Call of the Dragon (Return to Avalore Book 1) (16 page)

“
We’ll treat him as soon as it’s safe to do so.”

Clamping her jaw tight, she shoved her annoyance at him.
“You tell my other brothers that they’re under strict orders to come to me in one piece, including Markus. If anything happens to any of you, I’ll be very upset.”

“
Evan, there’s a woman by the name of Brienne here in the dark lands. I wasn’t able to convince her to return to Avalore. She’s heading in your direction.”
Drake relayed the information.
“Be careful she doesn’t get caught in the crossfire if another battle ensues.”

“Brienne? You’re sure?”
Evan’s voice raised an octave.

“It’s the name she gave. You know her?”

“I’ve never met her but I heard the name once, a few years ago. I’ll try to bring her back if we cross paths.”

Rhia pressed closer to Drake’s warmth as he finished the conversation. “
Thank you. I appreciate you letting me talk to him. I tried, but I wasn’t able to do it on my own.”

“It’s hard to bridge distance. You’ll get better with time. Try not to worry. Markus is strong, he’ll be fine.”

Her soft sigh raised goosebumps on his neck, making her want to smooth them away with her tongue. She wouldn’t act on her impulses again where he was concerned, but there was nothing stopping her from enjoying the feel of his body flush against hers while she still could.

“Will you teach me to fly? I mean, once we’re safe in Avalore? I’m sure it’d be easier to get from one place to the other if I could do this on my own instead of having someone carry me everywhere.”

“
We aren’t flying, but rather displacing our energies and, in essence, ourselves. It’s difficult to explain, and one of the harder skills you’ll have to learn. One of your brothers or perhaps your mate will teach you how, amongst many other things.”

He kept his tone casual, but something was off. She just didn’t know what it was. Did something rumble in his chest again? Sometimes she swore it sounded like he was growling.
“I’m not sure I buy into all this predestined mate business. I was raised to have choices, you know, and I can’t see myself being with a man just because someone tells me it’s the right thing to do.”

“
Your father and brothers won’t allow you to be unhappy. These things always work out the way they’re meant.”
His tone was neutral, but his arms tightened a fraction around her.

What was he not telling her?
“Why do you keep referring to my family and not yourself? Won’t I be allowed to socialize with whomever I choose? With you?”
Warning bells clamored inside her head.

His chest rose and fell with a heavy sigh.
“You can have as many friends as you’d like, and yes, you even get to choose them yourself.”

Her heart sank as she put it together. How could she have been so dense? “
So, what you’re saying, or rather, not saying, is that you choose not to be one of those people, isn’t it?
You’d rather we not be friends after we get to Avalore.”

He sighed again.
“It’s not like that.”

“How is it? Tell me, then, how you don’t want anything to do with me once we get there. Once you fulfill your duty and deliver me to the people of Avalore, you’ll walk away and never look back.”
She swallowed past the burning in her throat as she pushed past the splintering of her heart.

“Damn it.”
His fingers wove through her hair, tilting her head back as his mouth came down on hers—hard.

The unexpected kiss paralyzed her for a moment as his lips crushed hers. With a soft sigh, she opened her mouth and melted into him. She shouldn’t give in to temptation, but she couldn’t deny him, not when she wanted it as much as he did.

His soft moan had shivers rushing down her spine. His hands slid over her, staking claim. Pulling her close, his arms tightened around her, pressing her soft curves into his hard body.

Her breath hitched in her throat as his large, warm hand slid beneath her shirt to cup her breast. She arched her back, pressing into his touch, wanting—needing whatever he was willing to give.

“Hold on.”

She tightened her arms around his neck, as his husky words registered. They were hurtling towards the ground at breakneck speed, but she couldn’t care less. All she could think of was the delicious warmth spreading through her body as he pinched her lace-covered nipple between his thumb and forefinger, tugging gently.

Her hips moved against his, making her throb as heat pooled between her legs.

Firm ground was beneath her feet again. How he’d kept them in the air through it all was nothing short of amazing when it was all she could do to remember to breathe.

Breaking the kiss, she pulled back to look up into his eyes before sliding both hands beneath the hem of his shirt. If he wasn’t as desperate for her as she was for him, she didn’t know what she’d do. What she did know was she needed to touch him more than she needed to salvage her pride. The taut muscles of his abdomen and chest bunched beneath her delicate touch as she lifted his shirt.

His entire body tensed as she bent and flicked her tongue across his flat nipple, dragging a moan from him. “
Goddess, Rhia, we have to stop this.”

“
Stop what? This?”
She bent her head again and flicked her tongue across his other nipple, this time raking her teeth across it, making it pucker.
She moaned as his salty taste slid over her tongue.

He wound his fingers through her hair, pulling as her tongue flicked once more, before bringing her up for another soul-stealing kiss. He ground his body against her, showing her exactly what he wanted. The hard length of him pressed into her soft belly as she wound her arms around his neck under his shirt. He slipped his hands lower to cup her bottom and pull her against him.

Dampness gathered between her thighs as she moved against him in an age-old dance. She wanted him. Out in the open in this wasteland, anywhere, it didn’t matter. All she could think about was taking his clothes off. She threw her head back, giving him access as his lips sought the tender flesh of her neck, kissing and nipping at her sensitive skin.

By the time either of them were aware of anyone’s presence, it was too late.

“
Disengage. Now.”
Evan’s clear and authoritative voice brooked no argument.

Drake stiffened and cursed under his breath, turning so his body shielded hers from view. “Damn it.” He barely whispered the words, but she heard.

She straightened her clothes, her cheeks heating as she tried to gauge Drake’s reaction. He couldn’t even look at her. Her heart sank. She should have known better.

When he finally did meet her gaze, he may as well not have. His eyes were hard. The muscle in his jaw ticked as he shook his head. “This is why, Rhia,” he sighed. “This is why I can’t be anywhere near you when we get to Avalore.”

Her heart thudded, and pain squeezed her chest in a tight vise, threatening to suffocate her. She hung her head, taking deep breaths to soften the blow.

“It’s going to kill me to see you with someone else. Don’t ask me to stand there and watch you be joined with another man.”

A large lump formed in her throat, but she blinked back the moisture in her eyes as his hoarse words slid into her mind.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Evan strode across the clearing, glaring at Drake.

“
Evan, stop
.” She didn’t need this macho shit right now.

“No, I want to hear what he has to say.” He shoved Drake back, ready to fight. “I trusted you to take care of her, not
this
.”

“Please, Evan, stop.”
She pulled at his arm, turning him enough that he’d look at her.
“It’s done. It’s over.”

Evan faced Drake, and after a short pause, he nodded. Then, without another word, Drake shot straight into the air, away from her.

When she turned towards her brother, she saw the men waiting at the edge of the clearing. Fresh warmth flooded her neck and cheeks.

“
How much did they see
?” She straightened her shoulders and lifted her head up high. She wouldn’t be ashamed of what they’d done. Drake might wish it had never happened, but she didn’t.

“They didn’t see a thing. I was ahead of the group. Rhia, you have to understand-”

“It’s okay.”
She cut him off, not wanting to discuss it with anyone, least of all him.
“Drake was honest with me from the start. He didn’t mislead me in any way.”
Sighing, she pasted on a smile even though she wanted to scream. “
It’s finished now. It won’t happen again.”

He shifted from one foot to the other, his gaze drifting to the ground, clearly uncomfortable.

“I’m fine.”
She faced the men still waiting at the edge of the clearing. “
Come on, I think it’s time I met my other brothers, don’t you?”

Had her heart not been broken, she might have laughed as he let out the breath he’d been holding. As it was, she didn’t know how she’d manage to keep herself together long enough to meet the men staring at them as they approached.

“Rhiannon, meet-”

“Markus and Ricky.” She supplied the information before he could finish the sentence. She didn’t miss Richard’s arm around his brother helping him stand. “I dreamt of you when I was little, all four of you. Ricky played tricks on me all the time, but Markus, you never played. You were always so serious.” She spoke aloud, including all the men present in the conversation. She didn’t care just then if she sounded crazy or not.

Determined to make the best out of the horrible situation she had gotten herself into, she stuck her hand out to the first of the two remaining men. “My name is Rhiannon.” To her mortification, he dropped to one knee, kneeling before her.

“My Queen, my name is Michael. I am at your service, always.” His head bowed low. Immediately after, the second man did the same, identifying himself as Sebastian.

“Please stand.” Rhia was at a loss for words, overwhelmed by the enormity of the gesture. Blood drained from her face, and she swallowed hard.

Both men glanced at Evan before they stood and smiled at her without uttering another word.

Dark circles rimmed Markus’ eyes, and he squinted as though fighting a monster headache. He tried to hide it from her, but he was in pain. “Evan, can you and your men defend against an attack if we stayed here and healed Markus?” Even as she spoke, she lifted her hands to his temples, sending soothing energy into him.

“There is little time. The Ikabrols are never far behind, and we don’t want to engage them unless necessary.” Evan’s gaze continually scanned the forest around them.

“No, I will hold until we get to Avalore,” Markus interjected.

“I’ve seen what those things do to a person’s insides. The faster we treat you and get rid of it, the better off we’ll be.” She hoped Evan would back her up. “Besides, if we run into any more trouble before we get to Avalore, you won’t be able to help in the condition you’re in. The others will have to protect us both.”

Sweat beaded on Markus’ forehead and his face contorted into a grimace.

Evan sighed. “How do you want to do this?”

The fact that he even asked her had her heart warming a little. “Same as before. I need one person to be ready to kill the parasite. I’ll push it out as I did with Drake. It hasn’t had much time to fester in there, so it should be easier.” The darkness would play in her favor. “At least there isn’t any light here to make it burrow.”

“I’ll do it. She’s right. It’ll be easier to get rid of it now, rather than later.” Aiken stepped forward. “Let’s get it done so we can leave.”

“Fine. Be ready to move at my word.” Evan and the other two men faced away from them, keeping their eyes trained on the forest.

Markus turned and lifted his shirt to reveal long scratches on his back. They weren’t deep like Drake’s wounds had been, but the same foul smelling pus oozed from the abrasions.

She set to work, gathering as much pure, white light to herself as she could, only to realize there wasn’t a whole lot which wasn’t tainted in some way.

“
Evan, I’m going to have to use my own energy to do this. There isn’t enough here for me to get what I need. I’m going to be weak when I’m done, and I don’t know how to fly, so someone will have to help me.”
She pushed the heavy ache from her heart at the thought of someone else carrying her through the sky.

“I’ll take you. Do what you need to do.”

She took deep, steadying breaths, and found the purest, brightest light she had. Eyes closed, she sent it into his body. She used the same technique, starting at the edges and brightening inward, making the worm move to the surface. The parasite was much smaller and moved much slower than the one she’d seen in Drake.

Her heart stuttered as how close Drake had been to death sank in. She took another deep breath, shaking the negative emotion aside as she continued to work, trusting the men to keep them safe until they’d killed the worm, and healed the wounds.