The Dragoness' Flame (Mature/18+)

The Dragon - Chapter 4

(Tahoi's POV)

Fuck! Did I really let that slip out?!

I cringe. My girl is drying off as I rush into her room to put my clothes back on.

That was close. Too close. How could I be so stupid?!

With my shirt and jeans on, I set to work tying my shoelaces.

Would... would it really be so bad if I did love her?

I look up and see her emerald dress on the hanger. I smile. That beautiful piece of cloth set me back over two grand. But my girl will never know that. She thinks I got it on sale at a store for a quarter of the price.

I have no idea how she'd react to that confession. Actually, I had no idea she'd react that way to my original confession, either.

I let out a long sigh and look up as I hear her bathroom door open.

Our eyes meet and she gives me a smirk.

"Not that I'm complaining, but weren't you wanting to accompany me out? It might be best to be fully clothed or you'll be spending the night in the arms of an inmate, instead of me," she jokes.

I can't help it. I let out a laugh and get to work dressing myself.

"Alright, beautiful. Where do you want to go today?" I ask, knowing full well this girl will want to eat to her heart's content.

She looks thoughtful for a moment, "Can... can we go off the Reserve?" She sounds hopeful.

I can't help my reaction. My mouth drops open and my eyes almost bulge out of my head.

"Off the Reserve? Why?"

She looks away, embarrassed. "I'm just tired of being here. I feel trapped. I wanna go and stretch my wings."

I frown, "Beautiful, you and I both know that's illegal. If we got caught, we could be..." I blow out my long-held breath.

She frowns and whispers to herself, but my advanced hearing picks it up. "My mate would let me go."

I see red. Furious, a snarl escapes my lips.

She spins around to face me, knowing full well that I heard her.

"Fine," I spit out from clenched teeth, "Let's go. We'll turn and leave by sea."

~The Dragoness' Flame~

Shit, shit, shit! I'm so stupid! I can't believe I let her bait me like that...

We are about a mile outside of our town. Our world... the Pacific Reserve. There are seven Reserves in total, each hidden among the seven different oceans of the world. Only those who can turn are allowed to set foot on one. We are located on a large island many, many miles from any continent. It really is our own little bubble.

I close my eyes, already regretting this.

A giggle causes me to reopen and glance at the beauty that is my girl.

Her dark, long flowing hair looks gorgeous in the sunlight. She's wearing my emerald dress with silver heels. Her neck is adorned with a gorgeous diamond necklace that I may or may not have gotten her last year.

I can never say no to her. I think with a resigned sigh and fix my tie. Just like her, I'm dressed to the nines. Dress pants, dress shoes, a nice dark blue blazer on, the whole works. I'm even wearing a damn tie for her. I check my pocket for my wallet. Check. 

Tonight might get expensive...

"Alright, beautiful. Here's the plan. We dive under and stay submerged as long as we can. We rise to the surface only when necessary. The Swimmers shouldn't be out patrolling the waters during this time, so we should be safe. Once we approach land, you stay close to my flank. I will rise to the surface and find us a safe place to turn. Understood?" I turn to gaze into her dark chocolate eyes.

"Yes," she whispers, excitement oozing out of every pore in her body.

I close my eyes and immediately feel the change. Within seconds, I have turned. I look around and see that she has done the same. Her dragon stands there in all her glory. The emerald green scales with a tinge of blues always takes my breath away. My deep blue scales ripple with anticipation.

I nod as a silent gesture and open my wings to their fullest. Taking a deep breath, I start to run on all fours, building momentum like a plane. After I have run a few yards, I leap into the air and begin to gently glide along the water's surface. I turn my long neck and see that she is not far behind. With a slight huff, I flap my wings hard and start to ascend. After rising many, many yards, I pull my wings tightly to my body and fall. My intent is for us to get enough momentum and when we reach the water, our bodies will propel forward.

I brace myself and make a small splash as my large body makes impact. My plan works. I am deep underwater and moving at an impressive speed. I am vigilant and our luck holds out. As I predicted, there aren't any Swimmers out and about patrolling at this time. They normally emerge a few hours before sunset.

We'll reach our destination within an hour. I hear a slight disturbance in the water behind me that indicates my girl is not far behind. Using my wings as propellers, we continue our journey as dread suddenly fills my body.

I hope I'm not making a horrible mistake...

~The Dragoness' Flame~

Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed this chapter! The story is about to take a jump into more mythical creature lore in the next few chapters!

~Key Terms~

*Swimmers (aka Mers): mermaids