ROMANCE: SPORTS ROMANCE: Bad Boys of Sports: A Complete Collection (Alpha Male, Football, Hockey Secret Baby Romance) (Contemporary Sports Romance) (39 page)

CHAPTER 6

Asher’s anger burned hot and bright for a long time. It was hours before he decided to land, and he only did so because he forgot that Claudia could very well freeze to death so high up without any protection. Gliding lower to the ground, he spotted a frozen leg near the peak of a mountaintop and decided to land there. He landed gently so that Claudia could keep her hold on his back, then leaned his giant shoulder towards the ground so that Claudia could climb out of it.

Stumbling, Claudia’s much smaller body hit the soft earth of the mountain. She looked so happy to be on the ground again, and for a moment, he felt bad about losing his temper so suddenly. Still, she had invaded his trust and his privacy – two things that had never been permitted by anyone. Normally their punishment would be death, but Asher knew he couldn’t bring himself to do such a thing. Though he was extremely hurt and angry, he knew that he loved this human woman.

On the ground, Claudia found her feet and shakily stood up. She couldn’t believe what had just transpired, as she was never one to believe in fantasies.  Even though she remembered reading the book of Asher’s family tree correctly about shape shifters, she had thought it was perhaps some family symbol or mythology.  She never would’ve believed it was meant to be
literal
.

She knew she should be utterly terrified, but after all, she was alive.  She looked around and saw that they had landed next to a pristine frozen lake in front of her that caught the moonlight beautifully. Turning around, Claudia looked up at the tremendous size of the red dragon.

The dragon looked unmistakably angry, but at least he wasn’t eating her. Tentatively, she reached out and put her hand on his stomach, and rubbed its scales in awe, which were surprisingly silky smooth and scorching hot. 

The dragon radiated even more heat, and before she realized what was happening, it began shrinking and morphing into a human form.  When it was over, there stood Asher, completely nude, his skin glistening with sweat and smoking from the incredible temperature it was generating before he transformed back to human form. 

Claudia couldn’t believe what she just saw.  She stared at him, her jaw slack, and mind reeling. 

“A-Asher, please tell me I’m dreaming.”

“This is who I really am, Claudia.”

“A
dragon
?  A
dragon
is what you really are?” 

“I am the descendent of an ancient and mighty line of dragons, as you saw in my family tree.  Long ago, my kind learned to shift into human form to blend in with the human race.  But the true me is the beast you just witnessed.”

She stared at him hard, still trying to wrap her mind around what he was telling her, what he just showed her.  But before she could delve into those thoughts any deeper, her eyes traveled down to his chiseled abs, down his V-shaped lower torso, and finally to his immense and completely bare manhood.  Her jaw became slack again, and stared down at him in open admiration, her breath coming quickly as her temperature spiked up. 

Being observed so intently by her made Asher’s large unit stand upright in response, and Asher struggled to keep his breath controlled and breathed in deeply. 

Before she knew what she was doing, Claudia’s hand reached out and touched his unit, which was sweltering to the touch, and she exhaled a silent breath of pleasure as she wrapped her fingers around its considerable girth.  She stroked him back and forth, and he closed his eyes and let out a groan of pleasure.

When he opened his eyes, they were filled with fiery desire, and he grabbed her around her waist and tore off her blouse and bra in one quick tug.  He looked apologetic for a brief moment before he bent down to lick her nipples.  He lay her down on the ground and unzipped her pants slowly and carefully, and tugged them off as gently as he could manage, along with her underwear.   He stopped to admire her completely naked form.

“You are a stunning woman, Claudia.  The most perfect of your kind that I’ve ever laid eyes on.”

Claudia smiled, as she couldn’t believe what she was hearing from the most impossibly handsome man. 

He opened her legs and bent down, and slid his hot tongue along her labia, flicking her clitoris, and finally sending her entire body into complete ecstasy when it entered her and flicked her wildly inside her vagina.  She cried out as waves of pleasure wracked her body. 

Asher then slid his manhood inside of her, sending another wave of pleasure coursing through her, as he rocked in and out of her.  Finally, he rolled her to sit on top of him, grabbed a hold of her waist to guide her up and down his shaft.  She let out yet another cry of pleasure as she experienced a third and the most powerful orgasm yet.  Asher too groaned loudly as his own climax filled inside her body.

Afterward, they remained for a while lying in one another’s arms next to the lake, but it started to feel a little chilly.  Looking around, Claudia saw an old shed sitting on the bank to the lake.

“Wait here,” she told him and sprinted over to it. Inside the shed, she found a stack of dry firewood, a few blankets, a fishing pole, a saw, and a pair of ice skates. After bringing out the blankets, she wrapped them around Asher and went back for the firewood.  She stacked them in a circle; she pulled out the skates and began lacing them up.

“Would you mind?” She asked, pointing to the wood. Asher nodded his head, and with a single exhale, he sent a stream of fire from his mouth the woodpile, immediately setting it on fire. Claudia smiled at him in appreciation, and slowly made her way to the ice. She knew that Asher loved to watch her skate.

She skated to the music that played in her heart, a beautiful song about a handsome creature that was deeply loved by a woman.  She twirled and jumped gracefully to the lovely and sad tune in her heart, closing her eyes as they began filling with tears. 

When she was done, Claudia came off the ice and took a seat near the roaring fire next to Asher.

“Thank you, Claudia,” he said, eyes filled with profound love.  “That was the most beautiful skating I’ve seen you do thus far, and trust me, that’s saying a lot.”

“I was skating to a song in my heart, a song about you.”

“I’m sorry I lost my temper like that,” he apologized, wrapping her up in the blanket with him.

“You really scared me at first,” Claudia told him, nuzzling into his naked chest. “But after the first hour of flying, I calmed down. So, this is all real then, huh? The dragons, the shifting, the prolonged years of life. What’s it been like?”

“Lonely,” Asher answered truthfully. “Just long and lonely.”

Putting a comforting hand on his cheek, Claudia turned his face towards hers and smiled at him softly.

“Well, you don’t have to be lonely anymore.  I’m here now.” Closing her eyes, Claudia kissed Asher for the first time in months. Just like before, it heated her insides and made her dizzy.  She knew with a certainty that this man was the one, even as she knew their time together was limited.  She decided would make the most of the time they had left.

~

The alarming thing that woke Claudia was that Asher was cold. Ever since they had met, she had remembered his skin being scorching hot. Though they’d had a fire burning all night, the real warmth hadn’t come from the flames, but the love they had made together on the frozen banks of the lake.

Opening her eyes, Claudia looked around. It was almost dawn, and the sun had not quite risen into the sky yet. Everything was cast in a light gray, including Asher. Sitting up, she looked down at her dragon and placed a hand on his forehead. She could see he was breathing, but he was deathly pale and frigid.

“Asher,” she whispered, waking him. “Come, we have to get you to a hospital.”

CHAPTER 7

1 Week Later

“Well, Asher, how are you feeling today?” The doctor asked, looking more at the machines by Asher’s bed than at Asher himself.

“Your vitals seem to be improving; that’s good,” he added absentmindedly. The doctor scribbled a few more things down on his chart, not at all aware that neither Asher nor Claudia had spoken. Asher didn’t quite care for human doctors and their overall ‘laissez-faire’ outlook on death. To him, Asher was simply another insurance payoff.  Turning to Claudia, who had not once left his side, he put on a small smile and reached for her hand.

“Have you called for Yosef?” He asked, looking hopeful. Before she could answer his question, the man himself walked into the room and all but kicked the human doctor out of his way.

“You should have called me the minute you were admitted,” Yosef scolded, pulling a ruby red glass bottle from his medical bag. After uncorking it, he handed it over to Asher, who took a healthy swig of the tincture.

“Well in my defense, you’re the one that told me that it would be easier to be treated in this form,” Asher countered between gulps of medicine.

“Yes, in case of emergencies,” Yosef explained. “When you got here, it was an emergency, but after you were stable, I should have been called.”

Claudia stood up and raised her hand. “That was my fault doctor. I was a little too afraid to leave his side for the first few days. I promise it won’t happen again.” As she apologized, Claudia felt a sudden wave of nausea run through her, and she held her hand up to her mouth.

“Are you all right?” Asher asked, reaching out to her. Claudia nodded her head but didn’t say anything.

“Are you certain?” Yosef asked, looking at her speculatively.

“Yes,” Claudia assured the both of them. “I’m just excited to get Asher back home. Can you get the discharge papers started, Dr. Yosef? I think we both want to get out of here.”

With a look of suspicion etched on his face, Yosef nodded his head and disappeared down the hallway. As soon as he was gone, Claudia sat back down on the bed and took Asher’s hand into her own.

“Are you sure we can trust this man?” She asked, her eyes full of uncertainty.

“Yosef?” Asher asked, surprised. “Of course. He’s the best doctor the kingdom has.”

Claudia nodded her head, but she couldn’t ignore the rising feeling of doubt that was flooding through her heart. There just wasn’t something right about him. An hour and a half later they were finally leaving the hospital. She was excited to get Asher home and get him back on the track of good health. Also, though it had only been a week since they’d made love, she wanted to buy a pregnancy test.

Once they’d gotten it back to Asher’s penthouse, Claudia made a run for the bathroom and got there just in time to throw up.  She was immediately seized with fear and awe as she wondered how long it took for a baby dragon to grow inside of her. If this truly was morning sickness as she suspected, that would put her pregnancy at the equivalent of at least six weeks. At that rate, she wondered if she would have a baby within three to four months instead of the average nine.  After all, this is a dragon baby, so maybe the same rules didn’t apply.  She put her hand on her belly, her heart pounding. 
Asher’s baby
.  She looked at herself in the mirror and saw unexpected tears of joy in her own eyes.

From the bathroom, she called for Yosef to help Asher get ready for bed.

It was twenty minutes before she felt stable enough to leave the bathroom. As she stepped out, she heard Yosef’s familiar voice whispering from around the corner. She caught the words sick and baby and became intently curious. Quietly, she tiptoed up to the wall closest to Yosef to get a better listen.

“Yes, I gave him the serum again. He has somehow been fighting it, but with this dose, it should put him back down where you want him, your majesty.  The woman? Well, I had hoped she would be nothing but a mere distraction, but I have reason to suspect she may be with child.  No, I don’t know how he got the strength to mate.  My only guess is that he had stopped taking his serum.  Yes, of course, you’re right.  No, I’ll bring them to you right away.”

Claudia heard Yosef end the call, and her heart almost leaped out of her chest when she heard him call her name.  Before she could make a run for it, Yosef turned the corner quickly, surprised to see that Claudia had been standing there the entire time.

“You little witch,” Yosef spat, grabbing her arm. “How did you do it, hmm?” He asked, pulling a needle out of his lab coat. Claudia gasped and tried to pull away, but the old man’s grip was oddly considerably substantial.

“Why are you doing this?” Claudia asked, still struggling to get away. “What have you done to Asher?” She panicked as she felt the needle sink into the skin of her arm, and screamed out as she immediately began to feel a great stabbing pain in her lower abdomen.

“Because,” Yosef hissed, letting her fall. “I serve my king, not Asher.  Nor will I ever.  With Asher gone, Solomon will rule another thousand years!”

As her world went dark, Claudia’s mind went to several places at once. She was begging her body not to go to sleep, silently screaming for Asher to run, and praying to the universe that her baby was all right.

~

“Claudia,” Asher choked, holding her unconscious body. “Claudia please wake up.”

After they had arrived at his penthouse, Asher had felt a sharp prick on his arm. By the time Yosef had brought him to his bed, he was already fast asleep. When he woke a few minutes ago, he discovered that he was no longer in his cushy penthouse, but in the dungeon of the king dragon’s keep. A moment later he found Claudia’s unconscious but alive body in a corner of the cell.

The lower half of her dress was covered in blood. At first, he couldn’t figure out where it had come from, then, realization dawned on him like a lightening bolt.

Tears for his lost child slid down his cheeks as he begged Claudia to wake up. He wasn’t sure how he was going to do it, but he had to get them out of there, and fast.  Claudia had been right – Yosef had betrayed him.  As he tried to rouse her again, he wondered if he had been poisoned from the very beginning.

After what seemed like an eternity, Claudia’s eyes slowly opened, and she moaned in pain as Asher held her to him. When she saw the blood, she immediately began to sob into Asher’s arms.  For most of her adult life, she’d thought she wanted to push off motherhood as long as she could, and maybe indefinitely.  She hadn’t realized just how much she had truly wanted to have a baby until she became pregnant.  And now it was gone before it had a chance.

“Ah good,” Yosef said, approaching the cell. “You’re awake.”

“Why?” Asher growled, anger filling him as he struggled to stand up. “Why would you do this, Yosef?”

“It’s simple, really,
prince
,” he said mockingly.  “I have no allegiance to your family. King Solomon is the one and only king, and with my medical advances, he will go on living for a long time.  Only he deserves to have complete rule over the dragon kingdom for as long as possible.  Of course, there is the issue of him having little success in producing an heir, which is why your family was named next in line.  I’m not particularly concerned with this.  I will devote my life to finding him the right mate that will be able to carry his baby to full term.”  He looked at Claudia then. 

“Starting with this one.  She was compatible with you so there’s a chance she will be compatible with the King as well.  Females like you are very rare, you see.”

“Of course,” he addressed Asher once again, “we were hoping to make your death look more natural, but you’re stronger than we had anticipated.  A simple execution will have to do, and let the king’s council deal with whatever political backlash that may come.  That’s not my area of expertise.”

“You’ll never get away this,” Asher shot back, leaning weakly on the bars. “The dragons will revolt. You’ll have a war on your hands.”

Before Yosef could speak, a figure behind him began to chuckle maniacally and approached them. Not able to stand any longer, Asher collapsed onto the floor as King Solomon pulled his hood down to reveal himself.

“You killed my baby,” Claudia moaned, standing up. A burning hatred inside of her had begun to well up and felt as if she were on fire.

    “I am sorry about that,” King Solomon answered, not looking the least bit remorseful. “Sometimes in war, innocent blood must be spilled.  For war has already come, don’t you see Asher?  It is a silent war that’s been raging for thousands of years ever since the Cindiere line was named as next in power.  It should never have come to pass.”

“Are you saying you had a hand in the murder of my family?” Asher demanded.

The King laughed coldly.  “What I am saying, fool, is that your family was dead the minute the dragons claimed they had a right to my throne!”

“Murderer!”  Asher cried out in pain and rage. 

His desperate sobs filled Claudia with a deep sadness and a burning hot rage.  The fire inside of Claudia burned even hotter now, and she screamed in anger as it consumed her. Looking down, she saw a bright red light shining through her dress. With every passing second, it was glowing brighter, and everyone could now see it.

“Impossible!” Yosef yelled, stepping back. “The poison should have killed the baby!”

Grabbing ahold of King Solomon, Yosef turned to run, but it was too late. The blast of fire that erupted in the dungeon scorched everything and anyone that was near. 

Everyone, that is, except Claudia and Asher.  Asher’s baby’s fire did not seem to have touched them at all.