“Of course. I have never been able to find it myself, so I encourage it in others whenever I can.” She was honest with him. There was no reason not to be at this point.
“Would I be able to see your shifted state?”
“I am not invisible, if that is what you mean.”
“I mean, would you please show me your shifted state?”
She groaned. “If we are still talking after dinner, yes. I try not to shift in the daytime. I am a little noticeable.”
“You are a gold dragon.”
“Wow, you really did do your homework. Yes, I am a gold dragon, but I can transition to dark green if I have to.”
Mak smiled, “I look forward to seeing you in all your glory.”
Chapter Seven
Dira had to admit she was having a pretty good time. Once she had surrendered to the fact that he now knew what she was and he was accepting of it, she gave herself permission to have fun.
Once the permission had been given, she actually enjoyed herself as he cracked jokes and told her about his family’s business.
Fashion was always interesting, but the familial obligation to participate in the advertising was hilarious. “So, you have actually posed, pouted and twirled in front of a camera?”
She sipped at the wine that Lemiander had brought over. It was a nice vintage, and she appreciated the full, fruity notes with the rich wash as she swallowed.
“I have. It was a fun few years, and then, it was my sister’s turn to turn and flip her gaze at the camera. It would have been more fun if we could shape shift for it but that wasn’t allowed.”
“So, you have siblings?”
He was working on the cheese plate with honey. “I do. One brother, one sister, both younger.”
“Are both your parents unicorns?”
He nodded and licked at the honey on his thumb. “We carry over a third of the entire unicorn population in our family alone. Were your parents both what you are?”
Dira laughed. “My father was a griffin, my mother was the dragon. One of my sisters became a griffin, another became a thunderbird. We all went our separate ways as our natures called to us.”
He looked at her with wide eyes. “I had assumed you were an only child.”
“Oh no. I had sisters, and we caused quite a ruckus. The local humans tried to burn us out on several occasions. The thunderbird effect kept them at bay, and they actually began to worship my sister. I have no idea if she is still in that tiny mountain range. We don’t speak.”
“Why not?”
“She started eating her worshipers. I don’t hold with that sort of thing. Either hunt for your food or become a vegetarian.” She nibbled at her cheesecake.
“What about your other sister, the griffin?” He finished his plate and reached for his wine.
“She died during a crusade. She fought to keep invaders on either side from her village, and she became the focal point of the attack. Both sides united to kill the monster, and after she was dead, peace broke out. Her body returned to human state as she had crawled back into the town gates, and her people surrendered to the invaders who naturally concluded that they had been enslaved by the beast.”
He put his wine glass down. “I am so sorry. What was her name?”
“Dinyali of Medorka, one of the braver sisters in history.” As she always did when she said her sister’s name, she raised her glass and drank to her.
Mak mimicked her and forever won a warm place in her heart. “To Dinyali of Medorka.”
“My parents died when we became adults, so it was only us three in the world. Now, I am the only one left.”
“Have you met others of your kind?”
“A few times. Neither they nor I wished to mate, so I went my way and they went theirs.” She sipped slowly.
“Is that the only reason you would be with one of your kind?”
“Of course. I can get companionship anywhere, but having a dragon is definitely easier when both parents are dragons. Otherwise, it can be anything.” She cocked her head. “Didn’t your mother ever have this talk with you about other unicorns?”
“Well, our family is large for a mythical-creature family, so there aren’t any others of our kind on our home continent. The rest are scattered throughout Europe and Asia. I have met a few but none that I would want to introduce to my parents.” His smile was beatific.
“Do I make that dubious criteria?”
“You do. My mother was fascinated by the idea that I was pursuing a dragon.”
Dira blushed. “Well, I am flattered, but I don’t know if I could ever leave the Crossroads.”
He scowled. “Why ever not?”
She sighed and set down her glass. “Because, when they were designing this pocket dimension, they used my blood and magic to build it.”
The rest of the dinner was rather quiet. Mak paid with a swipe of his token and offered his arm in a gesture so familiar to her that she responded without thinking. They walked down the street and toward the Open Heart.
“So, you are tied to the Crossroads?”
“Yes and no. It is no longer drawing on my system, if that makes sense. There is enough traffic here to sustain it now without my help. I have just never thought of being anywhere else.”
“Would you consider spending time in the human world with me?”
His words cut directly to the issue she was grappling with. “I would like to, but what is out there for me?”
He turned and faced her in front of her home. “Me.”
Dira looked up at him and saw the blinding beauty mixed with the pure heart. “Will you offer me your heart and all your treasures?”
“I will.” His simple reply spoke volumes.
“Then, I will choose you as mate and live at your side until we fade from these worlds.”
His astonished expression turned into something heated as he leaned down and kissed her wildly. He held her against him, and she wrapped her legs around him, holding tight as he walked into her home and took her up the stairs to his room.
Her clothing slid from her in pieces under the firm grip of his hands. She reciprocated, peeling his shirt from his shoulders and pushing it aside as she stroked and appreciated the feel of his muscles under the skin.
Dira moaned as she felt his tongue under her jawline, and her body shook as the stimulation translated into a surge of heat that ran from breast to groin and back again.
She sighed when he ran a hand down her spine and pushed her hips tight against his body when he stroked her tailbone.
Dira moaned against his mouth and pulled on his hair as savagery overtook her. “Stop playing with the hot spots and get inside me, mate.”
He didn’t need to be told twice. It took him some effort to pry her off him, but when she was completely naked and on the bed, watching him with hungry golden eyes, he shivered under her gaze and stripped, pausing to wrestle his shoes free of his jeans.
Dira chuckled. It was a rookie mistake, and she was so glad that he had made it. It made him less perfect, and she could use a little less perfect right now. His erection, however, was just perfect.
He leaned over her, nibbling at her lips before moving down her neck and back up to the underside of her jaw. The sensation he was spurring encouraged her to wrap her leg around him and pull him toward her.
When his cock nudged between her hot, slick folds, she sighed happily and pulled him into her with a sharp tug of both hands and the leg she had hooked around his thighs.
Dira grinned while Mak gasped. Her body set up a slow massage of his cock, and he hadn’t even started to move yet.
“How are you doing that?”
She laughed and wrapped her other leg around him, pulling her pelvis to his. “Every species has their practical applications. This one is mine. Well, that and being able to bake without an oven.”
Looking into his eyes, she noted that he was having trouble concentrating. He slid back and thrust into her in a short, sharp motion
. Fun and games was over, sex with her mate suddenly became serious.
Dira ran her hands up Mak’s back, caressing the groove of his spine and clawing lightly at his buttocks. Each thrust took him deeper, and when she dug her nails into his back, he groaned and plunged faster and harder until she felt the beginning tremors of her orgasm.
She gasped and bit down on his shoulder as her body flared with white-hot energy. Mak groaned and held himself inside her, bucking against her with sharp jerks.
He slowly leaned over her and pressed a kiss to her lips. “I apologize for the speed.”
Dira looked up at her mate and kissed him back. “I apologize for hurrying you along.”
He sighed and withdrew from her. “It is my fault. I shouldn’t have jumped you or let you jump me. This is not the mating night I have envisioned for myself.” He moved to one side and cuddled her against him.
She smiled into the darkness. “You pictured your mating night?”
“I did. Unicorns have a very fanciful side. When can I see your other form?”
She turned in his arms. “Do you really want to?”
He nodded and the sincerity in his face was unmistakable.
She sighed and sat up. “How about right now?”
He didn’t need to be asked twice. “Out the back way?”
She laughed, “If you want to run in the meadow, it would be best. Now, excuse me while I get something to wear.”
Dira was barely on her feet when she was swamped by one of Mak’s shirts. He grinned proudly. “There. All fixed.”
He pulled on his jeans and lifted her in his arms. “I am so excited. I have never seen a dragon before.”
She laughed softly as he carried her out into the hall and down the stairs. “Why do I suddenly have shifting anxiety? I have never had anyone watch me change before.”
“Oh, I intend to watch you at every opportunity. If I am lucky, you might even agree to pose for some of my company’s ads.”
Speechless, she kept her mouth shut until he set her back on her feet. She took a few steps away from him, pointed herself toward the meadow and slipped off his shirt. In seconds, she was shifting into her other shape and taking flight.
Chapter Eight
Mak watched in astonishment as the woman he had just been inside of grew golden scales and increased in size by fifteen times. He would not have guessed that she was an Asian dragon, though her long black hair was a bit of a giveaway.
Her body didn’t fly as much as it undulated with the support of magic, energy or whatever it was that let her shift to begin with.
Mak stared at her as she flew faster and faster until she disappeared over the horizon. He chuckled and stripped off his jeans. After a few seconds of popping joints and stretching tendons, he stomped on all fours and ran after his mate across the meadow.
Stretching his legs and pounding his hooves into the soil was freeing. He shook his mane and speared his horn toward the horizon.
Dira appeared when he was in the centre of the meadow, and she undulated around him in a wide circle.
Mak came to a halt and shook his head again.
Your four-footed form is lovely, Mak.
You can speak to me directly? He was shocked at her warm presence in his mind but the book had mentioned this sort of direct communication.
Of course. My kind is known for patience and wisdom.
And mine is known for being incorruptible and pretty.
A good combination, I think. She moved around him and settled on the ground.
He shifted into his human form and ran his hand along her silky scales and skin. You are amazing. I have never seen anything like this.
The huge gold eye aimed in his direction closed slowly before opening again. You had better not. To get this close to a dragon, you have to have more than your wit and charm in action.
He laughed and ran his hands along her body. His erection throbbed as he enjoyed the feel of her scales just as much as he enjoyed her skin.
Are you seriously turned on by my dragon form? Her voice was blandly curious as it echoed through his mind.
Of course I am, Dira. Everything about you turns me on. Did you think it was an impulse that led me to pursue you? You are not an easy conquest. I would not have pursued you if I did not want you for life.
She moved her head toward him and ran her tongue over him in short flicks from head to toe.
Dira, what are you doing?
Learning your flavours so I don’t accidentally snack on you one day. I haven’t eaten a talking being for years, but it never hurts to be safe.
She nosed him, and he gripped her head, scratching her under the chin.
Her head was surrounded by hair so fine, it floated with every gust of wind, and he caressed her neck, burying his face in her hair.
She let out a low hum of pleasure, and he grinned and backed away.
Mak hadn’t used his inborn magic much, but he tried to give some of it to the ground beneath him, and in seconds, blooms covered the meadow around them.
He created a thick carpet of flowers, and she shifted back into her human form, wearing nothing but the long fall of black hair.
Her eyes still glowed gold, so he knew that her dragon was not too far away.
“The flowers are very pretty.” She whispered it, and she stood shyly with her toes scrunching the grass.
“They are. Would you care to go for a ride?” He blinked at his own nerve. He hadn’t offered to give any female a ride before. Unicorns were for looking at, not for riding.
She smiled and bit her lower lip on the right side.
He couldn’t resist, he kissed her, running his hands down her smooth, silky back until he cupped the round mounds of her ass.
When he lifted his head, she was blushing but she nodded. “The last time I went riding, it was a long time ago. I am sure that I can figure it out if you don’t mind a little tugging.”
He grinned down at her, loving how shy she had become now that he had seen her beast. “If you pull my hair, I will pull yours at a later time.”
She opened her mouth to respond, but he shifted and stamped his hooves impatiently. He felt her thread her hands in his mane, and with a solid pull and a graceful leap, she was on his back.
He closed his eyes in delight at the feel of her legs around his barrel. He took a few slow steps until she moved with him and then he picked up speed until he was running through the night and she was laughing wildly with her body rocking against him with every stride.
Mak felt powerful as he ran along with his chosen mate on his back. She had the power to destroy towns and was large enough to consume humans whole, but she was trusting him to run with her and laughing like a delighted child the whole time.
He crossed the meadow in zigzag patterns until her giggles slowed and she hiccupped.
He stopped next to the bed of flowers, and she slipped off his back, landing on her butt in the grass. Mak shifted back and took her into his arms, helping her back to her feet. She felt so slight against him for something so powerful.
“Did you enjoy that?” He whispered it against her ear and watched her shiver. Her nipples hardened against his chest and his erection bucked in reaction.
“I did. The last time I rode a horse, I was fully clothed and using a saddle. This was much better.”
Mak smiled as she slowly wrapped her arms around him. Her hands ran up to his shoulders and down to his ass. When she wrapped a hand around his cock, he focussed on remaining calm while his heart pounded in his chest and his shaft jerked in her grip.
He could smell heat coming from her body. When she circled the head of his cock with her small, delicate fingers, he lost it.
He carefully pulled her hand from him and knelt in the flowers, pulling her to the bed of thickly woven petals. It was a silly talent, but right now, he was delighted that he had it.
Mak pressed her back to the flowerbed. Seeing her spread out in front of him, her eyes welcoming, his self-co
ntrol was tested to the limit. Distracting himself by caressing her breasts until she twisted under his palms wasn’t effective, neither was looking between her spread thighs and seeing the wet folds that were slick with wanting him.
He leaned down and parted her folds with his tongue, taking in the salty-sweet musk that was Dira alone. His senses delighted in the moans that she offered him, the high-pitched whine that was accompanied by her grabbing his head and holding on as soft contractions of her inner walls clasped his tongue. He continued to stroke his tongue from her opening up to her clit and back again until the arch of her body relaxed again.
With a groan of relief, he fitted his cock to her, and he thrust into her with a grunt. The hot, wet clasp of her was dizzying, and he started to count backward from a hundred as he rocked against her, trying to bring her back to the heights of arousal.
By the time he worked down to ten, she was gripping his shoulders, had her legs wrapped around his waist and she bit down on his chest as she came.
Oh, thank the first horn. He let his body go, and his cock jerked and flexed as he shouted loud enough to make Dira flinch. It felt like his balls had been turned inside out, and as the light danced behind his eyes, he grinned. He definitely wanted to do this again.
* * * *
Dira looked up into Mak’s face, and his grin was triumphant. She stroked his cheek and ran her hand through his hair. “You look smug.”
“I feel smug and satisfied and thoroughly content.” He eased off her and pulled her over him on the mat of flowers.
“I feel like I have a mate.”
He kissed her nose. “That you do.”
She smiled and stroked his chest, repairing some of the damage she had caused with her bite.
He looked down at her hand. “Aw, I wanted to wear that as a reminder.”
She blushed. “Sorry, when I am close, I get bitey.”
“I am getting that idea, and I don’t mind.” He squeezed her and she sighed.
Dawn was starting to peek through the trees, and Dira winced. “We were out all night?”
Dragon Around Page 4