“I don’t care what your excuse is. Hell, Damek, you’re almost as old as time. I would think you could manage to make a donation without screwing it up.”
“Dammit!” he snarled as he ended the call.
Taking a deep breath, he glanced at Rose. “I hope you don’t mind, dear heart, but I have to make a stop before we go back to your sister’s home.”
Rose smiled. “I don’t mind.” She really didn’t.
59
The longer it took them to get back to her sister’s house, the better. She was nervous. What would happen after they got to April’s house? Would he expect her to go home with him? Mate with him?
She bit her lip to suppress her relieved smile and looked out the window. “I can’t tell you how much I don’t mind.”
“Thank you, Rose.”
She squirmed in her seat at his use of her name.
His deep voice resonated in his chest when he said it, as though his dragon took over for a moment.
The sound made all her girly parts tingle. She tried to ignore it, she really did, but he did something to her, he made her feel…different and she had no defense for it.
“Where are we going?”
“To the botanical gardens on the edge of town.”
“Aren’t they closed now?” She looked at the clock on the car stereo. It was after seven.
“I hope so.” He sighed. “I have to break in and get something that doesn’t belong there.”
“Um…why do we have to break in?”
“We aren’t breaking in. I am.” He gave her a stern look as though that alone would keep her in the car.
“Uh, uh. Wither thou goest and all that.” He was not leaving her in the car while he committed a felony.
“Rose.”
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“Don’t Rose me. Using that uber sexy voice to try and get your way just isn’t fair and I won’t have it.”
“You think I have an uber sexy voice?” He grinned at her and pulled into the parking lot of the gardens. Shoving the gearshift into first, he shut the car off and turned to look at her.
“Don’t change the subject.” She unfastened her seatbelt and glared at him. “Why are we breaking into the botanical gardens?”
“We are breaking into the gardens because Damek, in his ultimate stupidity, donated a very rare and dangerous plant to them by mistake.” He raked his fingers through his hair. “He called me from some plant safari he’s on in Africa as soon as his assistant noticed the error. Dragon’s Desire is a plant thought to be extinct. It’s also a mystical plant that can cause a dragon to feel…ardor, along with affecting humans.”
“What does it do to humans?”
“When a dragon touches it, he feels the effects as increased drive. When a human is near a dragon who has touched it, it causes instant attraction to the dragon. The human will want the dragon whether they like him or not. When a human is exposed to the oils of the plant, it would make the human crave anyone of the opposite sex who is immediately available. It is a true aphrodisiac and the ultimate Spanish Fly.”
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Rose narrowed her eyes. “You haven’t touched any of this Dragon’s Desire, have you?” He’d better not have. If he had and she found out about it, she would find a way to kick him in the groin again.
“No, Rose. What we feel for each other is real.
Dragon’s Desire wouldn’t make you feel anything more for me here,” he paused, touching the center of her chest. “It would make you quite…” He paused as though searching for the correct word.
“I guess libidinous would be the word.” He grinned. “Not that having you that way wouldn’t be a good thing.
She got out of the car and scowled at him.
“Now is not the time and,” she paused, waving her arm toward the entrance, “this is obviously not the place.” Turning, she looked at the locked gate. “How do we get in there without being seen and setting off the alarms?”
Viktor just looked at her and lifted a brow. She sighed. If he ever found out how sexy she thought that was she’d be doomed.
Too late, dear heart.
Damn.
* * * *
Viktor chuckled at her look of consternation. If there was one thing he loved the most about this 62
woman, it was her ability to make him laugh, even when she was mad at him.
“Come along, my love, and you’ll see how we get around the security of this place.”
They approached the gate where, within the lock itself, Viktor fashioned a key out of ice and turned it.
“Seems like that would have broken…” Rose mumbled as he pushed the gate open and surrounded them with mist to protect their identities until he could freeze the security cameras and alarm system.
After three minutes, he had everything disabled, even the electricity, just in case someone should see that the system was down. With luck, they would run a diagnostic before sending any authorities their way.
They walked through the flower gardens where he made note of a new rose. The color was the same as he was in dragon form with small, light blue spots. It was strange. Perhaps he would take a flower and present it to Rose before they left.
Getting back on track, Viktor moved into the laboratory where they kept the rare and hybrid plants. He suspected it would be there since humans thought the plant was an extinct fern from the cretaceous period.
Pulling his phone from his pocket, he brought up a text from Damek and looked at the photo. It 63
was in a bright orange pot with purple stripes. He curled his lip at the colors. “Only that fool would give away a plant that could have humans wanting to have sex with anything that walked.”
He scanned the lab, using his dragon’s vision until he saw the fern. Careful not to let the leaves touch his skin, he picked it up and headed for the door. “We should leave.”
There was no reason to think anyone would come to check out the security system. The facility’s security measures left much to be desired. They needed an upgrade to an offsite monitoring station. From what he’d seen of the multi-plex inside the lab, it was still VHS, which meant no offsite monitors and no need to worry about being caught. It was a good thing he’d locked the gate behind them in case of patrols.
“It doesn’t look like anything dangerous.” Rose looked at the plant and reached out.
“Don’t touch it!” Viktor hissed as he pulled the plant out of reach.
In his hurry to make sure she didn’t touch it and inadvertently cause the leaves to rub against his skin, the leaves of the fern shifted and waved, brushing the back of his hand.
“Great.” He hurried through the door with the hope that it wouldn’t affect him. He was the ice dragon. Plants didn’t like cold. They should sense that in him and not release their toxins into his 64
skin.
He glanced at Rose and swallowed. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen with her rich, sable brown hair and eyes as blue as the Caribbean.
“Oh, no. We have to get out of here.” He led her into the gardens and she gasped.
“Viktor, why have I never noticed how utterly handsome you are?” she practically purred the words. The exaggerated sway of her hips as she approached was not lost on him either. The effects of the fern were getting to them both.
“Don’t do this, Rose.” He backed up a pace and held up his free hand when what he really wanted to do was move forward, take her in his arms and kiss her until her toes curled. Yet, he knew if he touched her, he would lose what little control he had left.
“Don’t do what?” she asked with a grin.
“This?” She launched herself at him with a loud,
“Meeoowwr! Give me what you’ve got, dragon!”
Viktor dodged her and set the fern down before she made matters worse by touching the damned thing herself. He’d seen a human react to the effects of Dragon’s Desire before and the only thing that would calm them was action. Still, he needed to keep control. He di
dn’t want to harm her. She was human after all.
Reaching out, he plucked a rose from a bush 65
and held it up. Perhaps he could talk her down from her high, but he doubted it. The longer the oil from the fern was in his system, the more he wanted to give her what she craved.
Rose approached him, the light of her passion in her eyes. She removed an article of clothing with every step she took and Viktor found he couldn’t look away.
“Let me touch you, Rose.” He reached out with the flower and brushed it over her cheek, across her lips and down through the vee of her cleavage.
His stomach clenched as she grinned and removed her bra. Viktor had only seen such perfection in his dreams. He tightened his grip on the rose as he brushed it across her silky flesh. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He couldn’t fight it anymore. Here he was, alone with the most beautiful woman he had ever seen and he was fighting his instincts. Why? With a growl, he grabbed her, pulled her to him and slanted his mouth over hers. He was through battling his need and through denying them both.
* * * *
Rose squeaked with surprise when Viktor ripped his clothes off, gently lowered her to the ground and covered her body with his.
There was no clothing in their way, no people 66
to worry about and nothing to do with their time together but love each other and Rose couldn’t have been happier. Nothing felt as right as their bodies sliding together and his hands as they caressed her body, carrying her higher and higher until the world shattered in one giant explosion, then stacked itself together again.
Viktor smiled down at her. “Hello.”
“Hello.” Heat filled her face as she smiled back.
“Um…you were right to come get that fern.”
“I know. You can see the effect it would have on the world if someone managed to make a serum out of it. The effects would be devastating.”
She shook her head as he helped her up and picked up their clothes, sorting them as he went.
“What I meant was that I’ve wanted to do that all day.”
The ride to April’s wasn’t as awkward as she would have thought. Viktor made every effort to see that she wasn’t embarrassed by her reaction to the fern. It was expected of a human to react the way she had. Still, she didn’t know what she would tell her sisters.
It wasn’t as though any of them were saints, but how would she ever live this down when she had been so adamant that Viktor was not her mate?
“They will understand, my love.” Viktor took his hand from the gearshift, rested it on her knee and squeezed. “They know you didn’t mean 67
anything you said. They know you tried to drive me away because you were afraid of your power.
Now that you have me to ground you, you don’t have to worry about hurting any of them.”
They pulled into Drake’s driveway and Rose sat staring at the huge house. She wanted to go in and shout out her news, but she also wanted to hold it close to her heart for just a little while longer.
Though seeing the motorcycle in the driveway made up her mind for her.
She had to see who belonged to that, because if it was the person she thought it was, she had a whole new set of problems. Viktor led her into the house and straight to Drake’s office.
Drake didn’t look up when they entered. “Did you get the fern?”
“Yes.” Viktor nodded. “That is not why we are here.”
Leaning forward, Drake rested his elbows on his desk and grinned. “When’s the big day?”
“As soon as you’ll give your blessing. Being Rose’s only available male relative, I am here to announce my intentions to marry and mate her. I ask your blessing and your permission to do so.”
“Drake has no say in who my sisters marry,”
said a voice behind him. “I do. And I’m not sure I like the looks of you, dragon.”
Rose turned to her brother standing in the doorway, rested her hands on her hips and 68
scowled. “Don’t even try to come in here and presume to tell me who I can and cannot have a relationship with, Lancelot Flowers!”
Viktor and Drake started laughing.
“One or both of your parents had a strange sense of humor, Lance, ” Drake said with a snort.
“So, are all of your brothers named after famous knights?”
“Yes, dammit.” Lance, sighed. He looked at Rose and narrowed his eyes. “And you, miss, will marry the man I say you can marry.” He winked.
“And I guess you can marry the ice dragon.”
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About the Author
Tianna Xander is an eclectic author of numerous paranormal, sci-fi, time travel romance erotica books. Gaining inspiration for her characters and dialogue through her family and her addiction to the internet, she never fails to amaze readers with each new book she creates. As a reading junkie herself, Tianna has no problem reading whatever is available at the moment from romance novels, murder mysteries and encyclopedias to books on solar energy.
Tianna’s life wouldn’t be complete without a happily ever after of her very own. She resides in Michigan with her husband, two children, three cats, two dogs and an intimidating bunny. Never one to fail to give credit where it’s due, she commends her family for their constant support.
After writing many books and receiving rave reviews, her family is just as proud of her. Always full of ideas, Tianna rarely puts the pen down, so readers can look forward to many more exciting stories in the future.
Other books by Tianna at Devine Destinies: Prophecy
The Golden Dragon
Co-authored books
Ruby Dare
Emerald Dare
Topaz Dare
Opalite Dare
Other series by Tianna at eXtasy Books: The Endowed Series
The Chosen Series
Hidden Breeds
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
The Ice Dragon Page 5