Obsession: Paranormal Romance : Dragon Shifters, lion shifters, immortals and wolf shifters (Dragon Protectors Book 2)

by Laxmi Hariharan

  Vance looked up from taping Cain’s ribs. His gaze narrowed. Gone was his characteristic, laid-back attitude. In its place was a coiled mass of muscle that vibrated with concentration.

  Logan and Serena were also in the room.

  Vance focused those piercing eyes of his on her, his legs planted wide. “He’s not healing.” His voice was accusing.

  The strain in the room shot up.

  A jumble of emotions twisted her gut. She schooled her features so as not to betray her fear.

  “What happened out there?” Vance’s words lashed through the silence. “What have you done to him?”

  Logan laid a hand on his shoulder. “Easy, man, she saved his life by flying him here.”

  Vance didn’t take his gaze off Eve. “Who saved whose life, hmm?”

  Serena strode across the floor. She slid her smaller body between Eve and Vance. “Hang on, Doc. No one’s keeping tabs here. We’ve all been through a lot; we worked as a team to get here.”

  Vance’s jaw firmed.

  Serena folded her elbows into her sides.

  Eve sensed something unsaid between the doctor and Serena.

  “That isn’t true, is it, Eve?” He addressed her, but his attention was on Serena. There was an edge to his voice.

  The hair on the nape of her neck rose.

  Across the room, Logan straightened. His brows were furrowed.

  Serena shuffled her feet. “What’s he talking about?” She turned those big amber eyes on Eve.

  Eyes so like Cain’s.

  It shattered her.

  The ball of emotion in her chest grew bigger until she couldn’t breathe. “Putain.” She clutched her fists at her sides.

  She’d sworn like him again. He was part of her. The thought had her stomach lurching in fear. She turned on her heel and ran out, brushing past Lana who’d just entered.

  Out of the infirmary, down the lawn, over the small wall separating the building from the beach and onto the sand.

  Running to the waves, she dived in. Eve swam out until her limbs trembled and refused to cooperate. She turned on her back and floated, looking up at the skies which were white. The first rains had come and gone; this was the respite before the onset of the monsoon.

  Lana had told her that it was unpredictable when the rains would arrive, and when they did, there would be days when the rain wouldn’t let up. It would be fierce, and the force of the wind would pick up, blowing away anything untethered. Like her. None of the challenges she’d faced so far had prepared her for what Cain had done. He had swept away all her defenses, all her reasons, her very identity of who she was and what she wanted.

  She’d thought becoming alpha after her father was the reason for her existence. Then she’d met Cain. Even then she’d thought he couldn’t be her mate.

  Cain hadn’t cared about any of that. He’d followed his heart. He’d accepted the mating bond and thrust his life force into her. He’d twined his energy with hers.

  The bond had given her the surge of power needed to push through all the emotional barriers that had held her back from shifting. It was because of Cain that her dragon was alive. He’d made her fly again.

  So far it was he who’d done the chasing.

  He was dominant, and yet there was a part of him that was so unselfish and tender—he’d given the most important part of himself to her; he’d given her himself.

  He’d poured his energy through the bond, accepting it, knowing it would likely cost him his life, yet he hadn’t stopped.

  He’d given himself to her. But a part of her had held back from submerging all of herself with the bond. She hadn’t opened herself fully to him.

  It’s why he was dying.

  Her stomach cramped. Bile rushed up her throat.

  She couldn’t lose him.

  There could be no one else for her. Regardless of what this meant for the future, for her bloodline, she had to save him. He’d brought her dragon to life.

  She couldn’t live without him.

  Never before had a dragon shifter mated with another shifter species, and for the mate to have survived.

  If Cain died, so did she. She’d already become his, so why was she holding back?

  A strange peace came over her. This was right.

  She swam back to shore to find Lana waiting for her.

  Sliding into the pants and T-shirt the girl handed over to her, Eve then pulled on her boots.

  “Thanks.” She hugged the girl who reminded her so much of her younger sister, Indira.

  They walked back in silence.

  At the door to the room where Vance was treating Cain, Lana kissed her on the cheek. “Good luck, Alpha. Just show him how much he means to you.” She turned and left.

  Eve paused on the threshold. Sometimes the young could see things with such clarity.

  Inside the room, she stood next to Cain’s bed. His ribs were taped, the rest of his chest was bare. His sculpted abs rose and fell. The sheet was drawn up to his waist, his hands on either side, his fingers slack.

  His face was pale, cheekbones stark against his skin. It was as if he’d lost weight in the last few hours. There were dark circles under his eyes.

  He seemed vulnerable.

  Nothing like the strong, dominant man he was.

  Her chest grew cold. She jammed her hands into her armpits. She was not going to lose him.

  Vance stalked her from the other side of the bed. He crossed his arms tightly over his chest.

  She reached for Cain’s hand.

  Vance took a step forward, his arm raised, palm up.

  “I am not going to hurt him.” She met his gaze.

  His jaw hardened. He clearly didn’t trust her.

  Not that she blamed him. She’d do the same if this was her friend lying unconscious and unable to heal himself.

  “I need a little time with him.” She swallowed. “Alone.”

  Logan walked to Vance and laid a hand on his shoulder. The vampire straightened. Shrugging off Logan’s hand, he stalked to the door.

  Her stomach rolled. Her legs felt weak. She wasn’t going to faint, not then.

  “Don’t mind him.” Logan paused on his way to the door. “I know you are going to do the right thing, Eve. Cain is going to be okay.”

  He had more confidence in her than she had in herself.

  “I’ll keep the doc occupied outside and buy you some time.” The door closed behind him with a soft snick.

  She turned back to the man who lay on the bed. She clutched his hand. His skin felt cold, so unlike the strong, vital man who was her mate.

  Sinking into the chair next to him, she rested her forehead against their joined palms.

  36

  Cain

  Cain ran up the dunes of the Great Namib desert. In human form he was eleven years old, just a boy. In lion form his body had already begun to show signs of a mane that stuck out from his lean face.

  His paws whipped up the desert sand, and he chased after the gazelle. His sister ran with him.

  As the rays of the sun lengthened, the cooling air blew a chill over him.

  Something yanked at the back of his mind. A shudder of unease jangled his nerves.

  He was overcome by an overpowering need to get home. He came to a halt so fast he almost fell over.

  Serena swerved to avoid a collision with him. “What is it?” She pranced around, her little body vibrating with impatience. She obviously wanted to get back to the chase.

  Cain shook his head and growled to indicate he was going to return to the pride home. Without bothering to elaborate, he took off at a run. While his strong legs ate up the distance, his heart fluttered, adrenaline racing, urging him on.

  On the psychic plane, his lion’s amber energy pulsed with nervousness. Something was not right. He was the first to burst into their pride complex, Serena right behind him.

  The scent of something heavy and metallic wafted to him, making him growl. Shaking it off, he reached his ho
me. At the threshold, he drew in his lion, transforming his cells. Not pausing to enjoy the burn and ecstasy of the change, he ran through to find his parents in the backyard. They were in human form, conferring with the other adults.

  His mother broke away upon seeing them. “Come.” She grabbed his arm, and Serena’s who’d just entered the space.

  Pausing only to fling some clothes at them, their mother took them to the basement. She flipped open the trapdoor and urged them to enter. “Whatever happens, whatever you hear, don’t come out.”

  She smelled of fear. That was not right. His mother was brave and strong. He’d never seen her this terrified.

  “What is it?” He refused to move; he was strong enough to resist her hold.

  “Attack is imminent. An unknown enemy that has been preying on shifters has reached the nearby village. It is but a matter of time before they get here.”

  “Why don’t we leave? There’s still time.”

  “Aunty Jen is to give birth. We can’t leave her. We’ll hide her. Rest of us will fight. It’s our only chance.”

  “I can fight with you.” He threw his arms around his mother’s shoulders, a strange fear gripping his heart. His blood thudded at his temples, terror a white streak down his spine. “Please, Ma, let me help.”

  “You are helping.” She stepped out of his embrace and dropped to her haunches. She placed Serena’s hand in his. “Take care of your sister.” Shoving them in, she shut the trapdoor and was gone.

  Darkness descended. His sister sobbed.

  Cain pulled her close. “Serena.” His voice echoed in his ears as the darkness ebbed and flowed around him.

  “She’s safe.” The voice came as if from a distance.

  His chest lightened. A sense of calm bled into him. He’d fulfilled his promise to his mother. He could leave.

  Cain turned toward the darkness.

  Warm and seductive, it promised a space where he could leave behind the loneliness that had been a part of him for so long. A place where he’d never feel fear or unhappiness, where there were no demands on him, where he could just be.

  A place with no Eve.

  “Cain.” A voice that sounded like the breeze rippling through grass on a hot summer’s night. Her voice.

  His lion quivered to attention.

  A tug on the psychic plane had him turning to face the vibrant cord of violet and gold that led away from the darkness. It flamed and shimmered, promising him joy. Life. Everything he had wanted and never had. It promised him her.

  You can’t leave, not until we’ve made love.

  Love? His lion pranced toward the light, but the human part of him hesitated. If he left, he would not be able to come back.

  He turned to the serene darkness, the nothingness that seemed so complete.

  I love you, Cain. Come back to me.

  A blast of energy burned up the mating cord; there was nothing serene about it. It was alive, vital, real, and her. Violet and gold clashed as they wove up the cord.

  Her need reached out to him, burning through the darkness.

  37

  Eve

  She wanted to feel her skin slide over his, to be surrounded by his taste, by all of him. She wanted to be subsumed by him and find herself again.

  On the psychic plane, Eve reached out to Cain.

  The violet energy of her dragon melded with his glowing amber, pulling at him. She sensed him hesitate about returning to the physical plane.

  His time was running out.

  She had to hold on to him.

  She slanted her lips across his, thrust her tongue into his mouth. Her love, her need for him, her wanting to be with him, she poured it all into the kiss.

  She wasn’t playing fair.

  She was using the physical pull that had always simmered between them to hold him back. The choice was his whether to stay or go. But she wasn’t going to make it easy for him. She’d fight for him.

  Under her lips, his were unresponsive.

  She weaved her fingers with his.

  His skin only seemed to grow colder.

  Fear licked her nerves. She was losing him. Swearing then biting her lips, she scrambled onto the bed and onto him.

  Eve wrapped her arms around his shoulders, her legs around his waist. It was as if she were trying to chain herself to him, hold him down, hold him back.

  Taking care not to put pressure on his ribs, she placed her forehead against his and poured all of herself into him.

  On the psychic plane, she opened herself up, trusting him, asking for nothing in return.

  She showed him her very heart. That dark violet core of her that no one else had seen. She revealed herself as she’d been born. Pure, unadulterated dragon fire.

  She’d come to him stripped bare. She was asking him to come back and be with her.

  Tears pricked the backs of her eyelids. A few leaked through to fall on his lips.

  A low growl rumbled up his throat.

  She jerked back to find him staring at her.

  His tongue flicked out to lick his lips. “I didn’t imagine it, dragon tears are sweet.”

  She sniffed and brushed her cheek. “Only for their mates. It’s something about our joined energies that changes my chemistry. I can’t hurt you. My fire can’t harm you, and my tears taste—”

  “Like honey and rosewater.” One side of his lips twisted up in a smirk. “You thought I’d leave without making love with you.”

  The heat from him wrapped around her, chasing away the last vestiges of fear in her mind.

  She touched his taped ribs. “You weren’t healing fast enough. I knew then, you had given your energy to me at the Elysian stronghold.”

  His amber eyes shone with flickers of gold, intertwined with flecks of violet.

  It was the most amazing sight she’d seen. She was in him as he was part of her.

  “You spurred my dragon to break through the emotional barriers I had placed on myself. You helped me embrace who I am. The masculine and the feminine part of me. I came into myself because of you. I could fly again because of you.”

  “It wasn’t all me.” Putting his arm around her, he hauled her close enough for her to see the lines that fanned out from the corners of his eyes. “You helped me avenge my parents’ killers. Showed me I didn’t have to do this alone. I don’t want to be alone, Eve. I love you, want you. I want to show you my home, where I come from. I want to share my hopes, my fears, my dreams with you.” He swallowed.

  A warm feeling radiated out from her core.

  On the psychic plane, her dragon spread its wings, the violet and gold bond radiating a pink glow.

  It took her a while to realize it was happiness. “Dragons mate but once. You are it for me.”

  “So why are you not kissing me?” His forehead crinkled.

  “You’re…still wounded. You almost died.” Her cheeks grew warm. She fixed her gaze on his shoulder, smoothed his bedclothes.

  It’s not like they hadn’t kissed before, just that this felt different. More special, their first kiss as a mated pair.

  The planes of his chest shook. “If you don’t kiss me, I really might di—”

  She placed her mouth over his, shutting him up.

  38

  Cain

  The darkness had called to him, promised him he’d never be alone again. He’d so wanted to leave. Then Eve had reached out to him through the mating bond. She’d dropped her pretense, her ego, all the façades she’d had to wear to make it this far.

  She’d kissed him earlier. But this time it felt different.

  Her lips trembled. Her tongue caressed his.

  Her touch was tentative.

  Her scent swirled around him.

  His pulse jumped. The taste of her was honey and wildfire with a sweetness that arrowed straight to his heart.

  His palms went damp. His heart thumped against his rib cage.

  She tasted of pure feminine essence, so sensuous and alive. So full of love,
it seeped into his soul.

  It was as if she were bleeding herself into that kiss.

  It connected with him on a level that felt so right he didn’t need words to describe it.

  A shudder of desire ran through him.

  He trailed his finger over the curve of her hips, tracing the softness of her skin, up over the thrust of her breast to where those glossy locks lay against her chest.

  He curled the long strands of her hair around his palm and pulled her head back so her lips slid off his.

  Her tongue flicked out to wet her lips.

  “You sure, kitten?” He could still taste her.

  She bared her teeth in a smile he could only describe as savage.

  He’d thought he was stalking her. He was so wrong.

  All along it was her who’d been seducing him, drawing him in until he wanted her in his arms, in his life, in his soul. A growl rumbled up his throat.

  He craved the feel of her. But he wanted her to be certain this was what she wanted, too.

  Her eyes widened, the golden flickers in them standing out in her irises, which slit vertical. It sent a pulse of answering heat straight to his groin.

  Her nostrils flared, as if she’d sensed his desire. “I was born for you, Cain.”

  Her words sank into his blood, heating it up. Nothing she’d said could have been more perfect.

  “You’re mine.” His voice was hoarse; he could barely recognize it as his own.

  Desire throbbed, making him hard. He widened his legs.

  The scent of her was driving him mad. The musk of their shared desire went to his head. Pulling her close, he licked her lower lip.

  A shudder shook her body.

  Her hand skimmed down the planes of his chest.

  Goosebumps flared across his skin.

  Her fingers trailed down to his arousal, gripping him.

  Heat slammed against his chest, making it difficult to breathe. Heat flushed his cheeks. His skin felt like it was on fire.

  He plunged his fingers through her hair, raking them across her scalp.