Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 127722 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 639(@200wpm)___ 511(@250wpm)___ 426(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 127722 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 639(@200wpm)___ 511(@250wpm)___ 426(@300wpm)
“Ivory.”
“What is it, babe?” I didn’t take my eyes off my work, knowing I was racing against daylight.
His voice grew louder because he came closer. “Babe?”
I didn’t even realize what I’d called him. It just came out. I’d never even used the endearment before, not with anyone who came before him. “You’ve got a problem with that?” I lifted my gaze from my hands and met his stare down below.
He wore that rock-hard expression, his usual intensity spreading into his powerful shoulders and the rest of his body. Then he gave a subtle smirk, just the corner of his lip rising a bit. “Pyre can’t take off when you’re done.”
Pyre turned to face him, like he understood every single word.
“Why not?” I asked.
“Because the outcasts will know we’re here if they see a dragon flying around.”
“Oh…” That thought hadn’t crossed my mind.
“He has to wait until dark at least.”
I rubbed his hard scales, not sure if he could even feel my touch through his rough exterior. “Pyre, is that okay?”
He issued a low growl.
“There’re some bad people on this island. They would hurt us if they knew we were here.”
He slowly bowed his head, and that was enough to express his disappointment.
Huntley watched the whole thing. “He understands what you’re saying.”
“Yeah, I think so too.”
“When the sun goes down, you can take to the skies,” Huntley said. “Just a couple more hours, man.”
“Man?” I asked.
Huntley shot me a glare.
I got back to work on his wing. It took a few hours, but I grew the last bit that he needed. An audible crack filled the night, and that was when I knew I was finished.
Pyre wiggled his wing and opened it to its full length.
“Beautiful, huh?”
He flapped it a couple times, a quiet whine escaping his lips.
“I know, honey…” I rubbed his back, knowing how much this meant to him.
“Baby.” Huntley nodded toward me. “Come down here.”
I climbed down halfway then dropped to the bottom. Huntley had a lit torch in his hand where he stood in front of Pyre’s face. I walked over, getting closer to the glow, closer to Pyre’s features.
The second we made eye contact, I saw them.
The tears.
They dripped down his face, reflective in the light like diamonds.
That made me cry too. “Pyre…” My palms flattened against his snout without thinking twice about those incredible teeth, and I pressed my forehead right against his jaws. “I’m so happy for you.”
He rubbed his snout against me, one of his tears dripping right onto my head. It felt like a bucket of water had been dumped on top of me, soaking my hair and all my clothes. The moisture traveled to the skin instantly, but I didn’t mind the inconvenience.
He lifted his snout and turned away, raising his head up high to look at the stars up above. He stared at them for a long time, his wings folded against his body like he’d forgotten he had them.
“You can do it, honey.”
He let out a heavy breath before he opened his wings wide. Enormous, with claws at the very tips for extra damage, they were straight at his sides, ready to flap down to lift him off the ground. He took a few steps before he started to pound his wings, to get the air underneath the webs. His feet didn’t leave the ground, and he kept running, like he didn’t trust his own body.
But then it happened.
His feet left the ground.
And he soared into the sky.
The only indication he was there was the way he blocked out the light from the stars. A shadow moved across the sky, enormous and powerful.
I didn’t notice my own tears until they landed on my lips and layered my tongue with salt.
Huntley’s thick arm moved around my waist, and he pulled me a little closer. “I’m damn proud of you, baby.”
29
IVORY
The cobalt dragon nearly charged me down when I stepped out of the tree line the following morning. Murderous eyes bored into mine, and instead of steam erupting from his nostrils, it was a black smoke.
“Whoa, calm down. Why do you think I’m here?”
He continued to huff and puff.
Huntley was beside me. “Check the attitude, man. Otherwise, she won’t do shit for you.”
My eyes popped wide open, and I turned to give him an incredulous gaze. “Did you just say that to a dragon?”
“I don’t care. No one talks to my wife like that.”
“He didn’t say anything—”
“He didn’t need to.”
Pyre came out of the cavern next, a new spring in his step. He flapped his wings, as if to show them off.
I smiled. “Lookin’ good.”
The cobalt dragon looked at him with a sneer.
Pyre walked up to me and dropped his head so he could rub his cheek against my body. Not understanding his strength, he knocked me flat on my ass. Huntley was there to pick me up and lift me back to my feet.