Dragon
Song
Dawn
of the Dragon Queen
Book
One
Tara
West
Genre:
historical fantasy romance
Publisher:
Shifting Sands Publishing
Date
of Publication: October 20, 2015
Number
of pages: 250
Word
Count: 65,000
Cover
Artist: Renee Barratt at
The
Cover Counts
Dragon
Song
Dawn
of the Dragon Queen
Book
One
Tara
West
Genre:
historical fantasy romance
Publisher:
Shifting Sands Publishing
Date
of Publication: October 20, 2015
Number
of pages: 250
Word
Count: 65,000
Cover
Artist: Renee Barratt at
The
Cover Counts
Book
Description:
Duncan
MacQuoid, dragon-slayer, is no more. In his place is a tortured man
seeking solace for his sins. One fateful night he finds a woman he
believes will be his salvation. Little does he know, his love for her
could be his final undoing.
Fiona
Firesblood, dragon-shifter and noble queen, will stop at nothing to
protect her child, even if it means she must sever the bond with her
mate, Duncan MacQuoid, the one man she loves above all others, and
the one man whose past could destroy them all.
Safina
Firesblood, daughter of a cursed union between dragon and
dragon-slayer, has grown into a young woman, a powerful dragon
princess in her own right. When she’s given one chance at true
love, will she risk the dragon queen’s wrath or resign herself to
an eternity of sorrow?
Available
at Amazon
Excerpts
Scene
#1
Fiona barely remembered the journey to the stranger’s small, dark
hut. Her dragon-touched eyes normally took in every nuance of her
surroundings, but she’d been blinded by a pair of handsome, pale
eyes and a warm, seductive smile.
After
he’d hung her shawl beside the hearth, he bade her sit on a low
wooden stool and handed her a heavy goblet filled with swirling amber
liquid. She smiled into the mead, discreetly admiring his finely
sculpted form while he stoked the embers of the fire. Though the man
seemed to have entranced her, she had enough sense to know what would
become of her that night. He would caress, kiss, and toy with her,
making her as pliable as a soft piece of clay. Then he would carry
her to his warm furs and make love to her. And she wouldn’t do a
damned thing to stop him.
Fiona
knew she should have thanked the man for the drink and warm fire and
then fled. Aye, that’s what she should have done. But the effects
of the potent mead made her head whirl, carrying away her doubts in a
lust-induced current.
Her
mind told her to fly to the safety of the secret cave she and her
mother had once shared, for her mother had warned her men brought
only heartache. In truth, she wanted to flee. But she wanted him
more.
His
masculine spices—a mixture of sweat, leather, and sage—assailed
her senses as he drew near. He sat beside her on the stone hearth,
warming his hands in front of the fire.
“Are
ye hungry?” He leaned over her, pouring more mead into her goblet.
“No.”
A shiver coursed through her as the scent of desire pulsed off his
skin.
He
frowned. “Are ye chilled?”
“No,”
she said, clenching her hands to still her trembling. What had come
over her? How had a mere mortal reduced her to a quivering flower?
“Then
what can I do for ye, lass?” He clasped her small hands in his, the
calluses on his fingers chafing her smooth skin.
Fiona
pondered his question. What did she want him to do for her? She
wanted him to show her what it felt like to spend the night in the
arms of a man. She wanted to feel the intimacy of his mouth on hers,
to understand why mortals so easily fell under the spell of desire.
But most of all, after six years of traveling alone and missing the
familiarity of a kind word or a tender hug, she wanted to feel loved.
Fiona
silently stood, unlacing her bodice and letting her dress fall to the
floor. She turned up her chin, meeting his shocked gaze with a subtle
smile. “Can you make love to me?”
“Aye,”
he said on a throaty growl. “I can do that.”
*
* *
Scene
#2
“Murderer!”
She shoved him back with such force, he toppled from the bed in a
tangle of furs.
“Fiona,
’tis me, Duncan,” he cried as he struggled to stand.
What
had come over her? One moment they were caressing beneath the warm
furs, and the next she had sprung from his bed, screaming like a
banshee.
“I
know who you are, MacQuoid. Dragonslayer!” She ended on a shrill
sob before covering her face with her hands.
Duncan
stood, kicking the furs to the side and reaching for her. “I am a
dragonslayer no more, Fiona.”
“Why
did you make love to me? You should have killed me like you did the
rest of my kind.” She rushed through the flap of his tiny hut into
the cool morning air.
Swearing
under his breath, Duncan wrapped a fur around his waist and chased
after her.
Surely
they had both gone mad.
The
morning was exceptionally cold, and Fiona wore not a stitch of
clothes. A chill wind from the north whipped the heavy branches
overhead into a frenzy. Autumn leaves danced around Fiona’s feet as
she wept, kneeling beside a fallen oak.
The
sharp edge of her suffering pierced the cavity of Duncan’s chest.
He still did not understand how her emotions had been tethered to his
own, but he did feel her pain, so keen he thought his heart would
break from it.
“Fiona,
you are mistaken. Come inside where ’tis warm,” he pleaded.
She
looked up at him through tear-soaked eyes. “You killed my mother!”
Her body shook with violent tremors. “You struck her with a spear,
and she had never sought to harm mankind. Never!”
Duncan’s
head spun and he felt weightless. Mouth agape, he stared at her,
hoping his senses would return. And then the words from the
she-dragon reverberated through his skull.
I
have never sought to harm mankind. Never!
“’Twas
a dragon I speared, not a human.” But even as he said the words, he
knew ’twas a lie. That dragon had been no dumb beast. She was
something more.
“She
was my mother!” Fiona wailed. “She was kind and good and all I
had left in the world.”
“Fiona,”
Duncan struggled for words, knowing nothing he could say would ever
bring back her mother. “Forgive me.” Stepping forward, he reached
out, needing to touch her and soothe her pain.
“Do
not touch me! Do not ever touch me!”
What
happened next Duncan would not have believed had he not seen the
she-dragon transform into a beautiful woman each night in his dreams.
But
those were dreams, and the dragon hovering above him now was no
fantasy, though just a moment before she had been his beautiful lass.
Panting
like a wounded animal, she singed his hair with her fiery breath.
Duncan
did not cower. He did not fear. They had shared a connection when he
loved her beneath the light of the full moon. She would not harm him
now.
He
looked up into her amber eyes, which were the same as last night,
only larger, sadder. ’Twas then he knew neither of them would come
away from this unscathed. For her heart was shattered, and he did not
know how he could live without her forgiveness.
About
the Author:
Tara
West writes books about dragons, witches, and handsome heroes while
eating chocolate, lots and lots of chocolate. She's willing to share
her dragons, witches and heroes. Keep your hands off her chocolate.
Tara
West's young adult and new adult romances have been Kindle
bestsellers. A former high school English teacher, Tara is now a
full-time writer and graphic artist. She enjoys spending time with
her family, interacting with her fans, and fishing the Texas coast.
website:
www.tarawest.com
@TaraWestauthor
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