by Rosko, Mandy
Inferno’s hips pushed forward and back. Fiona laced her fingers together at the back of his neck, locking him in place, keeping him close, so he had to look into her eyes. She needed to look into them, to see the affection there. They had a connection, something that he claimed was their natural mating instinct, and right then, she felt exactly how true it was, how they belonged together. How she would never feel for another man the way she felt for this majestic dragon prince.
A rumbling, growling noise escaped from deep within Inferno’s chest. The push and pull of his hips increased. The strength at which he thrust forward made Fiona cry out.
More heat. More intensity. Every inch of her building toward a climax bigger than any one she’d had on her own. She was going to pop, but she wanted to hold off until he was there too.
“Are you close?” She asked, breathless, gripping his shoulders tight, knowing her nails would probably leave marks, but not caring because he seemed to like it.
She didn’t hear him respond, because he started to pump harder, bracing one hand against his headboard as he slammed into her. It was more than enough to send her over the edge. Fiona’s mouth found his, and she moaned as they connected. She couldn’t hold back, and she didn’t bother to try as her pleasure cascaded over her, taking control of her, making her body clench and unclench around Inferno, trapping him to her.
She pushed her hands into his hair and gripped him hard just because she could. His breath hitched, and he groaned. His body tensed until his already impressive body felt as solid as a rock in her arms. Their eyes locked, and he heaved a few, slow, and final thrusts into her before his body relaxed and he lowered himself on top of her, burying his face into her neck.
His body was heavy, but in a good way. She wanted this intimacy, to feel cocooned by him. The intense desire, the need to touch and be touched by him, to have him make love to her, was still there, but it was calmed. She was momentarily satiated.
Fiona smiled. She found Inferno’s hand, and she laced her fingers with his. She had no idea what he was feeling, but she was glad he was here, and things seemed more like they could be worked out now instead of being pushed to the side.
“Wishing we could have done this last night when you came to see me, but I’m still happy for this.”
“Hmm?” Inferno pushed himself off her chest.
It made it easier for her to breathe, but already she missed the warmth. Her whole body tingled with happiness, feeling the echo of him still on her. “Last night, when you came back. I don’t know why you ran away so fast when I called out to you.”
Inferno blinked at her, then frowned. “Are you sure you weren’t just dreaming?”
Fiona wanted to laugh, but the look on his face made it clear he wasn’t joking around. “No, I never have dreams that clear. You were right there,” she motioned to the wall, but the smile slid from her face when he pushed himself off her body and left the bed.
The anger, no, the rage on his face told Fiona this was not a laughing matter.
Fiona followed his lead, putting her clothes back on. “Inferno, what’s wrong? What’s going on?”
He spared her a glance before yanking open the bedroom door. “I never came back to this room last night.”
16
Fiona’s head was spinning. Inferno charged through the hall and found the guards, shouting at them. She wasn’t sure if she should follow, but then Leanne appeared, holding a stack of clothes and a basket of sealed beauty supplies. “M’lady, Prince Inferno sent me back to see to you. He’s asked me to see that you have a shower and get ready for the day.”
“Thank you, Leanne.” She knew better than to ask the maid what was going on. The woman looked just as confused as she felt.
Leanne showed her how the shower worked and left behind the clothes and makeup, as well as instructions that she’d be in the bedroom if Fiona needed anything. Fiona was glad to have clean clothes and to be allowed to dress herself, but she did it all in a rush. Inferno was still shouting and she worried that Eric was in trouble. The redness on her face had gone down a bit, but she made sure to cover it up as much as she could. Best not give Inferno a reminder of anything else he was still angry about. She pulled on the clothes, and remembered the promise of self-defense lessons that Inferno had made. If these workout clothes were any indication, he hadn’t forgotten.
When she re-entered the bedroom, a team of guards was searching every inch of the room. As if someone might still be there. Inferno was supervising from the doorway, a hand on his earpiece. Leanne was nowhere to be seen but she spotted a pair of sneakers that had likely been left behind for her.
“Are you sure it wasn’t a member of your team?” Fiona asked, lacing up the shoes. “Maybe someone on staff who was…I don’t know, just checking in on me?”
Inferno looked at her, a lifted brow.
“Maybe someone who forgot to sign off on it and is too embarrassed to come forward?”
That sounded like a nice, safe explanation for what she hoped it actually was. It was so much better than the idea that someone had been standing over her last night, watching her for whatever reason.
“If that’s the case then someone will be getting their ass fired.”
Fiona wasn’t sure she liked that either. If this was a mistake, even though it was scaring the hell out of her now, she didn’t want anyone getting fired.
But she also wasn’t about to argue with Inferno when he looked as if he was literally about to burst into flames.
“Some of your scales are coming in through your skin.”
The tension in Inferno’s shoulders suddenly seemed to deflate right out of him. He looked down at his hands, noted the red scales that were there. He reached his fingers up and touched the side of his neck, where more scales were coming in. He grumbled, his hand falling away. “Never mind that.” A soft beeping noise came in through his earpiece. He lifted his hand and touched it. “What?” Inferno glanced at her. “Right. Get in here.”
Fiona tensed, hearing the door to Inferno’s rooms opening up. “What?”
“Sustenance. Eat up, because your day is going to be packed with lessons.”
* * *
Fiona had tried to object to the use of a food taster with breakfast, but Inferno wasn’t going to let her eat before every bit of food was confirmed free of poison. He was done taking any chances. He was going to take every precaution. And he was going to make damn sure that she was equipped with the skills and weapons to fight for her life.
He didn’t fire Eric, even though Fiona thought he would. Eric had been off duty during the night; even head guards get to sleep. Eric was as upset about the situation as Inferno was and just as determined to find out what happened.
Inferno took Fiona down to the training grounds that were in another building on the royal property. The building was connected to the palace in two different ways. The main point of entry from the palace was through a long hallway, not quite as elegant as the rest of the open halls inside, but it was bright and gave off a friendly impression that was meant to impress visiting reporters and the occasional tourist for when the palace was open to visitors.
They took that route.
The other way it was accessible was through the basement. Another tunnel-like hallway was thirty feet beneath their feet. Both entry points were used for various reasons. The basement entrance was mostly used to keep the guards in training out of sight of the tourists, but it could also be used should the other entrance ever be compromised. Meaning, if there were ever intruders who had broken into the palace and cut off one of the hallways, there would still be another for them to worry about.
Both tunnels could also be shut down from the palace in case of a fire through various means, but Inferno had always suspected that had only been a feature added in by those who were constantly paranoid about the fate of the royal family.
It was a foolish thing to be fearful of, considering the royal men were required from birth to learn how t
o fight and defend themselves, and keep up to speed by regularly training with their own bodyguards. For the female royals, it was more of an option, one which only Flare had taken an interest in, that Inferno knew of.
Even if Fiona decided to flee his palace and never return, Inferno wanted her to be armed and able to defend herself. Even then, he might insist on hiring a trainer for her, wherever she ended up, to continue her education.
He still couldn’t believe someone had been in the room with her last night. She’d thought it was him. She’d been helpless against any attack.
“So, what’s going to happen?”
Inferno glanced down at his mate, the woman he wanted to keep with him for the rest of their lives, to bear his children, and he had to look away when he growled. “I’m going to find that fuck and murder him. That’s what’s going to happen.”
“Oh, I meant when we got to the gym.”
“Oh.” Inferno glanced down at her, and then was forced to look away.
“I thought you were just going to fire him when you found him?”
“If it was indeed an accident and misreporting.”
“Right, so, you’re not actually going to kill him, are you?”
“Why shouldn’t I?”
Fiona stopped so abruptly that Inferno was forced to stop as well. As did the many guards who were following them. Inferno barely saw them. He only had eyes for the woman in front of him, and the way she looked back at him.
It wasn’t quite a glare, but she was clearly unhappy with him. “What?”
Her tiny fists clenched. “Are you serious?”
He turned to face her fully, crossing his arms. “We don’t have time for this. You’re wasting training time.”
“Really? Exactly how much time do I have to train here before I leave?”
Inferno couldn’t contain his growl. He didn’t like the thought of her leaving.
“And now you’re growling at me!”
“I am not growling at you,” Inferno grumbled.
“Yes, you are. Why? Because I mentioned leaving? What did you think was going to happen when you start threatening to kill people?”
“I wouldn’t actually kill him. Possibly.”
“There! You see? That right there! You can’t joke about stuff like that.”
“Why not?”
“Because you’re royalty! How am I supposed to know you’re not going to actually do it?”
“Is that what you’re worried about? That I would keep my word?”
“In this case? Yes.”
Inferno wasn’t entirely sure why she was angry about this. He would have thought knowing someone would have been in her room last night without her permission, or even without cause to secure the rooms, would have been more of a cause for concern.
It must have showed on his face, because Fiona shook her head. “You still don’t get it.”
“What’s not to get?” Inferno threw his hands up into the air. The heat of frustration was boiling over inside him.
“You could get away with killing someone if you wanted to. You could probably make all the people you think of as your enemies vanish and no one would ever notice. That’s horrible. Do you even realize that is so much worse than some creep sneaking into my room? I don’t care what he was there for, even if he’d tried to attack me. He doesn’t deserve to die for it, so don’t threaten to kill people in my name because I don’t fucking like it!”
She yelled those last words, and Inferno was…he was stuck. Rarely had anyone ever gobsmacked him. He’d actually been trained since a small child to keep himself under control, to keep his facial features and body language from appearing confused or shocked, even when he was in the privacy of his own home.
But this had him entirely stunned. He didn’t know what to say.
“You’re talking about me as if I’m a monster.”
She hesitated before speaking her next gut punch. “If the shoe fits.”
Inferno couldn’t speak after that. He opened his mouth, tried to get the words out that he wanted, but it wasn’t working. His throat wouldn’t bring forth the sentiments he wanted. He, who was trained to speak, trained to use his voice as well as his strength for the good of his people so he could come across as a confident and articulate ruler…
He couldn’t speak.
He looked at Eric, and the other guards, who quickly averted their eyes. Even with the sunglasses on, the tiny tilts of their heads were noticeable as they watched their prince fumble for his words.
Inferno cleared his throat, a humiliation the likes of which he’d never felt before coming over him. He looked to Eric. “Take her to the gym and give her the lessons.”
“You aren’t coming with me?” She sounded shocked, and Inferno honestly could not tell if it was relief.
“I will be there shortly,” he said.
Eric sidled up next to Fiona. “Come, miss,” he said softly, pointing his hand down to the end of the hall, as though asking her to lead them.
Fiona looked from Eric to Inferno and back again. Was she wondering if this was a trap? Was she thinking about whether or not Inferno would harm her for not towing the line?
How could she think such horrible things about him after how close they’d been that morning in his bed? Couldn’t she see that killing an intruder was just his assurance that he’d do anything to protect her?
He watched her walk away from him, and when she was down the hall, through the doors, and in the presence of multiple men whose jobs it was to die for her if she was in danger.
After the doors were closed, Inferno turned off his earpiece, and then pulled out his phone. He called Ember’s number, pleased when his brother answered immediately. “Will you come down here and talk with me? Yeah. I need some help with this.”
Before he could find out what was happening to Fiona, and how safe she would be if he sent her back out into the world, he needed to know what his closest and most intelligent family member thought of him and his ability to rule.
Because if his own mate couldn’t even see him as anything other than a monster when he was trying to protect her, how could he properly lead the dragon people?
17
“The best confrontation is the sort you can avoid. That being said, if the last case scenario does occur and you’re forced to defend yourself, there are some weak points that will help you if you find yourself cornered or held by an attacker.”
Fiona liked the trainer Inferno had hired for her. The woman was tough, former military, but human, which meant she could understand Fiona’s weaknesses and abilities better than the dragons would.
They repeated some basic moves until Fiona was able to execute them smoothly, without having to think it out. Even so, her mind was on Inferno the whole time, and her eyes kept drifting to the doors, hoping he would show back up. Why was he was so furious with everyone and everything? Was it just his personality? Shouldn’t sex have mellowed him out some?
“Good, now stand like this, leg out, perfect. This time, we’re going to target your neck. I’m going to put my hands on your neck from behind.” The woman stepped up, and hovered her hands a few inches from Fiona’s neck.
“No, wait,” Fiona stepped away, and turned to look at her. “I don’t know I can do that. A few days ago, well—”
“I know about the attack,” the trainer put her hands on her hips. “That’s why we’re doing this. If you work through the trauma with me, then you have a better chance of keeping your wits about you in an attack situation.”
Fiona frowned, but nodded. It made sense. She took a breath and stepped back into position.
“I’m not going to choke you, but know that if you do find yourself in this position, you have only about thirty seconds to get out of it.”
“Because I’ll be dead?” Fiona asked.
“Passed out, on your way to dead.”
She swallowed hard. “Does it really only take thirty seconds?”
“Sometimes less. If some
one gets the right hold they can cut off the blood flow to your brain and have you passed out in less than ten.”
Fiona shivered. She thought about the men who attacked her in her apartment, and the person who was in her room last night. It made her feel vulnerable. Scared. But knowing she had this trainer, and Eric, to help her made her feel stronger.
“I’m ready.”
The trainer put firm pressure on her neck, but not enough to hurt her. It still made her feel helpless as she struggled to free herself. She started to wonder if maybe Inferno’s anger was because he didn’t know how to help her. Maybe he was afraid too.
She didn’t even know that much about Inferno. Maybe the threat to people he loved was too real. What if someone had made an attempt on his life at some point, one of his family members? Maybe Inferno had a reason other than just his protective nature to be so angry over this.
Someone could have had their hands on Fiona’s throat and choked her to death before she had the chance to do a damned thing about it. Inferno could have walked in that morning and found her dead body.
He was constantly going on about her safety, and yet things seemed to keep happening. That couldn’t feel good to a prince who liked to be in control of everything.
“You’re going to lose the challenge if you don’t find a way out.”
Shit. She had to focus. This stuff really could save her life.
When she saw Inferno next, she would have to thank him for this. For everything he was doing as he tried to take care of her.
As hard as she thrashed, or tried to elbow her trainer, or stomp or kick, she couldn’t escape. She couldn’t pry her fingers off her throat, it felt as if she pulled at a steel clamp. She was just too damned strong for her.
She let her struggle for what had to be way longer than thirty seconds. “I can’t do it! You’re too damned strong.”
“Alright, let’s take a break. Go get some water, and then we’ll walk through the steps you need to take to break this hold.”