Page 49

HARLEY

A piercing scream tore me from sleep.

It was a wordless, blood-curdling shriek of pain. I scrambled out of bed, my head spinning and my heart in my throat. The sheets tangled around my legs, and I nearly fell on my face. “Dylan!” I cried as I ran down the hall. Stephan was right behind me.

I threw the door to Dylan’s bedroom open.

“Mom!” he cried out. He was in the fetal position in the middle of the floor, twitching and writhing in pain, his fingers clawing at his arms like he was trying to scratch through his skin.

My knees hit the floor. I reached for Dylan, tears in my eyes, desperate to make the pain stop—then Stephan was next to me.

He scooped Dylan into his arms and cradled him against his chest. The worst of Dylan’s pain seemed to stop.

At least, the shaking stopped, but his face was still contorted as he bared his fangs.

“It’s happening,” Stephan said.

“Is this normal?” My heart was still beating a mile a minute, and I was still terrified at the sight of Dylan in such extreme pain.

“It is,” Stephan said in a calm, soothing voice. “It’s normal. I promise.”

“What can I do?” I asked desperately. I ran my hands over Dylan’s sweat-soaked hair. “How do we stop it?”

“All we can do is be there for him,” Stephan said. He kept Dylan close to his chest and leaned over to kiss me on the forehead. I exhaled and felt like I could breathe again, though fear still ran cold through me.

Stephan knew what was going on. He knew how to keep Dylan safe.

We’d get through this. He hurried down the stairs with Dylan in his arms. Dylan had a death grip on Stephan’s shoulders and was still groaning in pain, but it wasn’t the desperate screams of earlier.

Those screams would haunt my nightmares for a long time.

Outside, Stephan sat down on the grass and pulled Dylan into his lap. I sat next to them, so I could see Dylan’s face, and my hands itched to reach for them.

“Dad,” Dylan whined. “Dad, it hurts all over.”

Stephan met my eyes and nodded with a small smile. Dylan was talking. That was good.

“You’re ready for this,” Stephan said. “Remember all the practice we’ve done with your fangs, claws, and your tail?”

Dylan nodded. He sat up a little and swallowed hard.

“You’re going to let your claws and your tail out first, okay? Then after that, you’re going to feel like your dragon wants to keep going. Remember that feeling?”

“Uh-huh,” Dylan said.

“This time, lean into it, okay? Your dragon knows what to do. Take a deep breath.”

Dylan looked at me, his hazel eyes big and fearful.

“You can do this, Dylan,” I said. “You’re strong. You’re ready.”

It happened in stages. First, his claws emerged from his fingertips. He still had a death grip on Stephan’s shoulders, and pinpricks of blood appeared on his bare skin where Dylan’s claws dug in. But Stephan didn’t react. He kept his gaze on Dylan’s face. Careful. Attentive.

Gold gleamed in their hazel eyes.

Then Dylan’s tail appeared—long, sage green, and speckled with gold.

He exhaled hard a few times, and smoke drifted from his nostrils.

Stephan gestured for me to scoot back, and he shuffled back as well, so Dylan was on his hands and knees on the grass.

Stephan set his hand on the back of Dylan’s neck and murmured soothingly to him.

Time seemed to slow down, and the air crackled with magic. It was different than Stephan’s shifting magic—brighter, rawer.

It happened in a slow wave. Sage green scales rippled over Dylan’s body. His wings emerged, stretched out like arms, then his body changed shape: bigger, stronger, his elongated neck, and his dragon’s head square-snouted and sharp-toothed.

And then it was over. It couldn’t have taken more than a few minutes, but it felt like years. I buried my face in my hands, but I couldn’t stop the tears from falling.

Stephan stood up and wrapped his arm around my shoulders, tugging me close to his body.

“He looks exactly like you,” I whispered.

Dylan’s dragon was a smaller replica of Stephan’s. Same sage green scales, same gold detailing, same long neck and tail. He chirruped, then trotted around the clearing gleefully. He swung his head around, toward the lake, the trees, and the sky, then closed his eyes and inhaled deeply.

“Everything smells stronger when you’re shifted,” Stephan explained quietly. “It’s remarkable.”

Then Dylan bounded over to me and Stephan.

He bumped his head against my shins, and I sank down to the ground in front of him.

He was about as tall as I was when I was kneeling.

Smiling through my tears, I ran my hand over the smooth, warm scales on his head.

Dylan made another pleased chirrup and nuzzled his nose into my hand.

Then he turned and knocked his head against Stephan’s legs, a little harder than he’d bumped me.

Stephan laughed. “You want to play?”

Dylan chirruped and bounced up and down on all fours like an excited puppy.

I laughed and wiped my tears away. I was so proud of him. Dylan was so cute and so happy.

I’d been so terrified about him shifting for the first time, but it had gone better than I ever could have imagined.

And I knew that was only because Stephan was here.

Stephan looked at me, an eyebrow raised in question. God, he was handsome in the moonlight. It was late, but this was a special moment. I wanted to see them together. All I could do was nod.

Stephan shifted as well, with a crackle of magic and a flash of green scales in the moonlight. Then there were two identical dragons in the clearing, one big and one small. I sat down on the grass, pulled my knees to my chest, and rested my chin on them.

Dylan flapped his wings in an attempt to fly. He couldn’t do more than hover off the ground a little before he flopped back down. Stifling my laugh, I hid my smile behind my hand.

The two dragons chased each other around the clearing.

They could communicate, somehow, and I watched as Dylan followed his dad around with wide eyes.

They played for what must’ve been an hour, tumbling in the grass and blowing smoke rings.

Every now and then, Stephan launched into the sky and soared around in circles right above Dylan’s head.

Dylan yelped, jumped, and nipped at his feet.

The sky turned a pale gray as dawn approached.

Dylan’s energy waned, and his dragon’s head began to droop toward the grass.

Stephan shifted back into his human form, then gathered the dragon into his arms. He stroked Dylan’s head, then spoke in that low voice again.

Soon, with another crackle of magic, Dylan shifted back into his human form, wearing just his pajama pants and shivering in the night air.

He exhaled a final puff of smoke, then wrapped his arms around Stephan’s neck in a silent demand to be carried.

Chuckling, Stephan picked him up. I ran my hand over Dylan’s hair and kissed his forehead. Dylan hummed in acknowledgment, but his eyes were already closed.

Stephan carried him back into the house and up the stairs. As soon as Dylan hit the mattress, he sighed happily. “Hey, Dad?” he mumbled sleepily.

“What is it, bud?” Stephan smoothed his hand over Dylan’s forehead.

“When I learn to fly, I’m gonna be the fastest dragon ever.”

My heart felt so big and full of love, I was afraid it would burst right out of my chest.

“I don’t doubt it, kiddo. Now get some sleep.”

Dylan was out like a light before we even closed the door to his room.

In the hallway, I slumped against the wall and let out a long, shaky breath. I was crashing from the adrenaline now, almost high from the relief.

It finally happened. We’d made it through Dylan’s first shift.

Stephan stepped closer and brushed the hair off my face. He looked invigorated—he always did after a shift. “You all right?”

“I can’t believe it,” I murmured. “His first shift is over. It was almost… almost easy.”

“He was ready,” Stephan said.

“He had a good teacher.” I pressed my lips to his. It started out as a soft kiss, but quickly deepened into something more passionate.

Stephan pulled away enough to murmur against my mouth. “How are you feeling?”

“Wired.”

“Come on.” He took my hand and led me back into his bedroom, which was beginning to feel more like our bedroom.

After we changed into clean pajamas—shorts for him, and an oversized Cole’s Garage T-shirt for me—Stephan tugged me into bed.

I’d expected him to kiss me again, but instead he cupped my face and gazed into my eyes.

There was an unfamiliar emotion in his gold-flecked hazel eyes.

We lay facing each other, like two parentheses.

“Brings back memories,” Stephan said.

“Of your first shift?”

He nodded, running his hand up and down the curve of my waist. The familiar motion sent a slow, comfortable heat through me. “A lot was going on with my clan when I started showing signs.”

“Like what?”

“Dad was in the middle of a territory war,” he said. “He dropped everything to be there for me. It was a dangerous time for him—for all of us—but he made time. He knew I’d remember it forever.”

“And you do,” I said softly.

He nodded, then leaned forward and kissed me gently. “Thank you for coming back. Thank you for bringing Dylan here.”

“He couldn’t have shifted so easily without you. I should be thanking you.”

“It’s more than that,” Stephan said. “Being here for Dylan’s shift… It’s like seeing the birth of his dragon. It’s an honor to witness and be part of. You didn’t have to come back to Lakeview, and you did. You allowed me to be a part of this.”

“Steph…” I whispered. I’d been so concerned about Dylan’s safety during his shift that I hadn’t even considered what it might mean to Stephan.

I’d never seen this open, emotional side of Stephan before. Not even when we were together all those years ago. I wondered if anyone had seen this side of him before.