Read Online A Dragon's Dream of Love (Song of the Sídhí Series #2) by Jodie B. Cooper - Free Book Online Page A

the
growl which rumbled through his words. “Plus he kept going on about how deadly
the creatures in the preserves are. He was trying to frighten you." And,
more importantly he thought, 'helpful Jacob' also couldn't keep his blasted –
perverted – eyes off Derek's precious lifeMate. Surely, Leah didn't honestly
think that dork was gorgeous!
    “Hmm, true,” Leah nodded in agreement,
her eyes twinkled with laughter and he realized she had been playing him.
    “While you picked out our paint guns,
he told me a pretty gruesome story. It seems the mint is so thick, because a
few years back they had a pack of werewolves and a few Sasquatch escape from a
quarantined area. They went on a killing frenzy, hunting and eating four kids
before being stopped.”
    Derek’s dark growl hardened his words
into gun metal. “That was a stupid thing to tell you before we left on a hike
in the same forest. He’s not fit to be in charge of an entire cabin of young
people.”
    Leah’s gentle touch on his arm
surprised him. Looking down, he smiled into her worried face. “Afraid I’ll go
back and rip his head off?” he asked jokingly.
    “Maybe just a bit,” she admitted with a
big grin.
    “It’s tempting, but the dragons
probably wouldn’t like it,” Derek said with a wry smile.
    They walked in companionable silence,
but after a while, Derek really wanted to hear her voice. He said the first
thing that popped into his head. “Tell me about your mom.”
    When she remained silent, he kicked
himself, remembering Mort's comment about her mom being insane. He seemed to be
making mistake, after mistake with her. Until her synth sang for him and they
mentally bonded, he would probably continue sticking his foot in it.
    ~ ~ ~
    The hat was driving Leah nuts, the brim
kept flopping; with each step it flopped right at the edge of her vision.
    For what felt like the thousandth time
she pushed it up.
    Derek chuckled and slowly pulled it off
her head.
    "Thanks, it was driving me
crazy." She waved at the heavy forest, a mixture of Sídhí and Earth born
plants and trees. “Anyway, it's totally shaded through this area.”
    They stopped and Derek tied the hat's
bandanna around a strap on her backpack. When he finished he said, “I could
tell from your voice, your mom means a lot to you.”
    “She does,” Leah said, blinking back a
sudden rush of emotion. She didn't like talking about her mom, but Derek seemed
different than most people. A feeling of unease weaved through her stomach; she
didn't want to like him, but with every word he spoke, she liked him more and
more. “She’s the only person in the world I love or that loves me.”
    She sighed, giving in to her desire.
She'd wanted to talk with him, but didn't know what to say, not without making
him think she was attracted to him. “I’ve never even seen her face.”
    “You've never met your mom?” he asked,
shock twisted his face.
    Leah hesitated, not sure what she
should tell him. Admitting she was half dragon was not an option. The other
Sídhí races believed dragons never had children outside their race. How they
kept that secret for this long still amazed her, but she'd promised her mom
that she wouldn't tell. And promises were made to be kept, especially this one.
    The 'big secret' was critical to Dragon
Valley's safety or her mom thought it was important. Leah wasn't too sure.
    “When Mort said she was a prisoner, he
wasn’t just being nasty. Was he?” Derek asked quietly, his voice reflected his
serious gaze as she glanced up at him.
    “No, she’s actually a prisoner.”
    He growled and she smiled at the sound;
his anger, on her behalf, made her feel better. “They have her chained in
silver, but somehow - until about five years ago - she was still able to reach
my mind.”
    His next words took her breath away.
    “We'll figure a way to get her out,” he
snarled.
    “I don’t know how. She’s in the TèVarrn
Prison. It’s a mass of underground cells and passageways