Familiar, controllable anger seethed beneath the surface as Hildy considered the little brat. “Don’t worry about me. I’m a highly trained assassin. I think I can take care of myself against a little teenage girl.”
“Don’t be so sure or make light of this. Hildy, you need to believe me and stay away from her. I told you, she’s powerful and already knows how to use twisted, perverted magic. Where you use strength and things you can see, she uses the mystical arts and manipulates things that are invisible.” Ajax hovered over her and placed a light kiss on her lips. "We’ll need a solid plan on how to deal with the possibility of her showing up for when we go back. I think the best thing is for me to go in by myself and have you wait over at Miss Connie’s until the coast is clear. I don’t want her knowing about you. She needs to go back to the foster home and get some help. Seeing you might cause her to act out more.”
Hildy saw his logic. She wanted to whip that girl’s ass for what she’d put Jax through. It was time to do the mate-like thing. She’d comply.
“I agree. I’ll stay out of the way and allow you and the guys to deal with her. Maybe Luc and the others will have figured out how to get rid of her before we make it back.”
“Maybe, but when it comes down to it, she’s my issue.”
“Mine too. We got this.”
“Hildy, you have to listen to me and learn how to stay safe where she’s concerned. If you can do that, yes, we have this. Hildy, I know you’re more than capable of dealing with regular humans, but Julia is far from a regular human. Please trust me on dealing with her, okay?”
“Okay.” Hildy clearly heard the seriousness of the situation in Ajax’s voice. “I’ll make sure to follow your lead on dealing with her.”
“Good—thank you. And love… about earlier. I’m sorry too for the hurtful things I said. I don’t believe you’re as difficult as I made it out to be. Everything about you is right for me. Without your fire and pepper, I would be bored. Don’t try to change to be anything other than yourself. We’ve got the rest of our lives to figure out how to work on being the best mates to one another.”
His words didn’t go unnoticed. He was ready to make this work too.
“So this means that you’re ready to make an honest mate out of me?”
He nuzzled the slope between her neck and shoulder as he said, “Yes. Time to get to mating.”
22
This was it. Hildy’s wildest fantasy was about to come true. Dazzling hazel eyes, full of life stared back at her. The lump that settled in the pit of her stomach might as well be a kiss of death. Try as she might to hide it from Ajax, he was quick to take notice.
“What’s wrong? Remember, there’s no rush.”
“Stop trying to weasel out of this. I told you I’m ready to take this step with you.”
“Then why the face?”
“I don’t know.”
Rising to take all of her facial features in, Jax said, “Uh-uh, that’s not going to fly. Take a moment. Do whatever it is you do to get to the heart of a matter, and then we’ll try that last question again.”
“I’m not some puppet you can order to spit out an answer to your probing question. Jax, I really don’t know what’s the matter. I know I love and want you, and still I have this blockage, like a big brick of anxious dread—if that’s even a thing.”
“It is if that’s what you feel. Hildy, this isn’t something that you can force. Mating is more than emotions, feelings and even thoughts. It’s also about timing.”
“Look at you being all deep and philosophical.”
Jax didn’t take the bait to let up from his course of conversation. “I’m serious about this Hildy. Tell me what you need to make it better. If it’s in my power to deliver, that’s what I’m willing to do—right now.”
That really did hit her in the right spot—deep down in her heart and gut. Fleeting, irrational thoughts of his changing his mind over time flooded her mind. Despite her intention to remain calm, she shook her head in answer to the assailing thoughts.
“What is it, Hildy? Tell me.” His voice was deep, steady and determined. “We don’t have the luxury of hiding things from each other. Spill it woman.”
The giggle that escaped her helped to relieve some of the pressure of his intense scrutiny. A full breath finally made its way down her throat, giving her strength to face the dread that tugged at her. Ajax didn’t let up. He stayed right there, probing her with warm, golden, hazel orbs of inspection.
“You’re mine. No matter what you say, do or think, I’m here, and we’re together. I’m yours too. Will you open up to accept me—all of me?” he asked.
Dampness from fathom tears too long in shedding pooled at the corners of her eyes.
“Damn you for being so corny and loving. You get me, don’t you?”
“That’s hard to say. I know I take you as you are and commit to being with you as I am. Hildy, we don’t have to pretend, shield or deflect with each other. You have my heart. You know my great secret—the secret of my family. And, you’re still here. That means a lot to me. I plan to spend the rest of my days learning to get you too. Promise me, when you’re able to, you’ll articulate whatever it is that continues to try to hold your complete heart from me.” He rolled off her and onto his back.
“Where the hell do you think you’re going?” Anger flashed at the loss of his intensity and complete attention.
The dread was back. It was familiar and new at the same time. Hildy’s jaw must have looked like granite moving beneath her skin as she concentrated on following the fleeting trail of emotion. She commanded the feeling to increase to the point where she couldn’t push it down any longer. The thud of recognition slammed into her gut with certainty. Hildy understood what it was.
“A twenty for your thoughts?”
Ajax had been quiet, observing her as she worked through the emotions to identify them. She liked his swag. He wasn’t one to push her. Instead, he hung back, allowing her to work through it. That was nice and… respectful. Ajax was looking more and more like the man she needed in her life.
“I know what it is,” she said, moving to her side to look at him. The hesitation of embarrassment threatened to make her stop. Ajax looped an arm around her waist and tugged at her to come closer.
“Come on, share it with me. I promise if that if there’s something I can do within my power to help you with this, I’ll do it.” He held her gaze steady as he continued to send vibes of support.
“All right then, no judgment zone.”
“Never. No judgment.”
The lump tightened as if daring her to reveal it’s identity. She wasn’t having it. Not now. This was the first time Hildy had been able to withstand this much emotional turmoil and not retreat into busy work that would keep her far away from her feelings. This was Ajax’s doing and she owed it to him to speak up.
“It’s a gigantic ball of fear. I’ve ignored it all my life.” Ajax started to say something, but Hildy stayed him. “No, please? I need to get this up and out of me. Ajax Drake, I hear everything you and my mind believes if, but the rest of me doesn’t. There’s this huge fear that you’ll either find out something about me that you can’t stand and leave, or that you’ll grow tired of me and leave. Like right now, my body feels like it has somewhere else to be in how much I want to leave before you can do it to me. I know it’s downright cuckoo, right?”
“Not in the lease. With all you’ve been through, being given up at birth and not having a childhood spent with loving family, I’m impressed with how sane and stable you are.” He leaned over and kissed her before continuing. “I make you this promise, and I’m asking the same of you. When we go through those times when it’s hard to feel all lovey-dovey toward each other, promise me you’ll be my best friend. I’ll do the same. I may not know as much as Luc or Greg, but I do know that my parents are best friends before they’re anything else. That’s the secret to how we’re going to make this union last for as long as we
live.”
Words escaped her. All she could do was blink. Ajax was for real, and she’d managed to catch him, by some weird act of grace. He continued to stare at her as if expecting a response. In her mind, there was nothing left to say.
Instead of speaking, she leaned over half climbing onto him to capture those full, delicious lips of his. That seemed to be all the response he required. His entire body was hotter than usual. Over the course of the last five days of sharing his space, Hildy had become accustomed to his natural furnace. It was like a pacifier for her. Hands ran over his arms, up his neck and landed on both of his chiseled cheeks as she went for everything she knew. The kiss was fire, electricity, and life, compressed into one.
Ajax remained underneath her until he couldn’t take it anymore. Hildy smiled knowing she’d done the things that drive him crazy. She’d traced the outline of his mouth with the tip of her tongue, planted a trail of kisses down his neck until she found his spot.
A few days ago, she’d managed to happen up on the spot at the base of his neck that rendered him a blubbering idiot. Hildy tucked this knowledge into her permanent repertoire of things she’d do to drive him crazy. Seeing him melt at her touch, gave Hildy as much joy from his reaction as he did from her sucking that little spot. To increase his pleasure, she following it with a light nip. Before it registered, Ajax had flipped their positions. Hildy was on her back, and Ajax was moving down the length of her body.
...
Foreplay was amazing! Hildy marveled at how much pleasure Jax gave her as he sucked and licked her sex. She’d given up on trying to control anything about her body, including what she said.
Jax pushed her thighs farther apart as his tongue darted into her core and his thumb made little circles on her clit. Erotic thrills pulsed and rocketed through her body. He’d been kind and gentle at first, telling her he was going to engage in a bit of foreplay to get her prepared for when he entered her. What he failed to mention was that she’d be on the brink of orgasm as he did.
“Jax, hold up, I think I’m going to come. Now, please?” she begged through pants of heavy breaths.
He ignored her, taking long licks of the lips of her sex. What to do with her hands? At times they were in his hair massaging and pulling and then they were flailing about. More than once she’d had to pull back the urge to release her talons as well.
Freedom, coupled with love, was a powerful force. For the first time in her life, Hildy was free of obligations to the agency. She was loved by a man who accepted her for who and what she was, and able to experience emotions that used to frighten her. She loved Ajax Drake and he was the reason she wasn’t some emotionally distant, mean Harpy. Instead, she would embrace the fact that she might be a Harpy, Siren or whatever, and it didn’t matter. Come what may, they were committed to each other for the rest of their days. Yeah, it was scary, but it felt right. She knew deep down that like Jax; she was a one-man woman for the rest of her life.
“Ooh, that’s amazing,” she said, continuing to discover and enjoy all the sensations Jax coaxed out of her body.
Hot pricks of passion lanced her inner thighs as he placed strategic kisses there. He positioned himself to lean on his side and against one of her thighs as she watched him take his middle finger and run it up and down the slit of her now drenched folds. She held a breath to see what he’d do next. Dipping into the entrance of her core with his fingertip, Hildy felt slight stings and pressure. She knew what he was attempting to do and she wasn’t having it.
“No, not with your fingers. I want you.” Her command sounded more like the wheezing of an old person, but she didn’t care.
“But I don’t want to hurt you more than necessary,” he said.
“This is our mating, and I have a say-so in how it’s done, right? I want you inside me when you breach that last barrier, not your finger. Got it,” she said, knowing her beast must be rising to the surface with how graveled her voice sounded.
“Yes, ma’am, you’re right. This is our mating, and you can have it the way you want.”
He rose above her, kneeing her legs farther apart. He lowered himself, settling between her thighs. Too excited to blink, Hildy watched him like the bird of prey she was. Everything about this was raw and primal. She itched to shift and run her talons along the length of him.
“Please don’t torture me,” she said, low and throaty.
23
Ajax…
Jax loved how beautiful his mate was. He knew how hard she struggled to keep control. His Hildy was powerful in her own right. At the right time, he’d have her release her talons and run them along his back as he’d fantasized for days. For now, he had to take it slow, so they both could enjoy this mating.
Keeping his eyes focused on her, he lowered himself down and made room for his hips. She obeyed, opening up to him. When he knew she was on the edge and body relaxed enough to accommodate his girth, he ran the tip of his cock along her beautiful pussy, pushing in ever so slightly. When he was at her entrance, Jax raised up to kiss her. Pulling her lust for him up and out more with the warring of their tongues, he pushed in hard and deep.
His Hildy whimpered at the invasion. He had to close his eyes and concentrate on control as her sex trembled and convulsed around his cock. He still wasn’t fully seated inside her, and he might come right now. She was so hot and tight, move too soon and he’d lose all self-control. Ajax looked down at her. Hildy’s eyes were tightly closed shut, and her beautiful face was scrunched up.
“Does it hurt a lot?” he asked, hating to hear the answer. He already knew. She was so tight. He wasn’t sure they’d be able to continue like this, without him withdrawing and getting her body to relax more.
“Yes—it hurts, but I want it. I want you. Let’s do this.”
“Hildy, this isn’t some torture event to make it to the other side. Our lovemaking has to be pleasurable for you as well.”
“It has been. I know about sex, and I know that if we continue to press on, this burning sensation will pass. Please don’t give up on me, on us doing it this way. This is how I dreamed it would be with you. I love the temporary pain as much as the pleasure. You’re worth it,” she said, reaching up to place a sweet kiss on the column of his neck.
Knowing she wouldn’t change her mind, he withdrew until only the tip of his cock remained inside her. He placed his elbows and forearms on either side of her to control his weight. She watched everything he did with those big beautiful dark chocolate eyes of hers. Heat from her gaze scored him as he summoned up the ability to bring her pain again with his next thrust into her soft, warm body.
“Do it,” she whispered.
He did, wrenching a hiccup out of her with his force. He felt the points of her talons just beneath the surface as her fingers dug into his upper arms. Once he had her open enough to take him, his Hildy would be able to let go completely.
“Relax your body and open for me, love,” he said, hoping she would be able to. They were almost there.
He withdrew again, plunging balls deep into her core with force and determination. She clung to him, trembling but accepting him.
“More,” she breathed, as her hips started to undulate beneath him.
He smiled, despite his attempt to remain stoic and neutral. Hildy was so sexy. She made him want to do whatever he could to keep her by his side. Obeying her request, he began a solid pace of thrusting in and out of her. Her body responded in kind, quickly picking up his rhythm and urging him on. More and more, he felt her pussy pulling him in as her insides contracted and throbbed around his cock. Wrapping his arms around her, he allowed himself to lie on top of her as he increased their pace.
“You feel so good, my love,” he whispered into her ear. “I’ll never do anything to hurt you like that again.”
Jax punctuated his promise with a more forceful thrust that triggered a yelp from her. Grinding his cock into her to touch every part of her, he wanted to give her all of him. His mind whizzed with all
the changes he’d make for her.
Jax would make certain she was brought in on every project he worked on, on the Lair side and their other business as well. He would make sure she knew that he was wealthy in his own right and that she’d never have to work again.
He was a dragon after all and wealth accumulation was in his blood. Needing more access to her, he withdrew, flipped her over and plunged back in deeper and harder still. Hildy grunted from his force. Then she laughed.
“Yes, oh God yes, fuck me hard like that Jax,” she moaned bringing her hand down to her clit to rub the hard little nub.
Seeing her do this drove him wild. Grabbing her full ass, he pumped into her, driving into her deep and hard. His cock responded by enlarging to push more against her inner walls. Hildy rotated her hips and pushed back into him, swallowing up his cock with each push. Goddess he loved her. Their appetites were well matched. Wanting to take over all her pleasure needs, he reached around and pushed her hand away to take over stroking her clit. He wanted to be the one to bring her to climax as she pushed back into him fast and deep.
She moaned and trembled as a wave of orgasm tore through her. Jax continued his pace as his mate rode out her climax. Hildy’s body was a work of delicate, beautiful art. He loved how her bronzed skin reflected the glistening sheen of perspiration their lovemaking produced.
Her sex clenched his cock hard as she continued to soar through the climax. He wanted her to come hard. He varied the pressure and tempo of his thumb on her clit as he made long, measured thrusts in and out of her welcoming body.
“Oh God, I’m going to come again,” she said, disbelief coloring her statement.
“Good, come hard for me, baby, now.”
She instantly grew more aggressive in her moves, slamming back into him as her body milked and pulled his cock with her retreats. This was fucking amazing and the best sex he’d ever had. For his mate to have been a virgin, she was a woman who knew how to give both of them what their bodies needed. One more push of her ample, gorgeous ass and he felt the telltale signs of his own impeding orgasm.
Ajax's Harpy Holiday: Dragofin Mated: Book 1 (A Dragon-Gyphon Shifter Curvy Paranormal-Fantasy-Scifi Romance Series) (Dragonfin Clan Mated) Page 13