Saved By Dragons: (A Reverse Harem Paranormal Romance) Read online

  Saved By Dragons

  (A Reverse Harem Paranormal Romance)

  Maia Starr

  Copyright ©2018 by Maia Starr - All rights reserved.

  In no way is it legal to reproduce, duplicate, or transmit any part of this document in either electronic means or in printed format. Recording of this publication is strictly prohibited and any storage of this document is not allowed unless with written permission from the publisher. All rights reserved.

  Respective authors own all copyrights not held by the publisher.

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

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  Chapter One

  Hailey

  There was always some amount of excitement when your work day came to an end, but when you had something to look forward to, your impatience and excitement mixed becoming a sort of anxious and overwhelming need to count down every last minute until quitting time. For me, work was fluid and constant. Bartending where I lived was regular work because there were more nightclubs than grocery stores. It was a party state, Florida, and while some things in the world had changed, there were those constants. The nightlife being full of partying, drinking, and dancing bodies was one of those constants.

  I couldn’t wait for my shift to end and as I wiped the counters of the bar, a few of my regular patrons noticed the anxious way I was working.

  “What’s up, Hailey?” one of my regulars, Paul, called out to me. I smiled, looking up just long enough to make eye contact with him but still wiping at the counters diligently.

  “Oh, just doing the usual chore list so I can get out of here. It’s been a long day for this old girl.” I smiled and paused briefly, “Jesse should be in any moment to take over from here. I’ve been running all day through lunch and into dinner,” I explained. He gave a shrug as if he didn’t believe me.

  “Nah, I am not buying, Hailey. Something else has got your feathers ruffled. What’s going on?” he asked me. I smiled. That was the thing about having older generation customers. They were wise enough to know when someone was throwing them a line of bull.

  “I’ve got a date tonight, and I’m kind of nervous about it,” I said nonchalantly. I didn’t usually like to share my personal life with my customers, but Paul was the old pops figure that always looked out for me and all the other girls who worked the bar.

  “Ah, well, you know this guy well?” he asked me, narrowing his eyes slightly, “I’d hate to have to come lend a fist to someone’s face because they messed with my favorite drink-maker,” he said, half-joking and partially serious.

  “You’re sweet, Paul, but I can handle myself. Don’t worry; I’ve got this,” I said. It was true; I ran a bar damn near nightly, so I couldn’t afford to be too soft. Not when there were drunks to put in order and drinks to create.

  “Well, she said she didn’t need your help, bud,” another regular, Jason, piped up. The two of them usually came in to have a couple of craft beers together, and over the years I had learned they had retired to Florida to fish, drink, and enjoy the tropical atmosphere that Southern Florida provided. It made sense. It was why most folks moved here. I chuckled.

  “You two should probably get on out of here soon, shouldn’t ya?” I asked, knowing their wives would call them up any moment to inquire about their whereabouts. It was a usual occurrence.

  Jason grunted in annoyance. His wife was a spender, and she liked to go out on the town regularly. I knew that he could afford her pampered life, but it seemed like an odd match. Jason usually dressed in Miami-style flyboy shirts with Palm trees printed all over them and paired those with cut off old jean shorts or a pair of cargo khakis. And shoes? Forget them; he donned a pair of leather Birkenstocks nearly every day I had ever seen him. I also knew he had served in the Airforce and was nobody to mess with—according to the stories I had heard him and Paul exchange.

  I learned the two were nearly like brothers and lifelong best friends. It made me wish I had someone like that to pass the time with. Maybe by later that night I would. This thought only made me want to clock out even more. Damn, why was time dragging so slow tonight?

  “Meh, don’t you worry your head with that. Suzanne knows where I’m at tonight. She doesn’t care either because we made a deal. She got to go off on a spending spree with her friend Annette, and I get to match her spending limit here at the bar. Thing about it is, I lucked out over here because I can spread the spending limit out over several visits. She’s going to be over hers about thirty minutes into the trip!” Paul chuckled. Jason chuckled too, shaking his head.

  “Mine’s usually the spender, but everybody has their moments; looks like it’s Paul’s turn,” he turned to look at me directly in the eyes, “Just you remember, Paul and I are here to hand a can of good old-fashioned whoop-ass out to anybody who messes with you, Hailey. Can’t be losing the best bartender in town.” He winked, lifting his beer and tilting the neck toward me.

  “You two are a riot.” I took a peek over my shoulder and noted the time, “And it’s time for me to get out of here!” I said, turning to clock out and smiling as Jesse walked in. “You’re just on time, enjoy. Paul and Jay are in a great mood,” I added, as I gathered my things and strode out the door. I loved my customers, but there was a limit to how much I could handle. I found my way across the parking lot and crawled into my car. I only had about an hour to get myself ready for the date, and I was anxious to get my drink on. Everybody deserved a little pick-me-up or a nightcap from time to time; I was no different.

  I walked into the bar section of the restaurant and sat, waiting for my date to meet me. It was odd that he had insisted we each drive our own cars, but that was fine with me. I didn’t intend on having more than one drink with dinner anyway. A cocktail or something was all I needed.

  “Hey,” I smiled as he sat down beside me. He was a handsome man, and I was finding myself gawking like a high school girl.

  “Hey, have you been waiting a long time?” he asked me, sitting down and looking at his watch quickly.

  “No, not really. Do you know what you want to order?” I asked, ready to get down to my one drink, maybe two. I could make a little wiggle room, I thought.

  “Sure,” he said, smiling and waving to the waitress. She approached and tilted her head.

  “What can I get for you two?” she asked him. He looked at me and shrugged.

  “I think we’ll have some champagne,” he said. I nodded in agreement.

  “That sounds good to me,” I smiled. So far, it seemed like he was pretty nice, and that was a plus. I couldn’t stand an arrogant jerk or anyone who behaved smugly. Trouble was in the town I lived in, those types were a dime a dozen. Most certainly not in short supply. A girl had to make exceptions, I’d been told by a few of my friends, but now that things like wolf-shifters existing was a known fact to the world, the dating scene had gotten even stranger. Especially
for me.

  “So, how was work?” he asked me as the waitress returned with the champagne glasses. She sat one in front of each of us on top of a fancy little napkin. It was a cute touch. I lifted the glass and tilted it toward him.

  “Just serving nice drinks and raising glasses, as usual,” I chuckled as he clinked my glass with his. He chuckled and waved at the waitress before she took off again, tossing back his champagne quickly after toasting me. I was honestly kind of surprised.

  “What can I do for you?” she asked him.

  “We’re going to need more of the champagne. Much, much more,” he said, “Did you want to get an appetizer or an entrée?” he asked me. I smiled.

  “How about something simple? Nothing too heavy but maybe some sliders or something to share?” I offered. He smiled with a nod, and I reached for my glass, finishing off the remnants of my drink quickly. The waitress peered at him momentarily.

  “We have a slider special this evening. It includes four sliders and a basket of fries on the side,” she said. He nodded as if the waitress was more than appeasing with her prompt response. I noted those things because I worked in the service industry, and I knew the girl had made herself a handsome tip.

  “Yeah, we’ll have that, and more champagne,” he said. I had only consumed one drink, but already I was beginning to feel limber, like I was losing my sense of time. It was weird, and I glanced into the glass, wondering what exactly he had ordered. It was definitely stronger than most champagnes I had ever had.

  I decided to play it off. Maybe work had just made me more tired than usual. Yeah, that had to be it. There was no way it could be anything else and so far, the date was going pretty well. I didn’t want to ruin my good night. So, I didn’t. The waitress brought our drinks and the sliders to the table, and I inhaled the scent of them and smiled.

  “That smells divine,” I said, closing my eyes and falling face-forward into my plate, unconscious.

  Chapter Two

  Weston

  Fighting for your survival was one thing. Fighting because you had an instinctual need to thrive off carnality was another. And it was a hell of a thin line to know when the right time to battle it out truly was. But when it came to dragon shifters and wolf shifters, I was always game to stand my ground. There was no way in hell some mangy mutt was going to try to play dominant with me. Not when I could bite him in half with one chomp of my jaws. Maybe not in my current state, but that didn’t really matter.

  When the prick decided it was time to tango, I didn’t waste any time. I’d taken a few of the blows, being that there was more than one of them, and my ribs were lined with a deep gash where one of the wolves had shifted and buried his claws into my flesh. That bastard rested some feet behind me with a snapped neck and a severed spine. But the stench of fresh blood soiled the ground all around me. In the distance, I could see that there was a pretty brunette woman sprawled out on the ground, and I wasn’t sure if she was still breathing or not, but the wolves were congregating all around her, and I instinctually knew something wasn’t right. Suddenly, a dark-haired male approached, his eyes looking over the ground and assessing what was going on.

  “What do you want?” I barked at him, still on the defensive. The man looked around and shook his head.

  “I’m not a wolf. I smelled the blood, and I’m training to be a healer. I just wanted to come and see if I could tend to the injured. That’s all,” he said, stepping back and putting both of his hands up in front of his stomach, a gesture meant to show he was unarmed and not a threat. I looked past him to notice that there were two other men jogging up behind him to see the carnage.

  “Oh, shit, you beat some ass!” another of the men stated, chuckling as he looked over the few remaining wolf bodies that rested just feet away.

  “Who the hell are you guys?” I asked, sniffing the air and noting that they were definitely not wolf-shifters. No, they didn’t smell like wet dog after a good rain. The first guy who had approached walked toward me, extending his hand as he introduced himself.

  “Name’s James; like I said, I’m to be a healer, and I think I may be able to help you with that wound there,” he nodded toward the scrape on my side, but that was the least of my worries.

  “The girl, she’s over there on the ground; she probably needs help more than I do,” I said. I didn’t need this dude’s help with my injuries. I could handle my own. James peered past me at the girl on the ground and furrowed his brows. “Who are you two?” I nodded at the other two men, a redhead who appeared to be a baby by comparison to the guy standing beside him.

  “Name’s Cree,” the redhead said, stepping forward and extending his hand. I shook his hand and sniffed the air. They were both definitely dragons. I had no doubt about that.

  “And you?” I asked, looking to the other man who appeared rougher around the edges and had a much darker demeanor. I wasn’t sure if I liked him. He snorted and wiped under his nose.

  “Name’s Malick. Here to help with the girl, just like you,” he said, brushing past me to follow after James who now stood looking at the girl lying unconscious at his feet.

  “Well, guess it’s nice to meet you, Malick and Cree,” I said, walking up to stand beside James and looking down at the girl I had just helped save. She looked like a lifeless heap, but her hair had slid from her cheeks to reveal her soft features. She had bright red lips and fair tawny skin. Beautiful before they had gotten ahold of her, I thought.

  “Is she alive?” Cree asked as he looked at her. The girl seemed to hear his voice and sat upward suddenly, her eyes full of fear and shock.

  “Where am I? Who are you?” she asked, using her legs to push herself back across the ground as if she were attempting to put distance between herself and us. I knelt and held my hand out to her.

  “Hey, it’s okay. We,” I waved my hand around to each of the guys, “We found you here like this, and we chased your abusers away. We just want to help,” I said, hoping she wouldn’t freak out more and jump to the wrong conclusion. The girl looked around at each of us with a bewildered expression, her clothing torn in some places and hair mussed from the ground. She gathered the tattered remnants of her skirt and attempted to cover herself, though it was a useless endeavor.

  “Look, we just want to get you somewhere safe so I can look you over. I’ve got some medical experience,” James said, kneeling on the other side of her. Cree took this time to reach out a hand.

  “Come on, let’s get you out of here,” he said. The girl seemed hesitant at first but looking around at the wolves lying near her, it didn’t take her long to figure it all out.

  “Wolf shifters?” she asked, rubbing her head and temple with her right hand while reaching forward to take Cree’s hand with her left. He helped pull her up to stand, and James and I approached to let her rest her weight on each of our shoulders.

  “Just don’t you worry,” I said to her, smiling as she looked back at me. “We’re going to do whatever is necessary to keep you safe.” James pursed his lips and stopped for a minute.

  “Where are we going to take her to recuperate? She’s going to need time to recover,” he said. I sighed, I had no clue where to take her, but I knew he had a point. And we couldn’t just leave her to her own devices after suffering a wolf-shifter attack.

  “What about your place? You said you were training to be a healer,” I asked. He gave a sigh and looked to the other guys. We needed to come up with a solution on how to get the girl off the beach before other predators came around from the blood spill.

  “You guys have any suggestions on where to take the girl?” he asked them. Cree shook his head, casting his gaze to the ground with a somber expression.

  “No, I don’t think my clan would be okay with us bringing her in,” he said. I understood. We were dragon shifters, and the rules of our kind were specific. From looking at Malick, I wasn’t too sure he would be any more of a help, but it was worth a shot.

  “There is no way that we’r
e going to be able to bring her to my place,” he said, “My people aren’t friendly or hospitable. Not at all,” he added. It was just as I thought, and the girl seemed to be growing tired again. I wondered if she would pass out again.

  “So, it looks like it’s your place for the recovery period,” I said, looking back at James. He nodded, and almost looked like he was smiling, happy that the girl was going to be looked after by himself. I wasn’t sure I liked that too much. Here I had been the guy to come to her rescue. These dudes had only come because of smelling the carnage. If anything, I had been the one to save the girl.

  “No problem. There’s lots of space, and I’m confident we can get her restored in no time,” he said.

  “Will that work for you?” I asked the girl, as she leaned her head against my shoulder. She had just been found violated on the beach. I felt she at least needed to give consent to be taken somewhere she had no clue about. It only seemed right, fair.

  “Yes,” she murmured, seemingly relieved that we were going to help her and not hurt her more.

  “What’s your name?” James asked her, and she turned her head back to look at him.

  “Hailey. My name is Hailey Valdez,” she said.

  “Hailey, that’s a beautiful name,” I said. She turned to look back at me, and I noticed she had the most alluring eyes. Like shimmering emeralds, they were bright and deep green.

  “Thank you,” she said, closing her eyes and inhaling deeply, “Thank you all for all of your help,” she murmured. I nodded.