Chapter Eighteen

 

 

AN hour before sunset, Warwick noticed the increased tension in Avery. During dinner, he fidgeted and didn’t eat much. He was in constant motion, either tapping his foot, scratching aimlessly at his arm, or irritably shoving his hair out of the way. When Warwick asked him, Avery said it was because of the upcoming shift.

It was fascinating. Since he wasn’t ruled by the full moon, he’d never experienced what Avery was going through. Now that he had seen it, he was thankful nothing had the ability to command him to shift.

At dusk they walked outside. His staff knew better than to disturb them during this time. He brought a duffel to leave their clothes in while they shifted, since Avery had been upset when Warwick let his clothes lie on the ground. Together they cut through the courtyard and came to the large field with the woods just beyond.

Warwick glanced up at the sky, pleased to see it was a clear night. “Are you ready?”

“Past ready. I feel like I’m about to crawl out of my own skin.”

“Why don’t you shift first since you’re being so negatively affected?”

“Don’t have to tell me twice.” Avery stripped, almost tearing his clothes in his haste.

Warwick shook his head. Avery must have really felt the moon’s call since he didn’t bother putting his clothes in the duffel. Warwick picked them up and placed them inside.

Avery dropped into a crouch and seconds later a silvery white wolf stood in Avery’s place. Avery shook out his fur, then sat, his tail thumping the ground. Unable to resist, Warwick knelt and scratched behind Avery’s ear. Avery yipped, and his long pink tongue swiped over Warwick’s fingers almost as if to say “hurry up already.”

Give me a second! Warwick chuckled. Patience is a virtue.

Hey! I can hear you even in this form.

I had assumed you would, but it’s nice to know for sure. Warwick stood.

Get naked and shift, already!

Inpatient pup, but Avery’s excitement was catching. Warwick couldn’t wait either. He stripped and added his clothes to the duffel. Avery backed away, giving him room. Breathing out, Warwick called his dragon forth.

Seconds after he shifted, something sharp and wet at the end of his tail caught his attention. Huffing in amusement, he turned his huge head to see Avery bouncing around near the arrowhead point of his tail, nibbling at it. He twitched it, wanting to see what Avery would do. Avery dropped his chest to the ground and growled, his tail waving madly behind him.

Wolves, Warwick huffed.

I heard that! Avery jumped on his tail, and Warwick slithered it back and forth until finally Avery fell off and rolled away, then jumped around, barking excitedly. Warwick snorted, and little zaps of lightning formed around his snout. Avery’s head jerked around. Quick as a flash, he raced underneath Warwick, darted out in front of him, and barked. Do that again!

Charmed by Avery’s eagerness, he did.

So cool! I wish I could breathe lightning.

Warwick lifted his head and looked down at Avery, who yipped again, then darted at one of Warwick’s forelegs. Avery ran a circle around his leg, then lightly head-butted it. Warwick rumbled in laughter when Avery staggered back a couple of steps, shaking his head.

You okay?

What are you made of? Steel? Jeez. Avery rushed back toward Warwick’s front foreleg but skidded to a stop and dropped his chest to the ground about a foot away. Avery barked at it. Warwick swiped at him, but was careful not to let his claws make contact. Avery scrambled away, then ran in a circle, chasing his tail.

Good gods, what energy you have. If Warwick could bottle that, he’d be a rich man. Well, richer.

All the better to amuse you with.

Wrong fairy tale.

Hey! There’s a wolf in that one. Avery stopped, dropped his ass on the ground, and panted, his tongue lolling out of the side of his mouth.

Warwick shook his head at the goofy look on Avery’s face. He had no idea werewolves could portray such humanistic expressions in their animal form. Warwick decided to return the favor and dropped his head down so he was closer to Avery’s level.

He slowly rolled his eyes.

Avery sneezed, then tipped over, rolling back and forth.

Fell over laughing, did you?

Everybody wants to be a comedian. Avery jumped to his paws, his muscles bunching.

Warwick prepared himself since it looked like Avery was getting ready to rush him. Suddenly Avery’s head snapped up and he lifted his nose, sniffing. Warwick raised his head and scanned the surrounding area, but didn’t find anything that constituted a threat. All he smelled was the land, cold and hibernating. High above he heard the rumble of an airplane. In the distance was the low hum of human vehicles. Scents carried on the air—smoke from a fireplace, the detergent used on their clothes, and his mate.

And prey. That was the other thing Warwick smelled.

Avery’s stare was intent as he watched the woods, his body as still as a statue. One ear twitched. Gone was the playful pup, and in its place was a deadly predator. Avery threw his head back and howled, then raced for the woods, his paws barely touching the ground.

Warwick slowly lowered himself and got comfortable. Since there was no way he could venture into the woods in this form, he decided to rest while Avery hunted. He dropped his head to the ground and closed his eyes. The nighttime sounds surrounded him.

Since he had nothing better to do, he decided to see if he could mentally follow the thread that connected him to Avery. Suddenly there were brief pictures in Warwick’s mind. He almost opened his eyes but stopped himself in time. He caught images of things Avery saw as he hunted.

Warwick had never heard of that happening before and was intrigued. In his mind’s eye, he saw Avery racing through the woods, his attention focused on whatever he stalked. Warwick sensed Avery’s happiness to be on four paws instead of two feet, and the freedom to run with the wind. The dead leaves crunching under Avery’s paws brought him joy, as did the wind in his fur. There was also Avery’s sheer determination to bring down the…. Warwick caught the image of a large buck running in fear.

Hunger pierced him. Warwick was surprised. He wasn’t hungry. It was Avery. Warwick gently disengaged. He didn’t want to distract Avery while he hunted. Next time, though, he would stay in human form and hunt with Avery instead of watching from the sidelines.

He dozed for a while, then snapped awake at the sounds of Avery trotting toward him. He lifted his head and stared at the woods, waiting. Avery emerged with the haunch of a large buck dangling from his mouth. Slowly he approached Warwick and dropped the meat in front of him, then backed away.

Touched, Warwick lowered his head and sniffed at the meat. For a dragon it wasn’t much. It would be like Warwick eating a buffalo wing while in human form. But that wasn’t what mattered. Avery brought him food.

Warwick rumbled his thanks and snapped up the offering, eating it—bones and all. Avery howled again, then slunk closer, low to the ground. Warwick lowered his head, his tail thumping in pleasure behind him.

Thank you.

You’re welcome.

Avery sidled up next to him, then rubbed his body down the side of Warwick’s enormous snout. The scent of blood on Avery’s fur wafted up to him. He flicked out his long tongue and licked at the sticky wetness.

Avery dropped down next to his foreleg and curled up, his nose tucked underneath his tail. Warwick sensed the exhaustion radiating off Avery. Warwick slid his foreleg around Avery and pulled him closer. He rumbled softly, and together they napped.

 

 

HOURS later Avery rose, trotted off, and shifted back. There were streaks of dried blood on his skin, especially around his throat. Warwick looked up at the sky. The sun was rising, so he stood and shifted too. Avery didn’t seem to want to talk, so after a brief kiss, Warwick helped Avery dress and they returned to the castle. They showered, had a quick breakfast, and fell into bed.

When Warwick woke again, night had fallen and there was no sign of Avery. As he rose, Avery walked out of the bathroom in the robe Warwick had loaned him.

“Hey,” Avery said. “You hungry?”

Warwick passed Avery, his hand traveling along Avery’s hip. “I could eat. Let me use the bathroom and get dressed, and then we’ll have dinner.”

“Cool. I’m starving. I’m going to get dressed too.”

Warwick sat next to Avery in front of the fireplace. “Any idea when the celebration reception will be?”

“In a few days. The pack needs time to settle after the run. I’ll call my father later and ask.”

“Okay. Food should be here momentarily.”

“Can’t wait. What are we having?”

Warwick smirked. “I’m in the mood for venison.”

“Funny, so am I.”

LeMoyne brought the cart with their trays to their room but didn’t linger. Avery dug in to his food. Once dinner was over, Warwick pushed the cart outside their bedroom and shut the door.

Pausing by Avery’s chair, he ran his hand over Avery’s long hair. “Do you feel okay?”

“I’m fine.” Avery nuzzled Warwick’s hand. “I’m usually tired after a forced shift. Plus, being on unfamiliar land kept me tense. Next month I shouldn’t be quite so tired.”

“I’m glad to hear that. I could sense how exhausted you were. You sure you’re okay?”

Avery glanced at Warwick. “I really am. Why?”

Warwick held out his hand. “Well, if you feel up to it, I’d like to show you something.”

“Okay.” Avery stood and took Warwick’s hand. “Where are we going?”

“You’ll see soon enough.” Warwick led Avery out of the bedroom and through the castle. They passed several servants, who greeted them, then continued down several hallways.

“Good thing you’re here, or I’d be completely lost.”

“Oh, it gets better. Just wait.” Warwick led him to another long hallway.

“Where exactly are we in the castle? Are we going down? I feel like were going into the ground.”

“In the middle, and yes, we are. But….” Warwick stopped in front of a tremendously thick steel door. There was a computerized panel next to it. First he tapped in a combination of numbers, and then he leaned closer. A beam scanned his eye, and then he placed his palm on the panel. That too was scanned.

“That’s some fancy technology,” Avery said.

“It’s set in such a way that only living tissue will activate the locks.”

Avery stared at the panel. “Was that a retinal scan or an iris scan?”

“A retinal scan. It’s more invasive, but… well, one can’t be too safe.”

There was a beep and then a multitude of locks disengaged. Warwick opened the door and stepped through. He held his arm out, gesturing to the enormous room. “Welcome.”

Mouth open, Avery stepped inside. “By all the gods. Warwick, this is… this is… unbelievable.”

Warwick glanced around the room, trying to see it through Avery’s eyes. It was large enough to accommodate his dragon and possibly another one in the room. Instead of the stone that had been used to build his castle, these walls were steel. He had paid a ridiculous amount for the most technologically advanced security system he could find. In fact, it wasn’t available on the market. There were cameras throughout the climate-controlled space and a total of fifteen medieval-looking torches that had been wired to support present-day lighting. He’d also had recessed lighting installed in the ceiling.

Warwick shut the door and engaged the locks. He pulled Avery farther into the room. “I can count on one hand the people who I’ve allowed in this room.”

Avery stood in the middle and turned slowly in a circle. “Everywhere I look, something sparkles or twinkles. This is your hoard, isn’t it?” Avery breathed.

“It is. I want to share this with you.”

The shock on Avery’s face was priceless. “There’s so much… stuff. An ungodly amount of stuff.”

Warwick glanced around the room again. There were so many piles of gold coins, he couldn’t even count them, much less see the floor. Some of the piles were higher than Avery’s head. Statues on whitewashed pedestals were scattered around, along with beautiful works of art the world thought lost. A multitude of treasure chests were positioned throughout, the tops open to display the bounty inside. Precious gems blinked under the bright lights. Reds and greens, blues and yellows shone throughout the room.

Avery bent and picked up a ruby the size of his hand. “My gods.”

There were dozens and dozens of gold candlesticks, pure silver vases, ancient swords lying around, and so much more. Every last piece in the room, Warwick had collected through his lifetime.

Mesmerized, Avery turned to him. “Do you even know what the worth of all this stuff is?”

“Doesn’t matter. It’s mine.”

“I… I… I simply cannot comprehend all this. I mean, I’ve heard stories passed down through the centuries about dragons and their hoards. Seen movies and such, but… I never once believed it could truly be something this gigantic.”

Warwick tugged Avery over to a pile of gold coins. He wasn’t sure what they were—maybe Spanish bullion. He sat and pulled Avery down next to him.

“What are you doing?”

“I understand your ability is to take certain type of materials—like minerals and such—and identify what they are.”

“Well, yes. Why do you… oh.” Suddenly Avery laughed. “Oh, I get it. You want me to tell you—”

“I want to see you do it. I want to see you close your eyes, hold something, and tell me what it is.” Warwick cupped Avery’s chin. “I can say with all sincerity that I couldn’t think of a more perfect gift for an Omega who’s mated to me to have. Would you do this for me? Please? It would mean so much.”

“I… I… my gods. I always hated the fact that in this modern world, what I could do was useless.” Avery gulped. “But for a dragon….”

Warwick lowered his hand. “But for a dragon such as me, that gift is priceless.”

“Aw, man, I warned you about making me ugly cry.” Avery took a deep breath. “Okay. Okay, I can do this—would love to do this for you.” He closed his eyes and held his hand out. “I’m ready.”

Warwick reached down and picked something up. Why not start simple? He placed it in Avery’s hand.

“Hmm. Okay.” Avery weighed it in his hand. “I can tell this is definitely a transition metal. Certainly no elements of zinc, cadmium, or mercury, since those are usually not transition metals.” Avery grinned. “Not really surprised you’d hoard gold.”

Warwick tried not to gawk. “Listen to you.” Warwick rearranged his hard cock. “I’m getting hard just listening to you.”

Avery sniffed. “I can tell. This is a gold coin, but I don’t how old it is.”

“Very good. Damn, that’s impressive.” Warwick took the coin from Avery. “And I don’t impress easily.”

“Fussy dragon.” Avery smiled. “Thank you. Can I open my eyes?”

“No, not yet.” Warwick dropped the coin back onto the pile. He looked around the room until he found what he was looking for. He hurried over, picked it up, and brought it back to Avery. “Here you go.”

Avery held his hand out again, and Warwick placed the object in his palm.

Avery’s fingers closed over it. “Ah, yes. My mother would kill for this. This is carbon—highly organized carbon. Hard to believe something so lovely comes from coal. It’s a diamond.”

“They are more than a girl’s best friend, yes?”

“And a boy’s. A diamond is practically indestructible.”

“Amazing.” All this talk left Warwick wanting to throw Avery down on one of the gold piles and fuck his brains out.

Warwick took the diamond, which was the size of a large fist, and replaced it. He picked out several more things to give to Avery, who nailed what they were each and every time. He could do this all day, but Avery was beginning to wilt.

Warwick stood next to Avery, who was still sitting on the pile of gold coins. “Open your eyes, please.”

Avery did and glanced down at Warwick’s crotch, then back up. He grinned. “That got to you, huh?”

“Most definitely.” Warwick was tempted to kiss Avery but didn’t. If he did, they wouldn’t be leaving his treasure room for a long time. “You are utter perfection.”

Avery blushed. “Thank you. It’s nice to be able to use my gift in a way that means something. Maybe we could do this again?”

“Just as soon as I have a mattress moved down here.”

Avery chuckled. “Of course. Thank you for this. You made me feel… useful.”

Useful was something Warwick figured Avery needed to be. Bringing him here hadn’t been strictly for Warwick’s pleasure. It had been for Avery too, and he wasn’t done yet.

Warwick clasped Avery’s hand and kissed his knuckles. Holding hands in the middle of his hoard, he looked into Avery’s eyes. “One last thing before we go. I thought about what would be the perfect gift to give you after we mated.”

“You don’t have to do that.”

“But I want to. I debated about giving you the only other CCXR Trevita in existence, but I still haven’t managed to talk the owner out of it.”

“Warwick, that’s not necessary. Your money isn’t what’s important to me.”

“I figured that out. So….” Still holding Avery’s hand, Warwick went down on one knee, surrounded by all of his treasures.

“Wh-what are you doing?” Avery whispered.

“A dragon’s hoard is all that is important to them, but I’ve come to find it’s not the most important thing. You are. You are the most important thing in this world to me. All that I have and all that I am is yours. I racked my mind trying to figure out what to give you since I couldn’t get the car.”

“But I don’t need anything. I have you.”

“You do. Have me, that is. While I was desperately searching for an inanimate object to give you, it finally dawned on me the most important thing I could give you was my heart. And that, my dear Omega, you have. I love you.”

Avery stood shocked, his eyes blinking. “Oh gods!” He threw himself at Warwick, and they toppled over. Gold coins clinked and rattled together as Warwick and Avery settled onto them. The other treasures surrounding them sparkled in the bright lights. “You damn dragon, I love you too.”

Finally giving into temptation, Warwick kissed Avery. All the pretty, shiny metal and priceless works of art… all the antiquities didn’t matter to him as long as he had Avery.

Without love, none of it meant anything.