A task that was possible, under the right circumstances. And with the right tools. Magical tools.
“I want the arrow,” Elliott added. “That’s why I came here. I can check the arrow for the shooter’s scent. Maybe pick up on something that can help me.”
Rio had the arrow. And the kid was nowhere to be seen. He’d vanished after he’d been told that Valerie had brought him back from the dead. “Find Rio. Bring him and the arrow to me.”
Elliott nodded. His gaze darted to Valerie. Concern flickered in his eyes. “How is she?”
Out cold. Not fucking good.
“She needs—” Warren began.
A sharp scream came from Valerie. Griffin flinched at the sound. His gaze immediately flew to her face. For an instant, her eyes opened. She stared straight at him. “Lock me up.” A rough whisper. “Before I kill everyone.”
Then her eyes closed.
For a moment, he wondered if he’d imagined her words.
Her body began to grow warm. Too hot.
Oh, shit. “Get the dungeon ready,” he bellowed, “Now!”
Guards rushed to follow his command.
“We need to lock up the boy, too,” Warren argued. “Who knows what she has made him into now? The dead are monsters. Rio could—”
“Bring Rio back to the castle. Keep him in his room. With a guard.” He didn’t have time to say more. Valerie’s body was almost burning hot. And the fear inside of Griffin was ice cold.
He hurried down the stone stairs that led to the dungeon. Warren trailed behind him.
Valerie was shuddering. He was pretty sure steam was rising from her body. Was his witch about to burn before his eyes? Don’t you dare pull that shit. You will not die on me.
The cell door on the right was open. He rushed inside. “Lock us in!” Griffin blasted.
“What?” Warren’s sharp cry.
Griffin lowered her body onto the wooden bed. More of a bench than a bed. She needed better. As soon as he put her body down, smoke came from the wood.
He snatched her right back up into his arms. He whirled to face the door. The still open door. “Lock us up! Now!”
Warren’s eyes were huge. “You’re staying with her?”
He held her even tighter. “She’s my mate.”
“You don’t have to do this. She’s just temporary. No one expects—”
“She. Is. Mine.” A guttural snarl. Because there was no other choice for him. Maybe there never had been.
Warren slammed the door shut. Griffin heard the heavy lock slide into place.
“Rio?” Valerie’s weak cry.
“He’s okay. You brought him back.” Something Griffin still couldn’t believe. “And you’re safe, baby. You’re—”
Her lashes cracked open. And her eyes—they weren’t dark any longer. They were red. Like the fires of hell. “Not s-safe…n-neither are y-you…”
“Valerie?”
“L-leave…hurry…”
The hell he’d leave. There was no way—
She screamed. And flames consumed them both.
***
“OhmyGod.”
The top of the heavy, cell door was lined with bars. Warren peered into the cell, watching in horror as flames consumed Valerie Storm—and Griffin Bastien.
“No!” Warren yelled.
The flames grew hotter. So hot that—
The cell door blew off, slamming back into him. He flew through the air, and when he landed, the wooden door was on top of him. He shoved it off, screaming for guards. Screaming for help.
The cell was a mass of flames. Smoke billowed everywhere.
“Get water!” Warren yelled. This couldn’t be happening. “Get water now!”
He knew the witch was dead. She had to be dead. There was no way someone like her could survive the flames. Witches burned, and they died. Everyone knew that.
But Griffin…maybe…maybe the shifter king was still alive. If he’d managed to transform into his beast, if he’d pulled up the dragon before the flames consumed him, then Griffin could still be alive. His dragon could handle the fire.
“Water!” Warren shrieked.
They had to put out the fire.
Before it spread to the whole castle and destroyed everyone.
Everything.
***
The pain wouldn’t stop. A white-hot agony. The burn was from the inside. Singeing everything. Twisting. Torturing. Then the fire shot outward. Burn. Burn. Burn…
It was—Something cold hit her.
Right in the face.
“Keep it up!” A man’s shout. Distant. “More water!”
And she was doused again. Some of the water went in her mouth, and she spat it out. Cold water. Ice cold.
“More!” That same man bellowed.
The water hit her again. Slammed over her body. Poured down her legs.
And she didn’t feel quite so hot. The burn had faded. Both on the outside…and in.
More water hit her, drenching her hair. She tried to open her eyes—and got water thrown at her. Valerie lifted her hands. “Stop!”
More water.
“The witch is alive!”
She wouldn’t be for long. Not if they kept trying to drown her ass. Water poured over her again, streaming down her body.
Her naked body. Uh, oh.
Her hand lifted, and she swiped the water out of her eyes. “Don’t soak me again!”
But they did.
Jaw locking, she jumped to her feet. She ran forward and—tripped over something. Something big. Scaly. Valerie landed with her hands on the still warm stone floor. She turned her head and realized the water that was being blasted into the room—that water wasn’t being aimed at her. The men weren’t throwing buckets of water at her for shits and giggles. They were throwing the water at the fire breathing dragon in the cell with her.
The dragon who’d just turned his very, very scary head toward her. When she’d tripped over his tail, she’d gotten his attention. Now his mouth full of razor sharp teeth was heading for her.
She smiled. “Hi, there.” Valerie slapped back her wet hair. “Guessing, um, you had to change when I started shooting fire balls, huh?”
A rumble came from the dragon’s throat.
“Okay. Deep breath.” She rose to her feet. She was naked. Absolutely stark naked and dripping wet. Her clothes hadn’t been fire proof so she figured the material had burned to ash. “I need you to turn back for me. Do me that solid, okay, Griffin?” She held out her hand to him. Just stood before the big, bad dragon…and waited.
Another bucket full of water hit her. “Stop that shit!” Valerie shrieked.
The dragon growled. His emerald eyes gleamed.
She winced. “I get that I have a lot to explain. And I will. But I think you’re probably terrifying the water happy shifters, so how about you change back?”
His snout butted against her outstretched hand. A little sigh escaped her, and Valerie shuffled closer to him. “We were in separate cells before. Didn’t quite get the full effect of just how big you really are.” Big, scaly, scary, and dangerous.
His eyes were on her.
She shivered. Because she was dripping wet and cold. And because Valerie realized that she had seriously underestimated the guy. One bite from those giant teeth, and she’d be gone.
She felt like some kind of virgin sacrifice standing before the beast. Dragons and virgins—wasn’t that some old story? Well, she sure as hell wasn’t a virgin. Not a virgin anything. But she could still try charming the beast. She was his mate, after all, temporary though it may be.
“If you don’t change back,” she told him, “all of your men are going to keep staring at my naked self. Because they are not letting either of us out while you’re still in full beast mode.”
The dragon’s head turned. He stared at the men with their buckets. Then he let out a wild roar. The whole castle trembled. The beast opened his mouth to blow flames.
Oh, hell!
He can’t kill his men! This was too much like the nightmare she’d glimpsed. Griffin’s worst fear was that his beast would take over, and the dragon would destroy those he valued. Because of her, he’d been forced to pull up his dragon. To shift or die in her fire. Valerie couldn’t let him hurt his men.
She jumped in front of them, spreading her arms wide. There were gasps from behind her. Valerie glared back at the men—and women—there. “Yes, my ass is amazing. Just settle down.”
They blinked. Frowned.
She looked back at her dragon. “Change back.”
He didn’t. He also didn’t unleash a blast of flames at her and the shifters.
The dragon wanted to play hard, did he? Fine. “You all need to get the hell out of here.” There was no mad shuffle of feet running away. Seriously? “Leave,” Valerie snarled to the fools behind her. “You put out the fire. We aren’t going to burn down the castle. But he’s too tense with you all here. Too protective. He sees you as a threat, and he’s not going to transform back until there are no threats to me.”
“Maybe he is the threat to you.”
Who was that? Who’d said that? She slanted a fast glance over her shoulder. Ah, yes, the dick, Warren. They’d tangle soon and not in a good way. “The dragon recognizes his mate. Why do you think he hasn’t spewed fire all over me? He wants to hurt you, not me. So get the hell out of here, and I’ll calm him down. That’s something only I can do. Not you.”
Shifters should get that. A mate could always reach past the beast. Even a temporary mate.
Grudgingly, Warren gave a nod. Everyone began to back up. Slowly.
“We won’t go far,” Warren told her. “If he turns on you, we’ll come back to stop the spread of the flames.”
Not to save her amazing ass. Right. She got it. They didn’t like her. And here she was—protecting them. “You are most welcome!” Valerie called out, voice extra perky. “Happy to risk myself for you all. And, yes, you may name your daughters after me. I will be honored.”
“The witch is crazy.”
“Insane.”
The whispers were normal.
The shifters left. And she was alone with her beast. Her gaze slid over him. “The eyes are the same, you know. You might look terrifying, but when I stare into your eyes, I still see you.” She walked closer to him. Lifted her hands. Touched his scales. “They’re cold.” Seemed odd. “I thought they’d be hot.” Her fingers trailed over them. “And they’re hard.” Almost like armor. Dragons were really badass.
“How about we break the curse? Frogs change into princes when they get a kiss. Let’s see what you can become.” She pressed a quick kiss to a scale. “Change from a dragon…back into a king. Change for me, okay? Because I’m cold and I’m scared, and if you stay like a dragon, I’m really not sure how long it will be before all your shifter buddies decide to kill me.” She shivered again. He wasn’t changing. “I need you, Griffin. Change back.” She couldn’t use magic to help him right then because she was pretty much running on fumes.
His wing lifted. Because he had wings. The wing…he wrapped her in it. Pulled her close. Almost like a dragon hug. Kinda sweet. Her eyes closed when she heard thunder. Popping. It was a terrible, terrible sound, one that she could feel all around her, and Valerie kept her eyes closed because hearing his pain was bad enough. She didn’t want to see it.
But wasn’t that being a coward? She’d done this. Forced him to change. So she should have to witness everything.
Her eyes opened. She watched—every moment—as her dragon became a king again.
When the brutal shift was over, a man stood before her. Tall, muscled, his chest heaving, and his eyes still blazing. She should make one of her flippant remarks. Say something outrageous. Tell him that he’d looked great with a tail.
But Valerie didn’t say anything.
He put his hands on her shoulders. His fingers were warm. His body was hard and dangerous. And he kissed her. Not some gentle, I-adore-you kiss. They weren’t really the adoring type. The kiss was hot. Fierce. Consuming.
It was exactly the kind of kiss that she craved. He dragged her against his body. Her breasts pressed to his chest. His tongue was in her mouth, his scent surrounded her, and his warm, strong flesh was against her.
Desire grew. Again, not some soft, gentle attraction. A greedy, ravenous lust. She went from fear to need. From doubt to craving. Her hands rose. Her nails dug into his back. Their bodies were pushed together, but she wanted more. So much more.
“You were burning.” His voice was guttural.
A shiver slid over her. It had nothing do with being cold or scared. That rough voice of his was sexy.
“I thought you were going to die.” He lifted her up and held her as if she weighed nothing.
Her legs wrapped around his hips. She felt the hard length of his cock against her. Valerie rubbed her sex against him. Let out a moan.
“You never die. Do you understand?”
She was having trouble breathing, much less understanding everything he was saying.
He carried her across the scorched cell. Her back hit a stone wall, one that still felt warm to the touch. Griffin pinned her there as he glared down at her. “You never leave.”
Did it look as if she was about to run away? She leaned forward. Put her mouth on his neck. Licked. Sucked. Bit.
He growled.
Oh, yes. She was definitely into those sexy, rough sounds of his.
His cock was right at the entrance to her body. Thick. Hard. She wanted him in her. She didn’t want to talk. Didn’t want to think. Her heart raced, and her breath heaved. Her breasts were aching, the nipples tight. She wanted his mouth on them. Wanted his cock to thrust deep into her.
She didn’t want to stop. Didn’t want to think about why they shouldn’t be doing this.
She’d never been good with shouldn’t.
His hands tightened on her waist. He lifted her up, higher, and she let out a cry of frustration because he was moving her away from—
Griffin’s mouth closed over her nipple.
Her eyes rolled back into her head when he licked and sucked and lightly bit. The man’s mouth. The things he could do…Yes, please.
Then he kissed his way to her other breast. Held her up with his easy strength, as if she were his for the taking. Maybe right then, she was. His tongue slid over her nipple. She moaned as he took that nipple deep into his mouth.
Her nails were digging deep into him. “Griffin!”
“Gonna take you…have to take…”
Did it look like she was arguing?
He lowered her again. Her legs were lodged around his hips, her sex open to him. The head of his cock shoved at the entrance to her body, but he didn’t sink into her. Not yet. Why in the hell was he making her wait?
She arched against him. “Now!”
He laughed. And he gave her now. Griffin drove deep into her, so deep and hard that for just a moment, Valerie lost her breath. He’d filled her completely. Her sex clamped greedily around him, holding on tight.
His hand slid between their bodies. Stroked her clit. Had her squirming against him.
Then he withdrew.
Thrust back into her.
Withdrew.
His mouth pressed to her neck, right there in the curve of her shoulder. He licked her skin, and she shuddered. The good kind of shudder. Her legs were locked around his hips, and their bodies arched together as they madly pounded toward climax.
His mouth…
His cock…
She was about to come. Right then. Right there. In a dungeon.
“Forever,” Griffin rasped.
He bit her.
Pleasure blasted through her, like a volcano just erupted. The pleasure ignited, and it whipped through her whole body in wave after wave. Not some little pop of release. An explosion that rocked through every cell in her body.
And he was there, too. She felt the hot rush of his release inside of her. Heard the deep
bellow of his cry. He held her so tightly. His grip was unbreakable, but she wasn’t exactly trying to break free. She was still riding his hard length. Still feeling the pleasure wash over her as she drew it out. Valerie didn’t want the moment to end. Not ever. Something that good shouldn’t end.
He kept thrusting his hips against her. She knew he’d climaxed, but his cock was still hard. And he was still going.
So was she.
They moved hard and fast, staring into each other’s eyes. She wouldn’t, couldn’t look away. The second release hit, a surge that took her breath. He growled. Leaned toward her neck. Licked the mark he’d made before.
And he came again inside of her.
This time, the pleasure slowly ebbed. Her body slumped. She would have fallen, but her big, bad beast still held her up. She was pinned against the wall. Trapped between stone…and—
“Mate,” Griffin rumbled.
Between stone and the man she’d just apparently mated, forever.
Chapter Ten
He’d just taken his mate in a dungeon. A dungeon.
As the haze of lust surrounding Griffin finally eased, awareness flooded back in an uncomfortable rush. A dungeon.
His eyes widened as he stared at Valerie in horror. He was still in her. Already getting hard again, and the woman probably thought he was the biggest bastard in the world. She’d rail at him. Tell him to get the hell away from her. She’d—
Smile?
Her dimples winked. “That was fun.” She leaned forward. Pressed a kiss to his lips. “And you picked our place. That is so romantic.”
A dungeon wasn’t romantic. Carefully, he eased out of her before he lowered Valerie to her feet. “I’m sorry.”
Her hands went to her hips. The move made her glorious breasts thrust toward him. “You had better not apologize for having sex with me.”
Never for that. “This wasn’t the place. You deserved better. You—” He stopped because Griffin knew he was just a bastard.
She shook her head. “It’s our place.”
Why was she saying that?
Then she gave him her killer smile. “We met in a dungeon. Fate brought us together there. And, of course…” She batted her lashes at him. “A dungeon is where you looked at me—just took that first, incredible look at me—and realized you would love me forever.”