Francesco Marino

The woman I had saved was one of the loveliest ladies I had ever seen. She had long, red hair and sparkling green eyes. She was so curvy too. Her clothes had been disheveled, torn, and covered in dirt and blood.

She had burst out of her room as if in a panic. Fury filled me that Damon had angered her so. When she spied me, she hesitated.

“You’re the dragon who saved me,” she said softly.

I nodded, mesmerized by her. Inwardly, it killed me that I had saved her from the dragon, but Damon had been the one to save her life. The wounds I’d suffered during the battle had not been life-threatening, but it wouldn’t have been wise for me to give her blood. Not when I wished for my body to heal rapidly. So, Damon gave her his, and she was now bonded to him. I doubted he had told her that part, and I wasn’t about to.

“Of course I saved you. Why wouldn’t I have?” I asked.

She blinked. “You had to fight another dragon,” she said. “And it sounds like they’re terrible.”

“Exceedingly terrible,” I agreed. “But let’s not talk about them.”

“No?” She stared up at me. “What should we talk about?”

“How you should thank me and profess your undying loyalty to me for saving your life.” I grinned.

That she was alive, standing, talking with me, listening to me flirting with her… It amazed me. She had come so very close to death. I had never realized just how fragile and frail a human life could be than in that moment when I had scooped her up into my claws. She had been so limp, and her chest had hardly risen. I feared I would lose her during the flight over, and yet, I feared that if I flew too fast I could cause her more pain, more issues, could even kill her myself if the wind resistance proved too much.

But all was well. She was fine. Better than fine. So very fine.

She laughed. “I could, I suppose. I do owe you my life after all.”

I scowled, thinking of Damon.

“What’s wrong?” She touched my arm.

So soft, so tender. Her eyes were so bright. I could not handle her.

Why? Why was I so drawn to her? She was not any different from the dozens of women I had already dated. More than the other two, I enjoyed a few relationships with females. I’d always assumed I would settle down with a nice dragon lady one day.

Now, I wasn’t so sure.

It was ridiculous. I hardly knew her.

She was staring at me, her concern growing, and I frowned all the more.

“Why aren’t you smiling?” I asked, cupping her chin.

She gave me a pathetic smile.

I rolled my eyes and sighed dramatically. “Come on now. Can’t you give me a real smile?”

“Maybe I’m not in the mood,” she said.

“Not in the mood? You should be! You are alive! It is a wonderful day!” I threw out my arms.

“Isn’t it night?” she asked dryly.

“Even better.” I threw her a wink.

She giggled.

“Ah, there! Now you can smile, yes?”

The woman beamed.

“Adorable!”

She sighed. “Adorable? That’s not what a woman wants to hear.”

“No? Forgive me. I am just blinded by your amazingness.”

Her hand went to her forehead. “You’re a bit over the top, aren’t you?”

“Maybe.” I became a tad bit more serious. “I just prefer to do everything with all I have.”

“Like rescuing me. You didn’t have to do that.” She hesitated and touched my arm. “Were you injured?”

“I am Francesco Marino. A stronger dragon there is not. I am perfectly fine, but if you wish to inspect every inch of me to be sure, I will not stop you. I will strip down right here and no if you like.” I grabbed my shirt.

She laughed and yanked my wrist down. “Don’t you dare!”

“In a bedroom then?” I wiggled my eyebrows.

She giggled some more.

Just then, Damon burst out of her room. Audrey glanced at him, and I bristled. I had never been jealous of the dragon before. We were co-leaders. Not one of us was above the other. I shouldn’t mind that Damon had given his blood to heal her, but I did. I wished that had been me. While it did not seem as if she had overly bonded with Damon, she still might.

And that was what made me so jealous. I was furious with Damon for the first time ever.

This was not good. Not good at all.

“I am Audrey,” she said, still gazing at Damon.

“Audrey! You look like an Audrey. Stunning. Breathtaking. I take it you are never invited to weddings because you would upstage any bride.”

A strange expression crossed her face. I could not understand it, but then it was meant for Damon and not for me. I glanced over to see Damon, not her. She shrugged and gave him a small smile before looking at me.

“Forgive me,” she murmured.

“There is nothing to forgive.”

I listened as Damon walked down the hall. He was heading for the study. Good. He wouldn’t be a distraction any longer.

“Is there anything you need? Anything I can give you?” I swept into a grand bow. “I am at your service, Miss…”

“Wright.” She laughed and pushed up on my shoulders so I would stand. “Don’t do that.”

“You don’t want me to bow to you? Why not?”

“Because I don’t deserve one.”

“It is not a matter of deserving one. It is a sign of respect.”

“But I… I should curtsey to you. You saved my life, not the other way around.”

My heart skipped a beat as she sank into a curtsey. It wasn’t the best of forms, but it was the thought behind it. What a sweet gesture.

I could not help myself. I enveloped her into my arms and began to dance. I had been told more than once that I was a romantic. I loved all women, and I knew how to sweep them off their feet.

With Audrey, though, it felt different. I could not explain how or why, and given that she might bond to Damon, I shouldn’t even try, but damn, did she feel right in my arms.

“You truly are not hurt then?” she asked suspiciously.

I guided us into her room, where we would have more space than in the hallway to continue our dance.

“Would I be able to do this if I were injured?” I leaned her back over my arm.

She giggled. “I haven’t danced like this in ages.”

“You have ballroom danced before?” I asked, surprised. Certainly, she danced well, but I had assumed she was a quick learner. I was an excellent dancer myself, and I could lead others well enough even if they had never danced themselves before.

“A few times. One of my friends is a dancer. She instructs at a school, and sometimes, she has me go in and help when she’s shorthanded.”

“Ah, that explains your gracefulness.”

“I am not graceful at all,” she protested.

“You have a dignity to you.”

Her laugh was shocked. “You don’t know me at all!”

“Or perhaps you don’t know yourself.” I pulled her close as we stopped dancing.

She did not struggle out of my arms. Our faces were so close. Her eyes were bright, and she seemed to be searching for something in mine.

“I know who I am,” she said slowly, “but I don’t know if I can accept everything that has happened. Dragons being real, two clans moving here, fighting, a war… almost being killed…”

I held her tightly to my chest. Her heart raced, as did mine.

“I will not allow anything to happen to you,” I said. “I saved you once. I vow that I will save you again and again, as many times as is necessary if that needs to be the case.”

“Thank you, but I would rather that not be necessary.”

“Will you stay here then?” I asked eagerly.

“I…” Audrey shook her head, and only now did she wiggle free from my embrace. “I can’t. I have to return to my life. I’ve been gone for so long. Too long. I can’t stay.”

“There’s nothing I can do to convince you to stay?” I asked, pouting.

“Don’t be so upset.”

“Why not? You save a girl’s life, and she runs off the first chance she gets.”

“It’s not like that,” she protested.

“No?” I crossed my arms, flexing them slightly. “Prove it.”

She sighed. “I can’t stay. If you were me… You’d need some time away.”

“Away from me?”

“Not you. Just… dragons in general? I’m sorry. It’s so much to handle. You can understand that, right?”

“I can, but that doesn’t mean you don’t wound me.” I clasped my hands to my chest.

“So overdramatic.”

“For you, I can be anything.”

“So you won’t stop me if I’ll leave?”

I cupped her cheek. “Allow me to drive you home.”

She hesitated, and I could tell she was thinking hard. Why? Did she not like to accept help from strangers? And I wasn’t even a strange man. I was a strange dragon shifter.

Of course she was scared and frightened. Why wouldn’t she want to be with dragons who could protect her?

Audrey was lovely, yes, but she had a strength to her. She was smart. She’d see reason and stay.

She still hadn’t responded, so I opted for a different tactic. “How about we spend the night together?”

“In your bed?” she asked dryly, eyebrow quirked. “I don’t think so.”

I laughed. “Oh, no, ma cher. I meant up on the rooftop. The stars are especially lovely viewed from above. We can have some wine and some fruit and—”

“Does all of the wine you dragons drink help with your fire?”

I roared another laugh. “Perhaps it does.”

“You are that insistent that I stay. Do you think I need your protection? Is that it?”

“I don’t want my saving you to be for naught,” I said quietly. “I want nothing to happen to you. Is that so wrong of me?”

“No,” she said slowly. “But I need some space.”

“Space? You can have space later, once the war is over.”

“Has the war even started yet?”

“Not exactly,” I admitted. “But—”

Are you certain it would be a short war?”

“I… I can’t say for certain,” I admitted, unwilling to lie to her.

“Well, then. I can’t just put my life on hold. I have a job. I have responsibilities. I’m still trying to find my dog. I’m sorry. I don’t want you to worry about me, but I have to return to my life.”

“Allow me to drive you,” I all but begged.

Audrey held out her hand. I clasped it and squeezed.

“Very well,” she allowed, “but you’ll drop me off a block from my house.”

“I will do no such thing,” I admonished.

“A girl needs protection,” she murmured.

“Not from me.” I squeezed her hand again.

Her other hand tapped her heart. “I think differently.”