Claimed by Desire Read Online Free Page A

“There’s got to be another way down there, right?” she said, hitching the bag over her shoulder. “A path? A tunnel?”
    He groaned; a deafening cry that pierced the night. It was matched by another dragon cry from below. And then another.
    They were being welcomed into the clan.
    Within seconds, the change happened. Green and golden scales, shaped like teardrops, draped over his skin. Wings folded outward from his back, stretching into full, glorious form. His neck lengthened, bulked up.
    For a second, Misty thought about jumping back. It’d been too long since she’d seen a Draco take dragon form. But then Rafe set his smoldering green eyes upon her. In human or dragon form—she didn’t care—they were both him. There was no reason to be afraid. Beyond the oval-shaped emerald eyes, glimmering scales and rounded snout, was the man she’d fallen head over heels for all those years ago.
    He tilted his wings for Misty to hop on. They were green and strong and caught the last seconds of daylight perfectly. She didn’t remember it being like this….
    Excitement bubbled through her, though she couldn’t tell if the emotion was hers or his. She sighed as her stomach flipped. “I still think there’s a better way to do this.”
    With a snort, Rafe curved his long neck behind her legs and nudged her onto his back with his head. She landed on his back with a humph! then scrambled to catch her footing.
    “Rafe, knock it off,” she said, smacking him. “You touch my ass again and I’ll cook up dragon-tail stew.”
    Laughter rolled through him. Rafe’s happiness seeped into Misty until she found it hard to be angry at his little stunt. And as she wrapped her arms around the bulk of his neck and buried her face against his surprisingly silky dragon skin, she prayed their flight into the gorge would be over quickly.
    He certainly didn’t need to know how much she enjoyed riding him.
    As Misty held her breath, Rafe’s giant back arched. His incredibly long tail hovered above the earth. And then he pounded over the cliff with the grace of an eagle.
    They soared .
    Misty wrapped her hands tight around his neck. Rafe shuddered. He dipped unexpectedly, catching a forceful gust of wind. His wings beat hard once, then flattened out, slicing through the sky with ease. He banked right gracefully, gliding from airstream to airstream, until the rain forest disappeared over their heads.
    Timeless Gorge didn’t feel so large with them in it. It felt easily passable with a few heavy beats of Rafe’s wings. Misty could conquer the world on his back, just like this.
    It was peaceful. Perfect. And over too quickly.
    They veered into a cavern about halfway down the wall of the gorge. Rafe’s wings thumped the walls of the cave as he settled to the ground. Then he tilted to the side to let Misty off. For a split second, she didn’t want to let go. She wanted to let her hands run over the taut lines of his back and dip beneath his belly, where she knew he had a sensitive spot. She wanted to explore the rivers and valleys of the gorge from Rafe’s back, feeling his energy rippling through her. And then she remembered what had happened last time.
    She was too easily seduced. And too easily cast aside.
    Tossing his bag at his feet, Misty jumped down, and stood face-to-face with an older man who looked too grumpy to be part of the welcome committee. His fuzzy eyebrows arched into a point above the bridge of his nose. His scraggly brown hair was long and unkempt. But his Draco specks were a dazzling shade of purple and smothered his cheeks.
    “You’re later than expected,” he said, his voice as deep as the cavern. “You’ve nearly missed the festivities.” He opened his arm to lead them into the dark heart of the mountain. “This way.”
    By the time Misty locked eyes with Rafe again, he was back in his human form, crouched in the corner buck naked, digging through his bag. She peeled her eyes off the muscles bulging in his