Dragon's Claim

Chapter 1-2

DRAKE WISHED, WITH every fiber of his being, that he, too, could spend his final time here in Wales humping. The woman walking before him drove him wild. He was old enough to recognize the bond that wove them together. It pulled him toward her, made his gaze drop to the curve of her ass and the bulge in his pants grow. It made him want to shield her from herself, to dig his way past the barriers she erected and curl himself around her.

Not that she would allow him. The walls Layla pulled around herself were so thick it was amazing anyone could even see her. But, Drake could see the real Layla beneath. He knew what she was going through because he’d been there.

So, he didn’t tell her that he was her mate and that he’d bargained with her last leader to find a way to whisk her home with him. He knew that it would take time for her to come to terms with it. If he told her now, Layla would struggle against it. She would deny it.

Love was not a strength in her book.

Love was what had cut Maggie and Wesley in half.

Besides, Layla was still so young. It was hard for Drake to think that there had been a time when his mate hadn’t existed. There had been a time when he was alone in the world, with no ties or bonds anchoring him to anything other than the honor he should have.

The honor he had built from nothing.

“Will you quit following me?” Layla said as she spun on her heel and planted her face square in his.

Drake didn’t lean away from her attempt at intimidation. If anything, he wanted nothing more than to lean in and capture her mouth while he scooped her into his arms. Her lower lip caught his attention, still plump despite the stiffness of her face. Could he reach out, and brush away the tension with the sweep of his thumb over her cheekbone?

“Go away.”

Not today, he thought.

“I’m afraid you’re stuck with me, missy. The watches are set up in groups and I’ve been assigned to help you today.”

“Why you? I don’t get it. Why is everyone trying to shove you down my throat?”

Her phrasing brought other images to Drake’s mind. Images that he had to quickly swipe away before his c**k could react. He swallowed hard and held her gaze. Instead, he kept his mouth shut and motioned for her to lead the way.

Her eyes flashed with a thought before a smile ghosted over her lips. She spun and disappeared. Her feet were quick and she was incredibly light. Drake swore softly and burst into a run to catch up. His form was much heavier. It crashed through the thick, Welsh forest in pursuit.

It would have been so much quicker for them to change shape and take to the skies. Their dragon forms could cover so much more Territory. Not to mention, their claws would be sharper and their bodies a weapon in and of themselves. But, it seemed that his Layla refused to take to her dragon form.

No one could figure out why. Some wondered if her dragon form had been so brutalized that there wasn’t much left of it. Others wondered if her beast had died altogether. There was still a dragon inside that woman, but no one knew if it still had a voice.

Drake’s own beast pressed close to the surface and granted him the extra bit of speed they needed to catch up to their mate. Layla was a blur, a streak of denim and dark hair. But, the space between them closed enough so that Drake could reach out and brush his fingers against her hips as he passed her. He could have sworn he heard a faint growl in the wind, but it was gone when he burst ahead.

Layla surged behind him, unable to let him get ahead of her. She was light and fast, faster than anything he’d ever seen. It was as if she and her beast were in perfect sync, the beast feeding the human body its magic. He couldn’t help but stare at Layla and the wonder that she was.

His mate was fierce and wild. She was beautiful and fearless.

She would be his, no matter what he had to do. He would bend the very earth to make her his. With a smile tracing his lips, Drake darted around his mate. His hands gripped her hips and spun her until he could press her back against a tree. His body hovered over hers, not pressing but warming. He wouldn’t pin her unless she asked for it.

And he would make her beg.

Layla turned her chin upward, challenging him every step of the way. She would not be cowed by his advances. If anything, she would fight back. Her hands pressed against his chest, but didn’t push him away. Their eyes met and an electrical jolt rocketed through Drake.

If only this moment would last forever, he wished. If only they could stay lost in the forest with no one watching, no one calling for their attention. Just Drake and his mate.

His mouth hovered over hers, his lips parted like he could already taste her.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Layla’s voice was a threatening growl. She would sooner rip his throat out than let him kiss her.

Give him time. He would change that for her.

He leaned in until his cheek grazed hers and his breath would wash over her sensitive ear. “What does it look like?”

Layla looked like she might argue, like she might fight him, but the words were caught in her throat. He could feel her quickened breath, the surge of her scent in the air as desire hit her. Drake’s own heart gave a little leap of joy, missing a few beats. He pulled back enough to look her in the eye. His fingers broke bark on either side of her head as he struggled to reign in his own desire.

He thought he’d won. Drake thought, as her chin tipped back and her lips parted, that he’d started the path toward winning Layla.

They both staggered apart when they caught a cold scent in the air.

There was a white dragon nearby. The smile that curved Layla’s lips should have revealed sharp teeth. At least, that’s what it felt like when their gaze met. She looked much like a crocodile. Layla closed the space between them and stood beside him like they were out for a simple walk. Her arm slid around his middle and he felt his own breath hitch when her body fit along the lines of his.

It was a trap, that he knew. If they looked like lovers out to frolic, then the white dragon would feel safer. He would also get dumber, more reckless. So, Drake tried to play along. He tried to lay his arm over her shoulder and appear like he was head over heels with this woman. As much as he wanted to, feeling her stiffen beneath his touch placed a clamp around his heart.

How would he break down her walls? How would he get in and tell her what she meant to him? Would he be able to do it before it was too late? She was on the fast road to a slow death, the way that she threw herself into fights. Drake could lose his mate before he ever learned to love her.

Drake was so wrapped up in his fears, that he didn’t see the blur of white that struck out at them.

It was coming for him, he thought. Then it changed course. The blur was a glancing blow off his shoulder, breaking them apart and sending Layla flying back. He heard the crack of a tree trunk as the two forms hit it. His heart was in overdrive as fear for his mate surged through him. The white dragon had his mate pinned up against a tree, her hands held in one of his white he used his forearm to press against her throat.

Drake lunged forward and reached for the white dragon. At the same time, Layla lifted her foot and kicked at the white dragon’s chest. The dragon stumbled back, dragging her with him. It put the dragon in Drake’s reach. He grabbed a handful of white-blonde hair and jerked him off his feet. Layla managed to disengage her hands from the dragon’s grip before he crashed to the ground.

“What luck,” Layla said dryly. “First run and we catch one right away.”

Drake sent her a look that said she shouldn’t be so happy about this. Having white dragons still prowling around the perimeter meant that the fight wasn’t over. They might be in the very last stages of this uprising, putting down the last few dissenters, but it would be much better if it were done and over.

Drake looked down at the man beneath his grip. He didn’t fight. He didn’t struggle. The white dragon laid there, his eyes closed against whatever blow Drake might strike. It sent a jolt of realization through him. The white dragon was waiting to die.

The white dragon attacked them in a kind of suicide mission. Gone was his family, his leaders. Their attempt to regain the home they thought they were entitled to had failed horribly. What else did this dragon have?

Nothing.

Drake sighed and pulled back. Layla made a sound of indignation, but Drake held out a hand for her to quiet. She was a fighter. He was a leader. Drake didn’t leave the man’s space, ready to hurt the white dragon if he so much as moved in the wrong direction. He was no i***t.

“You don’t have to die,” Drake began, using his alpha voice. The one he’d used with his own people when times were rough and they needed strong guidance. “Everything may seem to be lost, but lesser men have come back from worse. You have a chance. One that will allow you to truly share this home with the red dragons if you are willing to set aside your anger.”

The white dragon looked up at him, his eyes flickering between Drake and Layla. The female dragon didn’t say anything. She didn’t growl or sneer, to Drake’s relief. Instead, she crossed her arms over her chest and slid her feet apart so that she might attack if need be.

Drake quickly pulled his attention from his mate and turned back to the white dragon laying on the forest floor. The man studied Drake. He studied Layla before his gaze turned up to the sky above them, empty and hopeless. Drake’s heart plummeted into his stomach.

“They won’t share with us,” the white dragon said. “We did as our leaders asked and look what it gave us. What more can we do now than scatter to the winds and die?”

“That’s damned poetic,” Layla bit out. “If you’re worried about me, I’m leaving soon. The others... won’t be incredibly fond of your presence, but Snowdonia is a big place. Big enough for all of this to finally end.”

Drake felt a surge of pride enter his heart. This was his mate. This was the woman who would stand beside him for the rest of his life.

He hoped.

He hoped she would want him. He hoped she would be able to look past his life and see the man he was, see the man he so desperately wanted to be. Because, if she knew, Layla might turn him away. She might never try to love him.

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