Page 7 of Dragon Blood (Dragon Island #3)

K ai dragged himself out of the frothy bed covers, scowling at the morning sun streaming in through the filmy curtains.

His sister’s wedding day.

Fuck.

A day trapped near Astred.

Last night was a huge fucking mistake.

He rubbed the fatigue from his eyes, rolled his neck and shoulders in a bid to release the ever-present tension.

I should have walked away.

He glanced down at his dick, upright and proud and in full disagreement. Kai strode toward the shower to take care of business. All night, memories of Red had pounded him.

Weak.

I shouldn’t have kissed her—never should have slipped my fingers into her moist…

She’d so readily accepted his touch. It wouldn’t have taken much more to lean her back…

He groaned, fist pumping under the hot water.

His tiger had told him to walk away. His dragon had urged him on. Instead, he’d mistakenly thought he’d have more control as a man, but he’d been unable to resist the allure of her scent once the wind changed directions. The sight of her on that rock overlooking the bay.

The way the moon illuminated her smooth skin, highlighting the delicate curve of her lips and the bold arch of her brow.

It was always like that between them. From the start.

All he’d been able to think about was easing her back and tasting her. All of her.

He’d thought he would control the situation. Kiss her, be done with her. Leave her on his terms. Not hers. But then his fingers had found the sanctuary of her core. Let her know what she walked away from. And each step of the way, his tiger growled warnings in his brain.

His dragon rumbled with delight.

Kai pumped harder, soap frothing under the intense heat of the water.

He’d nearly shoved her back onto that boulder and buried himself deep inside her.

Where I belong.

And then her breath had caught, she’d moaned, her channel clenching his drenched fingers, and it was all he could do to walk away. Kai’s breath hitched as he spilled over his fist, his seed spurting into the shower drain, panting.

As his heart rate slowed, he washed and prepared for the torturous day looming before him. At least he wouldn’t have a gods damned hard-on all day.

Once dressed, he slipped on his shoes and focused on his tie, using the time to solidify his resolve.

Self-control and dignity, Kai. One more day and then it’s back to work.

Home.

Back in Hong Kong, this last year.

Before that, he’d been inland so that he wouldn’t have the constant scent of the ocean breeze or sounds of rolling surf to constantly drag his memory back to Red.

He’d thought he was finally safe. Kai laughed at his reflection as his hands released the knot, twisted, then reworked the silk fabric.

His mother had suddenly walked back into his life, gutting him. And now, his ex-lover ripped his heart out all over again.

Fucking dragons. Fucking Aeleftherian dragons.

Antarctica was looking pretty appealing right now.

Maybe Bayn and his cousin Aaron had the right idea. Toronto, right in the heart of North America, as far from the coast as you could get.

Nah, I’d just get dragged into whatever shit he mentioned last night. All this political drama everyone was whispering about throughout dinner. Don’t need that shit—had enough of it within my own clan.

He grunted, reworking the tie.

His watched buzzed, drawing his attention to dismiss the notification. It was time. Turning from the mirror, he pulled on his tuxedo jacket as he left the airy room, shoulders and chest heavy. Today was his little sister’s wedding.

Nothing else mattered.

“E verything is going to change for dragonkind after today.” Queen Regina’s gaze swept Astred’s hair, searched her face, then her attire.

Astred allowed her mother to adjust her dress rather than waste time fussing over the draped layers herself.

She observed her mother’s bent head as she worked, humming a tune Astred hadn’t heard since she was a child.

The melody tickled a buried memory, filmy and too fragile to grasp.

She shook her head.

So long ago.

Red swallowed.

How long has it been since I saw her look so relaxed? Free of political weights and Aeleftherian responsibilities?

This was the first time Astred knew of Regina’s absence from the island. She’d dedicated her entire life to it.

Something Astred had resisted most of her adult life.

It is so good to see her look so free and peaceful.

Finished, Regina straightened, smiling into Astred’s eyes, searching their depths. She reached out, caressing Astred’s cheek. “You love him.”

Startled, Astred gaped.

Regina smiled. “His scent is distinct. And I know you, Astred. Better than you think.” She tapped Astred’s chest with a gentle finger. “As queen, I’m often privy to the emotions of those around me. I feel the subtle changes in their energy. And yours turned chaotic the second you saw each other yesterday.”

Astred turned away from her mother’s knowing gaze, throat tight, heart pounding.

“Kolina’s son. He’s different.” Regina picked up her Aeleftherian jewels, pinning and tucking them into place. “Dragon initiated, but not wholly dragon. And tiger? Unusual.” She added a pin at each shoulder. One for their House of Arakkil, the other for Aeleftheria. Regina held up a twin of the second one for Astred.

Astred shook her head.

Regina replaced it in the box. “Standing between the two of you felt like standing between two bluffs, with a tsunami rolling between them.”

Retrieving a second box set on a side table, the queen strode toward the door and paused, hand on the handle. “I remember that feeling.” She opened the door and stepped between the Aeleftherian warriors guarding it.

Astred straightened her shoulders, staring at the back of her mother’s head as she followed her to join the other guests. Aeleftheria’s sacred indigo flower decorated Regina’s flowing locks, woven with a silver chain bearing diamonds and a third crest, of dragon and fire.

She shivered, eyes glued to the facsimile bearing one of the three seals representing dragonkind’s connection to its magical heart. Embedded into the architectural design and decor of Aeleftheria, it was a symbol higher than any house or dragon nation. One of the other two seals, binding dragon and human, was protected by Jori’s tribe of at Katoa Koro mountain dragons.

And the seals were the reason they met on this island to talk weddings and politics now.

Three seals depicting the trinity of dragon heritage, keys to dragonkind’s greatest treasure and laterally spell-bound, to ensure cooperation when the time arose to open the ancient vault.

So Astred recalled from the old tales that colored recent conflicts and intrigue.

She sighed.

The location of the third seal was still a mystery. Kane believed the Consortium held it, still seeking confirmation from the prisoner, apprehended bearing the stolen mountain seal, subsequently returned to Jori’s protection.

Ahead of her, Regina paused.

Arriving at the threshold, Astred’s gaze swept the lovely venue.

The terrace had been arranged for a single, blended audience with rows of chairs lined in arcs, rippling back from an intricately carved and decorated arbor set atop risers with the sparkling deep teal sea and intense aqua sky as its backdrop.

Eyes closed, Astred inhaled the fresh ocean air, allowing it to fill her lungs, turning away thoughts of her beloved ship and the freedom she represented. Opening her eyes, she focused on her duty to represent her people amid this small delegation of varied nations and organizations, strengthening their partnership to protect against threats crowding their sovereignty. It wasn’t a global meeting, just those intimately affected by recent events, surrounding the discovery of this shadow group’s interference seeking to control all three seals.

The Consortium.

This wedding was a union of two individuals who’d found love, deciding to stay the course on their mission to reunite dragonkind, culturally severed centuries ago.

Astred’s gaze swept the terrace, landing on Kai as he approached from the other side of the mansion, striding toward his mother, Kolina Steelscale.

Her mouth went dry as her pulse accelerated at the gorgeous sight of him wearing a tuxedo. She quickly shoved away the tiniest peep of memory of their encounter in the wee hours that had left her sleepless.

He was a perfect example of why her mother had decided to resist the Aeleftherian Council and work with the Katoa Koro dragons rather than turn their backs on them. It wasn’t just Kai, but the newly crowned King Jori Mountainside himself, along with all his tribe. And Odson, Elora’s brother and Aeleftheria’s honored friend since long before Astred’s birth.

Sons of Aeleftherian dragonesses.

Dragonkind, divided for far too long, and under the rule of someone like Jori, the males could be guided to understand the power of true partnership and forgo their instinct to dominate—which had led to the divide in the first place.

Following her mother, Astred took a seat at the end of the front row, close to the dais.

Regina sat, back straight, hands resting over the crystal box on her lap.

Astred could only imagine the weight of the Council’s iron resistance to Regina not only supporting Kymri and Jori, but appearing in person to represent Aeleftheria.

From what Zayli and Marli had told her, when she’d stolen a couple of hours after dinner with her Aeleftherian sisters, the situation back home was tense. Divided. The hopeful rallied around the queen. While those that clung to the strife the male dragons had caused stiffened their resolve, fed by centuries of fear, resentment and anger.

It wasn’t unwarranted, but if things were to change, both sides needed to work together.

The last thing the Council wanted was change.

Little more had been said on the matter; all those present were determined to celebrate Kymri’s union and the coming of her child.

The seats filled, guests murmuring to one another.

Elora and Kolina took seats in the center of the first row, Jonathan and Kai on either side of them.

Once everyone was seated, Jolena Kane stepped up onto the dais, draped in a mercurial platinum dress, reminiscent of days so long ago, they fell into realms of myth. For a split second, the surrounding air shimmered, slipped, allowing Astred a glimpse—a sense—of something ancient. Far more ancient than the eldest of dragons, stealing Astred’s breath away. Blinking, it was gone, leaving Astred to wonder if she’d truly witnessed anything at all.

Too much wine last night and not enough sleep.

Joey Kane’s gaze slid over the audience with a spark in her eye and a smile on her lips.

Astred’s heart accelerated as power mingled and flowed around those gathered under the open sky.

Stepping up from either side of the terrace, Jori and Kymri appeared, smiles tugging at their lips, eyes shining as they joined hands on the riser below Joey. Kymri wore a dress that flowed around her body like liquid gold, embroidered with the symbols of her heritage and station among the Aeleftherian people. The sun reflected off the swell of her belly, denoting the cherished status of motherhood. Jori wore a modern tuxedo similar to Kai’s, also embroidered likewise along the hem, cuffs and lapels.

They turned, eyes landing on Regina, who stood, crystal box in hand.

She approached the couple, extracting two indigo buds of the same flowers adorning her hair. At their coronation, she had gifted them seeds. They waited as she attached the buds to the fabric at their shoulders.

Regina’s previous statement, along with this gesture, was unshakable.

Both children of Aeleftherian mothers, they equally had the right to bear the sacred flower.

In her long life, Astred had never seen the flower gifted to a male. Only the highest-ranking servants of her people, which were all female.

Handing the box to Jori’s mother, Elora, who served as ambassador between their two nations, Regina grasped Kymri and Jori’s hands.

The air thickened around the trio.

“Everything will forever change after this union.” The vibration of Regina’s voice rippled along the ocean breeze.

When she turned, she met the eyes of every individual present to bear witness, including her guards lingering at the rear of the terrace.

Unbidden, tears sprung to Astred’s eyes, breath caught in her throat as the words resonated through her entire body, enveloping her heart.

This truly is the beginning of a new era.

Regina resumed her place next to Astred, reaching for her hand, giving it the gentlest of squeezes.

Kymri and Jori faced one another.

Jolena began. “I am honored to preside over the first ceremony of its like in centuries, heralding the new direction of dragonkind into the next era.” She smiled, placing her palms atop their heads.. “You have already attained the deepest bond of dragons as lovers, and the sanctity of sovereigns by right of declaration and witnessed ascendance. Here, I bestow the blessing of something greater. Destiny.”

Jori’s thumbs stroked Kymri’s hands as he smiled into her solemn face.

Astred imagined Kymri still struggled to kindle her hope, with her experience as a lifelong guardian and warrior for her people. No matter how much she loved Jori, and hoped and strove toward a brighter future, the light of vigilance would always reside deep within her.

It would, within all Aeleftherians, until proved irrevocably obsolete.

And it was exactly why this ceremony was crucial.

Astred straightened her spine.

Perhaps it’s time I take my place among them.

She’d always answered the call to defend and protect against threats, returning home to fight off attacking males seeking to control their island, rebuilding in the wake of their destruction. And then reunite with her community, nurturing the bonds of sisterhood.

Joey Kane’s hands slid away from the couple’s heads as they turned to face the crowd, hand in hand, eliciting a cheer.

Despite the solemnity of the ceremony, they were still surrounded by friends and family concerned for their happiness.

Glancing at Regina’s profile, Astred gently squeezed her mother’s hand.

I’ve left you alone in this for long enough.

T he Watcher stood apart from the guests gathered in clusters across the terrace, mingling, sipping the bluest and best aged of Aeleftherian wines.

Queen Regina’s wedding gift.

Unsure if the administration of the tincture was sufficient, the tiny bottle in the hidden pocket of their formal attire seemed to bear the weight of a boulder, dragging at their guilt.

It’s for the best.

The queen had declared change coming for dragonkind. And it was, just not in the way everyone thought it was.

The watcher’s gaze slid around the room, monitoring the delegates, memorizing and listening for snippets of coveted information. Despite the celebrations, some wouldn’t be able to resist discussions of politics, and it was to those that the watcher paid the most attention.

“You’ve barely touched your wine. Relax, enjoy yourself. There will be much to do in the coming days.” Regina’s voice pulled the watcher’s gaze to the right as she approached with a smile.

Pulse ticking, the watcher nodded with an instinctive dip. “Yes, of course, Your Highness.”

“Join the others,” the queen winked over the rim of her glass, sipping as she slid away to speak with another guest.

The watcher’s gaze lingered on the glass at Regina’s lips.

Was it enough?

They couldn’t be sure. Opportunity had been scarce, and they’d had to resort to adding it to the bottles rather than the queen’s specific vessel, despite instructions to proceed with diligence. Time was sliding away and choices nil.

Should be well enough. She assured me it wouldn’t affect anyone else.

Their gaze slid around the gathered again, swallowing when Princess Astred stepped into view, praying there would be no effects there.

The dragonscale spell was meant to target the individual to whom the scales belonged, and the curation of Regina’s had been painstakingly overseen for years. The queen rarely took her dragon form.

The watcher could not know whether it would adversely affect the heir, which would be inherently counterproductive. Sweat prickled the watcher’s scalp. Lifting the glass of precious wine, they hesitated, staring into the blue wine, the scents of Aeleftheria’s aromatic berries luring them to taste.

“You look a little unwell.” Odson Blackridge’s deep voice drew the watcher’s attention from the glass.

I’m drawing too much attention standing here alone.

“Just thoughtful. Everyone is in good spirits.”

Odson nodded, eyes twinkling. “You should spend some time with Kymri before she returns to Katoa Koro with Jori. It won’t be long before the baby presents itself and there is no room for anyone else.”

The watcher laughed. “I have no doubt that child will be born as independent and fierce as her mother.”

“And as much of a handful.” Odson tapped the edge of his glass to the watcher’s, lifted it in salute, then sipped as he made his way around the room. “Have some fun before things get too scaly later.”

The watcher had no choice but to join Odson, sipping from the exquisite glass to honor the celebrated couple.

As the aromatic flavor slid over the watcher’s tongue, it elicited complex emotions they preferred not to analyze.

A surge of guilt soured the experience.

Lowering the glass, the watcher’s gaze found the queen, then the heir, and drew a deep breath.

It’s for the best. My duty is to the safety and well-being of my people. No one else’s. These alliances are worthless and a waste of time.

Resolved, the watcher clasped the glass between their palms to suppress their rising tension and plastered a smile on their lips as the next guest approached to exchange small talk.