Page 18 of Dragon Enchanted (Secret Kingdoms: The Draquonir #1)

CHAPTER 17

S he was alive.

She was in his arms.

He could still smell the smoke from the men who had dared take her from him.

Vector’s breath came in sharp, uneven pulls, his chest rising and falling too fast, his blood still burning with battle rage.

His dragon wasn’t satisfied.

The beast inside him wanted to go back and burn them again.

And again.

And again.

Until there was nothing left.

Until their souls screamed in the afterlife, knowing that they had made the worst mistake of their existence.

They had touched her.

Had taken her.

Had tried to take his mate away from him.

He tightened his hold on her, needing to feel her, needing proof that she was real, that she was his, that they would never be apart again.

Her body molded against him, soft and perfect, the heat of her sinking into his very bones.

And his dragon?—

His dragon purred.

Purred.

The deep, thunderous rumble vibrated through his chest, through his ribs, through every cell of his body.

Because for the first time in centuries, his beast was at peace.

She had touched him. Kissed him, not just as a man, but as a dragon.

She had accepted the beast.

And now?—

Now, dragon was sharing his magic with her.

He could feel it sinking into her, wrapping around her like molten threads of dark red fire and power, making her stronger, faster, healthier—nearly immortal.

He had been wild before he found her. Untamed. Mad with power, magic building inside him, with no outlet, no relief. A storm trapped in a cage.

And then— mate .

The moment she touched him, the moment she chose him, it had been like fire meeting air.

Explosive.

Unstoppable.

Fated.

He breathed her in, his mate, his love, his life.

And the need to claim her fully slammed through him like a tidal wave.

With a single flick of his fingers, magic surged?—

And her clothes vanished.

Raven gasped against his lips, a shocked breath that turned into a low, needy moan as he crushed her against him, skin to skin, fire to fire.

She was so perfect, so soft, so utterly his.

His dragon wrapped around his magic her, its presence coiling through their bond, infusing her with its power, ensuring that she would be forever part of him.

His hands moved over her, memorizing every inch, every curve, every delicate plane of her body.

Her nails dug into his back, her body arching into him, her breath coming faster, sharper, filled with need.

He groaned, head dropping to her throat, teeth scraping the sensitive skin there, his control cracking, crumbling, burning to dust.

She was his.

His.

And he would make sure she knew it.

His mouth devoured hers, kissing her like he would never stop, never get enough, never let her go. Because he wouldn’t.

His magic wrapped around her, inside her, through her, binding them together, body and soul.

This was more than passion. More than desire. This was love, deep and consuming, endless and fated.

He was grateful for her. Blessed by her.

Fate had given him everything he never thought he deserved.

And now, he would spend forever making her his.

Keeping her safe.

Keeping her loved.

Keeping her forever.

He groaned her name, his voice wrecked, desperate, filled with everything he couldn’t say.

And when she whispered his name back, soft and shaking and filled with love, he knew?—

This was only the beginning.

Vector’s hands trembled as they framed her face, his breath uneven, his dragon magic swelling between them like a living, pulsing force.

She was here. Safe. Alive. His.

But it wasn’t enough.

Not yet.

Not until he gave her everything.

He could feel it—the fire still locked inside him, coiled like a storm, ancient, restless, waiting.

It had never had a place to go.

Until now.

Vector exhaled sharply, stepping back from their kiss.

His body shook with the need to touch her again, to keep her against him, skin to skin, forever.

But this—this was more important.

Because he would not hold his magic back from her.

Not anymore.

She had chosen him.

Now, she had to choose his dragonfire. He’d given her a taste of it, saturated her with his magic, but still the power came from with him. If she were to accept his dragonfire, that which only a mate can wield, she would be able to draw upon the magic on her own. His dragon would give her the ability to wield magic without him.

His emerald eyes searched hers, his heart pounding with something dangerously close to fear. Because if she hesitated now—if she doubted, if she looked at him with fear? It would break him.

He swallowed hard, his voice low and raw. “Raven.”

She blinked up at him, breathless, cheeks flushed from their kiss. “Yes?”

He took another slow, measured step back.

Then another.

Her brows pulled together, her lips parting, as if to ask why he was stepping away.

Then he let the shift take him.

Magic rushed over his skin, a crackling storm of heat and power, twisting through his veins like a wildfire finally breaking free.

His bones stretched, shifted, expanded?—

And then?—

He was dragon again.

Massive. Towering. Wings stretching wide, talons digging into the earth, scales catching the moonlight, his shadow swallowing her whole.

The earth shook beneath his weight.

She didn’t run.

Didn’t even flinch.

She just stared up at him, lips parted, breathing hard.

His chest tightened, a deep, raw pain twisting inside him.

Gods, she was so beautiful. So strong.

She was everything.

His wings settled; the night silent around them.

Then, his dragon’s voice thunderous, ancient, absolute as he spoke directly to her mind.

Do you trust me?

A slow breath. Then— “Yes.”

No hesitation.

No doubt.

His dragon exhaled, the sound shaking the very air, sending warm winds curling around her body.

Then stand still, my mate. Do not move. Dragon instructed.

She swallowed, eyes flickering with understanding, with realization as he opened his maw and took a deep breath, allowed the flames to build in his throat.

Her eyes went wide with shock, but she braced her feet on the damp earth and stared directly into dragon’s eyes. Unflinching. With so much courage, he fell in love with her all over again.

Dragon sent her an image, a vision of her body engulfed in dragonfire. In pure, red flame. She didn’t move. She knew what he was about to do. She knew what the fire meant.

Her breath hitched.

But she didn’t run.

She lifted her chin, her hands falling to her sides, her defiant eyes locked onto his.

She stood firm. Ready. Willing.

Vector’s chest tightened painfully.

She was so much more than he deserved.

The power in his lungs swelled, the fire in his veins demanding release, surging forward, raw and unchained.

For the first time in his existence, he had someone to give it to.

Someone strong enough to take it.

He took a slow, deep breath.

And then?—

He exhaled.

Fire. Magic. Love.

A torrent of red, shimmering flame erupted from his throat, spilling toward her, engulfing her, surrounding her.

Magic crackled and burned, the very air charged with power, heat swirling like a living storm.

She was gone inside it.

Swallowed whole.

His mate. His love. His life.

Held in the heart of his fire.

His dragon growled low, body tense, wings half-spread as the flames rushed over her skin, through her blood, inside her bones.

And she?—

She did not scream.

She did not fall.

She stood.

Her head tilted back, arms lifting to the sky, a low, breathless sound slipping from her lips?—

Not in pain.

In ecstasy.

Magic sparked around her, twisting like golden-red lightning, crawling over her skin, sinking into her soul.

And then he felt it.

Relief.

A tidal wave of pure, raw relief unlike anything he had ever known.

The fire rushing out of him was no longer trapped. No longer building inside him like a ticking bomb, like an unstoppable storm. It had a home now.

Her.

His dragon rumbled, wild heat rising in his chest, a sound of pure devotion.

She was accepting his fire. Accepting him.

The flames lingered, twining around her body, changing her, bonding her, making her his in a way that no force in the universe could undo.

And then?—

A shift.

A crackling pulse of power.

A new source of fire igniting.

Not from him.

From her.

His dragon stilled.

Because now— the flames were coming from her. She was dragonfire. Part of him. His.

The fire whipped around her in a whirlwind, a golden-red inferno born of his magic, but now fully her own.

And standing inside it all, untouched, remade, his forever?—

Was Raven.

Still burning.

Still glorious.

Still his.

Vector shifted back.

His body shrank, wings folding inward, scales melting into pale, human skin, dragon form giving way to the man once more.

He stepped forward, naked, the fire wrapping around him, welcoming him, recognizing him as hers.

And then he was there, inside the flames, inside her magic.

He pulled her into his arms.

She came willingly, eagerly, fire dancing over both of them, power coursing through them, binding them so deeply, so completely, they could never be apart again.

His voice was hoarse, wrecked, ruined. “I love you, Raven. You are mine.”

Her fingers tightened on him, her lips curling into a smile, her body still burning, still alive with dragonfire.

“I will always be yours.”

And then—he kissed her. This time, the fire was theirs.

She was burning for him. Not just with fire. Not just with magic. But with need. A need that mirrored his own.

Vector could feel it—the unrelenting, unbearable pull between them, the force of his magic inside her, wrapping around her, binding them together in a way that could never be undone.

His hands tightened on her body, fingers digging into bare, heated skin, every muscle in his frame locked with restraint.

He was starving for her. For this. For the final, unbreakable completion of their bond. She was his mate.

But until now—until this moment—she had not been fully claimed. Not accepted his dragonfire. Not known dragon. Become one with both of them. Ridden through the skies like a goddess on his back. His goddess.

His throat worked, his breath coming ragged, uneven, his pulse thundering as he lifted her into his arms, cradling her like she was the most precious thing in the world.

Because she was.

Her arms wrapped around his neck, her lips parted, breathless, her body still glowing with the fire he had given her.

His fire.

His mate.

His forever.

He carried her through the flames, through the magic still thick in the air, his steps slow, deliberate, his hands shaking with the weight of what was about to happen.

She looked up at him, eyes dark with need, with love, with absolute trust.

His control snapped.

With a low, guttural growl, he lifted her body and placed her wet heat over his hard length. Lowered her body onto his. Filled her. Claimed her. Thrust deep. He took her. Completely. Utterly. Finally.

The moment shattered his world.

Fire exploded around them, heat coiling through every nerve, pleasure slamming into them both like a wave of pure, raw power.

She gasped, her fingers tightening on his back, her body arched against him, her breath stolen as she became his, as the dragonfire raced through them both, like electric sparks of desire dancing through their bodies, shockwaves striking nerves until they were both lost, their bodies both finding release as red bolts of lightning struck the ground around them. Not from the sky—from them.

He held her, breathed her in, marveled at the miracle in his arms as he filled her with his seed, gave her everything he was. He became hers. Fully. Irrevocably.

No force in the universe could separate them now.

No magic, no power, no god or mortal. Not even death. For where she went, he would follow, in this world or the next.