In a Dragon’s Dream by Riley Storm Page 0,46

like him.

He frowned, grateful for the darkness which concealed the look in his eyes as other thoughts broke through his walls, entering his head despite his determined resistance to keeping them out. He’d done his best not to think of them much, not to dwell on them, but now they came rushing up, overpowering his mental defenses.

What if the Cado were right? What if they saw something that I didn’t see?

The Cado had attacked Laura for a reason. He’d told her it was because the evil dragons had thought that she was involved with him romantically. What he’d left out, of course, was that the Cado must have thought she was his mate.

Turning his head slowly he looked down at the diminutive woman at his side. Loose strands of hair moved slowly with the night breeze that never faded this high up in the mountains. She was wearing a warm jacket, but it wasn’t pulled tight.

She must have sensed him looking at her, because her head came up, meeting his gaze. Neither of them said much.

Breath hitching in his throat, Rakell took a chance. He let his right hand sway out slightly. It brushed against the back of her palm. Laura didn’t flinch. Didn’t look away. Steeling himself, he threw himself out on a ledge and reached for her hand, hoping it wouldn’t be a huge misstep between them.

Her fingers found his, and they easily slid between them.

Rakell let out a breath he hadn’t known he was holding. Laura smiled at him, and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. She was okay with this. She was okay with him.

“It’s really pretty up here,” she said, looking back out over the vista.

“Beautiful,” he agreed, though his gaze didn’t move.

“I can see why you dragons would want to live up here,” she said softly. “Views like this on the regular would be hard to get tired of.”

“On that we agree. I could stare at this for an eternity,” he whispered.

Something in his voice gave him away, because Laura turned her head, again catching him looking at her.

“You’re sweet,” she said, dipping her head and shuffling closer to rest it on his shoulder.

Her hand stayed locked in his.

Rakell drank in that moment, every bit. The pressure of her head on his shoulder. The scent of her shampoo in his nostrils, the warmth of her hand, tiny as it was within his. He memorized the sound of her breathing, and the beating thud of her heart.

That moment, right there, would be forever etched in his memory.

“Can I see your dragon now?” she asked after a minute had passed.

It was one of the best minutes of Rakell’s life, and yet still an eternity too short. He wanted it to go on, and on.

She’s not going anywhere.

“Okay,” he said, shedding his last doubts—and his clothing.

“Oh right. Grandpa did say you all got naked to shift if you had time,” she said with a giggle as he stood nude beside her half a minute later.

“Saves money in the clothing budget,” he joked.

Then, without thinking he leaned in and kissed her full on the lips. Not long, not hard. Just a quick kiss with a second’s hesitation. Laura’s eyebrows rose, but she didn’t pull away. Nor did she make any comment afterward. She just stared at him, her eyes twinkling happily in the starlight.

“Just move to the edge,” he said, wanting to ensure he had enough room.

Once she was back, he took a last deep breath, shot a wry smile at the dragon part of him, and then let the change overcome him.

It was over in seconds. Rakell didn’t even remember the feeling of his bones stretching or reshaping themselves. The scales would appear across his body, but he didn’t notice. His neck became long and flowing, but he barely registered the change.

All of his attention was on Laura. On her reaction to what she was seeing. So far it was little more than a wide open jaw and unblinking stare. He didn’t know what that meant. Was it good? Did she like it? Was it bad, was she upset? What about terrified? Most humans who saw a dragon for the first time were more than a little scared.

He was, after all, over fifty feet long from head to tail, with wings wider than that. Horns jutted from his head and bristled along his spine, ending on his tail in a small club that could easily take out a human, or pierce another dragon’s scales. Every inch of