Free Blood of the Dragon (Her Dragon's Bane 2) by Harmony Raines

loved.
    By the time the mansion appeared in the distance, sounds of sirens could be heard behind them. In the sky helicopters circled, and Serena could only imagine the amount of cameras trained on this part of town.
    “We should walk, look natural. If anyone sees a group of people running away suspicion will fall on us, and once we’re on the road close to your home it wouldn’t take much for them to come knocking on your door,” Serena said.
    “You’re right,” Connor agreed, and then stopped and lowered Tara to the ground. “You’re going to have to walk.”
    “But my ankle,” she protested.
    “You can lean on me, but it’s going to raise questions if I’m carrying you. This way you can just say you twisted your ankle.”
    “Really. I much preferred been in your arms.”
    He looked at her, his eyes piercing. “Stop it.”
    “Stop what?” she smiled. “Ahh, I’m making your little sacrifice jealous.”
    “She knows you are nothing to me. But I’m fed up of listening to your remarks. If you want us to help you, then be nice.”
    Her face hardened. “You have a short memory.”
    His body stiffened, and Tara must have felt his anger palpable in the air, because she cowered away from him. “I guess dragons don’t have a sense of humour.”
    “Not where interfering witches are concerned.”
    “OK. I’ll play nice. You forget I’ve had to hide my true self for so long. It’s nice to be free.”
    “You went to him by choice,” Serena said, finding her voice at last. Her anger towards Tara ebbing away for now.
    “None of us are here by choice.”
    “Oh, really? Because I figured you’ve done all this for yourself, there’s something you want.”
    “Oh, so the little whore has a back bone after all.”
    Serena wanted to launch herself at Tara and rip her eyes out. Connor moved first though, he took a step away from Tara, and went to Serena, pulling her into his arms. “Let it go,” he whispered. “She’s really not worth it.”
    Tara wobbled, her weight on one foot. “Hey. I need a hand.”
    “You might need one, but you don’t deserve one,” Connor said. “I’ve known many witches throughout the ages, and you have to be one of the rudest. If you insult Serena, or Charlotte once more, you will not be welcome in my home. Do you understand?”
    Tara sighed. “Yes. Now will one of you help me?”
    “I will,” Charlotte said, stepping forward. “But only because you were nice to me when I was with Samuel. If you can’t behave better, then this will be the last time.”
    “Thank you, Charlotte. At least one of you has a little class.”
    “One more word, Tara. One more word,” Charlotte warned.
    Tara settled her weight against Charlotte, and kept her mouth shut. They walked slowly along the road to the house, none of them speaking. More than once Serena took a sideways glance at Zoah, who was very quiet, gazing stoically ahead. She smiled. Out of all the things that could have happened to him, all the horrible ways this day could have ended, she figured that seeing his mate for the first time was probably the worst. Later she would speak to him. Charlotte was only fifteen. He needed to keep his hands off her, or Serena would be clipping his dragon wings severely, not to mention castrating him with a blunt knife.
    “What are you smiling at?” Connor asked as the reached the gate.
    “I don’t know. It’s just funny how things turn out, that’s all.”
    “Funny isn’t always the way I’d describe things.” He entered the code, and the gates opened to let them in. One by one they trailed in, all exhausted and dirty from the smoke and the dust.
    “Can you lock the witch in the cellar?” Serena asked. “I think it’s the only place for her. I don’t trust her.”
    “Neither do I. But if it wasn’t for her we wouldn’t have got out of there alive.”
    “Or been in there in the first place.”
    “It’s done. She had her reasons. She said if she’d told us things