The Dragon Shifter’s Desire by Harmony Raines

Chapter Ten – Ivan

Larisa’s joy was contagious, and Ivan’s dragon beat his wings hard as he lifted them higher in the sky. The beach and the sound of the ocean faded away as he aimed for the moon and the stars beyond.

Higher and higher he climbed, circling Wishing Moon Bay with his mate on his back. It was as if they were the only two living beings in the world. All their problems were left behind as they flew, a dragon and his mate, together as one.

The moon seemed so close, it was as if he could take them there and land on its cold, lifeless surface and look down at the Earth below.

Cold. Ivan reminded his dragon that Larisa wasn’t dressed for this altitude.

With one last longing look at the moon, the dragon banked to the right and dipped his wings, heading for the mountains in the distance. As he leveled out, he used his senses to check on his mate. A thrill passed through him from the tip of his snout to the tip of his tail. If Larisa could feel the cold, the joy of flying on his back seemed to chase it away.

“Faster!” She leaned down over his shoulder and shouted the word and he obeyed. He would always obey her requests. She had a power over him like no one else ever had or ever would.

The dragon’s muscles bunched as he beat his wings harder, pushing the air beneath them down so that they picked up speed. They raced across the sky, straight and true as he headed for one of his favorite mountain peaks. Yes, he had a favorite mountain peak, one where he liked to come when he wanted to be alone. It was high enough that it was rare to meet anyone else there but low enough that it was free of ice and snow most of the year. Only in the deep of winter was it permanently covered in snow.

The peak loomed in the distance, and he tilted his head up and flew across the mountain slopes, keeping close to the ground below. He skimmed the tops of ageless pine trees that had stood there for generations. They were so close, the scent of pine resin drifted up to them as the trees waved in the current created by his wings.

And then they were faced with a sheer wall of rock, and he angled his body, flying almost vertical up the sheer cliff, his focus on his mate who gripped his body with her thighs. If at any moment he sensed her slipping, he was ready to change the angle of his body and flatten out. However, Larisa seemed a natural at riding dragons and she crouched down over his neck to prevent the air from unseating her.

The dragon reached the top of the cliff and banked left, circling around as he took them higher, aiming for the peak. When they finally drew level with it, he stuck his taloned feet in front of him and landed gently.

He breathed hard, that was the hardest flight he’d taken for a long time. His brothers rarely flew with him these days and they were the only ones Ivan allowed to ride on his back unless it was an emergency. While he enjoyed flying alone, he rarely pushed himself hard or to new heights.

“That was amazing.” Larisa leaned forward and flung her arms around the dragon’s neck as soon as he landed. “The most incredible thing I have ever done.”

The dragon turned his large head and looked at her, grinning as much as a dragon could grin.

Larisa straightened up and slipped her leg behind her as she attempted to dismount, the dragon bent his leg and she hopped to the ground. She staggered forward and placed her hand on his shoulder to steady herself before stamping her feet as if to get feeling back into her legs. When she could stand unaided, she ran her fingers along his scaly neck before standing in front of the dragon. Cupping his head in her hands as best she could, she leaned forward and rested her forehead on his snout. She held him for a long moment, without words, and Ivan’s dragon hardly dared breathe as they shared this moment.

“Thank you.” She kissed his scales and then let him go. “Thank you for sharing this with me.”

The dragon stared at her unblinking. She is the most incredible person I have ever met, he told his human side.

I know,Ivan answered. We always dreamed of finding our mate, but I never dared hope we would be blessed with a woman like Larisa.

His dragon closed his eyes and let go of the world. The air popped and fizzed around them, but Larisa didn’t flinch, she simply stood and watched as the dragon vanished only to be replaced a second later by Ivan’s human form.

“Hello.” Larisa flung her arms around him and held him tight as if checking he was real.

“Hello back.” Ivan tightened his arms around her, never wanting to let her go.

“I’ve seen shifters shift before. But I’ve never been this close. I’ve never felt the static in the air. It made the hairs on my hands stand on end.” Larisa shivered as she clung to him.

“Did I scare you?” Ivan whispered.

“No, not at all.” She stepped back and wiped her eyes. “It was incredible. Just the most amazing thing ever...” She put her hands to her cheeks. “I don’t know why I’m crying.”

“There’s nothing wrong with tears. As long as they are good tears.” He reached for her hand and pulled it away from her face.

“They are good tears. Happy tears.” She sniffed loudly. “And look at this view.” She turned around and looked down over the mountain. The moon was so bright it cast the whole world below in its eerie light. “If I died now, right at this moment, I would die happy.”

“No one is dying,” he told her.

“We all die, Ivan.” She cast a glance at him. “But you’re right. It’s not our time.”

“Come on.” He tugged at her hand and led her to the left of the peak that rose above them. “There’s a trail that leads to the very top of the peak.”

“Do you come here a lot?” she asked as she followed behind him.

“This is where I come to think. When I want to be alone.” He gave a short, humorless laugh. “I’ve been coming here a lot lately.”

“Why?” Larisa asked.

“Ever since a piece of my treasure came to me. So many questions came with it. Questions I never asked before because they didn’t matter.” He helped her over a large boulder, his hands around her waist as she jumped down onto the trail.

“Your life has been turned upside down. It must have been a lot to process.”

He hated to appear weak in front of his mate, but he couldn’t deny his confusion. “It was a lot to process.” He helped her up the final part of the trail. “I never thought much about my parents. Not for a long, long time.”

“I used to think about my mom a lot when I was younger.” She put her hands on her hips and took a deep breath as she looked out at the view below. “Wow. I can see why this is your favorite place to come when you need time to think. The view is incredible.”

“It always gives me perspective,” he admitted. “When I stand here and look down, I realize how inconsequential my problems are compared to the vastness of the world below.”

“Your problems are not inconsequential,” she replied firmly.

“Compared to the wonder of the world. To the vastness of space, to the beauty of the mountain that has stood here for millennia?” He chuckled. “It usually makes me feel better.”

“Oh!” She sucked in a breath. “In that case...”

He turned to face her. Larisa held more wonder than the view below. He could get lost in her eyes, in the rise and fall of her chest as she breathed and the beat of her heart. “But I appreciate what you meant.”

“When I was a little girl, I used to dream about my mom and what my life would have been like if she was still with us. I used to talk to her when I was alone in my room. I knew she couldn’t answer but it used to give me comfort. Then as I grew older, I stopped talking to her.” Larisa’s bottom lip trembled. “I used to talk to a photograph of her.” She held up her hand as if holding a photo between her thumb and finger. “It was so battered since I’d looked at it so many times. But when I stopped talking to her, I stopped looking at the photo.”

“Hey, I didn’t mean for you to get upset.” He slipped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close.

“I wish I could remember her face. Not from a photograph, but from a memory. But I was so young...” She sniffed and wiped her eyes. “Do you remember your parents at all?”

“No. Nothing. It’s like they never existed.” He gave a short laugh. “I used to believe I hatched from an egg.”

Her shoulders shook as she laughed. “An egg?”

“Yeah, sometimes in movies, dragons hatch from eggs. I used to think that was why I couldn’t remember them, because I was abandoned as an egg.” He looked down at her. “I know that sounds crazy and you’re the only person I have ever told about it.”

“Your secret is now my secret.” She patted his chest.

“I... I used to think... I used to hope that if I was abandoned or lost...as an egg...then my parents might still be alive. That they might be looking for me.” Her arm slipped around his waist, and she held him close.

“And when you met my dad and he told you that he believed you were the son of Andor, and that your father and mother were dead, that dream was shattered.”

“Yes,” he whispered.

“I’m sorry.”

“I nearly didn’t come back today.” He swallowed hard, his fingers pressed against her flesh. He could so easily have decided to stay away from Davy Westward and his family. “I might never have met you.”

Larisa moved in his arms and turned to face him. “I believe that fate would not have let that happen.”

“I thought you weren’t a believer in fate.”

She shrugged. “I’m coming around to the idea.”

“Glad to hear it.”

“I’ve dreamed about meeting a dragon shifter my whole life. Partly because of my father but also because I wanted proof that they were actually real. I’ve searched the world for clues to dragon shifters but then you just walked into my house.” She looked up at the stars above their heads. “And then you brought me here.”

“The stars are so bright on moonless nights,” Ivan told her. “One day, when this is all over, we could come up here and spend the night watching the stars.”

“Wow, aren’t you a fun date?” She nudged him in the ribs.

“Sorry, I thought you would like that...” He chuckled. “You’re teasing me.”

“You’re easy to tease.” She pulled away from him. “I could stay up here all night tonight. I’d love to watch the stars move over our heads. But we have a big day tomorrow and we need to get back. I’m dead on my feet.”

“Not dead,” he replied.

“Sorry. I’m bone-tired and I don’t want to fall off your back. We should go.”

He nodded. “Come on. I’ll make sure you don’t fall.”

“I trust you.” She placed her hand in his and he led her down the trail back to the flat area where it was easier for him to shift.

I won’t let her fall,his dragon promised.

I know you won’t,Ivan replied. I trust you.

Let’s just hope there’s a time in the not-too-distant future when we can come back here and spend the night with no other worries, or other fears.

That’s what I wished for,Ivan said. I wished for our lives to be free of danger. For us to be free to raise a family without having to look over our shoulders. He glanced down at Larisa’s pocket where she’d put the pendant. She could have left it back at the apartment but if the owner of the pendant came looking for it, Larisa didn’t want there to be anyone caught in the dragon shifter’s path.

He should’ve insisted she gave it to Ivan for safekeeping. This was his fight.

Larisa believes the fight belongs to her and her family, too,his dragon replied.

She doesn’t stand a chance against a dragon shifter. No one does.

Except for another dragon shifter,his dragon replied.

Except us.Ivan did not doubt that this was part of fate’s plan, too.

He just hoped fate intended for them to survive and live a happy life with Larisa.