Save a Horse, Ride a Dragon Read online

  “The one with the ratty, old John Deere hat is Zach and right behind him are Heath and Colton, the twins and the youngest of all of us.”

  “Where do you fall into line?”

  “I’m after Zach and before Heath,” J.D. answered, holding the door open for her as she followed the heavenly scent of home cooked food in to the warmest and most welcoming home besides her mom and dad’s that she’d ever seen. Helping her take off his jacket and hanging it on the antique coat tree just inside the front door, he pointed across a large, open great room decorated with touches of what she knew had to be the family’s blended history, and said, “That door over there’s the bathroom if you wanna wash up.”

  “Thank you so much.” Dax stopped and turned, looking J.D. right in the eye to be sure he knew how much she meant her next words. “Really and truly, thank you. I don’t know how I’ll ever repay you.”

  No sooner had the words crossed her lips than the mischievous gleam returned to J.D.’s eyes and he whispered, “I’ve got a few suggestions if you’re up for it.”

  Without answering and before she smiled knowingly and gave herself away at his innuendo, Dax walked straight to the bathroom, shut and locked the door, and collapsed against the wood. Running her fingers through her tangles hair, she looked in the mirror and shook her head at her own reflection. “Well, you’ve gone and done it now, Dax, my girl. You’ve let him get under your skin.” Huffing out a long breath as she pushed to her feet and crossed to the sink, she snickered, “But then again, isn’t that where you wanted him?”

  Chapter Four

  Dinner was torturous. On one hand sitting across from Dax watching her interact with his family was the best thing since sliced bread, then there was his raging libido and the jokes ringing from his brothers ringing in his head.

  “So, this one’s the one, right?” Gage chuckled using mindspeak, sure to avoid eye contact as he looked over the rim of his tea glass, the jerk added, “Damn, I’m glad you’re the first of us to find your mate. Now, maybe mom’ll lay off.”

  “Ya’ gonna take her out on a midnight ride and claim her as your own?” Colton’s snicker was almost too much to bear but then his twin chimed in with, “Naw, Mom’ll kick his ass and make him sleep in the barn for a week if he tries to sneak into the big house,” and J.D. almost spit green beans across the table.

  Zach and Tree stayed strangely quiet until dessert was served and then just as J.D. had a mouthful of apple pie started singing “J.D. and Dax sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G,” in horrible, ear-splitting harmony.

  Coughing and sputtering, trying with all his might not to make a fool of himself, J.D. stood up, gasped, “Excuse me,” and made a quick exit, but not before growling directly into his brother’s minds, “Paybacks are a bitch, Assholes, and I plan on makin' it as painful as possible."

  Choking down his pie then getting a long drink of water from the back hose, he wasn’t at all surprised when his dad showed up, an opened beer in each hand. Motioning towards the swing the boys had given Barbara for Mother’s Day a few years ago, Owen led the way. Sitting down beside his dad and taking a drink of his beer, J.D. was pretty sure what was coming, but all the same, waited patiently.

  It wasn’t long before Owen began, “Ya’ know, Son, findin’ your mate is as complicated as it is wonderful. When I realized your mom was the one for me, it took me nearly a month to work up the nerve just to talk to her. She was the Princess of her Tribe, promised to the biggest, strongest, most worthy Brave, with the weight of responsibility and leadership hanging around her head like a cement block.”

  Taking another drink of his beer, J.D. thought about telling his dad he’d heard the story a million times, but quickly decided to shut up and listen. Maybe, just maybe, there was something he’d missed before or been to hardheaded to understand. It was worth a shot because as far as women were concerned, J.D.’s boat had a big hole and was sinking fast.

  “I’d been watchin’ close,” Owen took a drink and settled back. “Ridin’ past where she and her sisters gathered water every day, makin’ sure they were okay when they were out in the fields, and generally what the police would call stalking these days.”

  Laughing out loud, always shocked at his dad’s dry wit and ability to see the good in everything, J.D. teased, “See, I knew it. You kidnapped her, tied her up, and made her love you, right?”

  Slapping his leg, his laughter so loud the cattle in the field behind them started to moo along with him, Owen heartily agreed, “It almost came to that.” Catching his breath and taking another sip from his longneck Budweiser, he went on, “I finally got up the nerve to talk to her, and that was the very last straw. I was a goner. She was all I could think about. I wanted to be with her every minute of every day. It was so bad that I almost caused a stampede when your granddad, uncles, and I were taking the herd to auction.”

  “No shit?” J.D. nearly choked on his beer. He’s never heard this part before. “I would’ve loved to see that. The old man must’ve been madder than a wet hen.”

  “Oh yeah, and then some, but don’t let him hear you callin’ him ‘old man’. He’ll whoop you good.”

  I’m sure he’d try…

  “Gotcha, Pops.”

  “Anyway, while we were in Ft Worth, he sat me down and told me just how to handle your mom’s father.” Wiping his brow and crossing his legs, Owen looked at the house with a loving smile on his face as he continued. “I know you’ve heard all the stories so many times you could recite them, but indulge an old man his happy memories.”

  Sitting back and getting comfortable, J.D. assured, “Ya’ know I love our history, especially when you made a mess and got embarrassed.”

  Swatting his knee, Owen tried to be tough but J.D. could see his shoulders bouncing with mirth. “I didn’t always make a mess of things.”

  “To hear mom tell…”

  “Yeah, well this is my story, so, hush it up and listen.”

  Snickering to himself as his dad went on, J.D. once again thought about how truly lucky he was. Not everyone got to spend centuries with three generations of their family. It was a blessing he’d never taken for granted.

  “Anyway, as I was sayin’,” Owen cleared his throat. “The Cherokee Nation is split up into seven Clans and your momma is from the largest – the Wolf Clan. Her dad, your grandfather, Cheveyo Thorntree was the Principal Chief while her oldest brother, Dasan was the War Chief and Elan, the youngest of all the children, was Peace Chief. Because the Cherokee Clans are matrilineal, meaning Clan affiliation comes from one's mother, the Council of Elders readily recognized Barb as the strongest, most intelligent, with the truest heart of the Tribe. They knew the wellbeing of not only her Clan, but her Tribe, and the entire Cherokee Nation would be her focus.”

  “Then you came along,” J.D. chimed in just to be a shit.

  Sure enough, Owen teased, “Who’s tellin’ this story?”

  “You, Pops, always you.”

  “And don’t you forget it.” Taking the last drink of his beer and setting the empty bottle on the grass, he went on, “After the auction, I got all dressed up, even shaved my beard and trimmed my hair, and went to ask Cheveyo for permission to court his daughter.” Sitting up and leaning forward, he braced his elbows on his knees and clasped his hands.

  “Boy howdy, was that a fun night. I ended up fighting not only Dasan and Elan but four other Braves. There was no doubt in my mind that I was gonna die that night, but your grandpa knew better. His wife, your grandma, Adsila, had seen your mom’s future in her dreams. She’d prepared the old Chief for what was comin’. Had made sure that the magic Adsila inherited from her mother who’d married a very powerful man of Medicine and Magic would not die with your mom.”

  J.D. stayed silent while his dad looked up and caught sight of his wife, the only woman in all the world he’d ever loved, the light of his soul, the completion of his very essence, through the window. It was something that had always mystified the younger Dragon,
but the second Dax slid her hand into his, everything became crystal clear.

  Unclasping his hand, Owen pointed at Barbara before looking at his son and nodding. “See, that woman right there, she was the only one for me. I knew it. My Dragon knew it. Hell, everybody knew it.”

  Once again sitting back, the older Dragon added, “What I’m tryin’ to say is… Son, don’t waste time, but don’t push too hard either. There’s an old Cherokee saying that Cheveyo still likes to tell the young Braves. I can’t say it in Iroquoian, heck, I have a hard enough time with Gaelic.” He snickered and looked right into J.D.’s eyes. “The smart Brave lets the Squaw come to him. Chasing the one you love will only lead to lonely nights.”

  That was the first time the story had ever ended that way, and it made J.D. think. He thought Dax felt the same way he did. The mating bond was glowing deep in his soul, connecting him to her in an inextricably permanent and incredible way. But, did she feel it, too? Did she even want a mate? Could she not accept him? Had that ever happened?

  Opening his mouth to ask his dad the questions piling up in his mind, he never got to speak as a horrifying scream of pure agony cut through the air. On his feet and running toward the house before his mind even comprehended what was happening, he roared, “Dax!”

  Throwing open the door, he raced through the kitchen and into the dining room. His eyes bounced from his mom to his brothers to a smoldering outline of a body branded into the hardwood floor.

  Barbara’s voice was like an echo in the back of his mind as he tried to unscramble the myriad of sights, sounds, and emotions bombarding his mind. “She just fell on the floor and started seizing. Gage and Tree made sure she didn’t hurt herself while I made sure she didn’t choke.” The warm, caring touch of her hand on his shoulder was of little comfort. He couldn’t speak, couldn’t make sense of what was right before him.

  Then his mom said the three words that chilled both man and Dragon to the core. “She just disappeared.”

  Chapter Five

  Fire rained down from the sky. Rivers of blood flowed as far as the eye could see. The ground shook beneath her feet and the winds howled like wolves calling for the fight.

  Turning one way and then another, there was no escape to be had. She was caught in the middle of a cataclysmic event she neither understood nor knew how to survive. Running for cover, rancid blood and bits of gore and entrails coated her shins and the back of her legs, clinging to her like vermin as her bare feet pounded the molten earth.

  Ducking under an overhang created by a large, flat rock, she refused to look down. Knew if she did, she would throw up, pass out, or both. Wiping her eyes with the backs of her hands, she pushed the dripping strands of her hair away from her face and tried to see something…anything through the crimson rain.

  No matter where she looked or how hard she focused the enhanced vision afforded her as a Fire Horse Shifter, she could see nothing and no one. Summoning the magic she’d inherited from her mother, she cursed and stomped, more pissed at herself than anyone else for not learning to use the all the gifts she’d been given. It was there, just under the surface, brewing, simmering, begging to be set free. If only…

  Spinning to the right, the sounds of a fight, flesh hitting flesh, loud groans and heated grunts mixed with furious indignation drew not only her sight but that of her Fire Horse. Zeroing in on a plateau halfway up the side of the mountain she saw him.

  More brilliant than she’d ever imagined. Determination and fury etched in his handsome face. His chest heaving with strength and power. His fists pummeling his opponent with unrelenting fortitude and implacable courage. With every punch and kick she watched his assault grow more savage, his resolve more concrete and his body taller, broader…more massive, but through it all, his opponent was unmoved. Simply refused to back down.

  A monster, that was the only word she could come up with, from the darkest nightmares and the deepest pits of Hell, the Dragon’s opponent stood at least ten feet tall. Covered in a horrific mosaic of scales and pock-marked skin the color of mud, snakes jutting from his forehead, long, jagged fangs filling his short, stubbed muzzle, and talons like spikes protruding from his grotesquely misshapen paws, it was demonic and terrifying.

  “J.D.” Her mind instinctively reached for his, her Fire Horse grabbing hold of his Dragon, adding her power and magic to their fight.

  “Dax…” Was his only reply, his tone deep, gruff, almost animalistic.

  Watching in awe as the man she’d known was her mate but had refused to admit, even to herself, grew larger still, she knew Fate had left Her mark. The bright bronze scales of his Dragon shot up his arms, across his chest, and down his torso making him the most fiercely gorgeous thing she’d ever laid eyes on. Following his lead, she dropped the heavy shields containing the magic of her Fire Horse and opened to him and only him.

  Feeling the sheer magnitude of her alter-ego’s unstoppable desire to help her mate and her immense power filling every cell, every fiber, every molecule of her being, Dax began to run. Faster with every step, magic and sheer willpower fueling her, driving her, willing her to her mate’s side, she felt her hair growing longer, becoming thicker, morphing into the mane of her Fire Horse.

  Soft, downy fur, like that of a new born colt rolled over her arms and legs, working its way across her shoulders and down her back. Embracing her equine soul-mate, she pushed herself harder, needing to fight alongside her Dragon, needing…

  Smooth, warm, and wet, something swiped her cheek, leaving a trail of slimy moisture that caused her to stumble as she looked from side-to-side to see what fresh hell-spawn had deemed it necessary to rear its ugly head. Swiping at her face as she righted her stride and regained her speed, Dax once again swerved when the sensation of being licked and nuzzled pushed at not only her heated skin but her psyche.

  Grumbles and grunts preceded nips and many more licks. Her surroundings flickered. Bright, blinding shards of light cut through the bloody rain and shooting flames.

  Green? Tiny spears of something green and pokey touched her opposite cheek. Long, soft tendrils of hair, no…not hair, fur…Wait! Fur?

  Forcing her eyes open and pushing to her knees, Dax’s hands flew to her temples in an attempt to keep her head from flying off her neck. Everything was spinning. There were black spots popping and pulsing all around her. The acrid odor of burned grass and scorched dirt assaulted her senses.

  Woof! Woof! Pounce. “Ugh, dammit, Patches. Get your damned…”

  “Patches?” She squealed, grabbed the long-haired fur ball of mixed heritage and questionable parentage around the tummy, sure, to hold him so that his overeager tongue was out of range of her face.

  “Wait!” She demanded to the dog whose tail was wagging so fast she thought he might just take off. “How did you get here?” Sliding her eyes to the side, she amended, “Nope, rewind. How did I get here?”

  “You appeared outta nowhere, screamed for some dude named J.D. then burnt the spectacularly unpleasant ring all around you into the middle of our brand new yard.”

  Snapping her head towards the porch of the house she shared with not only Bryn, but Maisie and Presley, both super friends and just as crazy as she, Dax growled under her breath. Up on her feet, Patches still in her hands, tail still wagging and tongue still swiping at the air, Dax flew up the steps and railed, “And you didn’t think to wake me, or for the love of the Goddess put the frikkin’ fire out?”

  “No,” Bryn scoffed, setting her mug on the wicker table and reaching for Patches. “I knew you were fine. You were mid-transformation. Your Horse wouldn’t let you burn.”

  “My Horse wouldn’t…” Dax’s voice trailed off as she stared at her best friend like the half-Witch, half-Shifter had three heads and a tail. “My Horse wouldn’t…” she repeated. Giving a little shake of her head, hoping to unscramble her brains and…

  “Wait! Wait! Wait! J.D.!” She spun in a circle, finding nothing and no one but her friend and her dog. “Where is
J.D.? Did he appear to? Did the monster dude show up?”

  Looking at the still smoking ring of ashes that used to be her yard, she turned back to Bryn and demanded, “Are you deaf? What did you see? Dammit, Bryn, I swear, if you…”

  “If I what?” Her blues grew dark, nearly gray, as sparks shot from her fingertips. “If I tell you that you’re an idiot? If I turn you into a toad like I promised? If I…” Stopping mid-sentence, her eyes glazed over, her hands dropped into her lap, and the muscles in her face went lax.

  Staring into space like she’d lost all marbles, Bryn began to speak in the same eerily freaky voice as when she had called Dax. “The Horse of Fire must unite with the Scaled Warrior. Fire shall rain down from the Heavens. Rivers of the Blood of the Just will flow freely. The Crystal of Aganunitsi is near. If not destroyed it will claim what it has lost.”

  A deafening silence filled the airwaves. Bryn’s eyes slammed shut, her head fell forward, and her body sort of slipped out of the chair like she had suddenly become a boneless ragdoll. Grabbing her friend by the shoulder before her head hit the ground, Dax sat down with a thud, looked at the dog – tail still wagging and tongue still hanging out – and sighed with such force that her lips made a silly sound like a motor on a boat. “I sure hope you know what’s goin’ on ‘cause I’m up Shit’s Creek without a paddle and my boat’s gotta hole.”

  Chapter Six

  “She what!”

  “Now, Son, you need to calm down.”

  Spinning towards his father who’d apparently followed him into the house, J.D. stepped right up and growled into his face, “You need to shut the hell up.”

  Flames sprung to life in Owen’s eyes, but his tone remained calm as he advised, “Take a step back and a deep breath, Jacob Daniel, before we both say things we’re gonna regret.”

  “Bring it…”