Love in the Time of Dragons

Chapter Nine

“Do I have to call you de Bouchier now?” Brom asked as I tucked the journal in which he kept his science experiment notes into his backpack.

“No, of course not.” I stood up, wanting to hug him again, but I’d already done that, and he had placed a firm “one hug per leave-taking” moratorium on me twenty minutes earlier.

“But that’s your name now, right? That guy who appeared used to be your husband before you married Gareth?” I sighed. There wasn’t any way I could deny what life insisted on beating me over the head with. “Yes, I think he was.” Brom leaned in close, his eyes on May and Gabriel as they held a brief confab with Maata and Tipene. “So why is everyone trying to hurt him?” “It’s kind of a complicated story,” I whispered back. “But I’m going to do my best to stop them so that we can talk to Baltic.” “Is he my stepdad now?”

“I… we’ll talk about that later.” “What’s Gareth going to say when he finds out your first husband is still alive?” I sighed again. “We’ll talk about that later, too.” I looked up to where Maata and Tipene approached. “I’m not really happy about this.” “We won’t let anything happen to him,” Maata said, giving Brom a little punch in the arm. He grinned and punched her back. She pretended to flinch, which made him grin all that much harder.

“We were just reunited. I don’t like being separated again.” “It is just a precaution, and will not be but for a day or two. Aisling and Drake will take very good care of Brom,” Gabriel said in a soothing voice that did nothing but make my jangled nerves more jumpy. “Drake takes his security very seriously now that his children have been born, and I would not be honest if I didn’t admit that your son will be safer with them than he would be here should Baltic attack.” I waited until Brom and the two silver bodyguards left, waving with as cheerful a smile on my face as I could put there, but the second the car drove off, I turned on Gabriel. “Why do you persist in the belief that Baltic is going to attack your house?” He took my arm and escorted me back inside, making sure the elaborate security system that monitored the doors was set. “He’s done it before. He blew up our previous house, and destroyed much of the entryway of Drake’s. You were there that day — that is how your head was injured.” I touched a little scar in my hairline. I’d wondered how I’d come to get that.

“Now that he knows you are alive, he will put two and two together and arrive at the conclusion that we have taken you in for protection, and he will do everything in his power to steal you from us.” “But that’s just the point,” I said tiredly, rubbing the headache that throbbed in my temples. “There’s no need for him to steal me, as you put it. I want to speak with him. No, I need to — I need to talk to him in order to clear up all the things I don’t understand.” “I don’t think that would be terribly smart right now,” May said softly. “Baltic is… I hate the use the word ‘insane, ’ but he’s not mentally balanced, Ysolde. You don’t remember the things he’s done to the silver dragons, to his own people, but Gabriel was there two months ago when they discovered the corpses that Baltic had left when he cut a deadly swath through the blue dragon population.” “No sane being, dragon or otherwise, could have done the things that were done to them,” Gabriel said grimly.

His normally bright gaze was dark with remembered pain.

I looked down at my fingers, unable to justify that I was bound to a man who was homicidal.

“You said he looked surprised to see you,” May said. “That means he didn’t know you were alive, so he’s probably frantic to find you now. And you can take it from us that an emotionally upset Baltic does not make for a pleasant companion.” “All I know is that I must have some time to talk to him. I realize you want to capture him so he can face the charges that are now hanging over my head, but isn’t there some neutral ground where we can meet him and talk to him, find out if he really is deranged?” They were silent for a minute before Gabriel finally said, “I will present that suggestion to the weyr.” What he didn’t say was that it would do no good.

I nodded, still rubbing my temples.

“You are fatigued,” Gabriel said. “You should rest now. You may have a disturbed night if Baltic chooses to attack tonight.” “Would you like me to send some supper up to you?” May asked.

“Actually, I’m famished. I’d love some food.” “You go upstairs and get into bed, and I’ll have Renata whip something up for you.” An hour later I was full of ginger chicken, fresh snow peas, and an intention that I prayed Gabriel and May would never find out. Dressed in jeans and a sweatshirt, I slung my bag over my back, pressed a red button that blinked slowly in a tiny little panel set into the corner of the windowsill, and cautiously opened the window, bracing myself for a siren.

Silence greeted me. I sighed in relief that the switch deactivated the alarm on the window, and peered out. I was three stories up, with no convenient drainpipe, balcony, ivy stuck to the building, or ladder casually leaning against the side of the house. There was literally no way out but to jump to the ground.

“Talk about your leap of faith,” I muttered as I sat on the windowsill and swung both legs over the edge. “I just hope to heaven that this works or I’m immortal, because if I’m not, I’m going to be in very bad shape.” I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and held out my hands as I whispered the light invocation, a spell used to temporarily guard mages from harm. A faint golden glow rippled up my body, skimming the surfaces, leaving me with a familiar tingly feeling that told me I was surrounded by arcane power. “So much for an interdiction, Dr. Kostich,” I said somewhat smugly, and jumped off the windowsill.

“Ow.” I spat out the bit of dried lawn and dirt and a very startled beetle. “Ow. Dear god in heaven, ow.” The light spell didn’t work. That became apparent to me about half a second after I left the windowsill, and just before I hit the ground of the tiny garden spreadeagled and facedown.

I touched my nose, wondering if I’d broken it. “Ow.” It wobbled back and forth just fine, so I gathered that it wasn’t shattered, as it felt. I sat up slowly, gingerly moving my arms and legs. Everything on me hurt, but nothing seemed to be more than bruised. Either the spell did work after all, or I was immortal.

“Wish I… ow… knew which it was,” I muttered to myself as I got painfully to my feet and limped off around the side of the house. By the time I took a few steps, I was moving a bit easier.

“Now to find Savian,” I said as I glanced up and down the street. There was little traffic at this time of night, just a few cars passing. As I started off toward a busy intersection where I hoped to find a taxi stand, a car passing me suddenly slammed on its brakes with a squeal of tires on wet pavement that was painful to the ears.

To my amazement, the car backed up, and a door to the backseat was flung open.

“Get in!” the man who emerged said.

I stared at him in amazement. “How did you—” “Get in!” Baltic didn’t wait for me to comply; he simply picked me up and tossed me into the car, following me with a growl to the driver. Before I could pick myself off the floor, I was flung backwards when the car shot off like a rocket.

“Hey!” I struggled to sit upright, allowing the man next to me to pull me upward onto the seat. “That was totally uncalled-for! I am not a sack of potatoes you can just toss around!” “Under no circumstances do I regard you as a sack of potatoes.” “Good.” I gave him the meanest look I had. “If you intend on blowing up Gabriel’s house, you can just think again!” To my surprise, a little smile flickered over his lips. “I see that the centuries have not diminished your desire to tell me what to do, mate.” “I’m not your mate,” I said primly, untwisting the sweatshirt that had been whipped around my torso when he’d thrown me into the car. “I may have been in the past, but now my name is Tully, and I would appreciate it if you would call me that.” “Your name is Ysolde de Bouchier, and you are my mate. Why have you sought refuge with the silver dragons?” I glanced at the driver.

Baltic followed the path of my gaze, and said something in a language I didn’t understand.

“I’m sorry. I don’t speak Russian.”

“That was Zilant, not Russian,” he said.

“Well, I don’t speak that, either.”

“Yes, you do.”

“No, I don’t.”

“You do. I taught it to you myself.” “I’m happy to argue with you about this all night, but honestly, there are approximately a thousand questions I have for you, and we aren’t going to get to any of them if we spend all our time on whether or not I know a language.” “I have a solution to that — don’t argue with me.” “You are just as bossy as you used to be, do you know that?” I told him, poking him in the chest.

He grabbed both my arms and pulled me over until his nose was a fraction of an inch from mine. “And you are just as argumentative and lacking in respect as you used to be.” We stared at each other for a minute. He narrowed his eyes. He sniffed the air. “Why do you not smell as you should?” I pushed myself out of his grip, straightening my sweatshirt a second time. “Well, I am sorry I offend you, but you have no one but yourself to blame for that, Mr. Disappear into the Beyond. Rather than take a bath, I opted to go find Savian in order to force him to find you so I could talk to you, which, I would like to point out, I wouldn’t have had to do if you hadn’t disappeared like you did.” “You might think it’s an afternoon’s frolic to face three wyverns bent on your destruction, but I have other ways I’d prefer to spend my time,” he said dryly.

I smiled to myself. I didn’t remember the Baltic from my dreams having a sense of humor. “All right, I will grant you the right to make a timely escape — they were unfairly ganging up on you. But that doesn’t give you the right to make insulting personal comments by telling me I stink.” “I didn’t — for the love of the saints, mate! I did not say you stink!” “You did, too! You said—”

“I said you do not smell as you should, and you do not.” He held up a hand when I was about to protest. “You do not smell like a dragon.” “Oh. Well. That’s probably because I’m not — hey!” Baltic lunged at me, burying his face in the crook of my neck. “You smell… human.” “I am human,” I said, my body suddenly coming to life in a way that almost stripped the breath from me. It was as if his touch electrified me, sending little zaps of pleasure down my skin. His hair brushed my cheek, and it was all I could do to keep from grabbing his head and kissing him until he was insensible.

“You are not. You are a dragon.”

“No, I’m human. My name is Tully, and I’m human now. I’ve only just decided to accept the fact that in the past I was a dragon named Ysolde, but now I’m human, and are you licking me?” I couldn’t stand it. The feel of him against me, the scent of him, something almost indefinable, like the smell of a rain-washed sky, pushed me close to the edge of my control. When his tongue licked a flaming path along my collarbone, I knew I had to stop him. I heaved him away from me with all my strength.

He licked his lips, an indescribable look on his face. “You taste the same. How is it that you smell differently but you taste the same?” “How do I know?” I said, shakily trying to regain my wits and keep from flinging myself on him. “I’m still trying to get over the fact that you were dead and now you’re not. Where are we going, by the way?” “I am stealing you from the silver wyvern,” he said with great satisfaction.

“You can hardly be said to be stealing me if I come with you of my own accord, not to mention escaping the house to go find you.” “I would expect nothing less from my mate,” he said with that same satisfaction.

I sighed, probably for the fifteenth time that day. “I seem to be sighing a lot lately,” I commented.

“That is because you were pining for me. Why did you not tell me you were alive?” he demanded.

“Have you always been this arrogant and egotistical?” I asked, then continued quickly before he could answer. “No, don’t bother to tell me. The few visions I’ve had answer that question. I will tell you what I know, but I warn you that it’s just going to raise more questions than answers.” It took the whole of the ride to a large house about an hour outside of London for me to tell Baltic what had happened since I woke up in Gabriel’s house.

“You knew I was alive but you did not seek me out immediately?” he asked as we stopped outside a gate, the driver punching in a security code.

“People mentioned you, yes, but most of the time, I figured I was nuts and made you up,” I answered, watching the driver in order to memorize the code, just in case I ever needed to make a fast escape.

“You are not insane.”

“No, I gather that, but if you woke up remembering hardly anything, and having the most vivid dreams of your life about a bossy man who threatened to kill you at one point, what would you think?” I turned to him, a stab of pain piercing my heart at the pain visible in his eyes. “Oh, Baltic!” Without thinking I took his hand in mine, pressing it against my cheek. “I wasn’t avoiding you. I truly didn’t believe you were real until I saw you in the park, and then I knew I had to find you, to talk to you. You have to understand that it’s been very difficult to accept that what I was reliving weren’t just imaginings, but shadows of the past.” His fingers curled around mine, and he leaned forward to kiss my fingers as we drove up a paved drive-way to a rather squat, blocky white Regency-era house covered with ivy on the front. “When I saw you this afternoon — I thought for a moment that I, too, had gone mad.” I smiled and rubbed his knuckles against my cheek. “I had no idea you were real. You were watching the past?” “Yes. I do sometimes. Usually, it’s too painful.” Anguish appeared to rise within him at the memory, and once again, I was helpless against it. I wrapped my arms around him, holding him against the pain, wanting to bring only light to his darkness. “It saddened me, too, seeing them — us — so happy, knowing how things ended.” “Nothing has ended,” he said, his mouth moving across my temple with gentle little kisses that almost left me weeping. “You are here now. Life has begun again.” I turned my face into his neck, kissing his pulse point, but saying nothing.

The car stopped in front of the house, and I took a minute to gaze around before allowing Baltic to escort me inside. The grounds were pleasant, if a bit bare of anything but a tennis court and a hint of a swimming pool in the back.

Baltic led me inside, turning back for a moment to speak with the driver. I looked around, curious as to whether this home would be as soul-satisfying as the other. The entry hall was done in shades of white and egg cream, with white tile on the floor, an elegant staircase in white to the right, and a magnificent crystal chandelier. It was very pretty… and completely barren of warmth or soul or heart.

“Come,” Baltic said holding out his hand, having finished with the driver. I noticed that he, too, set the security alarms before escorting me to a room that opened onto the entryway.

I ignored his hand, needing a little distance to keep my mind — not to mention libido — under control. “So, this is — ack!” He leaped on me, positively leaped on me, pulling me down onto the couch, his mouth hot on my skin.

“Baltic!” I shrieked, trying to push him off me.

“We will now mate,” he announced, just like that was the end of the story.

“Like hell we will!”

He kissed me then, kissed me with enough fire that my feet were burning by the time he was done.

“Whoa,” I said, gathering my wits together enough to push him back. “I can’t do this. You have to give me some time. Besides, there’s something I haven’t told you about—” “There is no time,” he interrupted, sliding his hands beneath my sweatshirt. “I must claim you as my mate now, before another can do so.” “Now hold on here a minute!” I seized his wrists and stopped his hands from moving farther. “I agree that we have a lot to talk about, and I’m ashamed to say that I enjoyed that kiss more than I should have.” “There is no shame in what we do,” he interrupted again. “We are mated.” “We are not mated. We may have been mated in the past, but that was before you died. I don’t know for sure what happened to me, but—” “You died, as well.”

I stopped and stared at him. “You knew that?” “You died right before me.” Pain filled his eyes and he closed them for a moment, his face twisted with remembered agony. Without thinking, I moved closer, putting my hand on his chest. “I was in the tunnel beneath Dauva. Kostya had turned traitor and was trying to kill me. I was just about to disembowel him when my heart stopped, and I knew you had been killed, knew that bastard Constantine had finally made good his threat and destroyed you rather than let me have you.” “Constantine killed me?” I asked, goose bumps rippling up my arms and legs. “But… he said he loved me.” “He swore that if he could not have you, I should not. And without you, I would have no life.” His eyes opened and tears filled mine at the depths of pain so visible on his face. I pressed myself against his body, wanting to comfort him, wanting to ease the agony that time did not lessen. “My heart died with you at that moment, and I knew I would not survive. So I let Kostya kill me. It was easier than surviving the few remaining hours I had.” “I’m sorry,” I said, blinking back tears.

His mouth brushed mine in a gentle acknowledgment of what I offered. “It wasn’t your fault. I know now that you were only trying to stop the war. But you were once my mate, and you will be so again, now, this minute. I must claim you, Ysolde. We must mate as dragons mate, so that all will know you are truly mine once again.” I slipped out of his arms, my stomach sick and cold. “If things were different, if my life had not turned out as it had, I would accept your offer. But there is something you don’t know, and aren’t going to like.” “What?” he asked, gripping my arms tightly.

“I have a husband. He is an oracle.” Anger flared in his ebony eyes. “You have taken a lover?” “No, I have taken a husband. Had taken. I don’t remember marrying him, and for that matter, don’t particularly like him. In fact, I’m planning on divorcing him, because he’s a bastard. But I must have had nicer feelings for him at some point, because why else would I marry him?” A muscle in his neck twitched. “You said your memory has been destroyed. You are not to blame for taking a husband.” “I’m glad you think so, but he is my husband, regardless, and I’m sorry, Baltic. It may not be much of a marriage, but I would be less of a person if I were to be unfaithful. I can’t sleep with you until I am separated from him.” “You are my mate,” he repeated stubbornly.

“Yes, I think I would be, but I have some moral values, and one of those is to not commit adultery.” The muscle twitched again. “This is not an issue. I will kill this husband who dares claim what is mine, and then you will be able to give yourself to me freely.” I laughed; I just couldn’t help myself. He was so earnest, and it tickled my funny bone. “I appreciate the fact that you have absolutely no qualms about killing an innocent man, but that would be even less tolerable to me than straying. No. You will not kill my husband.” “Stop saying that word,” he snapped, releasing me to pace the width of the room.

“I’m sorry. I will endeavor not to talk about him.” It was an effort, but I managed to keep from smiling.

“I realize that you feel some mortal emotions toward this… person… but you are a dragon. You are my mate. You must be claimed. It would be dangerous for you to remain as you are.” “Dangerous,” I said, skeptical to my toes. I managed to keep from throwing myself on him, knowing if I did, I wouldn’t be able to resist him a second time.

“You are a wyvern’s mate. If other wyverns were to see you and know you for what you are, they could steal you from me,” he said, and I realized that he was deadly serious.

“I hate to break this to you, but unless there are some septs that I don’t know about, I’ve seen all the wyverns. I met them all at the sárkány. No one even looked twice at me, at least not in the way you’re implying.” “Nonetheless, you could be claimed by another.” He paced past me, his hands behind his back. “I can’t tolerate that. Once, I let you slip away from me — I have learned from that mistake, and will not do so again.” My heart warmed. I couldn’t help it. Oh, he was being arrogant and pushy and domineering, but none of that really mattered, not when I could see the insecurity and fear that he tried so hard to keep from me. “I appreciate the fact that you want to protect me, but it’s not necessary.” “Even now they are plotting to take you!” he said stubbornly.

“Who?” I asked, confused.

“The unattached wyverns, Bastian and Kostya. They have seen you, and they want you.” “Oh, for the love of all that’s good and glorious! It’s flattering that you think every wyvern out there is panting after me, but you’re way off the scale here, Baltic. No one gives a damn about me, at least not in that sense. You really do take the cake, do you know that?” “I have no cake!” he said, deliberately misinterpreting me.

I slapped my hand down on the table, frustrated, amused, and wildly aroused, all at the same time. “Well, that’s a shame, because I could sure go for a piece right now.” “If you are hungry, I will feed you,” he said somewhat grumpily “Maybe later,” I said with a smile. I looked around the room, examining the few objets d’art scattered around. “This is a very pretty house.” The sitting room was also done in white and egg cream, with beige and white striped overstuffed armchairs, less substantial black and gold Regency chairs, and a honey oak parquet floor.

“It’s abominable, but it has an excellent view of the surrounding area, so I will be able to see attackers before they can strike.” I stopped in front of the long fireplace, tipping my head as I examined him. He looked the same as he had earlier — chocolate hair pulled back in a short ponytail, the widow’s peak drawing attention to his high brow, his eyes just as piercing as they had been in my dreams. I sensed power about him that I realized with a shock was his dragon fire, carefully leashed, but present nonetheless. “Is that how you think? In terms of people attacking you?” “Dragons, not people.”

“Well, perhaps if you didn’t run around slaughtering other dragons, you wouldn’t have to protect yourself from them when they seek revenge.” A frown pulled his eyebrows close. “If you are referring to the wars—” “Actually, I’m not,” I said, heedlessly interrupting him. “I’m talking about the sixty-eight blue dragons you killed a couple of months ago.” He said nothing for a moment, pulling a long cream and gold curtain across a floor-to-ceiling window before turning to consider me. “What would you think if I told you that I was not responsible for those deaths?” “I’d say…” I thought for a moment, my lips pursing. “I’d say that everyone believes you are.” He shook his head. “That is not what I wanted to know.” “It’s what you asked,” I pointed out.

“But it is not what I wanted to know, a fact of which you are well aware.” To my surprise, he smiled. “If you had any doubt that you are a dragon, Ysolde, the fact that you avoid answering a direct question should be proof positive.” “You should do that more often.”

“Point out reasons why you should recognize the fact that you’re a dragon?” “No, smile.”

His smile faded. “I have had no reason to do so.” “Maybe not, but a sense of humor is right at the top of traits I find sexy in a man.” “You already think I’m sexy,” he said with arrogant ease, strolling toward me with the same sense of a panther gliding silently down a jungle path that I remembered from the other Ysolde’s life.

“In the past? No doubt. But there are a whole lot of sexy men around today.” I kept my voice light, striving not to let him hear the smile in it.

He paused, a moment of uncertainty in his face. “You find this other man, this husband, sexy?” “Gareth? Lord, no.” I frowned, wondering about that.

“Then why did you mate with him?”

“Physically, you mean?”

He nodded, watching me with the intensity of a panther, too.

“I don’t really know. I must have slept with him at some time. That’s what married people do. But…” I sat and tried to examine the still impenetrable mass that was my memories. “No. There’s nothing there. I can see his face, and I know he’s a bastard, and I don’t wish to be married to him anymore, but beyond that, it’s pretty much a void.” “That is a small comfort,” Baltic said with a wry twist to his lips. “What man is it you find sexy, then? Is it Gabriel? You find him arousing?” I couldn’t help but smile at the sudden look of sheer outrage that passed over his face. “Why on earth would you think that?” “You are a wyvern’s mate,” he snorted. “He is a wyvern, and you were staying in his house. Did he touch you?” “Even if he wanted to — and I assure you, he views me as nothing more than a big pain in the ass — May would kill him. And quite probably me, although perhaps she’d let me live because if she killed me, she’d feel obligated to take in Brom.” “Who is Brom?” he asked, his frown back. “Is he yet another man who arouses you?” “I think lots of men are sexy, but that doesn’t mean squat,” I said, trying not to laugh again.

“It does to me.”

“Pfft. Like you haven’t ever seen a woman and thought she was attractive?” “No,” he said in complete seriousness.

I gawked at him, just a little gawk. “Oh, come on, Baltic.” “You doubt my word?” he said, bristling at the implication that I thought he was lying.

“I think you’re trying to make me feel bad, yes.” He sighed a very exaggerated sigh, pulling me to my feet. I stepped away immediately, knowing that just being close to him would leave me indulging my carnal desires. “Ysolde, you are my mate. I desire no other woman than you. I would not try to make you feel bad. I would not lie to you, a fact you should know.” “All right, I apologize for doubting your word,” I said humbly, moving over to the window. Although my body screamed to be near him, my mind knew it was wiser to put a little distance between us.

“Good. Now tell me where this Brom is so that I might geld him.” I laughed again, amused by the flash of ire in his eyes.

“You laugh at me, woman?” he said, stalking toward me.

I laughed even harder, holding him back with a hand on his chest. “Please do not geld my son.” He blinked at me. “Your son?”

“Yes. Brom is my son. He’s nine. I think you will like him. He’s a little odd, but very clever, and has an amazing range of interests, including a love of history. I’m sure he’d love to talk to you about the things you’ve lived through.” A muscle in his neck twitched. “You had my son with another man?” “No, I had my son with another man.” His hands fisted, his face a veritable storm cloud of anger. “By rights he should be mine! You are my mate! Any child you bear should be mine!” “Oh, grow up,” I said, tired and suddenly annoyed.

I thought he might explode at that.

“I had Brom nine years ago. Nine years ago! So you can just deal with it, or not, but I warn you, I love Brom with all my heart, and I will not tolerate you treating him as if there is something inferior about him.” “You love me with all your heart,” he yelled.

“Do you always yell?” I shouted back.

“Yes!” he snarled.

“Fine!” I bellowed.

He was so angry I swear his eyebrows were bristling, and before I could finish my sentence, he was on me again, his arms as hard as the oak floor beneath us, his mouth hot and demanding and just as exciting as it had been in my dreams. His tongue was everywhere, twirling around my tongue, tasting me, firing my blood with little touches that seemed both gentle and demanding at the same time. He filled my senses, overwhelming me with the scent and taste and feel of him pressed up against me.

And then the fire came. Actual fire, the kind that burns things down. One minute I was kissing him, feeling as if I were on fire, and the next I really was. For a second I panicked, sure I was going to be horribly burned, but just as I was about to fling myself away from Baltic’s fire, an amazing thing happened — something inside me shifted. It was as if the entire world seemed to go slightly out of focus for a moment, then snapped back to its normal clarity.

The fire that threatened to char my skin suddenly danced along it instead, leaving me with a sensation of warmth, but nothing more. Well, nothing more that was harmful — it also fired up the burn inside me to new levels, until I wiggled against Baltic, doing a seductive little dance that I’d never done before. He groaned into my mouth as his fingers dug into my behind, pulling me tighter against him as his lips and mouth and dragon fire consumed my every thought.

“You love me with all your heart,” he growled, his control very close to snapping.

As I told myself that I really needed to stop before things went too far, the words he had spoken sank in through the miasma of lust and love that raged in my brain, settling into a righteous annoyance.

“You know, I really hate people telling me what I do,” I answered, biting his lower lip, and not gently, either. I didn’t break the skin, because I didn’t wish to cause pain, but it was the sort of a nip that would make him take notice.

And take notice he did. “You dare bite me?” He reared back, shock evident on his face as he touched his lower lip.

“Yes — yes, I do.” With my hands on my hips, I took a menacing step forward. “I don’t like being told what to do! So you can just stop this Mr. Demanding bit and kiss me properly, or not kiss me at all!” “Now you are telling me what to do!” he stormed, taking a step forward until his chest rubbed against mine. “I don’t like it, either. And as for the kiss, Madame Bossy, I will kiss you any way I see fit. I am the wyvern here, not you!” “Madame Bossy!” I gasped.

Nose-to-nose, we glared at each other until I couldn’t help it, and laughed. To my surprise, Baltic’s lips twitched; then a rusty chuckled emerged, which cascaded into an outright guffaw.

My heart sang as I watched him laugh until tears wetted the corners of his eyes.

“Ah, chérie,” he said, putting his arms around me again. “Thus it has always been between us, eh?” I brushed the hair out of his eyes, my fingers tracing the satiny length of his eyebrow. “I don’t remember.” “You are the only one who has ever made me laugh,” he said, kissing the corner of my mouth. “You used to say outrageous things, things I would not tolerate from any other dragon. Then when I was ready to throttle you, you’d tickle me, or perform some other silly act to lighten my mood, and make me think that life could not be any better.” His confession touched me, making my eyes burn as I dabbed away the remnants of laughing tears on his lashes. “Many things have changed about me, Baltic, but I’m afraid I’m still prone to saying outrageous things. Did I hurt you when I bit you?” “No.” His hands slid down to pinch my behind. “But do not do it again.” I giggled.

“You do love me with all your heart.” That was a statement, but there was a shadow in his eyes that had me answering quickly, “Yes, I do. I’ve just met you, and yet I’ve loved you for centuries. I love both you and Brom.” “Equally?” he asked, pinching me again.

“Yes,” I said, keeping my smile to myself.

“You should love me more.” His voice had a faintly disgruntled hint to it.

“That, my little periwinkle, is about a toe and a half over the line.” I slid out of his arms. It took more than a little effort to do that, since my body badly wanted to stay smooshed up to his, but the way my insides were humming, it was that or give in to him.

“Why do you push me away?” he asked, his eyes hot with desire.

“I… you overwhelm me.”

“Good.”

“No, it’s not good. At least, not until things are straightened out with my husband. Now… what were we talking about? I’ve lost track.” “We were discussing your refusal to mate with me,” he said, his eyes still smoldering with heat.

I held my tongue, not wanting to make another pass on that particular verbal merry-go-round. “You said you wanted to claim me in order to protect me. That claiming business is just an oath of fealty, isn’t it?” “That is part of it, yes.”

“Can we do the swearing without the sex?” “It is possible, but unheard of.”

“Well, you’d better start hearing it, because I will agree to accept you as a wyvern, but I won’t have sex with you. Not until I can resolve the issue of my husband. I fully intend to get a divorce from him, but until I have a chance to tell him I want one, to tell him that we are officially separated, there will be no sleeping together.” He dismissed the entire issue with a little wave of his hand. “I will take care of any concerns you have about the mortal.” “I’m not so sure he is mortal,” I murmured, thinking back to what Dr. Kostich had said.

“It matters not. He will cease to be a problem.” Baltic stood in front of me, a handsome, vital man who had suffered untold centuries of anguish. I touched his cheek, touched the hard planes of his face, tracing my finger along his high cheekbones and around his eyes, those beautiful black eyes that had a slight upward tilt, giving him a faintly Slavic look.

I brushed a strand of hair off his cheek. “How did we both come to be alive again?” He captured my hand, kissing the tips of my fingers, his eyes never leaving mine. “I don’t know how you came to be resurrected. But I will find out, chérie. I will find out.” “What do I need to say to swear fealty to you?” “Whatever is in your heart.”

I laughed. “My heart is confused at this point, so I wouldn’t look to it for any help. But I ought to be able to come up with something. Let’s see… I am Tully Sullivan, and I—” “You are Ysolde de Bouchier. This other name, this mortal name, has no bearing on us,” he insisted.

“I happen to like the name Tully—fine. I am Ysolde de Bouchier, also known as Tully Sullivan, and I hereby pledge my fealty to you, Baltic… um… is Baltic your first name or last name?” “It is my only name. I have no other.” “Oh. All right. That’s very movie star, but that’s fine. I hereby pledge my fealty to you, Baltic, wyvern of the black dragons. No, wait, that can’t be right. Kostya is the wyvern of the black dragons. He was at the sárkány.” Baltic swore. “His traitorous hide deserves only to be split on the end of my sword.” “Please tell me you’re not going to fight him for control of the black dragons,” I said, unable to handle the thought of what I knew would be a huge battle between Baltic and everyone in the weyr.

“By rights I should, but I will not. I am no longer a black dragon.” “You’re not?” I looked him over as if that would tell me anything. “What sept do you belong to? Not the silver dragons?” He shifted into dragon form, his body covered with glittering white scales.

“You’re a white dragon?”

“Not white — light,” he said as he shifted back, holding out his hand. Light formed there, stretching out to form a white and blue sword. “When I was reborn, I became something new, something not seen before — we are light dragons, you and I, Ysolde. Our dragon form reflects the fact that we encompass all colors, just as light does. We wield arcane magic, which other dragons cannot do. Ours is a new sept, with only the two of us as members.” I digested that. “That sword belonged to Antonia von Endres, didn’t it?” “Yes.” He glanced at it. “She gave it to me long ago.” “Why would she give you something like that?” I asked. “That sword is famous in magedom, and although you’re not a slacker at arcane abilities, you’re not a mage.” He tossed the blade up, catching it on the tip of one finger. It balanced perfectly. “Antonia gave it to me because she said I gave her great pleasure.” “What sort of great pleasure?” I asked, a sudden roar of anger whipping through me so great that it drove off my intention to tell him that Dr. Kostich had asked me to take the sword from him. “Great pleasure as in, oh, I don’t know, sex?” “She was my lover, yes.” He frowned, shaking his hand so that the sword dissolved into nothing.

“You screwed her for a sword?” I asked, my fingernails digging into my palms with the effort to keep from shaking him. I knew my anger was unreasonable, but I was powerless to stop it.

“Why are you so angry?” he asked, looking thoughtful all of a sudden. “Are you jealous?” “Of course I’m not jealous! What do I have to be jealous of? I mean, it’s not like the man I just told I loved beyond all reason informed me he’s been out bonking anyone who has mage toys, is it? It’s not like he just admitted infidelity, oh no! It’s not like you’re standing right there with your penis all bulgy and poking me”—I gestured at the fly of his pants, which was looking rather strained after our steamy kiss—“and telling me that it’s been visiting other women, not because you are seeking another lover, but so you can have a fancy mage sword! It’s not like that at all, is it, Baltic?” He looked delighted, the bastard. “You are jealous!” “You are the most obnoxious, reprehensible, despicable man I’ve ever met.” “I am a dragon, not a man.”

“Gah!” I yelled, and slapped both hands on his chest.

He covered them with his own, doing that lovely rusty chuckle that made my knees go all weak despite the fact that I wanted to knock his block off. “Chérie, I remember many times you threatened to emasculate or decapitate me when you believed I was looking at other females, but I had thought the centuries we spent together had eased your suspicions.” “Just tell me this,” I said, grabbing a fistful of his shirt. “How many times did you betray me?” Anger followed surprise in his eyes. “What cause have I ever given you to believe I would do such a thing?” A horrible silence followed, one that was filled with my brain suddenly pointing out that time actually existed before I met Baltic. “Er… you knew her before you met me?” He sighed, unclenching my fingers from his shirt. “Yes.” “But you never told me she’d given you a mage sword.” “I had no cause to use it,” he said, shrugging. “I did not have the skills at that time to wield it. It was only after I was reborn that I was able to do so.” “So you didn’t sleep with her after you met me,” I said, wanting to make absolutely certain of that point.

“I took no females after I met you.” He started to smile, but suddenly looked away.

I pounced on that. “Oh, really?”

He made a vague gesture, a flicker of embarrassment in his eyes. “There was a barmaid in Bordeaux, but I did not rut with her. I tried, but I could not.” “What a goddamned shame,” I growled, wanting to punch him all over again.

“She was not my mate. I thought I would ease my lust on her, but I could not. I knew then that I must have you and no one else.” He took my clenched fists in his hands, stroking his thumb across the top. “That is when I sent to Constantine to let him know I was claiming you.” The fury inside me melted away into a dull throb. “It’s very hard to be angry at someone when he’s just told you he can’t have sex with another woman because he wants you instead.” “You have no need to be angry. I have not given myself to another, as you have.” His voice was etched with acid.

“I can’t help it if I lost my memory and got married. And wait a minute, are you saying that you haven’t had sex in”—I did some quick calculations—“over three hundred years?” “I have not had a female since I met you, no.” I blinked, unable to keep from asking, “Have you had a male?” He looked outraged. “No! I do not lust after males, as Pavel does. I have been mated, and to a dragon, that bond exists for all time.” “Pavel your guard? He was gay?” I asked.

“That is the mortal term for it, yes. He enjoys both males and females equally.” I picked up on the present tense of that sentence. “Whoa! He’s still alive?” “Yes. He has been in London, but I expect him back shortly. Are you going to accept me as your mate, or not?” “Er… yes. I’m sorry, I was just distracted by the thought of… never mind.” He gave me the oddest look. “You were distracted by the thought of Pavel with another male? Do you lust after him?” “No, of course not! I don’t even know the guy. It’s just that, sometimes… well, you know, sometimes guys with other guys… it’s just kind of… er… hot.” I thought his eyeballs might pop right out of his head.

“Hot? You are aroused by males making love to each other?” “No! Not normally! Just once in a very rare while. It’s kind of… titillating.” “I see.” He didn’t look like he saw at all, what with his lips pursed and his arms crossed over his chest.

“You don’t ever think that once in a blue moon, it can be sexy?” I asked.

“No.” He thought for a moment. “Two females together, yes. That is always arousing. Especially if they are oiled. But males? No.” “Well, see, I don’t get the two girls together thing. It just doesn’t ring my chimes at all. Does Pavel bring his dates here often?” He stared at me for a minute. I cleared my throat. “Sorry. None of my business. What were we talking about?” “You were saying the words of fealty.” He paused. “You really are aroused by the thought of two males?” “Only very rarely! Sheesh! I’m sorry I mentioned it! Let’s move on.” He nodded, then asked suspiciously, “You do not wish for me to engage in sexual acts with another man—” “No! God almighty, Baltic! That’s the last time I’m ever going to share a sexual fantasy with you!” “It’s a fantasy of yours, seeing two men together?” he asked.

I walked over to the wall and banged my head against it a couple of times.

“I do not understand you,” he said, a thread of puzzlement in his voice. “You have changed since you were resurrected. My Ysolde would never have wanted to see—” “Enough!” I yelled, storming over to him and punching him in the chest. Hard. “Move past it or I’m walking out of here right now!” His lips thinned, but he said nothing.

“Thank you. Now, I suppose I should start over, shouldn’t I?” I stopped, pursing my lips as I looked at him. “You’re still thinking about it, aren’t you?” “No.” Five seconds passed. “Is it the thought of the men engaged in the sexual act itself, or some other facet—” “Argh!” I yelled, and ran out of the room, out of the hall, and out of the house.