Page 87 of Red Dragon’s Heart

Maddie poured all her love for Troy into the circle. Zak, help me! She cried out.

I’m here. And Zak came through. Maddie felt all the barriers in his heart come crashing down, as he poured all his love into her, and through her into Troy. Everything he’d ever held back washed over her and through her, giving her and her brother strength.

And with it came his friends’ love for him—the love he’d never accepted or embraced. The bonds between them amplified his and Maddie’s connection, and the energy flowing through it.

They were giving everything that had, not just for Zak, but for her. Because she was his mate, and she and Troy mattered to him.

Maddie felt Troy’s muscles relax. His heartbeat strengthened, and he took a deep breath. The wild spirit in him grew, and grew, and his body rippled and tensed, broke and tore.

At first Maddie thought it was another seizure, and then she realized what was happening.

Her brother gave one last huge shudder, and turned into a wolf.

Maddie felt Mayah’s healing energy intensify, now that she was working with a shifter. Troy’s new healing powers seized on the circle’s energy and raced through his body, healing the damage, making him strong and whole.

There was a deep chime, like a sound so low it was felt rather than heard, and the circle’s energy died away.

Troy’s wolf opened his eyes, scrambled to his feet on the sofa, and shook himself. Then he gave a wolfy grin, threw his head back and howled.

Maddie flung herself on her brother, hugging him, and he licked her face. She laughed through the tears rolling down her face, and turned to hug Zak, and then Tristan and Sean.

Sean turned human. Since he was naked, Maddie let go of him.

“Well, he survived that,” Sean said. “Now I just have to teach him to Change back.”

Chapter 36

Three days later, after everything had calmed down and Troy was settled in the white wolf village, Zak finally got Maddie to himself, in his room at the Al-Maddeiri castle.

Everything was set up perfectly. A romantic dinner, with candles, a perfectly set table, white linen tablecloth, silver dish covers, the works.

Rose petals on the sheets, for after dinner.

Strawberries and champagne, brought in from earth.

And special dishes for Princess Diana and Grayson, so they could share in the feast.

Zak loved the look on Maddie’s face when she saw it all. She still wasn’t used to people doing nice things for her—and Zak had discovered he loved being nice to her. He could feel the way it warmed her heart and made her feel special, which made him feel like he was ten feet tall, with the strength of a hundred dragons.

Her hero.

He always wanted her to feel like he was her hero.

After they finished dinner, he said, “I have something I want to give you. A present.”

“Oh my gosh,” she said. “You’ve given me so much. And I don’t have anything for you.”

He shook his head. “I’m the dragon, and you’re my mate. I’m supposed to give you mating gifts, not the other way around.”

“You gave me this,” she said, fingering the heart of his hoard, which was back around her neck where it belonged. “And yourself. That’s more than I could ever have imagined. I don’t need anything else.”

Zak gave an exaggerated sigh. “Mating gifts aren’t because you need them, Captive Human. They’re because I love you.”

Love. It felt so strange to say it, but so right.

He went to the drawer where he’d stashed the present, and came back with an irregular lump of raw purple metal. Atherias.

“It’s beautiful,” she said, obviously trying to hide her confusion.