Untamed Dragon: The Feisty Dragons, #1

By Sophie Stern

Anything can happen on Sapphire Island...

The Chrysolite Isles are a place where magic happens and dragons roam free. Well, most of them do. When Declan Monster is working on a security evaluation for a client, he notices something strange. There's a girl lurking around, but she doesn't seem to want to be there. In fact, he's pretty sure that she's been captured, and he'll do whatever it takes to save her.

Zoa didn't mean to get herself kidnapped, but, well, she's never been the brightest when it comes to street smarts. Now she's being constantly monitored by a shapeshifting dragon who will do anything to keep her his.

And then Declan shows up.

Strong, handsome, and sweet, Declan is everything her captor is not.

But is he strong enough to save her?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Sophie Stern
• Release date: Nov 27, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393586036

Book preview

Anything can happen on Sapphire Island...

The Chrysolite Isles are a place where magic happens and dragons roam free. Well, most of them do. When Declan Monster is working on a security evaluation for a client, he notices something strange. There's a girl lurking around, but she doesn't seem to want to be there. In fact, he's pretty sure that she's been captured, and he'll do whatever it takes to save her.

Zoa didn't mean to get herself kidnapped, but, well, she's never been the brightest when it comes to street smarts. Now she's being constantly monitored by a shapeshifting beast who will do anything to keep her his.

And then Declan shows up.

Strong, handsome, and sweet, Declan is everything her captor is not.

But is he strong enough to save her?

Author’s Note

Hello Darlings,

When I first wrote Stepdragon and the Dragon Isle series that followed, I didn’t imagine how absolutely wonderful writing dragon shifter stories would be. While I write about a lot of paranormal creatures, dragons will always have a special place in my heart.

If you read Dragon Isle or you liked The Fablestone Clan, I think you’re going to like reading about the Monster brothers in The Feisty Dragons.

This series takes place in the same world as Dragon Isle and The Fablestone Clan. In fact, most of my shifter stories overlap. Sometimes people will visit Honeypot, Colorado, for example, which is where a set of very interesting bear brothers happen to live.

This story is book one in a new trilogy featuring Declan, Christopher, and Brian. I hope that you enjoy their stories as much as I enjoyed writing them. This particular book follows Declan and Zoa, who is a little human who never expected having to be rescued. Luckily, Declan is a pretty cool dragon guy who stands up for what’s right.

As always, thank you so much for reading. I couldn’t continue to do what I love without the support of wonderful readers like you.

All my love,

Sophie Stern

Chapter 1

W hat exactly is it that you're looking for? Declan looked his client up and down. Kellen wasn't exactly an ugly-looking guy. In fact, he was what Declan would consider to be a pretty normal and handsome-looking person. He was tall and sharply dressed. Everything about him seemed to scream business professional, but he had a look about him that said he was up to no good, and that made Declan wary.

Kellen considered the question before he answered. This was another dangerous sign, at least in Declan's experience. Most of the time, clients just blurted out what they wanted. Maybe they wanted something to protect a secret entrance to their home or maybe they wanted a private passageway installed. No matter what they wanted, they would just tell him. The sooner they verbalized their thoughts, the sooner Declan would be able to make their dream project become a reality.

After all, Declan was the security design expert.

But Kellen was different.

It's very important to me that this project remain private, he said instead of answering. Kellen twisted his hands together in an awkward gesture that showed he was both nervous and untrusting. Perfect. That was just what Declan needed: a difficult client.

A wave of irritation washed over Declan. It definitely seemed as though Kellen was questioning his ability to provide security and stability for him. Whether or not that was the case, Declan wasn't sure. What he did know was that Kellen was grating to work with, and they hadn't even finalized the plans for whatever secret project it was that Kellen had in mind.

We've already signed nondisclosure agreements, Declan pointed out. And I'd like to remind you that I take my clients' privacy very seriously. I never disclose the specific details of a project to anyone who isn't directly involved in it. Even when I must disclose information required for an installation to my team, they’re all very discreet. My track record shows this.

I understand that, Kellen said. He paced the room, and Declan discreetly sniffed the air. Was that sweat? Nervousness? Was Kellen feeling uncomfortable?

Why the hell would he be nervous about having something installed in his home?

Especially if it was something he had personally ordered.

You see, I’ve recently acquired a very special...pet. I don't want it to escape.

That's understandable, Declan nodded in agreement. The Chrystolite Isles were beautiful, but there were plenty of deadly and horrible things that existed on them. The island that Declan and his brothers lived on, Sapphire Island, was one of largest and most beautiful that existed in this selection of islands. If a special pet got out of your home, there was no telling what might happen to it.

It could be eaten by another wild animal, lost, or even worse.

While many of the shifters who lived in the Chrysolite islands were dog people, Declan personally preferred cats. They were small and easy to care for. They didn’t require too much attention, and they weren’t too needy. Somehow, he doubted that was the kind of pet Kellen was considering, though. That didn’t matter. There were plenty of larger and more exotic animals that roamed the islands.

How large is the pet? Declan asked. He noticed that Kellen hadn't told him what kind of animal it was. Eventually, Declan would want to know, but right now, this was a sort of trust exercise. They were establishing boundaries with each other, and they were determining exactly what Declan was going to be able to offer Kellen.

Large enough.

Can you give me a range? Declan raised an eyebrow. Are we dealing with a bird or a tiger?

Closer to something in-between.

Another vague answer.

Perfect.

Declan took a deep breath, once more trying to stay calm. He never should have taken this meeting. He should have made Christopher or Brian do it, he thought. They were his brothers and they had equal weight in their shared company. Unfortunately, Christopher was mostly the geeky tech guy, and Brian was kind of Mr. Brains and Mr. Business and Mr. Ladykiller all rolled into one. That left Declan to come out for things like this.

So, what boundaries do you want for your pet? Declan asked, pulling out his tablet. He would continue the meeting as long as he could handle it, but Kellen was so jumpy that Declan had a feeling that things were going to spiral out of control very quickly.

What's that? Kellen angrily gestured to the tablet in Declan’s hand. Okay, so maybe very quickly meant right now. What the hell was Kellen’s problem?

It's my tablet, Declan looked up at Kellen. Surely the man had seen one before. He wasn't living in the stone age. He wasn't that ignorant. Kellen had a huge mansion in the middle of the forest on one of the smaller islands in the area.

No. No tech. Kellen shook his head sharply.

Excuse me?

You heard me. That sort of thing has recording capabilities.

Alarm bells were going off in Declan's head. Kellen was being even weirder than most of Declan's usual clients, and they hadn't even really started the negotiations yet.

All technology has recording capability. I have to take pictures of your house. How else am I supposed to come up with the right plan? Declan took a look around the room they were standing in, wondering what the hell Kellen was hiding. Even with his most uptight clients, he’d never encountered anyone quite like this.

Generally speaking, anyone who hired Monster Brothers Security knew that the company was rock-solid. They understood that the Monster brothers didn’t take shortcuts, and perhaps most importantly, they realized that Declan and his brothers were honorable men who did everything in their power to make sure that their clients truly were satisfied with the work.

Absolutely not. Kellen seemed firm, but Declan wasn't sure how he was going to get around that. Even if he didn't record anything today, his team needed to use their tools to take pictures, record different positions in the home, and to physically install the software needed to protect whatever exotic animals Kellen was keeping.

Declan shook his head. So that was how it was going to be? The reality was that he didn't need Kellen's business. Monster Brothers Security was doing quite well. He wasn't going to say they were the top security firm in the country, but when it came to the world of shifters, they were undoubtedly the most trusted and the most efficient.

Not being allowed to use his tools was unacceptable to Declan, and he realized that this meeting truly had been a waste of everyone’s time, especially his. He’d planned to spend today analyzing the situation and creating a solution to whatever Kellen’s issue was, but without his tablet, he had no way to record the measurements and evaluate the location.

What was he supposed to do?

Record the measurements with a pencil and paper?

Sure, that was technically possible, but it was also wildly inefficient, and it meant that completing this project would take twice as long. Declan would have to charge twice as much because his team would be working twice as long. That simply wasn’t something he was interested in. In Declan’s experience, if a client was this problematic during their first meeting, the relationship was only going to get worse.

And fast.

Then I'm sorry, he stood and shook his head. I'm not going to be able to help you.

That's it? Kellen raised an eyebrow, and then he sneered. You aren't even going to try to retain me as a client? That's the worst customer service I've ever seen. Kellen made a weird clucking sound, as if he were a mother hen upset with her chicks.

You aren't a customer, Declan said calmly. "Today was simply an evaluation meeting to consider whether we would work well together, which we clearly will not. Besides, you've made it clear you aren't willing to work within the requirements I have. If you refuse to allow me to use my tools, I can't possibly assist you in keeping your pet safe."

He put an extra emphasis on the word pet to indicate that whatever it was, Kellen's pet was something he wasn't supposed to have. It was probably a fucking unicorn. Wouldn’t