Dream of Me/Believe in Me

attacker, leaving him to writhe in his death throes as he hugged Dragon fiercely and swore they would survive against all enemies and all dangers.
    So they had done, rising to vast wealth and power, but not climbing quite so far that Dragon had forgotten how it felt to be young, helpless, and very afraid.
    Mildly chagrined by his own kinder self, he nonetheless called out to the boy, “There's no need for this. I'm not going to hurt you. Just stop and we'll talk.”
    The look this earned suggested Dragon must have suffered a recent head injury in addition to that done to his nether parts. With a last backward glance, the boy redoubled his efforts to get away.
    Dragon sighed. He took half a dozen more strides and flowed smoothly into the air, bringing his quarry down in a single motion. Even then, he rolled as they hit the ground, taking the impact himself and sparing the boy all but a simple jarring. He might have done better to knock the wind out of him for the brat struggled furiously, kicking out in every direction and doing his damnedest to get his teeth into any portion of Dragon that presented itself.
    “Oh, no, you don't!” Dragon exclaimed. “I've had enough from you.” He bounded to his feet, hauling the boy up with him, and gave him a good shake. “Calm down! All I want to do is talk.”
    That accomplished precisely nothing. Flush-faced, wide-eyed, the lad continued to struggle with all his might. Prudently, Dragon held him off at arm's lengthand even so kept a careful watch on his flailing limbs as they slowly but inexorably wound down. He waited until the miscreant had scarcely enough strength left to twitch before he tried again.
    Pleasantly, he asked, “Are you ready to talk now?”
    The boy was panting so hard he probably wasn't capable of speech but he did manage a glare of pure venom.
    “No? I can wait.” He continued to hold the boy a few inches above the ground, dangling at the end of a very long, very strong arm. At the same time, he repeated quietly, “I am not going to hurt you.”
    When the boy looked at him in utter disbelief, Dragon added, “Oh, I considered it rightly enough. You deserve a thrashing for what you did. But I'm willing to allow that you may have thought you were acting in self-defense, even as I myself was when I seized you. Any man has a right to protect himself.” Deliberately, he awarded the stripling a title he would not merit for many years yet. On closer appraisal, the lad might be even younger than Dragon had thought. Cheeks that had been red with exertion were paling rapidly, revealing damask smooth skin without the slightest trace of even an infant beard. The boy's features were delicately drawn, a straight and slender nose sitting above a full mouth and gently rounded chin. But it was those eyes, those huge, slightly uptilted eyes the precise shade of clover honey that sent a prickle of apprehension down Dragon's back. A sudden, hideous suspicion stirred in him.
    Without warning, his free hand darted out and snatched the cap that swaddled the imp's head.
    “Noooo!”
Slender fingers flew to stop him, too late. Masses of silken hair glinting with the sheen of copper tumbled free. Dragon stared in disbelief. A girl. He had been brought to his knees by
a girl.
The realization stunned him if only because in all his experience with women—his very long, very considerable experience— nothing remotely similar had ever happened. In allmodesty, no female had ever looked upon him with other than warm encouragement and affection. That may have been because of his appearance although he'd never thought anything of how he looked one way or another. And perhaps his wealth and position had impressed some. But he suspected it had much more to do with the simple fact that he adored women. Utterly, completely, unreservedly
adored
them. Women were the greatest of the gods' considerable accomplishments, the best gift, the most marvelous delight that could be bestowed upon the earth and upon man, including his own lucky self. Women were soft and strong, they smelled good and had beguiling smiles, they gave life and made it count for something. In bed, out of bed, he delighted in them. Old, young, in between, he found their presence a constant source of comfort and enjoyment. That one of these marvelous creatures might actually seek to do him harm left him stunned.
    Not that he could blame her. She must have been absolutely terrified and while he was thinking about it, what