Midlife Magic Dragon (Midlife Shifters Book 7) Read online

  It was the last thing to go through her mind before she slammed hard into the ground, more pain shooting through her.

  Maddie quickly fell into a roll, the angle of the slope pulling her further and further along. Her hands shot out as she tried desperately to grab onto something, anything. But grass only whooshed past her. More pain sprang up here and there as she rolled over a stone or branch.

  But the worst was yet to come. Down at the end of the slope, Maddie saw a great expanse of blue.

  Horror rushed through her body as she realized what she was seeing—a cliff drop-off, like the ones Sean had mentioned.

  She panicked, more desperation taking hold. Maddie continued to reach out, her speed picking up faster and faster as she rolled toward the cliff edge.

  But she was moving too quickly to hope to grab onto anything. Maddie reached the edge and sailed off, blue opening up over top of her, green hundreds of feet down below.

  For the briefest of moments, everything was calm. She flew through the air, no sound but a soft whoosh and the rhythmic beating of her heart.

  But when she stopped spinning and began to fall down, the horror of what was happening took hold. Her stomach tightened and flew up into her throat like being on the downward slope of the steepest rollercoaster she could imagine.

  This is it. I’m going to die, and I’m going to die because I was trying to check my email.

  It was the last thought that formed in her mind before the rush of the green down below coming closer and closer overtook it all.

  She closed her eyes and prepared for the worst.

  But instead of a hard thud against the ground, a deafening rush of wind surrounded her. A blast of some animal’s cry filled the air—a sound like no animal she’d ever heard. Then there was the awareness of someone being near her.

  Then something wrapped around her, enshrouding her in darkness. It pulled her hard, jerking her body away from the treetops below.

  She struggled and screamed, trying desperately to pull herself away. Whatever held her was cold and scaly, like the skin of a snake. But whatever, whoever, it was had a strength she couldn’t hope to match.

  The being carried her away, massive buffets of wind rushing through her hair.

  Then they slowed and slowed, and she could see the ground approach.

  The being landed and set her down.

  She opened her eyes.

  And what she saw was enough to make her faint on the spot.

  CHAPTER 2

  SCORN

  Take ‘em out, one by one. Hell, take ‘em all out at once—even better.

  Scorn Ryder narrowed his eyes at the procession of men and women marching through the woods.

  His woods.

  Start with that guy with the manbun. Rush in and take him out so fucking fast you pull him out of his overpriced hiking boots. Maybe if you take him out fast enough, you’ll leave his feet in ‘em, too.

  A sly smile formed on Scorn’s face below his hunter’s eyes. His palms were pressed against the trunk of the tree he was hidden behind. He didn’t hide because he feared being found, of course. Nothing a group of soft-as-hell humans could do against him, one of the most powerful dragons on the West Coast.

  He hid because he wanted to carefully plan his next move. Scorn had smelled the humans on the wind from back in his cabin. And few things made him angrier than trespassers.

  His inner beast, his rage, spoke again.

  They gave up any rights once they stepped foot on your land. The humans need to know that your woods are off-fucking-limits. Can’t think of a better way to teach ‘em than by takin’ a few of ‘em out. Might be a good idea to leave a couple, let ‘em tell others what happened.

  Visions of blood and gore filled his mind against his wishes. His powerful heart raced, his muscles flexed and tensed. The desire, the need, to kill was nearly overwhelming.

  It was Scorn’s animal, his rage. And it seemed to take on a life of its own inside of him.

  No, he thought, mustering his human rationality to argue against his rage. I can’t kill them. They’re innocent—didn’t do a fucking thing wrong.

  But his rage was right there with a response.

  They invaded your land. You let this stand, and you’re nothing but a weak, pathetic dragon. Hell, you already proved that when you couldn’t hold on to your own fucking clan.

  His gut tensed and tightened at the words. His rage knew how to get to him, how to appeal to his alpha ego and his pride.

  But he was ready.

  I kill those people, and half the state of Washington’s going to come up here to figure out what the hell happened.

  The rage was right there with an answer. Then you kill them, too.

  Scorn smirked at the reply, his rage knowing just how to appeal to his darkest desires. From his vantage point, he watched the hikers.

  Think how easy it would be. Hell, you could even make a game out of it—see how many you can pick off before they know what’s going on. Start at the back and take one after the other. Then that little shithead leading the group can turn around to see he’s all alone. Imagine how fucking scared he’d feel before you plucked his beating heart out.

  The rage had a hell of a way of creating scenarios.

  And he was winning. Since Scorn’s banishment to the wilds of Washington, every day had been a struggle against the dark side of him, the side that had cost him leadership of his dragon clan, the Blackshrouds.

  Part of him had hoped that living in the woods by himself would give him the time and space he’d need to control the rage that had boiled inside of him since the day he’d gone too far, when the rage had taken him to a place he couldn’t come back from.

  He closed his eyes hard, trying to let the rage flow through him until it faded. His heart raced, his hands clenched into fists.

  Quit being a pussy. Take this chance to show them all how you’re still the alpha in charge, how you don’t take shit from anyone. Or you could let the humans do whatever the fuck they want. Your call, “alpha.”

  Scorn’s rage made a convincing case, one that pushed him closer and closer to making a move. He could easily take out the entire group. Hell, he wouldn’t even need to shift into his dragon form to do it. His increased speed and power would be more than enough.

  Get up! Get the fuck up! Defend your territory like a real alpha! Or go back to your cabin and hide, like you’ve been doing for the last two years. Do it, you pussy!

  The rage had won, and Scorn rose. He felt his humanity fade by the moment, his rage taking more and more control. He stepped from around the tree and began to approach the group.

  His footsteps were silent, dragons capable of moving quietly and quickly when in their human forms. Dragons in their animal form were destructive beasts, capable of leveling entire cities without breaking a sweat—if they could sweat. But in their human forms, they were silent killers, like ninjas.

  He moved, his eyes locked on one of the members of the group. His vision focused, the rest of the world fading away aside from the man in his sights.

  But out of the corner of his eye, he spotted something.

  Someone.

  A woman.

  Mere moments before he could move in for the kill, Scorn stopped in his tracks. He turned his attention to her, unable to believe what he was seeing.

  She was the most gorgeous fucking woman he’d ever seen in his life.

  Tall and leggy, with chestnut brown hair and a body so sexy he could make out her curves even through the jeans and flannel she had on. Her eyes were the same deep green as the pines above, making her seem like one with the land. Scorn couldn’t make out her exact age, but he guessed she was close to forty.

  And what was more, the woman carried herself with a confidence he couldn’t help but watch and admire. Despite being clearly out of her element—her clothes brand new—there was power and strength in the way she walked.

  He focused on her entirely, ignoring the man in the group h
e’d picked out as a victim.

  Hey! His rage fought for his attention. What the fuck are you doing? Eyes on the prize, buddy—not on some random chick’s ass.

  Though his inner rage had become more and more insistent as time had gone on, he was always able to talk it down. But with the woman in his sights, pushing the rage back down was no problem at all.

  There’s something about this woman, something...different.

  He watched her for a time, his eyes moving along the curves of her body, lingering on her perfect ass.

  Using the woman to calm himself down, he let the rage flow through and out of him until it faded into nothing. It’d return—it always did—but for the time being, his humanity was in full control.

  Scorn knew he ought to let the humans pass, to leave his woods and go back to Seattle or Portland or whatever city they’d come from. They were on his land, true, but killing them like his rage had wanted would only draw attention.

  And not only that, but Scorn hated the idea of taking the lives of innocents—despite what others in the Blackshroud clan had advised him during his time as alpha.

  He watched the woman, imagining what it’d be like to rip those clothes from her body, to push her up against the nearest tree, pull her panties to the side, and bury his thick cock deep into her pussy. He imagined her moans filling the forest air, her ass grinding against his hips as he made her come over and over again.

  Scorn closed his eyes, trying to push the images out of his head.

  Fucking focus. Best thing for you would be to get the fuck out of here before the rage returns.

  He glanced down, noticing his cock was stiff and straining against his black jeans. Scorn stood up, shaking his leg and doing his best to get his prick to calm down.

  But right in the middle of it, he watched as the woman made her way from the rest of the group. He stood still, his eyes on her as she took out her phone and said something to the woman she was with. Then she started off away from the group, disappearing into the woods.

  What the hell is she doing? Doesn’t she know there’s no worse idea than wandering off into the woods when you don’t know what you’re doing?

  There wasn’t a doubt in his mind she was out of her element. Her new clothes, her clean boots, even her scent made him certain she was a city woman through and through.

  And more than that, he was certain she was walking right into danger.

  Just follow her to make sure she doesn’t do anything stupid, that she ends up back with her group. Then leave these dumbasses alone.

  It’s what Scorn told himself as he moved silently through the woods, his footfalls making no more noise than wind through the branches and over the leaves. He glanced over at the long line of hikers, watching for a moment as they went off in the direction they’d been traveling, none of them noticing the woman had gone.

  Scorn kept on moving, glancing down as he ran at the small, weathered tombstones left by those who lived in these parts of the woods years ago.

  Fucking creepy, he thought as he ran.

  He hurried through the trees, the forest floor sloping down below him as he ran. A tense feeling formed in his gut. He could easily imagine the woman blundering through the woods, her eyes on her phone, no idea of how dangerous this place could be if she were to wander off the beaten path.

  Even for someone like him who knew the words, Scorn had to step carefully. He followed her smell, that scent of lilacs and sex, the aroma so intoxicating that it was enough to turn him on like crazy as he ran. He wanted to keep her safe, but the urge to claim her, to make her his, grew with each step.

  Then he heard it—a scream that cut through the still air. It was further down the slope, and Scorn didn’t need to think too hard to imagine what it might be. He began to run, the brown and green of the woods becoming a blur as he hurried in the direction of the woman.

  The fucking slope—she’s gonna fall right down.

  His heart raced, and to his surprise, he grew...worried. Feeling that way about anyone, let alone humans, was totally foreign to him. What the hell was it about this woman making him feel this way?

  Scorn saw the great, blue expanse of the horizon over the cliff. And the moment he laid eyes on it he heard another scream, this one fading faster and faster.

  Fucking hell—she went off the side.

  He didn’t need a second of thought to act. Scorn closed his eyes and shifted into the form of a great black dragon, ten feet tall and scales as dark as oil, his eyes a deep gold.

  Scorn flapped his powerful wings and rose into the air, flying above the tree line and over the cliff edge.

  He spotted her, the woman sailing in a long, slow arc over the endless expanse of the green below. Scorn flew as hard as he could, racing toward the woman, her figure growing by the second. She hit the peak of her arc and began to fall, her eyes closed, the woman likely passed out in fright.

  His muscles burned as he flapped his wings with all his strength, drawing closer and closer to the woman and, right at the moment she began to pitch down, wrapping her in his talons and pulling her close.

  Safe. Relief washed through him as he held the woman close. He flapped his wings, carrying the two of them back to the edge of the cliff. Once over the forest floor, Scorn set her down gently before shifting back into his human form.

  He scanned her body, noticing that she was hurt. The tumble down the slope had covered her arms in cuts and Scorn knew there was a chance she’d broken something.

  Be smart—take her back to the group and let them figure it out.

  He didn’t like the idea. Taking her back would draw attention to him in the woods, and that meant the hiking group would start asking questions about who he was, what he was doing there.

  Scorn glanced down at her, weighing his options.

  Take her back to the cabin. Check her out and make sure she’s fine. She wakes up and asks questions, just tell her you’re some fucking weirdo who lives in the woods. Hell, that’s not too far from the truth, right?

  Without wasting another second, he scooped the woman off the ground and shifted back into his dragon form. Scorn rose over the trees, making sure he was high enough that the group wouldn’t be able to see him through the canopy.

  He sailed through the air, spotting the small clearing a few miles away, where his cabin was situated. Scorn then flew down, reaching the earth in only a few moments.

  Scorn’s cabin was an abandoned ranger’s station, a two-story wooden cabin near a small lake. It’d seen better days, the place long empty. The interior was still trashed with broken windows and junk shoved out of the way here and there. But it was secluded—the most important part. Scorn didn’t need anything fancier.

  He opened the door, the inside of the cabin dark and dingy. Scorn brought the woman over to the couch and cleared it off, knocking to the ground a few of his empty whiskey bottles.

  Gotta check her for injuries, he thought, standing over her. Might have a broken bone sticking out of her or some shit.

  It felt strange, but Scorn knew what he had to do. He grabbed the woman’s coat and sweater and pulled them off, one after another. Then he undid her jeans and pulled them down.

  Business-like, he gave her body a once over and was relieved to see that she was all right—only a few cuts and scrapes where her clothes hadn’t covered her skin marred her otherwise perfect body. His cock twitched at the sight of her in nothing but a matching set of black bra and panties, her curves round and her tits perfect.

  Focus on the fucking issue at hand, numbnuts.

  He moved to put her clothes back on, but once he had her sweater in his hands he realized it was filthy and wet. Same with her jeans.

  I’ll give her some of mine. Maybe get a fire going after that.

  He hurried up to the master bedroom, the view from the windows looking out over the deck and to the lake and trees beyond. Scorn grabbed a T-shirt and pair of sleeping pants from his dresser, along with a comfy pair of wool soc
ks. Those in hand, he hurried back downstairs.

  “What the hell?”

  He stopped short at the base of the stairs. The woman rose from the couch, looking around as she realized something strange as hell was happening.

  Here we fucking go, thought Scorn.

  His cock came to life again at the sight of her.

  He wondered if she’d be something he’d be able to resist.

  CHAPTER 3

  MADDIE

  What the fuck was going on?

  Her head still pounding, she stood in the middle of some run-down living room in a place she’d never been before. Her sweater had been pulled off, her jeans still unbuttoned.

  And on the other side of the room was a strange man staring at her.

  “Who are you? What the hell did you do to me?”

  Despite the panic running through her, she couldn’t help but notice that guy at the base of the stairs was about the best-looking and most striking man she’d ever seen in her life.

  He was tall -had to have been around six-and-a-half feet—with broad, round shoulders and hair the color of a silver fox. He was almost...inhumanly good-looking, with a wide jaw and narrow, hunter’s eyes, his tanned skin covered in a dusting of grey stubble. There were lines in his face, but they were gorgeous, and told the story of a man who had seen some shit. And his eyes, they were almost golden, a color she’d never seen on a man before.

  He was dressed in a red-and-blue flannel and rugged jeans, a pair of heavy-duty, well-worn boots on his feet. And despite how freaked out Maddie was, he didn’t seem to have lost his cool.

  For a moment, his golden eyes flashed with...something, his mouth curling up into a sinister smile. He regarded her like a beast who’d just found his prey. It was as if he’d been taken over by an animal.

  It scared her.

  But it only lasted for a second. His serious expression returned, and he raised his palms to Maddie.

  “Easy.” His voice was full and deep, his tone even and calm. “I’m not going to hurt you. Name’s Scorn, by the way—Scorn Ryder.”