Dragon Actually. G.A. Aiken

excitement, “was bloody brilliant!”

      Fearghus lowered his head so they met eye to eye. “Have you always been so…different?”

      She shrugged. “I don’t know. Probably.” She kissed him sweetly on the snout and swam away.

      His claw touched the spot where she’d kissed him. She had such soft lips. He growled low as he watched her naked body swim across the lake and wondered what it would feel like to bury himself inside her, to feel her climax, to feel her soft mouth on his….

      “Sorry, Fearghus, am I interrupting anything?”

      He gritted his teeth at the sound of his sister’s voice and wondered how long she’d been standing there. Knowing his sister, he bet it was quite a while.

      Fearghus slammed his tail down and she jumped out of the way just in time. “No,” he innocently replied. “You’re not interrupting anything.”

      His sister glared at him and he feared she might shift right then so she could ensure her blast held enough strength to knock him across the cave floor. He knew he heard “bastard” muttered under her breath.

      “I have to go back to the village for a few hours. But tell Annwyl there’s food for her.” She turned to walk back the way she came.

      “As you wish.” He lazily swished his tail and heard her curse as he swiped her feet, causing her to trip and stumble out of the cavern. “Sorry,” he called after her.

      “Was that Morfyd?”

      He found Annwyl stepping out of the water. Her brown hair reached down to her knees, covering her long, strong body and, thankfully, those breasts.

      “There’s food.”

      “Good. I’m starving.” She reached down and grabbed her clothes and sword.

      “Annwyl…”

      “I know. I know. He serves a purpose and I should just give him a chance. Right?”

      “Actually, I was going to say you should put your clothes on, there’s a chill in here.”

      “Oh.”

      “But you should also give him a chance.”

      She squinted up at him. “Fine, dragon.” She grinned. “Anything for you.”

      And Fearghus’s heart missed several beats before it began moving again.

      “But he best not piss me off again.”

      Fearghus cringed. He could practically guarantee he couldn’t stop himself from doing that.

      Chapter 8

      “Here.”

      Annwyl found the knight holding a sword out to her. “What’s wrong with my blade?”

      “Nothing. I want you to start using both.”

      Annwyl took the sword from his hand. It bore beautiful workmanship. A noble’s blade. A little heavy for her, but a weight she would be able to get used to. And she bet it could cut through anything. She wondered where he got it from. What noble died at his hand? She shrugged. She never liked nobles much, so she really didn’t care.

      “How does it feel?”

      “Good.”

      “Want some time to get used to it?”

      She didn’t answer. Instead she swung at his head with her new blade. He ducked and she blocked his retaliatory blow with her other sword. He smiled at her sudden attack and she felt pride. It took much to impress this man.

      As the morning progressed into afternoon, the contact of their blades and the grunts of exertion the only sound in the glen.

      Morfyd pulled away from the flames and growled. No matter how hard she tried, she just couldn’t see Lorcan. She couldn’t see into his world. She recently heard he had joined forces with a powerful wizard whose name no one ever seemed to remember.

      Powerful indeed. There were very few humans who could block her. She’d have to warn Fearghus. Let him know that the girl may have more to worry about than that demon brother of hers.

      Fearghus. What exactly was going on with him and that girl? Morfyd wasn’t blind. She watched him watch her. Clearly he’d become enamored of the female. But she sensed something else going on. As Annwyl became stronger, Morfyd began to spend most of her time in the local village. A recent bout of fever required her skills. But she sensed that neither Annwyl nor Fearghus spent their days in the lair. And if they weren’t in the lair, where the hell were they?

      Morfyd knew her curiosity would soon get the better of her. But something was going on, and she planned to find out exactly what.

      Annwyl watched the shadows move through the glen. She knew the hour grew late. And her body tensed in anticipation. She saw it now as a kind of ritual. They would meet and train for hours. Break to eat in silence. Train for several more hours. And at the end of it, something would happen. Something that usually caused increased wetness between her thighs.

      Their blades clashed one more time.

      “Hold,” he barked. She smiled. The stronger she grew, the more she seemed to be wearing him out. She had no doubt he could continue for a few more hours, but she liked that her skills had improved since they’d first started.

      He sheathed his sword and turned from her. She crouched down and picked up her shirt, pulling the soft, plain cotton material over her head. She sheathed both her weapons and looked up to find boots standing in front of her. She fought to control her breathing as she slowly looked up at him.

      He stared down at her, his face inscrutable and half covered by his black hair. He almost looked angry at her, his silence driving her to distraction. “Is there a problem?” she snapped.

      A low growl erupted from the back of his throat as he reached down and took hold of her shirt, pulling her to her feet. Then his mouth latched onto hers. Annwyl didn’t fight him. She had no desire to. Instead she wrapped one arm around his neck, the other around his waist. He had her by the nape of her neck, his other hand slipping under her shirt. His rough fingers moved across the sweat-covered flesh of her back while his mouth claimed hers in a kiss that was so desperate, so passionate, she thought for sure he would take her right at that moment.

      Instead, he let her go as abruptly as he’d grabbed her. And she couldn’t stop the whimper that escaped her throat when he broke off contact. He stared at her for a moment longer, than he stormed off. Just like that. Leaving nothing but the dull ache between her legs to keep her company.

      Morfyd placed food in front of Annwyl and watched the girl ignore it. In fact, she hadn’t spoken since her return. Morfyd glanced over the girl’s body. She wore only her bindings and leggings, and for the first time Morfyd noticed the bruises, bloody nicks, and deep cuts that covered Annwyl’s body.

      “Annwyl.” The girl’s green eyes flickered toward Morfyd. “Where did those bruises come from?”

      “My training.” She made the statement as if Morfyd were supposed to know what the hell she spoke of.

      “Your training?”

      “Aye. With the knight.”

      Morfyd’s eyes narrowed. “What knight?”

      “The one who was here when I was healing. The dragon’s friend.”

      Morfyd couldn’t hide her surprise as she took a sudden step back. Her brother with a knight friend? Not in this lifetime. Or any lifetime for that matter. And suddenly his recent desire to traipse into the village as human made sense.

      “Ah, yes. His knight friend. And he’s done this to you?”

      “You could say that.”

      Morfyd nodded. She needed to find out what