Chapter 5

I don’t think I’d be good in a threesome. I can’t even pet two dragons at the same time.

-Brooklyn’s secret thoughts

Brooklyn

“I can’t believe you’re okay. Are you sure you’re okay? I can’t come home, but I need to know you’re okay,” Blythe babbled.

I narrowed my eyes at the hallway I was walking down.

“I’m okay, Blythe. I promise. Now go take a nap or something, and for God’s sake, stop crying. You’re making me want to cry, too,” I ordered my best friend.

“Is he treating you alright?” Blythe continued, ignoring what I had to say.

“Yes. He’s treating me fine. I promise. Now go to sleep,” I repeated once again.

Blythe sighed.

“You’re treating me almost as annoyingly as Keifer is,” she grumbled.

“Bye!” I said loudly, then hung up, easing carefully around the next corner.

I was lost.

Horribly and terribly lost.

It’d been a little over three days since I’d woken from the coma I’d been in.

And, in those three days, I’d thought I’d gotten pretty used to my surroundings.

Except, now that I was on my own looking for the kitchen, I realized that my grasp on where, exactly, I was wasn’t as good as I’d thought.

Finally, I came to a door that led to outside, and I pushed it open.

Maybe if I could walk around the outside, I would be able to find the kitchen faster rather than to continue to walk around hallway after hallway with no idea where I was.

It was a sound idea, too.

Except I didn’t take into account the fences.

And once I’d walked out the door, I’d realized that it locked behind me.

“Wonderful,” I muttered to myself, looking up at the overcast sky in contemplation.

I was in a side yard of sorts.

It was separated from the front and back by huge brick walls that spanned at least eight feet in height all the way around.

So I sat down, exhausted to my very bones.

I crossed my legs underneath me, and contemplated my situation.

Brooklyn.

I squeezed my eyes shut, my tired brain going on overdrive.

I’d not heard Nikolai in my head since I’d woken from my coma, and I’d just started to chalk it up to my overactive imagination.

But, alas, Nikolai shattered that stupid notion within seconds of me going outside.

Why did you go outside? the dastardly man asked in my head.

I thought it’d be a nice day for a stroll, I thought to myself.

Or maybe to him. I didn’t know.

The moment the words were out of my mouth, the sky above me started to rumble.

Then, moments later, the bottom of the sky opened up, and rain started to pour down.

I’m not really sure why I did what I did.

One second I was staring at the water as it drenched me, and the next I was in a bubble.

A literal bubble.

Like one of those plastic ball-like things that hamsters run in when they aren’t in their cage.

It surrounded me perfectly, and I watched in avid fascination as the rain curved around my bubble and fell to the ground at my sides.

I’m in a bubble.

It’s called a shield, an amused female’s voice said dryly.

My first reaction was to look at my sides as I tried to find the owner of that voice.

And when I didn’t see anyone at my sides, only then did I look up.

And up.

And up.

And up.

There was a beautiful white dragon the color of a pearl.

She had blue eyes, blue spikes down her back, and a blue war club type thing on her tail that reminded me of a mace I’d seen once at a museum.

She was lying on the roof, almost like she was sunning herself.

Could the roof hold that much weight without collapsing?

She looked like she’d done it before.

“Are you talking to me?” I asked the dragon.

That had to be the stupidest thing to ever come out of my mouth.

Literally, out of all the things I could’ve said to a dragon, I had to ask her if she was talking to me.

“Dammit, Brooklyn, are you stupid?” I asked, leaning up, watching the dragon warily.

My head popped out of my bubble, but the rest of me remained in the bubble, protected and dry.

Yes, I’m talking to you, the dragon informed me with a regality that made me want to bow at her feet.

Was that allowed? Did humans bow to dragons?

No, you do not have to bow to me, child. If you’ll concentrate on the shield around your head, it should appear without much effort on your part.

The backdoor behind me opened, but I concentrated on making a bubble around my face, eyes widening as I felt it pop back in place.

“Wow,” I breathed.

What was going on?

Was I manifesting powers because I was in a dragon rider’s home? Did one get powers just from being around dragons? Would I be like Superman? The Hulk? Captain America?

I chanced a look back at Nikolai, and he stood there, frozen, staring at me like I’d done something he hadn’t expected me to do.

“Shit,” he breathed.

I blinked.

“You know why I’m doing this, don’t you?” I accused, pointing a finger at him.

“Lucy,” the dragon teased in a Spanish accent. “You got some ‘splainin to do.”

Nikolai glared at something over my shoulder, and I whipped around.

Because, hello!

There was a dragon at my back!

My bubble disintegrated.

Whatever control I’d had over the bubble like thing around me was gone, and I was no longer being protected from the rain.

I’d never seen a dragon this close before.

Of course, everyone in Dallas had seen one a time or two in the air.

But it was a rare treat that one saw them from this close.

Dragons, from what I’d been told, were solitary by nature.

They didn’t like large crowds. Small crowds. Or medium crowds. You get the picture.

They didn’t like people much, period.

And they certainly didn’t spend time with humans that didn’t have dragon rider blood.

Mostly because you never knew who you could trust.

Hell, I was a pretty normal woman.

A new nurse.

A twenty-six-year-old, nearly virgin.

Well, that probably wasn’t so normal, but you catch my drift.

I was an everyday, run of the mill, female American.

I must’ve been really special for the dragon to talk to me…that, or maybe screwed in the head.

“Stop putting yourself down. You’re completely fine,” Nikolai snapped.

I narrowed my eyes.

He needed to stop reading my mind, if he didn’t like what went through it.

“I need answers, and not the vague answers you’ve been giving me the last couple of days,” I ordered darkly.

Nikolai sighed, sitting down on the edge of the door, allowing his feet to extend out into the rain.

He was wearing a pair of black basketball shorts

“I don’t think you’re ready for the answers you seek yet,” he said evasively, opening the door with a fucking key and waving me inside.

I narrowed my eyes, but nonetheless followed him inside, looking only once over my shoulder at the dragon that was no longer there.

“Who are you to tell me I’m not ready? I’m tired of being treated like I’m a child,” I snarled.

My fear must’ve finally made itself known to him, and he dropped his head to his hands before he exploded in a flurry of movement.

He groaned and stood up, ripping his wet t-shirt off over his chest.

And it was then that I saw the tattoo again.

It looked like an exact replica of mine, and I’d been telling myself for the past twenty-four hours that, maybe, I’d been dreaming when I saw the tattoo yesterday after breakfast.

Almost as if we’d hugged, and my tattoo had rubbed off on him where our skin had met.

My mouth fell open and I stared in shock.

“You have my tattoo,” I accused smartly.

He nodded.

“Why?” I asked.

He shook his head. “I don’t know. Well…I do know. But I don’t know why.”

I scrunched my nose up in confusion.

“What does that even mean?” I asked.

He sighed and started forward, offering me his hand.

“Follow me. I have something you can read. And once you’re done, if you have any questions, I’ll answer them,” he said, leading me through the maze of hallways.

I realized, as if in a daze, that I’d turned right instead of left, which would’ve taken me to the kitchen instead of the copious amount of hallways that I’d taken instead.

“You need one of those maps that malls put up that says, ‘You are here’ on each corner,” I mumbled distractedly.

I was distracted because I could feel the body heat emanating off of the man.

He felt like a ball of fire in the middle of a blizzard.

I wanted to wrap myself around him and rub my face against his pecs.

Maybe wrap my legs around his face…okay. I needed to quit. I was clearly getting out of hand.

Nikolai didn’t seem to notice my wayward thoughts, only kept trudging forward without a care.

Luckily, I managed to shake it off once I reached what I realized was his own personal office.

The room itself had a wall of computer monitors mounted above a massive desk on the far wall. Bookshelves surrounded us, climbing to the ceiling on either side of us.

On the opposite wall, through the doorway, was a massive bed about twice the size of a normal sized king, and I idly wondered why he had such a large bed. I had vaguely noticed it when I was in there earlier, but now, all I could see was the bed.

Both rooms were black.

Black walls. Black computers. Black curtains. Black sheets.

The only thing not black were the wood floors, and those were such a dark brown that they could’ve passed for black.

“What the fuck?” I asked. “What’s with all the black?”

He let my hand go and walked to the bank of computer monitors, picking up a leather bound book from about fifteen books that were lined against the back of the desk, and turned to me.

“Sit down,” he gestured towards his bed.

My brows rose, but I followed directions and walked to his bed, raising a knee once I reached the huge thing, and slid along the slick sheets until I was safely ensconced in the very middle.

When I finally looked at him expectantly, it was to see Nikolai’s eyes dilated, and his breathing picked up.

I hid my smile as I held out my hands.

“Gimme,” I ordered.

He handed me the book so fast it looked like he’d been cattle prodded.

I took it from him, and watched as he walked to the other room. I could see him at the computer monitors, where he took a seat, then immersed himself in the World Wide Web.

Or whatever it was.

I wasn’t sure.

The computer had one of those black screens on it that didn’t allow anyone but him to see what he was doing.

And I wondered idly why he had that.

Was he that private that he had to hide what was on his computer screen?

After I studied his profile for long moments, I finally cracked open the book that he’d given me.

MATING.

All dragon riders have a predestined mate.

Some riders will never find that mate and will forever stay single, never to marry or fall in love.

Others, though, will find their mate. And their mate will become immortal, matching in life spans with their rider.

My heart started to pound, and I looked up at Nikolai, studying him avidly.

“We’re mated?” I squeaked.

He turned only his head to survey me, and narrowed his eyes. “I told you to read it all; once you’re done I’ll answer your questions.”

Duly chastised, I looked down at the book and continued reading.

With the first touch of mates, skin to skin, the process begins. It takes up to three full days for the process to be complete, and the two mates will be forever bound. Unconditionally and irrevocably.

My mind started to whirl.

Had he been the one to save me? To rescue me from my uncle’s harming hands?

Page after page I read, and the more I read, the more I started to understand.

Was I afraid?

No.

Not even a little bit.

The female is fed by the male’s connection to the dragon. The two mates will forever have to be within the vicinity of the other, or they start to grow weak, and eventually die if the separation goes on too long. Never stay apart for more than twenty-four hours. Trust me, it doesn’t go away. I know.

Was I now immortal? Was that what he was trying to tell me?

The last words on the page were a dedication of sorts.

And I looked up with a burning question on the tip of my tongue.

“Who wrote this?” I whispered, finally looking up from the book.

He was facing me…and had been for a while.

Studying my face as I read, gauging my reaction to the words on the page.

“My father.”

I blinked.

“Your father’s dead?” I gulped.

He nodded.

“He died hours after writing that.” He indicated the book.

My eyes started to well with hot tears.

“He really loved you,” I whispered. “You will forever live on in my heart,” I quoted from the last page.

He smiled sadly. “I think that was for my mother; although, she’s never read it to this day.”

“Your mother’s still alive?” I asked worriedly. “But there was a page in there talking about the mate losing the ability to talk once…”

He nodded.

“My father breathed his last breath down my mother’s throat, just like the book says,” he admitted. “She hasn’t said a word since the day my father died.”

A ball of sadness formed in the pit of my belly.

“That sounds so awful that I want to cry, and I don’t even know them,” I whispered.

Nikolai shrugged.

“So, do you have any more questions?” he asked softly, placing both of his elbows on his knees and leaning forward.

“Were you the one to save me? Were you the one who brought me here?” I whispered.

Nikolai nodded.

“Yes. Perdita and I brought you here,” he confirmed.

“It says the minute a dragon rider touches his mate’s skin, that the bond starts forming,” I hesitated. “But I wasn’t awake for that part, which I assume is what happened.” I licked my lips. “Can you tell me how?”

He nodded.

“I will start from the beginning and tell you everything, okay?” he offered.

At my nod, he started to tell me how he came to find me.

“Did I look bad?” I asked hoarsely once he got to how he’d found me.

He nodded.

No sugarcoating for Nikolai.

“Was I…was I wearing clothes?” I asked.

It was something I’d meant to ask…yet couldn’t find the courage until now.

I didn’t really want to hear the answer; although, I knew I needed to know, if only for my peace of mind.

“Yes. Skylar, my sister, said that you had no internal injuries. She looked when I was out of the room,” he said hastily when my eyes went wide.

I nodded.

“She also said that your injuries were life threatening, and you probably wouldn’t make it through the night,” he said softly.

My eyes widened even further.

“Then how am I alive right now?” I asked bluntly.

He turned to the side, then pointed down at the tattoo.

“Our bond,” he said simply.

“So our bond has healing abilities?” I asked carefully.

He shrugged.

“I guess. I don’t really know,” he hesitated. “All I know is what you know from that book in your hands. There are a few things I learned from Keifer; but, to be honest, he’s just about as clueless in that department as I am. No one even realized this was possible until he mated with Blythe.”

I took a deep breath, then let it out slowly.

“So we’re mated for life?” I asked.

He nodded.

“And there’s no way to break this bond?”

That last question was met with a narrowing of his eyes.

“Death,” he barked.

I held my hands up.

“Whoa there, dragon slayer. I was only wondering. You know you wondered the same thing. You’ve had two months longer than me to come to terms with this. I’ve had a little over an hour,” I growled.

He looked down at his hand, opening and closing it into a tight fist.

When he didn’t say anything more, I continued onto my list of questions.

“It also said that I would share your powers,” I said.

He nodded. “You do.”

“I do?” I asked. “Which ones?”

He grinned.

“I have a little bit of telepathy. I can make some damn fine illusions.” He ticked the numbers off on his fingers. “I can detect heat by infrared. I can move things with a thought of my mind. And there are times that I can channel another dragon’s powers if I am touching a bonded dragon rider or dragon. Make zones of protection around myself. Just different things.”

I blinked.

“That’s it?” I asked.

“What else were you expecting?” he challenged.

I held my hands up.

“I just mean I thought you might have super strength…or control fire,” I teased.

His face relaxed.

“I can do that if I’m touching my brother’s dragon, Declan,” he said. “But a dragon rider gets their powers from their dragon. And Perdita is a shadow dragon. She is originally from the caves that line a certain mountain ridge in the old world. She does her best stuff in the dark, which is where I excel,” he continued to explain. “Whereas Declan, Keifer’s bonded dragon, is a fire dragon. He does the more obvious things that you would expect a dragon to do, such as breathe fire.”

“And you think I’ll be able to control these powers?” I bit my lip.

He nodded. “You already exhibited ‘the bubble’, as Keifer likes to call it, when you were out in the rain. It’s pretty good for protection.”

“Sound protection, or protection against arrows?” I asked.

He laughed.

“Arrows?” he snorted.

I nodded. “Y’all don’t get shot with arrows?”

He shook his head.

“Not for a very long time…if ever. I haven’t…Perdita might’ve, though,” he paused thoughtfully.

I have. I don’t like arrows. And no, the shield doesn’t protect against them, Perdita offered lightly.

I smiled at Nikolai.

“So, what now?” I asked once it’d been silent in the room for a couple of long minutes.

Nikolai sat back in his chair.

“I guess we date,” he finally offered.

I nodded.

“How long are we supposed to date?” I asked curiously.

He raised a brow at him.

“I guess until you decide it’s time to move to the next step,” he supplied.

My brows lowered. “And when will I know what that is?”

He snorted.

“You’ll know. And when you know, you’ll let me know,” he quipped cryptically, offering me his hand.

I took it, and he led me to the shower, turning the knobs until it was at a good temperature.

“Now, get in here and get dried off before I have to call my sister and ask her what I’m supposed to do for someone that has pneumonia,” he ordered.

I was cold, now that he mentioned it.

It was fairly close to freezing outside, but in all this time, I hadn’t felt one single shiver until he’d mentioned it.

I guess your mind is on other things.

He left the room without another word, and I slipped my still slightly damp clothes off, and traveled into the massive bathroom that looked like it was fit for a king.

Or a prince, I thought to myself.

He hadn’t said he was…but he hadn’t said he wasn’t, either.

Perdita had let it slip during one of the many back and forth conversations I’d had with her that day, and I knew that Nikolai had heard every word said between the two of us.

But he hasn’t said a word, and I had to wonder why.

That would be one of the many questions I’d asked him about once I got out.

And I had every intention of asking him…but the moment I got out of the shower, my eyes lit on the cotton t-shirt that I’d seen him wearing earlier in the day.

He must’ve put it there for me to slip on, and I did.

But the moment I had it over my shoulders, all the tension that’d built up in my body from the moment I’d realized we were mates, slipped away as if it’d never been.

It its place was a sort of peace.

I was surrounded by his scent.

And the moment I sat down on his bed, a strange sort of lethargy poured through my body, and I laid down completely on the bed.

My head hit the pillow, and I took an even deeper breath, filling my lungs with all that was Nikolai.

And, unsurprisingly, I fell asleep.

I was gifted like that.