Page 100 of Rescued By The Dragon

The trees above me swayed in a gentle breeze that only an ocean could give, and the lush grass almost swallowed me in bliss.

My mother’s blue eyes sparkled when she leaned over me, offering her hand to help me stand. I chuckled, bouncing upward, I wrapped my arms around her stomach and inhaled.

The timeline didn’t fit. None of it did. I was much younger when my mother was killed, so young I wouldn't have remembered any of it. I knew that, but it didn't stop me from enjoying the thought of what could have been.

Perhaps it was a subconscious play of my brain. A memory I wish I had of my mother. The childhood I longed for every night when I went to bed not knowing if anyone loved me.

When I was forced to go to my room earlier than Helena's kids, without the bowl of ice cream they were eating.

My mother’s gaze lifted from mine and over my head.

Her spine stiffened, and her arms pulled me tighter against her chest. I glanced back over my shoulder to see a man staring at us between two giant trees.

He tilted his head, I blinked, and he appeared only a few feet away from us. A scream ripped from my throat, drawing me out of my nightmare and to a sitting position in our bed.

Dorran sat up beside me, his wings spread out in a protective shield around us. His dark eyes all over me as if I’d hurt myself.

“Are you okay?” he asked, his thick fingers coiling around the nape of my neck. “You’ve been so restless these last few hours. I've been worried."

My gaze shifted toward the window and into the night sky.

“What time is it?” I asked, my voice hoarse from sleep.

“10 PM,” he said. “You’ve slept most of the day."

I needed it because I couldn’t sleep tonight. The drink Zerk made me had worn off, and Evian was reaching out to me now. Bending my knees, I rested my cheek against them and stared at Dorran's handsome face.

“How did the chat with your dad go?”

Suddenly his mood sunk, and his gaze shifted toward the bed where he tugged the sheets from him and stood up. I knew that wasn’t a good sign. I took my time watching as he walked around the room to get dressed. He looked like the statue of a man in front of me.

The muscles.

The tanned skin.

The broad shoulders.

Square jaw.

But none of it made him more beautiful than what was inside of him. The passion. The care. It was what made him perfect for me. The measures he would go. Something no one had ever done for me.

Dorran turned to face me with his hands on his hips. Several pieces of curls fell onto his forehead. “He doesn’t want to risk his army. He thinks the sirens will demolish them because we don’t know what to expect.”

I stood up slowly and walked toward him.

“You look surprised," I said.

“No,” he said. “I’m pissed. My parents have proved, yet again, that they don't care about anyone other than themselves. My brother thinks he can get the army to prepare without my father knowing. It’s the only chance we have at beating Evian and having help."

“Well, it’s a chance, right?”

Dorran locked his jaw, unable to lie and answer my question. I wanted that lie like before.

Stepping forward, I slid my palm against his jaw, watching his irises dance from my touch. “Let’s eat. I’m hungry.”

Dorran led me down the hallway to an empty living room. He had plates ready to be heated in the fridge. “Zerk went home?”

“Yeah,” he said. “He said he needed to sleep so he could work on finding useful information about the sirens tomorrow. Were you dreaming about him earlier?”

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