Page 12 of An Accident Waiting to Dragon

She wasn’t built to carry her weight as well as a full-grown man who stood six-foot-four in socks and was all lean muscle and tight abs...

No thinking about tight abs when plummeting to earth, Gwen.

Wrapping her own arms and legs around him—thank the gods she’d strapped the egg to her back—Gwen held on tight and unfurled her wings, trying to catch the wind first, like a sail. The immediate jerk against their combined momentum sent a jagged shaft of pain through her back and she yelped. Asher swore but didn’t let go.

Gwen fluttered her heart out, gritting her teeth against the worsening ache. Unfortunately, battling the storm and their weight, after she’d already used all her moonlight, she was rapidly losing the battle. Her breath heaved in and out of her lungs, her muscles both burning and growing heavier by the second. They were going to have to swim for a long distance in storm tossed seas controlled by whatever supernatural creature could aim lightning at planes and dragons and with the wraith possibly still out there.

Fear tried to steal the last of her breath, but she didn’t have time to lose her shit.

At least I’m not alone.

That was her last thought before they hit the water, hard.

CHAPTER FOUR

Asher

* * *

Asher felt like a rock skipping across the surface before he sank under the roiling sea.

But he damn well managed to hold onto Gwen, whose head was still snapped back upon impact. She went limp in his arms like a rag doll right as a massive wave came over the top of them and then they went tumbling under water, the current pushing them deeper and deeper into darkness.

Panic rolled through him like thunder.

Shit.

Asher never fucking panicked. As a warrior, he’d dealt with worse. He cared about the people he led, of course, but they were nothing compared to Gwen. The need to protect her had always been there, but apparently, over the years of separation, it had grown roots that went bone deep. He’d do anything to get her through this.

We need air now.

But which way was up?

Holding onto Gwen with his one good arm, he kicked for what he hoped was the surface, which was a moving target thanks to the size of the swells.

Gwen jerked against his hold once, his only warning before she went wild, fighting him like a feral animal. He couldn’t hold onto her, swim, and fight her at the same time, so he let go.

She spun around to face him, hands up like she was going to blast him with pixie magic, then, even in the dark water, he could see her eyes go wide.

Asher pointed up.

But she was already swimming, her strokes growing more frantic by the second. Was she out of air? The surface was so close.

With his good arm, he shoved her upward by the ass only to have her foot thrash out, right into his stomach. Uncontrollable reflex took over, and he sucked in. His lungs protested violently but coughing only sucked in more water.

Then his vision started to tunnel.

Seven hells.

While he tried to fight it, tried to swim, he was vaguely aware that Gwen had breached the surface because her head disappeared, and then her body seemed to be pulled away from him, disappearing all together. He fought. He thrashed in the water, trying to get to air, get to Gwen, but then the tunnel closed in.

Which is when a hand wrapped around his wrist and tugged. His face hit air.

Sort of.

Rain and waves pelted him, but Asher didn’t give a shit as he breathed deep and hard, coughing in between gasps, trying to empty his lungs of the liquid he’d inhaled.

“Fuck me,” Asher groaned when he could finally breathe.

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