set eyes on her." Then his tone changed, losing its flirtatious note. "We're here."
They glided back to earth and landed softly in a small clearing about a half mile from the smoking remains of a village. Dax set her down on her feet, but kept her hand in his.
"Riley before we continue, there is something I'd like to give you." Reaching into his pocket Dax brought out a folded black and red silk cloth in the shape of a dragon. "You open it by pulling the wings out to the sides."
"I don't want to ruin it."
"I can make another one."
Carefully, Riley pulled the wings back, and the cloth dragon unraveled in a way only Dax's magic could make it do. In the center of the cloth lay a gold and silver bracelet.
"This is for me, but why?"
"Let's just say for now it's tradition. I wanted to say I am very sorry for the loss of your mother, and again I hoped you might honor me by finding a home for her last gift in here." He gestured to the empty setting in the intricate design and then slipped the bracelet on to her wrist.
Riley wasn't shocked when it fit perfectly. It was a work of art, and she tracked the different trails of silver, each holding several smaller diamonds meeting at the central space.
Reverently, Riley pulled out the silver dragon with agate eyes holding an obsidian stone. Her mother's death was an enigma. The magic and power she now had wrapped through all her memories and experiences. Something had touched her when she was there, something that had soothed the grief and allowed her to move forward. But holding the piece of jewelry handed down in her family from mother to daughter was a reminder of her mother, and no matter what that something was it couldn't fill the gap that was left behind.
She thought about everything her mother had stood for, the way she was raised, her sense of humor, how she always was there to pick her up when she had fallen down. Annabel was classy and strong; if this dragon was her last gift it deserved a better place than inside her dirty pocket.
Riley's mind was puzzling out what it meant to wear her mother's stone out where others could see it. "How did you know about the dragon, and my mother?"
"You touch it from time to time when you walk, although you don't seem to notice. As for knowing about your mother, how could I not know?"
Opening her hand she presented the dragon to him. "Would you mind?"
Dax covered the bracelet and her wrist with both hands, having palmed the dragon. She felt the heat but couldn't tell if it was his touch or what he was doing as tingles ran up her arm and into her fingertips. His hands came away, and it was perfect. The shadows of grief were still inside, but as she looked from his face down to her mother's gift on her wrist, Riley felt a little more at rest. Without thinking Riley wrapped her arms around Dax, this time feeling completely at ease; she pulled hard, bringing his head closer to hers, initiating the contact this time.
His kiss took her away, sensations pouring into her body. He was so warm, his skin almost hot, his body hard against hers while his mouth moved over hers in long, heady kisses.
Riley pulled back a little, and Dax let her, but she could feel the struggle in him. It caused a wicked sense of danger and control she found a little intoxicating. The fact that he was having a difficult time with control was reassuring. Riley released his neck, slowly bringing her hand over his chest. She could feel his heart beating. Looking up she saw that his eyes were dancing as he held still, and Riley felt even more powerful. Playing with fire, she curled her nails into him.
The growl that rumbled out ran over Riley, causing her to jump back. Dax's whole demeanor was one of victory and entirely too male, she thought. "You beast." Shocked laughter infused her voice at the man that had growled at her.
"If you wish me to be, sivamet. It would be my pleasure."
Riley felt he wanted to pounce on her right then, and by God there was a part of her asking him to. Dax spoke in her mind. We will have lots of time for pouncing, I promise you.
"I'm going to leave that one alone for right now. Thank you for the bracelet." She was trying to find a way to break some of the sexual tension, but she didn't think there was a knife big enough. "What does sivamet mean?"