Mated to the Earth Dragon (Elemental Mates 2)

This really wasn’t how she’d expected her vacation to go...

“Tell you what,” Damon said with sudden determination. “They’re not going to let this bus continue on the tour.”

As if on cue, there was a wave of subdued but annoyed voices coming from where a group of tourists had gathered around their driver.

“But they were going to drive you to Thingvellir next before returning you all to your hotels, so what about I take you back instead? We can stop at Thingvellir and walk around—you’ll miss out on your guide, but I know a lot of really boring facts about rocks, if that’s something you'd like.”

Her shock receding a little at Damon’s suggestion, Autumn found herself smiling at his joke. “Hey, I’ve experienced firsthand today just how useful facts about rocks can be.”

Damon’s face grew serious all of a sudden, his eyes darkening. “I didn’t do much,” he murmured. “I should have known and warned you—now that would have been useful.”

Very gently, Autumn touched his arm. “It wasn't your fault. And how were you supposed to know? You're an engineer—not a psychic.”

Damon released a sudden, dry laugh. “I guess not. Still, a psychic would have been useful today.”

“Maybe it was the elves,” Autumn teased, her heart contracting again with sudden, painful need when a reluctant smile spread over his face. “They warned me not to offend them. First the geyser, now this—I don’t know what I did wrong, but I definitely pissed off someone powerful.”

“No,” Damon murmured thoughtfully. “No, you didn’t... But maybe I did.”

“I guess elves aren’t very fond of mining.” Gently, she nudged him, smiling to show that she was joking.

“I can assure you we’re not that sort of mining corporation.” His eyes still looked worried, although they’d regained their former warmth. “We care just as much about the land as we care about precious metal.”

“An ethical mining corporation? How come I’ve never heard of it before?” she asked curiously.

Damon chuckled, and now, at last, he seemed truly amused, the earlier worry gone from his face. “We’re not exactly a mining corporation. Close enough, I guess—but it’s an old family business. Goes back generations. We’re not beholden to any shareholders or greedy CEOs. It’s always been a family business, and it will always be. I’ve got a duty to my family—just as I’ve got a duty to the land. We don’t destroy for profit. We couldn’t, never. It’s against all we stand for.”

“You're pretty special, you know that?” A warm glow of happiness spread in Autumn’s belly as she looked at him. “Almost too good to be true.”

“Not all that good,” he muttered, looking away as though he was embarrassed. “I almost dragged you to your death, there by the waterfall.”

“Hey, I’m the one who was all gung-ho on seeing all of the tourist attractions,” she said, shaking her head at him. “It’s not like the earthquake was your fault. And without you there, I would be dead. You were the one who pulled me back just in time!”

“I guess it wasn’t,” Damon said softly, although he wouldn’t meet her eyes. A moment later, he took a deep breath. “Anyway. Would you allow me to give you a private tour? I promise that I’ll get you back to your hotel in time so you can change for dinner.”

“Dinner,” Autumn repeated, happiness rising up sharp and fast once more.

That’s right. Not only did I get saved twice by this strange but incredibly hot mining Viking, but I’ve also got a date—my first date in ages.

Maybe she’d underestimated the elves. Maybe in Iceland, you had to prove yourself worthy of incredibly hot viking guys by surviving geysers and earthquakes.

“Let’s do it,” she said in determination. “Let me just return these clothes. My pants should be dry by now. I hope.”

They were still a little bit damp, it turned out, but she didn’t mind. Damon turned the heating on as soon as they were in his car, and soon, the huge, sturdy Landrover was driving back the scenic road they’d come.

Now that she finally had a chance to relax, the events of the last hour didn’t seem quite as scary anymore. After all, she was warm and safe now—and maybe it hadn’t been as dangerous as it looked. Maybe she would have been fine even with Damon to pull her back—but all the same, right now she was very glad that he was here.

The drive didn’t take long. With the heating so high, she felt warm and drowsy, relaxing into the comfortable leather seats of Damon’s car. Outside, she watched hills and snow-covered mountains go past in the distance. Every now and then, they saw herds of sheep and large, shaggy ponies.

True to his word, Damon was telling her stories about the rock formations of Thingvellir, and rather than trying to soak up all of the information, she allowed herself to sink into the sound of his voice. It was as comforting as a blanket, deep and warm, conjuring images of dark, fertile soil and stark mountaintops before her eyes.

When

Damon talked about veins of stone, it almost felt as if she was underground herself, tracing gleaming veins of precious metal through warm rock. Before her mind, she saw gleaming gold, the incredible, rare beauty of diamonds, layers of coal, and rock that was porous and gave way to white caves. And there, above all those wonders of the earth, rested layers of soil. Then came grass and plains and trees, all of them coming from the earth: the moss that grew high up in the mountains as well as the colorful flowers growing in verdant valleys.

“All of it belongs to the earth,” Damon murmured, his voice far away. “Metal as much as flowers. The coal and the diamond and the swamp.”

Autumn took a deep breath, sighing with pleasure as she opened her eyes. The car had come to a stop, but for a moment, she lingered on the visions of what she’d seen.