Chapter 16
Lorcan When I had left Lassair and taken flight, I wasn’t looking for Isolde. My target was Savio. But when I saw her, sitting in the brook fishing, it seemed natural to go to her. She needed to see what I truly was. I didn’t realize until we were face to face that I would not be able to speak to her. Thank the gods she had packed apples. I had no other way to explain it was me. I mean, I suppose I could have just shifted back. But to come to her as a dragon, then to turn into a naked man…well, I honestly didn’t know what seemed more appropriate for the eyes of the princess.
I landed in our meadow. The grass was warm from the sun, and it felt good on my scales. She remained for a moment, her hands freely exploring the scales on the top of my head. It was soothing. All too soon, she pulled her hand away and swung her leg off of my neck to dismount. She landed on the ground with a small thump, and I felt my mouth curl into a grin. She was so delicate.
She stood there for a moment, arms crossed, trying to figure out our unusual situation. Finally, she spoke. “I cannot speak to you like this. Can you switch back to a man?”
I pulled myself up and dipped my chin.
“What is it? Do not be afraid.” Her blue eyes sparkled as she placed her hand on my wing to reassure me. I looked the other way and snorted. I was not afraid of her seeing me, I was afraid of offending her.
Isolde looked confused, her brows furrowed as she tried to make sense of why I remained so stoic. Her gaze drifted around the meadow. “No one is here but us.”
I tried to explain, but when I opened my mouth, only an angry-sounding screech came out. I hung my head, ashamed of how uncivilized I had become, even for a commoner. Isolde stepped in a wide circle, her arms crossed, her fingers twitching against her upper arm. Then she saw her saddle bag with all of its items lain carelessly across the grass. Some food, a dagger, and her cloak. She picked up the cloak and offered it to me. “You have nothing to be ashamed of.”
She was right. If I was to live as a dragon shifter, I would have to get used to nudity. Still, it was awkward to be this way in front of her, but it would appear I had no other choice. I took in a deep breath and relaxed my mind. The fire goddess told me the key to shifting was concentration. I focus on the dragon, I become the dragon. I focus on the man, and I become the man. That’s what I did now.
Closing my eyes, I imagined myself shedding my scales the way a snake does its skin. Already, I felt smaller. I straightened my back, feeling the wings shrink back inside of me. My iron-thick reptilian skin turned to supple, apricot flesh. My bones began to crack into their new position, and although it was painful, it was manageable pain. I brought my hands over my face and felt the snout return to a nose. My sharp pointed jaw was now just soft lips. Running my hands over my head, I felt my fingers intertwine with messy locks of hair, not rigid spikes.
I felt the princess drape her cloak over my shoulders. When I opened my eyes, she was standing before me. She seemed illuminated by the sunlight, her hair glistening as the sun held her in its rays. She was pinning the cloak closed, and her fingers fumbled, and I reached out for her waist.
She looked up at me, her blue eyes searching mine, and I knew if I didn’t draw her close to me, I’d forever be a coward. Slipping my arm around her waist, I pulled her toward me and crushed my lips against hers. She gasped in surprise but then softened as she wound her arms around my neck, drawing me closer. “You do not fear me?” I said in between blissful kisses, the words coming out as a laugh.
“Fear you? Lorcan, I only fear losing you.”
“That will never happen.” I parted her lips with my tongue and kissed her the way I always wanted to. The dragon in me wanted to seduce her, take her the way the flames had taken me, but I forced my desire to subside. I pulled my lips away, scared that I would not be able to control myself in her presence. “I’m sorry.”
“What do you have to be sorry for?” She ran her fingers over my jawline. The dragon twitched inside me, wanting to overpower her. I pulled her hands away and held them close to my chest where she undoubtedly felt my erratic heartbeat. I honestly didn’t know what was more exciting, flying as a dragon or just kissing the girl of my dreams.
“I’m still learning to control the beast.”
Isolde gave me a naughty grin unbefitting a princess. “I like the beast.”
Her words surprised me. I didn’t know what to do. She was a princess, betrothed to a prince. I was a shifter who would only hurt her. My father needed to be avenged and that meant taking their life of hers. I dropped her hands and stepped back. My actions had been rash. Primal. No longer could I act on impulse. Even though she was everything I desired, she was not mine to have.
“How is this possible?” Isolde breathed in deeply, looking at me as though I were living magic. “I thought all the dragon shifters were gone,” I recalled the conversation we had the first time we met, how she always wanted to see a dragon. Who knew then that I would be the one to make her dreams a reality?
I swore if she asked me anything, I would be honest, and so I was. “Charon…was my father.”
Isolde’s jaw dropped, and I felt a need to explain in more detail. I didn’t know until recently. It was the torture that unlocked my secret. When the men branded me.” Isolde winced and raised her shoulders as she recalled what they had done to me. I took her hands in mine to reassure her. “I did not feel a thing. The mark was there…momentarily, but…it never burned me. Not in the way they intended.”
Isolde seemed to sigh with relief as realization illuminated in her eyes. “And that’s why you were so cold to me in the dungeons. You must have been so confused.”
“I was. My mind was racing with the impossible. Cora explained everything to me when I was brought home by the guards.” I took a breath. Isolde was watching me intently, hanging off of my every word. I was so happy to experience this moment with her, here, in private. “My foster father, Barin, had come across my mother during the raids of the nesting grounds. She begged him to protect me, for I was only a babe. He risked his own life and smuggled me out. Even though I was an infant, I should have been executed along with the other dragons.” I shook my head, still in disbelief. “I was raised as a commoner right underneath Savio’s nose. The secret was kept to protect me. But, once I knew, well, I had to make the journey to Lassair.”
“And the blood of the dragon showed itself?” She smiled in wonder.
I nodded. “I walked through the fires and was reborn as a dragon.” It sounded silly to say out loud, and yet, I was telling the story to the only person I wanted to share it with.
Isolde looked at me thoughtfully. Standing tall in her bare feet, she swept her long, white locks off of her shoulders so they rested down her back. “I suppose I have an unfair advantage. I have seen you. Now you should see me.”
She drew a hand to the decorative leather and gold belt at her waist. She was wearing a cream-colored tunic that crossed in the front, and her now familiar brown trousers were underneath, allowing her to ride more comfortably. I laid my hand over hers to stop her. “Don’t. It’s not right…you are-“
“I know what I am. I do not need you reminding me.” She pushed my hand away and unclasped her buckle. Tossing it aside, she peeled her tunic off her shoulders, and it fluttered to the ground. I pulled my gaze from her discarded clothing and back to her eyes as she removed her trousers. I was too nervous to look at her. What she was offering me was too much. The dragon stirred within me again.
There was a beautiful woman, naked, giving herself to me. But she wasn’t just a woman. She was so much more. I couldn’t just take her like a common whore. The dragon inside whispered that she was giving herself freely, and anything given was never truly taken. This cursed dragon would undoubtedly get me into a lot of bad habits in the days to come.
She waited for me to make a move, but all I could do was take a few steps back and walk away. “Very well then. I am going to bathe,” she said with a sigh. I turned to watch her walk down into the brook. She slipped easily into the water.
She slipped easily into the water. Natural. Like she was born to coexist with the element. There was an area where the stream ran over the rocks, it was the deepest part of the pool coming up to her shoulders. She leaned against the rocks and tilted her head back, allowing the water to run over her hair.
Gods! Why was she torturing me?
“Perhaps you enjoy dirt upon your skin,” she taunted.
I looked down at my skin. I was dirty from my journey, still dusted by the ashes of Lassair. I decided to gather firewood instead. It would be dark soon, and she would need the warmth after her time in the water. I collected the sticks and branches, creating a neat campfire, and surrounded the sticks with rocks to maintain the flames so they would not spread across the grass. I turned from her and removed the cloak, preparing my mind to shift. I was calm, my thoughts reflective of the feeling of the fire when I was doused with water. It was cold and caused me to jump and yell in alarm.
Isolde leaned against the rocks, her legs kicking at the water while she laughed at me like a mischievous mermaid. I ran my fingers through my sopping-wet hair and shook off the excess drops. “I’m funny, am I?”
“If you refuse to wash away your dirt, I shall have to bring the water to you.” I realized then just how foolish I was being and raced to the brook, jumping in rather clumsily, soaking her in my spray. She laughed and started launching the water at me, in that magical way only she could. We played together like children, splashing about, forgetting the troubles of vengeance, betrothals, and beasts. She swam past me, and I caught her waist, her laughter becoming more and more musical.
I pulled her against me, feeling how wonderful her wet, naked body felt against my own. Searching those mystical blue eyes, I knew once more I was completely under her spell. “What are you doing to me?”
“I could ask the same of you.” She wrapped her arms around my neck and pulled me close, laying her kiss on my lips. Wet from the brook, her mouth slid easily across mine, and I realized how thirsty I had been for her kiss. I wanted her, but she wasn’t mine to enjoy.
Pulling my lips away, I looked up at the sky, which was turning to twilight, and felt her lips on my neck. The sensation was incredible and as she lightly began to nibble, I felt myself become fully aroused. “I can’t.”
“Can’t,” she repeated. “But…you do want to?”
“Your Highness.” I sighed. “My want is not to be questioned. I have wanted you since the moment I first set my eyes upon you.” Her face relaxed, and her lips softened into a smile. “But we were born on the wrong sides of the castle wall, for you are betrothed to a prince, and I…I must avenge my father.”
“My betrothal is archaic and unjust. Raelan loves another.” She slipped her hand in my own, lacing our fingers together under the water. “As do I.”
I dipped my forehead against hers. “You speak of love being so simple. I must avenge my father, Charon. Can you honestly love me if I am the one who steals the final breath from your father’s body?”
Isolde thought about what I said before she answered. “I am bound to Savio by blood. I am bound to you by love. One was my fate, the latter my choice. I know who you are, and I also know who my father is and what he did.” She took a breath and pulled back so that I might look into her eyes. “His greed and need for power have hurt more lives than I can count. Even now, his armies sail across the Salted Sea, waving his sigil and taking cities by force.”
She seemed so absolute in her convictions. I wanted to believe her. “You say these things now, but…you will hate me.”
“Not any more than I already hate him.” She spoke through clenched teeth, her eyes glazing over with tears. “I begged him for mercy as they stretched you upon the rack. He knew you were innocent and still he…he took joy in your pain. I could see it in his eyes. How can one so dark be fit to rule our people? He must be stopped, and I believe you are the only one who can stop him. “
This time it was I who initiated our kiss, as I tasted the salt of her tears, I understood how much pain he had caused her. She was a beautiful bird whom he insisted upon keeping in a cage. “If I kill Savio, I do believe it will release you of your marriage obligations.”
“If that were the case, I would have killed Savio a long time ago.” Her tone was cold, and I wondered if she was capable of such a crime. She rested her chin on my shoulder, making it impossible for me to tell if she was serious. I ran a finger down her back.
“Your body is cool to the touch,” I noted as I kissed her neck. She pressed her body closer against mine.
“And yours is hot as flame. I daresay your very tongue scorches my skin. “
I pulled back and looked at her, my anxiety returning. “Does it hurt when I kiss you?”
“No, on the contrary, you make me feel alive. I’ve been dead for far too long.”
I kissed her forehead and swam to the shore.
“What are you doing?” she asked, looking crestfallen as I pulled myself out of the water.
“I’m offering you the only gifts I have to give…someone needs to light that fire.” Her eyes grew wide as she watched me shift back into the dragon.
****
Isolde had a blanket which she kept in the woods. I learned she had left the castle and had been hiding here for three days. She slept beside an overturned tree for warmth and shelter. It tore at my heart knowing she had been alone out here. She had no protection at night, from neither man nor beast.
Now, as the sun had surrendered her time to the moon, I held Isolde in my arms; the blanket our bed, the fire our warmth, and our bodies, still naked, pressed together as we shared her cloak.
“So, I have told you of my secrets. You know all the details of what I am. Am I worthy of the same trust?”
She tilted her head to the side, lips pursed. “I would have thought you knew.”
“I know there is magic in you, and you draw your power from the water. But I don’t know how or why.”
“You’re not the only one with a complex family history. Our magic disappeared a long time ago. It was believed that a marriage of purity would return it to our people. I’ve kept my secret hidden. If my father knew…he would only use it to his advantage.” I swallowed as I realized another reason why she would not object to my need to avenge Charon.
“So no one knows that your magic has returned?”
“No. Only one, and I trust him above all others.” How did she do that? Say words that tugged at my heartstrings and made me love her even more.
“So…is there a word for this magic? What you are?”
“I’m fae.”
“Fae,” I repeated hearing how that one word sounded on my tongue. Could the gods have placed two more opposite creatures together?” But…forgive me…you don’t have wings. Don’t all fae have wings?”
She looked up at me in wonder. “Of course I have wings. I have you.”
And with those words, she had me completely under her spell. I lifted her chin so that I may kiss her-fiercely-abandoning all hesitation and inhibitions. There was a stabbing pain in my heart from the ache I had to give myself fully to her. My skin began to tingle from the sensations of her touch. She rolled onto her back, pulling me over her like a blanket of protection. That’s what I wanted to be, her protection. Her shield against the pain of a world that had treated my princess with cruelty.
She ran her hands down my back, her very touch sending sparks across my bare skin. I deepened our kiss, wanting desperately to be one with her. The fire had taken me at Lassair. It enveloped me and worshipped me at the same time. That is what I wanted for Isolde. To worship her.
My own hands began wandering, exploring her curves. Her skin was so soft, her desire so uninhibited.
“If I don’t stop now, I don’t think I’ll be able to.” I moaned against her ear, needing to be sure this was what she wanted and simply did not oblige because she feared what I could become.
“Then don’t.” The ache in her voice echoed my own. She spread her legs like a flower unfolds its petals to drink in the sun’s rays. “I am offering myself to you, in plain sight before the gods. This is not a sin, Lorcan.” She reached for me and took my manhood in her hands. She squeezed me, causing me to groan. “This is the union of fire and water.” She stroked me then, her eyes knowing that the delicate fae had tamed the dragon. I was weak as a newborn colt as she showed me just what she was capable of. Releasing me, she gave me a look that dared me to continue. I kissed her, parting her lips with my tongue, and claimed my right to mate with her out in the open. She moaned as I took control, and as I slid myself inside her, I felt her body quiver. I wanted to cry out in ecstasy as we became one, alerting the entire kingdom that she was finally mine.