Page 52 of Dragon Rivals of New York

I’d thought about telling her, but it never seemed like the right moment. Plus, dragons don’t say things like that to each other unless they know they’re mates. And since she wasn’t twenty-three yet, she wouldn’t have wanted me to say it. ButI felt it. I loved her.

I’m actually grateful Sora wanted to do this without a crowd. Being back at the Gold Temple will be hard enough. Adding an audience would make it worse. I feel as if I’m betraying my horde going into the pool of gold, even though I know this mating is what my queen ordered, and soon there won’t be a Silver Horde to betray. There will just be one horde. The Silver Gold Horde. Or, I guess, it could be the Gold Silver Horde.

I wonder what Nadia would think of that? She always thought we should make peace with the Gold Horde. But what would she think of me mating with the man who killed her?

I shake the thought from my mind. This isn’t about Jethro. It’s about Sora. But… I can’t deny I’m attracted to the man. When we fuck our mate, he’s as insatiable as I am. He’s giving and passionate, and fuck, he looked so good all tied up in my ropes.

I twist my head to look back at him. He brought a blanket for Sora and has it wrapped around her shoulders to keep her warm. He’s telling her about city landmarks as we fly over them. Places he remembers being built, how much the city has changed.

It’s easy to forget what an old fucker he is when he’s railingour mate and coming so fast against my cock—like an untried teen who can’t keep it together. Fuck, I could barely keep it together myself with what we did.

I’d never done that before, but when he suggested it, I didn’t hesitate. Just the thought of us filling our mate together had me soaking my boxers with precum. I’m hard again right now just remembering it. Which is kind of uncomfortable when flying.

An image of mounting Jethro in his dragon form while flying pops into my head, and I nearly lose it.

We’ve already circled the city once, but I do it again. I like hearing his stories. I like the way he’s making Sora laugh and the curious questions she’s asking.

Okay, maybe I’m stalling.

Jethro can tell because he leans forward and says loud enough to be heard, “You okay, Ky?”

I’m glad I’m in this form and can’t answer, because I don’t know what I’d tell him.

Dipping my head, I swoop low over the water, circle the statue of liberty, and fly east. The temple isn’t far from land, and I soon spot the island in the distance. But something is off.

There are about twenty dragons circling the temple, and Idon’t recognize any of them.What the fuck is going on?

Jethro curses, noticing the same thing I do. “Drop low!”

I do what he says, veering off course and dropping so low my claws skim the water. We glide along the ocean perpendicular to the temple, not getting any closer than we already are.

“What’s going on?” Sora asks.

“I’m not sure,” Jethro answers. “But those aren’t Gold Horde dragons.”

With my suspicions confirmed, I swing back toward the city. We need to find out what these dragons are doing at the Gold Temple.

But before we get far, one of the dragon’s spots us. They roar and two dragons break away from the temple, shooting in our direction. Jethro curses and shoves Sora flat against my back, covering her with his body.

I’m stronger than most, but slower too. The two dragons they sent after us catch up quickly. Fire bursts across my tail. I whip it to the side. The spikes at the end knock into the dragon’s face and send him off course. The other dragon waits until he’s parallel with me. I try to get a shot in with my tail, but miss. I swerve. He keeps pace. I roar fire, but he breaks away, returning a second later.

I see it coming a second before it happens. I dodge, but it’s too late. Fire singes across my back. Jethro screams. Vengeance and the need to protect my mates surges my blood. I burn hot, hotter. Flames explode from my mouth, directly into the other dragon’s face. He careens down, splashing into the water. I shoot forward, flying faster than I’ve ever flown before, desperate to get my mates to safety.

I land with no grace on Jethro’s balcony and immediately shift, spinning to face Sora. I touch her everywhere, trying to ensure she’s okay.

“I’m fine. I’m fine,” she cries. “It’s Jethro.” She twists out of my arms and that’s when I see him.

He’s crumpled on the tile, badly burned. In his dragon form, a flame like that wouldn’t have done much damage, but he was human, and he threw himself in the direct path of the flames to shield Sora.

“No,” I whisper.

A few days ago, I would have wanted Jethro dead and out of the picture. But now, with my mate sobbing beside his unconscious form, I can’t think of anything worse.

“You’re not dying on me.” I scoop him up and carry him through the penthouse to his bathroom. Setting Jethro into the bath, I turn the water on as cold as it’ll go. I need to cool his skin so the burn doesn’t continueto get worse. Sora stands back, holding her arms around her waist like she’s trying to hold herself together.

“Come here,” I say, holding out my hand. “Sit by him. Talk to him. He needs you.”

She kneels next to the tub, and I kneel beside her. With a gentle touch, she pushes Jethro's hair back from his face. His eyes flutter open, but immediately close again.

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