The kitchen was well stocked. Even so, after a moment of deliberation, Damon began making grilled cheese. There was, in his opinion, very little that couldn’t be made better by melted cheese—and after the day they’d had, they were both in need of comfort food.

“This is amazing,” Autumn said after the first bite, sighing in deep pleasure.

The dragon within him coiled his tail around himself with satisfaction at providing for his mate.

It’s going to take more than this, he warned his dragon. There are fire dragons out there.

His dragon ignored him, releasing a deep rumble of possessive satisfaction.

Next thing you’ll want to drape her in our treasure.

Inside his mind, his dragon laughed, deep and soft.

Damon smiled ruefully. His dragon was right—that was as much his own desire as that of his dragon.

He wanted to mate Autumn. He wanted to forge an unbreakable bond. And he wanted to decorate her with his gold and jewels.

But that had to wait until the mating. And the mating had to wait until he’d had a chance to explain the shifter world to her.

Perhaps, after her holiday, she’d agree to come back home with him. He wanted to show her the small town where he’d grown up. Hidden in a valley and surrounded by mountains, it was a green, peaceful place. Many shifters lived there, united by the dragon’s peace. With a dragon overlooking the settlement, even sheep and wolf shifters could live in peace.

It was a good place. Long ago, his ancestors had built a huge mansion out of stone. They’d carefully tended to the garden, planting flowers and pruning trees. To Damon, it felt like the house itself had become part of the valley, rooted deep in the earth of his home.

There was only one thing missing.

Someone who’d share this home with him. And then, perhaps, in time, another dragonet or two learning how to fly in their garden among the trees that had watched generations of dragons learn how to spread their wings.

“Hey, you okay?” Autumn carefully rested a hand on his arm.

“Sorry, I was just... thinking of home.” He flashed her a quick smile. “I think you’d like it there.”

“Is it a dragon town?”

He shook his head. “A shifter town. When I came into my power, my parents were happy to leave the house to me—they visit every year, but they moved to Europe to stay closer to my mother’s family.”

“A shifter town,” Autumn echoed softly. She smiled a little. “I’d love to see that. It still doesn’t sound real—but I guess if dragons are real, why not werewolves?”

“We don’t actually have a werewolf,” Damon had to admit. “For the most part, they aren’t the type for settling down peacefully in town. Our sheriff’s a dog shifter.”

“As you’d expect.” Autumn laughed. “Let me guess—German Shepherd?”

“Bulldog.”

Autumn beamed.

“Our doctor’s a crocodile shifter.” Damon grinned when Autumn’s lips parted in surprise. “I know, sounds weird, but wait until you meet her. You’d like her. She’s quite fierce—a no-nonsense woman who could’ve long since retired, but no one tells her what to do. She’s a real asset to the community. And we’ve put up warning signs at our lake, just in case a tourist gets lost.”

“I’m still not sure if you’re joking or if this is all real,” Autumn said, her voice faint. “But I guess I’ll find out?”

“You will,” Damon said firmly. “Once my friends arrive and we’ve dealt with those fire dragons, and once you’ve seen your friend. If you’ve got a few days to spare, I want to show you my home.”

He imagined that it was all a lot to take in for a human—but surely, once she saw Dragon Springs, his small hometown with the community of shifters that were a second family to him, she’d realize that they weren’t so different.

“I’d love that,” Autumn said with audible longing in her voice. “I’ve always wanted to travel and see exciting things—I didn’t know then that I wouldn’t even have to leave the country to get to see a dragon’s home.”

The dragon inside Damon was already happily running through a list of his most prized jewels, wondering what first to gift her. The diamond tiara his great-great-grandmother, a dragon and a duchess, had worn at her wedding? The sapphire Damon himself had found during one of his retreats into the mountains? The simple bracelet of gold that was the first jewelry he’d been given for his hoard as a tiny dragonet?

Autumn had turned away from him to look out of the window.

Sunlight glinted on the lake. The ponies that had grazed in the distance had wandered closer, and Autumn made a delighted sound when one of the ponies looked up and shook its mane. Then the entire herd broke into a gallop and came racing into their direction, manes flying and hooves thundering.

Damon joined Autumn by the window. He wrapped an arm around her waist, and she immediately leaned back against his chest with a sigh. Her eyes were still on the half-wild herd of ponies.

The sight was glorious, the dragon within Damon spreading his own wings as he thought of the joy of soaring through clouds, wild and free. But for the first time in his life, Damon paid him no attention. He’d found something even better than a dragon’s freedom.

And he had it right here in his arms. Autumn was warm and soft against him, and he couldn’t resist pressing a kiss to her nape.

“Mmm,” Autumn sighed in pleasure. “I want to go out and say hello to the ponies...”

“We could,” Damon said huskily, making no move to release her.

“But I also want to stay inside with you all day,” she murmured, the same heat in her voice that was already rushing through Damon’s blood once more.

Now that he’d found his mate, all of his dragon’s instinct were focused on the mating.

They could even do it right here. If Autumn was willing, it wouldn’t matter that he had none of his hoard to truly claim her. The bracelet or one of the rings he wore would suffice, and he’d spread her thighs and kiss her until her thighs trembled, making her come for him again and again until the room was filled with his gorgeous mate’s sounds of pleasure...

Autumn shivered against him, the fragile bond between them vibrating with heat. Damon was rock-hard already, his erection aching as it pressed unmistakably against her hip.

His lips trailed up her throat as she moaned and tilted her head to give him access. A moment later, his hand slowly trailed up her side, cupping one of her generous breasts as she sighed and pressed against him.

His dragon was on fire. His body was on fire.

And Damon Drago, the most sensible and down-to-earth council member, who’d never made a rash decision in his life, was overwhelmed by the all-consuming desire that had spread tendrils of heat through his body.

A groan escaped him as he touched the tip of his tongue to her throat, tasting the salt of her skin. His shaft throbbed in his trousers, painfully hard.

And then there was a loud whinny outside, filled with such terror that all desire drained from his blood.

A heartbeat later he felt it, even before he’d had time to look up.

Dragon. Fire dragon.

The awareness pulsed through him, his dragon’s rage at being attacked mixing with the overwhelming need to keep his mate safe.

Autumn had frozen against him. They were both staring out of the window, where the herd of ponies was now racing past their cabin with eyes rolling with fear. And there, in the sky, distant specs had appeared, which were rapidly coming closer.

“Are those... your friends?” Autumn asked, her voice trembling.

“Fire dragons.” Damon tightened his arm around her in reassurance.

His dragon, outraged at being continuously attacked, wanted to meet them in the sky, ending this threat to his mate once and for all.

But at the same time the instinct to protect his mate was too strong. He knew that he couldn’t bear leaving her here all alone, without a protector.

If he’d had at least one of the other dragons of the council here, he’d been glad to spread his wings and challenge the fire dragons. But right now, Autumn came first.

“If we’re quick, I can outfly them again,” he said hastily. “They’ll probably track us down eventually, but it should give us enough time for my friends to arrive. I can bring you to your friend’s farm in the north, if you want. Or...”

“No,” Autumn said immediately, even though he could feel her fear through the bond. “I can’t. If they’ll track us to her farm—I couldn’t do that to her.”

Damon exhaled, the dragon within him roaring as he eyed the sky. The distant specs had become larger. Five fire dragons this time. More than they’d ever seen before.

Just how many of them are there? Someone needs to have a stern talk with our captive fire dragon...

“I know you’ve been looking forward to this trip,” he then said. “But if you trust me—trust me enough to cross the ocean on my back—I can take you away from here. I’ll fly you back home. You’ll be safe in Dragon Springs, and my friends can deal with these dragons.”

In the distance, there was a sound almost like the faint roll of thunder.

Autumn shuddered in his arms. They both knew that it was the roar of a dragon echoing in the sky.

Then Autumn turned in his embrace. Her lips were pressed together, and her eyes filled with determination.

“Let’s go,” she said.

By the time they were outside, Damon shifting immediately and lifting Autumn onto his back with a clawed hand, the dragons were so close that they could see their shadows on the ground, racing towards them like angry storm clouds.

Damon dug his claws deep into the earth. He parted his jaw and inhaled, calling on the power of his element.

Strength came rushing into him, the centuries-old rocks beneath him readily giving their support. The song of life roared in his ears as everything that was green and growing sang out for him.

Fire was strong. Fire was destructive.

But nothing was as strong as the force of life that made grass grow and trees flower, year after year.

With the power of the earth itself thrumming through him, he gathered his strength and then took off into the air, effortlessly beating his wings while the fire dragons roared in anger behind him. They’d come close enough that he could feel the heat of the fire they belched after him, but another beat of his wings took them out of the danger zone.

And then they were above the clouds.

The sun was shining. The cover of white beneath them was undisturbed, and everything was shockingly peaceful and quiet, as if the dragons hunting them had suddenly ceased to exist.

Nevertheless, Damon continued to fly as quickly as he could, drawing on the power of his element to magically increase his speed.

No ordinary dragon could fly so fast. There were only two other dragons in the world who could match his speed, and both sat on the council together with him.

Still, even at this pace, it would take a few hours to make it back to Dragon Springs from Iceland—but Autumn would be safe on his back, and that was what counted.

And once he knew that his mate was safe in his own home—then he’d deal with the dragons that had dared to threaten her.