She was watching me from behind a tree trunk as if she thought that would be enough to hide her from me. My eyes narrowed. She was stunning by all accounts of the word, hair the color of wet sand and eyes the loveliest shade of blue and, to top it all off, she had the cutest button nose.
Now, usually, when a human spots a dragon in their true form, it is our duty to kill them so as to preserve our secret or, in the case of women, they are sometimes kidnapped and brought back to the village to satisfy our earthly needs. I’ve never agreed with the practice myself but I understood why the measures were in place.
If humans knew we existed then there would be an all-out war to exterminate us and, those of us that weren't killed in this war, would become nothing more than science experiments for the humans to poke, prod, and torture. I couldn’t allow that to happen.
The girl’s eyes widened with awe as she watched me circle above her. Instead of running away, she stood firm and continued to track my movements.
I could sense that there was something different about this girl because all of a sudden, the air felt like it had been filled with a burst of electricity. My heart rushed with adrenaline and my nostrils flared as I caught her scent for the very first time. Oh, it was intoxicating. My eyes dilated and the world became blurry for a brief second of time.
Drawn by this impulse, I shot toward the earth and rolled back into my human form so I would land neatly on my two feet. The earth was wet with dew.
The girl took a step backward as I approached her wearing nothing but a pair of faded jeans. Her eyes wandered along my naked torso, taking in the array of different scars I had accumulated over the years. I flexed my muscles without really thinking about it, like a peacock who fluffs up his plumage at the sight of a suitable mate.
I flashed a smile, smitten by the girl’s appearance. My mind was muddled with thoughts of ecstasy. I could already see this woman in my bedchamber, nails across my back as she howled my name.
“W-What are you?” The girl stammered. In her haste to keep her distance, she tripped on a fallen log. She would have crashed into the ground if it wasn’t for my reflexes. I reached out and caught her just in the nick of time. The tips of her long hair brushed the damp earth as her body hovered above it. I had one arm wrapped around her waist, pinning her against my own. Our faces were just inches apart and I was terribly tempted by her candy-colored lips. They looked like bubblegum or maybe even cotton candy and one thing’s for sure, I have a horrible sweet tooth.
“Now, that’s not a very polite form of introduction.” I chided her with a playful tone. “I do believe you’re supposed to tell me your name so that I can tell you mine.”
She stammered, eyes blinking rapidly like she expected me to disappear at any moment.
Seeing as maybe the blood was rushing to her head, I helped her into an upright position. Instead of letting her go, as I probably should have, I held her even tighter. Her apprehension melted away against my warmth. “That’s it, I’m not going to hurt you,” I whispered in a deep, husky voice. As I spoke, I pinned a strand of her hair behind her ear. It was even softer than I expected.
My thumb trailed along her chin before I took her cheek in my hand. I had half a mind to pull her in for a kiss but I didn’t want to rush things.
“R-Rosie…”
“Mmm, is that your name, love?” I asked, placing a finger underneath her chin so she was forced to look at me.
She nodded.
“That’s a lovely name you've got there, Rosie.” It brought me pleasure to say her name. So much so that I felt a stirring between my legs. My every instinct told me to pounce on this woman at once – to take what I deserved but I realized I couldn't soil such a precious flower. Besides, I would need to consult with Foster before choosing a mate. “My name’s Myles. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
She gulped. “Are you really a dragon?”
“You tell me.” I chuckled. “Do you think I’m real or simply a figment of your imagination?”
“Well, if you’re a figment of my imagination then this must be
a wet dream…”
I furrowed my brows together. Since I spent most of my time at the village, I wasn’t very familiar with human slang. “A wet dream?”
“Never mind.” She said, all too quickly, as her cheeks colored with embarrassment. “Forget I said anything.” She shook her head and pulled away. “I swear you were a dragon a second ago but that can’t be possible. Dragons aren’t real. They are just myths made up by the ancients to explain the existence of dinosaur bones.”
I picked up a rock from the ground and played with it, as I circled around her like a predator about to make his final move, and that’s exactly what I was – a predator. I still had the taste of moose in my mouth and I was dying to replace it with her sweetness.
“Is that really what you think or what you’ve convinced yourself to believe?” I leaned in and whispered the question right into her ear. She shivered, goosebumps prickling up the length of her arm. By the looks of things, she wanted me just as much as I wanted her.
Suddenly, I snaked my arm around her waist and reeled her in so we stood forehead to forehead.
Her eyes widened with surprise and she held her breath waiting for me to do something.
I took in her scent. It was enough to get me high. For a moment, I considered taking her back to the village but I didn’t want to risk sharing her with the others. “How about we take this back to your place and you can ask me all the questions in the world. I’m sure you have a few buzzing around in that cute little head of yours.”
Rosie didn’t know how to respond. She just looked at me like I was some two-headed freak and, for all intents and purposes, she probably considered me to be.
“I’ll even let you ride on my back.”