Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 84237 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 421(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 84237 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 421(@200wpm)___ 337(@250wpm)___ 281(@300wpm)
Nope. Impossible. Ridiculous.
“Come on, Samuel. Throw the poor guy a bone. He’s gonna bust if you don’t say something nice about his dragon soon,” Gregori called out, which only earned answering chuckles and snickers from Vasily and Luka.
That helped to break through some of Samuel’s mind-numbing shock, sending him climbing to his feet. He dusted off the seat of his cargo pants with his hands, still unable to tear his eyes from Dimitri.
“Why does he need me to say something? He knows he’s…” Samuel’s words drifted off and he lamely waved one limp hand toward Dimitri.
“What? I know I’m what?” Dimitri demanded. His voice was low and so deep that it resonated within Samuel’s bones.
Samuel jumped backward, holding up both hands in front of him. “Holy shit! He can talk!”
When he lowered his hands, it was to find the three men and the dragon looking at him as if he’d lost his mind. He was starting to feel that way. Any cool points he might have accumulated so far on this trip had just gone up in flames in the most spectacular fashion. God, he was such a dork.
“Of course he can talk,” Luka said with a half smile. His eyes were doing plenty of laughing for him, though.
“Did you think I was some dumb animal now?” Dimitri asked.
Samuel gathered up the shreds of his dignity and courage to stomp over to the dragon. It might still be Dimitri, but his hindbrain was screaming that the creature’s fangs were as long as his arm and those curved talons on his feet could slice through him with little effort.
“You act enough like a dumb animal when you’re in human form. Why should it be any different now?” Samuel tipped up his chin and straightened his shoulders. “Besides, I specialize in lost mage clans. Not dragons. I guess I forgot about dragons talking, but there was that video, right? The talking blue dragon from Germany.”
Samuel had worked himself up into enough of an indignant froth that he wasn’t quite thinking when he reached out one hand and placed it on the side of Dimitri’s long snout. At least not until his fingers made contact with unexpectedly cool, slick scales. The sensation was unlike anything he’d ever experienced. Almost like cold satin, but as durable as steel.
The massive blue eye that had been watching him shut suddenly and a low rumble rose from deep in Dimitri’s chest. Was he…was he purring? Dragons didn’t purr. He wasn’t a cat. But something about the sound and the upward pull of the corner of Dimitri’s mouth made him think the dragon was happy.
Flattening his hand on Dimitri’s nose, Samuel slowly moved it in a sweeping caress. The noise grew louder and Dimitri wiggled. The massive dragon wiggled in the dirt as if he were an excited puppy over the moon about getting some attention.
What. The. Fuck.
This didn’t make any sense at all, but neither did Samuel’s racing heart or the urge to get even closer, to run his hands all over the dragon to see what other noises he could get him to make. And the entire time, a voice in the back of his mind whispered, Mine. All mine. Only I can create these noises in him.
He’d totally lost it.
Dimitri’s nose moved slightly and Samuel suddenly yelped, jumping away when he felt something soft and damp wrap around his calf. He looked down in time to see the dragon’s forked tongue slipping back into his mouth.
“Did you just lick me?” Samuel gasped.
“I’ve been wanting to do that since I first met you. To see if you taste as good as you smell.” Dimitri sounded so very pleased with himself. “Licked you. Now you’re mine.”
“Fuck, Dimitri. You are pathetic. You know that, right?” Vasily taunted.
Samuel sucked in a breath to argue, but he didn’t need to. Dimitri lifted his massive head and turned toward Vasily and Luka. With an irritated snort, he sent a cloud of icy fog at the two dragons, frosting the tips of their hair and freezing the drops of sweat on their skin. Against his will, Samuel’s irritation dissolved at the amusing sight, and he had to clear his throat to hold back his laughter.
Luka shoved at Vasily before passing a hand through his hair to remove the icy crystals. “Behave, both of you. Get the saddle on Dimitri while I get the safety harness settled on Samuel. We need to get the area scouted so we can figure out our next move.”
Samuel was distracted from the sight of the leather saddle being carried over to Dimitri by Luka holding up a leather vest with all these hooks, rings, and straps.
“Is…is this necessary? And safe?”
Luka grinned. “Dimitri will be incredibly careful. Don’t worry. The harness and saddle make it more comfortable for you. If you don’t feel safe enough, one of us can go up with you and Dimitri as well?”