Authors: Jana Leigh,Willow Brooke
“Uh,” she said quietly.
All of their eyes snapped to her and she grimaced,
well this was weird
. She had never met such an intense group of men before. They were focused; since they returned, the entire conversation had surrounded the books and what the humans were planning.
It had given her time to look at them though. They were handsome; however, the two men that kept her attention the most, where the ones she had been drawn to since she'd woken up.. She had no idea why she was so fascinated with them but she was.
“My mother’s journal has some notes here, I can’t quite make sense of them,” she whispered to Drakk who was staring at her intently. His eyes were gorgeous, they practically shimmered in the light, she could feel her breath quicken at the sight.
“What does it say?” Drakk asked.
His voice made her want to shiver, he had no clue the effect he had on her, she was sure of it. “Uh, oh, yes,” she said and looked back down at the journal. “She is talking about our family, and apparently my great great great great grandmother or something apparently thought she had the sight.” She laughed.
“What was her name?” Gandore asked quietly.
“Agrippa,” she said with a frown.
“The one eyed witch.” Xavier laughed and Aislinn frowned.
“What?” she asked.
“Nothing, what does it say?” Drakk barked.
“Here,” she said, thrusting the book at them. “Just read it.”
The men passed the book around while she stood. They had been sitting in the large living area that had appeared after they left to get the books. She had been amazed at the magic the men had, anything they wanted they could make happen it seemed, well within reason apparently. She was told they couldn’t make money, or other things, because it wasn't the way their magic worked. It was based on their needs.
“Ha, I was right.” Gandore laughed and Drakk frowned and stared at his friends who were laughing, only Jex was staring at him with a frown. He knew they were going to have to talk soon, damn it, he really thought he was going to be able to ignore the mating.
“About?” Aislinn asked.
Gandore and the others looked at Drakk with a grin and then stood. “We will let them explain.”
His brothers laughed as they walked out of the room leaving Aislinn and Jex with him. He stared at the floor wondering how he was going to explain to the human exactly what her ancestor had predicted. Apparently, his idiot friend, though, didn’t have the same problem as he did, because before Drakk could actually form a clear way to tell her, Jex stood and blurted it out.
“Babe, your ancestors predicted the Templar Guard would face a great struggle, and in order to win, they would be sent mates that would form a triad for all of the Guard, it was the only way to defeat the threat. And guess what, you are Drakk and mine’s mate! Isn’t that awesome,” Jex said and held open his arms. “I mean, think about it, two of the best looking dragons around and you are our mate.”
Aislinn frowned and looked at the two men. “Excuse me?”
“Mate, you know, like you are our wife.” Jex smiled and walked to her. “How cool is that, right?”
“Oh hell to the
NO
!” Aislinn screeched. “I am already considering the fact this is all a weird dream still, I mean, nothing seems real: dragon, flying, caves. Now I am a mate to not one but two men? Shit, I am a crazy ass slut in my dreams and that is not okay.”
Jex frowned and dropped his arms then turned to Drakk who was looking just as confused. “Babe, you are chosen to be mated to two of the most powerful beings in the world. Plus, we are rock star handsome, all of the women in the facility wanted us, and we are yours.”
Aislinn narrowed her eyes. “In my crazy fucked up dream, I am pretty sure I shouldn’t be hearing this right now. Conjure me up my room, I need to go back to bed and forget all this shit.”
Jex opened and closed his mouth and looked at Drakk who shook his head and snapped his fingers. Aislinn nodded and pointed to the door. Both men left without a saying a word because of the look on her face. The last thing she heard when she slammed the door was Jex ask Drakk what the hell had just happened.
*****
“Are you fucking kidding me?” Drakk growled. “Even I know not to say shit like that, what the fuck?”
“Hey, the women at the facility never even blinked when I said shit like that,” Jex argued.
“Could be because they wanted something, dumbass,” Drakk said and raised a hand and ran it over his eyes. “Listen, I get this is really fucked up right now, and I understand that I basically told you to mate with her on your own earlier. But…”
Jex just smiled and looked at his hardened leader. “I know.”
Drakk narrowed his eyes at the younger dragon. He looked smugly at him and Drakk wanted to kick his ass. “We need to talk.”
“What’s there to talk about? It’s not rocket science. We found our mate. She is a latent witch who needs us to harness her powers in the fight of the greater good.” Jex’s casual attitude about it all pissed him off.
“That is exactly why we need to talk. You irritate me to the point I want to rip your tail off and shove it in that big fucking mouth of yours. Of all the dragons in the universe, fate put us together. Don’t get me wrong. You are my brother and I’d lay my life on the line to defend you. But you are the immature pain in my ass brother that needs the ever loving shit beat out of you more than once a day. How the hell are we supposed to spend eternity together and not rip each other’s throat out?”
Jex’s face twisted in a pout. He knew he got on Drakk’s nerves, but hearing his true feelings stung. “It’s not that bad…” He turned around, not wanting to show weakness in front of their fearless leader. He had hoped that the newfound mating information would bring them closer together. Obviously, it only added another thorn in Drakk’s ass.
“Jex…”
“Dude, don’t. If being in a triad with me is so bad, then it isn’t meant to be. Fate fucked up.” Jex turned and left, shifting the moment he got to the mouth of the cavern.
*****
Aislinn had gone out to get some fresh air and clear her head when she saw Jex storm off to the skies. She hadn’t meant to hurt him and felt the guilt rise in her chest. She was scared. Who wouldn’t be, it was just too crazy to think about, not that she had a choice. She didn’t. What freaked her out was not that they were dragons, but that she had feelings for two men she hardly knew and didn’t know how to handle it. She had endured relationships that didn’t work and knew that she wasn’t cut out for any kind of commitment. Things always ended badly. She had finally come to the conclusion that she was destined to be alone. Now that there was even a suggestion she was fated to be loved by not only one man but two was a lot to accept. The fact that they were dragons pushed her weirdness scale just a little too far. And yet, she stood hoping she could find Jex and make things better. She looked to the skies, watching him soar above the cloud cover and disappear. Unless she sprouted wings anytime soon, there was no way she could catch up. So she sat, her back leaned against the cool hard stone and she closed her eyes, allowing the warm sun soak in. It melted some of the stress away, giving her a clear mind to evaluate the newly found information. She was a witch. Wow. Who would have thought? She was as simple as they came. Always had been a bit eccentric, and more in tune with the Earth than her friends, but to think she might hold some sort of magic that could help was insane. Instead of scaring her, it excited her. It all did when she thought about it.
Most people would think she needed to be committed or given some meds because she was just accepting of all this. Her childhood had not been normal, that was probably the reason she was able to accept the strange and unusual. Aislinn smiled to herself and thought back over the last few days,
yeah, she needed some meds
. But did she really have a choice? It didn’t seem like she did, if she thought about the way things were planned for everyone by fate, if you will, then she needed to accept this as the hand that was dealt to her.
At least she would enjoy the ride
, she thought and stared intently to the skies.
*****
Drakk had gone out in search for Aislinn to explain. When he spotted her sitting in the sun, he couldn’t help but just stare. She was gorgeous. The sun shimmered off her hair in golden and rich chocolate hues that matched the golden specks in her light brown eyes. He couldn’t resist reaching down to touch it. Her eyes popped open and she let out a blood-curdling scream, making him jump backwards and teeter on the edge of the cliff. He fought to balance himself, sliding in the loose rocks. Aislinn jumped up and grabbed him just before he pummeled to his death…or so she thought. He had already readied himself to shift, but changed his mind last minute and allowed her to save him. She yanked him back against the wall, with her plastered against him.
“Oh my God, what were you thinking? You could have been killed!”
“I didn’t expect you to shove me off the cliff…” he teased. Wrong thing to say. Aislinn’s eyes narrowed and her shoulders squared.
“Why did Jex leave?” she asked quickly.
“He will be back, don’t worry,” he said slowly.
“You pissed him off, didn’t you?” she said.
“Why would you think that?” Drakk frowned.
“Maybe if you wouldn’t have opened your big fat mouth, Jex wouldn’t have flown off. Now he is facing the possibility of getting hurt, or worse, being captured! Then fate wouldn’t have stepped in and tried to off you over the cliff!” Aislinn yelled, poking one finger in the middle of his chest.
“And that bothers you?” He looked down to where she was poking him in the chest and tried to keep the smirk off his face. He didn't think it wise to comment that her small finger had no chance of even leaving a mark on his hardened chest. However, he was enjoying the fire in eyes as she scolded him. He cocked an eyebrow, fishing for her to admit she had feelings for him. He could almost see the gears in her mind turning to how she was going to word her reply. It was in that moment when he knew this small woman would be his and yes, Jex's. He could continue to fight against all he wanted, but in the end, he would lose the battle to keep his heart incased, she would chip at the casing until she herself was firmly planted there. Her voice brought him out of his musing.
“Of course I care! I care that he is out there alone, unguarded, because of
you
! I care that you almost did a swan dive off the mountain. I care that someone is out there trying to hunt all of my friends down and cut them up into little pieces! You need to be out there finding him instead of just sitting on your ass! He’s in danger, you big oaf!”
“So, you are saying you
do
care about me then…” The corner of Drakk’s mouth curved up in a cocky lopsided grin. How she had taken him from one extreme to another, he had no idea. He had been hell bent against this all, but she changed everything. He didn’t understand it, and didn’t want to as long as it included her. Just the sparkle in her eyes had him going from wanting to remain alone to wanting her more than anything. She was a witch, and whether she knew it or not, had cast a spell over his heart.
“You egotistical, self-centered, selfish sonofab—” Drakk leaned in and kissed her, muting her tirade. She could only resist him for a brief moment before relaxing under his touch, melting into him. The deeper he took her, the more she forgot any emotion besides the feelings he created. When he finally released her, she hugged him tight, resting her head against his chest. He smiled inwardly, wrapping his arms around her.
That’s one way to shut her up
. He couldn’t deny his feelings now. This tiny little female would be his undoing.
*****
Drakk had convinced Aislinn to stay behind while he went to search for his dipshit brother. She was dead-set on going, but when he mentioned there might be a bit of a small aerial battle, she realized that it might be good for them to work out their differences without her in the way. Men. Ignorance and egos evidently passed through all of the species and wasn’t singled to just human males.
Jex was more unpredictable than the weather, but when he needed a place to escape, there was only one place he would go. High up in the mountains, there were natural hot springs. They were said to hold some sort of magical aspects that helped rejuvenate and recharge the body. Whether all that was true or not, Jex had always been infatuated with the place and would frequently soak in the hot water when things got sticky in life. Drakk couldn’t figure out how the sulfur smell didn’t make him gag. He would return smelling like rotten eggs, but always had whatever weighed on his mind figured out.
Drakk flew overhead, searching each of the pools. Jex was nowhere in sight. Then it dawned on him—invisibility cloak. He opened up his vision, allowing magic to be seen, and spotted him immediately. In one of the larger pools sat Jex, his head between his hands. Drakk flew down and fell the last few feet into the water, creating a huge splash and tidal wave.
“What the hell!” Jex growled. Drakk just laughed, making himself visible.
“How’d you know where I was?”
“Because this is the place you go to pout.”
“I’m not pouting, dickhead.” Jex splashed water at him.
“Then what do you call it? If you are trying to get Aislinn on my ass, job done. Now, get your scaly ass up and let’s go. She’ll be out looking for you if I don’t get you back.” Drakk realized he truly didn’t want her angry. After the kiss they had just shared, he would move Heaven and Earth to taste those sweet lips.
“No.” Jex held his breath and ducked under the water.
Drakk sighed. “Spoiled brat,” he muttered and reached under the water, pulling Jex up by a horn.
“Leave me the hell alone. I came here to get away from you, not sit in a dirty puddle of your ball juice.” Jex knew he was acting like a child, but he was confused, pissed, and hurt all at once. Feelings weren’t something dragons had often, and to have such a mix of emotion was too much to bear. They were predators, not fairies for shit’s sake.