The Dragon's Mate

by Emilia Hartley

  Luc frowned. “If it was shut down, why is the building still standing? Wouldn’t GOE have torn it down?”

  Good question, Anya thought. Nothing about this felt right. She never should have had access to these files in the first place. If everyone had done their job correctly, the files from the sixties wouldn’t have been mixed in with the files she was supposed to transfer to the Embassy. They never should have seen the light of day again.

  It was fate, Anya decided. That was the only way she could explain it. If fate bound her to Luc, it could have led her to those files as well.

  “We should still check it out. There might still be something there, clues that could lead you to your parents. Isn’t that what this was all about?”

  Luc nodded. His head fell forward until his forehead touched hers. “I’ve been a joker all of my life because I was happier to live in the moment than worry about the past or the future.”

  Anya hugged him tight while the confession made its way out.

  “Now, the past and the future are colliding together and I’m scared of everything.”

  “What is there to be scared of right now?” Anya asked the question even as she knew.

  Luc pulled back and raised his hand to her cheek so that he could take in every line of her face. He laid a soft kiss on her lips, there and then gone like a dream.

  “Everything,” he said. “I’m afraid of everything. I’m scared to learn the truth about my parents. For the past fifty years, I’ve held on to the hope that they could still be alive. Now, I know there isn’t a chance in hell. I’ve seen the photographs. I’ve seen what they went through, at least what my mother went through.”

  Anya pulled back. “Your father wasn’t in the file?”

  Luc shook his head. “Part of me thinks he died protecting Mama. It was something he would do. If they put up a fight, Papa would have laid down his life for her. It’s the only thing that makes sense.”

  Anya wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in the small space.

  “More than that. The past is haunting, but the future is daunting. You tapped into files the Guardians don’t want us to know about. I’m worried about what that means for you. What if they find out and arrest you for divulging GOE secrets? What if they try to take you away from me?”

  Anya’s chest tightened. She’d thought about these things, too. They were possible futures that haunted her when she tried to sleep. They were possible futures that threatened everything she’d been trying to save. It threatened her family, both human and dragon. Luc wouldn’t let them take her away. That put him in danger.

  “Don’t worry about that right now,” Anya told Luc. “Dad will find me if a warrant for my arrest goes out. He’ll help me, let me know ahead of time so… so I can run or hide. Whatever it takes.”

  “What about your dreams?”

  “I wanted to help the dragon shifters in America. I’m still doing that. I’m helping you.”

  Luc wasted no time. He brought her mouth to his with the gentle guide of his hand. His kiss was soft and passionate at first, then the strokes of his tongue became urgent. He kissed her like it was the last time he’d ever hold her.

  Anya opened herself to him. Her hands slid beneath his shirt, feeling the smooth expanse of his muscled flesh beneath her touch. Luc lifted her feet from the ground with his hands below the curve of her ass. Anya thought they might go to the bedroom, but Luc dropped down to the floor instead.

  His hands slipped down over her hips, fingers catching in the waistband of her loose jeans. Anya bit her lip as she watched him slip them over her hips and past her thighs. Luc laid a trail of kisses along her thighs, the scruff of his facial hair tickling along her skin. She writhed beneath him.

  Anya wanted him inside her again. She wanted to feel him plunge deep inside her, connecting like they were one being. She couldn’t describe what she’d felt earlier, but she knew she wanted it again and again.

  But, Luc didn’t obey her unspoken desire. His eyes raked over the orange lace of her panties with a hunger he couldn’t hide. His fingers slipped beneath the elastic of her panties and tugged.

  “We already made love once today,” His head dipped low and kissed the soft flesh of her stomach. “What made you pick out such… fancy under things?”

  Anya’s brain scrambled beneath Luc’s touch. Her back arched toward Luc when he pulled away.

  “No more until you answer me.”

  Anya groaned. She needed more. She needed to feel his skin on hers. She threaded her hand through her hair and tugged, trying to get ahold of herself. Need gripped her, but the pain helped clear her mind.

  “Wishful thinking?” was all she could manage.

  Luc’s face lit up an instant before he lowered. Her panties slid down her thighs, the brush of the lace overwhelming in that moment. She moaned, a slight sound that slipped out between her lips. Then his lips touched the folds of her womanhood and she let out a sound of surprise. His tongue parted her folds and her hand reached down to twine in his hair. His dark eyes rolled up to meet hers and a thrill rocketed through her.

  Her head fell back when his tongue delved deeper. It slid over the most sensitive parts of her. She squirmed, unable to control herself. His thumb slipped between the top of her folds while his tongue dropped lower. His tongue teased her entrance, flicking and lapping up her pleasure. The thumb did lazy circles above her opening.

  The heavy feeling of an orgasm started to build inside her. Then, Luc pulled back. She cried out, unable to bear it. He laughed right before two fingers slipped inside her. She arched her back while his other hand slid behind her. It cupped her ass and brought her closer to his mouth. His tongue danced between her folds while his fingers thrust in and out.

  Anya didn’t hold back her scream this time. She reached for him, her nails digging into his skin, and cried out his name. He growled his approval as his body slid over hers. She could tell how badly he wanted her. She could see the long length of him trapped inside his jeans while he made sure she had her orgasm. It left a warm feeling inside her chest.

  His hips rocked over hers. The feeling of rough denim on her overly sensitive folds made her squirm. Her hands worked furiously at the button that held his waistband together. Unable to get them open, she gripped the fabric and pulled. Her own strength surprised her when the button popped and flew across the room.

  She moaned her pleasure when his cock was finally freed from their enclosure. Anya wrapped her legs around his waist, holding his cock between them. She felt it pressed against her stomach as she rocked back and forth. She grazed her nails over his back.

  Anya had her life planned out since she was thirteen. She knew everything she wanted to do, everything she wanted to be. The last two days had turned her plans on their head and she wasn’t looking back.

  Anya rolled them over, her hips pulling back once she was on top of him. Their eyes met while Luc angled his cock into her opening. Slowly, she lowered herself onto him. Her grip on his shoulders tightened. She left little, half-moons across his skin while the sensation of him filling her drove her wild. Little by little, Anya wrangled control over her body once more and began rocking back and forth. Beneath her, Luc groaned.

  His head fell back and exposed the lone of his throat. Anya took the opportunity to graze her teeth along the skin while driving him home. Luc’s body spasmed beneath hers. His head rose to reveal the beast swimming in his eyes. The iridescent colors flashed along them, brilliant and powerful.

  Anya held him back, one hand to Luc’s chest while she rode him. Over And over again, she brought him home. His groin rubbed against her most sensitive parts and brought the heavy feeling of climax back again. Beneath her, Luc rolled his hips so that each thrust became deeper, so that each thrust slammed her core.

  Never before had she experienced anything like this. His hands danced up her waist, sliding her shirt up and over her breasts. He leaned forward and took her nipple into his mouth. She cried o
ut in surprise and felt the heavy feeling grow. The tip of his tongue flicked her nipple before his teeth playfully bit down. His hand slipped behind her and pulled her close. He took her nipple deeper, suckling and teasing.

  “Luc,” Anya whispered. She could barely hear her own voice over the thunder of her heart. She was close, so close.

  Luc’s growl rumbled through her breast and into her bone. He gripped her tight and flipped them over. His hands slid down her waist to capture her hips. His thrusts became filled with need, faster and harder. Anya’s mouth fell open, but before she could scream her climax, he captured it in a kiss.

  The climax washed over her, a wave of pleasure that set her body alight with electrical fire. She writhed beneath Luc, unable to control herself as the waves crashed into her. Luc was close. She could tell from the growls of desperation. She could tell from the sharp bites along her neck. As each thrust sent another, small wave of pleasure through her, she gripped his buttocks to drive him deeper with each thrust.

  Finally, Luc cried out. His body went taut and he spilled inside of her. The sensation sent a series of small waves through her. Anya’s back arched beneath him. Luc panted, but there was his signature smirk on his lips as he looked up at her. She felt her own smile return in kind.

  “Is it always going to be like this?” Anya asked, remembering how the sex in her previous relationships had started hot and steamy, only to fizzle and die out later. Her hands clung to him with a kind of desperation. She didn’t want this to be like those relationships.

  Luc laid his head against her chest and listened to the pounding of her heart for a moment. “I couldn’t tell you. I would like to say yes. I would like to believe that the power of our bond will always make sex this intense, but I don’t know for sure. The only other mated couple I know are Dane and Liana and they’re still in the early stages.”

  Anya loved the sensation of his bare skin against hers. Her breath throbbed after what Luc’s teeth had done to it, but it was a good feeling. It was a reminder of what they’d done, what they’d experienced.

  “Then it’s up to us,” Anya said. “It’s up to us to make sure we never lose this flame.”

  Luc smiled into her skin. She could lay like this forever. Anya was content to lose herself in Luc’s body for a while longer, letting her fingers play over the skin of his back. The world could fall on their heads, but at least they stood to brave disaster together.

  ***

  “This house is for sale, right?” Luc asked his mate as his fingers made soft trails along her skin. They still laid naked and bare on the living room floor where they’d made love.

  Anya nodded and snuggled deeper into Luc’s body. His beast rose, making a triumphant sound. The beast inside of him was happy with the woman fate had given them. She was daring and brave and wanted to change the world for the better. She was the part of him he’d been missing for fifty years, the part that didn’t dare look toward the future.

  Now, Luc had to look in that direction. He had to hold out hope, or at least have a plan in case there was a future.

  “Do you think your father would sell me the house?” Luc knew, if he was going to earn his mate’s love, he couldn’t do it while living with two other men. It was about time that he moved out of the modular home he shared with Marc and Isaac and started a home with Anya. What better place than the one where they’d discovered each other?

  It made such simple sense to Luc.

  Anya grew stiff in his grasp. He feared he’d made a mistake. Had he once again assumed she’d given herself to him when she hadn’t? Had he misread what she wanted again? His heart was moments away from cracking when she twisted in the circle of his arms. She looked up at him with her honey eyes.

  “If you asked, he might just give it to you.”

  She pulled Luc’s face to hers for a kiss. He lost himself in the taste of her. Then, her words struck home. He pulled back, eyebrows arching high over his eyes.

  “Your father approves of me?”

  “Shit,” Anya breathed. “I forgot to tell you. Perhaps it was the mind-blowing sex in the lake that made me forget.”

  Luc snuck another, long, passionate kiss before letting her go on. “Mind-blowing? Was that what you called it?”

  “Mhm,” she answered into his kiss.

  Luc pulled back, breaking the kiss earlier than Anya wanted. Her words still resonated through him. “When did this happen? When did you learn that?”

  “Inside the facility while I was downloading the files. Dad found me. He thought I’d run away just because you were my mate. It seems everyone could tell just by looking at us. Dad told me he would learn to deal with it for me. More than that, he would learn to understand, I think.”

  Luc buried his head in the space between her breasts. The heat from her bare skin helped to comfort him. She’d been vulnerable inside that building. There had been no way Luc could have helped her without starting an all-out battle and even that would have ended miserably for someone.

  “It was an eye opener,” Anya said into the room. “His words made me realize that I wasn’t taking in the whole situation. At first… I thought everything was in black and white and I had to make a decision. My heart or my family. Since I didn’t know you very well, I chose my family. I denied myself everything that I was feeling so that my family could continue to live out their status quo.”

  She grew quiet. The vibration of her voice inside her chest stilled. Luc turned his head to lay a small kiss against her skin.

  “I didn’t think about how the world would be willing to change for me. I was too busy trying to keep it the same. Funny, isn’t it? I wanted to change the world, but given the change I balked. I was such an idiot.”

  “You’re not an idiot,” Luc said into her skin. He wanted to hold onto her forever. He wanted this moment to never end. But, it would. Tomorrow, they would visit the empty GOE facility to find more clues to his parents’ disappearance. They would uncover the injustices made against dragons in America. “Would you… would you live here with me? When all of this is over and we change the world, will you live under this roof with me?”

  Anya stilled. He couldn’t tell what was going through her mind. Had he scared her away? Was it too soon? Their souls had mingled twice now. He didn’t think it too forward, but what did he know? He lifted his head to look his mate in the eye.

  “I’m not asking you to give up your plans. Go out and finish your degree. Go out and assault the world with your vision. But, I would like it, when you’re finished with those things, if you would make a home with me here.”

  “I would love to,” Anya whispered.

  Luc’s smirk split into a wide smile. He pushed himself up to lay a soft kiss on her lips. He’d come to terms with the past. There was no changing what had been done. There was no fixing it, but now he had a future.

  At least, the chance of a future. Who knew what tomorrow held for them.

  ***

  Luc woke and his mate was nowhere to be found. At first, panic gripped him. He feared the worst. He thought she might have ventured to the abandoned facility without him. He worried GOE finally caught up to her and took his mate away from him. All he knew was that she was gone and he’d slept through it. The thought was a punch to the gut.

  Then, he heard voices trickling down the hall. Familiar and warm. Home.

  The other dragons had arrived. Luc forced himself up and out of the bed, even if the scent of his mate begged him to stay and linger a while longer. They had a lot to do this day. There was a lot to be put to rest today. Memories and fears that he’d carried for fifty years would be laid to rest alongside his parents.

  Marc appeared in the doorway, not quite the face Luc was hoping to see, but not the worst thing ever. Luc told him so, told his twin that his ugly mug wasn’t the thing he wanted to see first thing in the morning.

  “Then I would advise you to avoid mirrors.”

  They both laughed. Marc didn’t have anything Luc d
idn’t have, especially a sense of humor even if the other twin didn’t show it often.

  “Just make sure you come back today,” Marc added.

  Luc paused and turned toward his brother. They were all each had left when it came to blood. Dane and Isaac were their family by choice, but Luc and Marc had never come across another coatl dragon in their lives. They were the last of their line, last of their kind. It created another kind of bond. It made them vow to survive and keep the line going.

  “Best find yourself a mate, soon,” Luc informed his brother. It was meant to be a joke, but the weight of it dragged the humor from his tone.

  Marc snorted, like he knew something about mates and didn’t care. Luc raised an eyebrow in question.

  “Let’s just say that you’re a lot closer to having children than I am getting close to my mate in the next decade.”

  “You already… you know your mate?” This was news to Luc. He thought they shared everything. There’d never been a lie or a secret between them in their life. This news was a knife in his heart.

  Marc looked away, his trademark distant gaze as his arms rose to cross over his chest. After a long moment, lips pressed together, he nodded.

  “Why didn’t you think to tell me? Did I not deserve to share this information with you?” Luc was angry. He felt betrayed.

  Marc released a long sigh. “It’s not about you or us. It was about her. My… mate doesn’t know yet and I wanted to give her time. If you return today, I’ll tell you what I know.”

  “Tease,” Luc snapped.

  “Just because you give it all away doesn’t make me a tease,” Marc retorted, an age old inside joke between them. “It reeks of happiness in here. Let’s go get coffee and breakfast in the kitchen. It reeks a little less of happiness in there if only because of the smell of bacon.”

  “It reeks of sex, you mean.”

  Marc waved him off. “For you and Anya, it seems to be one in the same.”