Dragon Greed

by Kelly Armenta

  “He is not my master,” Roa’ growled and just managed to lift his eyes to mine.

  “Really… and yet you follow him around like you’re his whipping boy. If not your master, then what is he to you? Your lover, perhaps?” Roa’s eyes moved back down my body and I felt an imp ride me and spread my legs, so that he was kneeling between them. I let go of his hand slowly and watched him.

  “He is not my lover! He is my A’meo,” he breathed and I stared down at him not recognizing the word.

  “Father,” Marcus supplied. “He claims the Gray is his father.”

  Hmmm… maybe I should learn Dragon, I thought, then glanced back at Roa’ who was busy feasting his eyes upon me. “Roa’, have you ever been with a woman?” I asked. His eyes registered my question and he jerked back, staring up at me angrily while he bared his teeth and flared his nostrils. Marcus rolled onto a hip behind me, curling his body around mine and propping himself up on an elbow.

  “You would not be his first, although I sense a deep pool of resentment around his interest in you. He seems torn, intrigued because you are a Queen yet scornful because you are female. I don’t think he cares much for women, only in how they might satisfy him. However it seems you’ve impressed him in some manner and he’s having a problem repressing his feelings of excitement at the prospect of giving himself to one who is worthy. He does not want to want you, and still thinks you are a threat, but I can’t say to what,” Marcus added softly, his voice holding a note of disbelief. “Arrhhggh,” he growled and sat up abruptly. His arm reached around me from behind and when he would have pulled me away from the edge of the bed, Roa’ grabbed my knee and held me in place between them. “Release my Queen,” Marcus hissed again and moved to his knees.

  “What is it Marcus?” I asked, my eyes focused on Roa’ who was holding me firmly while staring up at Marcus. In his eyes I could see… his need.

  “What he wants is unnatural,” Marcus breathed and I turned to glance up at him, a little dismayed by his reaction.

  “What does he want?” I asked. Marcus’ lips thinned and he glared down at Roa’.

  Roa’ looked up at him and lifted an eyebrow. “You are young and selfish,” he replied and Marcus mumbled under his breath. “What I wish is not new to her…” Oh and what might that be? I thought, and felt Marcus’ arm tighten in surprise against me. Well last I checked I wasn’t into kinky sex, so whatever it was must not be that bad. Not if I’d already been doing it.

  Roa’ frowned up at Marcus then moved his eyes to me. He took a deep breath then lowered his silver eyes while his fingers relaxed and became nearly a caress.

  “It doesn’t really matter does it?” I asked as I pulled my legs closed and leaned back against Marcus. “Until you declare, you won’t be doing anything at all.”

  “Yet you are here with him,” Roa’ growled. I smiled and tilted my head up toward Marcus who was looking at me strangely.

  Marcus glared down at him and replied. “I may be young, but it was my arms she woke in, not yours! It was my body that satisfied her, not yours. And I’m not the one letting someone else dictate my standing. I am now a part of her Court, while you clearly are not.”

  “Marcus is now part of my Court, as he was always intended to be. By the way, you’ve been spending time with my Dad so you do know that Talon isn’t your real father, right?”

  Roa’s look turned mutinous and his eyes seemed to flash. “An act of birth does not change who I am,” he growled softly.

  “And who might that be? No one here seems to believe Drow exist on this world. Yet your Mother obviously found my Father and his partners and pled her case successfully, or tricked them as the case may be. Did she give you to Talon to raise, or did he take you by force, as he seems to so thoroughly enjoy? Is that why you believe Talon is your father?” I was curious and asked.

  “You do not know me,” he replied from where he knelt before us. “I was raised the way Dragons are meant to be, not by a….female!”

  I sighed and considered him, then spoke for Marcus’ benefit. “Roa’ here has been living in the Everlasting,” and I felt Marcus jerk behind me. “Where he and Talon’s favorite past time seems to be turning into black blobs with big red eyes and really sharp teeth, after which they joined in with the Wild Host to kidnap women and drag them into the Everlasting. Once there, they use them, I assume to death, since I have no proof to the contrary, and was informed they don’t have any females where they were. True Drow don’t really like women. Or maybe they just like them too well, I can’t really tell. In either case, that was what they thought to do to me. Rape me, probably until I no longer could service them, at which point they would have probably slit my throat. In any event I’m sure it would have been neither pleasant nor quick.”

  I don’t think Marcus knew what to say to that, but laughing wasn’t the reaction I was expecting. Even Roa’ seemed shocked at Marcus’ response.

  “Why do you find her words amusing?” Roa’ demanded, while Marcus settled down to chuckles and gave me a firm squeeze.

  “I merely smart mouthed her at one time and demanded she release me, and soon found myself writhing upon the floor in pleasure too intense to be called enjoyable. I can only imagine what she must have done to you,” Marcus informed us, then chuckled again at Roa’s angry look.

  “You assume we did not succeed?”

  Marcus made a rude noise and shook his head. “If you had succeeded you would not be sitting on the floor right now wistfully looking at her and imaging what it would feel like to be doing what it is you’d like to be doing,” he replied.

  “What do you know, you who were raised by a female?” Roa’ replied scornfully. I was surprised that Marcus did not seem offended by the remark, merely sad.

  “You had advantages that I did not, but I would wager you have never seen a Dragoness that has been warped by the Everlasting, and cannot begin to compare my life to your own. What I was raised by was more male than female, though her face and all but certain parts of her physical form appear to be perfection. Female Dragons upon this world are beautiful but… warped. To be raised by a Drake should have prepared you to humbly serve your Queen. But it appears this Talon person has done more to warp you than Belinda ever did to me. At least I am able to appreciate our Queen for her strengths.”

  “She fights unfairly,” Roa’ defended himself. “She used sorcery on us and Talon became preoccupied with the color of her eyes and… her hair.” he murmured, seeming confused at the memory. Talon had told me to choose, and then hadn’t really given me the option when he’d rushed me to the bed. I couldn’t help wondering if Roa’ felt annoyed at me because I had gone to Talon instead of choosing him. My thoughts were cut off abruptly at Marcus’ words.

  “She is a woman,” Marcus replied. I frowned and moved slightly in his arms as Marcus brushed my cheek with his and added, “And as such, she will be the mother of our race here on this world. She has been drilled with the knowledge of her duty since she was but a small child. As a Queen it is her nature to fight to win, whatever it takes. How dare you condemn her for doing whatever necessary to ensure her safety? You act as if her actions were dishonorable, which is foolish. My Queen is honorable and I would wager she did not attack without warning or provocation. To be honorable does not require her to fight fair! I don’t know about you, but I plan to become one that she cares for. In my experience… it is a much safer place to be.”

  I turned to look at him in surprise and he smiled grimly. “I didn’t realize you understood me so well,” I told him as his pale brown eyes stared down into mine thoughtfully.

  He took a deep breath and told me, “All of the differences between yourself and Belinda were clear to me from the very beginning. Mi and Roark simply helped to clarify some of the finer points,” he added with a wry grin. “And being here with you today has proven to me that to be with you is more than I could have ever dreamed. Belinda has always been cold and cruel, but like you she is very territorial
of what she perceives as hers. However, where you wish to nurture and protect, she is only concerned with her own pleasures, and ensuring that no one has more than she herself can control through fear and pain.

  Earlier you seemed displeased at the thought that I might have been with some other woman. I promise you, of all your men I am the only one that has not. Believe me when I say, I have never touched any other female for pleasure, either consenting,” and he flicked his eyes to Roa’, “or through force. I know now that I was created for you alone, my Queen… and I swear to you that I am yours. Know this, I am honored to take my place amongst your Court and will do all within my power to keep you safe and satisfied,” he informed me, and his voice held a hint of steely determination which caused my pulse to race.

  “And what of Belinda and Valentine?” I couldn’t help but ask.

  He breathed deeply several times and held me tighter. “Belinda is nothing to me now. Because of her greed, she betrayed me to that monster and I… I wish you had killed her when you had the chance,” he breathed against my temple. “It pains me to think you held back because of me. But at the time I did not understand. I thought you a Faerie Princess and could not fathom why you would consider me yours. And Valentine’s insane rage had us both so wound up it was difficult to think through the haze of red that coats everything he touches.”

  I smiled and brushed his cheek with my fingers. “As I recall, you yelled at me and called me a fool,” I informed him in a teasing voice. “That was hardly a declaration of love.”

  He nodded thoughtfully. “I was afraid to believe that you would want me. And I had never before experienced anger on my behalf. I have been exposed to temper tantrums all my life. One does not grow up with a warped Dragoness without learning to control his emotions and tread lightly. But I could not understand how you could believe me to be yours, and be willing to kill to protect me, without wanting something from me in return. It was all very confusing to me. Confusing and tempting at the same time. It is not easy for me to trust,” he informed me calmly.

  “I need to apologize,” I told him while he looked at me and seemed to hold his breath. “I should have sent you here the night I brought you to our den. I was overly harsh with you and it was wrong for me to put you back into a situation where I knew you were being tortured. It was cruel of me. But I had to be certain and I could not risk the others.”

  “You did the right thing,” he replied softly. “By sending me back you helped me realize I had choices, as limited as they were. In my life, I had never been offered choices before. I don’t know if I can explain this so you will understand, but by sending me back you truly freed me. And for that I thank you.”

  I chewed my lower lip and finally admitted, “It nearly killed me to leave you with them the first time. When you left the conference room it felt as if you took a piece of my heart with you. And when I called you to me with my flute… it was even worse to send you back. I could see the healing I had worked was being undone but I could not choose for you. You had to do that yourself. I am sorry that they hurt you, but when your proximity to me roused you from your stupor, and you warned me the night of the Mayor’s party… I knew you had to be saved. I couldn’t send you back to them again. I didn’t trust Valentine not to kill you for having followed me off the carpet. I just couldn’t keep you with me. Dane had been indiscrete and I knew that I risked us all if you declared.”

  He nodded. “Belinda was livid when she discovered you were gold. In fact I have never seen her so angry. Partially it was that anger that allowed me to fly with you that night. At first I hoped to free myself of you all. But your father came after me and brought me back. If you had not attacked me, I would have done exactly what you suspected… and probably worse. Though I’d like to believe I could have stopped myself from actually harming you.”

  I nodded and placed my hand upon his thigh, and gave him a slight squeeze. “And what of the hold Valentine has over you? Have you spoken to my Dad or Mi of it? Can you tell us?”

  “Yes, though I’m not sure it will help you. I believe they have provided me with the ability to deny his control.” Then he admitted, “Though both your Father and Mi agree the only way to be surely certain, is to eliminate him.”

  “Well, maybe I’ll take Claudius up on his offer and simply have him get rid of Valentine, assuming the Council doesn’t do it first,” I replied and then abruptly jerked upright.

  “What is it?” Marcus demanded and on the floor Roa’ tensed. He’d been following our conversation closely and it was clear he was confused, but interested. His silver eyes narrowed and flicked over my body.

  “We need to go. We have to get back,” I told them both and reached for my dress, which was shoved into a heap at the end of the bed. Marcus released me slowly, almost reluctantly, and Roa’ got up off the floor and stepped back. His face covered in a wistful look.

  Marcus stood and began pulling on his own clothing while I snapped my snaps and then rooted around for my boots, which were currently off the other side and buried under the covers. I stomped my feet into them and grimaced at their four inch heels, then sighed. My eyes met Marcus’ and my breath caught in my throat at the look on his face. “Please don’t be sad,” I whispered as I slipped into his arms and held him tightly. “We will help you.”

  He sighed and clasped me to him dropping his face into my hair, and I heard him inhale deeply. “It is not that,” he breathed against me. “You are my first, and I wish to remember this moment forever,” he whispered while I felt my eyes fill and hugged him even tighter.

  Chapter 14

  Roral and Lira were waiting for us outside near the door. They came to attention, but their eyes swept my face and body curiously before they went to a knee, then rose quickly. “You look… recovered, Your Majesty.”

  “Thank you, Lira,” I replied with a lopsided smile, and reached to put my arm through Marcus’. “I had a bit of help getting here and a lot of help afterward,” then glanced up at Marcus who was nearly preening, he was so pleased. “Speaking of which, where is Kit?” I asked, pulling my eyes from Marcus and glancing between Roral and Lira.

  “Owen is just down the hall with the King and… the Princes. Your Demon took the others and they have left the Sidhe. We will escort you to the door and Owen will ferry us all home,” Roral informed me as we walked down the hall in the direction Lira had indicated.

  “And what about the Queen and… the King?” I asked, my eyes turning curiously up at Lira who was now walking at my side. He had brushed my body twice already and he looked… needy. His beautiful two-toned eyes met mine and I nearly stumbled when he let me see the fire that burned within him for just a brief second, before he blinked and his eyes shuttered back to being calm.

  “The Great Room was chaos when you left. You managed to incite the Court and that made it rather difficult for us to extract ourselves. A runner arrived just a short while ago and your parents will meet us at the Sidhe doors. That is all I know, Your Majesty.”

  On the other side of me Roral snorted softly and I turned to glance at him. “You wish to add something?” I asked and he turned to grin at me, his pale green eyes looking amused.

  “Your Majesty, what Lira oh so carefully neglected to tell you is that we were set upon by the ladies of the Court,” he replied with a grimace, and I frowned and glanced between them.

  “All of you?” I demanded and felt my blood pressure shoot up about thirty points. “And both Kit and Owen refused to assist you in getting out of the Great Hall?” I growled while even Roa’ nodded. “And when you say… set upon… what exactly do you mean?”

  Roral swallowed at my tone of voice but offered a small smile. “Your Majesty, none of us was completely separated from our clothing,” he was quick to assure me in a small voice.

  “Though it was a near thing,” Lira added softly. My gaze flicked amongst the three of them angrily. The women of the Court were Seelie, beautiful and highly desirable. That they had been over
come by my actions and gone after my men was… well damn it! It was no one’s fault by my own! That thought just seemed to make me madder, and by the time I stepped up to the others they were all wearing wary looks on their faces. Lord Aerandir was with them and he looked quite concerned, but said nothing. Obviously I was unshielded and it was likely that my aura was pulsing a dark nasty yellow-green color. Owen looked edgy, as if he wasn’t sure if he should run for it while he still had the chance.

  “Lexi?” Owen breathed softly while the others held perfectly still. He was closest to me so I grabbed him and pulled him down for a kiss. He made a surprised sound, then wrapped his arms around me and crushed me to him. When he let me up I turned to Tdem and his arms were already opened wide, while on his beautiful face was an eager smile. His palm slid up my leather dress and cupped my breast while I rubbed myself against the front of him. His forehead dropped to mine when he pulled his lips from me and we stood there for a second, both of us pulling air into our lungs. When he released me I turned to Cursed, who growled softly and yanked me against his chest. His kiss was demanding and he nearly bent me over backwards while he plundered my mouth. My tongue caught on a tooth causing him to groan at the metallic taste, and then sucked it hard while pleasure poured into my core and filtered out to my limbs. When he finished with me, he stood me up and pressed me against his body. All I could do was I cling to him and make small noises.

  “I’m sorry,” I breathed against his chest, just loud enough so that the others could hear me. Cursed growled low and soft and I pulled back and glanced up at him in surprise. He was looking behind me and I turned to find myself staring up at Cam, who was busy glaring down at me with his arms crossed. His aura was red orange and nearly pulsing, he was so agitated. Cursed crossed an arm over my chest and pulled me back against him.

  “Remember your place,” Cursed growled. Cam flared his nostrils and slipped to a knee before me, while his pale green eyes never left my face. Behind me I felt Cursed tense.