by Roxie Ray
Karah returned from the kitchen with a beer in one hand and another glass of wine in the other. “Hope you don’t mind if we join you,” she said in a chirpy voice.
Mitch rolled his eyes, but she shoved the beer in his hands. “Drink, Mitch,” she said darkly.
It was all I could do not to laugh as he gave her a sullen look and did as he was told. I assumed he’d been the alpha before Anthony. Big bad dragon alpha, doing exactly as his wife told him to do.
At least it set a good example for Anthony. Again, I had to force myself not to giggle.
Anthony put his arm around me in a gesture of solidarity. “She did amazingly,” he said. “I couldn’t have asked for her to handle the news better. We won’t need Sammy after all.” So they knew he was telling me, and had the witch on standby. To what, wipe my memory? What the hell.
Karah beamed. “I’m so glad to hear it, dear.” She perched on the arm of the chair that Mitch had settled into. Leaning forward, she patted his knee. “Mitch and I tried for more children but were only blessed with Anthony. It will be wonderful to have a daughter.”
I tried not to look freaked out. My mom took off on us when I was a kid. It had taken me years to stop thinking I’d done something wrong. When I was a young woman, Dad had finally told me the full truth, that Mom had suffered from several mental illnesses like bipolar disorder. He’d been worried I would suffer the same fate, but so far so good. It had made me worried about my future children as well, but my PCOS had solved that worry.
“I can’t imagine the shock of learning about the magical world this late in life.” Karah shook her head, still beaming.
Mitch leaned forward and something sort of washed over me. I narrowed my eyes at him. Was he trying to use magic on me? “You can’t tell anyone,” he said.
“Dad, stop it.” I felt the same heaviness in Anthony’s voice. They were using magic! “She knows she can’t blab. And don’t use your leftover alpha powers on my mate.”
Mitch sat back and looked extraordinarily grumpy. “As the previous alpha, it’s my job to help keep the clan safe. As far as we know, she’s the first human with permission to have this secret.” He fixed me with his glare again, but this time his words didn’t carry the same weight. “You understand there are massive consequences to revealing our secret?”
“Don't threaten my mate,” Anthony said in a low, angry voice. Tension filled the air.
“Please don’t argue,” I said. “I do understand, but not the kind of consequences you’re talking about. I imagine if I told, and you couldn’t get your witch to fix it, you’d be hunted down. Studied. Researched. It would be traumatic, honestly. The drug companies alone would lock you up and study you until they found a way to make money off you.”
“Exactly,” Mitch said and for the first time, he didn’t look completely angry. Just mostly.
“I’d never put Anthony in danger. Or the rest of you. I couldn’t do that.” Even though I had to wonder to myself if it was right to keep the secret of their magic when they might have the power to cure so many diseases locked in their DNA. But that wasn’t my call to make. What I’d said was true. If this got out, the world would destroy them in the name of progress. “It’s not my secret to tell.”
Karah looked convinced, but Mitch still looked skeptical. I didn’t care, though. I just had to prove it to them.
I slept fitfully, at least until Anthony came to bed and wrapped his arms around me. When I got up the next morning, though, he was downstairs. At least it gave me some time to take a shower and think about things.
I let the hot water run down my back and ran the events of my life through my head. I assessed my emotions and anxiety.
Now that I’d slept on it, I wasn’t so freaked out. Interesting. I mean, of course I was, a little. He was a dragon, after all. But even with the fear of the unknown, this wasn’t something I was willing to walk away from. As I lathered up my hair, I thought about how much it had hurt for him to leave. Could I survive that if he did it again?
He seemed pretty grounded here now. I didn’t know clan or dragon politics very much, but it seemed like it wouldn’t be the best idea for an alpha to leave his clan. Unless the whole lot of them packed up and took off, and that really didn’t seem likely.
I grabbed Anthony’s showerhead and put it on pulse to rinse off. When I turned it toward my groin area, the water pulsed against my clit and I gasped. My water pressure sucked, and I never had the opportunity to get off that way.
But why do it here, now? Anthony was downstairs. We were alone in the middle of the woods, and I’d all but decided I wanted to take this thing all the way. I finished rinsing off and jumped out, then brushed my teeth and wrapped myself in one of his big, fluffy towels and my hair in another.
Instead of going back into his bedroom to dress, I walked downstairs. He wasn’t in the kitchen or living room, but the front door was cracked open just a hair.
Throwing the towel off of my hair, I shook it out around my shoulders and pinched my cheeks for a little color. Then, I opened the front door and leaned against the frame. “I’m done freaking out,” I said in my sultriest voice.
Bingo. Anthony’s pupils widened. I was about to get exactly what I wanted.
18
Anthony
The next morning, we both had to work, so I set the alarm extra early. I'd never tried to get ready with a woman in the house. Who knew how long it would take? Skye showered first while I sat on the front porch and drank a cup of coffee.
I heard her coming down the stairs, and when she opened the door, she wore a towel and nothing else. “I’m done freaking out,” she said.
I laughed and held out my hands to take hers. “You’re entitled to it. I’m surprised at just how well you handled all this.” I pulled her close. “How are you really feeling?”
“It’s all a shock but at the end of it all, you’re still Anthony. No matter what you are, you’ve never been anything but Anthony to me.”
I stared at her for a long time before speaking. “You really mean that?”
She nodded with her gaze full of emotion and I knew she did mean it. Skye’s damp hair was sexy as hell and knowing that there was nothing under that towel was killing me. She bit her bottom lip, tilting her head so that her emerald eyes sparkled in the predawn light. I leaned forward slowly and pressed my lips to hers. She opened her mouth in invitation, and I didn’t hesitate.
I scooped her up and carried her inside, pressing her against a wall just inside the door. Her arms wrapped around my neck; legs hooked around my hips. When I pressed flush against her, I could feel the heat of her core through my pants. My rapidly stiffening cock rebelled against its restraint.
Though, as badly as I wanted her, I also wanted to slow down and take my time. Every part of me longed for her, wanted to bite her, make her mine. I needed to control myself, lest I end up doing something she wasn't ready for. Not to mention we had to be at work in a short hour.
Adjusting my grip on her thighs, I carried her through the house, up the stairs, and to my bed, kicking the door shut behind us. Her skin smelled like citrus and imagining her using my body wash in my shower awoke an entirely different beast. An image from the morning in the shower slammed into me and I remembered her kneeling before me, white dripping from her breasts, sliding down her stomach.
Slowly, I lowered her to the bed. Her arms loosened from my neck and she pushed her fingers into my hair, scraping her nails lightly across my scalp. A chill ran through me at that. God, but that was a feeling I didn’t know I’d enjoy.
I reached for the spot where the towel tucked around itself, keeping it closed, and tugged on it until it came undone. Her body was perfection to me. Pushing the towel open further, I lavished attention all across her skin. Her nipples didn’t escape notice, her slightly ticklish ribcage, the super fine fuzz on her belly, her adorable belly button. I worked my way down slowly, watching the anticipation in Skye’s half-lidded gaze.
Her nails grazed my scalp again and my chest rumbled with something that would’ve sounded like a purr if I’d been less masculine. I cleared my throat and Skye giggled, reaching for my head again. I distracted her.
My tongue flicked across her sex, making her hiss in pleasure. Her fingers curled into the blanket instead of my hair. The taste of her was sweeter than the citrus on her skin. I could imagine getting addicted to it like a drug. She squirmed as I lapped her up, intent on getting my fill. I kept my eyes on her form, watching each muscle contraction, her beautiful breasts jiggling with each motion.
Damn, she was gorgeous.
And she was mine.
The urge to bite her pulled at me hard, to sink my teeth into her thigh right there, to see the mark of my clan on her skin. I groaned, fighting it back, but it was a near thing.
I pushed her further back on the bed, then climbed on. She looked at me, her breathing shallow and gasping, and she squeaked as I grabbed her and settled her thighs around my head. My tongue dove back in, and she fell forward to her hands. I ran my hands over her ass, massaging, spreading her cheeks, smacking one lightly.
Her hips bucked, thighs squeezing my head slightly, and the noises that she was making were music to my ears. I took the whole of her into my mouth, sucking and flicking my tongue rapidly. My hands on her ass prevented her from moving too much, but she still ground herself on my face. I was too busy enjoying every second to mind much.
I smacked her ass again, then smoothed my hand over the sting I was sure she’d felt. Her cries, her whimpers were going to be my end, but I needed to be hers first. Still, I couldn’t help it when one hand slipped down my stomach and teased my cock. I gripped it hard and stroked slowly while my tongue sucked at her.
With a sharp cry, she folded in on herself, her muscles tensing and releasing as her juices flowed freely. I kept my tongue going, determined not to let anything go to waste. She heaved a few gasping breaths as she rode out her orgasm and I finally slowed, allowing her to catch her breath. My hand continued to stroke my dick and she noticed when she turned her head.
Chuckling, she crawled away from my head and down the bed. She moved my hand away and swiped her tongue across the tip before taking me wholly into her mouth. Before I could stop myself, I grabbed her head and my hips jerked. Shit, her mouth felt fantastic there.
But she didn’t stay long. A few pumps and then she was straddling me.
Backward.
“Reverse cowgirl, huh?” I asked.
She gave me a sultry glance over her shoulder, grabbed me, then lowered herself down. I’d be lying if I said that her backside wasn’t sexy as all hell. From the curve of her spine to her smooth cheeks that had a slight pinkness to them, courtesy of yours truly. There was so much unmarred flesh that needed a nibble—
No, dammit. My jaw hurt from clenching down on the temptation. Skye was both enticing and distracting, becoming the latter as soon as she started moving. I grabbed her hips, but she didn’t need my help. She built up a rhythm all on her own, bouncing up and down, her muscles tight.
I could watch that all day, every motion she made, her damp hair sliding over her shoulders, basically using me to get herself off. Licking my lips, I smacked her ass again. If it was possible, her muscles tightened further, and I groaned in time with her.
Fuck.
Unable to take it any longer, I lurched up and grabbed her, turning so that she was on her hands and knees. She went down to an elbow, her other hand disappearing beneath her. I slid my hands along her spine, then gripped her hips and gave it to her the way she liked it.
Hard and rough.
“Anthony, yes!”
The sound of my name on her lips drove me crazy and I felt my dragon fighting for control. The need to claim her was overwhelming. I tried to focus on the physical climax that was approaching. Skye’s cries urged me on, and I picked up speed, feeling the increasing tension just before release.
“Hah, yes, yes!”
Gasping with the intensity of it, I came. My seed exploded from me like a tidal wave taking out a flood wall. Skye tensed around me, and I knew she was right behind me. I thrust several more times to expel every bit of my orgasm and drag hers out as long as I could. We were both breathless, and I nearly collapsed on top of her. With my dragon behind me, I could go all day, but between fighting back the mating urge and concentrating on Skye, that had taken more out of me than I'd been prepared for. Plus, we had to get to work.
And I still wanted more.
I ended up picking up a surgery at the hospital late Monday afternoon, so I didn’t see Skye again until Tuesday at work. And things were going great. We’d talked on the phone for a long time Monday night, to the point that I needed an extra cup of coffee on Tuesday.
I didn’t bring up the bite again. She was tentatively okay with everything. The last thing I needed was to freak her out again. If we had sex, I wasn’t sure what I’d do but moving too fast wasn’t the answer.
When she’d had time to adjust to the fact that I wasn’t completely human, then we could talk again. There was still plenty for us to figure out.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t as easily put off the further conversation with my father. He texted during the workday Tuesday and asked me to stop by when I finished my shift. I was so tired that I couldn’t think of a good reason to refuse, so off to my parents’ house I went. I told Skye I’d text her later. All I wanted to do was find her and cuddle up to watch a movie or something, but no, on my way to their house, I got a phone call. “Hey, Sammy, what’s going on?” The clan witch didn’t call me very often.
“Hey, Anthony. Sorry to bother you.” She sounded uneasy.
“It’s no problem at all.” I spoke to my car’s stereo system, since I had my phone Bluetoothed in through it. “What can I do for you?”
“As a clan witch, I’m beholden to report everything to you, the alpha.”
I didn’t like the sound of that. “That’s how I understand it.”
“Your father called and asked me to be on standby. He told me that you’ve revealed to a human that she’s your fated mate and told her all the clan secrets. He said if it looked like she couldn’t keep her word, that I’d need to step in. And he tried to get me to keep it quiet.” Her voice went hushed. “I thought you should know, even though it feels a lot like tattling.”
“No, you’re not tattling. As you said, it was your duty to notify me. And I’m sure that if Skye tells anyone anything, you’ll be called, but that will be my decision to make, not my father’s.”
She laughed shakily. “Okay, Anthony, thanks for taking my call.”
We hung up and I continued to my parents’ house, ten times angrier than I’d been before. At the last minute, I turned off of their driveway and onto mine. When I parked, I sent out a text to the clan group text that was reserved for the alpha’s messages only. It was easier than trying to send a message directly into their heads like in the older days.
Clan meeting at 8:00 p.m. sharp. At the alpha’s house. There will be no flying. It will be brief. It is mandatory.
Everyone knew that mandatory didn’t mean call out of work or skip an appointment. It just meant everyone who could possibly come, even if it was inconvenient, should show up.
Having the meeting at eight gave people a little bit of time to get their ducks in a row, but it gave me a lot of time to stew on how pissed I was.
Instead of taking the next two hours to brood, I launched myself into the woods and shifted. It was hard to fly among the thick trees, but I managed. When the sun began to drop lower in the sky, I headed back. Just in time, too. It was a quarter to eight and people had begun to show up. My front porch was covered in members of my clan.
I walked up and greeted everyone, keeping an eye on the watch on my wrist. At exactly eight, I put one hand in the air.
My parents had just arrived, thankfully not early, which meant I hadn’t had to sit there and come up with excuses for why I hadn’t come by or why I was
calling this meeting without talking to them about it.
“Thank you all for coming and I’m sorry to call a meeting on such short notice. As I said, I’ll be brief and get to the point. I know my position as alpha can be tested, but I will not abide disrespect. Each of you has the option to openly challenge me. Going behind my back to undermine me will not be tolerated. I am ready to take this clan in a forward direction. That might mean changes. It might not, depending on the situation, but we will move as I see fit. As every alpha has before me, I have an open door. You all have opinions that I will always consider. But there will be times that I make a decision that you don’t necessarily agree with.”
I looked around the crowd slowly, meeting the eyes of a few people who I thought might give me more shit than others. My dad. Tessa. “That’s what the clan transfers are for. If I lead the clan in a direction that you’re not comfortable with, you’re welcome to transfer. We even have funds set aside for those situations.” We really did. It was a part of our clan emergency fund. We covered things like medical emergencies, lost wages, and large expenses if the clan member couldn’t swing it. “There are options, but none of those options should be behind my back. I am your alpha.” I said my last sentence with the weight of my alpha power, and the crowd collectively bowed their heads. “If there are no questions, you may go.” There. I’d reminded them that if they didn’t like the way I ran things, they had the option of leaving. Or they could challenge me. But I’d be damned if I was going to be cast aside by someone who wanted to do things their way.
Both of my parents stuck around. They both knew the cause of the meeting was to put my father in his place. The only reason I’d done it this way was after the conversation I’d had with Tessa. She’d glared at me the entire time and left faster than anyone else. That woman was trouble.
“Were you just trying to embarrass me?” Dad said as soon as the last car pulled out of the clearing in front of my house. “I was concerned about Skye and trying to help you out.”