Page 1 of Saving Her Dragon

1

Almost Home

“Wow…” he sighed.

“Yeah,” she smiled with a slow nod of her head. “That Texas sun doesn't just shine, does it?”

“Nope,” Grey chuckled. “It claims the whole damn sky.”

And it did… But the Guardsman had to wonder…

Was it the way the dew glittered and shone like diamonds on the endless stretches of green pasture? Or the way the white-fenced borders of the Heatherton Homestead gleamed so white and so bright that it looked like they were made of ivory?

Grin widening, he pointed out the windshield, “Look over there, Star.”

“Oh, wow,” she breathed. “The petals on all those flowers look like they’re reaching for the sun. It’s just so Magical.”

“And alive,” Grey added.

It was everything he’d ever been told about South Texas… And so much more. Hell, even the bees and dragonflies danced in the morning breeze as the melody of morning birds filled the air.

“It just looks so peaceful,” Star mused. “It looks like a good place to recuperate, doesn’t it?”

Reaching across the console, Grey wrapped his hand around his Mate’s and lifted it to his lips. Placing a chaste kiss on her knuckles, he nodded. “Sure does. It’s just as beautiful as Carrick said it was.”

“It seems like the Elder is slowing down… Taking time to smell the roses, so to speak,” Darwin, the Dragon King with whom he shared his soul, chuckled mischievously. “It must be love.”

“Well, the Universe doesn’t make mistakes,” Star answered aloud.

Snickering at the banter between his Dragon King and his Mate, Grey Acheson looked from one side of the long, winding driveway to the other. Shaking his head, he sighed happily, “This just screams peace and serenity, doesn’t it?”

“It sure does.” Star squeezed his hand. “The war for Garrett and his Dragon King is finally over, and I can just feel it in my bones. This is the right place for him to heal and get to know his Mate.” Giving his hand a loving squeeze, she beamed, “Can you believe it? You’re about to have your brother back.”

Gripping the steering wheel of the SUV with his free hand, another, much bigger grin tugged at the corners of his mouth. Could it be? Was it really over? It damned sure felt like it, and Grey could not have been happier.

Even better, he wasn't nervous to see Garrett. Not even a little bit. He was filled with pure, unfiltered excitement. He was about to see his little brother; the man the entire Dragon Guard had spent so much time mourning, believing him lost to them, and then so long praying he would wake from that nasty coma.

“Well, the prayers sure worked, but of course, Garrett is an Acheson, so he couldn’t do anything the easy way.” The bounce of her shoulders betrayed her just-barely contained laughter. “Instead of just staying where he was, resting and getting better, your little brother got up and walked right out of the Clinic without being seen.” Shaking her head, the laughter coming to an end, she added, “As if that wasn’t enough, the poor guy ran right into another of Leviathan’s traps and ended up getting tortured all over again.”

“When you’re right, Mo ghràdh, you’re… Hey!” Grey yelled, pretending to be irritated. “Were you reading my mind?”

“Oh, darlin’…” Batting her eyes, Star leaned over the console and cuddled up next to him as best she could. Giving him a quick peck on the cheek, she winked. “I am always readin’ your mind, just like you are always readin’ mine.”

“Ha!” Grey barked with laughter. “Guess ya’ got me there.”

“I wonder if Garrett remembers how or why he woke up from that horrible sorcerous coma,” Star asked. After she shifted back into her seat, Grey could feel her studying the side of his face. “Did he or Sydney say anything about that?”

“They did not.”

“Did Syd say anything about where she’s been for the last thirteen years?”

“She did not,” Grey repeated. “But she might not be able to tell us everything.” A quick slide of his eyes, a shrug, and he went on, “After all, she left with the First Elder, and that usually means ‘above my pay grade’.”

“Yeah, right,” Star playfully scoffed. “Like anything is ‘above your pay grade’.” With a playful pat on his shoulder, she kept right on going, “You know what I really wanna know?”

“Yep, but you’re gonna tell me anyway,” Grey snickered.

“You know me so well,” Star proudly confirmed with a nod. “What I wanna know is how she was born of two humans but is the Special One and also shares her soul with one of the original Dragon Queens. You think she can tell me that?”