Authors: Jane Hunt
“Sorry, man, I didn’t think. She must have freaked out when you discussed the soul mate bond.”
“No, she reacted better than I expected. Fleur knows what I am. Whether she can accept it is another matter. I didn't mention the soul mate bond. I'm not even sure I believe it myself.” He examined the documents Zane pushed towards him.
Grace elaborated, “I found these a few weeks ago after I dreamed about demons at Hallows House.”
“Interesting, Grace.” Lukas exchanged a charged look with Zane.
“They’re the original fourteenth century plans for the house. They should help.”
Lukas and Zane examined the manuscripts. The original house plans and an even earlier map showed the land before the original construction. Lukas' mind drifted back.
A huge dragon stood in Helvellyn's shadow
. He knew the dragon egg rested here.
The damp earth shifted with the dragon's weight.
He felt the movement of earth under his feet. He exhaled.
Streaks of fire flowed from his mouth
. An impatient voice disturbed his muse.
“Well, is it any help?”
“Jasmine, have a little patience.” Grace said.
Lukas smiled. “Yes, it does help."
"You're quiet, Zane. The plans must be too difficult for you."
"Jasmine!"
"It's fine, Grace. Feisty like your red hair, aren't you, witch?" Zane said.
Lukas rolled his eyes at Grace before he continued. "I know we buried the dragon egg at the foot of the hill.” He indicated the area on the parchment. “The psychic and spiritual forces are strongest there.”
Grace grasped the location's significance. “A number of ley lines pass through Helvellyn.”
“Yes. Grace, what's a matter?" Lukas noticed the witch's eyes glaze over.
“I’m fine. I can see the dragons. They lived in these hills. They're different sizes, family groups. Mystical creatures. So real I can touch them."
“That's how we lived. We're not the isolated, evil monsters portrayed by human storytellers. The reality of dragons in family groups didn't support their illusion.”
“Are any of your family alive?"
"My sister and brothers are scattered across the world.”
“So you never see them,” Jasmine said.
“On rare occasions, but demon slayers are global. We fight against demons worldwide.”
Zane still studied the manuscripts. “If we use these plans, how will we keep the search secret from the other guests and Xavier?”
Jasmine suggested, “Could we use the treasure hunt as cover?” Zane nodded. “The guests will be distracted. We'll join in, but look for the dragon egg rather than the treasure hunt items.”
“It might work,” Zane conceded.
“What about Fleur's safety?” Grace asked.
Lukas suppressed his alpha reflex. “Fleur should go with Zane. He can protect her better than I could.” The others nodded. “If she’s not with me, Xavier will lose interest in her.”
"If you're sure, Lukas," Grace said.
"Yes, I need her to be safe. If the soul mate bond does exist between us, Xavier won't suspect if we're apart."
“Let's hope so. The treasure hunt's at eleven o’clock,” Grace reminded them as she suppressed a yawn.
Lukas picked up the plans. “Zane and I will study these upstairs. I won’t sleep anyway.”
“That's fine. Lukas, Fleur may surprise you. I’m sure she’ll accept your true identity."
“I hope so, Grace.” Lukas and Zane left the library.
∞
"You're serious about this soul mate nonsense."
"Yes. No. I don't know."
"I never saw you as a romantic, Lukas. You've always been like me."
"I know. A loner, a use-them-up-and-leave-them kind of man."
"Yes, but you've changed your mind."
"Maybe I believe in serendipity. I saw an unusual aura around Fleur. You saw it, this afternoon."
Zane's expression darkened. "Yes, I did. It is powerful. Xavier saw it too."
"Xavier can't find out about the soul mate bond."
"No, but if you are soul mates, the bond is unbreakable. You can't stay away from each other. It will be obvious to any supernatural."
"We must keep our distance when Xavier is around.”
"What if she's the only woman you can be happy with?"
"There's no choice. I'm here for the dragon egg. I can't deviate from my chosen path. The fallout would be too great. If it's meant to be, the bond will survive whatever fate throws at us."
Zane didn't comment, but Lukas saw the worried look on his flawless face.
*
Fleur slept well, given the previous night’s revelations. Her dreams were full of turquoise-scaled dragons that morphed into Lukas. He loved her with a memorable thoroughness; she even blushed in her sleep. Not the nightmares she usually experienced, erotic images, a reflection of her tethered desire. She stirred as the first signs of daylight appeared over Helvellyn. Fleur threw back the covers and stretched. The last vestiges of sleep dispelled, she drew back the heavy curtains. Through the mist, near the garden's boundary where the hills' wildness began, an outline caught her attention. She vacillated between curiosity and fear. A man moved towards her window. The sunrise lightened the sky. It revealed Xavier's dark broody face. A rush of adrenaline flooded her body. Her heart rate increased its beats so loud they disturbed the room's silence. Her mind was awash with questions, none of which she could answer. He stared at her window. He must recognise her. Startled, she stepped back. A frisson of alarm raced along her spine.
*
Xavier sought the garden's solitude after dinner. The demon wanted freedom, its return inescapable.
Hours later before sunrise, he recovered and adopted his human persona. As he walked back towards the house, a movement at an upper floor window attracted his attention. He stopped and stepped back into the trees. A young woman stood at the window dressed in a white loose shirt. She looked like a wraith.
Xavier's mind sensed Fleur. He smiled. He expected her panic when she recognized him. Her soul mate must have warned her. Xavier suspected the soul mate bond when he saw their auras bound together. If it existed, Fleur could help him destroy the dragon. Various tortures ran through his fevered imagination as a plan formed in his delusional mind. Satisfied, he used another route back, unseen from Fleur's window.
*
Xavier frightened her. Perhaps his flawless looks and perfect manners seemed wrong for a human man. Xavier's strange expression the previous evening haunted her. His ugly face was a terrible parody of its usual perfection with unrecognisable eyes, bottomless pits of malice bereft of all humanity. Now safe in her room, she shuddered and wondered what caused the change in him. She dismissed the idea her defection could evoke his response. She saw hatred. Her intuition alerted her about him when they first met. Grace and Lukas warned her too. Maybe Xavier, like Lukas, had another identity. She chanced a glance through the window, but he’d gone. She sighed and pushed Xavier from her mind. Her body normalized as her heart rate slowed and her mind cleared.
Stressed, she needed a hot shower. Fleur studied her naked body. So slim, it bordered on thin. Her break-up with her ex-lover ruined her appetite and caused drastic weight loss. With so many imperfections, she could not understand why Lukas desired her. She showered for ages. The old grandfather clock struck seven as Fleur dried her damp body with the soft towel, happy with her decision about Lukas. Even his name caused frissons of desire between her thighs and left her moist and damp. He controlled her with an invisible, but unbreakable, tether. The more she struggled against it, the tighter it became. The previous evening's dalliance couldn't happen again. She needed a slower pace so she could discover the real Lukas before she allowed him any control over her body or heart.
She took a silk blouse in jade green and a pair of soft grey Jeggings from the armoire, and then added a grey cotton cardigan. She pulled a pale green lacy bra and thong from the turquoise distressed drawers. A knock at the door made her heart leap. Lukas. Clad in her delicate underwear, she pulled on her silk robe. Not the image she wanted, but better than her bra and thong. Fleur secured the belt of her robe and unlocked the door. Her smile froze as she registered her caller's identity: Xavier, not Lukas. “Oh! It's you.” Fleur pulled the neckline of her silk robe together in a protective gesture. Xavier looked irritated by her unenthusiastic welcome.
"You look surprised,
bella.
"
Fleur's alarm at his uninvited appearance made her voice sharp. “I am.”
“You expected Lukas, I think.”
Fleur shuddered and hoped he didn't see it. Intuitively she realized Xavier enjoyed her discomfort. "It's not your concern."
"No. Maybe not. But I know you and Lukas are intimates."
Her temper increased. “Lukas will be here soon." She hoped the veiled threat would work.
Xavier backtracked. “I wanted breakfast with you. We have unfinished business.”
Unnerved, Fleur refused. "Sorry, I've promised Lukas."
“Until later,
bella
." Xavier's expression registered shock.
She nodded. Xavier walked towards the stairs. Relieved and confused by his abrupt departure, she stared after him.
*
The shock of Xavier's unexpected visit left Fleur's face cold and clammy. A pain shot up her arm as she held the door handle in a death grip. Lukas turned the corner and his smile died. His green gaze, rife with accusation, swept over her. “What’s happened? Why did you unlock the door?”
He all but pushed her into the room. The door slammed behind them, and he locked it with his free hand. She stared at him. His hold gentled, but he glared at her, his mouth a hard thin line in his white face. Fleur didn't understand his anger. She’d dealt with her unwelcome visitor without his help. “I’m fine.” The harshness she forced into her voice hid her fear.
“Who upset you? Xavier?”
Lukas’ fury reddened his face and neck. "Yes." The dragon towered above her. His hot breath seared her cold cheek. Her tentative fingers touched the spot. His face wore a hard-set expression. His lack of control unnerved Fleur. Heightened passion narrowed and darkened his eyes. She watched mesmerized as their color changed from green to gold, no longer human. The golden beast ruled here. Her gaze dropped to his mouth. She expected flames. Fleur shivered with awareness as she listed the dangers of a liaison with him. She ignored her common sense. Whatever the risks, she would surrender to his heat and passion.
Lukas yanked her against him. Fleur's world spun. He kissed her in anger, his demands cruel but delicious. She relished his hard mouth and inquisitive tongue as they plundered hers. Lost in their uncontrolled passion, she smelt his spicy male cologne mixed with another indefinable and unique scent. His shallow breaths decreased as their passionate duel continued. Her head pounded from lack of oxygen. She tore her mouth away from his. She gulped air into her bereft lungs. Lukas did the same, but maintained wary eye contact with her. His mood changed, the anger in his gaze abated. Now golden, his gaze contained fire of a different kind, all directed at her.
A delicate shudder vibrated through her aroused body. Fleur pressed her thighs closer together. The welcome pressure eased the ache in her core, already damp and needy. She trembled as Lukas pulled her back into his embrace. The pressure of his smooth, strong hands on her flushed skin calmed yet excited her. Heat and an unnamed force radiated from him. Languorous. The edge of her arousal was tempered, but was not assuaged. Lukas feathered light kisses on top of her head, eyelids, and cheeks before he kissed her mouth. Her nerves jumped under her skin. She needed more. She stared at his hand. Her hastily donned silk robe fell open, the belt pooling round her naked feet. What should she do? Fleur struggled with decisions even when her intellect functioned. Now, half out of her mind with desire, she had no chance. Her natural shyness and ingrained sense of propriety echoed inside her head.
Do something! Pick up the belt. You can’t stand there with a dazed look on your face.
Her much-suppressed wild side basked in his appreciation and urged her on.
Move closer. Let him touch you. Remember this weekend is about what you want.
“How come I always end up in your arms when I promised myself I wouldn't?”
*
“Don't ask me. One touch and I'm yours.” Transfixed, Lukas watched her arousal grow. He expected fear or anger, not excitement. His inner fire seared him, certain Fleur craved his touch. His mind doubted what he saw. Maybe Xavier excited her. His rational side dismissed the worry as ridiculous. She didn’t like the snake. Unconvinced, he tightened his hold, pulled her flush against his hard frame, and kissed her breathless.
*
He let his fingers drift across her soft pink-stained cheek, grazing her neck where her pulse beat wildly against translucent skin. Lukas' hot gaze watched his fingers' sensual journey. “I don't think you realise how lovely you are.” He heard Fleur take a quick breath as his fingers hovered and tantalized above the valley of her breasts. The lacy lingerie she wore left little to the imagination. Enticed, he glimpsed the riches it lovingly encased. He hesitated as he saw doubt cloud her expression.
Her desperate gaze begged for his help. Flushed cheeks and dilated pupils conflicted with her tense, rigid body and jerky movements. Fate could not decide this emotional battle. The inner dragon reared his head as he sensed his soul mate. Lukas abandoned his human rationality and gave in to his dragon's passion. Driven by lust, his gaze shadowed his fingers as they stroked their way across the creamy white curves of her breasts and lingered on her sensitive nipples. “So responsive.” Satisfied she craved his touch; Lukas bent his head and kissed her rose-hued lips. His shaft pressed against her softness as it clamored for fulfilment. Lukas caressed the dip of her navel, traced sensuous circles, and explored each of her rounded curves. After a long tortuous journey, his fingers reached the top of her lacy thong. Sure of her response and more confident he would not frighten her, he squeezed the cheeks of her curvy bottom, temptingly revealed by an artfully designed thong. Lukas pulled her closer. Fleur's sigh confirmed she could feel his powerful erection. She pushed him beyond his endurance, a unique experience. His control was a gossamer thread as he pressed his shaft against the soft skin of her navel and plundered her sexy mouth.
*
Fleur sought relief from the desperate tension Lukas created with his delicate touch. She pushed against his supple long fingers. The sweet torture continued. He rubbed the tip of his index finger across each lace-encased nipple. The delightful friction with the lace barrier forced a gasp as her sensitized nipples hardened. Lukas held her even closer. His strength remained the reason she didn't collapse into a pool of desire as her knees buckled. With each deliberate caress, her rationality diminished. Her entire focus concentrated on his clever fingers. She sought the pleasure he allowed her with the determination of a mindless automaton. Fleur poured herself into the kiss, the hardness of his mouth a temporary respite from her raw arousal. Their tongues danced an endless tango. His hands caressed her body. They explored and teased until he reached the neediest part of her. His hand stilled. Fleur held her breath and deepened her kiss.
Fleur enjoyed her unexpected feminine power. Her hands slid across his shoulders and back until they reached his firm butt. Taut muscle vibrated under her eager fingers, which gripped him tightly. He groaned into her mouth and ground his erection against her. Empowered, she allowed her impulsive nature complete freedom. Her nails dug into his denim-covered rear.
Lukas gasped, “Witch.”
Intrigued, she ignored his half-hearted protest as she ended the kiss and pulled away. The space allowed her delicate hand and long fingers access to his ripcord abdominal muscles, which contracted under her tentative touch. His shaft touched the heel of her hand. Her gaze moved lower, enthralled when his erection pressed against the buttons of his jeans as if it sought her touch independent of his will.
*
Lukas’ tongue darted over his lips as it hunted moisture for his parched mouth. Her fingers drifted lower. He closed his eyes. She stroked his shaft through its denim-encased prison. His mouth filled with the metallic taste of blood as he bit down hard on his lip. Desperate, his control teetered on a knife edge. Unfazed, she continued her erotic massage. Lukas neared the edge of his restraint, like a young man's first foray into sexual love. If he didn’t stop her soon, she would be damp with his seed. He took a shaky labored breath and drew in much-needed oxygen. Fleur's gaze met his. Lukas attempted a smile as his large hand covered her small delicate one where it rested on his shaft. He curled his fingers around hers and pulled his tormentors away.
She captured his gaze. “You don't like my touch.”