Page 17 of Unexpected Mate

Thank you for everything, Beasty. I will miss you more than you could ever know.

Her breath caught and her sorrow nearly overwhelmed me.

I will miss you, too. Now brace yourself, Cupcake!

I knew the instant she released her hold, allowing the full weight of my power to crash into my like a tsunami.

And Tia…

I waited for the last words I would hear from the voice that had been my rock as I floundered my way through this crazy paranormal world - words that I would replay over and over for the rest of my life.

Don’t be afraid to collect more sexy mates, and be sure to keep your kitty well fed!

I spluttered in shock and then shrieked as our two halves collided and my body went supernova.

The enemy’s finger tightened on the trigger of his gun. These hired guns had honored the ancient supernatural laws regarding battles between supernaturals, fighting with the gifts of their species, and handcrafted blades. But now it seemed that they were less concerned with honor, and more focused on ensuring we were put down quickly. I guess they weren’t too pleased at how fast their numbers had diminished.

Something had caused Draven’s spell to crumble and the wizards now used their magic to hold us in place. Our few remaining wizards no longer had the strength to fight.

Levi?

Yeah?

I’m proud I got to fight by yourside.

Same. We had a good run, bro.

I stared my killer in the eyes, forcing him to meet my gaze as he aimed toward my head. Tia’s sudden scream blew through the clearing, crashing into everything in its path. The wizards stumbled, losing their focus for long enough that their spell broke. I lunged forward, jumping on my would-be killer and sinking my long canines into the tender flesh of his neck. Beside me, Levi did the same with another wizard. It was unlikely we could kill them all before they took us down, but that wasn’t going to stop me from trying.

As soon as the man beneath me stopped struggling, I stole a quick glance toward my beautiful mate, terrified of what I would see. My mouth dropped open, releasing the man as I stared transfixed at Tia, not believing what I was seeing.

Her body was pure light, and I don’t mean like it was glowing around her, I mean she was a freaking ball of blinding light. The light began to blur and bend, the gorgeous shape of her body becoming less clear. My heart ceased beating. What had Draven done to her?

I expected the light to explode and disappear, taking the light out of my life with it. What I didn’t expect was for the light to bend and stretch, the shape constantly changing until it stood several stories high. The clearing was completely still; time seemed to have stopped as everyone watched the light sculpt itself into a dragon.

A freaking dragon.

Uh. Do you see a dragon too?Levi’s shaking voice interrupted my thoughts as I tried to process my bewilderment.

Yeah. I think it’s Tia.

Did we know she turned into a giant lizard like something out of those movies you like to binge watch?

I don’t think even she knew that she could shift into a full dragon.

The shape solidified and the light began to fade, leaving a white dragon the size of a house in its wake. It took a step forward, wobbling unsteadily like a newborn filly. I wanted to laugh; it wasn’t every day you got to watch a mythological creature learning how to walk. I opened my mouth to bark a laugh, but it came out garbled, excruciating pain tearing through my throat and making me lightheaded.

The dragon’s intelligent eyes narrowed on me, the color shifting from sky blue to cobalt as she studied me. Her wings flapped in agitation, sending debris scattering around us. Throwing back her massive head, she opened her mouth and bellowed her outrage into the sky.

That brought the wizards out of their stupor and they rushed to finish off our team so they could figure out what to do with the giant elephant—I mean dragon—in the room.

They moved fast, but it turns out dragons are shockingly fast.

Dude…. are you seeing this? I thought hippos running thirty miles per hour was shocking, but this should be impossible!

Why did he know such random trivia? Tia was going to whoop his butt when she found out he had compared her dragon to a hippo.

One moment she was at the far side of the large clearing, the next minute she was between my brother and myself.Several mercenaries lay crushed beneath her talons. Her chest expanded, separating the scales slightly to show the skin glowing between them. Crackling echoed inside her and I immediately knew what was coming. She opened her mouth and blue fire poured from her chest.

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