Maddie’s heart was practically doing flip-flops in her chest. Instead of saying anything in response, she tackled Theo, Her lips were instantly on his lips, and that was all the encouragement he needed. Their bodies became a blur of action as he reached to unzip her jacket, pushing it off and then pulling her shirt up and over her head. He tore her bra off, not bothering with the clasp, and likely ruining the garment for good. But Maddie didn’t care. She was just as hungry as he was. Everything became a blur of denim and lace as he removed her shoes, jeans, and panties. He covered them with one of the thick blankets, and between the warmth of the blankets and the warmth coming from Theo’s body, Maddie wasn’t the least bit cold. Her bare skin against his bare skin was the most electric thing she had ever felt.
“You’re so warm,” Maddie panted out as she reached to run her fingers across Theo’s stubbly chin. He smiled at her, sending a fresh wave of heat through her being.
“It’s the fire,” he said. “After breathing fire, my body temperature is elevated for several hours, even after I return to human form.”
Maddie shook her head in amazement. She still couldn’t believe she was sitting here talking about dragon shifting and fire-breathing like it was the most normal thing in the world. But Theo seemed to be done talking. He leaned in to kiss her lips softly, and then pushed her onto her back. The authoritative way he put her body where he wanted it turned her on. He was gentle with her, but firm. His actions made it clear that he was claiming her. She was his, and he wanted her to know it. This realization sent a thrill through Maddie’s being.
And the thrills kept coming. As soon as she was on her back, he dipped his head down so it was over her breasts. His tongue flicked out of his mouth, reaching for her nipples and massaging the hard nubs. He took his time, paying equal attention to each nipple, eventually letting his tongue give way to his teeth as he began to chew. Maddie moaned as shiver after shiver of ecstasy rocked her body. She was filled with an intense, almost painful pressure. Her body was itching to have him inside of her. She had seen his massive dick, and she wanted to feel it. She was ready for it, too. She was dripping wet with the anticipation of what she knew he was about to give her. For the first time in as long as she could remember, she was truly lost in the moment, and truly desperate for a man’s touch. She had never craved anything as badly as she was craving Theo right now.
He sensed her desperation, and he pulled back his head to smile at her.
“You want me,” he said. “I can feel it. Your heart is calling to my heart.”
“I want our hearts to be one,” Maddie panted out. “I want our bodies to be one. I want us to be together, truly together.”
“I want the same,” he said, and then, with a sudden, strong thrust, he was inside of her. He didn’t ease in, giving her time to adjust to his large girth. He took her all at once, in one swift movement. Maddie’s eyes flew open in shocked, pained pleasure as he filled every part of her. She saw his eyes, filled with pride and a look of jealous ownership.
“Mine,” he said huskily as he thrust again, his stiff dick pushing against every part of her inner walls. “You’re mine.”
He didn’t look human right now. He looked like a god, pure and simple. Maddie felt his heat rushing into, reaching to every extremity of her body. She closed her eyes and drank in the sensation of being one with a dragon—with her dragon. She could never have imagined her night would have ended like this, but she wouldn’t have it any other way. He was noble, but down-to-earth. A gentleman, but fierce. He was everything she could have ever wanted, and now, he was rocking his hips against hers, sending her into a complete frenzy. She held on as long as she could, but soon it was too much. She gave in.
The sweet, sweet release washed over her like an ocean. Her body spasmed and clenched around his, sending a tingling hot current from her core out to every part of her. She threw her head back and called out his name, grasping fistfuls of blanket as she tried to get her bearings. But she was lost. Lost in this moment, in this perfection, and in him. She could never have asked for more. His touch, and what he did to her body, was better than anything she had ever experienced.
He let out a satisfied sigh, pleased with how she had responded to him. And then, with one more giant thrust, he let out a roar and came into her. He was stiff, hard, and powerful. She could feel his heat entering her, and let the beautiful, burning sensation of it rush over her.
When he was finished, he rolled over and lay next to her, pulling the blanket up close around their naked bodies so she wouldn’t be cold. But he needn’t have worried. The afterglow was so strong, and so warm, that Maddie was sure her cheeks must be flushed red from the heat.
She smiled at Theo, who was smiling softly back at her, looking more relaxed than she had ever seen him. She wanted to say something deep and meaningful, but she was suddenly tired, so tired. She snuggled close into his arms and closed her eyes.
“You’re crazy,” she managed to whisper. “My kind of crazy.”
And then she fell asleep in her dragon’s arms.
Chapter Ten
The sound of a door creaking open startled Maddie from her sleep, and she blinked against the bright morning light that flooded her eyes. Disoriented, she sat up and looked around, realizing she was in the cab of a large pickup truck.
Theo’s truck. The events of the previous night all came flooding back to her, and a smile played across her lips. She was living a fairy tale, a real life fairy tale. She looked up to see Theo entering the truck, and she pushed off the heavy blankets that were covering her. She was dressed again, although she wasn’t sure when she had put her clothes back on.
“Morning,” he said, his face crinkling up in the most adorable smile. His eyes were back to normal now, still piercing green but not churning as they had been last night. He looked peaceful and happy in a way Maddie hadn’t seen before, and her heart skipped a beat at the sight of him. He jumped into the front seat of the truck and closed the door behind him, carefully balancing two paper coffee cups in his free hand. As soon as the door was shut, he handed one of the cups back to Maddie.
“I wasn’t sure how you took your coffee, so I just left it black,” he said, a note of apology in his voice.
“Usually I take a little cream, but black is fine, too,” Maddie said, taking the cup from his hand and breathing in deeply. She was tired, but just the aroma of the dark brew was enough to help her feel energized.
“Wait, how did you get coffee? We’re in the middle of a field,” Maddie said.
“I ran in to town,” Theo said with a chuckle. “Gotta keep the ol’ human form in good shape.”
It was then that Maddie noticed that Theo was now wearing gym clothes.
“You keep a lot of shit in your truck,” she said. “These thick blankets, gym clothes…what else is packed in here?”
Theo laughed and shrugged. “I spend a lot of time in here. The blankets are because I went on an overnight fishing trip with my brothers a couple months back. We like to sleep in our trucks instead of getting a hotel. The seats are pretty damn comfortable. At least I think so. Did you sleep okay?”
A look of concern suddenly passed across his face, and Maddie’s heart melted again.
“I slept great. I would agree that they’re very comfortable. I was out cold, anyway. I don’t even remember you carrying me in here from the truck’s bed, but obviously you must have.”
“You were sleeping like a rock,” Theo said with a smile. “I slipped your clothes back on and carried you in here and you didn’t even stir. I didn’t want you to get too cold. The cab offers more protection from the wind.”
“Thanks,” Maddie said. “I guess I was pretty tired. “I’m still confused about the coffee, though. How did you get it back to the truck? It would have been cold by the time you got here. Not to mention, it would have sloshed everywhere while you ran.”
“I got a ride back out,” Theo said. “Just grabbed someone from the coffee shop who was he
ading out this direction and asked him to drop me by my truck.”
“Wasn’t he curious as to why you’re truck was in the middle of nowhere?” Maddie asked. She took a sip of the coffee and closed her eyes briefly. It was hot and velvety smooth. One of the best cups of coffee she’d ever had.
“Nah. People around here are used to stuff like this. He just congratulated me on the girl and said it looked like I had a good night.”
Maddie froze mid-sip and her eyes shot up to look at Theo.
“He knows you were with me?” she asked, her cheeks turning red. “How?”
Theo laughed. “Well, he doesn’t know it was you specifically. But it won’t take long for people to find out. That’s small town life for you, Maddie. Everyone knows who everyone is with, and whenever someone hooks up with someone new the story quickly makes the rounds on the gossip chain. There’s not much in the way of actual privacy, but don’t worry. It’s all just harmless chattering.”
“I guess I’m just used to a little more privacy,” Maddie said. Her stomach was tightening up a little bit.
“It’s hard to really have privacy around here,” Theo said, then tilted his head sideways to look at her. “Do you not want people to know we’re together.”
“Are we together?” Maddie asked, her heart pounding. She wasn’t used to all this straightforward relationship talk. Back in New York, she always had to play all these games. You would go on a date, then wait so many days before texting back. Then you would go through a series of more dates and gradually escalate the physical relationship and finally tell your close friends. Eventually, everyone would know you were a couple, but for some reason there was always an attempt to keep your relationship status mysterious for as long as possible.
“I wouldn’t have slept with you if I didn’t want to be with you, Maddie,” Theo said, a note of concern filling his voice. “I would have thought you felt the same about me.”
“I do!” Maddie said. “I want to be with you. I’m just not used to this…small town way of doing things. And I’m not sure how people are going to react to us being together. You’re practically a celebrity here in town. Everyone loves you. Well, everyone except Steve. And me…I get the feeling that people aren’t exactly thrilled that I’m here. They think I’m invading their little town, and they associate me with Steve. I’m not sure how they’ll react to my dating you.”
“Doesn’t matter,” Theo said. “They can all like it or not, but you’re the one I want. I don’t answer to anyone else about whom I choose to love. Now, get up here to the front and buckle up.”
Maddie grinned, her heart warming at Theo’s matter-of-fact statement about how he wanted to be with her. She was still overcome by the fact that he was a dragon, and that dragons existed. But she was excited more than anything else. She felt like this was the start of a great adventure.
“Where are we going,” she asked as she climbed over then center console and into the front passenger seat, careful not to spill her coffee.
“I’m taking you home,” Theo said. “I need to get ready for practice today, and you need to get dressed and go tell Steve you’re quitting.”
Maddie felt a sudden nervousness in the pit of her stomach as Theo started the engine. She’d been so lost in bliss over knowing that Theo cared for her that she’d forgotten all about Steve and the Gazette. Theo noticed how she suddenly went quiet, and he gave her a long sideways glance.
“Don’t tell me your second-guessing your decision to quit,” he said.
“What if starting a newspaper of my own doesn’t work out for me?” Maddie asked.
“It will,” Theo said. “I’ve already talked to a few people in town about investing in a new newspaper. They’re highly interested. There’s a big market for this kind of thing here. People are tired of Steve and his drivel. They want a fresh voice, and you’re just the person to give that to them.”
Maddie sunk further into her seat with a sigh. She knew quitting the Gazette was the right thing to do, but she also knew it wasn’t going to be pretty when she went to talk to Steve. The man had one of the worst tempers she had ever seen.
All the more reason to get as far away from him as she could.
Maddie stared out the window as Theo started heading toward her home. Her thoughts were such a jumble, and she wished more than anything that neither one of them had places they had to be today. She would have loved to invite him in to sit on the couch and watch movies all day, snuggling and talking about their future between films. But he had a championship game to prepare for, and Maddie had a job to quit. It would be several days before they really had free time to spend with each other.
“What’s the matter?” Theo asked as he turned onto the street where Maddie lived.
“I don’t know,” Maddie said with a shrug. “I guess I’m just wishing we had more time to spend together. There’s so much I want to know about you. And about dragons.”
“We’ll have plenty of time together as soon as the championship is over, I promise,” Theo said. “And I’m always happy to answer any questions you have about dragons.”
“Are there evil dragons?” Maddie asked as Theo turned into his driveway. As soon as she asked the question, his eyes darkened.
“Yes,” he said. “There are.”
“How come they haven’t destroyed the world?” Maddie asked. “I can tell from watching you last night that dragons are incredibly powerful.”
Theo sighed. “There’s a balance between good and bad dragons. As long as that balance remains, things will be fine. It’s a delicate balance, though. I shudder to think about what would happen if the evil dragons became more powerful.”
Maddie chewed her lower lip nervously, and Theo reached over to squeeze her thigh.
“Don’t worry,” he said. “The world has managed to survive for millennia without dragons destroying it. I’m sure everything will be just fine. And you’re safe as long as you’re with me. I’d never let anyone harm you.”
Maddie nodded, although she still felt her nerves getting the best of her. Theo was right, though. The world had marched forward, largely oblivious to dragons, for so long now. Odds were good that would continue.
She hoped, anyway.
She gave Theo her best attempt at a confident smile, and then a quick kiss.
“Call me later?” she asked.
He nodded. “I’ll call you when I’m done with practice. Good luck with Steve.”
“Thanks,” Maddie said. “I’ll need it.”
* * *
Maddie wondered if she’d ever seen anyone’s face look quite so purple. Steve was standing in front of her, yelling, although she’d stopped really listening several minutes ago. Now, she was studying his face and wondering how it was possible for a human to look so much like a grape. She had to remind herself not to laugh as he waved his arms around in a state of hysteria.
He had been predictably upset that she wanted to quit. He’d threatened her that she would never work in journalism again if she left. He’d warned her that he had connections all over the newspaper world—an assertion Maddie was sure was false. When she’d taken this job, she’d asked several classmates and colleagues about him, and no one had ever heard of him.
At some point, Maddie realized that Steve had no intentions of ending his tirade anytime soon. She also realized, joyfully, that she had no obligation to sit here and listen to this. She’d quit, after all. He wasn’t her boss anymore. He couldn’t tell her what to do.
Maddie stood without another word and walked out of Steve’s office, and out of the small building where the Gazette was housed. It was strange, really, why everyone in the town put up with Steve when they all seemed to hate him so much. Maddie knew it had to do with the fact that Steve was filthy rich, but still. It seemed like he had enough enemies here that a large percentage of them would not have cared about his money and would have rather seen him gone from Persimmon Springs.
Steve came to the doorway, yelling
after her. Maddie didn’t turn around, although she did notice several curious passersby turning to see what all the commotion was. Maddie shrugged and smiled, earning her a few knowing smiles back. Everyone knew Steve was a little unstable. Hopefully, now that she was no longer affiliated with him, the townspeople would be more interested in getting to know her.
Maddie felt like a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders, and that feeling gave her a fresh burst of energy and motivation. Even though she had no extra money to speak of, she walked into an office supply store and started picking out a few basic necessities. A printer, paper, and ink. This wouldn’t be the fanciest paper in the world, but damn it she was going to get started on her own newspaper right away. She was going to have fun with this and work hard at it, without worrying about being perfect.
When Maddie got home, she opened up her laptop and looked at the blank screen, trying to come up with a perfect name for her newspaper that was just the right amount of edgy. After several minutes of thinking, she finally grinned and let her fingers fly across the keyboard as she typed four words:
The Persimmon Springs Flame.
Chapter Eleven
Theo cursed under his breath. Another fumble, and just when the Warriors were finally getting within field goal distance. Time was running out, and he could tell his team was getting frantic. With ten minutes left on the play clock, the Warriors were ten points behind. They still had time, but not much. And their frenzied playing was making them sloppy. If they kept it up, they weren’t going to be going home with a championship.
“We need a time out,” Max said, sidling up to Theo. “I hate to burn one, but these boys need to get their heads screwed on straight again. Otherwise we might as well kiss that championship trophy goodbye.”
Lone Star Dragon (Shifters in the Heart of Texas Book 1) Page 7