Dragon Ever After: Spellbound Shifters: Dragons Entwined, #3.5

By Keira Blackwood and Liza Street

A stolen crown. A daring heist. And a treasure worth more than life itself.

My guys and I have been enjoying our lives, running our business, and reveling in our love.

But when an old friend makes a tough request, I can't say no--even when it falls on Halloween, my favorite holiday.

Little did I think, though, about how even the tiniest slip-up could mean losing everything we hold dear.

An excerpt of this slice-of-life tale was previously published in the Halloween Between the Sheets anthology. It has since been expanded into a full story and is best enjoyed after reading the Spellbound Souls trilogy--Dragon Shattered, Dragon Unbroken, and Dragon Reborn.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Liza Street
• Release date: May 6, 2019
• ISBN: 9781386782025

Book preview

Chapter 1

Taylor

As a dragon, I could handle the cold of a morning flight through the clouds.

Droplets of icy water clung to my scales and glistened in the rays of the bright sun. Steam blew back from my snout with every exhale, the upper atmosphere stung and scraped my lungs with every inhale.

It was a perfect late-October flight.

Rumi put it beautifully when he wrote, Love is a cloud that scatters pearls. I never looked at clouds in the same way after reading that.

Decorations punctuated the streets below—banners, pumpkins, and booths. From so high above, I couldn’t make out all of the details, but the road blocks had already interrupted traffic over the past week.

I knew I was fortunate, and I felt it deep down in my bones.

There was nowhere else in the world quite like Emerald Pines, and that wasn’t just because of the wards that allowed me to fly this close to the city in dragon form without being discovered. There was a magical quality to the city, one that had everything to do with Ariana.

When I woke, the first thing I did was seek her out for a kiss, for just a glimpse of her natural beauty. She put my soul at ease and sparked excitement in me at the same time. She was my world, just as she was Quentin’s and Slade’s.

Even though we’d all spent the night and then breakfast together, by now I’d had my fill of time without her so I turned to head back to the Arrow. That need to stay close had only grown stronger since we’d learned she was with child.

The news of a tiny person in our lives made me equal parts excited and uneasy. When the baby was bigger, I imagined it’d be easier to relate to him. I could share all of my favorite poets with him and see the world anew through his eyes. But that was after all the poop and vomit and fragile time was over.

Ariana was going to be a wonderful mother, no question. Fiercely protective, yet sweet and sentimental—I knew the best of her would be magnified by motherhood.

As for us guys, it was Slade who’d be the nurturer. I didn’t even know how to hold a baby. What if I dropped it?

That was still a ways off, and no question Slade knew all the best baby-handling techniques after reading every parenting book ever written.

A beacon of white in a sea of red and brown buildings, the Arrow stood nearly as high as the clouds. Wings wide, I tilted my tail downward and reached out my hind claws for the ledge. A ringing sound reached my ears. It was my phone, stashed in my discarded pants pocket. Safely perched on the roof, I shifted back to human form.

The air felt cooler on my skin than it had on my scales, but it was more brisk than biting at this lower altitude.

I rummaged through my clothes and found my phone.

Rourke Dunbar.

My assistant. I hadn’t expected any work calls. We’d all agreed to take time off to enjoy Ariana’s favorite holiday together, Halloween. But it was my turn to be on duty for emergencies.

I swiped the screen to answer. Yes?

Taylor, sorry to bother you. I got a call from someone on Ariana’s always-answer list.

It’s no bother, I said. It wasn’t for me, anyway. But I could hear Maisie’s voice in the background calling Rourke back to bed. Who was it, and did they leave a message?

Corinna Watson, he said. I’ll patch you through.

Did she say what she—

Hello, Mr. Stonehall? Her voice was soft. Corinna was one of Ariana’s longtime friends, one from before she’d met her first mate, Marc. I hadn’t met Corinna yet. If Ariana hadn’t shut off her phone for the festivities, I was sure her friend would have called her directly.

Ms. Watson, hi.

I need your help, she said. Your company’s help, specifically.

We’re not taking any clients right now. We’re closed until the first. After that, it would just be us guys, and Ariana would finally take it