Page 61 of Guardian of the Cursed Egg (Dragonis Academy #2)

Slowly, I straighten and move to stand in front of him, my sandals scraping against coarse stone.

I can feel the chill of the evening air nipping at my neck, but the dragon’s warm exhalations wash over my face like intermittent gusts of heat.

Tilting my head to one side, I fight the urge to step even closer.

“I know you’re my mate,” I say, my voice barely above a whisper.

“I feel it. I’ve felt it since your egg started responding to me … since you started responding to me.”

I tilt my head the opposite way, pulse thrumming in my ears.

“May I see your human side? Hold you in my arms.” It’s a huge request, and the gravity of it sinks like a stone in my stomach.

A thousand years—that’s how long he’s been imprisoned.

Who knows what that kind of confinement does to a man’s mind, especially if it was a forced sleep or worse.

My eyes slide shut, and I bow my head in a gesture of trust, the wet wind teasing the ends of my hair.

The possibility of danger—it hovers at the edge of my awareness like a knife’s edge glinting in the darkness.

My heart beats faster, a steady drum in my chest that seems to echo off the fractured walls.

I listen to the surf, feel the trembling hum of my anticipation, and sense the faint tug from Abraxis along our bond.

I send a reassuring caress back, letting him know I’m safe …

or as safe as I can be right now. Then I feel it.

A sudden warmth before me, heat rolling off something in front of me in soft waves.

I keep my eyes cl osed, trusting him to do the right thing.

My breath catches in my throat, tension coiled tight as a spring, and I wait for whatever form he decides to show me.

My eyes pop open the moment I hear his rough, unused voice: “Mate…”

Blinking, I look up into the most beautiful eyes—crimson flecked amber, glowing with a quiet intensity.

A hint of salt-laced wind drifts across my face from the nearby ocean, heightening my awareness of him.

My fingertips tremble slightly as I reach up to touch the sides of his broad temples, trailing down until I can cup his cheeks.

He stands over six and a half feet tall, thick shoulders tapering into a powerful torso, just like my visions hinted.

“Mate…” I repeat softly, the word a breath of relief and longing on my lips.

He bands his muscular arms around me and pulls me against his solid chest, the heat of his body almost scorching through my clothes.

I inhale the raw, smoky scent that clings to his skin—like embers after a forest fire.

Happy tears fill my eyes, sliding down my cheeks as I lift my arms to loop around his neck.

I press a gentle kiss to his lips, tasting a mix of warmth and ash.

He breaks the kiss and watches the tears roll down my face.

His thumb skims across my skin, wiping the drops away.

There’s a tenderness in his expression as his gaze roams over me, studying each angle and curve.

“Why do you cry, mate?” His breath ghosts over my cheek before he leans in, nuzzling my skin with a low rumble of contentment.

“I’m happy,” I murmur. “Happy the books were wrong. They all said you would more than likely kill me.” I can almost hear my heart thundering in my ears as I watch his eyes shift between human and dragon—a mesmerizing dance of color and dangerous promise.

“Yet you came anyway,” he says, voice deep as he slides his fingers through my long silver-and-emerald hair. The slight scrape of his nails across my scalp makes me shiver, especially when his hand glides up to trace over my silver horns.

“You saved me,” I whisper, letting my own fingers thread through his auburn hair. The strands feel soft and yet slightly coarse, like fine wire, as my nails graze his neck. “If you were going to kill me, you would have just breathed fire on me when you flew overhead.”

“That is true.” A purr vibrates in his chest, and I feel the rumble resonate through my body.

He dips down, letting his face glide across my jaw, the faint rasp of stubble adding to the tingling sensation on my skin.

His lips trail down to the bare side of my throat, and the salt in the air mingles with the electric anticipation crackling through me.

My breath catches the instant his teeth rake over my skin.

I know if he bites here, it will overlap Abraxis’s mark—dragons rarely share space.

But I tilt my head anyway, exposing that vulnerable section of my neck for him.

His purring intensifies a low, thrumming noise that seems to echo in my ribcage.

Then his teeth pierce my flesh; the sharp pain is followed by a surge of warmth that spreads through my veins.

I grip his shoulders, my nails digging into the corded muscles there.

The bond strengthens, and I feel a sudden wave of calm fill the space between us—his tranquility, his acceptance.

He retracts his teeth, and I gasp softly at the sensation of his tongue laving over the wound, sealing it. The metallic tang of my blood mingles with the briny air. A soft laugh escapes me at the realization—I have been marked by a great wyrm dragon.

He nuzzles me again, the warm huff of his breath caressing my cheek. I gaze up at him, awe and relief swirling in my chest. “Where should I bite you?” My voice quivers; I’m uncertain how a great wyrm would react to being bitten.

“On the same side, I marked you.” He lowers his head and rolls it to the side, presenting his neck like an offering. Tiamat, I hope you know what you’re doing, I think, pressing several small kisses to the spot where I plan to bite.

Then I open my mouth and sink my teeth in.

His blood hits my tongue with a jolt—it’s like I’m drinking pure energy, a heady rush that crackles through every inch of my body.

My skin feels ablaze, as if lightning itself courses through me.

When I release his throat, I run my tongue over the wound, purring at the taste and feeling of connection.

“Show me your nest site, mate,” Klauth says, gently taking my hand. His grip is warm, the rough calluses of his palms evidence of a life spent in battle and flight.

“I’m so much smaller than you,” I remark, craning my head to meet his gaze again. The breeze off the ocean tugs at my hair, and I catch a lingering whiff of sea brine and ozone.

“We need to do the mating flight,” he replies in his gravelly tone. “I’ll glide as much as I can. If you tire, I will carry you.” He bends down to press a gentle kiss to my forehead, a stark contrast to his otherwise imposing presence.

Stepping away, I allow my muscles to roll beneath my skin as I shift.

The whisper of scaled flesh against rough stone sends a tremor of anticipation through me.

I lower my head and splay my wings, feeling the tension in each membrane as they spread wide.

My frill rises and falls in a deliberate display, letting him take in my form .

“Absolutely stunning,” he breathes. “Which breath weapon do you have?”

I fan him back with a wing, warning him to keep his distance, and summon the lightning.

It crackles along my scales, dancing across the silver and emerald before arcing up through my horns.

When I unleash it on the ocean below, the water bursts into steaming currents, lighting up the sky with a brilliant flash.

“That’s a lot of lightning for such a young dragoness,” he muses. “Take flight first—my drake may frighten you if he stands over you at the start.”

I nod and leap off the rocky ledge, the muscles in my legs coiling and releasing in one fluid motion.

The cool night air wraps around me, and my wings snap open.

Each downbeat pushes me higher, the wind howling in my ears and the soft whoosh of the ocean below is barely audible.

I circle slowly, watching as Klauth’s drake form erupts into existence—a roaring inferno of scales and power.

Three thunderous beats of his massive wings, and he’s already streaking ahead of me.

I grit my teeth, driving myself to catch up, scanning the swirling clouds for a faster current.

I finally slip into an updraft that gives me an edge, letting me glide and gain altitude without exhausting my wings.

The distant roar of the ocean fades beneath the rush of blood in my ears.

I just hope leading him to my nest doesn’t lead to my death.

The thought stirs the adrenaline in my veins.

Yet as I glance over at Klauth’s fiery scales glinting in the moonlight, the calm brush of our new bond settles over me.

Maybe—just maybe—this mating flight is the start of something far more powerful than any book or rumor could ever foretell.