Loving the Dragon (Vintage Collection)

He was hers. Why deny it? She’d been drawn to him for months. To find out he was attracted to her had been heaven. But mere attraction this was not. It went far deeper. She was part of him, which is why she could sense him now.

Micah was a threat. A threat to Aidan and to her.

A threat to their love.

She jumped into her car and screeched into the night.

She smelled the giant flames before she saw them. The pungent stench of melted paint and scorched wood. Bitter, yet oddly sweet. Thickness invaded her mouth, her lungs. Billows of gray smoke danced like shadows across the moonlit sky.

Her temples throbbed as age-old images and sounds flooded her mind. Her childhood home. The screams of her mother, the roar of her father, the innocent cries of her baby brother, and the squeaking yelp of her helpless dog.

And she stood still. Unable to help. Yet unable to flee as her father ordered.

Just as in the past, weights held her feet to the ground now as her bookstore burned.

Kristen! Kristen! I need you!

Aidan. Must help Aidan.

Still her feet wouldn’t budge.

“It’s a shame, is it not?”

Kristen turned at the deep voice, similar, yet so dissimilar, to Aidan’s.

Micah’s gaze was glued to the blazing building. Blond waves fell around his broad shoulders. He was dressed all in black leather, except for one ungloved hand. Long, pale fingers beckoned her.

A sharp pain pricked Kristen’s eyes.

“Micah.”

“Yes, my dear.”

Invisible evil slithered from his pores. Kristen shivered.

“I apologize for the loss of your bookstore,” Micah said.

One finger trailed over her shoulder.

Evil again. Pure evil.

Kristen stepped away from Micah’s repulsive touch, her back heating from the flames engulfing her livelihood. “Where’s Aidan?”

“On a mission. One that won’t be successful, I’m afraid.”

“He’s in there, isn’t he?” Evil be damned. Kristen rushed forward and gripped the lapels of Micah’s leather blazer. “Don’t just stand there. Help him!”

“I cannot.”

“You mean you won’t. Why are you torturing Aidan? He’s your brother!”

“Why do you assume I’m to blame for this?”

“Because you… You’re in my mind.” Her vision blurred with tears, yet indignant courage rose within her.

Aidan. She had to help Aidan. Protect him. Save him.

“You’re trying to keep Aidan and me apart. You want me for yourself. It’s that…code thing of yours. You’ve—”

Then she knew. The facts speared into her mind. Micah had created her greatest fear.

Fire.

And he’d trapped Aidan inside.

He knew she wouldn’t go after him. That her fear would paralyze her.

She stood, numb, her body frozen.

Micah’s finger touched her top lip and eased toward the bottom one. Though repulsed, Kristen didn’t step back.

Oh, the stench. The smoke was acrid now. Dense and unbearable. She longed to escape this horrid place. But still, her feet wouldn’t move.

Kristen shook her head to clear it.

Aidan needed her. If Micah wouldn’t help him, she’d do it herself. Fire be damned. She had to.

She loved him. And though the bond toward Micah was strong, she would never love him.

She summoned all her strength, all her courage, and lifted the lead weights of her feet. Her belly lurched, and nausea rose in her throat.

No. She wouldn’t succumb to the fear, wouldn’t let it rule her. The first step was slow, but the next step easier, until she ran with all her might into the burning building.

“Aidan! Aidan!”

Smoke coated her throat. The flames blazed around her. She couldn’t survive. Somewhere in the back of her mind she knew this fact, yet still she persevered. Finding Aidan was more important than her life. More important than anything.

Kristen. I’m here. Follow your heart.

Aidan’s voice saturated her mind. The flames. Into the deeper flames. Her pulse raced.

Do not fear, my love. I will protect you.

Protect me? You’re burning alive, Aidan. How can you protect me? How can you ask this of me when you know my fear?

Trust me.

Trust him? When her building was falling to cinders around her? When she feared fire more than anything else in her life?

No. The jagged edge of foreboding softened around her heart. Yes, the fire frightened her beyond all comprehension. But deeper still lingered an even greater fear.

Losing Aidan.

Pink warmth surrounded her trembling body and blocked the harmful heat of the fire. Her nipples tightened and tiny tingles shot through her. Aidan.

Bravely, she walked into the flames.

Fire is a part of me, Kristen.

Aidan.

Don’t fear me.

But you… You couldn’t have.

No, I did not set fire to your store. Trust me. I will see you put to right. I swear it. But right now I need you if I’m to survive. Come to me.

I’m coming, Aidan. I’m trying.

Try harder, Kristen. I need you.

She ran through the blazing inferno. No longer orange, the flames burned blue, purple, white. Haze clouded her vision. The roar of the fire droned in her ears, and the putrid stench flooded through her veins. She fought to keep her mind clear of muddled thoughts. Fought to keep the fear at bay.