The Dragon's Dilemma (Lochguard Highland Dragons Book 1) Read online

  Contents

  Title

  Dedication

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Sacrificed to the Dragon Excerpt

  Books by Jessie Donovan

  Author's Note

  About the Author

  Copyright

  The Dragon’s Dilemma

  (Lochguard Highland Dragons #1)

  Jessie Donovan

  To My Facebook Fan Group

  Not only did they help me pick the title, they’ve helped to create a crazy little online family. Thank you all!

  Chapter One

  Holly Anderson paid the taxi driver and turned toward the large stone and metal gates behind her. Looking up, she saw “Lochguard” spelled out in twisting metal, as well as some words written in a language she couldn’t read.

  The strange words only reminded her of where she was standing—at the entrance to the Scottish dragon-shifter clan lands.

  Taking a deep breath, Holly willed her stomach to settle. She’d signed up for this. In exchange for trying to conceive a dragon-shifter’s child, Clan Lochguard had given her a vial of dragon’s blood. The money from the sale of that dragon’s blood was funding her father’s experimental cancer treatments.

  All she had to do was spend the next six months sleeping with a dragon-shifter. If she didn’t conceive, she could go home. If she did, then she would stay until the baby was born.

  What was a minimum of six months of her life if it meant her father could live?

  That’s if you don’t die giving birth to a half-dragon-shifter baby.

  Readjusting the grip on her suitcase, Holly pushed aside the possibility. From everything she’d read, great scientific strides were being made when it came to the role dragon hormones played on a human’s body. If she were lucky, there might even be a way to prevent her from dying in nine to fifteen months’ time, depending on the date of conception.

  This isn’t work. Stop thinking about conception dates and birthing babies. After all, she might luck out and never conceive at all.

  Holly moved toward the front entrance and took in the view of the loch off to the side. The dull color of the lake’s surface was calm, with rugged hills and mountains framing it. Considering she was in the Scottish Highlands in November, she was just grateful that it wasn’t raining.

  She wondered if it was raining back in Aberdeen.

  Thinking of home and her father brought tears to her eyes. He was recovering well from his first course of cancer treatments, but her father’s health could decline at any moment. If only dragon’s blood could cure cancer, then she wouldn’t have to worry.

  But since cancer was one of the illnesses dragon’s blood couldn’t cure, surely the Department of Dragon Affairs would grant her another few weeks to help take care of her father if she asked.

  As the taxi backed down the drive, Holly turned around and flagged for the driver to come back. However, before she could barely raise a hand, a voice boomed from the right. “Lass, over here.”

  She turned toward the voice and a tall, blond man waved her over with a smile.

  Between his wind-tousled hair, twinkling eyes, and his grin, the man was gorgeous.

  Not only that, he’d distracted her from doing something daft. If Holly ran away before finishing her contract, she’d end up in jail. And then who would take care of her father?

  The man motioned again. “Come, lass. I won’t bite.”

  When he winked, some of Holly’s nervousness faded. Despite the rumors of dragon-shifters being monsters, she’d followed the news stories over the last year and knew Lochguard was one of the good dragon clans. Rumors even said the Lochguard dragons and the local humans had once set up their own sacrifice system long before the British government had implemented one nationwide.

  It was time to experience the dragon-shifters firsthand and learn the truth.

  Pushing her shoulders back, Holly put on her take no-crap nurse expression and walked over to the dragonman. When she was close enough, she asked, “Who are you?”

  The man grinned wider. “I’m glad to see you’re not afraid of me, lass. That makes all of this a lot easier.”

  Before she could stop herself, Holly blurted, “Are you really a dragon-shifter?’

  The dragonman laughed. “Aye, I am. I’m the clan leader, in fact. The name’s Finn. What’s yours?”

  The easygoing man didn’t match the gruff picture she’d conjured up inside her head over the past few weeks.

  Still, dragons liked strength, or so her Department of Dragon Affairs counselor had advised her. Her past decade spent as a maternity nurse would serve her well—if she could handle frantic fathers and mothers during labor, she could handle anything. “You’re not a very good clan leader if you don’t know my name.”

  Finn chuckled. “I was trying to be polite, Holly.” He lowered his voice to a whisper. “Some say we’re monsters that eat bairns for breakfast. I was just trying to assure you we can be friendly.”

  Confident the smiling man wouldn’t hurt her for questioning him, she stated, “You could be acting.”

  “I think my mate is going to like you.”

  At the mention of the word “mate,” Holly’s confidence slipped a fraction. After all, she’d soon be having sex with a dragon-shifter to try to conceive a child. That was the price all sacrifices had to pay.

  And there was always a small chance she turned out to be the dragon-shifter’s true mate. If that happened, she might never be able to see her father again. Dragons were notoriously possessive. She didn’t think they’d let a mate go once they found one.

  Finn’s voice interrupted her thoughts. “Let me take that suitcase, Holly. The sooner we get you to my place, the sooner we can settle you in and answer some of your questions.”

  Finn put out a hand and she passed the case over. She murmured, “Thank you.”

  “Considering that you’re helping my clan more than you know, the least I can do is carry a bag.”

  She eyed the tall dragonman. “You don’t have to comfort me. I know what I volunteered to do.”

  Finn raised a blond eyebrow. “You looked about ready to bolt or cry a few minutes ago. I think a little kindness wouldn’t hurt.”

  He was right, not that she would admit to it. After all, she was supposed to be strong.

  Holly motioned toward the gates. “How about we go so you can give me the spiel and then let me meet my dragonman?”

  The dragonman’s smile faded. “So you’re giving orders to me now, aye?”

  Even though Holly was human, she still sensed the dominance and strength in his voice. She could apologize and try to hide her true self, but that would be too tiring to keep up long term. Instead, she tilted her head. “I’m used to giving orders. In my experience, as soon as a woman goes into labor, her other half goes crazy. If I don’t take charge, it could put the mother’s life as well as the child’s in danger. I’m sure you’ve read my file and should know what to expect.”

  The corner of Finn’s mouth ticked up. “Aye, I have. But I like t
o test the waters with potential clan members.”

  “I’m not—”

  Finn cut her off. “Give it time, lass. You may well become one in the long run.”

  Without another word, Finn started walking. Since he was at least eight inches taller than her, she had to half-jog to catch up to him. However, before she could reply, another tall, muscled dragonman approached. He still had the soft face of late adolescence and couldn’t be more than twenty.

  The younger dragon-shifter motioned a thumb behind him. “Archie and Cal are at it again. If you don’t break it up, they might shift and start dropping each other’s cattle for the second time this week.”

  Finn sighed. “I should assign them a full-time babysitter.”

  The younger man grinned. “You tried that, but my grandfather escaped, as you’ll remember.”

  “That’s because he’s a sneaky bastard.” Finn looked to Holly. “This is Jamie MacAllister. He’ll take you to my mate, Arabella. She can help you get settled before you meet Fergus.”

  “Who’s Fergus?” Holly asked, even though she had a feeling she knew.

  Finn answered, “Fergus MacKenzie is my cousin, but he’s also your assigned dragonman.”

  Of course she’d be given the cousin of the clan leader. After all, Holly was the first human sacrifice on Lochguard in over a decade. They’d want to keep tabs on her.

  Holly didn’t like it, but since she had yet to meet this Fergus, she wouldn’t judge him beforehand. For all she knew, Fergus MacKenzie might be a shy, quiet copy of his cousin.

  Maybe.

  Not sure what else to do, Holly nodded. After giving a few more orders, Finn left to address the problem and Jamie smiled down at her. “There’s never a dull moment here, lass. Welcome to Lochguard.”

  Holly wasn’t sure if that was a warning or a welcome.

  ~~~

  Fraser MacKenzie watched his twin brother from the kitchen. His brother, Fergus, was due to meet his human sacrifice in the next few hours and instead of celebrating his last hours of freedom, Fergus was doing paperwork.

  Sometimes, Fraser wondered how they were related at all.

  Taking aim, he lobbed an ice cube across the room. It bounced off his brother’s cheek and Fraser shouted, “Goal.”

  Frowning, Fergus glanced over. “Don’t you have a hole to dig? Or, maybe, some nails to pound?”

  Fraser shrugged a shoulder and inched his fingers toward another ice cube. “I finished work early. After all, it’s not every day your twin meets the possible mother of his child.”

  As Fraser picked up his second ice cube, his mother’s voice boomed from behind him. “Put it down, Fraser Moore MacKenzie. I won’t have you breaking something if you miss.”

  He looked at his mother and raised his brows. “I never miss.”

  Clicking her tongue, his mother, Lorna, moved toward the refrigerator. “Stop lying to me, lad. You missed a step and now have the scar near your eye to prove it.”

  Fraser resisted the urge to touch his scar. “That was because my sister distracted me.” He placed a hand over his heart. “I was just looking out for the wee lass.”

  Lorna rolled her eyes. “Faye was sixteen at the time and you were too busy glaring at one of the males.”

  “He was trouble. Faye deserved better,” Fraser replied.

  Fergus looked up from his paperwork. “Where is Faye?”

  Lorna waved a hand. “The same as every day. She leaves early in the morning and I don’t see her again until evening.”

  Fraser sobered up. “I wish she’d let us help her. Does anyone know if she can fly again yet?”

  His younger sister, Faye, had been shot out of the sky by an electrical blast nearly two months earlier while in dragon form and her wing had been severely damaged. While she was no longer in a wheelchair, the doctors weren’t sure if Faye would ever fly again.

  His mother turned toward him. “I trust Arabella to help her. Faye will come to us when she’s ready.”

  Jumping on the chance to lighten the mood again, Fraser tossed the ice cube into the sink and added, “I’m more worried about Fergus right now anyway. Who spends their last few hours of freedom cooped up inside? Even if he doesn’t want to go drinking, he could at least go for a flight.”

  Fergus lifted the papers in his hand. “For your information, this is all of the new procedures and suggestions from the Department of Dragon Affairs. Finn worked hard to make Lochguard one of the trial clans for these new rules, and I’m not about to fuck it up.” Lorna clicked her tongue and Fergus added, “Sorry, Mum.”

  Lorna leaned against the kitchen counter. “I still applaud you for what you’re doing, Fergus. After the last fifteen years of near-isolation, the clan desperately needs some new blood.”

  Fergus shrugged a shoulder. “It’s not a guarantee. Besides, how could I pass up the chance to help our cousin?”

  Fraser rolled his eyes. “Right, you’re being all noble when I know for a fact you just want to, er,” he looked to his mum and back to Fergus, “sleep with a human lass.”

  “No one around here has stirred a mate-claim frenzy and I’m not about to look in the other clans. I’m needed here,” Fergus replied. “A human sacrifice is my only other chance.”

  “And what if she’s not your true mate, brother? Then what?” Fraser asked.

  “I’ll still try to win her over. If she gives me a child, I want to try to convince the human to stay.”

  Lorna spoke up. “Her father’s ill, Fergus. Let’s see how things go before you start planning the human’s future.” Lorna looked to Fraser. “Let’s just hope she has spirit. I can handle anything but fear.”

  Fraser answered, “If Finn picked her out, then we should trust that he chose a good one.”

  “You’re right, son,” Lorna answered. She waved toward the living room. “Now, go get that ice cube.”

  “Fergus is closer. He could just toss it over.”

  Fergus looked back at his stack of papers. “Get it yourself.”

  With a sigh, Fraser moved toward the living room. “You were always a lazy sod.”

  Fergus looked up. “Takes one to know one. But at least this lazy sod is about to get his own cottage.”

  Lorna’s voice drifted into the living room. “It’s about time. One down, two more to go.”

  Fraser scooped up the ice cube and faced his mother. “Don’t worry, Mum. You’ll always have me. If I’m lucky, I won’t have a mate until I’m fifty.”

  Fergus chimed in. “She’ll kick you out on your arse before then.”

  “I’m feeling the love, brother.”

  Fergus looked up with a grin. “Someone has to love you, you unlovable bastard.”

  Tossing the ice cube into the sink, Fraser dried his hands. “You know you’ll miss me, Fergus. I give it a week and then you’ll be begging for my company.”

  “We’ll see, Fraser. If I’m lucky, I’ll be spending a week in my sacrifice’s bed.”

  The thought of not seeing his twin every day did something strange to his heart. Brushing past it, Fraser headed toward the door. “As much as I’d love to stay and watch you read boring protocol, I’m going to watch some paint dry instead.”

  Fergus raised an auburn eyebrow. “What happened to spending time with your brother?”

  “I never said anything about spending time with you. I wanted to show you a good time. The offer’s still open if you’re interested.”

  Shaking his head, Fergus answered, “Your good times always result in us waking up in strange places and not remembering the night before. I think I’ll stay here.”

  Fraser shrugged. “Your loss.” He looked to his mum. “I’ll be home for dinner, don’t worry.”

  Lorna answered. “You’d better be. Finn wants us to have a quiet dinner with Holly and help ease her into her new life here.”

  “Quiet is a bit of a stretch.”

  Lorna picked up an apple and tossed it at his head. Once he caught it, she answered, “J
ust get your arse home on time.”

  Fraser winked. “I’ll try my best, but you know how the lasses love me.”

  Not wanting to hear his mother’s lecture about settling down for the hundredth time, Fraser ducked out the front door.

  While the human wouldn’t be over to their house until dinnertime, she was due to arrive on Lochguard at any moment. He had known that Fergus wouldn’t want to go out, but asking gave Fraser the perfect cover and no one would suspect what he was about to do.

  It was time to spy on his brother’s future female and make sure she was worthy of a MacKenzie.

  ~~~

  Holly kept her thoughts to herself for the duration of the walk to Finn’s cottage. Not like she’d had a chance to say anything anyway.

  Jamie MacAllister liked to talk. A lot.

  Jamie gestured to the left. “Over there is the training area for the wee ones. I wouldn’t go there until you’ve been presented to the clan.” He glanced at her. “Dragon-shifter parents are a bit protective, you see.”

  She nodded and opened her mouth, but Jamie beat her to it. “This here is the main living area. Finn’s cottage is straight ahead. You can tell it’s his by the overgrown flowers and shrubs in the front.” He lowered his voice. “Neither Finn nor his mate like gardening. To be honest, the wildness suits them.”

  “If you say so,” she murmured.

  Jamie carried on as if she hadn’t spoken. “Most of these cottages have been here for over two hundred years.” He glanced down at her. “Unlike the Scottish clan near Stirling, we survived the Jacobite rising of the 18th century just fine.”

  Since she’d had a history lesson during her DDA counseling sessions, Holly already knew there had once been two Scottish dragon clans. But she decided it was easier to let Jamie keep talking so she wouldn’t have to try and be social or polite.

  Jamie opened his mouth to say something else when the door to Finn’s cottage opened. A tall dragonwoman with dark hair stood there. The scar across her face and the healed burn on one side of the woman’s neck told Holly it was Arabella MacLeod. Like most of Great Britain, Holly had watched the dragonwoman’s interview on the BBC several months earlier.