Chapter Six – George

He’d risked being seen, and released his dragon to fly over the city. He’d climbed almost vertically to get above the scattered clouds, and then hid behind them, drifting along towards the coast before crossing out over the ocean and flying hard, wings flapping, heart pumping, lungs burning with the effort, but it had cleared his head and allowed him to put everything in perspective.

She was in his life. That was all that mattered. That and the child she had brought with her. No matter how much he wanted to force her to tell him everything, the look on her face told him it was not that easy. She had secrets, secrets that might put her or the boy in danger. He would give her time. Time to learn to trust him, time to figure out for herself what his motives were.

And what are our motives, his dragon asked.

To make another child with her. To make her want to stay. To make her want to be our mate forever.

His dragon soared higher and then turned to spin towards the water, pulling up at the last moment, the tips of his wings flicking spray up into the air. His dragon kept low, skimming the water, only rising back up into the clouds when he neared land.

He landed in the grounds of his mansion, and looked around. One thing he did need to find out from her was how the hell had she wound up in his bedroom. The walls were impenetrable, with motion sensors on top of sharp rock that jutted upwards. The gate was the only weak point, but no one had ever climbed over it before. What made it more surprising was that Poppy had managed to enter the house with a child in tow. A small child, who unless he had turned into a small dragon and flew, would not have been able to climb over the walls without her carrying him.

Stalking back to the house, he let himself in and reset the alarm. Tomorrow he would question her, and then put new measures in place to ensure no one else entered the grounds the same way. He sighed. Putting guards on patrol in the grounds might also have to be considered. It was something he had resisted, since it made flying as his dragon harder. But Poppy and Charlie’s safety was more important than nighttime flying.

His dragon reluctantly agreed. They were going to have to be careful until they figured out what was going on. He would also have to tread lightly around the investigation he had launched. George was certain this was what had triggered Poppy turning up in his bedroom today. He simply needed to put all the pieces together, and make her see that bringing down whoever was out to hurt her and Charlie should be the top of their priorities.

Walking quietly up the stairs, George mused over this thought. Charlie was obviously Poppy’s top priority, and yet she was unwilling to share any information with him that might lead him to the Heartsfire Blade. What would be so important to her that she would risk her son’s safety?

A promise, his dragon rumbled.

A promise? George asked.

She made us a promise, a promise that she won’t break, I’m certain.

His dragon usually had good senses when it came to people; he had hundreds of years’ experience dealing with liars and cheats, after all. You think she made a promise to someone, one that she is not willing to break?

It is plausible. His dragon lay down and closed his eyes, content now that they had stretched his wings. It should be easy to discover what that promise might be.

Of course, because now they had her name. He could dig into her past, and pull up all her skeletons, of which there were many, he was sure.

But that could wait until tomorrow. He needed to sleep, and he also needed to check that she was still here. Part of him was scared he would open his bedroom door and find her gone. Or that she had never been there, and that Poppy and Charlie were a vision he had dredged up in a bid to put a stop to his longing.

However, he knew she was real before he opened the door. He knew she was still there before he set eyes on her. He could sense her, his body attuned to hers, and an ache for her sprung up in his loins. Sleep might evade him after all.

He took off his clothes, and lay down in the bed next to her, noting she wore one of his T-shirts and wondering if she had spent the time he was out rummaging through all his personal items, both in here and in the rest of the house. It did not matter: whatever she found would not leave the mansion, because if he had his way, Poppy would never leave the mansion. Not ever.

He knew it was unreasonable, but as he pulled her body against his, wrapping his arms around her curvy body and inhaling her sweet scent, he knew he would chain her to his bed rather than let her leave his life once more. His hand cupped her breast, and his thumb chafed against her nipple, and she stirred in his arms, muttering something about dragons.

George smiled and closed his eyes. In the morning, he would wake her and show her exactly what he had been dreaming about all these years. He would claim her as he had longed to claim her since that solitary night they spent together.

And he was certain she would not put up a fight. He’d watched her closely, watched how her body responded to his looks, how her face flushed pink and how she secretly looked at him with open lust. Oh yes. He was sure she was his, she just did not want to admit it yet.

But perhaps a few nights in his bed, a few nights of having him inside her, a few hours of having his body worshiping hers, might just make her admit she wanted him too.

And who knew, maybe one day she would admit she loved him.

A dragon could dream.