Page 70 of Dragon Rivals of New York

I’m glad our mate is excited, but I can’t say the same. Closing my eyes, I remember what we did in that alley, trying to hold on to the calm and certainty I felt.

“See, you don’t have to be on your own to have new experiences,” Jethro says.

I open my eyes to see him gently kissing Sora’s forehead, a sweet gesture that warms something in my chest. They’re so good together. We all are. Wrapping them both in my arms, I feel an instant peace settle over me. “We’re gonna give you every experience you want, little mate.”

“Good.” She smiles. “But next time, let’s try new things under less ominous circumstances.”

“I thought you liked a little danger,” Jethro teases, smacking her ass playfully.

“A little.” Her gaze flicks out to the ocean, where the Gold Temple waits. The muscles in her neck flex as she swallows. “Not this much.”

I pull her closer. “You’re gonna hold on to me the whole time, and I won’t go deep. We’re just gonna skim the surface. It’ll be just like being in the pool.”

“I know.” She shakes off whatever fear momentarily crossed her face. “You’re the one who’s nervous about the water part. Not me.”

“You’re right. I fucking hate being underwater.”

“Ahh,” Jethro coos. “Don’t worry, big guy, I’ll hold your hand.”

“Shut up, jackass.”

His signature grin has me yanking him in for a rough kiss before shifting into a dragon. He transforms a moment later, after thoroughly destroying Sora’s mouth. She’s breathless when he lets her go—not what she needs. I puff a small bit of fire at him. He laughs, which sounds strange in dragon form.

I think we’re all trying to ease our nerves however we can. Sora with reassurance. Jethro with teasing. Me with… well, being a grumpy asshole. I feel completely on edge as Sora climbs onto my back, wraps her arms around my neck, and settles in. Jethro enters the water first, and I follow. My chest constricts, not with the need to breathe, but with a tight panic as the water closes over my head. The fire that always burns in my belly burns hotter like it’s trying to fight off the cold, worried it might sputter out at any moment.

At first, I try to use my wings to propel myself forward, but that doesn’t work, and just strains the muscles, so I tuck them into my side and kick. It’s much slower than flying.Painfully slow.

Jethro keeps pace beside me, his bulk bumping up against me every so often, a reassurance I need as the water seeps between my scales. Maybe there’s a reason dragons don’t like being submerged in water. What if it can really damage us? What if it puts out the fire within?

I kick a little faster, wishing I could check on Sora to see how she’s doing. Every now and then, Jethro will look over at her and then nod at me as if to let me know she’s still alright. I’m grateful.

After what seems like forever, I spot a pillar of stone rising from the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. Finally. Communicating silently, we grab hold of the rock and slowly climb until we’re just a foot or so below the surface. Then we both shift into our human forms to make ourselves less noticeable. It’s a risk, since it means we won’t have the defenses of scales and fire, but we want to be discrete.

It’s harder to hold my breath in this form, lungs shrinking along with the rest of me. The clock is ticking now.

I grab Jethro and give him a hard, quick kiss underwater without opening my mouth. Since Sora can’t kiss while breathing from the oxygen tank, he hugs her, and then we separate. Jethro works his way around the island to the front of the temple to set up our distraction, while Sora and I sneak to theback and wait.

This will be the hardest part. My human lungs burn, the water a crushing weight on my chest, but Sora’s hand in mine keeps me steady as we both hold on to the cliff that extends from the side of the temple down under the water as if the whole island is on a pedestal.

We wait. And wait. There are no shouts from above, so I don’t think Jethro’s been caught.Please, Goddess, protect him.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Fireworks burst into the sky. With Sora on my back, I immediately climb the cliff. One hand over the other as quickly as I can. Even in my human form, I have the strength of a dragon. But we chose this side of the island not only because it was away from the temple’s main entrance, but because it’s the shortest climb.

As I reach the top, I see Jethro surface from below. More fireworks go off on the other side of the island. He’s fast, and without Sora on his back, he catches up with us just after I lift myself over the top of the cliff. There’s no one nearby, so I push Sora toward the temple and tell her to hide in the shadows. Then, I help Jethro up.

Just as I’m pulling him over the edge, a blur of red shoots into the sky. The siren.

Chapter 36

Sora

Weknewtopreparefor this. I’ve got wax stuffed in my ears and water-proof noise canceling headphones on—yeah, apparently that’s a thing that exists. But I can still hear the screech as it splits the air. It’s painful, but not unbearable.

More fireworks go off on the other side of the island and dragons swoop and soar overhead, searching for an attack. I run to the temple, flattening myself against the wall, and creeping toward the door, gazed fixed back on Jethro and Kyro as they run to catch up.

More dragons swoop into the sky, fanning out like they’re trying to see where the attack will come from. By the time Jethro and Kyro reach me, the Ruby Diamond Horde seems to have figured out their mistake. Half the group drops low to search the edges of the cliff. We made it off just in time.

---