The Rookie

by Abigail Owen

  Holding back his dragon was one of the hardest things he had ever done, his skin painfully tight as he contained the shift as well as keeping the fire from his gaze. “So she said.”

  Taking him at his word, the other two left the room as well. He pitched forward, fists on his knees as he contained his beast. Killing the rookie was one thing. Killing his old teammates, too, wasn’t possible.

  He could take the green traitor who’d been secretly reporting to Rune behind the team’s back. But the other… That motherfucker could be a vicious son of a bitch.

  Sera was the important thing. He had to get her on her own.

  …

  Sera stomped through the woods with no thought other than giving herself a moment of peace to absorb everything. Even now, she worried she was dreaming this moment, that all those fantasies had finally cracked something inside her, manifesting into an alternate reality. One she wanted so badly, with a fierceness that clenched inside her and shocked the hell out of her.

  Taking the opposite direction from where Hall had brought her back from meeting Rune, she stalked into the woods. Finally, she came upon a tiny clearing near a copse of aspen trees, their leaves whispering hushed secrets into the wind.

  “Sera!”

  She jerked to a halt and closed her eyes.

  “Talk to me, Sera.” He was closer now, she could tell by how his voice sounded louder. A note had entered it that told her he was…desperate.

  Slowly, she spun around to face him, searching his face. “How did you know? About the dreams?”

  He sucked in a sharp breath, audible in the hush of the forest. “You repeated something I’d said in a recent dream. It was real. Wasn’t it?”

  The fact that he knew about the dreams at all had to be proof.

  He must’ve taken her hesitation as doubt because he took a step closer. “Let me prove it. On the drive up here, I told you in a dream that I’d deliberately started the fire that let me meet the Huracán team.”

  She’d thought…maybe… But now all those doubts and fears inside her started to tumble from the massive mountain she’d built up.

  Aidan stepped closer. “Your favorite color is yellow because you think it’s a happy color. You even made the flowers on Devlin’s casket yellow.”

  The tumble picked up momentum, taking more fears with it, and her breathing hitched in her throat.

  Aidan closed the distance between them another step. “You’ve watched The Princess Bride so many times, you have the entire script memorized. And you quote it. A lot.”

  Sera choked back a laugh as her emotions teetered on a precipice.

  He came even closer, so close she could feel the heat of his body across the chill of the night air separating them. “You’re terrified that Blake is growing up too wild without a father. And he’s so damn smart, Sera. And kind, and funny, and an all round great kid. That’s because of you.”

  “Oh my God,” Sera whispered.

  The man to whom she’d whispered her hopes and dreams and fears in the dark…he was real.

  “Tell me I’m not wrong.” Aidan swallowed, and suddenly she could see exactly how scared he was. This man who showed the world only an impenetrable strength and determination was letting her see his fear.

  A broken exhale punched from her. “They were real.”

  In a move she didn’t see coming, Aidan swept her into his arms, claiming her lips in no uncertain terms. Hard and insistent, his kiss was more like sheer possession combined with an urgent need that reflected her own.

  Instant heat surged, lighting her up from the inside as the kiss rapidly devolved into an elemental desire. Primal need wrapped in everything this man had been to her these last months. Truly been to her, even when she didn’t realize it.

  Instinct pushed down any lingering questions, and she met every harsh demand of his mouth with everything she had in her. Sera couldn’t get close enough. With almost frantic hands she clawed at his shoulders, trying to wrap herself around him.

  With a groan, Aidan cupped her ass and hoisted her up his body, settling the length of his erection right where she wanted, pressing into that spot that drew a whimper from her lips. With no conscious thought involved, because Sera was all glorious sensation and fire and need, she clamped her legs around him.

  He broke off the kiss, both of them breathing hard. “We…” He huffed a few breaths. “We shouldn’t. Not yet. We need to do this right.”

  “Who cares about right,” she moaned.

  Then his mouth was back over hers. He swept his tongue inside, tangling with hers and sending more heat surging through her. Sera pumped her hips, dragging her core over his hard shaft, causing electric shocks to zing through her body, pooling low in her belly. Aidan helped her, kneading her ass with his hands, helping to force her up and down each time. They didn’t come up for air, mouths fused, devouring each other.

  With a grunt of frustration, Aidan tumbled them to the ground in a move that pulled a squeal from her. Somehow, he ended up on his back, protecting her from the spiky carpeting of pine needles. She straddled him, and he used his hands at her hips to press her into him.

  A familiar gathering set off inside her.

  Heavens above, was it possible to come from friction alone?

  He hadn’t even touched skin yet, other than her mouth. Breathing hitching, she undulated her hips, upping the tempo. Chasing the high.

  “Sera,” Aidan whispered between kisses.

  Only she was too far down the road to turn around. If she didn’t catch fire soon, she’d spontaneously combust.

  “Sera, slow down, babygirl.”

  “Slow down?” she whispered. Then traced his mouth with her tongue.

  Aidan’s groan sounded like she was lashing him to the rack, not trying to get off on his body. He threaded his fingers through her hair and took full possession of her mouth, driving her need white hot. With every stroke of his tongue that touch went everywhere, traveling along hypersensitive nerve endings.

  She didn’t even realize she was plucking at the buttons on his shirt until she had it open, baring his chest to her exploring fingers. The heat of his skin in contrast to the snap in the night air around them was nothing short of delicious, but the ridges of muscle under taut skin was what sent her over.

  That gathering took shape, coalescing into pulsing points of light in time to each shift of her hips. “I’m… I need…” she panted.

  Aidan drew back, his hands framing her face. “Look at me.”

  Sera opened her eyes to find pure heat reflected back at her in his eyes, along with an answering need she’d seen only the few times he’d let himself go.

  “Don’t pull away now,” she whispered.

  Begged.

  “I’m not going to.”

  “I believe you.”

  Focused on Aidan, compelled by the need tightening the skin over his features, Sera canted her hips, hitting that spot just right. Those pulsing lights pulled in to one bright, molten core of energy before exploding outward, through her nerves, and up her spine, and down her legs. She crumpled under the onslaught of sensation. Through each pulse of her orgasm, Aidan was there with her, whispering how beautiful she was. Calling her babygirl.

  His babygirl.

  She’d never thought she’d like that, but her heart hitched every time he said the word.

  He kept it up until she’d wrung every ribbon of pleasure from her body. Sera dropped her head to his shoulder, allowing herself a small smile when he lifted a hand to run through her hair.

  “You okay?” he murmured.

  “Mmmmm…”

  “Is that a good mmmm or a bad mmmm?”

  “Definitely good.” She grinned at him but sobered as reality of their situation intruded. “I still can’t believe this is happening.”

  She traced his lopsided grin with a finger, gasping when he sucked on the tip of her finger, nipping at it with his teeth.

  Sera shifted her weight and stilled as he g
runted, and she realized that he was still hot and hard beneath her. Her gaze shot to his. “You didn’t…?”

  He shook his head. “That one was for you.”

  Sera grinned. “The next one should be for you then.” She went to trail a hand down his stomach, only he circled her wrist with his, stopping her.

  “What?”

  “I meant what I said. We should do this right. Go through the full mating process.”

  Sera slowly rolled off him, head filling back up with thoughts. Her own blouse hung open, her bra pulled down to expose her breasts. Somewhere in the haze of total sensation she’d been floating in, she remembered Aidan’s hands on her. Now she tugged the cups back up and got to work on the shirt buttons, then pushed to her feet.

  Aidan remained on the ground, though he’d sat up. He pulled his knees up, resting his arms on them. “Are you mad at me?”

  “No. You’re absolutely right.” Or she could have gone with Rune and had Aidan brought to her. “I’m just…impatient, I guess.”

  In silence he got to his feet and walked beside her through the trees.

  Sera tried not to let the negative back in, but questions edged the sated lethargy filling her. “Why is it a rule that we can’t go through the process if we already know?”

  She gave a little squeal as Aidan spun her to face him, blue flames back in his eyes. “Do we know?”

  Uh-oh. “Don’t we?”

  A grin broke out all over his face and he yanked her into his arms, burying his face in her hair, his citrus and smoke scent wending around her in a wonderful, familiar way. They still had so many obstacles, but the truth was undeniable. She’d fallen hard for him in those dreams, but never let herself experience the emotion fully.

  Until now. Even then, she was still a little scared to reach out for it.

  “I wanted you so badly, and I couldn’t have you,” he said.

  She swallowed a laugh. “Me, too.”

  He pulled back, emotion having lit his eyes with flames, the bright glow filling the darkness. He grabbed her hand, tugging her through the woods at a faster clip. “Come on. The sooner we get to the Alliance, the sooner we can get to mating.”

  But Rune’s warning about Pytheios still swirled in her mind. “What about the High King?”

  Aidan put his hand on her arm, gently turning her to face him. “He and the Mating Council can’t deny our bond, not if we’re both sure.”

  “But what if—” They walked out of the line of trees in view of the house and stumbled to a halt at the sight of two men headed inside the house with Drake.

  Sera glanced at Aidan and had to control a flinch at the sight of absolute nothing. His walls were back up. “Who are they?” she whispered.

  “Alliance.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Fuck it all. He wasn’t ready for this.

  Sera was still too new to this, too uncertain, despite her words. He could practically feel the questions vibrating from her. Worse, he could smell the sweet, lingering scent of her orgasm. The climax he’d brought her to fully clothed with just a little rubbing. That moment in the woods had been magic, but this moment, with the Alliance here already, before they had a plan in place to make sure they were listened to, threatened to erase it.

  Sera is my mate.

  Absolute certainty slammed through him with all the subtlety of a jackhammer, as if an unseen force cracked open his chest right there and zapped his heart. The last of the stupid blocks he’d put up fell away, and the connection he’d believed existed only in the mist of sleep felt more solid than his own body. Aidan imagined if he stared hard enough, he’d see a tangible link, lines strung from him to her. The perfection of it nearly had him doubling over to catch his breath.

  He’d wanted to formulate a plan before they met with the Alliance.

  Too late now.

  The question was, how to ease the Alliance into this in a way they couldn’t deny. Technically, they’d already broken the rules. Sera wasn’t supposed to know whose brands graced her neck, so already having decided on a mate wouldn’t look good. He’d figured they’d have her insist that she already knew.

  “Don’t tell them about us,” Aidan said.

  “What?”

  “You’re not supposed to know. Just say you want me included, you feel a connection. Got it?”

  Her lips flattened. “I’m not good at lying.”

  Yeah. “We need the appearance of compliance, if we can do it. For the team, Sera. Please?”

  She grimaced but nodded. “Okay.”

  Forcing his feet to work, he caught up to her as Sera opened the door. Drake and Titus stood inside, their backs to the door like they were forming a wall between Sera and the two men facing them from the other side of the room.

  Both men he recognized from the videoconferences Finn had with the six Alliance members on a regular basis. Macon, the representative of the Blue Clan, was a ladder climber who’d reached about as high as he’d ever get. The situation with the new king of the Blue Clan put his political clout somewhere between zero and rock bottom.

  But Ogun… Why’d Mathai send that asshole? The leader of the Alliance had to know Ogun wouldn’t exactly be easy with a new mate.

  The shorter of the two—a man built like a brick wall, all muscle—curled back his lip in a semblance of a smile. “Ah. Here she is,” he called in a too-bright voice.

  Sera stopped between Drake and Titus, the two men bracketing her. Aidan stood behind.

  “We’d heard you were a beauty,” Ogun said. “You will be a credit to our race.”

  “Thank you?” The question lilting in Sera’s voice said she didn’t care for that particular compliment.

  Silence fell over the small room until Hall, standing off to one side, cleared his throat. “Sera, I’d like to introduce you to two of the members of the North American Colonial Alliance. Ogun, who represents the Green Clan.”

  Ogun nodded, jade-colored eyes glittering. The man was practically licking his lips at the sight of a newly found dragon mate.

  “And this is Macon.” Hall waved at the other man, pale and blond with watery blue eyes.

  “A pleasure, Ms. Morrison,” Macon murmured.

  “Mrs.” Sera corrected.

  Macon and Ogun exchanged confused glances. “Excuse me?” Macon asked.

  “I was married to a human man until he died,” Sera explained.

  Both men frowned.

  “Is that a problem?” Sera asked.

  “No. It’s…highly unusual. That’s all,” Macon said. “Won’t you sit down and tell us about it?”

  Sera moved forward, to the chair she’d occupied before. “If you think that’s unusual, I’m curious what you’ll think about my son.”

  Both men froze with their butts only halfway to their seats on the couch. Aidan clamped down on a grin, which would be entirely inappropriate. He moved to stand behind her chair, as close as he could get without raising eyebrows.

  Slowly, the Alliance members sat the rest of the way down. “You have a son?” Macon asked, his voice fainter than it had been.

  He flicked a glance at the man beside him on the couch, but Ogun merely watched Sera with unblinking interest.

  For her part, Sera seemed to ignore the tense vibes radiating from the two men like pulses from an EMT. “From my marriage. Yes.”

  Macon turned to Ogun. “In the history of mates, has one ever come to the mating with a human child in tow?”

  Ogun waved him to silence. “Have you brought him with you?”

  “Of course.” Sera crossed her legs, the picture of ease. “My mate will have to not only accept Blake but be a father to him.”

  Ogun’s gaze narrowed, moving to Drake who stood to Sera’s right. “What have you been telling her?”

  Drake returned that gaze glare for glare. “That we don’t force a woman to mate until she has chosen the right man. Her destined mate.”

  If anything, Ogun’s eyebrows went higher, like they were
trying to hide under his hairline. Aidan shifted on his feet.

  “Of course,” Ogun finally agreed, with a cursory bow of his head. Then he pursed his lips, as though in thought. “However, the man most likely to be your mate won’t accept another man’s child.”

  Aidan’s dragon pushed against his skin. Fuck that. Ogun was dead wrong. What a dick.

  Sera paled visibly, her hands gripping the chair. “Then he’s not my mate. I have a choice, don’t I?”

  Ogun took a step back, his chest puffing out, before he aimed a glare at Drake. “Do I hear Rune’s influence?”

  Drake raised one unimpressed eyebrow and said nothing.

  “She doesn’t even know Rune,” Hall snapped.

  Ogun ignored him. “Have they explained everything to you?” he asked Sera.

  “Yes.”

  Ogun’s mouth tightened at her brief response, though Aidan had no idea what the man had expected. His rudeness was setting off her attitude. “May I check your neck?” Ogun asked.

  No. The knee jerk reaction that hijacked Aidan came even stronger than when Finn had gone to check her brands. Only this hot poker through the gut burned worse when Sera turned not to him, but to Drake, as if asking the red shifter whether she should.

  Was she following his instructions to not give things away? He scowled. She didn’t need to go that far.

  Drake gave a small jerk of his head, indicating she should go to them.

  Aidan put a hand on the back of the chair to keep from reaching for her as she rose and crossed the room.

  “We should warn you that her brand is…unusual,” Hall cautioned.

  “Unusual, how?” Ogun, hand already on Sera’s arm turning her so he could access her neck, demanded.

  “She has three brands.” Hall almost seemed to be enjoying this, his green eyes twinkling. The fucker would with that twisted sense of humor of his.

  Ogun dropped Sera’s arm like she might be infected. “The hell you say,” he spat.

  “See for yourself.” Drake crossed his arms, his standard sneer making an appearance.

  Ogun stepped closer to her but maintained his distance, as though he didn’t want to touch her. “Pull your hair back, please.”