Carpathian 23 - Dark Storm

lashes, her mouth curving slightly, but she didn’t
     answer as she followed Riordan to the car.
    Dax found the idea of traveling in a vehicle silly when they could just fly and get
     there much faster. “Why?”
    “We need to fit in,” Riordan explained. “With the new technology, we have to be more
     careful than ever and appear human.”
    “No one is around. Your home is secluded. Let’s just get this done,” Dax said.
    Riley raised her hand. “I don’t fly. I just thought you might like to know that before
     you make a decision. I have feet, not wings.”
    Dax caught the little flutter of excitement as the image of the dragon came into her
     head. He was grateful she didn’t mention the dragon to Riordan, although the Carpathian
     hunter would assume he simply had shifted into the mythical creature, using the illusion
     for flight. The Old One was not friendly. He accepted Dax and Dax’s woman, but the
     rest of them—he might consider barbecuing them.
    It wouldn’t do to have a giant dragon breathing fire over a major city. It would end
     up on YouTube. There was laughter in Riley’s voice.
    I am unfamiliar with YouTube.
    She sent him images, but he still couldn’t quite grasp the concept. Computers and
     television had to be seen first before he fully understood it. Nevertheless, she was
     right, it wouldn’t do to have the Old One in the skies where airplanes thought it
     was their space. As far as the red dragon was concerned, the skies were his dominion.
    Dax wrapped his arms around Riley and took to the sky, masking his presence from any
     who might be out. He didn’t want to argue about fitting in or using a vehicle. He
     didn’t like that method of travel.
    Riordan’s laughter echoed in his mind. I suppose it would be difficult to get used to modern ways after all this time. We
     were lucky to have seen history unfold. Cars and planes are necessary to us.
    Dax took the time to enjoy holding Riley in his arms. She clutched him tightly, her
     face, rather than being buried against his shoulder, was turned toward the wind as
     usual, her long hair streaming around them, brushing his face and shoulders like silken
     threads.
    You love this, don’t you?
    Her laughter filled his mind. You know I do. I can’t help it. Isn’t this the most incredible experience? The stars
     above us, the lights below, the wind in our faces? Doesn’t it make you feel alive?
    He took flying for granted. He’d been doing it for centuries, but now that he was
     no longer in the volcano, he could appreciate the freedom it gave him. Riley gave
     him so much more. He was seeing through fresh eyes, experiencing flying for the first
     time all over again and like Riley—because of Riley—he felt exhilarated. Each time
     they took to the air, he found joy spilling into him. Hers, his—it didn’t matter who
     felt it first. It was there.
    His emotions had returned, but because he wasn’t used to feeling, he reverted to using
     logic, not trusting the intensity around anyone but Riley. She was at ease in the
     modern world, yet she managed to function in his world with grace and intelligence
     even when she was afraid.
    She had a way of slipping inside him—into his soul. He knew the Old One felt it as
     well. As much as the dragon didn’t want to feel affection, he was far too emotional
     not to make those connections. He was fiercely loyal and Riley and Dax were his only
     family now. He had been protector of a large family unit. The Old One was not a solitary
     creature as many might think, and Riley had gotten into the dragon’s soul as well.
    Dax found he was still shaken by the knowledge that she existed—that in his darkest
     hour, he’d found his lifemate. He had long ago given up any hope of such a thing.
     He had no idea the intensity of emotion a man could feel for a woman. At times his
     growing love for Riley was a storm inside of him, a whirling tornado that threatened
     his stability. He’d always been stoic and calm, yet she shook the entire foundation
     of his carefully controlled world.
    She made him feel vulnerable, exposed to the world whenever he looked at her. He knew
     it showed, the way she made him feel. He hadn’t expected that she could do that to
     him, make him feel so much that the solitary man he’d become would do anything to
     keep her.
    He found himself fascinated with her smile, watching for it—needing it the way his
     kind needed the soil. He loved the way her eyes