The Dragon's True Mate

Chapter 1 LUCIAN I staggered out of the hall, away from my brother’s wedding and the woman he’d taken as his bride. His fated mate. Sarah and Dymitri had been perfect together from the very start. From the moment they met, I’d been able to sense the intensity of the feelings Dymitri had for her. Desperately, I’d hoped it would be the same for me and my mate. Marienne had said it would be, but that wasn’t the case. I’d felt nothing except sympathy for Nadia when we found her injured and unconscious. When she woke up, there had been none of the intense feelings I’d been promised. No passion. No quivering desire. No dragon rearing his possessive head. The lack of those feelings had sent me into a rage unlike any other. I’d felt so hurt and betrayed. So disappointed. But I’d gotten through it and hoped to one day find my own mate. Perhaps a servant in the castle or one of the women in town. But no... today I’d met my own fated mate. It was another human woman. Just like my brother. And my dragon was bursting to be free. I erupted through the door of the grand ballroom, my gut tightening to the point of having to run bent over. “Hold it together,” I muttered to myself, not sure that I could. Running for the entrance of the castle, I passed through the foyer that had only recently been patched up. Dymitri and I had done enormous damage to the once-grand colored glass windows when I’d flown into a rage over Nadia not being my mate. Not my finest hour. Nor my dragon’s. I burst through the front doors, feeling the cold blast of our icy winter breeze on my face. Reveling in the sensation of the crisp chill, I deeply breathed in the air. Calm down, calm down. My dragon was furious at me for running away, snarling and snapping inside my mind. He wanted to go back and find his mate, but I couldn’t. I was teetering on the verge of being out of control and if I returned to the wedding party, I’d destroy everything in sight. There was no hope of containing my dragon any longer. He needed to be free. My dragon rose up inside of me as I stripped off my suit jacket and threw it on the ground. Wings sprouted from my back, and my skin transformed into the leathery scales of my shifter form. I closed my eyes and let my mind go as mist swirled up around me, and I became my dragon. When I opened my eyes, the world around me looked different. But the feelings inside of me weren’t. My mate was here, and Marienne had been right after all. My fated mate was human, and a sister to Sarah. But it hadn’t been her tiny, younger sister Nadia as we’d all thought. Instead, my mate was her older sister. The gorgeous, generously curvy Katerina, with dark, curly hair and a sexy smile that made my skin catch fire. Not to mention her ass... oh my God. My c**k ached just thinking about her curves. I leaped into the air, beating my wings against the sky. Everything that I’d been told about fated mates was true. My dragon was uncontrollable in his need, my human side having no chance of dominance. My heart was thudding against my chest with the power of a steaming locomotive. l**t poured through me, all for a stranger. A woman who would never understand my world or our customs. I’d never been good enough for my father to accept, nor any woman I’d known in the past. Why would this gorgeous human want me now? Memories of my anger and hurt from past traumas poured through me like molten lava, eating away at any hope I had for my future. None of this made any sense to me, and in my growing fury, I couldn’t see a way around the problem except to gain altitude and fly away. I soared higher and higher, until I couldn’t move my wings any longer. Until I was afraid I might fall from the sky if I didn’t stop ascending. Soaring back down to a lower altitude, I continued until I was far away from my half-brother’s kingdom. Until sunshine heated my wings in place of winter chill, and my skin ached from the rapid change in temperature. There was another kingdom ahead of me, with a huge castle perched high above the surrounding lands and villages. I could only hope it was Stavrok and Lucy’s castle. I’d never been to visit them in their home but had met the royal couple when they’d visited Damon and Cass. I glanced back the way I’d come, weak now from hunger and fatigue. I’d never make it back. Not tonight. Not without a rest. I used the last of my strength to fly down and land on a high balcony attached to the castle and there I collapsed against a railing. I let my dragon go and shifted back to human, my chest heaving with the strain and my legs trembling in their attempts to hold me up. An older male servant hurried out onto the balcony to greet me, his gaze narrowing as my human body replaced my dragon. “Let me get you a robe, sir,” he said with a polite incline of his head, then stepped inside once more. I sighed with relief at the confirmation I was in the right place. That was definitely a royal servant, so this had to be Stavrok’s palace. None of the servants in the winter palace treated a stranger so well. The man returned with a warm robe that I slipped on gratefully. “Thank you.” Then he handed me a glass of water, which I downed immediately. The coolness flowed over my aching throat, soothing it, making me moan with gratitude. “Can I help you, sir?” he inquired. “Are you here to see King Stavrok?” I nodded, though it wasn’t entirely true. I’d ended up here purely by accident. “Could you tell Stavrok and Lucy that I’m here? My name is Lucian. He’ll know who I am.” The servant bowed and walked away. I managed to put down the glass of water and tie up the robe just as an older man dressed in fine clothes stepped out onto the balcony. “Lucian, sir, please follow me.” “Thank you.” I followed the man, who was likely the steward, into the castle, marveling at the richness of the carpet underfoot and the beautiful paintings that lined the halls. What a difference it made when the king in charge of his kingdom actually looked after his wealth. Unlike my father, who’d been a tyrant king and let his people and his castle fall to ruin. He’d been the worst of men. You’re not him, and you’re far away from his memories. Let it go. I gazed about Stavrok’s castle and briefly indulged myself in the fantasy of what life might have been like if I’d grown up as the bastard son of this king. Raised in this home, or within the castle’s walls. Perhaps then I wouldn’t be such a f*****g mess. The steward stopped in front of a large, wooden door. “King Stavrok is waiting for you in here, sir. He’s aware of your arrival.” Wonderful. Hopefully he doesn’t kick me straight back out again. It wasn’t like he knew me well. The man opened the door and held it open for me to head inside. I took a deep breath and moved forward. Part of me had expected an office or a sitting room, but instead I was staring down the length of a grand dining hall with an impressively long wooden table. At the head of the table sat King Stavrok, food laid out before him and a glass of red wine in hand. When he saw me, he grinned and waved a hand toward the seat across from him. “Lucian, take a seat. What brings you here to my humble home? Isn’t your brother getting married today? That’s the rumor I heard, at least.” King Stavrok was a huge man, and even seated, cast an imposing figure. “You heard correctly,” I mumbled as I sat down in my robe, feeling more n***d than before. “The ceremony took place earlier and I expect the reception is well underway as we speak, in fact.” “Please, help yourself.” Stavrok gestured to the feast before him. I poured myself a glass of wine and picked up a bread roll, my gut still churning with the accumulation of stress. I wasn’t very hungry, but I wasn’t going to turn down the king’s generosity. “So, Lucian, tell me why you aren’t at the wedding.” The king tilted his head to the side, no doubt curious as to why I would leave such a joyous occasion and travel so far away. I wanted to tell him it was none of his business. That he could stick his nose elsewhere and leave me be. But I’d shown up at his home unannounced, and owed him an explanation. He had a human mate from the other side of the veil, his wife, Lucy, so perhaps he’d offer me some advice. Certainly, my brother, Dymitri, would have tried to help me. However, I had no intention of burdening him further. Not on his wedding day, of all days. Just seeing me flee the ceremony had probably left him worried enough. I needed a sounding board. “My fated mate is at the ceremony.” Stavrok’s brows rose. “I repeat then, why aren’t you there?” He chuckled. I saw nothing amusing about the situation but instead of answering immediately, I took a bite of my roll and a sip of the wine. Then another. I hadn’t realized how much I needed sustenance. I inhaled deeply to regain some control, then released my breath slowly. “I’d just come to terms with the fact that I wasn’t going to have a fated mate. That the sorceress, Marienne, had been wrong about my future. After all, she’d been so sure it was Nadia. She’s the—” “The other woman we rescued from that human hell hole.” King Stavrok shuddered. “I remember.” “I thought Marienne’s vision had been wrong, and prepared myself for never finding my true mate. I’d made peace with that.” Stavrok grinned at me as though he knew what I was about to say. “Marienne hasn’t been wrong about our fated mates. Not yet, anyway. She was the reason I found Lucy.” “Oh, I didn’t know that.” And I hadn’t. So, Marienne had been a royal matchmaker from the beginning? Somehow, that made this story even more credible now. “I didn’t mean to interrupt,” Stavrok said, pouring us both some more wine. “Go on.” I blew out a breath. “Well, it turns out Sarah has another sister and the moment I saw her... everything fell into place. I wanted her. I still want her. And the only thing I could do to keep myself from taking her on the spot—or destroying everything around me—was to flee.” I paused, the shame of my lack of self-control washing over me. “I felt like a monster, getting lost in that lust.” The king’s expression softened. “You’re a better man than me. I kidn*pped Lucy from her home. I had no control.” My jaw dropped. “You...” He kidn*pped her? He nodded. “Yes. Literally picked her up and flew her home.” I didn’t know Stavrok well, but I knew men. And he was serious. “Did she forgive you?” I couldn’t imagine Katerina letting me pick her up and carry her to my bedroom. Stavrok cackled out a laugh. “Of course. Eventually. But tell me more about your mate. Why don’t you believe she’d forgive you for letting your dragon have his head? After all, it’s the most natural instinct we have.” I reached for some fruit, picking apart the grapes and orange. “Katerina might not want me at all. I’m not exactly the easiest to love.” A fact that had gotten drilled into me at an early age. I’d spent so much of my young life being told I wasn’t worthy. Why would that change now? What would she see that everyone else missed? The answer was nothing. Once she got to know me, she’d come to the same conclusion. Having her and then losing her might kill me. Stavrok sighed then motioned for a butler who had been patiently waiting nearby to come closer. “A bottle of whiskey, I think.” “Yes, my king.” The butler bowed and left in a hurry. “Here’s what you’re going to do,” King Stavrok said. “You’re going to calm down and get out of this spiral of doom you’ve placed yourself in. Then you’ll remember this woman is your fated mate. She was created specifically for you. Her soul is the other half of yours. She is what will complete you, and she is going to love all sides of you. Even the ones that are difficult or not really that loveable.” “How do you—” He gave me a sharp look that shut me up. “Because we all go through those thoughts, and we all have difficult pieces to love. No one is perfect, Lucian.” I pressed my lips together tightly, wanting to argue. Stavrok didn’t know me, and he couldn’t imagine what my life had been like. But I kept my thoughts to myself. He was a king, and I was a bastard son. Even though he was allowing me to sit at his table and drink his wine, we weren’t on the same level. The butler returned with a bottle of golden whiskey. Stavrok poured me a glass and placed it right in front of me. “Once you’ve collected yourself and rested a little, go back to the wedding and be with your mate. Show her the depth of your feelings for her.” “She’s human. What if she doesn’t understand? They don’t feel the pull the same way we do.” Or so I’d heard. Stavrok laughed. “I guarantee you, she will. It might not be the exact same sensation, as she doesn’t have the dragon inside of her. Her heart will know, though. It will beat faster when you’re around. Her gut will twist whenever you’re near. Her body will have the pull of extreme desire, and her heart will war with her head until she gives in. Sound familiar?” “Yes.” So similar. Perhaps humans weren’t as strange as I’d originally thought. “She is going to love you.” He sounded confident. “But it will take a lot longer if you keep running from her every time her presence makes you a bit uncomfortable.” A bit uncomfortable is an understatement. The moment I’d laid eyes on her, my c**k was at full attention and every part of me had been eager to explore every inch of her curvy figure. No other woman compared. I’d never been set ablaze in such a way before in my life. If I couldn’t do something about that discomfort soon, I might explode. “Next time, I’ll be more prepared,” I said, much calmer than I felt. I couldn’t guarantee that, but I’d pretend for the moment. “If nothing else, it won’t be such a big surprise.” “I need to go and speak to my wife. Shall I leave you with your thoughts?” Stavrok asked. No. My thoughts frightened me. All the same, I said, “Yes.” I picked up my glass of whiskey. I’d intruded on his hospitality long enough. “I’m always happy to help,” Stavrok said in a soft voice. “I’m glad you felt enough trust in me to come here.” I appreciated him saying that more than I could express. He was treating me as an equal when I was only King Damon’s bastard brother. “Thank you for your assistance.” Despite the fear creeping through me, I knew what I had to do, and I had a plan of action to take. Stavrok left me, and I took the time to finish my whiskey, letting the warmth soothe my inner dragon. My strength began to return, and a new determination stirred within me. A determination to face my fear, and seek out my fated mate. Once I was able, I transformed into my dragon and flew back to Damon’s castle. It was indeed, a long way, though I did not ascend so high this time and the air was better for breathing. When I arrived, I found a private place to change back into human form. I’d obviously missed the ceremony, and felt terrible for that. But Dymitri would understand, I felt sure, as would Sarah. I’d seen it in my brother’s eyes just before I fled the castle, and he would explain what had happened to Sarah. Everyone would understand, except for her. My one true mate. By the end of the night, I would make it up to her. I did not want to be the mate who ran away. I gathered all the courage I had and made my way to the hall where the reception was still underway. My heart was pounding like a battering ram, but after my long flights, I had enough control over my dragon to walk into the room without feeling like I was going to shift. My gaze settled on my mate sitting across the room, and a piece of me I thought long dead sprang to life once more.