Keeper of the Flame (9 page)

But not before the sharp blade cut into the lady’s neck.

Hugh saw it in the split second as he shifted shape and slashed out with his much bigger claws, killing both assassins at the same time—one with his right hand, one with his left.

The lady was bleeding, but still standing when he dropped the lifeless men to the ground and beckoned to her.

“Get on my back quick as you can. We dare not tarry. There may be more of them.”

The lady climbed aboard and Miss bounded up right behind her. Hugh lurched into the air with less grace and even more speed than before, heading out, over the hills, toward the sand flats beyond. He needed a place to take them where they’d see an enemy coming. Someplace safer than the city or its environs. Someplace close.

The sandy wasteland beyond the foothills was the only place he could fly to fast that provided some of those tactical advantages. And it had to be quick. The lady was bleeding. He had to see how bad it was.

“How are you holding up back there?”

“All right,” she said in a weak voice. Was the weakness from shock or blood loss? Hugh needed to land in order to find out.

He looked around for a likely spot and found something usable not far. He landed more rapidly than before, with less finesse, but more speed, absorbing the shock of meeting the ground with his elbows and knees. The lady tumbled from his back, followed by the gryphlet who glided downward using her fluffy, baby wings. She would be fledging before long, Hugh thought absently as he shifted form and knelt at the lady’s side.

She was pale, blood flowing down the front of her dress. Hugh cursed and examined the wound, glad to see it was not as deep as he’d feared. He could heal this and in time, she would regain her strength.

All dragons had magic. Most had healing abilities. Hugh had trained his healing powers so that he could help humans and dragons alike should there be need. He blessed his teachers now for their preparation as he laid his hands over the lady’s neck, summoning his power.

A fog surrounded them as the Dragon’s Breath came at his call, enveloping her and healing her wound. Miss was sitting at her side and batted at the magical fog in curiosity but didn’t back away. She seemed to bask in the magic that Hugh called and he was glad for it. He hadn’t had a chance to see if any of the blood on the kitten’s fur was her own. He thought not, but he didn’t want to take any chances.

If she was injured, the Dragon’s Breath would work to heal her as well. If not, it would still be good for her to bask in the magic he’d been feeding her in much smaller doses since they first met. As a growing creature of magic, she should have gotten such influxes of magical energy from her parents. Hugh had been acting as a surrogate of sorts until finally the baby gryphon’s energy level was just about where it should have been for her age.

At length he drew back, recalling his healing power. The lady’s eyes blinked open and she stared up at him with confusion.

“Are you feeling better, milady?” Hugh asked with a small grin, hoping to calm her and ease the shock of the startling news she had learned in the vineyard.

“A little dizzy, but better. What was that?”

“The Dragon’s Breath. It is a healing mist most dragons can call. Some stronger than others.” He tried to shrug off his very potent ability.

He was very close to her. So close, he had only to lean in a little farther in order to touch his lips to hers.

Following the impulse he’d had since almost the first moment he’d seen her, Hugh did just that.

Warm, firm lips covered hers and she was powerless to resist. This man—this dragon—had quite literally swept her off her feet. Twice.

And he’d saved her life just as many times. In less time than it took to sit through a state dinner, he’d dispatched assassins with almost careless ease. And now he was kissing her. As if his life depended on it.

She would deal with her cousin’s betrayal later. Though it shocked her to have confirmation of her worst fear, she could not think of anything beyond Hugh’s strong arms that made her feel truly safe for the first time in a long time.

One thing was certain, he was definitely the best kisser she had ever known. Much better than the man she’d briefly considered making her life partner. Even better than the rebound fling with a flattering bard that had come after.

She’d never kissed a warrior before. Or a man so imbued with magic that he could transform himself into a dragon and back with seeming impunity.

What manner of man was he, really?

And why did he make her insides melt with the slightest touch? The slightest look?

Oh, yes, he felt so good against her as he deepened the kiss.

But this was all wrong. He was an outlander. A mage of some kind. Something her land had never seen before. He could be dangerous.

But he felt so good…

When the kiss ended it was because he drew back, not through any willpower of her own. In fact, she wanted him to stay, for the kiss to go on and go farther. She wanted to be naked beneath him and learn what he felt like in true passion.

Instead, he drew back, separating their mouths and their disappointingly fully clothed bodies.

He sat on the ground at her side, holding her gaze for a moment that felt significant, silence stretching between them before he turned his attention to the baby gryphon.

Blessed Lady. How could she have forgotten the baby?

“Are you all right, sweetheart?” He held one hand out to the gryphlet. She moved a step forward to snuggle her cheek in his palm and lick his wrist.

“Good, Hoo.” She sat on her haunches, her wings tucked behind her. “Yummy magic misst.”

Hugh smiled, petting the kitten. “You liked that?”

“Felt good,” she agreed, nodding her little furry head.

“I’m glad.” Hugh looked around as if he really could see in the utter blackness that surrounded them. “I’m going to make things more comfortable for you both,” he said, rising to his feet. “I’ll be within hearing distance if you need me, but you should be safe enough here.”

“Where are we?” She struggled to sit up, but her head was swimming.

“Out beyond the hills, on the sand flats,” Hugh answered shortly. “Behind a boulder and small rise that should hide a fire, if I can find enough wood or something else to burn.” He looked around, peering into the dark night. “Rest easy. I’ll be back shortly.”

She didn’t like him leaving her alone in the inky darkness, but she had the gryphlet nearby and she discovered that she trusted him. He’d already proven himself her protector twice over this night. Surely he wouldn’t leave her out here to die alone. He wasn’t that cruel. If he’d planned to let her die, he would’ve just let the Eyes take care of it.

No, Hugh would be back.

She must’ve dozed, for the next thing she knew, a small fire leapt at her side, throwing off enough light that she could see a bit of her surroundings. Hugh was there, kneeling by the fire. If she believed the evidence of her eyes, he’d started the flame with nothing more than a touch of his hand.

She supposed it was possible. His magic was potent and he was half dragon, after all. In his other form he was probably able to breathe fire. If anyone could call flame, it would be him. The thought intrigued her.

“Handy,” she commented, nodding toward the cheery fire.

Hugh’s small smile made her tummy clench when he turned the full force of it on her.

The gryphlet stirred, fanning her wings out once before settling them snuggly against her back in neat rows of feathers. Which reminded her…

“I am in your debt, brave Miss.” She reached out to the gryphlet, gratified when the baby gryphon walked over and sniffed her hand, then rubbed her cheek along her fingers. “Thank you for saving me.”

“Hoo helped,” Miss said, settling on her haunches.

That response made the lady smile, even through the pounding in her head. She was weak from blood loss and knew she wasn’t thinking entirely clearly, but she knew the gryphlet had done an incredibly brave thing and deserved praise.

“Hugh is as brave as you are, little one.” She sent him a smile across the short distance of the fire. “We really need to find you a better name. Do you have a preference?”

The baby gryphon tilted her head. She didn’t understand the word.

“Are there any names you especially like? Something you’d like to be called?” she tried again.

“Don’t know namess,” Miss answered in a sleepy, slightly puzzled voice. “Like Misss.”

The lady gave up. “I guess that’ll do for now.” She stroked the kitten’s ears as the baby settled down, resting her head on her front paws, her wings folded along her back.

“Speaking of names,” Hugh said as he sat down near enough to touch. “If I’m to keep you safe, I can’t keep calling you milady.”

“Will you keep me safe, Hugh?” She hadn’t meant for that to come out so seriously, but it was the thought that weighed most heavily on her mind at that moment.

Hugh drew closer, reaching out to cup her cheek. His impossibly green eyes flickered in the firelight, seeming to delve into her soul.

“I’ll do my best.”

She already knew his best was better than at least three master assassins.

“That’s good enough for me.” She gave him a fleeting smile, even as her head spun. “You can call me Lera.”

“Lera,” he repeated, making her nickname sound exotic and mysterious. She liked the way it rolled off his tongue.

Hugh moved closer, his big body leaning over her, warming her with his inner heat. His lips touched hers as he breathed her name once more against them and she’d never heard a sweeter sound or felt a more delicious touch.

As he deepened the kiss, he lay her down on the ground and she realized that he’d been busy while she’d dozed. A soft wool blanket was beneath her and as he rolled them both fully onto it, she recognized the size and shape of it as the compact bedroll that had been tied to his pack. The same pack she’d held on to while he flew her off into the night from the inn’s roof. The same pack she had a vague memory of Miss dragging with her teeth as she’d clambered onto the dragon’s back the second time that night in the vineyard outside her cousin’s palatial estate.

If they were to camp, she was glad they hadn’t managed to lose the pack. If only for the small cushion of the blanket between her back and the sand. Hugh made a warm cover on top of her. Getting warmer by the second as he kissed the breath out of her.

Her life was so confusing right now. Her cousin had hired the most dangerous assassins in the world to kill her. They would try again. Hugh had promised to protect her, but what if he failed? What if they struck when he wasn’t nearby?

She could easily die tomorrow, but if this was to be her last night of life, she knew one thing. She wanted to spend it with him. The dragon who had saved her life not once, but twice. Damn the possible consequences. This wasn’t about her position or her land. This was about need. Her need as a woman to be with a man that stirred her senses as no other had before.

She pushed at the cloth and leather covering his shoulders. He was wearing too many clothes. Too much leather that didn’t allow her to feel the true contours of his massive body.

“Hugh,” she breathed against his lips as he let up slightly.

“What is it, sweet Lera?” He drew back fractionally, as if he couldn’t bear to let her go fully. She liked that.

“Take off your clothes,” she whispered.

He twitched, and she guessed she had surprised him. Well, good. She was through being taken by surprise for the night. It was time she doled out a surprise or two of her own.

Hugh’s head swiveled to the left and he looked into the darkness. Lera realized he was checking on the baby gryphon. Good thing one of them was paying attention. How could she have forgotten the child’s presence yet again?

Simple. Hugh crowded out every other thought from her mind. Every duty she owed to her land and people. Everything else but the sheer magnitude of his presence and strength of his body.

She couldn’t focus on anything else when her body yearned for his warmth. She was glad he had thought to check, but very little would stop her from, at the very least, sleeping in his arms and taking what comfort she could from his nearness. At best, she wanted to share her body with him and learn his in return. She would leave it up to him, what would happen that night, but she’d do everything in her power to help things along.

“Is she asleep?” she asked hopefully.

Hugh refocused his lovely green eyes on her. She could just see him in the flickering firelight, though he seemed to have keener vision than she did.

“Fast asleep. The Dragon’s Breath topped up her magical reserves, but physically it’s still been a very long day for one so young. She will no doubt sleep deeply for many hours.”

“Good.” Later, Lera would have time to praise the misborn gryphlet as she deserved, but for now, all Lera wanted was Hugh. His lips on hers. His warmth heating her. His body joining with hers. She leaned upward and nibbled on his stubbly jaw. “Then what are you waiting for?”

“Are you sure about this?” His tone was breathless, which meant she was doing something right. Her hands roamed over his body, seeking the closures of his tunic and the leather pieces he wore over it.