Page 12 of Hidden Dragons

Bear turned his head and one of her kisses landed on his lips. She stilled, moving back slightly to look into his eyes while Robert and the dragons held their breath. What she did next would determine a lot about the future.

When she stayed motionless in Bear’s arms, Bear did what came naturally, moving closer, slowly, giving her the opportunity to flee…but she didn’t. She waited, seemingly unsure but willing to trust him as he lowered his mouth to hers, giving her a proper kiss. A proper kiss that turned improper within only a few moments.

And she…she just seemed to…surrender. That was as good a word as any when all the tension fled her small body and she returned Bear’s kiss with a passion that looked as fiery as it was unexpected. Robert watched with both joy and a bit of envy as his fighting partner was the first to claim a kiss from the woman they intended to make their own.

There would be time for Robert to kiss her though—if everything proceeded according to the plan they had mapped out deep in the night. They had strategized how to woo her. The first step was to continue to fix up her home and shower her with small gifts that would make her life better, even if she chose finally not to take them up on their offer of marriage and a home in the Lair.

Truth to tell, even if she rejected them, the offer of a home in any dragon Lair would stand. If Robert and Bear couldn’t convince her she was the one for them, perhaps another pair of knights would be luckier. Or she could work with the dragons for the rest of her life. Her pure heart and the ability to speak to dragonkind, paired with her lack of fear of them guaranteed her acceptance among them, even if she didn’t want to mate a pair of knights.

It might just break Robert’s heart to see her go to someone else, though. He already had deep feelings for the girl, and he suspected she was the one meant to complete their family—no one else’s.

When Bear finally let go of Isabelle, by slow degrees, gentling the kiss that had raged for long minutes, her eyes were deliciously dazed. There was no doubt she had enjoyed Bear’s kiss. It was only when reality returned that she panicked, and a flush of becoming pink graced her cheeks.

“Oh, dear,” she breathed, stepping back from Bear. He let her go, dropping his arms, but watching her carefully. As did they all.

“I am sorry if I moved too fast,” Bear said quietly. “But I do want you to know I admire you a great deal. I would like to court you when our mission is done, with an eye toward seeing if you could perhaps live with Tilly, Growloranth, Robert and me. We have all talked about it, and we suspect you may be the one who might complete our family.”

“Too fast, Bear,”Robert warned silently.“You’re overwhelming the lass.”

“No, look at her face.”Tildeth cut in on the mental conversation that included only the two dragons and two knights.“She is thinking about it. Under the panic, she is tempted.”

Robert noted the way Isabelle looked at each one of them, first the dragons, one by one, then meeting Robert’s gaze with only a hint of wide-eyed disbelief. Tilly was right. Under the fear was…interest.

“Hot damn,”Robert observed to his friends.“I think you’re right. Good work, Bear. Although I’m still jealous as hell that you got to kiss her first. Tell me, is she as sweet as I imagine?”

“Even sweeter,”Bear confirmed.“And far hotter than I ever dreamed. She will set us both aflame should we ever convince her to be our mate.”

“I pray the Mother of All will give us the chance,”Robert replied, sending the prayer heavenward even as he smiled encouragingly at Isabelle.

“And you, Sir Robert?” Isabelle said softly, a slight tremor in her voice. “Do you also believe this?”

Robert stepped forward and took her hand in his, looking deep into her eyes. “I do.” He dipped to place a chaste kiss on her brow, unwilling to scare her off. Her world had just been rocked, judging by the look in her eyes. He didn’t want to add even more chaos. “I think you are a courageous, clever, lovely woman with much to offer our family. You could complete us. All we ask is that you think about it.” He let go of her hands and moved slightly away. “As Bear said, we have a mission to complete, but after we’re done with that, we would like you to think about visiting the Lair with us to see how we live, and what it’s like being among so many dragons and knights. It is our hope that you’ll like what you see and perhaps it will help convince you that we have only the best intentions where you are concerned.”

She was silent a long moment, until she finally answered. “I would like to see it someday. For now, you’ve given me a great deal to think about.” She looked at the cages holding the quietly clucking hens. “And a flock of chickens to feed.”

She smiled and Robert breathed a sigh of relief. They were past the biggest hurdle. She hadn’t turned them down outright. She was just being cautious—and who could blame her? She hadn’t survived this long on her own without being careful.

Isabelle turned and, while she didn’t actually flee, she certainly moved rather quickly out the door of the barn and back to her house. Robert had to smile when she sent back a message via Growloranth, apparently unwilling to talk mind-to-mind with anyone but the dragon at the moment.

“Lady Isabelle invites you to breakfast when you are ready,”Growloranth conveyed the message to Robert and Bear with a comically haughty air.“And may I add my congratulations on your swift thinking, Sir Bernard. All along I thought my knight was quicker with the ladies, but I see I have underestimated your prowess. Well done, and thank you for moving things along. The sooner you find your mate, the sooner my lady and I can take to the sky. While we are not pressuring you to hurry, just the same, we are glad you are showing signs of bringing your search to an amiable end. Tildeth and I agree that Lady Isabelle would make a wonderful addition to our little family.”

“It will be nice to have another female to help with the little ones when they come along,”Tildeth put in.“Isabelle is a gentle soul who would be kind to younglings of either race. And she would sing the sweetest lullabies.”Tildeth sounded almost wistful.

Robert knew that parenting of babies was shared by the mixed families in most Lairs. The humans acted as a second set of parents to any baby dragon born in the family, while the dragons did the same for any human children. It was an arrangement that had been working for centuries within the borders of Draconia, and Robert looked forward to seeing it in action in his own small family unit—once they found their mate. He would bet his best suit of armor that Isabelle was the one. Now they just had to convince her of that little fact.

They walked to the house, Bear carrying the heavy sack of provisions he had secured on his early morning flight. The farmer from whom he’d bought the chickens had sold him a lot more besides the livestock. Robert was glad Bear had been so thoughtful, but he felt like a dolt by comparison. He had yet to shower their lady with gifts, but for the life of him, he couldn’t think of what he could give her besides his heart. And he didn’t think she was ready yet to hear declarations of undying love from a man she had met only a day before.

When Isabelle let them into her home, Bear took the lead, placing the heavy sack of supplies on the counter near the washbasin. It was a smart move because, as Robert quickly realized, Isabelle had already prepared breakfast using her own supplies. Bear’s provisions might hurt her feelings or cause embarrassment in light of her own meager offerings. The last thing they wanted to do was hurt her in any way. Leaving the supplies for later was the best course of action at that moment.

Bear smiled and rubbed his hands together in a gesture of anticipation as he settled on the tree stump he had brought in the night before. A large portion of cooked oat mash was already in the bowl placed in front of him. Robert was treated similarly when he sat, and they shared a companionable half hour eating and talking of simple things.

When it came time for Bear and Tildeth to get on their way, Bear placed a lingering kiss on Isabelle’s cheek. He thanked her in the gentlest tone Robert had ever heard from his fighting partner. It was obvious Bear didn’t want to leave, but they had come here to do a job and they wouldn’t be able to truly court Isabelle until their mission was completed.

Bear nodded to him and left, going directly to Tilly, who waited deeper into the forest so she would not be seen by anyone from the village. Growloranth was closer, but Tilly’s lighter coloring would make her stand out more against the greenery surrounding Isabelle’s home.

“Take care of her. I’ll be in touch when I have something to report,”Bear sent to Robert silently as he disappeared into the forest.

“I’ve got the watch, partner. Good hunting,”Robert sent back, aware in the corner of his mind that was connected to Bear through his connection with his dragon partner, that Tilly had already launched them both into the air.

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