"I'm feeling generous."
She stood looking past him at the doors. What was on the other side she had no idea. The only thing she knew was what lay outside of this house, was much worse. Samuel would carve her flesh from her bones if she didn't go through with this. Her hand wandered up to the scar on her shoulder, her fingers tracing the familiar line.
"I'm ready."
He gave her a wicked grin. “I’m sure you think you’re ready.”
Her face paled, but she stood her ground, chin tilted defiantly. “You don’t scare me dragon.”
He laughed, his voice filling the room, resonating around it. Then he turned and flung open the huge doors, revealing a cavernous room with a high vaulted ceiling. In the centre a domed glass window let in the light from the moon which was not quite full. Yet already the rays were illuminating the room, casting their ethereal light down onto a large slab of stone.
The altar.
OK, perhaps she had lied to him. Seeing it in it’s cold hard glory made her knees go weak. She didn’t know how she was going to have the strength and courage to walk the dozen or so steps she needed to, to get to the place where he would take her.
Her eyes darted to his, pleading, imploring. Something flickered there, but it disappeared so fast she couldn’t read it, and instead he placed his arrogance there, his lip curling in derision.
“Now do you wish you had taken my offer and changed your mind?”
She shook her head before summoning up all the will she had left to say, “No.” Then she took a step forward, and walked past him to stand by the stone altar.
He watched her, she could feel his eyes devouring her every step. However, her courage threatened to fail her when she saw the dark stains on the stone slab. Blood.
Swallowing her panic she placed her hand on the cold stone and wondered how she was going to get up there. It was higher than she thought. Nothing for it she would have to scramble on, it didn’t matter what she looked like, making a fool of herself now was the least of her concerns.
Lifting her foot to gain a foothold she started when his hand gripped her arm and he said firmly, “Stop.”
She turned to him, was this a reprieve? Her stomach flipped, with him so close that was the last thing her body wanted. Deep inside her something stirred, she took in his full lips, the hidden depths of his dark eyes and she yearned to mean something more to the beast than a body to be used. “Yes.”
“You’ve forgotten something.”
She looked around. “I ... I have.” Her insecurity and fear returning.
“Yes.” He tucked a finger into the strap of her dress. “This.”
Before he could rip it from her she stepped away. “I’ll take it off.”
“I could have torn it from your body, it would save time.”
“No. It’s my best dress.”
“Really?” He raised an eyebrow and the arrogance returned to his face.
“Yes. We aren’t all fortunate to live in big houses and wear expensive clothes.”
He smiled. “But when this is over, when you have borne my child, you will have money for pretty dresses. Is that why you're doing this? Selling your body for shoes and clothes.”
She opened her mouth to protest at his insinuation, but then chose the easiest route, what did it matter what he thought of her. “Yes. Pretty clothes and shoes. What else would I need?”
She turned from him, closing her eyes tightly to force the tears back, this was no time for emotions to take control. She had to stay focused. Slipping her dress off, the cool air enveloped her, goosebumps forming along her arms.
“Everything.”
He didn’t have to spell it out for her, she knew she was expected to be naked. How else would he... Don’t think about what was to come next, she told herself, while she unclasped her bra, and removed her panties. He’d seen her like this before, so she tried not to feel so embarrassed, but having him watch her so closely still made her blush, and this time she covered her breasts with her hands and hung her head so she no longer had to be aware of his penetrating stare.
Unfortunately with her head down she could not escape the sight of him in his full naked glory. A sharp intake of breath gave her away, he was huge, and she couldn’t see how he was going to take her and not damage her internally. If he was rough with her, and she had no doubt he would be, he would surely split her in two.
Unable to stop herself, her teeth chattered together as her body shook. He would know exactly how scared she was, maybe that was part of his fun, the thing that aroused him more. Trying to keep her hand steady she stepped back to the altar. Once more she tried to climb on, but she slipped backwards, straight into his arms.
Her body went slack, the heat emanating from him comforting her, warming her skin. She wanted to stay there, cradled in his arms while he chased her pain away. If he loved her, she would be protected and safe, but who could possibly love a creature like her. Not a mighty man such as this.
Pulling away from him, she asked, “Will you help me?”
He didn’t speak, only placing his hand under her arm and boosting her up so she landed on the slab on all fours. Effortlessly he moved into place behind her, the moon’s rays beginning to cast down on to the stone. The time had come, and she couldn’t move, her body frozen in place. Is this how he wished to mate with her, like an animal? She closed her eyes and waited for him to make his move.
Chapter Six - Connor
She was shaking. Her voluptuous body trembling in fear of him. Was he so terrifying? He looked down at her, her pale skin, so soft and smooth. He touched his fingertips to it and she jumped away from him. He tried again, this time she was prepared, and she stayed put, her hands curled up into tight fists as she fought for control.
Why did she fear him so much? Then he saw something that made his blood run hot. On her shoulder someone had carved their initial. An ‘S’, the skin raised in a jagged mark. He remembered the men in her apartment, someone owned her, someone had branded her with their mark.
What leverage did they use to bend her to their will? She was strong, he had seen glimpses of it, but somehow they controlled her. The vial he had found in her pocket while she was bathing told him all he needed to know. She had been forced to come here for another purpose other than to breed with him, but if he wanted to find out he had two choices, he could force her, or he could make her trust him.
Her body was everything he could desire in a mate, in the mother of his child. So his choice was easy, he would seduce her.
“Serena,” he tried to keep his voice low, kind.
She turned around to look at him, tears sliding down her cheeks. “Yes.”
“Turn around.”
She shook her head. “No. Please, I’ll be fine, just do ... what you have to do.”
He smiled crookedly. “That is the least arousing thing a woman has ever said to me.”
Chapter Seven - Serena
“I’m sorry,” she gushed, and now she did turn around. If she had to, she would beg him to do this. Her sisters life, and her own too, depended on it. “What do you want me to do?”
She looked down at his large erect cock. What if she touched him? She had enough experience of men to know she could drive him to the point of no return. She had been well schooled in using her hands and mouth to please Samuel when he came to her apartment with his threats and demands.
She reached out to touch him, but he grabbed her hand. “No,” he said, shaking his head.
“Please. I’ll do whatever you want me to.”
“I want you to relax. You’re shaking.”
“I’m sorry.” She took a deep breath, letting it out slowly to try to get herself under control.
“Don’t be.” He lifted his hand, she flinched away, but when he brushed the hair away from her face, and stroked her cheek she allowed him. “I know it’s not what you really want.”
“I do,” she insisted.
“I have been with enough women t
o know.”
“I need the money,” she lied.
“I won’t insult either of us by asking why.” He stroked her cheek and ran his thumb over her lips, electrifying her body. “I will ask you one more time if this is what you want. I have never forced myself on a woman, and I don’t intend changing that tonight.” He looked up as he spoke, and Serena knew that if she hesitated too long her fate would be decided by the eternal moon instead.
“I want this.” She turned and nuzzled his hand, her tongue circling the palm of it, and he pulled away as if she had scorched his skin.
“Very well. I’ll make it as easy for you as I can.”
He covered her with his body, forcing her to lie on her back before him. Gently he tested her lips with his own. When she responded, he kissed her deeper, and she threaded her hands around his neck, urging him on. She needed to do this, she needed to complete the moon rite with him or she was doomed.
His hand went to her breast, and she arched her back, offering herself to him when he touched her nipple, his fingers playing with the taut little bud until she whimpered against his mouth. His other hand went down over her stomach, and further, until he stroked her mound, and ran a finger along her slit. She was too dry, she knew that, although the heat in her body was increasing with each stroke of his hand.
Then he moved backwards, away from her, his body sliding over hers. He pressed her thighs apart with his large warm hands, and she felt his breath on her thighs.
“Ohhh,” she breathed when his mouth kissed her clit for the first time. The stubble on his face prickled the sensitive flesh of her thighs, but it only heightened her desire. His teeth nibbled her outer lips, and she pressed her hands into his hair when he drew his tongue along the length of her slit.
Licking and sucking her sex he brought her to the point of orgasm, her hips rising off the stone as she offered herself to him. But this was not why they were here, and the first rays of the moon glanced across her face while he feasted on her sex.
“Connor,” she said urgently, using his name for the first time, for at this moment he was no longer the beast of nightmares, he was a man, a man she wanted to make love with.
He raised his head, the moon catching his attention. Rising up he moved to cover her body once more, propping himself up on one elbow while he guided himself towards her heated wet sex with the other. The time for questions was over, she had given her his answer in a way that no longer needed words.
With his eyes fixed firmly on her he pushed against her outer lips, she tensed, and then tried to relax, praying it wouldn’t hurt as much as she had been told it would. At least his cock didn’t have spikes on it like Samuel had told her in one of his teasing rants. The smile that had threatened her lips soon disappeared. He pushed forward and her sex yielded for him, but he was so big, and it hurt as he stretched her.
His hand went to her hip as she moved backwards, instinctively trying to ease the discomfort. To help her, he moved very slowly, letting her body to adjust to him. He eased back out, and then pushed forward again until he hit the barrier that needed to be broken.
Sliding back out, she didn’t need him to tell her what he had to do. His hips flexed forward and he thrust into harder until he tore her virginity, and she bled on the altar, as many had before her. Her nails scraped the hard stone, one of them breaking as she tried to stop herself from screaming. It stung, her sex on fire as he filed her, pushing forward harder and then pulling back before lunging into her until he had filled her completely. As he moved the pain disappeared, and her sex ached with a new need, to be filled with the seed of the dragon.
She craved his movements, pushing back, bracing herself as best she could, her hands at first going to curl around the edge of the stone to hold herself in place, and then going around his neck, pulling his head down and searching for his lips.
His hand went under her bottom, he leveraged her body upwards, pinioning her against him, allowing him to penetrate her so deeply she felt impossibly full. Serena clung to him, kissing him, cradling his head in her arms. His tongue plundered her mouth, moving in the same rhythm as his body. She met him with her own, feeling the equal to a man for the first time in her life.
Her climax came quickly, his cock stroking her inner walls with each thrust until her body exploded around him. She threw her head back, crying out as waves of pleasure, covered her. Her sex throbbed, gripping his cock tightly until he could hold himself together no longer and he came too. His thick seed spurting deep inside her. Her first duty was done, she had sacrificed her virgin blood on his altar, now she had to hope she was fertile enough to conceive his child.
When he lay her gently down, his cock still buried inside her, she looked into his face and saw him for the first time. Not through the fog of fear, or in anticipation of hurt. At this moment they were stripped down to nothing, all that they were in this moment were lovers. Her fingertips stroked his cheek, then along his lips, and down his neck over his toned chest.
His chest heaved, the exertion of their lovemaking still affecting him. “That wasn’t so bad, was it?”
She shook her head. “Not so bad.”
He went to move away, and she caught his arm, pulling him back to her. “Thank you.” He raised his eyebrow in question. “For making it easier. I know you didn’t have to...”
“The thought of you crying while I mated with you was a real turn off.” His walls were back in place. Most women would have been offended, but she knew all about walls, they kept you safe, but she was terrible at keeping hers strong. She was a fool where her emotions were concerned, and that was exactly why she had ended up here in the arms of a dragon. If she had followed after her mom she would be a selfish bitch, and above the control Samuel had on her.
She slipped off the the altar. Gathering her clothes, she pulled on her panties, but held the rest against her chest, waiting for him to say something. Connor had gone to a small table, and was pouring wine into two large goblets. He turned, still completely naked, and offered her one of the ornate cups.
“I don’t usually drink.”
“Make an exception.”
She took it from him, the fear from before settling uneasily back on her. “If you insist.”
She took a sip, it was good, the smell rich and fruity, following through to burst on her taste buds. No doubt it was expensive, and old. That thought made her study him closely as he drank his wine in bigger gulps. This dragon was meant to be thousands of years old, but he didn’t look a day over thirty.
With one more mouthful to give her courage, she asked, “How old are you?”
“Old,” he said, turning the full force of his dark eyes on her.
“How old?”
“What does it matter?”
“It doesn’t, I guess.” She took another sip, and the warmth spread through her, easing the ache in her back, and her sex. Although he had been considerate, the hard stone had bruised her back, while his hard thrusts had stretched her inside.
Connor drank his wine quickly, and then refilled his goblet, offering her more. “No, thank you. This will be enough to make me drunk.”
He didn’t answer.
“Have you always lived here?”
“Are you always like this?”
“Like what?”
“Chattering.”
“Oh. I’m sorry. I’m interested, that’s all.”
“For what reason?”
“I... No reason. Just small talk.”
“I don’t do small talk. In fact I find it as irritating as your crying.”
She stepped back as though he had struck her. Clutching her clothes even tighter to her chest, regretting now not having put them on, she drank her wine straight down, feeling the room begin to spin.
“Well, I think I’m going to head for bed,” she said, placing the goblet back on the table.
“Bed?”
“Yes. If we’re done for tonight.” She stepped away from him.
“Done fo
r tonight. Oh,” he said, his voice sexy and low. “We’ve only just started.”
Chapter Eight - Connor
He had made a mistake. Offering her kindness, it left him open to her, and some how she had struck a part of him long since thought dead. His heart.
Now he had to limit the damage. Make her see it was a ploy to set her at her ease so he could finish mating with her.
So he did what he did best, and made a barrier between them, over the centuries he had learned the hard way not to let anyone in. And now her questions confirmed his fears, she was here to find out all she could about him and his kind.
It had started simply enough with her comment about him being alone, but he wasn't too concerned, Zoah could look after himself. But now, asking about how long they lived, it made him suspicious. Sure she could simply be interested, but all these women usually wanted was money or power. Deep down most of them saw him as a beast, and this one was no different, he had seen the look in her eyes when she had first come here. Fear mixed with abhorrence.
Why did she have to be so damn attractive to him?
He wanted to turn dragon and roar out his confusion, lashing out on some innocent village in the middle of nowhere, releasing his temper. But those places didn't exist any more so he would have to release his tension the other way. More sex.
His head told him to send her away, to give himself time to gather his thoughts together, but it wasn't possible. He needed her. He tried to convince himself that it was simply to vent his temper. But he had lived too long, and knew when he was lying to himself. Still, she would not be sleeping any time soon, he planned to take his fill first. And his thirst for her body was pretty much insatiable at this point.
Chapter Nine - Serena
He watched her, his eyes slanted, studying her. Whatever he was thinking was cold and calculating, the man who had shown her such warmth and kindness had retreated. The man before her frightened her once more. All she wanted to do was go back to her room and slip into a numbing sleep, but he intended to mate with her again. Yet despite her fear, and the exhaustion that threatened her, she wanted him.
Soul Of The Dragon: BBW Paranormal Romance (Her Dragon's Bane Series Book 1) Page 3