Page 63 of Dragon Unleashed
“Did I hurt you?” he questions then reaches down and lifts his shirt to clean first me and then himself.
“No,” I reply. “Are you okay?”
Aries smiles at me. “More than.”
I return the gesture and then lean back against the cool wall. Without his body on mine, the cold seeps in, and I shiver. “I didn’t really think this through,” I say, laughing nervously. “It’s pretty damn cold.”
A muscle in his jaw flexes, and he eyes the stairs. “We will not be disturbed down here?”
I shake my head. “No one ever comes down here anymore.”
He nods then tosses his shirt to the side. “Stand back.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Shift.”
“Into your dragon form?” I nearly choke out.
“Yes. My dragon runs hot. He can keep you warm.”
“But—he’s a dragon.”
Aries grins. “Who is just as fascinated by you as I am. He will not hurt you.”
I swallow hard. The chance to see a real dragon? Why the hell am I hesitating? “Go for it.”
Aries closes his eyes and holds both arms out. Less than a heartbeat later, his flesh begins to transform, skin morphing to scales. Then, his entire body begins to change.
The cracking of bones fills the basement as his limbs and torso bend and break. My stomach churns, and I watch him, worried for what must be pain on his part, but the shift only lasts seconds.
And soon, he’s filling the entire basement, a massive winged creature with obsidian scales that glimmer beneath the faint overhead light.
Holy shit. If the man steals my breath…this is life-changing. Soul-morphing. I’m standing before a dragon. No, not just any dragon. A king.
The massive animal drops his head and snorts.
I reach out with my hand, and he presses his large snout against it. His scales are rough and warm to the touch.
“Hi,” I whisper. “You are magnificent.” I let my hand trail up over his large head, down his muscled shoulder, until I reach leathery wings. They’re smooth beneath my fingers, and I swear I hear the dragon groan when I caress them.
Seeing him this way, knowing this beast has been trapped inside of Aries, makes me feel even worse.
How much pain must he be in to only exist as half of himself?
“We’ll get you home,” I promise him. “Soon.”
He glances back at me, huge blue eyes—the same shade as human Aries—unblinking. Then he lies on the concrete and extends his wing up. I cross over and settle on top of his leg as he curls his wing around me, tucking my body against his own.
In seconds, the chill is gone, leaving me feeling warm and safe.
So here, in the basement of the Athenaeum, in the arms of a dragon, I drift to sleep.
Chapter17
Aries
Paige’s breathing quiets, and her body relaxes against my scales. I listen, counting her heartbeats to soothe my beast, who’s not exactly thrilled with his sleeping arrangements for the night. The confinement is getting to him.
