by Tessa Adams
Quinn’s world exploded. Pure, unadulterated rage flashed through him like a lightning strike as his talons pushed at his fingertips. His wings started to punch through the muscles of his back, and the only thing that kept him from relinquishing control to the beast was the fact that he would scare Jasmine to death if he did.
Even knowing that, it was a close thing and he clung to control with battered, bloody fingertips. The idea that Jasmine had been hurt by some sadistic asshole was almost more than he could bear. The fact that it had happened while he was alive and more than capable of stopping it—if only he’d known it was going on—was somehow a million times worse.
He gritted his teeth, forced himself to keep it together as Jasmine’s voice broke. She swallowed convulsively, struggling to push the rest of the words out. “Anyway, by the time we’d started to heal up—it took a few weeks—I knew I had to get us out of there or we’d both end up dead. I’d been saving money up for college from my afternoon job—I had about six thousand dollars hidden at the back of my closet. Anyway, I waited for him to leave for work one day, and I packed a bag for both of us. Begged her to get in her car and leave with me.
“She wouldn’t do it. No matter what I said, she wouldn’t leave him. I knew if I stayed he’d end up killing me—I wasn’t very good at keeping my mouth shut even then—so I took off. Walked to the nearest bus station and caught a bus to the nearest college town. The rest is history.”
But it wasn’t. He could see that much in her unbending spine, in the hand that was trembling slightly against her thigh. He stared straight ahead, tried to concentrate on driving, but all the time he was wondering what he’d been doing as Jasmine was being tortured. What problems had he been trying to solve for his clan while his mate made her way in the world, young and battered and alone?
Nothing came to mind, except the knowledge that he’d failed her. He’d failed his mate as surely as he had failed his brothers, his parents, his clan. Goddamnit! He wanted to throw his head back and roar. Someone had hurt her and he had done nothing to stop it!
“Hey.” As she finished the story, she realized she’d pressed herself up against the car door in an effort to make herself as small as possible. She straightened up, not wanting to look vulnerable. “It’s not a big deal anymore.
“It still hurts you.” It was a growl, low and inhuman.
“Yeah, but not in the same way.”
“It never should have happened.” His shirt ripped as his back rippled with the need to change.
“Quinn, stop it. I’m fine. It was a long time ago.”
Not so long ago to him—less than one-twenty-fifth of his lifetime.
His talons shredded his shoes as they poked through the leather. Shit, he was losing it.
“I mean it, Quinn. Stop!”
It was too late—he was too far gone. His vision changed, became so much sharper, keener than it was while he was in human form. He slowed the car.
“Damn it, you’re scaring me!” Jasmine fumbled for the door.
He slammed on the brakes and reached over her to pull the door closed. Then laid his head against the seat, closed his eyes, and reached for his dragon. Second by second, breath by breath, he pulled the beast back in—conscious of Jasmine staring at him as he did.
It took longer than it should have, and with every moment that passed he felt more and more guilty. She’d told him about her father, and instead of supporting her he’d gone all crazy alpha male animal on her. What was he going to do for an encore? Beat his chest? Find a small puppy to kick? Beat up on his mate?
Shit. He dropped his head onto the steering wheel and wondered where to start. “I’m sorry. I—the idea of someone or something hurting you…upsets me.”
“Yeah, I got that impression.” It was a typical, smart-ass Jasmine retort, and it might have reassured him if her voice hadn’t been so faint.
“Right.” He nodded. Then started driving again, making a U-turn as he did.
She didn’t say anything for a few seconds, just looked out the window at the blackness of the night. Just when he’d decided she didn’t have anything left to say to him, she asked, “Where are we going?”
He turned his head to stare at her incredulously. “Now you ask me that?”
“Well, it seemed obvious before you turned around. Now I’m not so sure.”
“I’m taking you home. This was a really bad idea.”
“Why?”
“Are you kidding me? I figured after that display you wouldn’t exactly be up to coming to my lair.”
“Is that what you call it? Your lair? That sounds like a bad porn movie. Next thing you know, you’ll be inviting me to see your etchings.” Her hand crept onto his thigh.
“I don’t have any etchings.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
“I frightened you, Jasmine, and believe me, that’s the last thing I want to do.”
“I was frightened because you were hurting yourself, not because you were shifting.”
He stopped the car a second time, turned to her. “Are you lying to me?”
“Why would I do that?”
“I don’t know. To spare my feelings?”
She laughed, and this time there was nothing forced or unhappy about it. The sound skittered down his spine and made him shiver. “Did you forget who you were talking to? What makes you think I’d want to spare your feelings to begin with?”
“Could you just stop for a second?” He knew he sounded as frustrated as he felt, but there was nothing he could do about it. The woman was driving him insane. “Stop with the smart-ass remarks and just be straight with me.”
“I am being straight with you, Quinn.” She brought his hand to her mouth, brushed her lips over the fingertips that had so recently shifted into claws. “I swear I’m not afraid of you shifting. In fact, I’ve been dying to see one of you guys turn into a dragon since you told me what you were.”
The dragon came roaring back. “You want to see one of us change?”
She grinned. “Well, preferably you. And preferably not right now.”
“Oh, yeah?” He lifted an eyebrow inquisitively. “What’s wrong with right now?”
“Absolutely nothing—except that I’ve got plans for tonight that definitely don’t involve you being a dragon.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Jasmine nearly laughed as Quinn whipped his SUV around so fast she nearly got whiplash. Nice to know, after everything, he was still as desperate to be inside her as she was to have him there.
She wasn’t sure how she felt about his reaction to her revelation about her childhood. Perhaps she should be upset that it had become about him, not her. But she wasn’t. Instead, she was kind of awed that she had such power over him—that something that had happened to her so long ago could break through the iron fist of his meticulous control.
It was also nice to know she wasn’t the only one going off the deep end in this relationship, that Quinn was somehow as screwed up and uneasy as she was.
Emboldened by the realization, and by the strange intensity of the feelings she had for him despite her better judgment, Jasmine began rubbing his thigh, soft little circles that had his muscles hardening and his breath catching in his throat.
She liked the reaction, wanted more. How far could she push him, she wondered. How high could she take him before he lost control again? She suddenly wanted desperately to find out.
Sliding her hand a little farther up his thigh, she was rewarded when she finally reached his zipper. He was as hard as a rock, and her mouth watered at the thought of what he would taste like. She began to stroke him through the denim—lightly to begin with and then with a firmer touch when his breathing became strangled.
“What are you doing?” he asked, his voice dark and a little dangerous, just the way she liked it. Was that the dragon rising, she wondered. Or was she simply pushing the man to the limits of his control?
There’s only one way to find out. She ea
sed the top button of his jeans open and then pulled his zipper slowly down. Slipping her hand inside, she felt his hot, silky flesh. He didn’t even try to stifle a groan.
“You’ll get us into an accident,” he warned, and her nipples peaked at the warning in his voice.
“There’s nothing out here to crash into,” she answered. “Besides, don’t you have great night vision?”
“Not when my eyes are crossed.”
She laughed, and his erection jumped beneath her fingers—responding, she assumed, to the sound of her happiness. She grew wet at the thought, a little more proof that he cared about her for something more than getting off. Although she very definitely intended to take care of that for him. After she’d tortured him a little bit.
“I love that you don’t wear underwear,” she murmured, easing him out of the jeans, then leaning down so that her breath drifted over his cock while she spoke.
“It’s easier not to have too many clothes…to deal with…when I shift.” His breath was coming faster now, his hips arching a little off the seat as if he were seeking the warmth of her mouth.
Smiling to herself, Jasmine stroked her hand down him from tip to balls. He shuddered, and one of his hands left the steering wheel to clench in her hair.
“Do it!” he ordered from between clenched teeth.
“Do what?” she asked, right before she pumped her hand up and down him for a second time. “Do this?”
“Jasmine…” It was a command, and they both knew it.
The warning almost made her want to torture him more, but she wanted to know what he tasted like as much as he wanted her to take him in her mouth. So, with a sigh of acquiescence, she bent lower and delivered one leisurely lick down the length of his cock.
Quinn’s body jerked convulsively, the fingers in her hair tightening almost to the point of pain. “Again.”
She rubbed her cheek along his hard, silky length before turning her head and softly kissing just the tip. It wasn’t nearly enough—for either of them—but he needed to learn that he didn’t dictate everything. Here, now, in this moment, she was the one in control, and she would take him as slowly as she wanted to.
His thigh trembled beneath her head but he didn’t say anything, didn’t try to force her to go down on him, so she rewarded him with another long, slow lick, then swirled her tongue around and around the head.
He groaned, his hips arching involuntarily off the car seat but, still, he didn’t try to take over. She smiled, then gave him exactly what he wanted. Sucking him deep into her mouth, she licked him up and down before pulling back until only the tip was between her lips.
She sucked at him gently, her tongue flicking over the sensitive bundle of nerves centered at the bottom of the head. His fingers tightened in her hair then, but she was too far gone to care. Her pussy was wet, aching, and she wanted nothing more than to take him inside her. But at the same time, she didn’t want to let him go. She wanted to keep loving him like this forever.
Quinn tried to keep his eyes on the road, tried to keep going through the desert until he got to his cave, where he could take her any and every way that he wanted to. But the deeper his cock slid inside her beautiful mouth, the more certain he became that he wasn’t going to make it that far.
Pulling the SUV to yet another stop, he leaned his seat back so that he could watch her take him. Never had he been so grateful for his dragon vision and the ability to see clearly in the dark. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen something as arousing as watching Jasmine take him into her gorgeous mouth.
He thrust against her, fascinated by the sight of himself sliding in and out of her cherry-colored lips. He wanted her to continue, wanted to come in her mouth with a need so intense it was painful. But he wanted to hold her, too, wanted to pleasure her again and hear her call his name. Hear her say that she belonged to him, even if she didn’t mean it. Even if it was just for tonight.
“Sweetheart, stop,” he whispered, forcing the words from a throat that felt like sandpaper. “I don’t want to come yet.”
She stopped, and he nearly groaned in disappointment. “I want you to come,” she answered softly, then ran her tongue up and down his length again.
Her lips closed over him again, her tongue continuing to slide back and forth as she pushed up his shirt and scraped her fingernails softly down his abdomen. It was too much—too much sensation, too much stimulus, too much everything. He tried one last desperate time to pull away from her.
Jasmine refused to relinquish her control. Pulling him tightly against her, she slid his entire length into her mouth and down her throat. Her tongue stroked the underside of his cock, while her fingers snuck inside his jeans to run along his balls and her mouth continued the sucking motion that was driving him out of his mind.
He tried to hang on, tried to fight against the orgasm that was starting at his spine and arrowing straight up his dick, but she hummed sexily and the vibrations sent him right over the edge. He came with a growl, emptying himself into her mouth in an orgasm so intense it left him shaken and a little shocky.
Closing his eyes, he relaxed back against the seat and tried to regain his equilibrium. It was difficult, as Jasmine hadn’t stopped touching him.
She ran her fingers lightly over his stomach, brought her hand up to caress his cheek and push an errant lock of hair out of his eyes. She lifted his hand to her lips and put a kiss right in the center of his palm, her tongue dancing over his heart line and down his head line as he tried to catch enough breath to speak.
He’d almost managed it when she sat up, and every thought he had flew right out of his head. Her lips were shiny as she leaned forward and ran them over his cheek, down his jaw. Her hair was tousled from his fingers running through it, and her eyes glistened and glowed in the dim light of the moon. Her breasts were swollen and gleaming, overfilling the cups of her bra.
Never in his entire life had he seen a more beautiful woman—inside and out. This sweet and sexy and sarcastic doctor who had crashed into his life and turned everything upside down.
Just the thought of her walking away made him break out in a cold sweat, not just because he might lose his mate but because he might lose her. In three short days she’d insinuated her way into his life and made him fall for her. Now, he wasn’t sure what he would do without her.
His cock hardened at the thought of losing her, his dragon biting and scratching in an effort to get to her. To make her his. To keep her for however many years she lived.
The urge to be inside her rose until he could barely think, barely breathe. Lifting her up, he pushed her bra out of the way, then turned her so that she was straddling him, her beautiful breasts brushing against his cheek.
He paused for a moment and just looked at her, shocked anew at how gorgeous and giving she was. But she grew impatient and squirmed against his already hard cock and Quinn knew he couldn’t hold out any longer. Leaning forward, he captured a taut, pouting nipple in his mouth even as he shoved her soft cotton pants down her thighs. He rolled the nipple between his lips, pinching softly, loving how it tightened for him even more.
And still it wasn’t close to being enough.
Resting one hand on her back to anchor her to him, he slipped his other hand between Jasmine’s legs. She was wet, hot—scorching—and he groaned as he slid one finger inside of her, followed closely by a second. He worked them back and forth, his thumb rubbing against her clit as she rode his hand. Her scent—sweet blackberries and jasmine—rose up, set the dragon inside him to whimpering.
Jasmine was just as far gone. Wanting to see Quinn, needing to watch him take her, she fumbled for the overhead light, punched it on. Then bent her head so she could look between their bodies and see all of the crazy, beautiful things Quinn was doing to her body.
His fingers were deep inside her, his fully aroused cock nestled between the cheeks of her ass as she rode him, slow and easy. His free hand tightened on her hip while his fingers moved har
der and faster inside of her, rubbing against her G-spot and making her whimper. At the same time, he lifted his hips and his cock rubbed against her anus. That was all it took—orgasm flooded her, tightening every muscle in her body as she came, screaming his name.
He reached for his jeans and drew a condom from the back pocket, slipping it over his pulsing erection and sliding home as contractions continued to rock her. Jasmine rose onto her knees, riding his cock much harder and faster than she had his fingers.
Their eyes met in the soft light of the car, held, as need arced between them. For a moment she thought of turning away, but she couldn’t. She didn’t even want to, no matter how intense the feelings racing between them were.
As if he knew what she was thinking, Quinn reached up and grabbed her chin, holding her face steady with his elegant surgeon’s hands. His eyes blazed, burned, promised things she didn’t want to think about, things she couldn’t name. And still she didn’t look away. Another release was close, beckoning, growing stronger with each lift and fall of her hips against him.
At the last minute, he slipped his other hand between them, his thumb stroking firmly over her clit. She closed her eyes, but his fingers tightened on her chin. “Look at me,” he demanded hoarsely. “I want to see your eyes when you come.”
She lifted her lids just as her body convulsed, his words sending satisfaction streaming through her. His eyes glimmered in the light, the look in them intensifying her climax as his own roared through him.
She’d never felt more exposed, more open, more connected to another person in her entire life. And though every instinct she had screamed at her to pull away, to look away, she stayed where she was, reveling in this one, perfect moment.
It wasn’t enough, but it was all she had and she grabbed on to it with both hands. She would take it, and him, for as long as she could—and to hell with the consequences.