Chapter 26
SLADE
When Emme declared that her Panigale looked sad and lonely so she needed to ride it today, I knew I’d be on my bike beside her. Hunter decided to ride with us too.
Finley, Kellan, and Constantine would take the Flying Spur, which had the size for comfort and the speed to keep up.
Talon was going to fly, always more at ease in his beast form.
If not for Emme, I’d have joined him; my beast was restless but not in the way that he used to be.
There was no longer a cold distance between us.
Now all I felt was an animalistic restlessness.
“I’m ready,” my mate called, racing into the garage, staring at the row of bikes like she’d genuinely missed them.
While the five of us stared at her like the rest of the world didn’t exist.
Hunter let out a low rumble, his gaze dragging over her outfit. She’d dressed herself in the boots and gloves he’d had custom made for her birthday. The boots were zipped up over leather pants, hugging her long, shapely legs, and she’d paired them with a black tank and Kellan’s jacket.
Her hair was loose around her shoulders, and I craved her like the rarest of treasures. Dragons loved treasure, and she was one I’d kill to keep.
I’d always been proud to be a dragon shifter, but that feeling was nothing compared to how proud I was to have Emmeline as a mate.
“You’re wearing my jacket, Shortcake,” Kellan crooned, stroking his hands down the back of the thick leather, before he reached forward to grasp both sides, zipping her up.
“It’s as amazing as the one that got destroyed,” she said, her face falling briefly before she smiled again. “It’s so warm and snuggly, while heavy-duty enough to protect me from road rash.”
My dragon hissed and I clenched my hands. “The only way the road will ever touch you, Snow, is if I’m dead.”
Emmeline gave me heart eyes and I was fucking purring like a damn dragon-cat. Fuck me.
She turned toward Hunter. “These boots are the most amazing pair I’ve ever owned. How are they this soft but also so sturdy?”
Our little omega was discovering the reason custom-made cost at least four times as off-the-rack.
Hunter shrugged like he had no idea. “They look incredible on you.”
Emme gave him a hug. “You downplay it, but I can already tell how expensive they were. You all spent far too much money on me for my birthday, but it turns out that I’m kind of in love with everything and I’m not giving any of it back.” She clutched her dragon necklace briefly in her gloved hand.
When she released Hunter, she moved toward her bike, only to pause, her hands flying to her hair. “Oh fuck, I need to braid this back and I can’t do it with gloves.”
“Let me,” I said, already moving toward her.
She blinked at me like she couldn’t understand those two words, while Talon grabbed one of the many brushes he had stashed around the house for any opportunity that arose to brush Emme’s hair.
As he ran the soft bristles through her pinkish gold strands, I stripped a hair tie from her wrist. I’d never braided before, but I’d watched Emme do it so many times that I understood the mechanics.
Talon stepped away once her hair was smooth, and I threaded my fingers through the strands, the rest of our pack gawking on like they’d never seen a fucking dragon braid a female’s hair before.
Her scent surged with each twist, and I had to give myself a very stern talking to since this was not the time to bend her over the back of my bike and sink my cock into her.
I might be new to sex and physical contact in general, but I was a damn quick learner. I also had a new obsession. It was pretty, pink, and under my hands right now. And I wasn’t just talking about her hair.
After fifteen seconds I’d figured out the pattern in braiding, immediately finding the motion rhythmic and soothing. “That feels so good,” Emme said, tilting her head back.
When her eyes fluttered closed, I understood why my twin was hung up on brushing her hair. There was a strong satisfaction in soothing one’s mate. My dragon was a contented beast in my chest.
When I tied off the ends, she murmured her thanks, and we both turned to find our silent and shellshocked pack frozen in place.
No doubt it would take time for them to get used to me voluntarily touching another shifter.
Or maybe it was the shock of me braiding, though I don’t know why any of them would have doubted my ability to do so.
If Emme needed brain surgery I’d have that figured out in a few hours too. For her, there were no limits.
Kellan silently handed me her helmet, his eyes wide as he looked between me and our mate, as if he felt my possessive need to finish getting her ready for our ride.
Locking her in my focus, her expression was soft as she stared up at me. I didn’t even need to push into her thoughts to know what she was thinking: love.
Stupid word. But fuck if it wasn’t the only one I could think of to use.
Unable to cover her face without tasting her one last time, I pressed my lips to hers and she sighed. Fuck. I barely managed to tear myself away to slide her helmet on, and after carefully strapping her in, I checked everything twice, before patting her on the ass.
“You stay between Hunt and me,” I ordered. “We have enemies out there, and you’re more breakable than us.”
There was a pause, and through the dark tint of her visor, I caught the eye roll.
Little brat. Still, she eventually nodded.
I enjoyed when she was submissive to my dominance.
Mostly because she chose to be. There was no one who could make an omega submit, not even a dragon.
While her fire and sass were sexy, her submission got me on a fundamental level.
Constantine broke the silence by stomping noisily into the garage, being the annoying mouth breather that he was.
He had shoes on for once, and his backpack was slung over his shoulder.
That was the one piece of luggage he had with him when he arrived, and I’d already checked the contents to find a few of his parents’ journals and some magical paraphernalia.
Which was most likely why he had it with him today, in case he needed to perform magic at the compound. None of us had any idea what we’d find there, and it never hurt to be prepared.
Hence why the Bentley’s trunk was filled with weapons and body armor.
Constantine’s arrival kicked us all into gear. Half of the group peeled off to enter the car, while the rest of us climbed onto our bikes. Hunter had already swung Emme’s around to face the exit, and through the bond I could feel her surprise and then gratitude at the gesture.
No one had ever taken care of her, but this was her new reality. Now and always.
As I pulled my helmet on, the comms kicked in, and her voice filled my head. “—thank you, Hurricane. I appreciate the assist.”
Hunter shrugged as he leaned down to tap his helmet against hers. “Taking care of you is the best part of my day. I love you, little mate.”
Emme’s words were huskier as she sniffled. “I love you too, Alpha Hunter.”
For maybe the first time, I truly understood the reason shifters used those three words in their packs.
Sure love was thrown around too easily, but it was more than the word itself.
It was how it was said. I’d just felt the soul-deep emotion between Emme and Hunter as they shared their love.
I’d felt the power behind it. It was beyond any power witches could touch; it was an eternal magic that spanned more than our mortal lives.
My first, and hopefully fucking last, existential crisis was shelved when engines roared to life in the garage, and I kicked my bike over to join them.
Hunter headed out first, Emme followed, and I brought up the rear to keep their backs safe.
Talon would remain overhead the whole time, offering a full range of protection for our mate.
In the street, we followed the Bentley’s steady pace until we left Golden Claw’s borders. Emme eased up her hold on the quintet bond so Talon could give us direction, and when we hit the highway it was time to open up the engines.
Emme’s whoop of joy was almost drowned out by the throaty rumble of our bikes, and my dragon roared at the rush. We kept pace with her, relishing the speed, which was almost as good as flying.
“I flew with Talon the other night,” Emme said as if she’d heard my thought, though the connection was once again closed.
“I know. I witnessed most of it through Talon.” I’d never allowed anyone on my back during flight, but Emme’s excitement with Talon had me reconsidering it.
“I will finally concede that a motorcycle comes second to flying. You were both right.”
My amusement took me by surprise. “You don’t say that a lot.”
Hunter let loose a laugh, deeper over the comms. “And I hope you don’t make it a habit. This asshole is already too full of himself. Cocky fucking dragons.”
Talon might be a literal part of my soul, but Hunter was as well, just in a different way. Which meant he got to make comments like that and not get hurt for it. Also, he wasn’t wrong. Dragons were cocky, and it was for a good damn reason.
“I’m appropriately confident,” I reminded them.
“You can’t deny that,” Emme said with a snort. “The dragons definitely live up to their hype.”
And I always will, sweetheart.
We rode for hours surrounded by engine noises and the occasional conversation that sprang up between us.
Emme told us a little more about her years on the run, and how her bike had been an escape from her loneliness and her wolf’s need to be with her pack.
“She wanted to be in the cities,” she said.
“She would push me and try to force the shift. Remember that day I ran around my bedroom, unable to stop until we calmed? That was a common occurrence in my day-to-day. Kind of took the edge off.”
That day in question was maybe the first time I acknowledged how desperately obsessed I was with this omega.
I’d watched the security footage of her wolf circling the room so many times, that it permanently played on one of the screens in my room for a good week.
Seeing her distress, the bitterness of her scent filling the house long after she’d recovered, had me wanting to burn the world down just to scorch every person who’d ever hurt her.
Emme still had no idea that every night for weeks after that I’d sat by her side in the dark, keeping her as safe as I could, craving a touch I wasn’t sure I’d ever feel. All while fearing my beast would destroy the best thing to ever come into my life.
“You never have to worry about that again,” Hunter said, dragging me from those darker memories. “Not even with this new attack on shifters. We will keep you safe.”
Emme scoffed. “Fucking war, it makes no sense to me. How are there any winners?”
“There aren’t,” I confirmed. “But if I’ve learned anything from our history, it’s that you need to take whatever chances you can get for happiness. These darker days can drag on, and our souls aren’t designed to live in the dark forever. Even the smallest snippet of light helps to get us through.”
Ahead, the Bentley turned into a gas station, and I indicated to follow.
Emme let out a sigh. “Yeah, I don’t want to feel guilty about enjoying myself. The truth is, we have no idea if we’re going to be able to win this time. I hope we do, but there are no guarantees. I don’t want to miss out on these last days, if that’s all we have left.”
“These are not our last days,” Hunter growled, spilling dominance. “We will not let that bitch best us.”
Kellan pulled up beside the pump, ready to gas up his car, and Emme followed to the next.
“What do you think of Constantine?” she asked, turning to watch her father hop out of the car. “I don’t get bad vibes from him, but I’m also hesitating to get closer.”
The shifter in question looked in our direction—he was always sneaking glances at his daughter, whenever she wasn’t looking his way. I’d been keeping a close eye on him, and so far there were no red flags, though he was well-versed in hiding his true identity…
“From what I learned during my research, which granted, was much easier with his name and heritage, most of his story checks out. He was trying to protect you by magically hiding your witch essence. I don’t believe he’s here to betray you, but at the end of the day, I trust no one except our pack.”
Emme nodded, but further conversation was cut off by Finley wrapping his arms around her and lifting her from the bike. He had her helmet off in a beat, rubbing his hands over her cheek. “Missed you, darlin’.”
Emme’s happiness was a balm filtering through the bond and soothing our alpha beasts. All of us needed her in different ways, and somehow she was able to provide that for each of us.
Now we just had to ensure we did the same for her.
Starting with finding and destroying a witch, and giving us all a shot at a future.