Sapphamire

by Alice Brown

  “Why would he tell you that I am his mate, but not me? Does he not want me as a mate? I realize I don’t come from the money that he obviously has, but still, why would he do that?”

  “I think he wants to give you a little time to get to know him. He was kind of hoping you would fall in love with him because of him, not because of some mating link.” Jade quickly stood to leave. “I had better go before he catches us and gets suspicious. All I ask is that you think about what I have said. He is a good man, and I just want to see him happy.”

  Natasha gave her a smile as she moved to the door. “I will. Thanks, Jade.”

  Chapter Five

  Blain was fast reaching the boiling point. He could not find Natasha anywhere. He had asked numerous people on his staff, but no one had seen her this morning. Jade told him they had breakfast together early this morning, and that she seemed fine then, but he could not locate her anywhere within the castle now. He quickly headed down to his workout room. He didn’t think she had left, her belongings were still upstairs in her room, and the staff had reported that no one had left the castle that morning. If she had somehow managed to get past everyone, he would hunt her down and spank that perfectly-rounded ass of hers when he found her. Then he would allow his dragon to claim her, ensuring he would know exactly where she was at all times. He couldn’t lose her—he wouldn’t lose her, not now, not ever. A wicked smile curved the corners of his lips at the thought of what he would like to do to her. That perfect body, those perfect tits, the perfectly-rounded ass, those shapely legs along with her long hair all gave him ideas that he cataloged in his brain. One day, he promised himself and his dragon. One day soon. One day he would love her body into a puddle of goo. That body of hers was his, all his, and she would know it by the time he got done making love to her.

  Meanwhile, he was going to do a quick, hard workout to try to purge some of his pent up energy. After yesterday’s little fiasco, he wasn’t leaving the castle for workout sessions anytime soon. Turning the corner, he pushed through the doors to the training room, he had gotten himself so worked up looking for Natasha that he couldn’t even think clearly. He hoped the workout would clear his mind and maybe shed some light as to her whereabouts. He paused suddenly when something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. He turned and looked in through the glass wall between him and the training room, and there she was. She was doing yoga, and oh, she looked so graceful and beautiful doing this art. He stood there and watched her for a moment, completely mesmerized by the sight of her.

  He just stood there watching, completely transfixed and captivated by the way she moved and flowed with such angelic grace and beauty. She moved forward into a Warrior III pose, leaning forward onto her right foot, she lifted off her left foot and stretched out with her fingers pointing straight out in front of her and her left leg stretched out straight behind her. Bare footed, long red hair pulled back in a ponytail, tight fitting tank top, shorts, she was giving him the best damn view of that sweet ass of hers he thought he would ever see until it was stripped naked. He was getting hard just standing there watching her. He couldn’t help watching, curious as to how flexible she really was. And the more he watched, the more ideas he had as to when he finally got her in his bed. Now there was a wickedly beautiful idea. And before he even realized it, he was silently slipping into the training room and walking up behind her just as she was leaning forward, pressing her head to her grounded shin and lifting her left leg straight up into the air. Gods that gave him an even better visual of her ass.

  Natasha had been keeping her eyes closed while doing the Warrior pose, it always helped her to relax and become more centered. Suddenly, she knew she wasn’t alone anymore as she felt another presence in the room. Cracking her eyes open, and not one bit happy about her private workout being interrupted, she found a pair of black biker boots and faded blue jeans standing directly behind her. Tilting her head so she could look at the person—upside down—her gaze traveled up the thick, strong legs to the bulging erection at his groin. She swallowed hard, forcing her gaze to continue traveling upwards till she finally met the face of the man standing behind her only to find him intently admiring her ass. But what shocked her the most was who was staring so hungrily at her bottom. She gasped and lost her balance at finding Blain standing there. He caught her by the waist as her hands and feet hit the floor, but before she had the chance to topple over and fall.

  “I got you, baby,” he said huskily, groaning as she moved to stand up, her ass gliding along his painfully erect cock. Blain could no more stop his body’s response to her than he could stop the weather. Bringing her up against his front, he wrapped an arm around her waist and leaned down to nuzzle her ear. “You feel so fucking amazing,” he growled, rubbing his face against the side of her head and then bringing the lobe of her ear into his mouth with his tongue and sucking on it for a moment. He felt the shiver run down her spine as she leaned back into him even more, her eyes closing as she moaned softly. Oh yes, she was his. She may not know it, or even fully believe it when he told her, but she would be his. He would make damn sure of it.

  When she attempted to speak, she found herself unable to complete a train of thought or even communicate in full sentences. He almost laughed, but he was far too busy trailing kisses down her neck.

  “Um…sir…Blain…You…I…We…Should…” She couldn’t get any further than that as he wrapped his arms around her waist a bit tighter, pulling her in even closer to his body. 'Oh yeah, just like that. She fits us so perfectly.' His dragon approved.

  “Mm, I’m listening,” he said, rasping against her neck, knowing all too well that, at this moment, she couldn’t put two words together that made any sense.

  “No…no,” she said, lightly shaking her head back and forth as if in a trance.

  “Yes,” he whispered, tenderly kissing her jawline.

  He cupped her jaw and tilted her head so he could reach her lips. The second their lips touched, his dragon was doing backflips in his mind, he was so happy. An electrical current ran between them, and neither had an inclination to stop it. Blain reached around and lightly brushed one fingertip over a nipple, wishing he could replace his fingertip with his tongue. Her nipple budded instantly, and he lightly squeezed her entire breast, loving the feel and weight of it in his hand.

  When the doors suddenly whooshed open, Blain found himself releasing Natasha and going into attack mode. His head snapped up and around as he greeted the intruders with a harsh growl, baring his teeth. Three of Lady Jade’s bodyguards walked in, stopping short at the door seeing Blain and Natasha, all wearing their workout shorts and tees. Blain stood facing them with a scowl and Natasha tried to push away from him, but his hold on her would not give an inch.

  “What is the meaning of this intrusion?” Blain roared out at the newcomers.

  The guards blanched. One of the men in front, Natasha thought his name was Justin, spoke up. “We are very sorry for the interruption. We were told we could use the facilities while we were here.”

  Blain took a deep breath. “You are of course welcome to use the facilities, although consider this a warning. If you start to walk into a room and there is someone else in there, please have the common decency to leave them be.” He reached over and grabbed Natasha’s hand. “Come on, let’s go.”

  Natasha broke away from Blain the moment they were outside the doors. How in the world was she supposed to work with him when he pulled moves like what he had just done? She made a hasty retreat to her room, hoping for just a few short minutes to think this situation through.

  “Natasha, wait.”

  “Sir, I really need to get cleaned up and ready to start the workday. I’ll see you in the…” she didn’t get any further as Blain caught up with her, snaking an arm around her and quickly spinning her around so she faced him.

  “In case you didn’t understand, when I told you to wait, that was an order, Natasha.” He hated having to demand and bark out order
s to her, but sometimes, like now, he truly felt that was the only way she would listen to him. 'Punish her,' his dragon chortled out in glee. 'Punish mate and make her hot, wet and tasty!'

  Natasha glared at him for a moment. That was an order…hmmph! More like he is still in a pissy mood because of the interruption downstairs, so now he is going to start ordering everyone around. Go for it, big guy, let’s see how far it will get you! She took a deep breath, trying to rein in her temper. Her poor rolled-up yoga mat was being squeezed to death she had such a tight grip on it.

  “Yes, sir?” she said, standing straight with her shoulders back. If he thought she would cower in fear, or even back down because he was being pissy, he would soon find out differently.

  He wound his arm back around her, bringing her up against him. She tried to step back just to put some space between them, but he wouldn’t allow it. Oh, I want to shrink down to a pixie right now! I’d wrap my wings around me like a protective shield. She was already embarrassed to be standing in the middle of the hall in nothing more than her yoga pants and a sports bra, her wings displayed on her bare back. Why can’t he just give me a few minutes to put myself back together? Give me a minute or two in order to protect my heart? She had to start work soon, would it really kill him to give her a few minutes alone?

  She thought about the upcoming workday and groaned. Blain had scheduled an afternoon of horseback riding for the three of them. She was originally against the idea because she thought she was going to have to follow the two lovebirds around all afternoon. She was still dreading it, even though she knew that wouldn’t be the case. She would much rather he left her in the office to work by herself, with no one to distract her. Why was he going to such lengths to make her feel like she belonged here? She was only an employee. Jade’s words from this morning as well as the witch’s from the day before crossed her mind and she sighed. He might think she was his mate, but once he really knew her, and knew that trouble tended to follow her no matter where she went, he would back out. Of that, she was quite sure. And when he did, it would break her heart.

  “Blain,” she pleaded with him, embarrassed to feel her eyes starting to sting from the tears that were quickly gathering. “Please,” she implored.

  Blain melted. His chest hurt as if struck by some mighty object just from seeing her tears. He knew in that moment that he would never be able to deny anything as long as she gave him that look. He released her and took a step back, running a frustrated hand through his hair. “I’ll meet you in the office in thirty minutes.”

  She gave a quick whispered, “Yes, sir,” before making a hasty retreat to her bedroom.

  Blain stood watching her as she practically ran into her bedroom. His dragon growled at him. 'Are you ever going to stop upsetting her and mate her?'

  'Soon,' he replied to his dragon. 'It has to be soon, because she is driving me abso-fucking-lutely crazy!”

  Chapter Six

  Normally, horseback riding didn’t bother Natasha, but today it was making her grit her teeth. She rode behind Blain and Jade as was proper since she was an employee. Both Blain and Jade had tried to talk her into joining them, but she refused. Besides, riding behind them didn’t require her to maintain a conversation, which allowed her mind to wander. She inhaled briefly, and felt another horse come up beside her. She hadn’t been paying attention to her surroundings, and as she glanced around, she suddenly realized that Blain and Jade were quite a distance up ahead, as was one of Blain’s guards. The horse coming up alongside of her belonged to one of Jade’s guards.

  “My Princess enjoys the company of your Lord,” remarked Bores, one of the guards who had interrupted her and Blain in the workout room earlier that morning.

  Natasha cleared her throat and rolled her shoulders back. She didn’t know what the guards knew of her and Blain only being friends, or if Daddy Dearest was paying off one or two to keep a close watch on his daughter. “Yes, they seem quite at ease with one another.”

  “Should my Lady Jade be worried about what happened this morning?” Ahh, so he was under the assumption they were an item. Well, let’s just see where this goes.

  Her cheeks burned from the bitter cold air and the hot blush quickly coming over them. “No,” she answered almost too fast. “There is no threat that your princess needs worry about.”

  Bores stared at her for a moment, not believing one word coming out of her mouth. She wasn’t bad on the eyes. Maybe if she was that easy he would sample her. It had been awhile, and obviously after what he had walked into this morning, she was easy. After all, she had only been on the job a few days from what he had been able to find out from the staff.

  “You know,” he started, bringing his horse over closer to hers, “I could easily forget what I saw for a small price.” He spoke quietly, leaning in close and rubbing his hand up and down her thigh. She cringed, wanting to scream out in agony at his touch. It felt so wrong, and made her skin feel as if there were fire ants crawling all over her body. She wasn’t stupid. She was well aware of what he wanted in exchange for keeping his mouth shut. Damn fool, there is no reason to keep your mouth shut, but I think Jade may have a spy on her hands for Daddy Dearest. “I thought maybe you would consider joining with me this evening.” His hand crept up even higher on her leg, stopping with only an inch or so away from her jean-covered mound. This time Natasha couldn’t hold back the shudder of revulsion that went through her at his touch. If was revolting. It felt wrong. Wow, I’ve never had this happen before. She thought back to what Jade had said earlier. “You are his mate.” Maybe she was on to something. It would certainly explain the sudden possessiveness she felt over him. And it would explain why she was so attracted to him so quickly after meeting him. But could she live up to being his mate? Would he even want her, or just feel like he had to mate with her because of the mating call.

  She felt Bores’s hand inch even closer, she waited, continuing to guide her horse down the path. Just when he lifted his fingers in an attempt to touch her most private spot, she sprang into action. Lightning fast, she reached down and grabbed one finger of the hand that had been trying to feel her up. With a quick flick of her wrist, she had his finger bent completely backward, hearing the rewarding sound of bones and cartilage breaking.

  He stared down at his completely deformed finger that was throbbing. “You bitch, you broke my finger!” His roar drew the attention of Blain and Jade, who were still ahead of them. Blain quickly turned his horse around and headed their way.

  “Yeah, and you should have never put your hands on me without my permission,” she stated. One of these days these guys are going to learn, if you don’t want me killing you, then hands off!

  Natasha sat in a chair outside of Blain’s office. When they had returned from the horseback ride, Bores had insisted on an immediate emergency meeting between himself, Blain, and Jade. She could hear Blain shouting even through the thick, closed doors. She had no doubt Bores thought he would get the upper hand if he spilled the beans as to what transpired this morning down in the exercise room. Natasha wanted to laugh. Little did he know Jade wouldn’t give two cents as to what she and Blain had been doing. She wasn’t interested in Blain, but had admitted to Natasha that morning that, in the past, she had come across as flirting with Blain in front of her guards, as she was suspicious she had a few spies in the group that her father was controlling.

  She jumped and nearly squeaked at the sound of something shattering against the inside of the office door. She looked up to see Donatello, one of Blain’s guards, standing next to her.

  “How bad is it in there?” His dragon hearing would allow him to hear more than she could ever hope to.

  “Not looking good,” he said, and she groaned, feeling sick at his words. Would Blain not take her side? Bores had started the entire mess. If he hadn’t tried to blackmail her, she wouldn’t have had to hurt him.

  Donatello was quick to correct her wayward thoughts. “For him, Natasha. Blain is in there defen
ding you and ripping him a new one. Let me guess, he tried pressuring you into having sex with him, and you broke his finger. Have I got that part correct, at least?” He smiled down at her, trying to lighten up atmosphere.

  “Yes, that part is correct. He caught Blain—” she stopped there, if he hadn’t heard what happened this morning already, she sure as heck wasn’t going to tell him. “Never mind, the rest is not important.” Surprisingly enough, Donatello had turned out to be a really nice guy after that incident in the office on her first day. He had pulled her aside and told her he was deeply sorry to have acted that way, and promised it would never happen again. Of course, maybe the bruise under his eye that had mysteriously appeared between the time she left the office and dinner had something to do with it.

  Internally, Natasha was afraid the staff saw her as Blain’s little pet, or Blain’s executive assistant with benefits, or Blain’s plaything. She was strong, could fend for herself, take care of her own problems, yet she felt like she was being handled as if she were a helpless, fragile female. Part of her wanted to barge into that room and kill Bores, while the other half of her wanted to go and start packing her things. The last thing she wanted was to be the talk of the staff.

  Suddenly, the door swung open, and Natasha jumped to her feet immediately. Blain was standing in the doorway, black fury rolling off him in waves. She could see his skin shimmer, and she knew his dragon was close to the surface. He glanced over to her, and she noticed that his eyes held a glow to them. And then he let out a pent-up breath, and she watched smoke puff out of his nose and mouth.

  He turned back to his office. “Get out,” he growled, the gravel sound in his voice reminding her of the Disney movie, Beauty and The Beast.

  Bores scooted past him and out the door. The minute he spotted Natasha, he narrowed his eyes at her before turning his back and walking away.